Tag: Dick Hall-Sizemore
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You Want to Teach? Wait in Line.
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Last September, Governor Youngkin issued an executive directive addressing teacher shortages in Virginia. That directive laid out numerous actions to be taken by the Superintendent of Public Instruction and other agency heads with regard to reducing the teacher shortage. In his remarks upon releasing the directive, he called the actions “transformational.” It…
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Too Much Sulfur Dioxide? Ah, Don’t Worry, It’s Just a Little Fine
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Today’s Richmond Times-Dispatch has a story that illustrates the importance and need for vigorous local journalism, while also illustrating the limitations of local journalism due to the lack of seasoned reporters and editors. The story deals with the violation of environmental regulations by a chemical plant in Hopewell. The plant, a cornerstone…
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Planes, Planes, Planes, and Some Space Ships
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…
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All Rise for the Judge
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…
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Personal Use of Campaign Funds–Some Clarifications
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…
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Alternative Energy Picking Up Steam
by Dick Hall-Sizemore No matter how much some on this blog protest, the move to alternative energy sources is picking up momentum across the country. I was in South Carolina last week visiting my brother. Pictured is a large array of solar panels adjacent to a huge Walmart distribution center. An electrical co-op also had…
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Virginia’s S.O.B
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Virginia’s state flag is a S.O.B. This is the derogatory term used by vexillologists, people who study flags (who knew there were such people?), to designate state flags that are “Seals On a Blanket.” According to the North American Vexillological Association (NAVA), such flags are “objectively terrible.” The Commonwealth is in good…
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Correction on Departure of Balow
by Dick Hall-Sizemore In comments to the post about the resignation of Jillian Balow as Superintendent of Public Instruction and her severance pay, I asserted that her appointment was subject to the pleasure of the Governor. I was wrong. The heads of almost all agencies, by law, serve at the pleasure of the Governor. (There…
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You’re Fired!
by Dick Hall-Sizemore So, what almost everyone suspected is now confirmed: Governor Youngkin fired his Superintendent of Public Instruction, Jillian Balow. However, to avoid embarrassment over having to fire his own hand-picked state leader of public education, the governor asked her to resign, instead. She agreed to do so in exchange for a payout of…
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Another Virginia National Champion
Because I have been highlighting Virginia collegiate teams that have been in the national spotlight lately, here is another one to add to the list: The UVa women’s swimming and diving team won its third consecutive national Division I championship over the weekend. Senior Kate Douglass won three individual events in NCAA, American, and U.S.…
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CNU Wins National Championship!
The Christopher Newport University basketball team is the national Division III champion! It was an exciting finish. With the game tied and 4.3 seconds left, Trey Barber of CNU drove about 60 feet into the lane and put up a shot. The game-ending buzzer sounded just after the ball left his hand on its way…
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A Virginia Team in the Championship Game
by Dick Hall-Sizemore During this time of year, the sports world is fixated on the NCAA Division I basketball tournament. Richmond fans give the VCU Rams a big sendoff. Hokie fans cheer their top-seeded women’s team. UVa. alumni die a little bit inside when the Cavaliers lose to Furman in the last seconds. Despite being…
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On to Richmond!
by Dick Hall-Sizemore For all those Northern Virginia critics of Richmond on this blog, e.g. Don Rippert, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported yesterday that the Richmond metro area has grown faster than Northern Virginia for two years in a row. In fact, the growth rate of the Richmond metropolitan area is at least triple that of…
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Election Musical Chairs
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Redistricting and the death of U.S. Representative Donald McEachin have voters in the Richmond area feeling as if they are in a combination of musical chairs and “Who’s on first?” We need a program to keep track of who is running for what. For those readers of Bacon’s Rebellion who don’t read…
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A New 800-Pound Gorilla in Virginia Politics
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Ivy Main, in a recent commentary in the Virginia Mercury, identified a change in the power dynamic of Virginia politics that is taking place: “Amazon is the new Dominion.” Amazon’s presence in the Commonwealth has grown significantly over the past decade. It has taken place in three areas— distribution facilities, the second…