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November 21, 2024

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No Time for Tuckerman -

Thursday, August 3, 2023

The Quitter Returns! -

Monday, March 21, 2022

Putting the goober in gubernatorial -

Friday, January 28, 2022

Palin Thanks (almost) Everyone for Bin Laden’s Capture.

I listened with the rest of the nation last night as the news leaked about the death of Osama bin Laden at the hands of U.S. forces on the ground in Pakistan. And I listened to the President deliver (as usual) a thoughtful, respectful, address to the nation. And then, I wondered, what would critics of the president say? What would they say about the fact that Barack Obama as Commander-in-Chief did in two years what George W. Bush as Commander-in-Chief couldn’t do in eight? The last words in the President’s speech urged us to remember the unity we felt…

Oyster Roundup! Fake Palin, Heckling Cheney & Dirty Valentines

Greetings from CPAC! Former Vice President Dick Cheney got a heck of a greeting at CPAC, the yearly Conservative Political Action Conference where conservatives of all stripes come together to wallow in varying degrees of narrow-mindedness, religious zeal, military might, fiscal conservatism, and social backwardness. There are usually some internal squabbles about things like LGBT rights, and how they do or don’t fit into the conservative platform. But back to Cheney’s greeting. It was spirited and passionate, but not what the former Veep expected. When Rumsfeld’s name was announced, and he took the stage to accept the conferences “Defenders of…

EPA to Review Proposed Pebble Mine Project. Thanks, Feds! (we think…)

“We don’t need no stinkin’ feds telling us what to do!” Ah, the mantra of the 49th state. It’s true that there are many great points to support local governance. Communities themselves are often the best at determining what the needs of their residents are – especially in areas that don’t fit the “norm” of the country. In towns with no indoor plumbing, fuel at more than $10 a gallon, and communities where schools can be hundreds of miles apart, it’s understandable that Alaskans find it difficult sometimes to “go with the flow” and let those bureaucrats in DC legislate…

Oyster Roundup!

~Thick and fast they came at last, and more, and more, and more! Chuitna Coal Comment Period Extended The comment period for the petition to make the Chuit River and its tributaries declared unsuitable for coal strip mining has been extended! That means if you had all the best intentions of emailing and saying, “I think it’s a really bad idea to dig up 11 miles of productive salmon stream for your crappy coal mine” and just didn’t get around to it, you have another chance! The new deadline is tomorrow, February 2, at 5pm so click HERE and jot…

Oyster Roundup! What the Shuck?

~Thick and fast they came at last, and more, and more, and more! What the Shuck? Forgive me for that WTS? moment… I couldn’t resist. Before we get out the oyster knife and cocktail sauce, here’s a question for you all. What’s more to your liking, a roundup post, or several shorter posts during the day on the topics I’d normally cover like this? That’s not to say that the oyster roundup would disappear, but might be less frequent. Leave your thoughts in the comments. They Want What They Pay For Apparently paying Bristol Palin thousands of dollars in student-raised…

Don Young Darkens the Door and Crosses the Aisle

Yes, the 20 term Congressman for All Alaskans (who voted for him) has decided that he will attend the State of the Union address for only the third time since 1974. Why isn’t he a regular? “Because I’m an old hunter,” he told APRN. “And when you have the president, the vice president, the speaker of the House, the president of the Senate, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Supreme Court, the diplomatic corps, and everybody together under one roof, it always gives me great concern.” Although I appreciate the Congressman’s caution and sentiments, the thought of Don Young holding the…

If Ignorance is Bliss, Texas Rep. Joe Barton is One Happy Dude

This one is just mind-blowing. Joe Barton (the one who apologized to BP’s Tony Haward for the White House’s “shakedown”) actually asks Energy Secretery Dr. Steven Chu where all that oil in Alaska came from. Barton implies that because oil exists under the Arctic Ocean, then it must have been warmer there once.  Yessirree, the representative from Texas’ 6th district sure done schooled that Nobel Prize winner about “climate change.” If you’re thinking to yourself, “I would have laughed out loud if he’d asked me that question,” you’re not alone. Chu actually did laugh. We can give Mr. Barton one…

Netroots – Progressive Punch

I finished up the morning today by attending a discussion called “Staying on Top of Congress’ Shenanigans.”  How could I resist that one?  It turned out to be a tutorial on using a webiste called “Progressive Punch.”  It’s probably something you can figure out yourself by just jumping in and clicking around.  It seems to be organized fairly well, and is extremely informative.  It looks at the voting records of all members of the House and Senate, and scores based on a curve how your representatives rate in terms of their support for progressive causes.  Clicking on embedded links brings…

What’s Brown and Sounds Like a Bell?

DUNNNNGGGG…. Yes, I know.  I’m being juvenile.  But that joke always pops in my mind when I think of Congressman Don Young, and his delightful spooneristic nickname.  Yon Dung.   Now you know. What makes me think of such an unpleasant person on this beautiful summer evening, while I sip fresh lemonade and contemplate how good life is?  He’s thrown his hat back in the ring, that’s what.  Yup, he’s going for #20….his 20th term in office.  Looming indictments, $1 million plus in legal fees, having to step down from all his plum committee chairs?  Nope, doesn’t phase him a bit.  And why,…

When in Doubt, Trust….The Bush Administration?

A potentially precedent-setting ruling in a case involving Alaska resource development came through the Supreme Court yesterday.  It involved the legal contamination of a naturally occurring fish-bearing lake on the one hand, and the economic interest of a mining corporation on the other.  I’ll give you one guess who the court ruled for…and it wasn’t the environment.  (A lightbulb goes off over your head)  “Heyyyy, is this the same Supreme Court that ruled in favor of Exxon recently in that oil spill case?  The one where the environment and local people got the short end of the stick in favor…