The Richmonder

What will the Richmond Times Dispatch be apologizing for forty years from now?

2009-07-16T15:12:00.003-04:00

Terry over at SLANTblog calls attention to the apology for participating in massive resistance printed in today's Richmond Times Dispatch. Terry asks: "Is an apology delayed better than no apology?" It's worth checking out.

It also got me to thinking about what the Richmond Times Dispatch--assuming it is still around--will be apologizing for in forty years.

Maybe forty years from now, when single-payor universal healthcare is taken for granted, the Richmond Times Dispatch's editorial staff will be forced to apologize for the misery and suffering caused by delaying this obvious solution to healthcare reform. The Right's "massive resistance" to healthcare reform is causing unnecessary suffering to ordinary Americans, and the Richmond Times Dispatch abets these efforts.

Perhaps the editorial staff should take some time to think about what their successors forty years from now might have to apologize for, and alter their own behavior accordingly.

Israel abandons plans to buy the Littoral Combat Ship, we should too

2009-07-16T14:07:00.008-04:00

Stumbled over this story from Israel:

In a radical revamp of its surface fleet modernization program, the Israel Navy has shelved long-held plans to purchase Lockheed Martin-produced Littoral Combat Ships (LCS), as well as a fallback option involving corvetees built by Northrop Grumman.

Instead, sources say, the Navy is pushing to establish a combat shipbuilding industry through customized, locally built versions of a German corvette design.

Now in an exploration phase, the concept calls for a stretched, approximately 2,200-ton version of the Meko A-100 built by ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), the Hamburg-based consortium building two Dolphin-class submarines for the Israel Navy.[Defense News]

This should come as no surprise. The badly managed and over-priced Littoral Combat Ship ("LCS") has even been recommended for abandonment by the U.S. Navy.

What the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard need is an enlarged and upgunned version of the PC-1 Cyclone class of vessels. The Cyclone class was built using proven technology and was relatively inexpensive to acquire. They have provided solid service to both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.

These vessels are somewhat under-armed due to their origins as SEAL delivery boats. They carry a 25mm Bushmaster cannon as main armament and Stinger missile launchers for air defense. A slight expansion in the design would allow them to be armed with a 30mm or 35mm version of the Bushmaster (Bushmaster II and Bushmaster III) along with a much more capable anti-aircraft weapon like the Rolling Airframe Missile launcher.

The best thing about this design is that there are several boat yards around the United States that could perform the work. Competition would hold costs down and would ensure that the work and benefits were spread around. The design and the weapons are "off the shelf" technology, so there would be no need for costly and doubtful experimentation that would delay delivery and drive costs through the roof. These vessels could be acquired for a fraction of the cost of the failed LCS.

The design would be equally useful to the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard. New units would go directly to the Navy. After a few years of service, the boats could then be rehabbed and rearmed with a less comprehensive weapons package for use by the U.S. Coast Guard. This is the kind of vessel the Navy and Coast Guard need to patrol the Persian Gulf, combat piracy off Somalia, and interdict drug smuggling along our nation's coastline.

Julian Zelizer critiques the stimulus bill

2009-07-14T08:42:00.001-04:00

Julian E. Zelizer, professor of History and Public Affairs, has a commentary critiquing the stimulus bill at CNN.com. I pretty much agree with Zelizer's conclusions.

Shockoe Tomato Festival

2009-07-12T11:42:00.014-04:00

A few pictures from yesterday's Shockoe Tomato Festival. It was a smallish event this year, and there was no visibility effort from either the Deeds or McDonnell campaigns. There were a couple of volunteers from Organizing for America gathering signatures for healthcare reform.

I can understand why McDonnell skipped this event, but I'm not sure why Deeds would miss such an obvious chance to sign people up and distribute yard signs. I was disappointed to see the DPVA headquarters was closed while this event was going on half a block away.

A pair of Organizing for America volunteers gather signatures for healthcare reform.

DPVA headquarters stands empty, windows shuttered.

The Avett Brothers at the National

2009-07-11T08:43:00.004-04:00

I saw the Avett Brothers live last night at the National Theatre in Richmond, courtesy of my sister in law who scored some tickets to this sold out show. They were really good and the crowd was extremely enthusiastic. Wasn't quite what I expected based on the song that made me interested in them ("Die Die Die"). Really a lot more mellow than that song; more of a rock/bluegrass fusion.

They didn't play "Die Die Die" last night, so here's a video of them performing this song at the House of Blues in Chicago in 2007.

Richmond and Belle Isle

2009-07-10T15:49:00.005-04:00

I took a little walk to Belle Isle this afternoon.

Downtown Richmond seen from the Belle Isle pedestrian bridge.

Hollywood Rapids.

The "beach" at Belle Isle.

Another view of the "beach" at Belle Isle.

One way of keeping cool at Belle Isle.

The Richmonder

2009-07-09T11:37:00.003-04:00

The name of my blog is changing to reflect my changing interests and focus. The name of the blog will now be "The Richmonder," and I will be more focused on the arts and entertainment scene in Richmond, though I may still occasionally backslide and offer my two cents on relevant political developments.

I've recently returned to Richmond and I am looking forward to enjoying all that Richmond has to offer in terms of festivals, cultural events, and the arts.

For the time being I will retain the same url so that my online syndicators can find me, but that may change at some point in the future.

The (former) Richmond Democrat

2009-06-29T18:45:00.000-04:00

After watching the Democratic Party's lackluster performance in addressing the needs of ordinary people during this financial crisis, I have elected to leave the Democratic Party. Many of you know how passionately I have volunteered on behalf of Democratic politicians. I have decided to stop volunteering on behalf of the Democratic Party or identifying myself as a Democrat.

Message to Democratic leaders: if you have lost me, you are in trouble.

Another Republican "leader" self-destructs in spectacular fashion

2009-06-24T15:41:00.002-04:00

This is simply comical.

I can hardly wait to see who gets caught next week.

The end of the Republican Party

2009-06-17T14:08:00.003-04:00

There's no escape for the GOP. From Republican commentator Mike Murphy:

I say this because I've made a career out of counting votes, and the numbers tell a clear story; the demographics of America are changing in a way that is deadly for the Republican Party as it exists today. A GOP ice age is on the way.

Demographic change is irritating to politicos, since it works on elections much as rigged dice do on a Las Vegas craps table: it is a game changer. For years, Republicans won elections because the country was chock-full of white middle-class voters who mostly pulled the GOP lever on Election Day. Today, however, that formula is no longer enough.

Murphy knows what he's talking about. The GOP has lost the latino vote and the youth vote, and is controlled by the very people who alienated these groups.

Right wing terrorist attacks Holocaust Museum; murders African-American guard

2009-06-12T17:24:00.002-04:00

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Congratulations Senator Deeds!

2009-06-09T21:54:00.002-04:00

Just a brief post to congratulate Senator Creigh Deeds on his victory in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. Senator Deeds, I look forward to addressing you as Governor-elect Deeds in November.

A good time to retire from political blogging

2009-05-18T09:27:00.002-04:00

Well, I think it's about time to retire this site. I tried to sign off a couple of years ago and it didn't quite stick. I think I'll have more luck this time.

It's been an interesting ride. I've met most of the goals I've set for myself doing this. I've had a couple of top-rated recommended posts on Daily Kos. All in all, it's been a fun and interesting experience.

I no longer feel as strongly motivated to blog several times a day. There are several reasons for this. The mainstream media has recovered a lot of its objectivity. There are literally thousands of other Democratic and Liberal bloggers to carry the standard now. Barack Obama may be the most talented politician since Franklin D. Roosevelt: he doesn't need me to stand up for him anymore.

I will keep my membership on certain group blogs, and perhaps you may hear from me from time to time. As for this blog, sometime this afternoon it will become a private archive. I will not delete it, but it will no longer be visible to the public.

Best . . . The Richmond Democrat.

The McCain campaign kneecaps Eric Cantor

2009-05-06T22:08:00.004-04:00

Let's keep this short and sweet: Eric Cantor is a liar. The McCain campaign says so. From Rolling Stone magazine:

“The notion that Eric Cantor was somehow a high profile candidate for vice president is a complete and total joke,” a source close the top former leadership of the McCain campaign told me. “ He was never on the short list. Never vetted. But if you read the press today you would believe that Eric Cantor ever so close to being vice president. This was created by Cantor’s PR people. He’s got a ton of them.”

Cantor’s shameless self promotion is the source of bitter jokes among McCain veterans. “They just laugh about it,” says the source, who has long been a close observer of Cantor’s career. “When Cantor’s asked about it, he won’t comment directly about the vetting. He just hints and struts. It’s very revealing. Its’ the old politics: You get ahead by courting the spotlight without doing anything necessarily different or interesting. There’s nothing there."

That's what key Republican activists are saying about Eric Cantor. We Democrats are just shaking our heads at the fact that this empty suit has somehow maneuvered himself into the leadership of the Republican Party. Oh well, it's not like he's a threat to the Democratic majority, so if the Republicans want Cantor to lead their party, they are welcome to him.

New Poll: Southern Republicans less patriotic

2009-05-06T16:33:00.002-04:00

I guess we all kind of knew this already. The Republican Party's embrace of the neo-confederate movement is just one of many factors that turned the GOP into a southern regional party.

Cantor's phony meeting nailed

2009-05-03T08:54:00.004-04:00

Yesterday Eric Cantor staged a photo op for his new Republican faction, the National Council for a New America. Bradley Herring of Where's Eric Cantor? nails it:

Now here’s my favorite part. Cantor, in the release announcing the formation of the National Council for a New America, labels the group as “a forward-looking, grassroots caucus.” Note the word “grassroots.” (We’ll set aside the fact that he calls it “non-ideological” which is laughable.) I don’t think “grassroots” means what Eric Cantor thinks it means. It doesn’t mean a think tank put together by long-time Republican insiders to advance a policy agenda. This isn’t even astroturfing. It’s beyond that. It’s as insider as it gets. It’s the party’s presidential nominee, another failed presidential nominee, two Republican house leaders, the Senate Minority leader, and the former president’s brother. They even invited Sarah Palin.

Cantor is as phony as a three dollar bill.

Fake Virginia has a great suggestion about where Cantor should hold his next photo op.

Now here's a look at the real Republican Party of Virginia, with special focus on Eric Cantor:

R.I.P., Jack Kemp

2009-05-03T08:41:00.004-04:00

The Republican Party has lost an important and independent voice. Rest in peace, Jack Kemp (July 13, 1935 – May 2, 2009).

The Republican brand crumbles

2009-05-01T16:11:00.001-04:00

Blogging against the Republican Party is becoming too easy. After utterly blowing the first 100 days of the Obama administration the Republicans have launched an attempt to re-brand themselves that is doomed to failure. Why? Because it's just more of the same. There's absolutely nothing new here, and the American people have already rejected what the Republican Party offered in 2006 and 2008. Offering the same thing all over again is a recipe for failure, especially when you are up against Barack Obama.

Let's briefly review the 100 days of "fail" brought to the GOP by John Boehner, Eric Cantor, and Mitch McConnell:

1. The GOP failed to block a single Obama agenda item while at the same time letting the GOP be branded as the "Party of No." To the extent that the economy turns around as the result of Obama's stimulus package, Republicans will have no claim whatsoever to that success. The Republicans have painted themselves into a corner where they have to hope that the United States fails economically, and Americans sense--and resent--that fact.

2. The public face of the Republican Party is Rush Limbaugh, and no one in the GOP is allowed to contradict Limbaugh in public, and Rush Limbaugh is not well liked by the vast majority of Americans. Limbaugh is a millstone around the neck of the GOP.

3. The agenda of the Republican Party is almost entirely devoted to self-defense at this point. Most of the Republican Party's energy is now devoted to keeping Dick Cheney out from in front of a war crimes tribunal. With all their energy devoted to obstruction, GOPers find themselves without the energy or ideas to compete with a positive force like Barack Obama. Dick Cheney is a giant iron ball chained to the leg of the Republican Party.

4. Sarah Palin, the designated next Republican presidential candidate, has already fatally damaged her 2012 campaign, but there is no way that the GOP will be able to select someone else. Palin has the nomination sewn up and will lose to Obama by what may be the largest margin in American history. Obama will start his second term with amazing political capital.

5. Americans are fleeing from the Republican Party: a mere 21% of Americans are willing to self-identify as Republicans, compared to 35% who self-identify as Democrats. There are still pockets of strong Republican support, but Republicans are not going to be able to compete nationally in the foreseeable future.

6. The defection of Arlen Specter handed the Democrats the ability to pass legislation without a single Republican vote as long as the legislation is moderate enough to hold the Democratic Party together. The Democratic Party would have achieved this goal in the 2010 mid-term elections, but the GOP's gift of Specter puts the Democratic Party and Obama about 20 months ahead of where we thought we'd be on key issues like health care. Specter won't help us do everything, but what he will do will help us ensure Democratic victory in 2010. We won't get everything we want from Specter, but we should have a solid record of achievement to show off in 2010 and 2012.

That last point is the really fatal one for the GOP. The GOP needs the United States to fail in some way--for the American people to come crawling back--but the GOP has largely lost the ability to intervene in the affairs of the United States, for good or ill.

To further illustrate how fighting the Republican Party has become something like shooting fish in the barrel, I offer this as exhibit #2.

This is the "Goposaur," the creation of uber-blogger Markos Moulitsas. It's an amazing bit of political satire, and it's going to stick, so get used to seeing it pretty much everywhere. Kos and a lot of other people have spent many years wrestling the GOP to the floor. Many of us have made painful sacrifices to win our nation back and we aren't going to let up anytime soon.

Where does all of this lead us? What does it all mean?

I think it means the end of the Republican Party as we know it. Barring some catastrophic failure on the part of the Democratic Party--not impossible, but not very likely--the Republican Party is going to collapse in the not so distant future. This could work itself out in a couple of ways. A complete collapse could, ironically, lead to a quicker recovery. If the Republican Party collapses entirely and goes the way of the Whigs it would open up a place for a new conservative party to form. There are certainly many different small conservative parties competing for the chance to become the successor to the Republican Party--though all of them seem badly flawed to me in terms of their ideology and ability to appeal to independent voters.

A far more likely scenario is what I call the "slow collapse." I think that this script has already begun to play itself out. In the slow collapse scenario the Republican Party becomes essentially powerless against the Democratic Party, but retains enough power for its leadership to basically squelch any new third party that could arise on the conservative side of the political spectrum. Someone like Eric Cantor poses very little threat to Barack Obama, but Cantor controls enough money and organizational power to crush any threat from the Right.

The tragically-misnamed Teabag Party is a perfect example of this dynamic. Apart from its profoundly unfortunate name (it's hard to see how the Right will top the "Tea Bag Parties" unless they decide to throw "Sausage Parties" on the 4th of July) the Teabag was at least an attempt at grassroots organizing. But it was swiftly overcome and co-opted by the Republican Party and Fox News. What could have been the spark of a new conservative party was swiftly snuffed out by the Republican establishment. The same lesson can be drawn from the Republican Party's treatment of the supporters of Ron Paul. For the foreseeable future dissent within the conservative movement will be undermined and co-opted by the Republican leadership. The Republican Party will be a regional party unable to compete with the Democratic Party, but it will not tolerate the emergence of a successor conservative party.

This means that the Democratic Party has been presented with a golden opportunity. We could see a twenty year Democratic majority, with a corresponding opportunity to affect the direction of our nation's future. The progressive grassroots and netroots will have a key role to play in this process. Politicians, once in office, tend to become more conservative and less interested in rocking the boat. It will be the progressive netroots that will serve as an internal mechanism of loyal opposition. We will hold Democratic electeds accountable and work to ensure that they use the majority we helped create to move this nation forward and implement much needed reforms. Working to promote change and progress through the vehicle of our own party will be a greater challenge in the future than simply clubbing the largely defunct Republican Party.

Reminder: Brian Moran to open Richmond campaign office Monday

2009-05-01T11:03:00.000-04:00

Brian Moran for Governor is opening their Richmond office this coming Monday. The grand opening will be attended by Mayor Dwight C. Jones! and other special guests.

The new office is located at:

24 A North 8th Street(Corner of 8th and Franklin Streets)
Richmond, Virginia

The opening will be Monday evening:

Monday, May 4, 2009 6:00 p.m.

Come out for hot dogs, hamburgers and all the fixings! The Moran campaign requests that you bring a dessert or office supply to share!

RSVP to (804) 644-4460 or online at Brian Moran's Richmond Office.

Kaine's statement on Specter's move

2009-04-28T18:07:00.001-04:00

From DNC Chairman, Governor Tim Kaine

Washington, D.C. – Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine issued the following statement on Senator Arlen Specter’s decision to join the Democratic Party and work with Senate Democrats to achieve the President’s vision for a strong and growing economy.

"I am pleased to offer Senator Specter my sincere congratulations on his decision to join the Democratic Party and I welcome him with open arms," said DNC Chairman Kaine. “Over nearly three decades in the United States Senate, Senator Specter has represented the people of Pennsylvania with honor, conviction, and an allegiance to deeply held principles that I know will continue to inform his decisions as a member of the Democratic caucus. Senator Specter courageously supported the President's economic recovery package while most Republicans played politics with our nation's economy. The Senator's willingness to set politics aside and be part of finding solutions to our nation's problems will find a welcome reception in the Democratic Party. Coming on the heels of Democrat Scott Murphy's victory in a Republican leaning congressional district in New York state, Senator Specter's decision is additional proof that the Republican Party is in serious trouble because it has lost touch with the American people and their desire for change which was so on display in November.

"As Senator Specter noted, the Republican Party has drifted far to the right and seems more interested in ideology, conflict and obstruction than in working constructively to address the nation's problems, and no longer appeals to moderates, including Senator Specter. I commend Senator Specter on his decision to work with President Obama and Senate Democrats to help turn our economy around, create jobs and put the country back on the right track. We are thrilled to welcome Senator Specter into the Democratic fold and he can count on our full support."

60!

2009-04-28T12:50:00.000-04:00

It's official: the Republican strategy to obstruct Barack Obama's agenda during the first 100 days of his administration has failed in epic fashion. Today, Senator Arlen Specter announced that he is leaving the Republican Party and joining the Democratic Party.

"Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right. Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans."

President Obama was informed of Specter's decision at around 10:25 a.m., according to White House officials, and reached out to the senator minutes later to tell him "you have my full support," and we are "thrilled to have you."

This means that when Al Franken takes his seat in the U.S. Senate in a few weeks, the Democratic Party will have a filibuster-proof total of 60 seats. No doubt that Specter will come in as a conservative Democrat, but he can be made to toe the party line by the threat of a primary challenge. If Specter doesn't deliver his vote on key issues, then he'll face a Democratic challenger instead of a Republican in next year's primary.

And so Obama's first 100 days comes to an end, with the Republican Party broken and completely toothless. It was probably inevitable that Democrats would have reached 60 seats in next year's mid-term elections, but Specter's defection means that Democrats can now roll up their sleeves and get to work on solving our nation's problems, and there is little or nothing the Republican Party can do to obstruct that process anymore.

Welcome Senator Specter, now let's get to work.

Brian Moran to open Richmond office Monday

2009-04-28T07:35:00.003-04:00

Italian ship foils pirate attack with firearms

2009-04-26T22:37:00.003-04:00

CNN is reporting that the Italian cruise ship Melody was able to thwart an attack by Somalian pirates by using one of the oldest tricks in the book: shooting back.

The cruise ship had about 1,500 people aboard and this total apparently included an armed security detail which returning the pirates' fire when they attacked. Wow, shooting back at pirates: it's just crazy enough to work.

Read more here.

Daniel Knight Hayden: The new face of the Republican Party

2009-04-25T17:08:00.001-04:00

The Tea Bag movement has proven to be a disaster for the already badly damaged Republican Party. The Republican Party couldn't resist the temptation to associate itself with this movement, and indeed tried to co-opt it as its own. The Republican Party is so desperate to recapture some of the excitement it used to generate for its base, that it uncritically threw its arms around the Tea Bag movement without stopping to consider who some of these people were: militia, secessionists, mentally unbalanced, and even--it seems--potentially violent.

Daniel Knight Hayden, 52, was arrested by FBI agents who identified him as the Twitter user CitizenQuasar. In a series of tweets beginning April 11, CitizenQuasar vowed to start a "war" against the government on the steps of the Oklahoma City Capitol building, the site of that city's version of the national "Tea Party" protests promoted by the conservative-leaning Fox News.

"START THE KILLING NOW! I am willing to be the FIRST DEATH!," read a tweet at 8:01 PM that day. "After I am killed on the Capitol Steps, like a REAL man, the rest of you will REMEMBER ME!!!," he added five minutes later. Then: "Send the cops around. I will cut their heads off the heads and throw the[m] on the State Capitol steps."

Hayden's MySpace page is a breathtaking gallery of right wing memes about the "New World Order," gun control as Nazi fascism, and Barack Obama's covert use of television hypnosis, among many others.[Wired, April 24, 2009]

This is the new face of the Republican Party: angry and potentially violent extremism. Thankfully no one was hurt in this incident. It wasn't necessary for any police officers to give their lives to protect the public from a demented right wing terrorist, not this time. Not like Pittsburgh.

I frankly find this precipitous decline of the Republican Party surprising. Not so very long ago the party of Reagan would wrap itself in the American flag and pose as ultra-patriots. No longer. Now the Republican Party embraces violent rhetoric, threats of secession and civil war, and domestic terrorism. The Republican Party is the party of torture, teabagging and "No."

If this pattern of behavior persists, I predict a complete collapse of the Republican Party in the mid-term elections next year. Democrats will be justified in calling out their Republican opponents for their disloyalty to our nation. In the meantime, Democrats should make certain to put Republicans on the record. Republicans should be called on to make their positions clear: do they support violence against other Americans? Do they support violent secession and civil war?

Don't let Republicans conceal their lack of patriotism. Make Republicans say out loud that they contemplate the betrayal of their nation and violence against their fellow Americans. Then let American voters hold them accountable.

Hat Tip to Chris Guy at Fred2Blue for bringing this story to my attention.

"Broken Steele"

2009-04-24T18:05:00.001-04:00

Ouch.