Tuesday, January 9
You’ll never beat the Welsh
Former UVA head football coach and 2004 football Hall of Famer George Welsh was arrested on DUI charges over the weekend, The Richmond-Times Dispatch reports. The 73-year-old was pulled over on the 250 Bypass by Albemarle police for “driving erratically.” He failed field sobriety tests and refused to take a breathalyzer. Welsh coached for the Cavaliers from 1982 to 2000, was a record-setter for ACC wins and still holds the record for being the winningest coach at Virginia.
Wednesday, January 10
Happy news: Droves of poor kids losing health insurance
 Tim Kaine delivered his "State of the Commonwealth" speech to legislators at the General Assembly kickoff on Wednesday. The gist? Economy, good. Transportation, bad. |
The General Assembly convened today with a speech from Governor Tim Kaine and extraneous Colonial fanfare in Jamestown. The short session promises more transportation and tax deadlock. Welcome back legislators, but don’t forget about health care. The Associated Press reports that in the last half of 2006, Virginia saw 12,000 children drop from its Medicaid rolls. This is apparently due to a new federal law that requires Medicaid recipients to prove they are U.S. citizens. The law was designed to allay benefits to illegal immigrants, but researchers say tiny U.S. citizens with no health coverage are actually taking the hit.
Thursday, January 11
Sabatoverload
News sources confirm what we suspected all along—UVA politics Professor Larry Sabato is quoted too damn much! According to a Lexis-Nexis search conducted by Governing.com staffer (and Cavalier Daily alum) Josh Goodman, and reported by CBS, Sabato was quoted by news sources in 46 states and D.C. in 2006. Now what, oh what, can a man in Virginia have to say to all those folks? Apparently Sabato, the omni-expert, was quoted on topics ranging from political scandals to Katie Couric’s crappy ratings to “President Bush’s back rub of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.” Steamy! Goodman says journalists engaged in the cluster Sabatoast because the guy is smart and—the holy grail of sourcedom—calls you back.
Friday, January 12
Idol worship
 American Idol—and former Fluvanna resident—Chris Daughtry charmed one of our idols, Washington Post fashion critic Robin Givhan, on Fishbowl D.C. this week. |
Robin Givhan, Pulitzer Prize-winning fashion editor for The Washington Post, doesn’t gush about much. In an interview with Fishbowl D.C. this week, she shares her opinion of New York City: “Great personality, not much to look at.” Her favorite letter: “Scarlet.” And, her favorite American Idol: None other than one- time local boy Chris Daughtry, who charmed Givhan with his “desperately straining vocal chords.” Whatever happened to that Fluco-made-famous? Chris Daughtry performed in Times Square on New Year’s Eve, and “Daughtry,” his rock act, recently announced U.S. tour dates. And, not to forget—a whole new round of chord-straining Idols will appear in the show’s sixth season beginning on Tuesday.
Saturday, January 13
The other football
 Cavalier defender Bakary Soumare won the top MLS draft pick of any Virginia soccer player this year; he was drawn second overall by the Chicago Fire. |
Though the NFL season is in its final throes and college basketball keeps us on the edge of our seats, let us not forget the iron quads and quick cleats of those other star athletes. Three former Virginia soccer players were picked during the 2007 Major League Soccer SuperDraft in Indianapolis, Virginia Athletics reports. Defender Bakary Soumare was the second overall pick for the Chicago Fire, midfielder Nico Colaluca was picked sixth overall by the Colorado Rapids, and forward Adam Cristman was drawn by the New England Revolution. With abtastic English phenom David Beckham announcing his move to play for the L.A. Galaxy, the ’Hoos may find themselves matched up in the MLS against Beckham himself before long.
Sunday, January 14
Schools check-in
Johnson Elementary School Principal Dorren Brown is quoted in the Staunton News Leader today. Johnson is one Charlottesville school that has struggled for consistent accreditation, partially because one fifth of its students are still learning English. Other elementaries are profiled in the piece, which highlights President Bush’s No Child Left Behind program, and its goals of 100 percent passing rates on standardized reading and math proficiency by 2014. Leaders at local programs like JustChildren, a legal child advocacy group, have pointed out that pass rates on tests do nothing to keep at-risk groups, like non-native English speakers, from dropping out of school.
Monday, January 15
Somebody stole winter
The kids and government workers off today for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday can enjoy another strangely beautiful day in January. Not everyone digs it, however, including confused crocus, global warming experts and would-be skiers. Yesterday’s high temp: 71 degrees. The normal high temp: 44 degrees. And today’s is predicted to reach 70 degrees as well. Some experts say a particularly strong El Nino could be responsible for the low-70 degree balminess (and creepiness).
