New Vote Vets Ad

As seen at Blue Virginia

From my Inbox

CONGRATULATIONS to Loudoun County's Staff for these great awards!

The Loudoun County Website, www.loudoun.gov, has again been named one of the top county government websites in the nation by the National Association of County Information Officers (NACIO). The county’s Public Information Office also received two NACIO awards for writing and an award for the county’s employee newsletter in the annual awards competition.

Loudoun was one of just two county governments in its population category (less than 500,000) to be recognized by NACIO for its website. Jointly managed by the county’s Public Information Office and Department of Information Technology, the website provides information about county government issues, services, and meetings. It features webcasts of Board of Supervisors meetings as well as e-Services that allow residents to conduct business with the county online.

This is the eighth time NACIO has recognized Loudoun’s website as one of the best county government websites in the nation.

The Public Information Office received two awards for writing – an Excellence award for a press release announcing that, as a cost saving measure, the 2009 Annual Report would only be available online; and a Meritorious award for a press release announcing a series of public meetings to help residents with the transition to digital television.

Loudoun’s employee newsletter, The LENS, received an Excellence award in the “employee newsletter” category. The newsletter spotlights county programs and services, with a focus on the employees who work together to provide these services. The employee newsletter has been published on a quarterly basis since 1991. Later this year, it will transition to an e-newsletter format.

Recently, a representative of the Thomas Balch Library requested back issues of The LENS, dating back to its inception. The collection of Loudoun County employee newsletters, spanning nearly 20 years, will be available to library patrons as a resource for local history and genealogy.

Canvass stats - walking for Jeff Barnett edition

36 doors in about an hour and a half. I am out.of.shape.Pooped. Forgot my water bottle, my ponytail holder, my terrific canvassing bag, and my clipboard. What am I? An amateur? I'll do better next time.

Information on the RPA and the RPA Screening Area (from my post at Loudoun Progress)

It's clear from last night's Monday's Public Hearing on the RPA, and from the mail traffic I've been getting, that there's been a lack of clarity on the RPA and especially on the RPA Screening Area.

FACT: If you are in the RPA Screening Area and the PROJECT (deck, swingset, patio, vegetable garden) you want to complete is LESS THAN 2500 square feet in area, then you are cool.
You don't have to ask permission beyond what the county (or your HOA) already requires or do water testing or anything.

FACT: This means that the only folks who have to worry about whether they are in the RPA Screening Area, are landowners with Huge Tracts of Land that are looking to subdivide or build homes or large shopping areas. In which case, the $3400 fee for doing the testing is a small percentage of the price and is a cost of doing business.

QUESTION: So, who has a vested interest in sending out panicky emails to homeowners in Broadlands, Brambleton, Sterling, and other well-built-out areas of the county where the average size of a project is 240 square feet? Couldn't be builders and realtors? Could it?

FACT: The bulk of Eugene Delgaudio's campaign money comes from realtors and builders

FACT: Donny Ferguson, who wrote that Western Traditions blog post, is a former Eugene Delgaudio aide.


Here is a picture of a map overlaid with the RPA:



And here is a picture of the same map overlaid with the RPA Screening Area:



How do you find out if you are either area?

1. GO HERE: http://gisinter1.loudoun.gov/weblogis/agree.htm.


2. Click on Yes, and then click on the tab marked "Search".


3. Enter your address (it works best if you enter as little as possible - house number and first part of your street name).


4. Click Submit. Then click Map It on the linked list the site gives you.


5. Now click on the Map Layers tab in the new window.


6. Click on the drop-down box under "Layer Groups" and select "Environmental".


7. Now select the select "Draft RPA Screening Tool" and scroll down to click apply. If there is no beige on your site, you're not in that area.


8. Now, unselect that option and select "Draft Chesapeake Bay Area" and scroll down to click "apply" to see if you are in the RPA.
   If your site doesn't have any green in it? You're good.

If there is any brown on your site and you are doing a project that disturbs less than 2500 sq ft, this document says that you are okay.

If you are within the green area, then you'll need permission to do your project.

As seen everywhere, but most recently at Broadsheet

The ground-breaking commercial that aired on the BBC

Announcement

As seen at Blue Virginia

As an FYI to all, the 10th District Democratic Committee is filling a vacancy to the State Central Committee due to Eileen Manning's resignation and move to Florida.
Those that might be interested in serving on the Committee should seek an appointment. I believe the Committee will be seeking female applicants from Fairfax to maintain gender and geographic balance.

If anyone is interested, email some members of the 10th to seek a nomination. Committee members are listed here:

http://10thcdvadems.org/page7/...

From my Inbox

Announcements from American Flatbread:

ANNOUNCEMENTS
May 20th

Live Music Thursdays

Bike to Work May 21st - Walk, or Bike to Ashburn location and receive a free 9" dancing heart flatbread by mentioning special offer.

New every week introducing different flavors of Lisa Atkins "Kind Kupcakes" - Peanut Butter Bliss while they last
Look for our 3 year celebration details coming soon.
MENU SPECIALS

Basil Pesto and Artichoke Flatbread

Organic basil pesto, all natural mozzarella, oven roasted red peppers, and fresh artichoke hearts
Wine pairing - Man Vintners "Chenin Blanc"

Buffalo Chicken Flatbread
Fields of Athenry's free range chicken tossed in house made buffalo sauce with organic celery, blue cheese, and all natural mozzarella
Beer pairing - Starr Hill "Jomo Larger

Laurie Edeline's Apple Pie
Local Moorenko's Ice Cream, Strawberry Cheesecake, Cinnamon, Mango MEGAJOLT is back.

Matt Turk from New York will be playing Saturday night May 29th with his band. More Details to follow.

HOURS

Mon - Thur 4:30-9:00pm
Fri 4:30-9:00pm
Sat 12:00-9:00pm
Sun 12:00-9:00pm


Ph: (703) 723-7003

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

She was seven years old

Or what Delia said.

People/Corporations who don't get my money anymore (edited for accuracy)

• Roman Polanski (fugitive from justice - alleged child rapist)


• Woody Allen (sexual relationship with a young woman to whom he stood in the place of a father his son's sister)
  )


• Orson Scott Card (donates to anti-LGBT causes - SOB, I love his books)


• Nestle (even after over 30 years of protest and boycotts - still promoting formula over breast-feeding in developing nations which contributes to poverty, malnutrition, and child mortality)

Good job Terry!

Terry McAuliffe is bringing affordable electric cars to the States.

Did you know I've got four parents?

Mom and David came in to town last weekend, Dad and Roz are coming this weekend.

Dad and Roz are on strict medical diets, so I won't be taking them to Jimmy's or Joe's, but I will bring them to Hama Sushi and possibly Jackson's (or Sweetwater) or maybe American Flatbread.

Do you have any suggestions of places you like to take your out-of-town relatives?





As always, these links are here because I love these restaurants. I'm not being compensated for putting these links on my page. I hope you support these wonderful local businesses.

It's raining, it's pouring

Phone bank instead of canvass. Alas.

HE'S disappointed?

He must be joking.

Dusting off the walking shoes!

I'll be canvassing near work tomorrow (Wednesday) evening for Jeff Barnett! I'm doing a quick couple of hours between getting off of work and picking up my son.

What are you doing this week to help get Jeff elected?

Crossposted at Loudoun Progress

NEW BLOG!!!

Go see Loudoun Progress!

Talking Local Business

My mom and step-dad were in town over Mother's Day weekend, and we took them around to several local restaurants, all of which got big thumbs-up from my sophisticated New Yawkah parental units (who, btw, treated. THANKS MOM AND DAVID!)

• Jimmy's Old Town Tavern: My mom had the rib-eye, my step-dad had the ribs. They both loved the food and the atmosphere. And Jimmy was an amazingly gracious host.
• Jackson's: They both had the grilled chicken and beet salad, which were pronounced excellent. They were impressed by the freshness and variety of ingredients in the salad, and also by the deliciousness of the french fries that came with my son's macaroni-and-cheese-with-ham.
• Hama Sushi: They had the spicy calamari salad, the avocado salad, and a variety of sushi, and were blown away by how good everything was.

On past trips, I've brought them to American Flatbread and my step-dad still raves over the pizza he ate there.

So, to sum up: Reston and points west can satisfy the palates of New York City sophisticates. Eat locally! Support our terrific restaurant resources!

You may notice that there are some advertisement-looking pictures in my side bar. These are NOT paid advertisements. I am supporting local businesses I frequent by donating space on my blog to promote them. I am not getting any in-kind consideration from these folks, nor do I expect any.

Volunteer for Jeff Barnett this Saturday!

I've got out-of-town visitors coming in this weekend, but I thought you might like to know about opportunities to help get Jeff elected!

Volunteer on Saturday!

Dear Liz

The weather is going to be great this Saturday. Sunny and 80 degrees. What better way to spend the day than volunteering for the Jeff Barnett for Congress campaign!
Our campaign is going to be all over the District this weekend, and we want you out there with us. Check out these two great events, and sign up to help out!

Volunteer at McLean Day!

On Saturday, May 15th, we will be attending McLean Day in McLean, VA. The event is at Lewinsville Park from 11:00AM-5:00PM. Our campaign has a booth, and we need your help staffing it throughout the day, passing out literature, working our "balloon assembly line, and more! If you are available to help out, please click here to fill out the McLean Day volunteer form.

Volunteer at the Warrenton Spring Festival!
Also on Saturday, May 15th, the Fauquier County Democratic Committee will be hosting a booth at the annual Warrenton Spring Festival. The festival takes place on Main Street in Warrenton, and goes all day, from 9:00AM-4:00PM. If you are in or around Fauquier County on Saturday and want to help out, email Lenore Plissner at lhplis@earthlink.net.


I hope that you will be able to join us at one of these events. If you have any questions, you can email me at cm@jeffbarnettforcongress.com.

-Marc

My mom is an inspiration

My Mom is an Inspiration from Center for Reproductive Rights on Vimeo.

ht Feministe where a transcript is also available.

My parents, and especially my mom, talked to me about feminism, reproductive rights, and where to go to get more information from when I was a pre-teen.

I'm going to make sure my son knows this stuff too. I've given him the copy of "How Babies Are Made" that I had when I was a kid. And I'm going to get him "Where Did I Come From?"

We've already talked about a lot of what those books contain, but it's always a good idea to have sensible, fun, factual books on hand!

One thing I've also talked to him about is that, like the truth about The Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus, not every kid is in the know. If other kids ask, tell them to ask their parents - because their parents will want to be the ones to have that conversation. Goodness knows, I don't want to be the one whose kid spilled the beans. On the other hand, I want my kid to have the facts. When it comes to the truth about procreation, ignorance is not bliss.

We have a majority, we need to act to keep it

In the last two years, while Congress has gotten an enormous amount done, they have not addressed:

• Immigration reform
• DADT and DOMA
• The racial disparities inherent in our nation's drug laws.

On the other hand, in the health care bill they:

• Attacked reproductive freedom
• Did NOT give us single payer
• Gave away huge concessions to the Republicans who ended up not voting for the bill

So, what we've ended up with is:

• Pissed-off women
• A disappointed LGBT community
• A disappointed hispanic/latin@ community
• A disappointed and disproportionately disenfranchised black community.

Which could lead to:

• Poor turn-out of democrats to the polls.
• Because we're NOT fired up.
• We're NOT ready to go.

Democrats on the Hill, if you want to keep your majority, if you want to keep your jobs, then DO THE JOB WE ELECTED YOU TO DO.

Act upon your promises. Stop pretending the republicans will work with you. They won't.

Pull up your socks. Repeal DADT. Repeal DOMA. The world won't end, and the LGBT community will come out to vote.

Show intestinal fortitude. Allow anyone who lives in the United States for five years without incident to apply for citizenship - even if they weren't here legally to begin with. You will be rewarded with votes.

Bring fairness to our justice system. Equalize the drug laws. Re-enfranchise people who've served their sentences. Because, hello? VOTES.

And you'd better start thinking about this: reproductive freedom's not just about abortion, it's about the right to not be shackled during birth, the right to decide NOT to go on bedrest, the right to choose NOT to have a c-section, the right to choose. While pro-choice women won't be voting for the republicans any time soon, the Stupak amendment has made us not just disappointed but ANGRY. Why would a pro-choice woman vote for a dem? Because the republicans are worse? That's not a good enough reason anymore.

Democrats on the Hill - give us a reason to vote for you. Do your jobs. And crow about it.

Happy and Sad

Happy! Marty Martinez won in Leesburg. All the incumbents were reelected. Congratulations, Marty! I had a great time at the Brandon Park polling place!

Sad. Cesar Del Aguila didn't win in Herndon. I am very disappointed about that, but it looks like some good people won and that there is no longer a majority of teabaggers on that council.

Sad that turnout was low everywhere. Sad that Middleburg had 2 candidates on the ballot for 4 seats (two people got substantial write-in support) and an uncontested mayoral race. Sad that the mayoral race in Purcellville was uncontested (though there were 201 write-in votes and 155 undervotes - which could be write-ins without the "write-in" checkbox checked.)

Democracy takes work. It takes candidates contesting every seat. It takes a free press and it takes shoe leather. And it especially takes voters going out to the polls.

In Leesburg, 13% of voters turned out. A bit over 3,000 people decided how a town with over 24,000 registered voters will be run.

I just can't understand people not voting. I don't get it. The right to vote is something that women were chaining themselves to fences and starving themselves to death in prisons for less than 100 years ago. And people just throw it away. Just let others decide for them.

It makes me furious.

VOTE TODAY!!!!

Virginia town elections are TODAY! TUESDAY! MAY 4! Go vote!

Leesburg: Marty Martinez.
Herndon: Cesar Del Aguila.

I'll be working the Brandon Park polls at Loudoun County HS from 4 PM till closing. See you there!

Blogging Against Disablism Day was May 1st.

Go read the many myriad wonderful posts that were written about and against Disablism.