Author: djrippert
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Will Virginia Legalize Recreational Marijuana Use?
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68cbjlLFl4U&w=500&h=288] High times today. The marijuana legalization wave is beginning to wash over North America. Nine states (WA, OR, CA, NV, CO, MA, VT, ME and AK) along with the District of Columbia have legalized the recreational use of marijuana. Well over 20% of Americans now live in states which have legalized recreational marijuana…
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Limousine liberalism in Alexandria, Va
Stinking to high heaven. The City of Alexandria spews an astonishing 11 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River every year. The overflows happen just about every time it rains. This is the result of a combined sewer system that is designed to collect sewage and runoff in a single system. When it…
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AI – Nirvana or Apocalypse (for Virginia)?
Smells like tech spirit – Artificial Intelligence may be on its way to becoming the buzziest buzz-term in the buzzword laden history of the buzz-o-sphere. No prior trend has engendered the societal debate that AI has sparked. Scientists, billionaires, politicians, poets, priests, butchers, bakers and candlestick makers have all gotten into the game. Ok, the candlestick maker reference was hogwash but give that industry…
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Media reaction to Goodlatte’s 2018 Chesapeake Bay Amendment
Background: Republican Rep Bob Goodlatte (Va – 6th) has proposed an amendment to an appropriations package which would forbid the EPA from using federal funds to take action against bay states that fail to meet pollution-reduction targets set by the EPA and agreed-to by the states. The amendment is to the 2019 Interior, Environment, Financial…
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Goodbye and Good Riddance to Goodlatte
Carpetbagger. Bob Goodlatte is the 13-term congressman from Virginia’s 6th Congressional District who has blessedly chosen to retire this year. In my opinion he represents just about everything that is wrong with the GOP. Born in Holyoke, Massachusetts and educated at Bates College in Maine, Goodlatte somehow avoids the “carpetbagger” moniker so quickly put on Terry…
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Saul Trumpinsky – Donald Trump and Saul Alinsky
Yes Virginia, there is a United States. Most posts published on this blog are dedicated to Virginia-specific issues. This post is an exception. It is an attempt to understand the unexpected popularity of Donald Trump. While all states are impacted by the federal government and national politics, Virginia is perhaps the most affected state. The proximity…
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“Pterodactyl Tim” Kaine Watch: Lying about SCOTUS Nominee
The Age of Innocence. Tim Kaine was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, but grew up in Overland Park, Kansas. All that folksy Midwestern-ness seemed to imbue Kaine with a decency and honesty that people noticed. One imagines a young man so innocent and naive that he would sneak behind the barn and do nothing. Kaine…
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Revisiting Virginia’s Public Accommodation Laws
Virginia is for lovers haters. A sad scene unfolded in Lexington, Va., last Friday evening. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, President Trump’s press secretary, tried to enjoy a meal with her family at the Red Hen restaurant. The owner, a New York transplant named Stephanie Wilkinson, asked the Sanders party to leave the restaurant after starting their appetizers.…
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Will the Real Corey Stewart Please Stand Up?
Minnesota Confederate? Corey Stewart was born in Duluth, Minnesota. He grew up in Minnesota attending St. Olaf College before transferring to Georgetown University to finish his BS degree. He then went back to Minnesota to attend law school before moving permanently to Northern Virginia. So it comes as something of a surprise that this transplanted Minnesotan…
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What happened to Bijan Ghaisar?
Tragedy in Fairfax County. Bijan Ghaisar was a McLean-based accountant and graduate of Langley High School. On Nov 17, 2017 he was driving southbound on the George Washington Parkway north of Old Town, Alexandria. His vehicle was rear-ended by an Uber driver and, for reasons nobody can understand, Ghaisar fled the scene in his Jeep. It…
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Does the RPV have the guts to scuttle the GA?
Sink the Bismark. Folklore and decades of accepted history hold that the German battleship Bismark was sunk by the Royal Navy. However, recent underwater archeological research tells a slightly different story. At first the Bismark seemed invincible. She engaged HMS Hood, the pride of the British fleet, and sank her. The Bismark also damaged the…
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Dillon’s Rule, the RPV and the Marylandization of Virginia
by Don Rippert Doppler shift from red to blue. As recently as 1977 both of Maryland’s US Senators were Republican. From 1993 through 2003 Maryland’s eight US House seats were evenly split between Republicans and Democrats. Today, Maryland’s 10 person Congressional delegation consists of 9 Democrats and a lone Republican. This shift caused Maryland to…
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Quincy Patterson – Welcome to Virginia (Tech)!
Windy City Blues. The City of Chicago has been much maligned of late, mostly for its high murder rate but also (I suspect) for its loudly liberal mayor – Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel is a favorite target of conservatives. The per capita rate of murder in Chicago is high but far from the highest in the…