It seems that when Cirque du CPAC came to town, Corey bought a ring side seat as well as setting up his own p[rivate sideshow.
I hope this is a do as I say, not as I do lesson from Mr. Stewart. I really want to know where he goes to hang out with the bros and the hombres here in Prince William County.
I simply don’t believe it has happened. He doesn’t hang out with minorities. Now just what would he tell them? Would he tell them about how he “led the charge” to run illegal immigrants out of the county? Would he tell them how he has bragged everywhere there is a mic about how forceful he is? Would he share with them how he has manipulated [read LIED] crime facts and figures to indicate how much crime was diminished since he, Corey Stewart, ran off all the ” illegals?” I just bet they were all impressed. NOT!
You’re eager to bash him, but he didn’t say anything much here. And it’s a mistake to assume that a stance against illegal immigration means that he can’t get along with “minority” voters.
Not saying he can’t….I am saying he doesn’t. How did he get elected? I doubt seriously if minority voters pushed him over the edge. There were no serious contenders.
If you have documentation of Corey hob-nobbing with minorities, by all means, share.
You are right, he didn’t say much. Point taken. I have heard him on the subject before. Empty words. The vitriol against illegal immigrants doesn’t set well with Latinos. Why? Vitriol. The loud bombastic shest thumping is a real turn off.
Ah, Corey’s doing his summer sandal routine…..
On the larger issue …
Repiblicans are, quite logically, concerned with changing demographics and are eager to somehow get the illegal immigration issue out of play. They know they need to make their party a valid option for non-whites.
Democrats are somewhat gleeful about these same demographics, and feel that they’re in the driver’s seat long-term.
We all get caught up in the associated news stories and opinion columns about the efforts of these cynical elitists to define their parties in ways that will let them acheive electoral victories. And it shocks me that we don’t demand better. It shocks me that we don’t insist that the debate be focused on what’s best for our nation, rather than what’s best for one party or the other. The real issues involved – wage disparity, strain on the welfare system – aren’t meaningfully quantified. At least not to the extent that demographic and electoral numbers are.
We’ve been sucked into “their” world. The elitists of both parties who run things have us borrowing against the future to cover up their mistakes, bailouts of one type or another every few years, and now they have people caring more about their territorial squabbles than about what’s best for most of us. They dominate our existence. And I for one don’t understand why well-meaning people choose to participate in the game of Rpublican-against-Democrat.
On the more narrow issue of “comprehensive immigratioin reform”, I still bet against it happening. If Bush couldn’t lead his party towards it, knowing that it’s likely a self-immolation demographically, I doubt that they’ll follow Obama towards the fire. The Democrats will be happy to keep the issue in play and the Republicans will remain stymied by the split between their elitists’ preferred strategy and their rank-and-file’s core beliefs. I doubt that anything meaningful will happen.
And on the even more narrow issue of whether Stewart is really a valid spokesman for “minority outreach”, yeah i see the comedy of it. He’s a trend jumper and that’s today’s trend if you want to climb up within the GOP.
CPAC is Corey’s natural home. He fancies himself “mister conservative” even though he has raised taxes every year he’s been in office. Conservatives of Stewart’s ilk have yet to figure out how to square their visceral reflex to hate (read: fear) women, minorities, gays with their own rhetoric about freedom, liberty, self-reliance, etc.
When “conservative” becomes a religion, as it clearly has for some, all rationality has left the room.
Liberals are similarly irrational. Among their beliefs :
– Climate change, which is largely independent of mankind’s activities, is Mother Nature punishing mankind
– Importing poverty into America, by way of encouraging illegal immigration, won’t cause wage disparity and unemployment among our lower class
– Expansion of the welfare system doesn’t have ill effects
@Rick Bentley
RB – though I might take issue with your specific choices to cite, I have no quarrel with your basic point: that Conservatives have no monopoly on irrationality.
I am beyond flabbergasted. There wasn’t anything wrong with what he was saying, but it is totally opposite of what he really thinks, believes and talks to people who know him. I think if I had been there I would have burst out laughing. It is so opposite Chairman Stewart’s true approach to minorities that I feel like I was watching an SNL skit.
You could come up with a montage of bigoted comments Stewart has made from the BOCs meetings alone. How did he even keep a straight face up there.
Honestly it would like Bob Marshall making a speech claiming to be a friend to the gay, lesbian, bi sexual, transgendered community.
@Rick Bentley
Politicians such as Corey play to fear in order to get votes. They’ll flip sides as long as they’re rewarded by more financial backing and, thus, more votes. Lousy local politicians don’t automatically become more ethical or smarter as they proceed higher up the food chain. The US Congress is full of Coreys.
Development and chasing immigrants propelled Corey into office. How do you think those issues could have been handled at the local level more reasonably? The fear factor propelled Greg and cronies into the spotlight. Do you think more people would have attended public meetings which addressed those issues with facts and info on how the problems could be solved? The public is responsible as well as the parties. When town hall type meetings are disrupted by blowhards who aren’t interested in hearing differing opinions, not much is accomplished. And when politicians pander and ignore the real problems faced by their constituents, nothing is accomplished. And when squeaky wheels get all the attention, long-term problems aren’t solved either.
@Rick Bentley
We do that over most important things (what you describes,) I don’t see why immigration should be different. We even do that over deeply personal issues like reproduction. We did it over the Iraq war.
@Rick Bentley
Your very words show that you have bought in to the Republican talking points on climate change.
I at least am willing to say we need to learn as much as we can rather than discrediting this theory and that theory. I simply don’t have the background to make that assessment.
As for poverty. It exists. That should be the starting point. I think it is just naturally occurring. However, I dont like seeing children without food or medical care.
@anonamouse
Bwaaaaahahahahahhahahahahaha
Excellent point, Anonymouse. You have hit the nail on the head! Hit a homerun out of the park even.
@Censored bybvbl
Corey is going to end up looking like a pretzel from all that bending in the wind.
Holy Sh&T Balls, did Corey actually say ” people can spot a fake”?! Geez, if that were the truth he wouldn’t keep getting elected!
Yup. It made me smile. I looked to see if he was smiling. Totally dead-pan.
Fabulous analogy to Bob Marshall!@anonamouse
RB,
Corey NEVER says anything of value, that’s the point. He is the quintesential politician, and that is no compliment. He is the worst kind though, his inner needs are met by the “fame” of being a politician, he has little interest in crafting real policy. Comparing him to a man like my godfather is a joke, a pathetic joke. My godfather served the people of this country and his state, not for the intent of self promotion,never to self egrandise, but to work for the bettermant of his fellow man.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_May
Censored,
As I’ve said before, I think that Greg L. circa 2007 was a good citizen who took a lot of anger that was in the air and focused it in a positive, constructive direction. I know that position is a tough sell these days, because he uses his blog to bully people and because some of his positions are extreme. But i stand by it.
As to whether Corey Stewart did more good than bad … he addressed the issue of the times, effectively. I’ll always give him credit for that. The neighborhood I live in was becoming a ghetto, plain and simple.
Could your neighborhood problem have been solved in a better, more cost effective way?
I don’t live in a gated community either. Much of the problem could have been solved by really beefing up neighborhood services and extended their hours.
I firmly believe the housing market solved our problems.
Greg’s blog has always been used to bully. Nothing has changed. Corey did nothing of value but waste taxpayer dollars and actively fuel hatred.
Greg worked. I will hand him that. Corey chest thumped and ran his mouth. He didn’t do anything that I am aware of.
Moon, the housing market was a factor in reducing the large influx of undocumented people, and the associated boom/bust cycle in construction work was too. But the great angry masses having Corey S. out there front and center fighting our fight was a factor too.
Elena, I would actually seperate Greg’s blog from the HSM organization. In 2007 there was a seperation. You can argue that he’s not a fit leader; I understand why you may think that. But I believe he was a darned good leader at that time. He encouraged use of the political process for change, and reasoned debate. During a very angry time.
His blog is another matter. Even beyond the bullying, he obviously enjoys poking at people and being provocative, poking at sacred cows of any liberal that he can, and watches others spew racist and sexist crap. His blog undercuts his ability to lead an organization. But, if we seperate out his blog’s content from his leadership of HSM circa 2007-2008, I think it’s hard to find fault in the way he conducted himself and the way he lead HSM.
If anyone else other than Greg and Corey Stewart had been doing anything for my neighborhood at the time, rather than pretending a problem didn’t exist, I’d probably have been less enthusiastic about those two men then, and less prone to defend them now. But nobody was.
Corey really didnt do jack other than run his mouth. What did he really do? I will give Greg credit for actually doing something, whether I approve of it or not. But Corey didn’t do anything other than try to advance himself. I can’t think of one thing he did.
And I still think that 15 out of 25 units becoming flophouses is a problem of large enough scale that it won’t be handled by genteel approaches.
I think that is a real problem also.
Perhaps those supervisors who rubber stamped all the new housing developments should bear some responsiblity for what happened.
It would be an interesting scientific/social experiment if we could have transplanted your family into my neighborhood (or Greg’s) and mine into yours. And see over time who felt which way about these issues. Perhaps I’d still be a committed liberal and perhaps you’d have slanted towards concern about large-scale illegal immigration.
@Rick, let me just say there is no need for me to move, if you get my drift.
I am not in favor of illegal immigration. Oddly enough, when the houses stopped being built, the jobs dried up. Many people with families stayed and the young men who were following the jobs moved on. The young men, for the most part, were the ones causing most of the problems. (typical)
I am in favor of allowing people who do not have criminal records to live in work here legally. I am in favor of the Dream Act.
School populations changed very little, in the grand scheme of things.
Because the issues that affect your family’s quality of life are the ones that resonate most deeply, for most of us. Had you seen a young wanna be gang member scrawling graffiti on the sidewalk your child plays on … or had your wife at wit’s end about the loud music thumping from next door … or had neighbors who you couldn’t speak to … or lived for weeks with anonymous squatters in the house next door to you .. it is definitely something that changes one’s perspective.
I lived in the middle of it, Rick. No one wrote on the sidewalk and the really offensive family lived 2 houses away. Lots of thumping over here. I lived blocks from squatters. My next door neighbor stopped walking because lots of older kids hung out on the street. Our neighborhood school did get grafitti’ed. My job was such that I dealt with parts of it every day of my life.
I maintain that a really upgraded neighborhood services would have been more cost effective.
Please don’t think I am minimizing your concerns. I am not. They were very real. I just think what happened in the county wasd ineffective and wrong.
@Rick Bentley
I think some blame for neighborhood deterioration had to be placed on insufficient funding for Neighborhood Services as well as leadership which didn’t recognize the extent of some problems. My neighborhood had problems similar to yours but the problems weren’t caused by immigrants – just drunk good-old-boys. Fortunately for me, I know what can and cannot be done about those problems and played hardball with County staff to get the issues resolved. Most homeowners don’t have that info easily available to them. Greg could have pursued the issues in the same way that I did without bringing immigration status into the mix. When County staff is inundated with calls that deal more with racial and ethnic slurs and less with actual issues which can be cited, the complaints aren’t taken as seriously. After all, does a zoning or building inspector go out and cite someone for immigration status? No. But issues involving zoning or law enforcement can be addressed.
Follow the money. Look at the big donations to HSM and, if you’re lucky, where that money was funneled.
Were there big donations to HSM? Are you sure about that?
I don’t know. @Rick
Moon, Censored,
I think the central issue of too many people living in houses was too widespread to be dealt with by Neighborhood Services.
We’ve got issues in my neighborhood now – people blocking sidewalks and cars with double parking, people hogging visitor parking spots. But we’ve got them in isolated, measurable quantities. Which could be addressed through normal means. 6 years ago we had too many people, too much traffic, too much noise – and when issues did arise (people I didn’t know mowing my lawn, for example) the fact that many residents didn’t speak English was a barrier towards resolving them.
The neighborhood was becoming lawless. Not many bad things actually happened – no rapes or assaults or so forth in my case. But they could have, and the language barrier would be a handicap against figuring out what was going on. Anonymous people came and went at all hours. At one point someone was squatting in the house next door – broke open the lock, and we could occasionally see a light on in the foreclosed house at night. Who do we call? Most of the ostensible owners of these houses didn’t live in them.
You know how I know this wasn’t just personal paranoia on my part? Because so many of my neighbors MOVED OUT AND AWAY. They saw no solution and they got out of Dodge. If I had more money to my name at that point I surely would have also.
@Rick, I don’t think you are paranoid at all. Some communities got hit with over-crowding very hard. One street over near me had at least 50 % of the homes with that going on.
Tell me what Corey did to fix it though. I am saying he didn’t really do anything. Neighborhood services should have started far sooner and hired many more people. They needed to stagger their workers so people were actually going to homes when someone was home.
You can get owners names and addresses from the courthouse. How many owners were contacted and told that their homes were being torn up? That is a very powerful tool, especially if pictures are attached.
heh,a longer post of mine is awaiting moderation. Guess this happens when certain words get used? I used the r-word for s**ual assault, guess that was the one.
I don’t know why your comment was in moderation. I just released it as soon as I saw it. There is only one trigger word and it has to do with climate control. You didn’t use it.
No other words, honest.
@Rick Bentley
I think a call to the police would be the best bet with squatters. I personally blame banks for most of the crapola that went on – from overcrowding, foreclosures, vacant houses, HOA’s having insufficient funds to maintain common areas, and the general loss of equity that most responsible, hardworking homeowners suffered because of these problems.
Every problem that people got hysterical about in connection with illegal immigration could have been dealt with effectively with existing local law. Stewart harnessed up that issue because he thought it had votes in it and he rode it hard. His history has been to find an issue and ride it. That one had particular value because it could be fueled by fear. Much better than Rural Crescent stuff or the previous penny-ante efforts he tried to get hold of. With people like Greg providing the fuel, the hot air lift was incredible. Stewart can’t disrobe himself of that very easily, because he wore it so flamboyantly. Politicians who exist for no reason that to be politicians (and I classify Stewart as very much in that camp) count on the electorate having short memories and divided attentions. They may be right, but his past will be more difficult to jettison that most.
Totally agree, Scout. That’s one reason people think we ‘pick on Corey.’ We don’t pick on him as much as we serve as a public memory for all his various “mounts” that he has ridden hard.
When the squatter was next door, it seemed like the least of my problems. I’m pretty sure the police would have just told me to call the owner of the home, which was a bank at that point. Pretty sure the bank wouldn’t have cared much. Nobody gave a f***ing s*** about anything else that was going on, what’s a little bit of squatting. The person may have lacked legal standing and papers to the house, but that doesn’t mean they don’t need shelter, right? They’re an “undocumented tenant”.
I suspect it was the same kid squatting in that house that I had had so much trouble with. At this point he was hiding rather than blaring music through the walls and staring at us through a window, so it was an improvement.
I happened by chance to be looking out the window one day when a realtor went in to the house and then ran out and called police. Then saw the back gate busted open where he had fled. And I think that was that.
Ask Lafayette about squatters. She was on the warpath over them. Nothing was done about appliances being sold out of the houses either. I watched it happen 2 doors down. I watched Lafayette get told all they needed was a piece of mail with their name on it. Who was to say it wasn’t the occupent’s washer/dryer. I figure it served the homeowner right for the neglect. Why waste my time.
@Rick
The occupants left with their trailer shortly after that, leaving a million trashbags on the back deck. At least the cops weren’t there all the time.
It took the health department 2 months to get out to the house over the trash bags. That delay was inexcusable. That is sort of what I am talking about.
Did I hear my name? 🙂
Oh my that house is still a point of contention. I’d love for Rick to know all about the latest situation as that property is now managed by a former LEO.
Rick, I had a copy of the deed, copy of county assessment webpage, etc.. The cops didn’t give a rat’s backside. It was absolutely horrible. The house was stripped of ALL fixtures. They had three coin operated washers and four coin operated dryers in a WestGate house. Now, who in the hell needs a coin operated machine in their private residence. When the police came these jokers whipped out some mail that matched their ID’s, well, the ones that had them at least. The cops told me they belonged there. Yeah, riiiight. It’s a good thing Mr. Lafayette was here. He saved my a$$ from a trip to county lock up. Seriously, I almost got hauled off. Of course I did have my Va. card birth certificate and Va. DL on me, so I could prove who I was. It still makes my blood boil just typing this out.
I still can’t stop laughing about Moon should move to GL’s hood. LMAO…good one. I’ll stay over here where we have street lights.
I agree with Scout about Corey riding the issue of the day. He’s down south today doing the work of a candidate for LG in Albemarle. Not sure how this benefits PWC the county.
Didn’t that former LEO lead the charge against the “illegals?” I seem to remember seeing his face a few places ….in front of HSM.
I was there watching you trying to get locked up also. I would have helped save you Lafayette. I thought you would enjoy the suggestion about me moving to be in the GL Hood. tee hee. I sent a private email to Rick ‘plaining that one.
I hope Albemarle runs Corey off.
“Not sure how this benefits PWC the county.”
His being ninety miles away from PWC can’t hurt.
LMAO!! I needed that. I should’ve known you’d have the answer.
@Moon-howler
Why yes he did frequent the HSM meetings back in the day. 👿 I think it was funny, you were just simply driving down the block and witnessed that mess. I do have plenty of pictures of the great take away. I still laugh at how they had the Va. State Police Sticker on their door, and then on the side windows, the window treatment of Che Guevara posters for that special something for the place.
I bet Rick died when he read your email. I’m still gigglin’ over it.
HSL-HelpSaveLafayette 🙄
Are we to make donations to HSL in the form of 6-packs, 12-packs or cases and would you prefer Cowboy Killers in the red or gold box?
Cowboy Killers-Red box, of course. Pass on the suds, but would not turn down good whiskey.
Coin operated washers/dryers? Wow.
Anyine who doesn’t think our neighborhoods were on the verge of a permanent shift towards being Spanish ghettos, reflect on that. Buying single-family townhouses to rent out to numerous workers was so institutionalized that some enterprising landlords were installing COIN OPERATED LAUNDRY inside the homes.
@Rick Bentley
I swear just when I thought I’d seen it all. It was never ending a few years ago. I will say the neighborhood is NOT issue free, by any means. I saw two houses on this very block, with my own two eyes that had the closet converted into hideway 4person bunks. One of these houses had two shifts of “tenants”. The AM/PM crew. UFB!! Again it’s improved, but at the end of the day really hasn’t changed much at all.
Closet conversion is a new one on me too! Wow.
Obviously, if they have been conditioned to blieve that our immigration laws are meaningless and won’t be enforced, zoning laws are a small matter.
A difference being that local authorities can enforce zoning and other local ordinances, whereas they cannot enforce or create federal immigration policy, RB.
People in the know advised PWC to keep the money under their control. They didn’t listen.