Tag: James A. Bacon
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Not All COVID-Fighting Masks Are Created Equal
by James A. Bacon So, society is back to wearing masks. Governor Ralph Northam has mandated mask usage in public schools, while many universities and employers in Virginia are doing the same. The K-12 mandate does make accommodations for people who are eating, drinking, sleeping, exercising, playing a music instrument, and/or is in state of…
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Public Health Policy and the New COVID Calculus
by James A. Bacon As debates rage over mask and vaccination mandates across Virginia, there is no denying that the spread of the Delta variant has created a spike in confirmed COVID-19 cases. The seven-day moving average of 1,455 (which could grow as late reports filter into the Virginia Department of Health) is only 24%…
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Could Solar “Sink Under the Weight of Its Own Trash”?
by James A. Bacon Solar energy is widely regarded as the most cost-effective source of electricity available today. According to financial advisory firm Lazard, the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) for solar, about $30 per MWh, is nearly half that of the most cost-effective fossil fuel, combined-cycle natural gas. The great economic advantage of solar,…
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Vaccine Verification Follies
by James A. Bacon The Delta variant is so easily transmitted that Virginia public health officials say it is just a matter of time before all Virginians are exposed to it. In response, employers are requiring employees to be vaccinated and businesses are turning away unvaccinated customers. Suddenly, there is a need for Virginians to…
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Out of the Mouths of Fund Raisers…
From a McAuliffe campaign email blast sent out under the name of Senate Mark Warner comes a remarkable confession: “Terry is having a bad week, Jim.” How bad? The Democratic gubernatorial candidate “finished off July with strong fundraising numbers,” said pseudo-Warner (I can’t believe the Senator actually laid eyes on this email). “But he told…
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Dominion Plans Low-Carbon Vehicle Fleet
by James A. Bacon In pursuit of its goal to achieve net-zero carbon-dioxide and methane emissions, Dominion Energy will transform its fleet of more than 8,600 vehicles across 16 states. After 2030, all new vehicles purchased, from passenger cars to heavy-duty vehicles, will be powered either by electricity or alternative fuels, the company announced today.…
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Loudoun’s Golden Goose Lays Fewer Eggs
by James A. Bacon Data centers may not support a lot of jobs, but they sure do pump up the tax base. In Loudoun County, home to the world’s largest cluster of server farms, the facilities were expected to support $11.2 billion in taxable assets. When the actual number came in $1.1 billion shy of…
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VCU to Crack Down on Fraternity Hazing, Drinking
by James A. Bacon A year after the death of a student in a fraternity hazing incident, the Virginia Commonwealth University administration is poised to enact sweeping reforms of the fraternity/sorority culture. Key changes in effect or under consideration include cracking down on hazing, prohibiting alcohol at fraternity events, and implementing a Diversity, Equity &…
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Desperately Need Facebook Help
I have spent hours trying to make Bacon’s Rebellion eligible for running Facebook “Issue, Electoral or Political Ads.” Without obtaining the necessary permissions, I cannot promote the blog. Basically, I have to prove I am not a Russian bot. I have completed most of the steps in the process, but I have gotten hung up…
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Digging Deeper into Vaccine Hesitancy
by James A. Bacon There has been a lot of discussion about the causes of vaccine hesitancy: Trump-voting evangelicals are idiots, Blacks are still scarred by the Tuskegee syphilis experiments, social media is spewing disinformation, people have lost faith in the “experts,” etc. Here’s a clue: People are most influenced by their interactions with the…
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Bacon Bits: Invisible No Longer
“We are invisible.” Albemarle County resident Diana Kim, who has Korean ancestry, thinks Virginia public schools don’t teach enough Asian-American history — little beyond the contribution of Chinese laborers to building the trans-continental railroad. Now she’s petitioning the General Assembly to pass legislation requiring more Asian-American history in Virginia schools, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports. “The…
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Bobos and the Epistemic Regime
by James A. Bacon David Brooks, writing in The Atlantic, serves up a brilliant update to his 2000 classic, “Bobos in Paradise,” in which he explores the nature of America’s new ruling class. Borrowing terminology from Jonathan Rauch, he introduces the concept of the epistemic regime — “the massive network of academics and analysts who…
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Public School Systems on Fire
I’m normally reluctant to post material from anonymous sources, but I’m making an exception in this case. The author of this post is not asking us to accept anything on his (or her) say-so. He (or she) points to Virginia Department of Education documents that can be readily found online. Much of this material has…
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A Devil’s Alternative
Under the Farm Animal Confinement Proposition, enacted four years ago California will begin enforcing provisions in 2022 that require farmers to raise pigs in spaces at least 24 square feet, up from 20 square feet in 2020. The good news is that pigs — one of the most intelligent and emotionally sensitive species on the…
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The Craziness Chronicles: Woke Kindergarten, Marijuana Candy and the Therapeutic State
Documenting Virginia’s steady descent into madness… Woke Kintergarten. Asra Nomani and her buddies at Parents Defending Education have caught the Fairfax County Public School system with its figurative pants down. A summer learning guide at Bailey’s Elementary school for the Arts and Sciences in Falls Church suggested readers follow Web links to “Woke Kindergarten,” “No…