Tuesday, June 20
McDonough: Driving nicely saves energy
Local “green design” guru and media darling Bill McDonough strikes again, this time in Money Magazine. Charlottesville’s favorite sustainable architect and his Cradle to Cradle co-author Michael Braungart say that individual efforts to be energy efficient aren’t what they could be. So they use the magazine article to give readers “innovative” solutions to saving energy and money. Among the tips: Make sure your refrigerator closes tightly and drive less aggressively. Since the best way to make people practice energy-conserving techniques is to show them how fat they can keep their wallets, the article includes predicted amounts of cash you can save by keeping chill when someone cuts you off.
Wednesday, June 21
Vive Grisham!
John Grisham for all! So went the cry from Hispanic residents at a recent Atlanta-area library board meeting where members voted to cut funding for Spanish-language titles, among them works by Albemarle author Grisham that had been translated into Spanish. According to an Associated Press report, even though 40 percent of the Spanish titles are checked out on an average day (slightly above the mean for all books in the library), conservative patrons’ protests against funding for “pleasure” novels in languages other than English won out. One board member allowed that the decision was also partially motivated by some residents’ complaints that they were spending taxpayers’ dollars to supply reading material for library patrons who could be illegal immigrants.
Thursday, June 22
No one’s interested in a steroid-free sport, anyway!
Until today, many Americans probably couldn’t find the tiny country of Ghana on a map, much less opine about their soccer team. But that team today put Team USA out of its World Cup misery in a game that saw the only tournament goal scored by an American player. According to ESPN.com, Team USA’s hopes of bettering 2002’s quarterfinal showing were still afloat after they tied the Black Stars in the 43rd minute—but only briefly. A disputed call resulted in a penalty shot for Ghana, allowing them to pull ahead for good. Bruce Arena (Team USA coach and former UVA soccer coach) blamed the ref’s bad call instead of his players’ poor showing, and also showed bad form by congratulating Ghana’s coach privately. In related news, Americans have stopped pretending they actually care about soccer and have returned to “real” sports that offer no threat of global embarrassment.
Friday, June 23
Brooks’ pro chances improve
Former UVA linebacker Ahmad Brooks might get to the NFL after all. Results were released today of a Charlottesville workout witnessed by 31 of 32 NFL team representatives in anticipation for the NFL Supplemental Draft on July 13. Despite 96 degree heat, Brooks ran a 4.68 second 40-yard dash—but as importantly, he has passed five drug tests in the past 10 weeks. At UVA, Brooks had a mercurial career, transitioning from heroic Butkus Award finalist in 2004 to being placed on injured reserve in 2005 to being booted from the team this spring for undisclosed discipline issues.
Saturday, June 24
We’re only happy when
it rains
O fickle Mother Nature! Less than a week after the water authorities issue a drought watch, high-power thunderstorms moved through the area Friday night and dumped almost two inches of water in one hour, knocking out power for 23,000 Central Virginia residents, according to today’s Daily Progress. Scottsville got some of the worst of it: Rain totals there exceeded six inches, according to a Virginia Department of Transportation press release. Route 622, Albevanna Spring Road near Scottsville, remained closed through this afternoon. Rain is forecasted through Wednesday, with a tropical storm possible later in the week.
Sunday, June 25
Bully pulpit
Today the notorious Rev. Jerry Falwell of Lynchburg jumped on board with the Charlottesville-based Rutherford Institute in hollering about perceived attacks on religious freedom. The Institute plans to file a lawsuit against a Nevada school district for pulling the plug on a high school valedictorian who used her moment at the mic to quote the Bible. In a commentary posted on The Conservative Voice, Falwell calls the student “courageous” and brands the incident “religious persecution.” He also defends the right of an Atlanta employee of the Federal Aviation Administration to express “views on homosexual behavior” at work. Wonder which views those might have been…
Monday, June 26
Warner to Iraq: Clean up
your mess!
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki unveiled a national reconciliation plan yesterday that offers amnesty for insurgents that haven’t been involved in acts of terrorism. Al-Maliki’s 24-point plan also outlines steps for strengthening Iraqi armed forces and disarming militias, according to www.bloomberg.com. Several U.S. senators were concerned about whether this plan would pardon those who killed Amer-ican troops, particularly since the plan offers few details about who specifically would be pardoned. Virginia’s senior senator, John Warner, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said on “Fox News Sunday” that though the U.S. will provide consultation, the Iraqi government must take responsibility. “I want the Iraqi people to take this decision unto themselves and make it correctly.”
