Bacon's Rebellion

Selecting the facts that fit the narrative. George Mason University business school professor Brad N. Greenwood was the lead author of an academic article arguing that Black newborn babies are three times more likely to die if cared by for White doctors than Black doctors. Mainstream media jumped on the findings of systemic racial bias faster than a dog on a kitchen-counter steak. Now that study is under attack. Critics say that Greenwood and his co-authors did not adjust for the fact that high-risk, low birth-weight babies tend to be referred to specialists who happen to be predominantly White. Worse, Greenwood apparently suppressed a finding that White babies are also more likely to die if treated by White doctors. The Henrico-based Do No Harm organization obtained documents through the Freedom of Information Act showing that Greenwood wrote in the margin of a draft: “I’d rather not focus on this. If we’re telling the story from the perspective of saving black infants, this undermines the narrative.” Get the details in The Daily Caller.

From boxing gloves to brass knuckles. Governor Glenn Youngkin supposedly fired conservative businessman Bert Ellis from the University of Virginia Board of Visitors for ungentlemanly interactions with fellow board members and university administrators. But his replacement, former state Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, “could prove even more confrontational,” opines Jeff Schapiro in the Richmond Times-Dispatch. As AG, Schapiro recounts, the Cooch sued his alma mater (where he had earned an engineering degree) to obtain emails written by climatologist Michael Mann relating to a research project funded with state dollars. UVA fought the Freedom of Information Act request and won in the courts. The public may have forgotten the litigation, which occurred in the early 2000s, but Cuccinelli and UVA long-timers certainly have not. Personally, I’m hoping that the Cooch will join The Jefferson Council in fighting for transparency at UVA. Ellis donned boxing gloves in his sparring with UVA officialdom. If past is prologue, Cuccinelli will wear brass knuckles. That’s just what UVA needs, though not necessarily what Youngkin wants.

Paging Steve Haner… paging Steve Haner… Dominion Energy wants to boost its base rates by 13.9%, which could add $21 a month to a typical household’s electric bill by 2027. According to press reports, Dominion blames inflation and investments needed to reliably serve growing demand by data centers. How much do Virginia’s General Assembly-mandated net-zero carbon goals figure into the increase? If only Virginia had a journalist capable of cutting through the complexity and fog….