A post on the Cabiness website reads:

Councilman DeSteph was incorrect in his presumption to speak for all of the people of Virginia Beach, and Virginia, and quickly backed down from pushing the city council to support a resolution when confronted with the fact that he had overstepped his authority and misused the City’s letterhead.

Why then is this letter (and letterhead) still on DeSteph’s campaign website as the number one item under current initiatives? Is this yet another example of DeSteph’s mismanagement and poor decision making as a member of the Virginia Beach City Council?

Read Entire Post

As I’ve said before, Bill DeSteph does not speak for me, and was way out of line by thinking he could speak for the citizens of Virginia Beach, and all of Virginia.

Related posts:

1. Mayor Sessoms and Vice-Mayor Jones Need to Go
2. My Letter to Senator Webb Regarding “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
3. Yes, This is an Election Year

Watch Video

Watch Video

Related posts:

1. Senator Warner to Headline Rally for Glenn Nye on August 25th
2. Mark Warner believes in Creigh Deeds
3. Rep. Glenn Nye to Participate in a Community Discussion

In an earlier post, I wrote:

It’s about time that we got to the actual legal argument for marriage equality. Beyond the rhetoric of the breaking of traditions and the right to love, which may win hearts and minds on both sides of this issue, I’ve always felt that the focus was somewhat misplaced. While it may not be as sexy, to me targeting discriminatory marriage laws required the consistent emphasis on the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution. Anytime I have been in conversations or written about the issue in favor of gay marriage, I have invoked this amendment.

Lanae Erickson, of Third Way’s Culture Program, wrote on Politico:

First, advocates must reframe the conversation. Over the past decade, we have often phrased our arguments in terms of rights and benefits — appeals that are sometimes persuasive when it comes to legal arrangements like domestic partnerships and civil unions. But rights and benefits aren’t the way most couples see their relationships, especially marriage. Marriage is about lifetime commitment, responsibilities and obligations. If we can persuade people in the middle that gay couples want to get married for those reasons — not simply to gain a list of legal rights and benefits — we’ll connect with them in a far deeper way.

Maybe I missed the point in my post? Maybe I jumped the shark in pushing for a shift in focus. It could very well be that we have a much more difficult battle winning the hearts and minds of people than we have with arguing the unconstitutionality of laws against gay marriage.

Any thoughts?

Related posts:

1. Magnifying the 14th Amendment in the Argument for Marriage Equality
2. Google to compensate same-sex couples for discriminatory taxes
3. Reflecting on the National Equality March

The rally will take place next Wednesday, August 25th, at Green Run High School in Virginia Beach. The event starts at 4:00 PM. Click here for a map and directions.

Glenn Nye faces Republican Scott Rigell and independent Kenny Golden in this year’s midterm election.

No related posts.

Those obnoxious Facebook users who collect friends like stamps and post a status update every other minute are more likely to stick it through college than less active users, a recent study suggests.

A study led by Abilene Christian University followed the Facebook profiles of 375 first-semester freshman students for nine months to examine how Facebook activity can be used as a predictor for a student’s likelihood to stay in school. The research found that students who returned to school after freshman year had significantly more Facebook friends and wall posts than those who didn’t return.

Read Entire Article at Wired.

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1. Buzz about Google Buzz
2. Opposition to Obama’s speech to students indicates desperation among conservatives
3. Become a fan of Virginia Beach Progressives

“Brace yourselves, folks. Not only have the state’s Republicans hypocritically refused to acknowledge the importance of federal stimulus money to saving vital state services, but Bob McDonnell has promised once more to enlarge on the lie that the state budget has a surplus, promising reporters, “I’ll see you Thursday,” the day I fully expect him to tout the “enlargement” of the so-called surplus to about $400 million. Well, let’s look at that “surplus” the way a teacher of math might.”

Read Entire Post over at Blue Virginia

Related posts:

1. Recovery Act Funds Helped Virginia Balance Its Budget
2. McDonnell’s Shell Game
3. McDonnell’s Budget Raises Taxes for Working Families

Watch Video

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1. Rep. Glenn Nye to Participate in a Community Discussion
2. Mr. Deity and the Quitter
3. A New View of Thomas Jefferson

Fiscal relief funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) continue to be a key element in helping Virginia balance its budget, according to a new report by The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis.

“Recovery Act funds helped Virginia avoid deeper cuts in key services like health care, education, and public safety,” said Michael Cassidy, President and CEO of The Commonwealth Institute.  In a new report released today, The Commonwealth Institute documents how enhanced Medicaid matching funds, additional federal funds for education and public safety and flexible federal fiscal stabilization funds filled over 15 percent of the shortfalls facing the current state budget and 25 percent of the shortfalls in the previous one. The report also shows the breakout of fiscal relief funding by budget area.

“Virginia will receive a total of about $2.5 billion in fiscal relief funds from the Recovery Act,” explained Cassidy. “The General Assembly used $1.6 billion of this funding to fill Virginia’s FY2008-2010 budget gap, leaving $870 million to help meet Virginia’s FY2010-2012 budget needs.  This funding helped close 16 percent of the budget shortfall and helped avoid further cuts to key areas like health care, education, and public safety.”
This report comes as Governor McDonnell is set to address the General Assembly’s budget committees August 19 on the current status of Virginia’s budget.  “As we continue to grapple with the impacts of the recession, it’s important to recognize that significant amounts of federal assistance from the Recovery Act have helped soften some of the fiscal blow from cratering state revenues and recession-related increases in the demand on state services, but the state has a long way to go before its budgets are back in healthy shape,” says Cassidy.

The complete report is available online at www.thecommonwealthinstitute.org.

More information on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act can be found at www.recovery.gov.

Related posts:

1. McDonnell’s Budget Raises Taxes for Working Families
2. McDonnell’s Shell Game
3. Tell Bob McDonnell that NRA lesson plans don’t belong in our classrooms

After months of Scott Rigell refusing to share the stage with Kenny Golden, and Glenn Nye refusing to debate without the independent candidate, Rigell’s campaign finally changed their position, allowing for this debate to happen.

This could be the only opportunity to see all three candidates for congress on stage at once, and I highly recommend coming out to Princess Anne High School tomorrow, August 19th, for the 7:00 PM event.

I’ll be live blogging right here on Virginia Beach Progressives for those who aren’t able to make it out to the debate.

Related posts:

1. LIVE BLOG: 2nd Congressional District Debate TODAY at 6:30 PM
2. Scott Taylor launches campaign for 2nd district congressional seat
3. It’s Time to Work

<a href=”http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=6c913d5807″ mce_href=”http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=6c913d5807″ >2nd Congressional District Debate</a>

Related posts:

1. Scott Taylor launches campaign for 2nd district congressional seat
2. Little heat in the debate between Bouchard and Stolle
3. Recount in the 21st District will be December 14th

Now, the Affordable Care Act; that’s different. I’m not talking about actual health insurance reform passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama. I’m talking about Obamacare, as a word…as a negative euphemism that conservative candidates have dropping from their lips with a tone that should be reserved for the vilest of things; which, for most people, might be something like the never ending kicking of cute puppies. For these conservatives, it’s the availability of health care to people who otherwise couldn’t afford it. It’s the end of the ruination of lives for the lack of health insurance.

It’s not health insurance reform, or how the law will help people, that conservatives are rallying against. It’s the evil, socialist, Marxist, communist, (ambiguous) Obamacare. They have effectively summed up their disgust for the Obama Administration and the historic accomplishment of health insurance reform with rhetoric of a single concocted word. Obamacare. The message is clear: Obamacare is evil, and must be repealed. It’s so simple, even those like Sharron Angle (unbelievably Harry Reid’s opponent in November), can effectively repeat it over, and over, and over.

Just watch how Sharron Angle answers a question about not appearing on the Rachel Maddow Show:

Watch Video

Did you see how her face lit up, as if just saying the word “Obamacare” was some sort of power play? I wonder how many times she says it during a day. I wonder if she is lulled to sleep at night by a recording of softly whispered, “Obamacare, Obamacare, Obamacare.”

Conservatives like Sharron Angle need to either rise up to the actual debate and call things by their proper name, or they need to go back to the kiddie pool. Let’s stop using made up words. If you want to repeal access to insurance, and thus health care, for those with pre-existing conditions, then debate that point. If you hate the idea of college students remaining on their parents’ insurance longer, then tell us why. If you abhor that the uninsured and self-employed can purchase insurance via a competitive national exchange, then offer up some possible options. Stop oversimplifying and pandering to those you’re continually prodding with a hot poker just to keep them angry. F#ck Obamacare, let’s have a real debate.

Related posts:

1. Health Care Reform at Your Fingertips
2. Political Cowardice: Public Option Opt Out Option
3. Senate moves forward on health care reform debate

On this issue, I agree with Governor Bob McDonnell. You won’t hear me say that often, but the Governor and our Hampton Roads Congressional delegation, including Congressman Glenn Nye, have joined together in opposing the closure of JFCOM.

I’m no expert on military operations, but from what I have read, heard, and understood about JFCOM, this command is crucial to our military operations throughout the world. Over at Blue Virginia, Dan Sullivan explains why JFCOM is critical.

The Virginian-Pilot has an editorial describing the “Dangerous winds in JFCOM closure.”

Related posts:

1. Virginia Democrats Vote in Support of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Repeal
2. Scott Rigell FAILS question on New GI Bill
3. From the State of the Union to action: “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” targeted

All the evidence shows that this November we’re facing a change election, just as we did in 2008. A recent Washington Post poll found a stunning result: 26 percent of registered voters are inclined to support their current Congressional representative, whereas 62 percent are inclined to “look for someone new.” The large majority of the electorate are going to uninterested or unpersuaded in someone who is operating from a premise they don’t buy–in this case, touting a status quo economy because it “has started to create private sector jobs. – Mike Signer

Read Mike Signer’s entire post over at the Huffington Post.

Related posts:

1. PPP: Deeds has lost 25% of the liberal electorate
2. Bill Fleming Running Grassroots Campaign for the 8th Senate District
3. The night may be long

It still is; however, I find that a large portion of what I work on these days isn’t either exciting enough to share or I’m just not able to share it. A good friend of mine warned me that I would inevitably reach a crossroads where as I delved deeper into politics, the less I would be able to blog about what I was doing.

On some level, she was right. It is limiting. However, there is much I feel I can share, and should. Perhaps removing whatever qualifications I’m using to classify something as exciting enough to blog about will allow to me write more.

Changes to Virginia Beach Progressives

If you’re a frequent visitor, which most aren’t, you’ll notice that I’ve once again removed the Google Ads from the site. I had hoped that the ads would cover the cost of operating the site; however, it’s clear I’m not driving enough traffic to justify taking up space with them, so they’ve been nixed. I wasn’t expecting Virginia Beach Progressives to generate a second income, but I had hoped to have it pay for itself. As Vivian Paige wrote a few days ago, “Blog because you have something to say. Stop worrying about trying to make money at it.” Amen, sister…Amen.

I’ve also reduced the number of posts shown on the home page so that it doesn’t seem so wild. Secondarily, it covers up the fact that some of the posts still on display were from a long, long, time ago. Reducing the number of posts shown shines a spotlight on the most current content, which I hope to keep current in the future.

There was a drop-down menu that served as my blog roll. I’ve moved this list to it’s own page titled Recommended Reading. I, well, recommend you check out the list of blogs there, and add their feeds to your rss reader or however else you keep up with blogs. I’ll be adding to the list soon, so check back in the next week or so for new additions.

Also new to Virginia Beach Progressives are great links under Resources on the menu bar. The linked sites are valuable tools for anyone wanting to keep up with political financial disclosures, election results, and ongoing legislation in Virginia.

I’ve also carved out a little niche of the blog to share more personal notes, like this one. The area is called, creatively, On a Personal Note.

Current Challenges

Currently, I’m trying to balance work, school, and politics. I started classed at Old Dominion University in June, and am wrapping up my final week of the current term, with only a final in statistics left to conquer. It’s been a few years since I’ve been in school, but I’ve been really happy with how things went this term. If all goes well, I’ll be a junior starting in the fall. I’m studying Political Science. It’s a shocker, I know. If all goes well, I should be graduating in 2013, a full 10 years since I graduated high school. It’s certainly been an interesting ten years.

In the fall, I hope to get an internship approved for being the campaign manager for James Cabiness for City Council.?So far, it’s been a good experience, and very eye opening. Local politics is very different from statewide or national. Sometimes it’s hard to know who your friends are. The internship would give me more time to work on the campaign, and earn college credit at the same time. Things are just getting exciting as we’re building business leader support and planning the campaign kick-off for later this month.

I’ve jumped back into focusing on taking better care of myself, eating better, and working out. It’s been a challenge to fit this into a busy schedule, but I’m pretty happy with my progress so far. I’ve even taken to cooking breakfast and brewing my own coffee in the morning, instead of relying on McDonald’s, a vice of mine. For the first time ever, I have worked out every day for the last week. I’ve definitely seen improvement in this short period of time, and plan to push through to even more improvement as time goes on. Melanie Jones, who left me and moved to San Francisco, clued me in to what looks like a fun event next August, The Big Gay 10K in San Francisco. I think eying this event will give me some motivation to get into better shape to go out and have fun for a good cause. Of course, it would be great to see Melanie again too! Here’s to a year of prep to run well, and look good, next August for this event!

Related posts:

1. PPP: Deeds has lost 25% of the liberal electorate
2. A Year of Virginia Beach Progressives

Ken Cuccinelli is the kind of cooky politician that keeps on giving. Luckily, the Internet provides a great record for anyone to rummage through if he, say, runs for Governor in 2013.

Watch Video

* It’s been pointed out that the video posted includes a reference “Draft Chap”, something I missed when I first viewed the video. I just want to say that I do not at this time endorse Chap Peterson as a potential candidate for Governor of Virginia in 2013, or any other candidate for that matter.

Related posts:

1. Recount in the 21st District will be December 14th

Cartoon by Plante, Tulsa World

No related posts.

Specifically, any law or state constitutional amendment limiting marriage to only those of the opposite sex violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. This clause states:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

We wouldn’t, in this day and age, prohibit women from being issued a gun permit. According to the Constitution, the states must issue these licenses without regard for the gender of those who apply for a permit. Where then is the legal argument for prohibiting marriage licenses based on gender? Isn’t this a violation on par with prohibiting women from being issued permits for guns? There isn’t a valid legal argument, and any state prohibiting gays and lesbians from marrying are in violation of the US Constitution, including Virginia.

As a nation, we are slow to learn from the mistakes of our past. Instead, we have to chisel through each layer of discrimination individually until we arrive at a tipping point where there aren’t any more valid arguments for that continued discrimination, real or perceived. I hope that we’re arriving at that point now, where the fear-mongering of those against gays and lesbians marry is seen for what it is; merit-less.

The fabulous news is that we’re getting closer to a more perfect equality in the United States. In my view, LGBT equality is a very large part of our nation’s continuing evolution to be a more perfect union. The groundwork for this is already laid out in the 14th Amendment. We just need to ensure that this is the basis for our work, at least on par with showing our fellow citizens that we aren’t some sort of degraded class of people needing to be hidden in the shadows and forgotten about. We’re Americans, we love and serve our nation, and we want to participate in the American Dream without the limits imposed on us based on who we happen to love.

Related posts:

1. Google to compensate same-sex couples for discriminatory taxes
2. For GLBT equality, a coalition must be built
3. Reflecting on the National Equality March

This isn’t the first time this has happened to me.

During his 2009 Campaign, Republican Governor Bob McDonnell told Virginians that he had a plan to improve transportation that he would implement once elected, making it a high priority. Since taking office in January, he’s failed to do anything beyond patch potholes.

Virginia needs a comprehensive plan, and a way to pay for improved transportation. It’s crucial that we make the significant investment needed, and the reality is that raising the gas tax is going to need to be a part of the plan to raise revenue for this investment.

Virginia has not increased the gas tax since 1986, and funding for transportation can’t keep up with today’s demand, and will certainly not be adequate for the demand of tomorrow. Instead of building new roads and transportation systems, we’re filling pot holes and making other repairs. Because of this, we stand to lose billions of federal matching dollars for new road construction because we, as a state, are not investing enough of our funds to need new construction.

I’m tired of twenty minute drives that take an hour to complete, and spending multiple hours on the road and not getting to my destination. We need a plan, and we need funding for that plan.

For every cent in gas taxes, approximately $50 million dollars is raised for transportation. Raising the gas tax by 10 cents a gallon means an additional $500 million in revenue for transportation per year.

Let’s let Governor McDonnell know that we’re willing to make the investment into improving transportation in Virginia. Join with me in sending Governor McDonnell 10 cents for every gallon of gas you purchase per month.

Here’s Governor McDonnell’s address:

Office of the Governor
Patrick Henry Building, 3rd Floor
1111 East Broad Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219

If you’re on Facebook, join the Ten Cents for Transportation group, and share your commitment to investing in the future of transportation in Virginia.

Related posts:

1. Bob McDonnell forgets about transportation
2. Deeds WAPO editorial clarifies his transportation plan
3. Washington Post: Endorsement of Creigh Deeds comes down to transportation, again

“This is, of course, utter nonsense. Cleaning up the Bay will protect farmers by ensuring they have a clean water source for their crops. Moreover, a clean Chesapeake Bay will protect other critical jobs here in the Commonwealth. Watermen need a clean Bay for their fishing businesses to prosper. Tourism depends on access to clean unpolluted waters.”

Senator McEachin continued, “Pollution in the Bay comes from numerous sources including subdivision runoff, and large “point-source” polluters such as power plants. No legislator has tried to implicate farmers as the primary perpetrators. Delegate Gilbert is attempting to do what Republican politicians like him often try to do – scare people to distract them from the important issue, in this case, ensuring that Virginians and their families have access to a clean and unpolluted Chesapeake Bay.

“And we await Governor Bob McDonnell’s position. Does he accept the huge amount of scientific evidence for climate change or doesn’t he? Does he want to clean up the Chesapeake Bay or doesn’t he? Is he waiting for a poll to reveal his position to him? Delegate Gilbert seems to think that Governor McDonnell is in favor of allowing continued pollution of the Bay. I call on the Governor to demonstrate leadership, acknowledge the facts and ensure that the Bay is maintained for future generations.

“ It’s time for Virginia Republicans to stop railing against the facts and against the needs of the Commonwealth. As EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said, ‘A better solution would be to join the vast majority of the American people who want to see more green jobs, more clean energy innovation, and an end to the oil addiction that pollutes our planet and jeopardizes our national security.’”

The Senator concluded, “ Virginia Republican leaders need to stop playing politics with our future and our children’s and grandchildren’s future. Let’s create jobs by finding real solutions to address the problems of pollution and climate change right here in the Commonwealth rather than engaging in inaccurate and unnecessary accusations.”

Senator McEachin’s statement comes on the heels of the recent EPA formally rejection of Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s misguided attempt to deny the existence of climate change.

Related posts:

1. Sen. Donald McEachin on the Rachel Maddow Show
2. My Letter to Senator Webb Regarding “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
3. Brian White takes 8th in Chesapeake City Council Race

With the launch of healthcare.gov, we are now able to explore how reform affects our lives, and the lives of our loved ones. We can make better decisions with more information, and fairer policies. Here’s President Obama taking the site for a test drive.

Watch Video

Related posts:

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2. Senate moves forward on health care reform debate
3. I like my tea full bodied: The Health Care Debate

Watch Video

Related posts:

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2. Health Care Reform passes House of Representatives
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The obvious answer for this candidate is to respond positively, in favor of our military men and women who have served our nation, right?

Not for this candidate!

Scott Rigell seemed ignorant, or at least confused, of what the New GI Bill does, and refused to respond to the question!

Watch Video

So much for Republicans being the party that supports the military.

Meanwhile, Democratic Senator Jim Webb who introduced the New GI Bill and pushed for its passage,  on the one-year anniversary of its launch remarked that, “We can all take pride today.”

What about Democratic Congressman Glenn Nye, what has he said about the New GI Bill? During his campaign, he hammered Republican Thelma Drake for her flip-flopping on the bill (she voted against it, before she voted for it), and after he was elected, Congressman Nye has fought to ensure the program is fair to veterans.

On the issue of who will support our troops and veterans, I think the choice is clear: Congressman Glenn Nye.

Contribute and/or Volunteer for Congressman Nye’s reelection campaign

Related posts:

1. Scott Taylor launches campaign for 2nd district congressional seat
2. Virginia Democrats Vote in Support of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Repeal
3. Rep. Glenn Nye to Participate in a Community Discussion

Google is going to begin covering a cost that gay and lesbian employees must pay when their partners receive domestic partner health benefits, largely to compensate them for an extra tax that heterosexual married couples do not pay. The increase will be retroactive to the beginning of the year. Read the story over at The New York Times.

There are two reasons why I’m pretty excited about Google doing this, even though I’ll likely never work for the company. The first reason is obvious: Google is gay friendly. The second reason is that Google’s decision to compensate gay employees who pay higher taxes on their insurance when covering their partner puts a big name on an issue that most people don’t consider while engaging in the debate on LGBT equality and gay marriage. The laws of our nation and states decriminate against same-sex couples and the cost of this descrimination can easily be tens of thousands of dollars. As long as our government favors one committed relationship over another, it is descrminating. To me, this is a clear violation of the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution which states that, “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

Sadly, our Attoney General Ken Cuccinelli doesn’t believe LGBT people are citizens covered by the 14th Amendment, and would probably sue if Congress tried to tell Virginia to legalize gay marriage…just as he’s done with Health Care Reform and EPA regulations.

Related posts:

1. Community Input For a Potential Google Technology Trial
2. Smoke Screening Discrimination?
3. Buzz about Google Buzz

Senator Byrd would be the first to admit that he made mistakes in the past, and he would also be the first to apologize for those mistakes.

What I will remember is a Senator who served faithfully and was a pillar of the institution that is our United States Senate, and someone not afraid to do what he believed to be right.

Related posts:

1. My Letter to Senator Webb Regarding “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
2. Senator Ted Kennedy 1932-2009
3. Nye gives answers, but many questions remain heading into 2010

Watch Video

If you’re in the Hampton Roads area, consider taking a stand against offshore drilling, and against future disaters like the gulf spill, by taking part in Hands Across the Sand this Saturday.

Related posts:

1. Hands Across the Sand Virginia
2. Hands Across the Sand on Saturday, June 26
3. Rachel Maddow: That was then, this is then

Watch Video

Related posts:

1. Mr. Deity and the Quitter
2. Mr. Deity & the Host
3. A New View of Thomas Jefferson

We’re doing some last minute canvassing in North End tomorrow evening (Thursday, June 24).  We’ll meet at 6:30pm behind the old Cavalier Hotel.  Email me at eileen.levandoski@sierraclub.org if you can join us.

Volunteers ready for “beach assignments” on Saturday are invited to a volunteer meet up on Friday, June 25 at 6:30pm at Croc’s 19th Street Bistro. Again email me if you plan to attend.

Lots of before and after-HANDS get-togethers:

Laura at Croc’s 19th Street Bistro invites HANDS participants to enjoy $3 Bloody Mary’s & Mimosas! Come early for the Old Beach Farmers Market 8-noon in the parking lot of Croc’s, free parking across 19th Street, a 6 block walk to the oceanfront and start line of HANDS.

Sandbridge folks are meeting after HANDS at the Baja, 3701 Sandpiper Road.  Ocean View folks are meeting up at Mick’s Too, 905 East Ocean View Ave. in Norfolk.  Buckroe folks are meeting up at Mugzy’s Grill, 1312 East Pembroke Ave. in Hampton.

Thanks,
 
Eileen Levandoski
Hands Across The Sand, Virginia Organizer

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1. Hands Across the Sand Virginia
2. VB Restaurant Week, Jan. 17-24
3. Out in the Park this Sunday, June 27

Funny enough, I stumbled onto what I thought was a clash with conservatism. Bob McDonnell is playing a little shell game with money essentially borrowed from the Virginia Retirement System, calling it a surplus in order to make him and his administration look good. If that wasn’t bad enough, McDonnell is dangling this surplus in front of state employees, telling them the commonwealth is well on its way to hitting a benchmark in surplus funds needed to issue bonuses to them. Nice.

Last time I checked, one of the pillars of conservatism was fiscal conservatism. Usually this assumes a certain level of fiscal responsibility, where budgets are balanced, tax dollars used appropriately, and spending is kept in check with either increases in taxes or decreases in other spending. With this whole notion of a surplus of borrowed money and the promise of bonuses to commonwealth employees, McDonnell seems to have abandoned fiscal conservatism with this little shell game. Seems like this is a way to work around a budget, an inappropriate use of tax dollars, and a disregard for spending to me.

Related posts:

1. Elections Matter: McDonnell Leading Conservative Swing
2. McDonnell Issues Non-Discrimination Directive
3. Bob McDonnell forgets about transportation

There will be musical performances from live bands, local male and female impersonators, and other local performers. There will be over 60 vendors including local businesses and non profits, with large and small food vendors providing a carnival-like atmosphere.

Additionally, there will be a continuation of the Hampton Roads Pride GLBT History Project, a durable visual and audio display of the history of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community in Hampton Roads.

The event starts at noon. Look for me at the Virginia Beach Democratic Committee booth!

Related posts:

1. President Obama: June is LGBT Pride Month
2. VB Democratic Committee Contributes to Food Program for Kids
3. GLBTLive launches new blog

Personally, I find this decision to be far reaching and based on nothing but subjective opinion of those who are quick to turn their noses at anything new. Included in this group seem council members Barbara Henley, Vice-Mayor Louis Jones, Harry Diezel, Mayor Will Sessoms, Rosemary Wilson and Jim Wood who voted for the ban.

If a business can afford an LCD sign, let them get an LCD sign. A less invasive ordinance would have been to regulate the size, height, brightness, etc. of the signs. Let’s keep the signs from being too big and too bright, but let’s allow businesses to take advantage of new technology in advertising.

Contrary to what the gardeners and beautifiers exchanging hugs after the ordinance was passed think, the citizens aren’t going to be overjoyed by the ban on LCD signs. We’re worried about more important things that actually have an impact on our lives. You know, things like jobs, traffic, crime, and education.

Most couldn’t care less about LCD signs, and this issue was a waste of time.

Related posts:

1. Virginia Beach City Council ponders taxes, fees
2. Negotiations between City Council and School Board Fails, Edwards Disappoints
3. City Council Looking to cut $8.8 Million from Schools