Bacon's Rebellion

  • AI Comes For That All-Important Christmas Card Photo

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A man and a woman in Santa costumes sit at a table outdoors, holding mugs and wearing sunglasses. A small dog is sitting in the man's lap, and there are orange trees in the background.

    by Kerry Dougherty

    Every summer I beg my family to pose for a group shot on the beach wearing Santa hats.

    It would be such a cute Christmas card picture, I insist.

    They stubbornly refuse to cooperate, so I’m stuck trying to get that perfect picture four weeks before Christmas.

    It never works. Someone closes their eyes, someone looks away, someone else frowns.

    As we move into the holiday season lots of folks have the same simple dream. They long for a single family photograph where the whole gang is looking at the camera. Smiling in unison and in matching clothes without stains. And wouldn’t it be nice if the family dog wasn’t admiring his private parts at the very moment the shutter clicks?

    Too much to ask?

    Not any more.

    The Wall Street Journal’s tech editor, Nicole Nguyen wrote a piece yesterday headlined, “I Fixed My Bad Family Photos. Here’s How to Do It—and When to Stop. New AI-powered tools from Google, Adobe, Apple and others can improve group shots and fun selfies. They can also make them terrifying.”

    Continue reading.

  • About Those Jobs Americans Don’t Want to Do….

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    How many are jobs the American education system just isn’t training them to do?

    How many of the jobs that Virginians “don’t want to do” are jobs that Virginia’s K-12 system doesn’t prepare them for?

  • Gas Approval Infuriates a Huge Donor to Democrats, Elates Another

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    by Steve Haner,

    Rendering of Chesterfield project from Dominion’s public website.

    The State Corporation Commission (SCC) was able to approve Dominion Energy Virginia’s application for a needed natural gas generation facility because the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) includes a safety valve. If energy reliability is threatened, the prohibitions on natural gas at the heart of that law can be waived. 

    One of the largest donors to the new Democratic political trifecta soon to take power in Richmond quickly threatened to seek that provision’s removal from the law. In response to the SCC’s November 25 final order in favor of the Chesterfield County plant, the activist and lobbying group Clean Virginia wrote: “If this is the decision the Commission came to under existing rules, then it is upon Virginia’s elected leaders to better align these rules with the interests of all Virginians.” 

    Clean Virginia gave more than $5 million to Democratic candidates in the November 4 election, half of that total to the newly elected governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general. Lieutenant Governor-elect Gazala Hashmi ($300,000 from Clean Virginia) quickly put out her own statement complaining the Commission was “ignoring the Commonwealth’s policy on environmental justice, endangering the public health and safety…” Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger ($1.2 million from Clean Virginia) did not issue a statement.   

    An even larger donor responsible for helping Democrats take complete political control will be on the other side of any effort to skuttle that part of the VCEA. Dominion gave $8.7 million to the party’s candidates, with the money targeted to members of the legislature. Speaker of the House Don Scott of Portsmouth and his political committee received $2.35 million from Dominion.  

    (more…)

  • Jeanine’s Memes

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A split image comparing childhood activities in 1970 and 2025: the top shows children riding in the back of a vintage Dodge pickup truck, while the bottom features toddlers in protective gear playing in a sandbox with colorful buckets.

    See more memes at The Bull Elephant

  • Bacon Meme of the Week

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Close-up image of crispy bacon strips with a humorous text overlay that reads, 'THERE IS NO "WE" IN BACON. SO DONT EVEN ASK.'

  • Apology

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    I have deleted a post, based upon a tweet on X, highlighting the teaching of a course on “whiteness” at the University of Virginia based on an article in UVA Today. That article was published in 2014, hence irrelevant to current-day controversies. Thanks to commenter Irrwuz for pointing that out. I am embarrassed by the oversight. My apologies to readers. — JAB

  • Cultural Imperialism in Fairfax County

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

  • Derangement Update

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Two mugshot images side by side showing two men with different hairstyles and expressions.
     John Wilson Bennett (left) and Mark Booth Bennett

    From The Virginia Mercury:

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday announced the arrests of two Virginia brothers accused of plotting violent attacks on Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents — a case that immediately drew national attention amid the ongoing immigration crackdown and heightened threats against federal law enforcement.

    John Wilson Bennett and his brother, Mark Booth Bennett, both U.S. citizens, were taken into custody last week. 

    According to DHS, the investigation began Nov. 17 after an off-duty Norfolk police officer overheard the men discussing plans to “kill police officers and ICE agents.” Authorities say Mark Bennett also talked about meeting “likeminded individuals” in Las Vegas to buy firearms equipped with explosive rounds.

    John Bennett has served as Assistant Principal of Kempsville High School in Virginia Beach since 2009.

    (more…)

  • A Thanksgiving Tribute to Governor Youngkin

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A man in a suit carving a turkey, smiling at a Thanksgiving gathering, with festive decorations in the background.
    Image credit: Grok

    by Srilekha Reddy Palle

    This Thanksgiving, I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to Governor Glenn Youngkin and his administration. My passion for politics and policymaking intensified significantly during his campaign, and I am proud to say I was among those who believed in him even before the primaries. During those early days, I introduced him to the Indian American community and later to the broader Asian American community.

    During the height of the TJ Coalition efforts—when many parents and community members were closely watching merit-based education issues—I arranged a meet-and-greet for him at TEJ Restaurant in Herndon. At that event, I asked him directly: If you win the election, will you appoint us to the Asian Advisory Board so that we can continue advocating for these issues?
    He gave his word — and he kept it. I remain deeply grateful that he appointed me to the Board, demonstrating once again that promises made are promises kept, just as we have seen with President Trump.

    Hundreds of thousands of parents in Northern Virginia supported Governor Youngkin because he championed a return to merit-based principles in education, jobs, and public institutions. His leadership ensured that race-based divisiveness did not deepen — and for that, we are thankful.

    Despite serving his entire term with a Democrat-controlled General Assembly, he delivered strong, measurable results, including:

    (more…)

  • No, Health Care Is Not a “Fundamental Right”

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Bernie Sanders isn’t “lying,” as Delegate Nick Freitas, R-Culpeper, says here. The Vermont socialist believes what he says. Rather, he’s confused about what constitutes a “fundamental right.” However, Freitas nails it when he explains that a fundamental right such as free speech, freedom of religion, etc., does not entitle you to the property and labor of others without which government-sponsored healthcare is impossible. — JAB

  • Let’s Hope the Fiscal Prudence Lasts

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

  • Publication of 2024 “Crime in Virginia” Data a Half Year Late

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A list of annual publications related to crime statistics in Virginia, organized by year from 2000 to 2023.
    Source: Virginia State Police as of November 26.

    For years the Virginia State Police has published its annual “Crime in Virginia” report each May detailing the number of violent crimes, non-violent crimes, arrests, hate crimes, officer-involved shootings, and other crime-related data for the commonwealth. Then something strange happened last year: The 2023 report came out late — in August, as I recall.

    This year, something even stranger is occurring. Here it is, nearly December, and the 2024 report has yet to be released. What the H-E-double hockey sticks is going on?

    I asked Robin Lawson, public relations director for the Virginia State Police, why the report has not been released. Her response:

    “It is still under review by Administration.”

    I’m sure Lawson is just repeating what she’s been told, but this is totally unacceptable.

    (more…)

  • The Great “Affordability” Debate

    Posted on

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    James A. Bacon

  • Redistricting Roulette

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Close-up of a roulette wheel with a white ball resting on the edge of the betting area.

    by David J. Toscano

    “Unprecedented” and “outrageous” were the words most often heard in response to Texas Republicans’ attempted mid-cycle redraw of congressional maps to boost GOP odds of keeping control of the U.S. House after the midterms. Now, a federal district court has concluded that the legislature’s new plan is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander—placing the strategy in jeopardy and leaving Republicans wondering whether this power play was worth the trouble.

    Reading Judge Jeffrey Brown’s opinion brought back memories of my time in the Virginia General Assembly, including my years as House Democratic leader. Brown, a Trump appointee, cited the Virginia case that overturned the Virginia GOP’s 2011 redistricting plan to underscore his conclusion that Texas Republicans relied on race in drawing their maps. The parallels between the two states are striking.

    The Virginia Precedent

    When Virginia Republicans drew the 2011 maps, they controlled the governorship and both legislative chambers—conditions like those in Texas today. Unlike Texas, however, Democrats in Virginia regularly won statewide races, including those for Governor and every presidential contest since 2008. Despite this statewide success, Republicans maintained large majorities in the Virginia House for years, aided by a partisan and racially discriminatory gerrymander. Much of this can be traced to the GOP’s national strategy after Barack Obama’s 2008 victory. Republicans invested heavily in winning state legislatures so they could shape congressional redistricting. And they succeeded. In Virginia, the 2011, 2013, and 2015 House elections were conducted using maps designed to entrench GOP control. In 2016, the GOP held a 66-34 majority in the Virginia House.

    (more…)

  • The Coming Madness…

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

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.

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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.

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