Tag: Don Rippert
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Altria rumored to be in talks to buy Canadian cannabis company Cronos Group
High in Henrico. Henrico County based Altria, makers of Marlboro cigarettes among other products, is rumored to be interested in buying Canadian cannabis company Cronos Group. Altria is refusing comment while Cronos said it “confirmed that it is engaged in discussions concerning a potential investment by Altria Group … in Cronos Group.” Cronos went on…
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Marijuana arrests and racism in Virginia (especially Arlington County)
Reefer madness. The upcoming debate in the Virginia General Assembly over decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana may have racial overtones. VCU Capital News Service studied the data for marijuana arrests in Virginia from 2010 through 2016. African Americans were 3.2 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana crimes than whites. At the…
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Whatever happened to Terry McAuliffe’s GreenTech Automotive venture?
Seems like yesterday. In late 2012 Terry McAuliffe was the only Democrat running for Virginia governor in the upcoming 2013 election. One of his central campaign themes was that he was an entrepreneur who would bring jobs to Virginia. He was also an investor and recently resigned Chairman of a venture called GreenTech, a would…
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2019 General Assembly Session – Amending the State Constitution
Lucky number seven. Virginia has rewritten its original constitution (1776) six times thus making our current constitution (1971) the seventh state constitution. While there is no serious movement afoot to get to the eighth constitution there are plenty of carry over, first reference and first resolution bills that propose to modify our present constitution. Right…
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2019 General Assembly Session – Privatizing Public Roads in McLean, Va
Judge Dillon’s revenge. Development vs transportation has been a long running battle in Virginia. Northern Virginia’s local government politicians never met a developer (or developer’s campaign contribution) they didn’t love. Virginia’s state legislators love NoVa growth since it provides more state tax money to spread around like party favors to their downstate constituencies. However, those…
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2019 General Assembly Session – Sports Betting Legislation Prefiled
I’ll take the Giants by 2. Sports betting was made illegal in the United States through the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA). The legislation was signed into law by George H.W. Bush. I’ll bet the Supreme Court overturns PASPA. Had you made that bet you would have won. In May, 2018…
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Va 2019 General Assembly session – prefiled House of Delegates bills
Much ado about nothing. As of this morning there were 83 prefiled bills for the House of Delegates and 225 prefiled bills for the State Senate. With a few exceptions the House prefiles are pretty “ho hum”. I will examine the Senate prefiles in a subsequent column. One from column A and two from column…
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Virginia’s 2018 Marijuana Decriminalization Bill: What Happened and What’s Next?
Up in smoke. During the 2018 General Assembly session a bill to decriminalize marijuana was killed in committee. The Senate Courts of Justice Committee voted along party lines on that bill, SB 111. All nine Republican Senators on the Committee voted to keep marijuana possession (in any amount) a criminal act in Virginia while all…
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The case for legalizing recreational marijuana use in Virginia
Caveat. While I have no moral objection to the possession of marijuana I do not espouse breaking the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia. I believe the marijuana laws in Virginia should be changed but, until they are changed, I encourage everybody to obey the laws as they are presently written. Strive for five. I…
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Legalized Medical and Recreational Marijuana Use Appear to Hurt Alcohol Sales
High times. In a recent Bacon’s Rebellion column … Will Virginia Legalize Recreational Marijuana Use … I noted that well over 20% of Americans now live in states that have legalized the recreational use of marijuana. In the column I wondered whether our General Assembly’s reluctance to address the question in a meaningful way might…
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Has NoVa Finally Woken Up?
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUPWeuVHDcc?rel=0&w=560&h=315]VA-10. State Senator Jennifer Wexton (D) hopes to unseat Congresswoman Barbara Comstock (R) in Virginia’s 10th Congressional District. A typically gerrymandered Virginia district, the 10th stretches from inside the Capital Beltway to well west of Winchester. As a resident of the 10th I watch the elections in that district closely. This one is shaping…
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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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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…