America by Heart – Chapter 4, Raising (Small-r) Republicans, Part 1
We’ve made it to chapter four, and there is no rest for the weary. This chapter, while mostly non-political, is maddening nonetheless. And while we get a blissful reprieve from the Founding Fathers, and Milton Friedman and Alexis de Tocqueville, we will find ourselves being irritated with Helen Keller. We will not hold a grudge for very long, though. How can you stay mad at Helen Keller? This chapter will require the use of an extra piece of equipment, you should be warned. In addition to the usual Maalox (or Pepto Bismol, your choice), adult beverage, and helmet to avoid…
America by Heart – Chapter 1, We the People (Part 2 of 2)
Well, I was better prepared for the second half of this God awful collection of tripe that Sarah Palin calls a “chapter.” “Better prepared” means that I’d pre-medicated with a little fermented sugar cane (rum). So, let’s not stop and think about it too much. It’s like ripping off a Band-Aid, just get it over with quick. Welcome back to the blogging of the book. In this installment we’ll discuss the lack of racism in the country, except by the Obamas and their pastor, and we’ll examine the lyin’ Black Congressional Caucus and their attempt to trick us into talking…
Thanksgiving Flashback: Witnessing The Turkey Pardoning Debacle of 2008
by Linda Kellen Biegel So my rolls are rising on the stove, almost ready to pop in the oven. The apple-cranberry pies (think Dutch Apple with cranberries thrown in) are cooled and waiting to be packed up and the homemade cranberry sauce is chilling in the fridge. We’re going to Josh’s brother’s house for Thanksgiving and Josh’s parents made the trecherous drive in the rain and ice from the Kenai Peninsula. Thanksgiving dinner for 22–that’s small for a Biegel meal! When I saw an ad for the Triple-D Farm and Hatchery in Wasilla the other day, I had two thoughts:…
Anchorage Assembly Meeting 2011 Budget – What are People Saying? (Live blogging)
I’m here at the Assembly Chambers as public testimony is being taken on the Anchorage municipal budget. (See previous post) I’ll try to hit the highlights for those of you who couldn’t make it. There is a long line of people waiting to testify and the room is packed to standing room only. Guy in weird hat and American flag scarf thinks the mayor is doing a great job. Thinks the Assembly should buy their own lunch. Quoting from a book “citizens are a milk cow ready to give buckets of money… absurd taxes, bla bla bla.” 18th Century, Declaration…
Time to Storm the Castle! Sullivan's Budget
OK, boys and girls. The election is (almost) over and now it’s time to redirect our focus just a tad. It’s kind of like when the dishwasher overflows, and the dog is barking to get in, and someone drops a glass… Then when you finally get it all sorted out, you look over in the pantry and you see the five year old elbow deep in a bag of chocolate chips, with scared eyes and melted goo all over his face. He thinks because you haven’t had time to pay attention during all the chaos, that he could just keep…
APOC Staff tries to (mostly) give Rep. Bill Thomas Campaign a pass–My testimony for today's hearing
UPDATE – For those who are interested in listening to the hearing, the information can be found HERE. Teleconference number 1-800-315-6338, Code 4176#1 ********* Everyone may remember a few weeks back when I filed an APOC complaint against Rep. William Thomas, Jr. (R–Haines). I posted about the APOC Complaint I had filed against the re-election campaign of Representative Bill Thomas, Jr. Here is the complaint as listed on the APOC website. The complaint is in response to a newspaper advertising campaign consisting of 17 ads which ran in the Chilkat Valley News during the weeks leading up to the election: …Upon…
War is Over, if You Want it… Have a Nice Day.
This time of year, it seems that everyone’s thoughts turn to the war… No, not Afghanistan. No, not Iraq. Not the War on Terror, or the War on Drugs. The War on Christmas. I’ve had to stay mum on the War on Christmas for professional reasons… until now. I used to own a retail business, and therefore I tried to stay professionally neutral at all times. Back in the day, when I was a brand new bright-eyed, twenty-something shopkeep, and my first November in retail began to wane, I thought to myself… “What shall I say to people?” “Have a…
Voices from the Flats – Kill Moloch.
The Urgency of Campaign Finance Reform: A Meditation on Election Day, 2010 by Elstun Lauesen Let me begin with a little Ginsberg: I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked, dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn looking for an angry fix; Angel-headed hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly connection to the starry dynamo in the machinery of night. Yeah. Word up. Here’s what I see. I see the best candidates of my generation destroyed by other people’s madness; people who are well fed and well-dressed, driving through the paved exurbs and hillsides…