Bacon's Rebellion

  • Planes, Planes, Planes, and Some Space Ships

    Posted on

    by

    Dick Hall-Sizemore

    by Dick Hall-Sizemore

    Friday afternoon I visited the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum at Dulles Airport, officially known as National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.  It has been on my list of places to visit for a long time.  If you haven’t been, I heartily recommend it.

    As with anything the Smithsonian does, the number of objects on display is astounding. There are cavernous halls with planes and other aviation-related displays laid out all over the place—big planes, little planes, planes from the early 1900’s, modern planes, Nazi war planes, a Soviet MIG, satellites, a space shuttle.  In addition, there are almost as many planes suspended from the very high ceiling.  All of this can be viewed from three levels.

    For someone who is not an aviation aficionado, all these items tend to blend together fairly quickly.  It is almost impossible to take it all in in one day.  It is best to take small bites, which is what I plan to do.  I come to Northern Virginia frequently to visit my daughter and her family, so I can do that.  (Admission is free, but there is a $15 parking fee.)  If one can’t go back easily, but can devote most of one day to the facility, I recommend choosing a sunny day and take some lunch.  After spending a couple of hours or so in the facility, go outside, eat your lunch, and then go back in, with your mind somewhat rested from all the stimulation. (more…)

  • Troubled Times for Turtles: Habitat Loss, Poaching Threaten the Ancient Reptile in Virginia

    Posted on

    by

    Robin Beres


    by Bob Hurley

    The next time you see a turtle think of what life on Earth might have been like 220 million years ago.

    Turtles have been around for that long. They saw dinosaurs come and go; survived the Ice Age; and with their distinctive shells, have defended themselves against a variety of predators.

    And we need them. Turtles are important in balancing ecosystems. They protect water quality by removing harmful bacteria, like dead fish and animals. They control aquatic vegetation; cycle nutrients; and contribute to new plant growth by dispersing seeds. A decline in their population can signal problems for water quality or habitat loss.

    Today, their survival is threatened around the world and here in Virginia. The primary causes: unsustainable – and often illegal — capture and loss of habitat.

    “Turtles are this incredible legacy to the history of nature on Earth,” said Tom Akre, a Sperryville resident, who is a program scientist at the Conservation Ecology Center at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) in Front Royal. “They haven’t changed in 220 million years and are now the most endangered group of vertebrates on our planet, with 60 percent of species threatened,” he said. “Turtles are the most traded four-legged animal group in the world, and that is a big cause for their decline.” (more…)

  • All Rise for the Judge

    Posted on

    by

    Dick Hall-Sizemore

    Bernard Goodwyn, Chief Justice, Virginia Supreme Court. Photo credit: Richmond Times-Dispatch

    By Dick Hall-Sizemore

    The Commonwealth is unique in the nation in how it selects its judges.

    States use a wide variety of methods to select judges. Furthermore, many states use different methods to select judges at different levels. The National Center for State Courts, located in Williamsburg, by the way, has created a nice report showing how judges are selected in each state.

    Virginia is simple and consistent: all judges are selected by the legislature. It is the only state in which the legislature selects judges.

    For the sake of simplicity, I am limiting this discussion to state supreme courts. In many states, the judges of the highest court are elected. Some elections are partisan; others are nonpartisan. The other method commonly used is appointment by the governor from a list recommended by a judicial nomination commission with approval of the legislature required in some states. Judges so appointed usually have to run for retention when their terms are up. (more…)

  • Dionysian Rites at a Spotsylvania County School Board Meeting

    Posted on

    by

    sherlockj

    Dionysos, god of the theater and of the grape harvest

    by James C. Sherlock

    The FY 2023 budget for Spotsylvania County was $341,355,792.

    In increasing the 2022 budget, the Supervisors transferred an additional $5.8 million to schools to “Address the Commitment to Educational Opportunities.”

    That brought the total transfer to schools to $138,081,416 including that $5.8 million (4.4%) increase.

    It was pointed out offhandedly in that FY 2023 budget document that $5.65 million equated “to a little more than three pennies on the real estate tax rate.”

    Furthermore:

    Most recently in FY 2021, the Schools were allocated ARPA funding in the amount of $22.68 million which Schools’ staff expects to be spent over three fiscal years (FY 2022, FY 2023, and FY 2024) to enhance the learning environment, enhance instructional planning, and enhance learning and growth.

    But never mind.

    Last night, in what Fox5 described as a “chaotic and disruptive” school board meeting, teeth were reportedly gnashed and garments rent over a potential, not yet an actual, reduction of $5.2 million in state funding for Spotsylvania County schools in FY 2024.

    There were lots of interruptions and disagreement between the audience and school board members.

    The festival at the school board meeting had an ancient Greek tone to it. (more…)

  • What Would George Mason Say About GMU Protest?

    Posted on

    by

    Robin Beres

    by Kerry Dougherty

    We’re about to enter graduation season and you know what that means.

    Protests will break out at any college that dares to invite a conservative speaker. Not that many do. It’s become an annual rite of spring.

    Invite a speaker who’s wrapped in a rainbow flag, insists that women can have penises, and who’s a climate disciple and you’re good. But invite someone who wants to talk about patriotism, free markets and traditional American values and you’re asking for trouble.

    If you think woke nuts only inhabit California universities and the Ivies, think again. Triggered students at George Mason University in Fairfax recently objected to the presence of Gov. Glenn Youngkin at graduation on May 18. They launched a petition drive to keep the governor off the campus.

    Yep, snotty kids who attend a state school, underwritten in part by Virginia taxpayers, want to stick their fingers in their ears rather than hear what the governor has to say.

    How enlightened.
    (more…)

  • Buta Biberaj and the Political Weaponization of the Loudoun Commonwealth’s Attorney Office – Against Other Democrats and the Press

    Posted on

    by

    sherlockj

    Loudoun Commonwealth’s Attorney Buta Biberaj courtesy

    by James C. Sherlock

    Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney Buta Biberaj (D) has used the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the tool that opens up government to citizens, in an attempt to destroy political opponents and intimidate the press.

    Ms. Biberaj has admitted to investigating her political rivals using FOIA requests to view correspondences between county officials and local reporters.

    George Soros-funded Ms. Biberaj, with subpoena power through her grand juries, has not even alleged a crime.

    The requests have come not from her re-election campaign, but her government office.

    She was looking for “leaks.” From Democrats. To reporters. For which she is properly under attack. By Democrats. And reporters.

    Ms. Biberaj is beyond question guilty of an ethical breach.

    But by doing what she admits to having done she may have committed a Class 4 felony. (more…)

  • More Discouraging News for Virginia Student Test Scores

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    by James A. Bacon

    As recently as 2015, the percentage of Virginia high school graduates qualifying for college credit on at least one Advanced Placement test ranked third in the nation. In the 2021-2022 school year, according to data released by the College Board, Virginia’s percentage had fallen to 11th in the country, slipping two notches from the previous year.

    “Virginia’s 2021-2022 AP results are yet another sad reminder that when previous Administrations lowered expectations, Virginia’s children suffer,” said Secretary of Education Aimee Guidera in a press release. “The commonwealth must reverse the declines in the AP scores that have occurred over the last 10 years by restoring rigor and celebrating the achievements of our students.”

    The College Board also reported that 25.2% of 2022 graduating Virginia seniors earned a score of three or higher on at least one AP test, down from 26.9% for 2021 graduates, and from 30% for 2014 grads. (more…)

  • How To Really, Really Tick Off Fairfax Taxpayers

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    Screen shot from WJLA-7 April 4 report.

    People don’t understand!  These political leadership jobs are hard! It is a great sacrifice to serve, and it is only fair that the taxpayers contribute to the comfort and convenience of those of us working so hard for their better future.  They can be so ungrateful….

    Did that go through Fairfax Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay’s mind as he watched local WJLA-7 news kick him around like a rag doll yesterday for using a county car on personal business and, worse, political business? Or was it what should have gone through his mind:  How could I be so dumb and greedy and assume nobody would notice or care?

    This is not a new story, because it happens often and gets ratted out all the time.  This is not a partisan story, because this behavior crosses all lines. Lack of electoral competition does contribute to this way of thinking. This may not be a fatal blow for Democrat McKay, who as board chairman recently raised his pay from $100,000 to $138,000 per year (as the televised report helpfully reminds us.)

    No, this is a “when will they ever learn” story. People who don’t get the privilege of transportation with the entire bill paid by involuntary tax levies, people who must pay the hated car taxes and registration fees and fuel bills on their cars, tend to get irritated when they find out politicians (or any government employees) use public cars for tons of daily private business.

    Someone please forward this to the Internal Revenue Service. I know the folks at the Virginia Department of Taxation, and they can check to see if McKay’s valuable perk was declared for tax purposes. It is very much supposed to be. (more…)

  • Langley Looks to the Moon

    Posted on

    by

    Robin Beres

    by Robin Beres

    While mainstream media may be transfixed by the gutter politics going on in New York, exciting, uplifting events are happening in other parts of the nation — including in our very own little city of Hampton.

    Located on Hampton’s Langley Air Force Base just off the Chesapeake Bay, the Langley Research Center is NASA’s oldest field center. Established in 1917, the 764-acre facility consists of nearly 200 separate facilities and employs around 3,400 civil servants and contractors.

    In the early 1960s Langley was a top contender to be named NASA’s Mission Control Center for manned space flights. But because the Hampton facility was so close to Washington, and Hampton Roads was already home to both military and civilian aerospace and aviation communities, NASA selected Johnson Space Center in Houston over Langley.

    Although missing out on the Manned Spacecraft Center, Langley has nonetheless continued to play a vital role in the research and training that has made every space mission from Gemini I to Artemis successful. The historic research facility has had countless scientific breakthroughs and historic firsts. The first crews of astronauts were trained there. Langley’s Rendezvous and Docking Simulator trained both Gemini and Apollo astronauts. It is where the Apollo Lunar Module was tested.

    Scientists at the center were instrumental in the development of supersonic flight. Researchers there created the world’s first transonic wind tunnel and developed today’s international standard for grooved airport runways. And, if you saw the fabulous — and true — movie, Hidden Figures, you know that those incredible women worked at Langley.

    Today, Langley is very much involved in NASA’s plans to put humans on the moon — and eventually on Mars. The space agency’s Moon to Mars program is no longer just a dream or a science fiction story in Popular Mechanics. The Artemis space program is moving rapidly forward on several goals which include putting a base on the moon and eventually landing humans on Mars.
    (more…)

  • Virginia Very Low Income Housing Voucher Waiting Lists are Closed

    Posted on

    by

    sherlockj

    SeaView Lofts apartments in Newport News

    by James C. Sherlock

    Some things don’t change that should.

    Or don’t change fast enough to keep up with markets.

    Which means they will fail.

    From Virginia Housing’s discussion of the Housing Choice Voucher Program

    The Housing Choice Voucher Program is the federal government’s major program for assisting very low-income families, low-income families, the elderly, and the disabled to decent, safe, and affordable housing in the private market.

    Housing assistance is provided on behalf of the family or individual, and allows you to find housing (single-family homes, townhouses, mobile homes, and apartments) that that [sic] fits your needs.

    Or not.  From the Housing Choice Voucher Waiting List Portal

    We are sorry, but none of Virginia Housing waiting lists are currently open.

    That is the list for the entire Commonwealth.

    The program is broken. So, what is going on? (more…)

  • LifePoint Health Credit Ratings and Outlooks Signal Additional Challenges for its Virginia Hospitals

    Posted on

    by

    sherlockj

    LifePoint’s Sovah Danville Hospital

    by James C. Sherlock

    One thing I watch about companies in industries I cover is the ratings and outlooks on their credit.

    In my experience, the SEC’S three largest nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (NRSROs), Moody’s, S&P, and Fitch, tend to know as much about company finances as their boards do.

    Sometimes more.

    I recently wrote about management and staffing issues at Sovah Health hospitals in Danville and Martinsburg. Both are owned by privately held LifePoint Health, headquartered in Tennessee.

    Lifepoint also owns in Virginia:

    • Fauquier Hospital;
    • Clinch Valley Medical Center;
    • Twin County Regional Hospital; and
    • Wythe County Community Hospital.

    The rating agencies are not in love with LifePoint’s credit.

    Yes, it matters. (more…)

  • Personal Use of Campaign Funds–Some Clarifications

    Posted on

    by

    Dick Hall-Sizemore

    by Dick Hall-Sizemore

    James Sherlock has posted an article accusing the General Assembly of being “the only state that allows candidates to raise unlimited funds and spend that money on personal expenses.” He bases that accusation on the defeat of two bills:  HB 1952 in 2021 and SB 1471 in 2023.

    The accusation is misleading and the issue is more complex than he acknowledges.

    Currently, Sec. 24.2-948.4 of the Code of Virginia has this language: “It shall be unlawful for any person to convert any contributed moneys, securities, or like intangible personal property to his personal use or to the use of a member of the candidate’s ‘immediate family’ as that term is defined in § 30-101.” If that language seems familiar, it is because it is the same language quoted by Jim as being in the 2021 and 2023 bills. (more…)

  • Virginia Municipal Bond Issuers Face Higher Costs for Borrowing

    Posted on

    by

    sherlockj

    by James C. Sherlock

    People learn — and relearn- – things over time about investing.

    One of the things they have learned over the past three years about investing in municipal bonds, as with all bonds, is that, having experienced the effects of inflation risk for the first time in decades, they will want a higher coupon next time.

    Issuing new ones, especially revenue bonds, is likely to prove significantly more expensive than in the past few decades.

    Tough market.

    That chart is a little tough to read, but it shows that the annualized return on Virginia municipal bonds over the past three-year period is 0.17%.

    Total return, tax adjusted, was down 7.36% in calendar year 2022.  If you were a seller, the market price was down 36%.

    Using the muni market to fund local government projects and even non-governmental projects like hospital expansions that have access to the muni market will be more expensive, at least for a while.

    So, of course, will labor, land, construction-equipment leasing, and construction products and materials.

    Reflecting the higher costs to issuers, U.S. municipal securities issuance dropped 20%, from $483 billion in FY 21 to $387 billion in FY 22, while trading volume, reflecting nervous investors, nearly doubled over the same period. (more…)

  • Public Corruption Transacted in Public

    Posted on

    by

    sherlockj

    by James C. Sherlock

    Want that country club membership but don’t want to write the check for the initial membership fee?

    How about the down payment on a vacation home?

    Run for office in Virginia. Pay for it with campaign money. You don’t even have to win as long as you spend it during the campaign.

    And it’s legal.  Because it’s not illegal.  Just claim that both are meant to host campaign strategy sessions.  Donor confabs.  Anything.

    If you win, especially in one of Virginia’s single-party-dominated districts, you can do it every time you run.

    Sweet.

    Virginia is the only state that allows candidates to raise unlimited funds and spend that money on personal expenses. The only one.

    General Assembly Democrats and Republicans take turns killing legislation to change the law. Bipartisan at last.

    That is public corruption transacted in public.

    And they don’t care. (more…)

  • Richmond Gas Works Back on Energy Death Row?

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    Pending Termination

    by Steve Haner

    The Richmond City Council member seeking to kill Richmond Gas Works is finally asking her colleagues to put some money behind her dream, seeking a budget amendment to pay for a study on a path to ending the government-owned utility.

    Thus reports Patrick Larsen of Virginia Public Media, who wrote (and presumably also broadcast) on March 31 about Councilwoman Katherine Jordan’s request for $200,000 to be added to the next Richmond budget. This is about 18 months after she sponsored a successful council resolution committing the city to an anti-fossil-fuel future that would include ending the provision of natural gas to its residents.

    The city natural gas monopoly also has the exclusive right to serve all of Henrico County, much of Chesterfield County and even a part of Hanover County. Along with residential and commercial customers it also serves several major industries using natural gas in their manufacturing processes. Those outside city lines have had no vote in electing Richmond’s City Council.

    No state law requires the city to maintain its natural gas service, but contractual and debt obligations could complicate an effort to shut down the utility without selling it to another provider. Selling the physical assets and territory to another provider, very much a viable option, would not advance the goal of eliminating the use of natural gas to heat homes, cook food or run factories. (more…)

Now Available

Book cover of 'Dust Mites: A Second American Revolution' by James A. Bacon, featuring astronauts planting a flag with a blue and white emblem on a lunar landscape, with Earth visible in the background.
For sale on Amazon.com

The year: 2075. The American colonies on the Moon are getting restless under Washington’s tyrannical rule….

This second edition of “Dust Mites” has a snazzy new cover, includes helpful lunar maps, and is 5,000 words tighter than the original. The sequel, “Trogs,” is scheduled for publication this summer.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

About

Bacon’s Rebellion is Virginia’s leading politically non-aligned portal for news, opinions and analysis about state, regional and local public policy. Read more about us here.

Fund the Rebellion

Shake up the status quo! Your contributions will be used to pay for faster download speeds and grow readership. Make a one-time donation by credit card or contribute a small sum monthly.

Can’t wait until tomorrow

For your Bacon’s Rebellion fix?

Enter your email address to receive immediate notifications of new posts by email.

SUBSCRIBE

Search Bacon’s Rebellion

Categories

Archives

The Jefferson Council

Protecting Thomas Jefferson’s Legacy at the University of Virginia

Forgot Your Password?

Shoot me an email and I’ll generate a new password for you.

Latest