View from the Dinosaur

I've Moved

2005-07-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

When I began this blog, I knew that I would not be updating it every day. My hope was that I'd be able to post here once or twice a week at least. Of late that has not been possible due to my recent move.

I have started a new job in Pennsylvania, and so for the last couple of months, all of my energies has been devoted to making this transition. Hopefully in the next few weeks life will settle down again and I'll be able to focus on politics and dinosaurs once more. I am still following Virginia politics (being my home state it is special to me), but as of late I've been far more removed. I will return to my hoped for regularity soon.

Election Results

2005-06-15T03:24:00.000-07:00

Well, the primary election has come and gone, and it looks like Kaine/Byrne/Deeds vs Kilgore/Bolling/McDonnell. First thing I noticed was that the Democrat's names all have just one syllable, makes them easier to say. Don't know if that means anything in the long run though.

Bolling and McDonnell are the GOP candidates that most Democrats were hoping for because we thought them the weakest. Deeds should be very strong agian McDonnell, especially since Deeds will likely be endorsed by the NRA over McDonnell, which makes a big difference in VA.

But Leslie Byrne... I honestly don't know how she's going to perform well outside of Northern Virginia. It looks like Democrats managed yet again to come up with a ticket that won't sweep in November. I am hopeful still, but it would have been nice if the Democrats hadn't shot themselves in the foot in the Lt. Gov's race.

Looking Up Dino Skirts

2005-06-08T16:12:00.000-07:00

I always got a good chuckle out of the line in Steven Spielberg's 'Jurassic Park' from character Ian Malcolm that went something like this: "How do we know all the dinosaurs are female? Does somebody go around looking up their skirts?"

Well, now according to this National Geographic Article, the experts have found ways to determine the gender of a dinosaur from its fossils. A very good read from one of the best magazines on the natural world out there.

Neo-Victorian?

2005-05-22T15:42:00.000-07:00

Stirling Newberry, in a Truthout Article, describes the conditions surrounding the British Empire and draws parallels with Americas current situation. I highly recommend reading this to gain a clearer understanding of the battle we are facing.

The GOP wish to create dependency amongst all Americans to sustaining the 'American Empire'.

Creationist Museum

2005-05-22T14:42:00.000-07:00

An article in today's The Observer talks about a museum in Arkansas that presents a Creationist view of the time of dinosaurs. It features an exhibit with a T. Rex being spied upon by Adam and Eve and explains that in paradise, they had nothing to fear.

While I would love to see dinosaurs with my own eyes. To be able to watch those mighty beasts steal away my imagination and replace it with substantial reality, I know that it will never be so. And in fact, it has never been so. Dinosaurs and humans have never coexisted on this Earth.

I am Catholic, and I reject the Creationist teaching that Genesis is to be taken literally and that the world is only a little over four thousand years old. While science cannot explain everything (there are questions that can be asked that do not fall under the purview of scientific analysis), science is quite capable of explaining matters regarding the natural world. And we are learning more all the time. An every new thing we learn and discover only further disproves Creationism.

Evolutionist have been very capable of debunking Creationist claims, and so I'm not going to go into that here. But Creationism represents a real threat to modern society on several different levels. First off, a Creationist is diminishing God. Incapable of accepting with humility that God's ways are powerful, and that the Universe should be marvelled at, they instead scoff at scientific knowledge and reject the gifts of reason and wisdom in favour of their strict interpretations of scripture. They lack faith in God's power, and in their need to spout lies to discredit evolutionists, they also discredit all lines of scientific and intellectual inquiry. In so doing, we create the society where knowledge is irrelevant, truth is determined by whatever those in authority say it is, and objective inquiry is impossible.

That is not a good thing, I think one can agree. Further, I think no good can come from pitting religion against science. It's such a stupid argument. Religion and Science are components that work together beautifully. Do I believe that God created this world? Yes! But I believe that God did so in a way that we are learning about. The importance of the story of Genesis is not in how God created, or in timelines and so forth, but that God did create all of existence.

Now, I'm sure I'll be accused of being in favour of Intelligent Design. Hardly. I do not believe tha we should give up trying to understand how our world came to be, or that we should doubt our ability to learn such things, which is one of the components of Intelligent Design. I believe that God created this world, but not that the world is so complex God has to exist. We are called to have faith in God and to put our trust in Him, not to find crutches to rest our belief upon.

Of course, the other big issue I have with Creationist lobby is that they want to turn this country into a 'Christian' theocratic nation, and I oppose that firmly. By inches they strive, because if they can convince more and more people to reduce God to an agent following a script, they can do far worse. We do not want to see what would happen to the sciences in this country should we give in and legitimize the creationist myth.

Pope John Paul II welcomed evolution, as he recognized the truth within scientific endeavour. Truth does not contradict truth. And so the truth of God and the truth of science do not contradict either. That He did not choose to reveal to us in the pages of Genesis this truth does not invalidate it.

An Open Letter to Virginia's Senators

2005-05-16T15:42:00.000-07:00

One of the most important aspects of American Democracy is the balance of power that resides in the three branches of government. That balance is precisely what is on the line with the proposed rule change that would eliminate the filibuster for judicial nominees. By insuring that every one of Bush's nominees can prevail in the Senate, the Senate itself will not be granting advice or consent to the nominees. The Senate should not abdicate its constitutional responsibility. The Senate must always remain a check on executive power.

If you vote to eliminate the filibuster here, then will you not be willing to eliminate the use of the filibuster for other reasons? How long will it be before cabinet or other executive nominees are also insulated from the threat of a filibsuter? How long before specific legislation is made unassailable by the filibuster? How long before there is no more filibuster at all?

The filibuster was designed to give each Senator the ability to be heard. By reducing the effectiveness of the filibuster today, the Senate reduces itself merely into squabbling factions. No longer will it be an institution of 100 Senators, but a gaggle of two parties.

It is imperitave that the filibuster and all minority rights be protected. Political expedience is the greatest threat to democracy. The President does not need to have the ability to put any one he so chooses on the federal bench for life. By eliminating the filibuster, you will be doing exactly that.

We must recall history. Throughout history, when an executive has been given a certain power, it is never laid down. The more power that is given to the President, no matter who they are or of what party, the more dictatorial this country can become. We will weaken our democratic form of government if we pursue this path.

Freedom and liberty cannot merely be words on monuments or in anthems. They must stride the halls of power in Washington DC if America will survive as the Founders intended. Vote to preserve the filibuster, and you will be casting a vote with the Founding Fathers. If you vote to eliminate the filibuster, then you stand in the company of the Roman Senate annointing Augustus and ushering in the end of Roman Democracy. History will remember you, and not kindly.

Do the right thing and stand up for America. Support the filibuster.

Flat Heads and Veggie Lovers

2005-05-11T13:11:00.000-07:00

Two new delectable bits of news in the dinosaur world have come to my attention in the last week. First, the flat heads:

Pachycephalosaur Discovery

Most will remember the pachycephalosaurs as the dinosaurs with the dome-shaped heads that were ramming the trucks in 'The Lost World' and doing a significant bit of damage. It now seems that there were some members of this family who sported completely flat craniums. This is the sort of discovery which makes the paleontologists go right back to the drawing board, and it shows how dynamic a field dinosaur study really is. That we can know so much based on just the fossils alone is remarkable, but as always, it is all speculation that later finds can overturn.

The second bit of news regards the Falcarius, the first dinosaur found to have converted from a meat-eating diet to a vegetarian diet. Falcarius is the earliest known member of the therizinosaurs family, a plant-eating group of dinosaurs. The later ancestors in the family are more full-bodied, and would not be able to move at very high-speeds, while the Falcarius may have been liable to snatch up a lizard or two. Yet one more link the in the evolutionary chain of dinosaurs!

All in all, an amazing couple weeks for dinosaurs lovers!

Dino Discovery

2005-04-16T03:16:00.000-07:00

Recently, eggs were found inside a dinosaur fossil in China's Jiangxi Province. The dinosaur was likely about to lay the eggs when it died, so this is a remarkable find.

Many believe that dinosaurs, or at least, some dinosaurs, are the missing link between reptiles and birds, and the presence of only two eggs in the body cavity may support that theory in another way. Birds only have one oviduct-ovary combination, while crocidilies have two. But crocodiles can lay all their eggs at once, unlike birds, and apparently this dinosaur. This dinosaur (probably a theropod), had to lay each of its eggs in turn until its nest was full.

Reproduction is one area of dinosaur kowledge that we are still trying to learn more. This could prove to be an important step forward.

The article is here.

Where Things Stand

2005-04-15T14:40:00.000-07:00

It has been a little while since my last post. There are several reasons for this. First, there has been little news of late as far as Virginia politics goes. That however is not the main reason. Mostly, I've been trying to deal with quite a bit of life issues that I don't particularly feel like going into here. Suffice it to say I've been very busy.

Things are also going to remain fairly hectic for me for some time, but at least for the moment I can sit down and attempt to sum up all that I have seen happening here in the state in the last couple of weeks, and where I think it is going, and what can be done to promote a progressive outcome.

The Governor's race proceeds mostly under the radar as far as most Virginians are concerned. Most people have been more focussed on the recent death of Pope John Paul II naturally. But there have been a few developments. First off, the fundraising figures for the first quarter of the year were released, and Tim Kaine(D) is off to a great start. He raised $2.6 million in all of the 29 business days this quarter that he was eligible to raise money (he was barred by law from raising funds while the General Assembly was in session). Meanwhile, Jerry Kilgore(R) raised only $1.7 million, even though he resigned his office early so that he could raise money over the course of the entire quarter. Some conservative bloggers have tried to say this is because of the $1.5 million contribution the DNC made to Kaine. But that only accounts for a portion of Kaine's success. If you ignore the DNc contribution, and break up their fundraising by aerage per day, then Kaine still comes out on top.

If Kaine can keep that pace of fundraising up for the rest of the race, he'll be in a strong position to compete financially where it counts.

Religion has become a big issue already, with Kilgore attacking the sincerity of Kaine's Christianity already. Kaine has struck back hard though, and made Kilgore backpedal on his remarks. Kaine is also buying radio time on rural stations touting how his faith has guided his life, highlighting his missionary trip to the Honduras back in the 80s and also how his faith and commitment to doing good works led him to enter politics. This is a win-win for Kaine. This sort of message gives him the ability to connect with more rural voters culturally, and once that connection is established, he'll be able to talk to them on other issues later on in the campaign that could sway them in his direction. Kilgore's attempt to attack Kaine's faith is also clearly designed to prevent Kaine from developing such a connection with rural voters.

Kilgore has come out with a plan for merit pay for teachers. While the plan itself is certainly worth discussing, Kaine is hitting him on how he never says how he will pay for any of the programs he is talking about. Normally, Kaine's tack here does not do much good. After all, few politicians do specify how they will pay for all their initiatives. And most folks understand that politicians promise things that they will never deliver on. Kaine needs to tie this attack with his attack on Kilgore's adoption of the reckless position of the House GOP leaders regarding the budget and taxes. Make his mantra, 'Kilgore and the GOP cannot manage your money. They will force your local government to raise your taxes.' If he does that, the attack will have a far more devastating effect.

That seems to be where the race is sitting right now. It's going to be a tough race down the stretch. The conservative tilt of the state favours Kilgore, but Kaine is a fighter and has shown some cleverness in getting out in front to establish himself before Kilgore can do it for him. We shall see in the next few months how all of these early moves play out.

Gone to Technicon!

2005-04-01T06:50:00.000-08:00

I'm going to be gone for a few days. This weekend is Technicon 22, and I'm on staff. It's a local Science Fiction/Fantasy convetnion that I've helped out with for a few years now.

I'll be back by Monday and hopefully will have some more to say then! For now, everyone have a great weekend!

Competing Tax Plans

2005-03-28T08:41:00.000-08:00

Both candidates for Virginia Governor this year, Lt. Gov Tim Kaine(D), and former AG Jerry Kilgore(R) have competing plans to deal with problem of the skyrocketing property taxes that voters are paying on their homes. What are the plans?

Tim Kaine would allow localities to exempt 20% of the value of a home from the property tax. This means that homeowners could see their tax bill cut by 20%, while leaving the tax on business property the same level. As this is not a requirement, localities could opt not to do this. I expect that many smaller communities that need to lure more business into their area would not take advantage of this opportunity. But communities with a vibrant business base already that are suffering from population density (like vote rich Northern Virginia for one), would leap at the possibility to lower homeowner rates while leaving business rates fixed.

Kilgore's plan would cap assessments at 5% annually except for when a house is bought or sold, or when improvements are made on the house. Kilgore calls this his personal guarantee of tax relief. This would strap localities for funds because one of their chief means of raising revenue would be severely limited. Kilgore says that Kaine's plan does not take into account the root of the problem, which is escalating property assessments. But Kilgore's own plan completely misses the point. The reason that property assessments are rising so dramatically is because of market forces, specifically the low mortgage rate that we currently enjoy. Kilgore would be deliberately interfering in the housing market to artificially lower prices. This tactic has a name: Rent Control.

It turns out though, that most localities are wary of both Kaine and Kilgore's tax plans. Consider this recent article in the Roanoke Times.

I think we have some work to do here to change the minds of our local officials. We need to be sending out Letters to the Editor to every major paper in the state framing this issue. Kilgore's tax plan equals Rent Control, while Kaine's tax plan equals empowering localities. If the debate can be framed this way, Kaine will have won a significant constituency that will hamstring Kilgore's attempt to woo the low tax crowd.

New System for Judges

2005-03-28T08:11:00.000-08:00

This Washington Post article follows the General Assembly's recent activity regarding state judges. New evaluations will be made of each of the state's 400 judges to aide lawmakers in the reappointment process. Lately, ever since the GOP took over the Genereal Assembly, there has been some partisan rancor regarding a few judges who have made some high profile decisions that angered the GOP base.

The idea behind these new evaluations is to curb some of that partisanship. Instead of being judged on anecdotal evidence,

The new rules require that during their terms, judges submit to three evaluations by lawyers, jurors and retired judges. Written questionnaires will ask participants about the judges' demeanor on the bench, the quality of their explanations of opinions and their "professional behavior," among other criteria.

Whether these evaluations will have the desired effect, remains to be seen. The very last line of the article sheds some doubt on whether the GOP will be able to curb their own vilifying tendencies: "If [legislators] want to make it political, they will." (so says Stephen W. Rideout, a retired Alexandria Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court judge).

No comments yet from either Kaine or Kilgore regarding the issue of judges. Unless a judge akes a controversial decision, the issue should not come up in the race, but it is definitely something to watch out for.

I think that Kaine should at the very least behind the scenes be involved in any plans like the one mentioned in this article. He needs to be seen as the good government candidate, the one that gets the job done and done right.

Not Quite Jurassic Park

2005-03-24T11:58:00.000-08:00

A new Dinosaur find in the Hell Creek formation of Montana may provide clues to the cellular biology of those ancient giants. The dinosaur in question, a T. Rex roughly 18 years old, was discovered still possessing soft tissue in one of his thigh bones. While it is extremely unlikely that anything more than fragments of DNA survived, it is still possible to learn a great deal from this find. For instance, researchers hope to make insights into diet, sexual maturity, and even the gender of the T. Rex.

For more on this, read the complete article at the Washington Post.

Kilgore's Tax Referendum Idea

2005-03-23T15:00:00.000-08:00

One of the big ideas that Jerry Kilgore(R) is touting in his kickoff tour is his plan to require any tax increase that the state wants to make in either gas taxes, sales taxes, or income taxes, be put before the voters in a referendum.

A recent Washington Post Article on the subject gives us a feel for how the idea is being received amongst Republican leaders and the party activists.

In what should hardly be surprising, Republican leaders are very mum about the idea, and are unwilling to criticize it for fear of hurting Kilgore's chances in the general election against Lt. Gov Tim Kaine(D). However, when even Jim Gilmore, the man responsible for coming close to utterly destroying Virginia's finances with his insistence on cutting the car tax, will only say "I certainly support the candidate" when braced with this tax referendum idea, you know that they all think the idea ludicrous.

And it is highly unlikely to pass either. Del. Vince Callahan(R), Chairman of the Appropriations Committee had nothing nice to say about the plan either. He simply passed on the question. When you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all, is the rule of the day when it comes to GOP leaders to Kilgore.

However, the idea is definitely popular with the rank and file. And this shouldn't surprise us either. This is the sort of red meat on taxes that they love. And why shouldn't they? It'll be far easier to defeat a tax increase if it is made into a referendum that voters can defeat at the ballot box (and if you think that they will ever approve raising their own taxes, you should take a peak at that old GOP adage they used to tar liberals with, "Democracy ends when people learn that they can vote themselves money from the treasury." If anybody has the exact quote, I'd be most grateful.

And in fact, the rank and file already know this! And they know that the real point of Kilgore's plan is to guarantee that taxes are never ever increased. One activist had this to say, "I'd rather have the taxes stopped in the first place [by the legislature]. But since we've beaten every single referendum so far, it's essentially the same thing. So I'm happy."

Kilgore's plan would make tax increases almost impossible. But tax cuts would still be fairly easy. And thus, it would mark the beginning of the end of Virginia's finances and state services. Localities would have to increase taxes to make up for the loss in state money that will occur. But Kilgore has a plan for that too. It's called capping assessments at 5% a year.

Kilgore intends to strangle the state of Virginia's finances at its source, and wants to make the taxpayer vote for these things themselves, that way the GOP legislators can say they have no choice but to slash the services of the state.

Grover Norquist would be so proud.

John Warner and Jerry Kilgore

2005-03-21T08:29:00.000-08:00

Much ado has been made of John Warner’s support for Jerry Kilgore. I tihnk that this should not be seen as too surprising, since even though John Warner does take a few moderate positions, he is still a Republican. It is only the extreme rightward bend of the modern day GOP that has made him become a moderate.

I think that people are forgetting the main reason that John Warner bucked the party in 94 to support Coleman. It was because Warner was there when Oliver North lied before the Senate. Warner did not object to Oliver North’s political positions, he objected to the factt hat Oliver North had no respect whatsoever for the Senate, and had been convicted of such (if later overturned).

Jerry Kilgore, on the other hand, has not been convicted of any wrongdoing, even though we may still have questions about his handling of the eavesdropping scandal. While I think it is clear that John Warner is not Kilgore’s biggst fan, he will go through the motions of support because there is no ethical reason as far as he is concerned not to.

The Kaine campaign should do whatever it can to drive these two apart. While Kilgore and Allen are both beloved by the hard core Republicans in the state, it is the moderate voters whose respect that John Warner has earned that Kilgore craves and needs. We ought to be highlighting the difference sin their policy positions, and then point out that Kaine falls more into line with the Virginia Warners (both Mark and John).

For instance, that John Warner supported the tax plan last year needs to be on flyers and in TV and radio advertisements all over this state. Point out tha the most respected of Virginia leader s(both Warners) have stood in favor of fiscal sanity in our state budget, and Kaine ahs stood along with them, while Kilgore and Gilmore have stood in opposition. Then, highlight the Gilmore record of fiscal recklesness and tie Kilgore right into it. It would make for an effective campaign strategy, because it accomplishes two things. It unites Kaine with respected leadership and unites Kilgore with failed leadership. And it is easy to see and understand.

George Will is sort of right

2005-03-20T04:05:00.000-08:00

I don't read George Will much, mainly because his choice of language is designed to make you think he is more intelligent than he really is. However, his recent column in the Washington Post is worth a gander.

Will comes out against the GOP Senate from invoking the nuclear option. This is the option in which the GOP effectivly eliminates the filibuster as a technique to blocking judicial nominees, something that the Democrats have used to stop 10 of Bush's most controversial nominations to the Judiciary. Some of the offenses of these ten include standing in opposition to all labor laws (including child labor), one stating that a woman must be subject to a man (what are we, the Taliban?), one who opposes zoning laws (a basic function of localities and one of th ebuilding blocks of our economic infrastructure), and even one who had the gall to say that slavery was 'God's gift to white man'.

If you think these are legitimate positions on the political spectrum, please raise your hand.

In any event, George Will neglects to mention the reasons why Democrats have filibustered this nominees. He does however point out that conservative arguments that all nominees must reach a vote fly in the face of the Constitution. He leaves out the fact that the GOP prevented 60 of Clinton's nominees from seeing the floor of the Senate. And Will also points out that there will be a Democratic President and Democratic Senate in the future (which I fear may be the only argument that some in the GOP understand, but I suspect they have some faith that they'll never lose power too).

George Will's solution of course is to elect more Republicans. The very people who in their drive for power are willing to throw away one of the foundations of our Democracy (a point even Will makes) are the very same people that Will ostensibly wants in power. Why? Because they will interpret the Constitution properly. Hello, these are the same people you are accusing of not interpreting the Constitution properly only a few paragraphs ago! Making Cognitize Dissoance sound intelligent is one of Will's fortes.

Will this strategy backfire on the Democrats? That depends on a few things. The DEmocratic Party would need to completely fumble its message delivery on this one, and so far, they have not done so. Reid is far more disciplined a leader than Dashle was, and has shown he is a fighter who stands up for his values. That gains respect, and votes. Couple that with only a few vulnerable Democratic seats next year, and you do not have the makings of a big GOP pick up.

My hope is that the GOP will ultimately flinch on this, or that enough moderate GOPers will defect on this issue that the GOP will not be able to reach a majority in favour of the nuclear option. So far, that possibility is not knowable, as all those involved are very tight lipped.

More on Kaine's Property Tax Plan

2005-03-19T05:37:00.000-08:00

The Roanoke Times has a good editorial regarding Tim Kaine's plan to amend the state constitution to allow localities to reduce the property tax burden on homewoner's by twenty percent if they should so choose.

While this editorial faults Kaine for not making greater efforts to deal with the problems of transportation and the tax structure in the commonwealth, it does by its end praise Kaine for his foresight in respecting localities.

The clincher is the last line of the editorial: "That's not a mandate to lower taxes, but an empowerment to do so when it would make sense."

That word, empowerment, is the key. Kaine empowers localities. Kilgore would burden them and the people they serve. Kaine should drive that point home from here on out.

Feathered Dinosaurs?

2005-03-19T05:14:00.000-08:00

The controversy over whether dinosaurs had feathers, and which ones might have continues now with the discovery coming from the Lianoning province in China. Since 1992 startling discoveries have been made there which shows that it wasn't just Archaeopteryx who had feathers back in the Mesozoic era.

Theories still abound, and no complete picture is likely forthcoming. However, we are learning more. I suspect that a great many dinosaurs remained scaled creatures right up to the end. But it is quite likely that a number of the faster moving predators would hae developed feathers for the sake of warmth. Is it possible that the raptors of Jurassic Park looked a bit more like over grown chickens?

Some general thoughts at the campaign kickoff

2005-03-17T10:11:00.000-08:00

The race for Virginia Governor is on with Lt. Governor Tim Kaine(D) making the first rounds in his kickoff tour. Apart from a snow storm that prevented him from landing in Wise county, so far all of his stops have been successful according to the campaign. Kaine will be returning to Wise County this coming Sunday, along with former Gov. Linwood Holton(R) who happens to be the candidates father-in-law. Holton hails from Southwest Virginia, so Democrats are hoping he will be able to assist Tim Kaine in this critical region.

Attorney General Jerry Kilgore(R) will be making his campaign kickoff tour starting next week. According to the latest poll, Kilgore leads Kaine 46% to 36% with 6% for independent Republican Russ Potts. This poll, while not good for the Kaine campaign, is not altogether surprising either. It represents Kilgore's higher name ID, and the state's Republican bent. Current Gov. Mark Warner(D) showed Democrats how to overcome that bias, and has beend oing so over the last four years fairly consistently. Mark Warner is currently the most popular politician in the state, and has already been out campaigning at several stops (especially in vote rich Northern Virginia) with Tim Kaine.

Kaine's task is to claim the Warner mantle of fiscal conservatism, bipartisnaship, and social moderation. So far, apart from the Death Penalty issue, Kaine has done a good job in staying away from hot button social issues. Kaine, for religious reasons, opposses the Death Penalty, but has said that as Governor he would uphold the laws of Virginia. Now, it amazes me how the GOP can criticize him on this, since they used this same justification to defend the likes of John Ashcroft when he was made Attorney General of the US. But they will continue to use it because Virginia has the second highest rate of executions in the country.

Kaine should probably do more to appeal to sportsmen just as Warner did back in 2001, thus nuetralizing groups like the NRA. 'Sportsmen for Kaine' bumper stickers all over the South and Southwest of the state would do a great deal to broaden his support. Also, take a page from Western Democrats like Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer and emphasize environmental protection to benefit hunters and fishers and one could turn that issue completely around against the GOP. Those are just a couple move I recommend for the Kaine campaign.

One good thing that Kaine has already proposed is tackling the issue of rising property taxes. Property values are rising, and the taxes are rising along with them. Kaine's plans to halt this precipitous climb will definitely help him earn the fiscal conservative mantle, and will go a long way to fortifying his position in Northern Virginia, an area every Democrat must do well in in order to carry the state.

His early moves on Transportation are also good, but he will be pressed on the gas tax issue, of that there is no doubt. How the tax issue will play I think will be seen after the June primaries. Seventeen GOP House memebers voted to approve Mark Warner's tax restructuring bill that led to a small increase in the state sales tax (while lowering the food tax and reducing the income tax on lower income earners). Six of the seventeen have been challenged in their primaries by anti-tax crusaders. If all six challengers go down to fail in a GOP primary, then Kaine will certainly have more leeway to embrace any increase in the gas tax to cover the cost of the state's burgeoning transportation problems.

Mostly though, Kaine must also define his opponent Jerry Kilgore as a Republican of the Jim Gilmore mold. Jim Gelmore demonstrated that tax cuts were more important to him than state services. His hyper partisanship divided a completely GOP controlled Assembly. If Kaine can convince voters that Kilgore will return us to those days, then, along with establishing his bona fides as a fiscal conservative bipartisan, Kaine will almost certainly win in November.

Kilgore has hired slime master Scott Howell to do advertising for him though, so this race can be expected to get down and dirty quite quickly (in fact, already Kilgore has sent out fake memos purporting to be from the Kaine campaign). Howell is repsonsible for accusing Georgia's Max Cleland of being a traitor, and for the nasty ads linkig South Dakota's Daschle to Saddam Hussein. We can expect no quarter from Kilgore, and none should be provided to him.

At the moment, Kaine has a lot of work to do. But so far, all his early moves look promising. We her ein te blogosphere can only keep an eye on things, donate, and get the word out.

First Post

2005-03-17T08:30:00.000-08:00

In succumbing to join the online blogging community, I had to decide exactly in what manner I wished to make the plunge. While this blog is in a very preliminary stage at the moment, it will naturally grow over time.

Why a dinosaur? Dinosuars were around for a very long time, and have challenged our minds and imaginations for the last few generations. Few are the seven year olds who cannot name more dinosaurs than your average adult. I know that for myself, they have always been a wonder and I am always on the look out for good news pertaining to them.

Dinosaurs wen't extinct mane millenia ago because they lacked the foresight to save themselves. We however, possess the critical thinking skills necessary to anticipate our future, and to take measures to safeguard it. Of course, there are many who would rather make short-sighted gains instead of making lasting progress.

This blog will focus on politics (and dinosaur news when I find it of general interest), though mainly for now on that of Virginia politics (my home state).

Before I begin though I want to make it clear that I will never be candidate for public office. I will gladly support politicians and policies, and am always impressed by those who dare to run for office, but I will not do so myself.