Category: Uncategorized
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To Get Respect, Show Respect
by Dick Hall-Sizemore There are frequent posts on this blog citing the low morale of police officers and officers quitting or retiring as a result. (For one example, see the post from earlier today.) However, for some reason, those posts often fail to report on the continued bad behavior of police. Early last month, a…
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Does Jim Ryan Value Jefferson’s Legacy?
by Walter Smith University of Virginia President Jim Ryan has stated that, as long as he holds office, the Thomas Jefferson statue in front of the Rotunda will remain in place. UVa’s founder, he says, will not be de-memorialized. Talk is cheap. When given a golden opportunity to publicize Jefferson’s contribution to religious freedom —…
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Bill LaVecchia: Model Public Servant
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Bill LaVecchia died recently at the age of 95. He was an example of the best in professional public employees. He was a veteran of both World War II and the Korean War. He earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Virginia Tech, and, subsequently, a master’s in municipal engineering and…
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VMI Alumnus Redirects Intended $900,000 Gift
by James A. Bacon Colleges and universities have long been prone to clashes between strong-willed presidents and prominent alumni. Over the years there have been numerous well-publicized episodes of donors retracting their benefactions after some run-in with the forces of political correctness. But as “wokeness” becomes the prevailing ideology on many college campuses, and as…
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Richmond Schools in Meltdown Mode
by James A. Bacon What on earth is going on in the City of Richmond public schools? According to Virginia Department of Education data published last week, the Richmond school system experienced a 25.0% enrollment drop in the current academic year (2021/22) compared to last year (2020/21). Enrollment declines occurred in all racial/ethnic groups, among…
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A Curious Coincidence Regarding Those Price-Gouging Actions
by James A. Bacon Earlier this week, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring announced a successful enforcement action against a gas station under the state’s price-gouging statute. Richmond-based 7HC Inc., doing business as 7 Heaven BP in eastern Henrico County, will be required to refund $2,858 to 152 customers for jacking up the price per gallon…
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The End of One-Man-Rule in Richmond
by Kerry Dougherty I can’t believe this needs to be said, but Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin, in announcing that he will abolish state-wide mask and vaccine mandates but allow private schools and school boards to decide if they want to continue with masking, is KEEPING promises. Not breaking them. Let me remind the sore-loser Democrats and…
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Was UVa’s Vax Mandate Justified? We’ll Never Know.
by James A. Bacon This academic year the University of Virginia mandated that all students get vaccinated. With few exceptions, all have done so, as have most of the university’s 30,000 faculty, staff and employees. According to the Daily Progress, only 173 are estimated to be out of compliance. They have until January 4 to…
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Northam to Address VMI
by James A. Bacon “Northam heads to hostile terrain — VMI — to speak to 1,700 cadets.” That’s the headline on the Washington Post’s latest update on the hardball politics of racism and anti-racism at the Virginia Military Institute. The headline is a stretch, even if you believe, as the Washington Post has insisted, the…
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No Indoctrination to See Here, Move Along Now — Albemarle County Edition
by James A. Bacon A disturbed parent of an Albemarle County middle school student has directed me to materials used in classroom presentation as part of the “Courageous Conversations about Race,” initiative at the Henley Middle School website. “We’re unique among school divisions and, for that matter, organizations of any kind, for having adopted an…
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Virginia’s Changing Public School Demographics – COVID Edition
by James C. Sherlock Virginia’s public schools underwent significant changes in enrollment between 2018-19 and 2020-21. The figures for this school year have yet to be released. In the three-year period ending 2020-21, Virginia public schools saw a decline of 37,775 students, a loss of 2.9%. The racial and social-economic demographics also changed. The numbers…