171 Thoughts to “McCain on Immigration”

  1. Red Dawn

    You wish,

    No one can be screwed, only raped. No matter how PREPARED you are.

  2. Red Dawn, my friend, I am proud to know you! And I’m proud to be with Alanna and Elena and everyone else here is working for positive change! –raising a glass to you my friends–

  3. WHWN, YOU are one of the darlings of the county! Cheers! (Will I ever get to meet you?)

  4. you wish sounds like doodoocaster to me. Doodoocaster, why so cold?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV6xBQDCTzg

  5. Red Dawn

    ““The new blog is the talk of the town, and the above-mentioned ladies are the darlings of the county”

    And if that’s true, then PWC is screwed big time.”

    CHEERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayF1T_CdGro

  6. Red Dawn

    Mackie,

    Good song. Glad to see you are still AWAKE….LOL

    I get it that you get it…confirmed 🙂 Luv it 😉

  7. Moon-howler

    You wish, are you the next one in line for a good old fashioned shunning? Just say the word…we will comply.

    Let’s just all go for one last arse kicking before it begins.

    No one on this blog has ever defended a rapist. child molester, tax evader or murderer. You are a liar for saying so. Grow some nads and argue against some of our ideas, but don’t make up crap that no one here has said.

    Spin it anyway you want, the regulars here were pleased that the resolution became contained and immigration check was moved to post-arrest. That small adjustment protects the county, the people here, and directs concerns towards criminals, rather than immigrants.

  8. Interesting song and video, Mackie. Never heard of the group or that song.

  9. “Grow some nads and argue against some of our ideas, but don’t make up crap that no one here has said.”

    Well said, MH.

    And no, I wasn’t making fun of Duecaster’s speech. I believe I said that about six or seven or eight times, but in case You Wish didn’t get it…here’s #9. I was just ASKING if there was something wrong with his voice just like if I limp, you might ask “Did she hurt her leg?” Since when is that making fun of someone?

    You Wish needs a tranq.

  10. Moon-howler

    This song is dedicated to the people of Anti. None of us have to know the secret hand shake, or wear a red circle. We don’t have to quote the party line and we don’t get throw off for not agreeing with Alanna. Here’s to the New Kid in Town!

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=HLyrbDblw-Y

  11. you wish

    Consider me shunned – I will no longer waste time on this waste of space – enjoy your third world neighborhoods!

    And unlike KG, I don’t believe in better living through pharmaceuticals.

  12. Red Dawn

    KG/ my friend that I am PROUD to give a hug around the neck,

    Let me tell you a secret ( that I also need to remind MYSELF of) The HEART can be a handicap in the WRONG eyes/ears.

    I will always WELCOME the heart over any matter in my hometown.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_CU-9FNoDE

  13. “The HEART can be a handicap in the WRONG eyes/ears.”

    Well put!

    😉

  14. HEY! I made a smiley face! It worked! I learned it on Tom’s blog and now…

    Okay. Little things make me very happy. I admit it.

  15. Red, totally awesome tune and video! Wow. Thanks!

  16. Red Dawn

    Moon-howler,

    FREAKY, FREAKY, that we both posted at the same time talking about a SECRET…ohhhhh, let the conspiracy theories begin! LTFOL!

    You wish,

    Hope that you do come back but I understand. My momma always told me don’t rent space in your head for free ( BUT, I still do) No one is shunning you and I will stick up for you in a heart beat if that is truly how you feel!!!!!!!!
    How else are we to solve problems if we cannot talk, blog, agree, disagree, understand or not understand?

    I SURE AS HELL DO NOT KNOW THE ANSWERS, BUT I LOVE THE QUESTIONS AND WILL DO MY PART……

  17. you wish: see #7.

    Tell tale signs that our lovely model citizens KGothardt, Alanna, Elena, and the gang have vanquished “you wish” and the Hate Bunnies include:

    1) Hate Bunnies are reduced to repeating the same debunked arguments over and over again punctuated by adolescent personal attacks.

    2) The “Rule of Mob” Resolution has been dismantled, and Gospel Greg and his clones have been reduced to Red Circle Litter Pick-up Saturdays and pretending their humiliating defeat is a happy grinning victory.

    3) Public opinion has turned against Chairman Stewart, who is now associated with Help Save Manassas nearly as directly as Gospel Greg himself.

    4) Their sorry attack on Chief Deane was so piteously short-sighted that anyone who has lived in this community more than 5 years (unlike most of the HSM anti-immigrant bunch) didn’t bother to respond, and those who did completely destroyed Chairman Stewart in front of all his colleagues and on TV. Yet the political suicide of this attack is still being discussed with shock and amusement, and seen as a turning point in the fall of the Anti-Immigrant Lobby and the rise of the silent majority.

    5) The old blog has almost no traffic, and is no longer a source of “information”; only a spectacle by which to monitor the tragic spiral into madness of a racist watching helplessly as two non-racists duel for the White House.

    6) The new blog is the talk of the town, and the above-mentioned ladies are the darlings of the county

    7) Hate Bunnies like you wish keep coming back here to vent their frustrations, but only succeed in making mini-spectacles of themselves, periodically reminding us all how frustrated they are with 1 thru 6.

  18. you wish, it’s been 30 minutes since you quit this blog (I just now noticed after posting the above). I’m sure you’re still reading, though, so I’ll say one final thing to you in case you really make good on your threat to leave:

    I wouldn’t even mention you by “name,” or respond to you in any way if you didn’t attack people personally. I’ve never even noticed you before today, and if you’d just gone on cutting and pasting your talking points from Gospel Greg and F.A.I.R., I never would have called you out. If you don’t like being reminded of 1 through 6, then don’t attack people personally. Face it, you’re outmatched on this blog, not just by me, but by the average poster. Why?

    1) The facts are on our side.

    2) The march of progress and cultural change is on our side.

    3) There is authenticity in the personal history of the contributors to this blog, particularly the bravest souls who put their real names out there like KGotthardt, Alanna, and Elena.

    They are ordinary citizens who became extraordinary citizens in the face of a ferocious and seemingly unstoppable mob mentality, the Anti-Immigrant Lobby which had intimidated and over run everyone else until they ran into these three ladies and a few others who have risen to the challenge. They have the facts on their side, as well as history, and the march of progress. But more importantly, they are non-partisan and bi-partisan, with no other agenda than to preserve this community’s welcoming reputation, and defend our democracy against bullies and bigots. It took courage to do what they did. Our leaders had failed us. Most were afraid to speak. But when these gals decided to face down Gospel Greg on HIS playing field, they inspired others to do the same. And together as a community, we whipped him.

    Meanwhile, people like you react to only one small detail of all I have said above. These women have their real names out there, and that means that people like you can hide behind the cloak of anonymity and take pot shots. Good riddance, loser.

  19. Moon-howler

    Standing ovation for WHWN.

    I thought I was falling off the wagon about being polite and reaching out to people whose opinion differed from mine.

    But you are right. There are people who hide and then do nothing but take cheap shots. They don’t address the issues. They spout ancient tired rhetoric straight off the pages of FAIR materials. Yawn. They make fun of people they don’t know based on gossip from the dark side.

    I agree. Good riddance. And you know what they say about the screen door.

  20. Firedancer

    WHWN, you have such insight and talent for getting to–and expressing–the heart of the matter. What was so upsetting was the intimidation and mob mentality, and I cheer and thank the ladies for the bravery to stand up to it.

  21. Red Dawn

    Note to SELF, KG and others 🙂

    “The HEART can be a handicap in the WRONG eyes/ears.”

    and OPPPPSSSS, almost did it again….to caring and giving so many chances.

    Oh well, I guess if I were to be CHARGED ( innocent until proven guilty)I would want people handicapped with a HEART

  22. Red Dawn

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=hMenB9Ywh2Q

    talk about 2 sides, played this backwards on my record player and it said smoke marijuana
    ANYWAY, it was a request in my email box for you wish or people like you that want to be MEAN

  23. DiversityGal

    You Wish,

    If you are still out there, I want you to know that I am one of the new posters on this blog, and have sent it on to many like-minded PWC, Manassas City, and Manassas Park citizens. I have been telling them about the how wonderful it is, and how interesting the topics are.

    WhyHereWhyNow’s #6 is definitely right. Anti-bvbl is only increasing in popularity.

  24. Elena

    You Wish,
    I found your post:

    “you wish, 8. July 2008, 19:39
    Okay, how about these? Rather than just picking up trash, why don’t you volunteer in the community at schools and hospitals to act as a translator or advocate? OR create an organization in which immigrants who need help filling out paperwork/getting community resources/finding work get the help they need and the information that they need? There was just an article in the Examiner that up to 30% of students eligible for free/reduced lunch don’t get it because their parents don’t know that they can apply for it.

    Is that better? I do many of these things where I work, because I work in the school system. I advocate for the parents who have limited English proficiency and make sure that a translator is available for them. I have volunteered to teach adult ESL, as has my mother. You think that because people are against illegal immigrant we are against ALL immigrants. You are wrong.”

    Censored did respond very kindly to your post, sorry if I missed your suggestion, it’s difficult to respond to each comment, I am unable to sit at the computer all day to respond to each person. However, I also noticed within that thread, you began by insulting KG and her trips to Walmart. Maybe that set the tone for me and is why I missed your suggestion. However, even in your suggestion you being negatively…

    “Okay, how about these? Rather than just picking up trash, why don’t you volunteer in the community at schools and hospitals to act as a translator or advocate”

    My perception was that you were beginning your thought with an insult, like picking up trash is a useless endeavor. Also, you were clearly directing this at a “you”. Also, this wasn’t a suggestion for illegal immigration, this was a suggestion for legal immigration, as you clearly state in your comment. However, I would add, if you work in the school system, if you help immigrant families, you may very well be helping someone here who lacks legal status.

    Now I see you directed an insult at KG personally, how very petty of you. The only reason anyone can direct insults at KG, Alanna, and myself, is that we choose to talk here using our real names, thus we take the risk of being attacked based on our looks and not our beliefs. I find this medium of communication can be very unhealthy, as it allows people like you to hide behind a screen and not be accountable for your words.

    WHWN,
    Thank you again for your kind words. You know, I had no idea that my speaking out would have mattered. I will be honest, when people like “Elvis”, continually attack me personally, I do get discouraged. I wonder if it is possible to come to reasonable solutions when so much hate and disrespect exists. On some level, I feel like this is class warfare and our government allows the tension, fear, and hate to grow, paralyzed by their indecision and lack of leadership, the average citizen is clearly feeling abandoned. Abandoment creates a sense of hoplessness and fear. We see our future with so many negatives before us, war, terrorism, rising health care costs, rising college costs, gas prices, global climate change, and immigration issues.

  25. Elena

    Diversity Gal,
    Welcome!

  26. Moon-howler

    Diverity Gal, yes, welcome. And I apologize to you for not saying it yesterday.

    We are glad you are here.

  27. Censored bybvbl

    Welcome, Diversity Gal.

    Three cheers, WHWN!!

    And thank you, Elena and Alanna, for stepping forward when the moderate voices in our county desperately needed spokespeople…and for hanging in there despite the mud thrown from the dark side. And, KG, thank you for continuing your well-written replies and for your stances at the BOCS meetings too.

    What I find refreshing about this blog – besides the lack of censorship – is that it gives the actual residents of this county a forum to express their ideas and acts as a counterpoint to the out-of-state emails generated by organizations such as FAIR (which has no ties to this county other than its grand experiment, the resolution).

    And these moderate, independent voices are important because neither party can win without them.

  28. Chris

    Elena’s right it does take curage to use your real name. Boy, I came under fire this week for making a statement and saying “some” in a “group”. Not, only did the comments come to life here. I got several of emails. I can tell you, I thought long and hard about a name to use here. Also, I am willing to stand up say what *I* believe in my own words. I don’t need anyone feeding my head and mouth with words.

    The moderates must be heard, they are the vast majority. Both parties are joke, and the time has come for their to be a viable third party. I don’t think most Americans are extremists.

  29. Chris, you are certainly one of the heroines of the story as well. I applauded and defended you on that super-long thread, although not as ferociously perhaps as I did Alanna, KGotthardt, and Elena above. Not that you were asking in your post above, but I’m now asking myself why. I want you to know it wasn’t because I don’t appreciate you for what you’ve done!

    There are many heroes, sung and unsung. But your journey is an unique one, Chris, and your courage is singularly important in our county’s resurgence of morality, pro-activeness, and forward thinking for the common good.

    While I’ve met more than a few residents here who filled out HSM petitions and were counted as “members” by Gospel Greg, only to later ask that their names be taken off the list for what they saw as email spam, you are the one person I know of who not only left the group, but used your own name when questioning their methods and contributing to a public forum that seeks, in part, to undo the harm they have done… this knowing full well that several HSM members have your home address, your email address, etc. … and apparently after you received some threatening warnings (that’s what I gathered from the infamous 400 comment thread).

    We are, all of us, afraid of what people like Gospel Greg are capable of. Whether he means to or not, he presents himself as a frightening figure at Citizens Time, or just lurking around the McCoart building like a rogue shark among various schools of smaller fish. We also fear some of the pilot fish, the ones who cannot see the mean-spiritedness and cold calculations of Gospel Greg, and continue to flank him blindly.

    These frightening figures are ones you have seen close up. From the distance that I have watched them, I observe Greg and his followers to be particularly disturbing because

    a) they present a certain type of right wing fanaticism that targets minorities such as Muslims, gays, and Hispanics

    b) they seek to appropriate the county Police department as extensions of their agenda to rid the county of certain undesirables

    c) sadly, they succeeded with (b) in large degree … not in actuality but in perception (perception is reality right Chris?) soiling the reputation of our world class Police force and the county as a whole.

    d) and most frighteningly of all, they seemed to have infiltrated our local government, with members in our State Legislature (Jackson Miller) and on our Board of County Supervisors (John Stirrup), and a Chairman of the BOCS in Corey Stewart who seems more consumed with the local interests of HSM and national interests of F.A.I.R. than he does in leading this county through a period that would have been challenging WITHOUT last summer’s ambush by the Anti-Immigrant Lobby.

    I lay this out, Chris, because you may have come to similar conclusions peering at these people from the inside. I can only imagine what it was like for you (and Red Dawn and forgive me if there are others) to slowly realize that your are sitting in the pews of a Church in which you no longer believe. What a painful identity crisis that must have been.

    Really anyone who spoke against HSM’s legislative agenda and/or tactics at Citizens’ Time or on blogs should be commended, but you actually are the bravest of all.

    So, why haven’t I defended you as staunchly when you, too, were attacked in a personal fashion?

    From what I read, it seemed like the posts directed at you were hurtful, but not in the same anonymous scrawling on the bathroom wall way that Elvis N you wish have targeted Elena, KGotthardt, and Alanna. They were basically using
    the Scott McClellan Damage Control Special you know, “Gee, I thought I knew her,” “Gee, that doesn’t sound like the Chris I knew.” Blah, blah, blah. There was an adolescent tinge to the whole thing as well. With one of your former HSM mates saying things like “I thought we were friends” and trying to guilt you. I guess I didn’t feel it was my place to jump into such a thing. In fact, I questioned what it was doing on a blog in the first place. If any of you valued the friendships that you have, this feeling of “betrayal” the other gals were expressing probably should have taken place over coffee.

    On the other hand, I guess I’ve just lost patience for the unsavory routine in which the Hate Bunny crowd tries to debate the issues, gets spanked, and then retorts with some sort of insult usually referring to body issues. That is precisely the type of bathroom wall bullshit that Gospel Greg’s blog is known for, and precisely the type of bullying that put our county in the economic, fiscal, social, and public relations whole that hit is in today.

    So, I guess you can take this as a long expression of support, and an explanation as to why certain attacks get under my skin more than others. I’m sure if I learned more about what you went through, Chris, I would have a great deal more sympathy for you than I already do. Your story is so unique. But in the case of Alanna, Elena, and KGotthardt, I could not have more sympathy because I went through a very similar process of watching in horror, doing a little, doing more, then doing as much as I dared to reverse the tide. They took it a step further than I did, using their real names when they reveal how they feel about these issues. So I invest all the more in them, I see the courage I don’t quite have. So when some anonymous vandal comes on here thinking this blog is a bathroom wall for him to malign the very heroines that made it possible, you bet I’ll leap to my feet with a mop and a scrubber. Just call me the school janitor.

  30. Chris

    WHWN,
    I was not expecting all of that. However, it is all appreciated. I really have to absorb it all. I will think about this long and hard while I relax on my last hours of vacation. I certainly took note of your defense.
    I’m glad Alanna had the courage, knowledge, time, patience, etc to take on bvbl head to head. My “perception” is the fact that she’s a WOMAN doesn’t sit too well with some egotistical minds. And we all know what perception is right? 😉

  31. Alanna

    I will say, at least in the case of Stirrup, the majority of the areas in and around Manassas were not won by him. He didn’t win Sudley North, Mullen, Westgate, Sinclair, etc… He did however take Stonewall which I presume is the area in which many HSM members live. If you include Stonewall with the other Manassas area precincts, Stirrup won by a margin of 2%. Not an overall endorsement of by Manassas for the “Help Save Manassas” candidate. Rather, it was the precincts in the western part of the Gainesville District that are 20 minutes outside of Manassas that caused him to win the election. I have not done any significant analysis on Stewart’s numbers for the past election but as time permits I will look into them.

  32. Moon-howler

    Stirrup’s opponent also had no political savvy. He got very little support from the democrats. I barely considered him a viable candidate. Perhaps a well-run campaign would have brought different results. Who knows.

  33. Chris, you are an insightful on aren’t you. I was thinking about gender as well but from the other side of the equation. Is there a reason why so many women were brave enough to stand up to bullies who violated our democracy and disgraced our county? Where are all the men? (Of course there were a lot of men, Gregg Reynolds and Dexter Fox come to mind, plus that guy who did the “Fear Politics” speech on October 16, and of course Patrick Garland, but go with me here.)

    Think about the Board members. Until Principi came along, who was the only one willing to stand up to the Chairman. Maureen Caddigan!

    I’m going to think on this from a male perspective. I’m anxious to read your Meditations from the Last Hours of Vacation. With that title it sounds like an opus! : )

  34. aaag! my smiley face was chopped in half! KGotthardt, how do you do it?

  35. Censored bybvbl

    WHWN, I wonder if the gender gap has to do with linear thinking. My husband is better at seeing one project from start to finish and I’m better at multi-tasking. Women generally have to balance so many things that we’re often five steps ahead in detecting danger signals. And we end up as mediators to family squabbles so often that we know nothing is easily black or white. It’s often the women in a family that give their children the admonishments of: Don’t be mean. Share. Don’t make fun of… Etc. We’re a sex that has experienced discrimination and often are willing to keep others from having to unnecessarily experience it.

    Also, some of our husbands remain more publically neutral because of their jobs.

  36. Chris

    Alanna,
    I really feel the reason the western portions of our district were won “no fuss no muss”, is due to the fact that that’s where the more affluent neighborhoods are. I feel these neighborhoods have a strong Republican base to begin with.

  37. Alanna

    Chris,
    Was his being the “Help Save Manassas” candidate really a driving factor in his win, or, was it simply that these more affluent neighborhoods have a more strong Republican base? I guess that’s what I am wondering, especially since many of the precincts in Manassas were not won by him.

  38. Censored by bvbl, I fully understand being forced to be publicly neutral because of a job. There are men AND women in this county who are in that position, believe me.

    But I’m also wondering if there is a jewel of insight in what you said about having experienced discrimination as women. I have definitely noticed that people of color have been much more likely to speak out against the hostile takeover by the Anti-Immigrant Lobby in Prince William County. The reasons for this were so obvious that I didn’t give it much thought. But now that you point out that women are more likely than men to have experienced some sort of prejudice, namely sexism, than men, I wonder if women are also more likely to have experience defending themselves in situations where their rights are violated. I’m not only speaking of sexual assault, but also sexual harassment.

    For me, as a man, I was completely taken aback watching as my local government was overwhelmed by this well-organized “army” of local agitators assisted by a well-funded national lobbying firm called F.A.I.R. The ugliness and the disrespect with which the Anti-Immigrant Lobby infiltrated and toppled our county government felt like a violation to me. I had no way of processing such an action. I was not accustomed to standing up and saying, “Wait a second, my rights have been violated, and I will not stand for this.” Why? Because I am a white male, and such things do not often happen to white males in American society.

    So my theory is that our fate was in many ways left up to the brave women in our community who took the lead in standing up to these ill-motivated thugs. The men of Prince William County were not psychologically prepared to admit that we had been violated as a premise for standing up and saying “no.” It took us a while longer to realize this, and rally to the cause. We needed our brave sisters to show us the way.

  39. Chris

    WHWN,

    PIR(perception is reality), all the way! I’ve been thinking about your post and how to respond. In actuality anything I say is subject to attack. I understand, and by the same token have no problem at all defending MY feelings. Yes, my feeling are honest and sincere. Iv’e always said being in the middle/moderate means you take an ass beating from both sides.

    Yesterday, I was listening to the radio and I heard John Cougar Mellencamp, and one line that has ALWAYS stood out in the song is. “If you’re NOT part of the future, then get out of the way”. I wonder just how many of these “newcomers” will be in PWC for generations to come. I’ve also asked the question of the “newcomers”. They’ve came to OUR county guns a blazing, and telling our board how things should be run. They must have thought things were good enough, they moved here didn’t they. I want to know where many will be in 10-15 years. I will NOT call names on this.

    You’ve been paying close attention to posts clearly. I will say the threatening email was from just a mere “member” of HSM. This same person had nerve enough to come beating on my door one afternoon, after they’d been to address the BOS. They told me “I’d better get down there and thank Corey and John S. for the resolution or we could kiss it good-bye”. This coming from someone that’s been know to write that the Resolution came from the residents of WestGate. Yeah, that’s a crock of you know what, if I ever heard it.

    The blogs are no place for personal attacks. You’ve seen me ask some that like to make nasty comments of the some’s appearances makes me ill. Are they ready for the cover of GQ or Cosmo? I was pleased to get the emails over such stuff instead of reading it on the blog. I personally don’t base friendships based on wheter or not they agree 100% with me or not. We are all INDIVIDUALS, with our OWN minds.

    I can NOT stand to see the reputation of our county going down the tubes, simply because our board got rail roaded by a few. This makes me physically ill. I must say I seem to have taken five years off my face since no longer being involved with a “group”.

    I remember going to address the BOS for the first time 6/5/2007, at the request of HSM. Well, there were seven talking point speeches that had already been handed out by the time myself, and two other PW natives which I didn’t know showed up. We were told we didn’t have to speak we could stand up and show unity. Well, ha haa!! The three natives got up and spoke from the heart of their true life experiences after all the “speeches” were read. I could be wrong, but I’ve always thought the three us made a far better/positive impact on the board than those that read talking points provided by someone.

    Maureen Caddigan was the only one to stand up to Corey it seemed. I’ve always admire her, and even more so after I’ve watched her over the past year.

    An opus from me..surely you jest! I have the gift to gab not the gift to write. Yet, I don’t let that stop me. I think my reasonable rational voice is needed in the county. I would encourage ALL to make their voices heard. This is one of the many beauties of the USA, we can speak to our minds.

  40. Censored bybvbl

    WHWN, I grew up as somewhat of an outsider – a Yankee in the 50s/60s South, a female in male dominated math and science classes. I guess I was a stubborn little cuss who didn’t like to be limited and as a result, I don’t like to see arbitrary limitations put on others.

    I think that many people were taken by surprise by the actions of HSM and the rapidity with which the BOCS capitulated to their ideas. Too many of us have been trained/conditioned to be nice, let’s-not-upset-the-apple cart type of middle class people. We assume people can debate, behave rationally, be heard equally. Bullies don’t operate like that. They seize the moment and rely on our being too flabbergasted at the very public brouhaha to repond effectively. (I could write a book about the class clash in my neighborhood alone. It should have prepared me for the Black Velvets, but I was complacent and tired of dealing with loudmouths.)

    So, I don’t think it was just a lack of preparedness on men’s part. It was equally a culture clash…as well as a battle for a higher ground and fair treatment.

  41. Lucky Duck

    WHWH, While I have admired Ms. Caddigan since she was a School Board Member for her public service, lets not laud her with laurels over the immigration issue too quickly.

    Where was her moral compass when she voted on October 16th? She had all the facts that every other board member possessed and she voted along with everyone else that day.

    She was not duped or blindsided by what the resolution would do, she had all of the reports and actions that the County was about to undertake and she still, like the rest of them, voted in favor of the resolution. I am not saying she was worse than the other seven, but she was one of the eight who voted for it and should not be let off the hook so easily.

  42. Juturna

    My thoughts about the other supervisors is that they are pretty normal people without larger ambition. Perhaps they had no clue how to deal with the Chair? I mean how many other people have come along that clearly care less about PWC and are clearly there for their own benefit?? Connaughton pales by comparison. At least he had good manners. Maybe they did not know how to handle this situation. The man is a bully. Most good people don’t know how to handle these situations.

    I believe they are learning.

    The two meetings of the budget markup and budget recap were interesting. The others simply sat back and let him attempt to lead. He couldn’t and they stalemated and stalemated. Finally they approved Principi’s original recommendation. Interesting how it came from him and was voted down,$.97 and no cameras and checking after arrest but when it came from stewart it went. Don’t tell me Stewart negotiates how supervisors vote based on what is presented. Tell me it can’t be possible?

  43. Moon-howler

    The only real innocent was Frank Principi because he wasn’t on the board.

    In fairness, I do believe that some of the supervisors were in the dark about where the push was coming from. I believe that 2 of them knew that many of the emails and faxes were not from within the county. The other 5 I will give the benefit of the doubt to.

  44. notGregLetiecq

    WHWN, I applaud you for recognizing the strength and courage of the women on this blog especially the women who spoke up publicly without the safety of the virtual cloak of anonymity. I imagine you to be one of the men out there with the imagination and intelligence to see what others’ experiences are like. I have had many fights with my boyfriend — who is white — who failed to see discrimination against women and minorities for a long time. After hundreds of hours of fighting and discussion over the years, he is now more quick to see it than I.

    There is a certain refusal to see, to acknowledge the truth. I think it’s a generalized resistance to change. If we acknowledged the truth, we’d have to change and change is unnatural, hard, nearly impossible for many of us, as individuals or as a community. To change is deeply disturbing and challenging for most people. Even if evolutionary adaptation demands it of us. HSM represents to me people who can’t and refuse to change. They can’t adapt to the dramatic changes in their lives. Sadly, they will go the way of dinosaurs. They’d rather destroy than change.

    I admire Chris and RedDawn a great deal because they had the courage and strength to change their minds.

    Here’s a toast to all the brave women and men on this blog who’d like to work towards changing the county, approaching the project with compassion and courage.

  45. Chris

    NotGL,

    Many thanks for you kind words. If in the days of using a screen name from time to time I would sign them with my first and last name. I never felt I was anymous. Too many people watch BOS meetings, and for those that heard me speak during the days of giving your complete address, I was never a mystery. For those that paid attention the could figure me out in a heart beat. I’ve had several people call my house wanting some guidance on neighborhood issues and other things. I’ve also, had people ask for my information to contact me at a later time to discuss issues further after Citizens Time. I am still more than willing to assist anyone with these types of things. My concern is for our county, and it’s reputation.
    Compassion and Courage two badges to wear with honor.

  46. Is it illegal if we lie to the BOCS and give a false name when we speak at the BOCS?

    Thought crimes…they’re on the way…pioneered by those sworn to uphold and defend the constitution.

    HR1955 passed 400 to 6.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyutU1eu5Ps

  47. I’m not saying Supervisor Caddigan is less culpable than the other 2007 Board members just because she challenged Chairman Stewart during Board meetings. Yes, her vote was the same, along with Barg’s and Jenkins’. They wrongly believed the whole county was anti-immigrant at the time. Now they know better, and now they vote differently as the 9500 Liberty movie showed. What I was talking about was courage. What does it take to stand up to a bully? And why does it seem that the women of this county are more likely to do so? Even inside HSM, the ones brave enough to reconsider were women. Just trying to get to the bottom of that.

    BTW, wasn’t this thread supposed to be about John McCain!!??

  48. Chris

    WHWN,
    I think the cold hard truth of the matter is that the women in the county have bigger balls than the men. I hate be so crude, but it’s the truth.
    Did you say something about John McCain.?!? 🙂

  49. Chris

    Alanna, 13. July 2008, 14:31

    I truly believe the Republican base in the western portion of the district is what did. Stonewall, WestGate and others have usually been democratic precicnts. I guess some would say we are just the working class fools in the eastern part of the Gainesville district. There were several that campaigned hard for John S in the Stonewall precinct. Stonewall has the older established neighborhoods with many original owners in them. You were at Stonewall, and I think a lot vote a mixed ticket in our area. I know of two women that did quite a few “lit drops” in the Stonewall precinct. Once again we are back to the women being the “work horses”.

  50. Re. McCain, I see his victory in the primary as related to and/or parallel to our victory in PWC. Perhaps McCain’s courage made it possible for people like Alanna to step forward? I don’t know. Alanna is a life-long Republican. What would she have done if the entire party, including the party elders had said, “The Anti-Immigrant Lobby R Us?”

    In any case, PWC is a solidly Republican county … or at least as solid as there is in NoVa these days. That is why I say, both here in PWC and on the national level, there is no American more valuable than a moderate Republican.

    On our Board, there are two moderate Republicans. I love them both. I find it hard to criticize them for taking so long to stand up to the Anti-Immigrant Lobby because they were torn by party loyalty, and, because I myself didn’t do sh*t until after the election.

    As for McCain, I am agonizing with him on other issues like Iraq, Iran, and the economy. I wish he were the same candidate he was in 2000 when he got shafted by that “John McCain has a Black baby” b.s. in South Carolina.

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