Governor McDonnell Announces Blueprint for Administration’s Final 100 Days

 Governor of Virginia  (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“Sprint to the Finish” Focuses on Securing Additional Positive Results for Virginians Over Last 3 Months

Governor Will Introduce Next Biennial Budget; Implement Education Reforms; Continue to Prioritize Restoration of Rights Efforts; Streamline State Government

NEW YORK CITY- With exactly 100 days remaining in the gubernatorial administration of Governor Bob McDonnell, the governor today announced a “Sprint to the Finish” final 100 days plan that aims to continue the administration’s successes in improving the quality of life of all Virginians and building a “Commonwealth of Opportunity.” Over the course of the last four years the Administration has worked with the General Assembly to successfully achieve Virginia’s first major transportation funding plan in over a generation, add 14,000 new slots for in-state undergraduate students at Virginia’s colleges and universities, put more education dollars into the classroom and initiated significant k-12 education reforms, strengthen Virginia’s pension system, and work with the private sector to help put in place policies that have helped drop Virginia’s unemployment rate from 7.4% in January 2010 to 5.8% today, the lowest unemployment rate in the Southeast. Now, the governor is laying out a number of initiatives and goals for the administration to focus on in the final months of his time in office. The governor made the announcement while on his annual visit to bond rating firms in New York City where he, along with legislators and administration officials, will discuss Virginia’s fiscal standing and financial outlook moving forward.

Speaking about the “Sprint to the Finish” blueprint for the final 100 days, the governor remarked, “This has been an administration focused on getting results for the people. Through bipartisan cooperation and policy innovation, that is what we’ve done. Virginia now has the transportation funding plan that we were lacking for over 20 years. Since we took office, the state unemployment rate has fallen to 5.8%, lowest in the Southeast, and 158,000 net new private sector jobs have been created in the Commonwealth. Our education reforms have introduced increased compensation and accountability for our teachers, expanded educational choices for our students, and put more money in the classroom, not in bureaucracy. Our colleges and universities are more affordable and accessible. Agricultural exports, tourism revenue, and wine sales are all at record highs. This is a record of results that is a bipartisan achievement. Now, as we reach the final 100 days of our time in office, our focus will remain the same: getting results for the people of Virginia.”

The governor continued, “Over these final 100 days Virginians will continue to see results in Richmond. We will introduce the Commonwealth’s next biennial budget, laying out the state’s fiscal framework for the next two years and continuing our tradition of budgeting conservatively and investing wisely in the core functions of government most essential to job creation and economic growth. We will implement the major education reforms we passed last session, with Virginia schools converting to an ‘A-F’ grading scale, the board and head of the Opportunity Educational Institution being selected, pay raises and strategic compensation for teachers moving forward, and recommendations received from our newly-created Governor’s Teachers Cabinet.

He concluded, “We will continue our commitment to restoring, automatically, the rights of Virginians who have paid their dues and deserve to regain the fundamental and basic right to vote and participate fully in our democracy. We will host our fourth ‘Governor’s Energy Conference’ and continue to look for all means by which we can further establish Virginia as ‘The Energy Capital of the East Coast.’ Virginians will continue to see new road projects getting underway all across the Commonwealth as our historic transportation funding bill brings long overdue resources to our transportation system, saving Virginia motorists time and money. And, finally, we will work in partnership with the incoming gubernatorial administration to ensure a seamless and smooth transition of power in keeping with the very best of the Virginia tradition. This is a ‘Sprint to the Finish’, and I look forward to it. Washington D.C. may not work, but Richmond does, and this administration will continue to work hard until the clock strikes noon on Saturday, January 11th.”

“Sprint to the Finish”:  Major Objectives for the Final 100 Days of the McDonnell Administration

1. Reform State Government

            A. Successfully combine DMBE and DBA into a single, efficient agency

B. Eliminate additional pages of unnecessary, burdensome regulations through the Governor’s regulatory reform initiative

C.  Further streamline state government by consolidating Virginia’s Intergovernmental Affairs office

2. Improve Virginia’s Schools

            A.  Bring A – F school grading system to all Virginia localities

            B.  Establish Strategic Compensation for teachers

            C.  Announce Board and Executive Director of Opportunity Educational Institution

            D.  Receive recommendations of the Governor’s Teacher Cabinet

3. Protect and Help All Virginians

            A. Continue goal of finding adoptive homes for 1000 of Virginia’s longest waiting children

            B. Sign Executive Directive to step up Virginia’s ongoing fight against human trafficking

4. Strengthen Democracy

A. Continue to restore rights of more Virginians in keeping with Governor’s announcement of an automatic restoration of rights, on an individualized basis, process for non-violent offenders

B. Provide an orderly, efficient experience at the ballot box for the 2013 General Election by ensuring a vastly shorter wait at polling places

5.  Make Higher Education More Affordable and Accessible

A. Receive input from the Higher Education Advisory Committee and issue a new higher education funding formula to incentivize the goals of the governor’s higher education policies

B. Increase the state’s commitment to higher education funding through the biennial budget development process.

C. Cement the pathway to creation of 100,000 new degree holdersin Virginia

6. Bring More New Jobs to Virginia

A. Secure landmark deals in areas like film, tourism, and agriculture to grow those sectors and bring more jobs to Virginia in the last 100 days of the governor’s term

B. Attract new investment in modeling and simulation, cyber security, and other technology sectors in the Commonwealth

C. Receive and publish the Commonwealth’s long term cyber security plan

7.  Further Establish Virginia as “The Energy Capital of the East Coast”

A. Recognize Dominion’s execution of the first wind energy lease off the coast of Virginia; second nationally

B.  Host the 4th Governor’s Energy Conference during Governor McDonnell’s term

C. Increase the number of alternative fuel vehicles in the state fleetvia the public-private partnership put in place by the administration

D. Continue to fight overreaching EPA regulations that deter job growing policies and energy development in Virginia

E. Preserve more acres of open space through conservation easements and acceptance of donation of significant parcels

8. Reduce Congestion and Improve Virginia’s Transportation System

A. Finalize major agreements and announce construction of new projects of statewide significance

            B. Establish regional planning groups contemplated in the 2013 transportation package

9. Develop Strategic, Balanced Biennial Budget for the Commonwealth

A. Introduce in December a biennial budget that continues to invest wisely in the core functions of Virginia’s state government

B. Continue historic investments in the Rainy Day Fund, the Virginia Retirement System, Virginia’s K-12 system, higher education, and Medicaid reforms

10.  Partner with the Incoming Administration for a Seamless Transition of Power

A. Facilitate a seamless transition to the next gubernatorial administration

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Edgar Allen Poe - The Purloined Letter

Cover of Edgar Allan Poe

A short story by Edgar Allen Poe.  The Purloined Letter.  One of the rare pieces not often seen of Poe's works.  The story though a short one, is to long to post in it's entirety on this site so we enclosed it into a Slideshare container.  You are free to download a PDF version of this story for your own use from our Slideshare site.  To read the story in full screen view, just left click the icon at the far bottom right hand side of the container.  To exit full screen mode, just hit the escape key on your keyboard.

Edgar Allen Poe, The Purloined Letter from Chuck Thompson

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Disturbing Truth about Factory Farms and Superbugs

English: A ruptured MRSA cyst. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Dr. Mercola

According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), antibiotic resistance is a major threat to public health worldwide, and the primary cause for this man-made epidemic is the widespread misuse of antibiotics.1

Antibiotic overuse occurs not just in medicine, but also in food production. In fact, agricultural usage accounts for about 80 percent of all antibiotic use in the US,2 so it's a MAJOR source of human antibiotic consumption.

According to a 2009 report3 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on this subject, factory farms used a whopping 29 million pounds of antibiotics that year alone.

Animals are often fed antibiotics at low doses for disease prevention and growth promotion, and those antibiotics are transferred to you via meat, and even through the animal manure that is used as crop fertilizer.

Antibiotics are also used to compensate for the crowded, unsanitary living conditions associated with large-scale confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs).

CDC Confirms Link Between CAFOs and Superbugs

Now, the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention4 (CDC) has finally come out saying that yes, antibiotics used in livestock plays a role in antibiotic resistance and “should be phased out.” According to the CDC’s report,5 22 percent of antibiotic-resistant illness in humans is in fact linked to food. As reported by the featured article:6

“The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) said that the report shows that drug-resistant hazards in the food supply pose a serious threat to public health. One-third of the 12 resistant pathogens that CDC categorized as a ‘serious’ threat to public health are found in food.”

The four drug-resistant pathogens in question are Campylobacter, which causes an estimated 310,000 infections and 28 deaths per year; Salmonella, responsible for another 100,000 infections and 38 deaths annually; along with E.coli and Shigella. To address this growing problem, the CDC’s report issues the following recommendations:

• Avoid inappropriate antibiotic use in food animals
• Track antibiotic use in food animals
• Stop spread of Campylobacter among animals on farms
• Improve food production and processing to reduce contamination
• Educate consumers and food workers about safe food handling practices

Source: CDC.gov, Antibiotic Resistance Threats in the United States, 2013

MRSA Spreading Via Hog Farms?

Two drug-resistant pathogens more commonly associated with antibiotic overuse in human medicine include Clostridium difficile and Staphylococcus aureus. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infects more than 80,460 people and kills 11,285 people annually. Disturbingly, as discussed in a recentMother Jones7 article, MRSA infection has been rapidly increasing among peopleoutside hospital settings as well.

As stated in the article:

“Increasing evidence points to factory-scale hog facilities as a source. In a recent study,8 a team of researchers led by University of Iowa's Tara Smith found MRSA in 8.5 percent of pigs on conventional farms and no pigs on antibiotic-free farms. Meanwhile, a study9, 10 just released by the journalJAMA Internal Medicine found that people who live near hog farms or places where hog manure is applied as fertilizer have a much greater risk of contracting MRSA.”

In the latter study, people with the highest exposure to manure were 38 percent more likely to contract community-associated MRSA, and 30 percent more likely to get healthcare-associated MRSA. Level of exposure was calculated based on proximity to hog farms, the size of the farms, and how much manure the farm in question used.

Back in 2009 a University of Iowa study11 found that a full 70 percent of hogs and 64 percent of workers in industrial animal confinements tested positive for antibiotic-resistant MRSA. The study pointed out that, once MRSA is introduced, it could spread broadly to other swine and their caretakers, as well as to their families and friends.

In other parts of the world, such as the European Union, the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in animal feed has been banned for years. Yet in the US this is still a topic of debate, with industry supporters trying to downplay the inevitable fact that this irresponsible use of antibiotics is most likely posing a serious risk to human health and the environment.

As reported in 2011, you have a 50/50 chance of buying meat tainted with drug-resistant bacteria when you buy meat from your local grocery store. This shocking finding came from a study by the Translational Genomics Research Institute,12which revealed that 47 percent of the meat and poultry samples tested contained antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. These were samples from 80 different brands of beef, chicken, pork, and turkey from more than two dozen grocery stores scattered across the United States, in large cities from Los Angeles to Washington D.C.

The fact that antibiotic-resistant superbugs are found so widely in US meat supplies is a major red flag, a sign that we are nearing the point of no return where superbugs will continue to flourish with very little we can do to stop them. While I am not one to recommend many medications, antibiotics can be VERY useful when you need to treat a serious bacterial infection. When used properly, in the correct contexts and with responsibility, antibiotics can and do save lives that are threatened by bacterial infections. But they will only remain effective if urgent changes are made to curb the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and disease… and this will only happen with a serious reduction in their use now.

Choose Your Foods Wisely

Conventional medicine certainly needs to curtail its prescriptions for antibiotics, but even if you use antibiotics judiciously you're still exposed to great amounts of antibiotics from the foods you eat, and this is entirely unnecessary. This is one of the primary reasons why I ONLY recommend organic, grass-fed, free-range meats or organic pastured chickens, as non-medical use of antibiotics is not permitted in organic farming. They’re also far superior to CAFO-raised meats in terms of nutritional content.

To source pure, healthful meats, your best option is to get to know a local farmer -- one who uses non-toxic farming methods. If you live in an urban area, there are increasing numbers of community-supported agriculture programs available that offer access to healthy, locally grown foods even if you live in the heart of the city. Being able to find high-quality meat is such an important issue for me personally that I've made connections with sources I know provide high-quality organic grass-fed beef and free-range chicken, both of which you can find in my online store. You can eliminate the shipping charges, however, if you find a trusted farmer locally. If you live in the US, the Weston Price Foundation13 also has local chapters in most states, and many of them are connected with buying clubs in which you can easily purchase these types of foods, including grass-fed raw dairy products like milk and butter.

How CAFO Meats May Decimate Your Gut Health

Antibiotic-resistant disease is not the only danger associated with the misuse of these drugs. Excessive exposure to antibiotics—which includes regularly eating antibiotic-laced CAFO meats—also takes a heavy toll on your gastrointestinal health. This in turn can predispose you to virtually any disease. Protecting your gut health and reducing the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria are significant reasons for making sure you're only eating grass-fed, organically-raised meats.

In related news, researchers at Oregon State University point out the close links between your gut health and a wide range of health issues.14 As noted in the university press release:

“Problems ranging from autoimmune disease to clinical depression and simple obesity may in fact be linked to immune dysfunction that begins with a ‘failure to communicate’ in the human gut, the scientists say. Health care of the future may include personalized diagnosis of an individual’s ‘microbiome’ to determine what prebiotics or probiotics are needed to provide balance.

Appropriate sanitation such as clean water and sewers are good. But some erroneous lessons in health care may need to be unlearned—leaving behind the fear of dirt, the love of antimicrobial cleansers, and the outdated notion that an antibiotic is always a good idea. We live in a world of ‘germs’ and many of them are good for us.

An emerging theory of disease, [Dr. Natalia] Shulzhenko said, is a disruption in the ‘crosstalk’ between the microbes in the human gut and other cells involved in the immune system and metabolic processes. ‘In a healthy person, these microbes in the gut stimulate the immune system as needed, and it in turn talks back,’ Shulzhenko said. ‘There’s an increasing disruption of these microbes from modern lifestyle, diet, overuse of antibiotics and other issues. With that disruption, the conversation is breaking down.’”

The widespread deterioration of people’s gut health can be traced back to the change in our modern diet. This includes the introduction of meats from unnaturally-raised livestock, fed genetically engineered corn and soy along with a mixture of antibiotics and other drugs. But another important dietary factor is the shunning of traditionally fermented foods, which are naturally high in the beneficial bacteria necessary for optimal gut health. Mounting research shows that beneficial bacteria in your gut is likely to have significant benefits to your health and may be essential for:

• Protection against over-growth of other microorganisms that could cause disease
• Digestion of food and absorption of nutrients and certain carbohydrates
• Producing vitamins, absorbing minerals, and eliminating toxins
• Preventing allergies
• Maintaining natural defenses

Numerous studies have also shown that your gut flora plays a role in:

• Mood, psychological health, and behavior
• Celiac disease
• Diabetes
• Weight gain and obesity
• Metabolic syndrome

Nurturing Your Gut Flora Is One of the Foundations of Optimal Health

Besides antibiotics, your gut bacteria are also vulnerable to factors such as chlorinated water, antibacterial soaps, pollution, and agricultural chemicals—especially glyphosate, which, incidentally, is the most widely used herbicide in the world. To protect your gut health, it’s important to avoid processed, refined foods in your diet and to regularly reseed your gut with good bacteria by eating non-pasteurized, traditionally fermented foods, such as fermented vegetables, or taking a high-quality probiotic supplement.

One of the reasons why fermented foods are so beneficial is because they contain a wide variety of different beneficial bacteria. Also, if fermented with a probiotics starter culture, the amount of healthy bacteria in a serving of fermented vegetables can far exceed the amount you’ll find in commercial probiotics supplements, making it a very cost-effective alternative. Ideally, you want to eat a variety of fermented foods to maximize the variety of bacteria you’re consuming. Healthy options include:

Lassi (an Indian yogurt drink, traditionally enjoyed before dinner)	Various pickled fermentations of cabbage (sauerkraut), turnips, eggplant, cucumbers, onions, squash, and carrots	Tempeh
Traditionally fermented raw milk such as kefir or yogurt, but NOT commercial versions, which typically do not have live cultures and are loaded with sugars that feed pathogenic bacteria	Natto (fermented soy)	Kim chee

When choosing fermented foods, steer clear of pasteurized versions, as pasteurization will destroy many of the naturally occurring probiotics. This includes most of the "probiotic" yogurts you find in every grocery store these days; since they're pasteurized, they will be associated with all of the problems of pasteurized milk products. They also typically contain added sugars, high-fructose corn syrup, artificial coloring, and artificial sweeteners, all of which will only worsen your health.

When you first start out, you’ll want to start small, adding as little as half a tablespoon of fermented vegetables to each meal, and gradually working your way up to about a quarter to half a cup (2 to 4 oz) of fermented vegetables or other cultured food with one to three meals per day. Since cultured foods are efficient detoxifiers, you may experience detox symptoms, or a "healing crisis," if you introduce too many at once. That said, three very positive changes occur when your good-to-bad intestinal bacteria ratio is brought back into balance:

• Digestive problems diminish or disappear
• Your immune system de-stresses and is better equipped to fight off disease of all kinds, contributing to a longer and healthier life
• Your body begins to use all the good food and nutritional supplements you feed it

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• As Superbugs Rise, New Studies Point To Factory Farms (Op-Ed)

Liberty's Kids 25, Allies At Last, Battle of the Hook Pre Show

Battle of the Hook pre show with Liberty's Kids episode number 25, Allies at Last.  We are coming up very quickly on this years most incredible American Revolutionary re enactment event.  A show you are not going to want to miss if you are the least bit of a history buff.  These events are few and far between and rarely are they this large.  This will be truly an event not to miss that you will remember for the rest of your life.

Gloucester, Virginia Crier - Battle of the Hook from Chuck Thompson

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FEDERALIST Papers No. 20. The Same Subject Continued (The Insufficiency of the Present Confederation to Preserve the Union)

From the New York Packet. Tuesday, December 11, 1787.

MADISON, with HAMILTON

To the People of the State of New York:

THE United Netherlands are a confederacy of republics, or rather of aristocracies of a very remarkable texture, yet confirming all the lessons derived from those which we have already reviewed.

The union is composed of seven coequal and sovereign states, and each state or province is a composition of equal and independent cities. In all important cases, not only the provinces but the cities must be unanimous.

The sovereignty of the Union is represented by the States-General, consisting usually of about fifty deputies appointed by the provinces. They hold their seats, some for life, some for six, three, and one years; from two provinces they continue in appointment during pleasure.

The States-General have authority to enter into treaties and alliances; to make war and peace; to raise armies and equip fleets; to ascertain quotas and demand contributions. In all these cases, however, unanimity and the sanction of their constituents are requisite. They have authority to appoint and receive ambassadors; to execute treaties and alliances already formed; to provide for the collection of duties on imports and exports; to regulate the mint, with a saving to the provincial rights; to govern as sovereigns the dependent territories. The provinces are restrained, unless with the general consent, from entering into foreign treaties; from establishing imposts injurious to others, or charging their neighbors with higher duties than their own subjects. A council of state, a chamber of accounts, with five colleges of admiralty, aid and fortify the federal administration.

The executive magistrate of the union is the stadtholder, who is now an hereditary prince. His principal weight and influence in the republic are derived from this independent title; from his great patrimonial estates; from his family connections with some of the chief potentates of Europe; and, more than all, perhaps, from his being stadtholder in the several provinces, as well as for the union; in which provincial quality he has the appointment of town magistrates under certain regulations, executes provincial decrees, presides when he pleases in the provincial tribunals, and has throughout the power of pardon.

Read the rest below;

Federalist Papers No 20, Insufficiencey To Preserve Union (6) from Chuck Thompson

Liberty Education Series

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Gloucester, VA School Board Employee Caught Breaking The Law.....Again

7:55 AM.  Friday morning, October 4th, 2013.  This is the same employee we caught on Monday at this same place at about the same time.  It's very clear that no one even bothered to talk to him after being caught breaking the law on Monday.  Though I did not take his actual picture, I did identify the drive as the same person as on Monday.

  Again we have shown on this site numerous times that government employees are prohibited from using vehicles for personal use.  This is clearly personal use.  It's not only local policy, it's also state code laws.  But then again, how do you blame an employee when you hear that even worse abuses may very well be going on above these employees?  What incentive is there for employees to even care about what the policies or state laws are when those above them keep violating them?  Why hasn't Brenda Garton put an end to all of this?

  Your tax dollars continuing to be wasted in front of you.  And not to worry, they will raise your taxes even more as someone has to pay for all of this abuse.  Partial thanks goes to our Mr Happy Meal with his meals on wheels.

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