Tag: James A. Bacon
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Do CNBC ‘Best States for Business’ Rankings Mean Anything at All?
Last year, CNBC ranked Virginia as the 4th best state for business. However. as Dwayne Yancey observes at Cardinal News… Over the past year, Virginia has lost more jobs than [almost] any other state. Only two other states have lost jobs at a faster rate. Federal job cuts are a big driver, but not the…
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Let’s Not Forget to Celebrate Virginia’s FIRST Rebellion Against Tyrannical Rule
While everyone is going ga-ga over the 250th anniversary of the United States, Virginians need reminding that 2026 is the 350th anniversary of Bacon’s Rebellion. Preservation Virginia has not forgotten. The organization is sponsoring a series of events this summer, beginning with “Mapping the Dragon: An Indigenous History of Bacon’s Rebellion” today at 6:00 p.m.…
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Retail Theft in Virginia: $155 Per Resident Annually
Reports Forbes: “Retail theft is more prevalent and has a larger impact on retail businesses of all sizes in some states compared to others. According to our analysis, Washington state ranks as the state most impacted by retail crime, while Wyoming ranks as the least impacted.” The cost of theft was highest in the state…
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Soros’ Man in Virginia
Tom Perriello, Democratic Party candidate for Congress, in a May 6, 2026, email blast: And for the past 15+ years – ever since the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision opened the dark money floodgates – a network of corporate special interests and right-wing billionaires have been using unlimited funds to buy the election results they…
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A Victory for Transparency
The Richmonder wins FOIA lawsuit against School Board over redacted documents. From The Richmonder: The Richmond School Board improperly redacted documents related to an investigation into alleged misconduct by a school division employee, a Richmond Circuit Court judge ruled Wednesday. The documents are related to the departure earlier this year of Ronald “Bobby” Hathaway, the…
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A White Elephant, Perhaps. But Not the Ratepayers’ White Elephant.
Actually, ratepayers are not at risk for Charybdis — Dominion shareholders are. The ship was funded by Blue Ocean Energy Marine, a non-regulated utility. Dominion investors have every reason to question the business decision to build the vessel. Ratepayers should focus on the offshore wind farms Dominion is building and wants to build. Ratepayers will…
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Memphis Pork with Attitude
I spent the last weekend attending wedding celebrations in Memphis, Tenn. The city sells itself as the birthplace of the blues, an honorific to which it has a justifiable claim. The biggest tourist attractions are Graceland (Elvis’ abode), Beale Street (where BB King and other blues musicians played in nightclubs), the Civil Rights Museum at…
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And in Other Gun-Related News…
The Daily Signal reports: On Wednesday, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced a firearms manufacturer will leave the state of Virginia over new “anti-gun legislation” and relocate to Georgia, bringing a $22 million investment and employing hundreds of residents. … “This relocation was not something we originally planned to pursue. The reality is that recent anti-gun legislation in…
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A Lesson from Amsterdam
A transportation infrastructure built around the primacy of bicycles works OK for the Dutch, but Virginians would never accept it. by James A. Bacon Amsterdammers love their bicycles. They ride their two-wheelers in the sun, in the drizzle and in the rain. They bedeck them in flowers and deck them out with baskets. Like the…
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“Death to America”
The event was not registered as required by university policy. But Virginia Tech allowed it to proceed unimpeded at McBryde Hall, Room 202.
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Maintaining the Narrative: Lies by Omission
Question: Has a Virginia newspaper, TV station or public radio station yet reported on the DOJ allegations against the Southern Poverty Law Center funding of racist groups? Copilot: No Virginia-based newspaper, TV station, or public radio outlet has yet published coverage of the DOJ’s April 2026 indictment of the Southern Poverty Law Center. As of late…
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Did Anti-Hate Group Infiltrate the Unite the Right Rally?
Between 2014 and 2023, the Department of Justice alleged in indictments filed yesterday, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) funneled more than $3 million in donated funds to individuals associated with violent extremist groups including the Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nations, and National Socialist Party of America. SPLC, which tracks “hate” groups nationally, allegedly paid…
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Say NO to Deceptive Ads
What’s this? Governor Abigail Spanberger opposes the gerrymandering amendment to the state constitution? That’s sure what it looks like in this mailer from the Justice for Democracy PAC that arrived in my mailbox yesterday. The flier never actually says that she opposes the amendment, which is slated for a referendum vote in April. Indeed, look…
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Nuts & Bolts: Modernizing State Cyber-Security
At least three Virginia government entities — Albemarle County, Gloucester County, and the Office of the Attorney General — were subjected to ransomware attacks in 2025. In my most recent Oinkonomics podcast, Secretary of Finance Steve Cummings touched upon the Youngkin administration’s approach to cyber-security. — JAB Cummings: My former life was a banker. My last stop…
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Nuts & Bolts: Modernizing State IT Systems
In my last Oinkonomics podcast, I asked former Secretary of Finance Steve Cummings to discuss the commonwealth’s travails in upgrading its financial information systems. In the glory days of Virginia journalism, reporters could have mined these remarks for a half dozen articles. Today? Government-efficiency stories don’t generate clickthroughs, so they don’t get written. — JAB…