Nov 5-11, 2008
Vermont’s Emergency Planners are Gearing Up For a Major Flu Pandemic; Dean Will Step Down as DNC Chair; Vermont Veggie Farmers Extend the Growing Season
Pandemic Flu Angst
In the aftermath of my cover story from last week, “Dead Serious” about Vermont’s level of preparedness — or lack thereof — for the next major flu pandemic, several readers and close friends were quick to, um, “thank” me for the hours of lost sleep they endured worrying about the next ultra-nasty bug that will…
Dean Will Step Down as DNC Chair
Looks like former Vermont governor Howard Dean will soon step down as the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. He of the “50-state-strategy” took over as DNC Chair in 2005. Steve Benen of the Washington Monthly speculates on Dean’s replacement: Rumor has it that Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, a close Obama allyand effective campaign surrogate,…
Vermont Blog Roundup — Post-Election Edition
What a week this has been! I’m totally exhausted, and ready for some downtime. How about you? We’re probably all taking a bit of a break for the next couple days. So before I head out, I want to leave you with some links, lest you wander over here over the weekend looking for something…
Vanquished Rep. Pearson Talks to WG
Representative Chris Pearson of Chitty 3-4 got back to me last night with some brief thoughts about the election. Pearson was defeated on Tuesday in a close, and at times bitterly personal race to reclaim his seat in the State House alongside Progressive colleague Dave Zuckerman. He will be replaced in January by Democrat Kesha…
Kunstler to Speak in Montpelier
Not everyone in Vermont is content with Obama or the two-party system he emerged from. Take the folks at Second Vermont Republic: They’re putting on tomorrow’s all-day Vermont Independence Convention at the State House in Montpelier. In addition to members of the Alaskan Independence Party, the convention features keynote speaker James Howard Kunstler. Kunstler, the…
Zuckerman’s Take, and the Audacity of Ignorance
Newly re-elected Representative Dave Zuckerman just got back to me with his thoughts on the election. I have mixed feelings as I do not recall Obama saying that change meant throwing everyone out. It was about a deeper message and meaning. I feel that Chris and I have been those messages in the local/state level…
Out With the Old, In With the New
Look’s like Obama’s not the only one shaking up the old order of things. From today’s Burlington Free Press: Champlain College is buying the Ethan Allen Club on College Street in Burlington, the college’s second major acquisition in six months. The home of the 151-year-old club would be redeveloped for student housing, according to a…
“We Finally Turned This Shit Around,” Inebriated College Students Report
College students in Burlington, Vermont are excited that a liberal Democrat wins the Presidential election. The Free Press is there… If you were within two miles of Church Street last night, you might have heard students shouting “this is our fucking country, too!” and “Who is tired of everyone else run our fucking lives?!” They…
Panel Discussion Air Dates on Channel 16
Burlington’s Channel 16 (RETN) filmed all 13 of the panel discussions at the Vermont 3.0 Creative/Technology Career Jam on October 25th. Did you miss the discussions? Check them out on Channel 16. Here are the upcoming air dates: Monday 11.17 8pm — Be the CTO 9pm — Green Up Our Energy Future Sunday 11.23 8pm …
A Long Time Ago in an Election Far, Far Away?
Did photos of last night’s jubilation remind you of any other familiar celebratory scenes, on, for example, Naboo? Click here to see more. Thanks, Bill!
Ram, Zuckerman to Represent Chitty 3-4
Former UVM SGA President Kesha Ram will join Representative Dave Zuckerman in representing Chittenden’s 3-4 district in the Vermont State House in Montpelier. “The first reaction I had was humbling,” she explained to me in a phone call, “It’s incredibly humbling that people from all walks of life will actually circle your name.”Or, you know,…
Dewey . . . uh, Ashe Defeats Barnard
The Burlington Free Press is reporting that Tim Ashe did in fact win a Senate seat yesterday. The Freeps story, all five sentences, says that an “incorrect number” in one ward’s vote count had put Denise Barnard of Richmond ahead of Ashe. But the Burlington City Councilor was notified today that the count had been…
Vermont Election Results *UPDATED*
UPDATE: Tim Ashe came in 6th in the Chittenden County Senate race. See below. UPDATE II: Click here for coverage of the Chittenden 3-4 race on the What’s Good college blog. It was a late night. Here’s an update on some of the races we were following last night but were too close to call…
Watching History
As a journalist, one of your roles is to keep a certain distance from your subject in an effort to maintain an ability to observe and document whatever unfolds. But, last night standing in front of a giant screen inside the Hilton with a small, but loud, group of Democratic Party onlookers to listen to…
News Quirks
Curses, Foiled Again A robber approached a 36-year-old man in Warren, Mich., and demanded money. After getting $50, the robber tried to flee, but the victim tackled him, put him in a chokehold, and demanded his money back. Police Detective Michael Torey said the robber was so scared that he gave the victim his $50…
Well Grounded
Art Review: Anne Street Bailey, Joseph B. Roque & Graziella Weber Grassi, Burlington International Airport, South Burlington. Through December.
Dead Serious
Vermont’s emergency planners are gearing up for a major flu pandemic. Who else is ready?
It’s Your Birthday
Soundbites: It’s Your Birthday, Pork Chop Sandwiches, Bite Torrent, Dept. of Corrections
Free Will Astrology
Here’s the weekly astrological forecast for November 5 – 12, 2008. What’s your sign, baby? They’re all here… ARIES (March 21-April 19): Uranus is on the opposite side of the sun from Saturn right now. To traditional astrologers, that’s a stressful aspect. It bespeaks a titanic clash between the forces of progress and the inertia…
![Gory Daze [SIV103]](https://i0.wp.com/www.sevendaysvt.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/episode103.webp?resize=400%2C300&ssl=1)
Gory Daze [SIV103]
11/1/08: The 7th Annual Gory Daze parade takes over the deserted streets of White River Junction with a bagpiper, draft horses, a flame organ and hundreds of costumed participants. What is it about WRJ that makes it so damn cool? Music: The Pariah Beat
Throw the Bums Back In!
Well, it looks like a normal night in Vermont election-land — statewide incumbents appear headed for easy reelections. Treasurer Jeb Spaulding, Secretary of State Deb Markowitz, Auditor of Accounts Tom Salmon (who is serving in Iraq), Attorney General Bill Sorrell, and US Rep. Peter Welch all appear headed to easy wins. Was it ever really…
‘Secession & Meatballs’
Around 7 p.m., I arrived at Montpelier’s Langdon Street Cafe and ordered a stout and a tempeh Reuben. But the guy at the counter was pushing the special: spaghetti and meatballs. Seven bucks for spaghetti with real meatballs. Five for vegetarian ones. The meal coincided with “Secession & Meatballs (A spaghetti dinner),” the official name…
The Locks That Bind
Just before 6 p.m. tonight, I pulled into Richmond, where a crew of supporters was rallying on Route 2 for Taylor Yeates, the 18-year-old vying for a House seat in the Chittenden-4 district. (Unsuccessfully, it turns out: Democratic hopeful Ann O’Brien just won.) Down the road at Bridge Street Hair, cosmetologist Heather Ingham was prepping…
Last Push at the Polls
I just got back from spending a couple of hours down at the Ward 5 polling station in Burlington (Burlington Electric Department down on Pine Street). Independent Anthony Pollina and Democrat Gaye Symington each took time to chat with voters on their way into vote. Also milling around was Progressive Lt. Gov. candidate Richard Kemp…
About That Vermont Left . . .
Progressives Dave Zuckerman and Chris Pearson appear to be facing a tough challenge in holding onto their seats in a Vermont House district that includes the University of Vermont campus. Should one or both of the Progs lose today, the fallout could negatively affect efforts to build a Democrat-Progressive coalition in Burlington and beyond. Zuckerman…
Report from the Road
Reporter Mike Ives is still out visiting polling places, and has this report: Driving through Hinesburg,traffic is backed up a few hundred yards coming South into Hinesburg on Route 116. “It seemed like it was stretching all the way up to NRG,” he says. “It was a serious traffic jam.” He’s not sure if it’s…
Social Media and the Presidency: Has Social Media Changed Our Voting Engagement?
This is a re-post from my blog: http://champlainprofessor.blogspot.com Social Media and the Presidency: Has social media changed our voting engagement? As our country celebrates it’s democracy today — where we can vote without fear of taking our lives into our hands — I thought it would be appropriate to consider how social media may be…
Election Coverage Linkdump
Can’t get enough election coverage? Check out these links: Burlington Free Press staffers are liveblogging all day, using CoverItLive. It’s like being on talk radio, only without all the noise. Kinda fun. And a little addictive… The Midd kids at Middlebury’s Midd Blog are also liveblogging today. Andrew Sullivan has been posting a series of…
VT: Where Red and Blue Share a Marquee
The outcome of today’s presidential election, whatever it may be, is going to make some folks angry. So it’s nice to know there’s one place where Red and Blue America can still get along: the movie house. Well, at least in Burlington. Making up the showtimes, I happened to notice that Merrill’s Roxy Cinemas is…
A Vermont Left?
By Kevin J. Kelley “Fair Game” readers know Shay Totten has lately been touching on that tricky political dynamic between Progressive and Democrats in Vermont — namely whether the two parties will ever agree to work together and unite the left in the state. This morning, a number of voters who are supporting either Democrat…
Polling Place Polemics
From our correspondent Kevin J. Kelley, who will be reporting from various locales in Burlington throughout this Election Day: At the Barnes School, Old North End activist Steve Ekberg caused a stir this morning with a large poster atop a pole reading on one side “STUPID SHEEP – ARREST OBAMA!” and displaying on the reverse…
Did You Vote Yet?
If you did (and you SHOULD!), you can get a free coffee at Starbucks, or a free ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s from 5-8pm tonight. Doing your civic duty, and getting expensive food/drink for free? A win-win situation. And since our weather is lapsing into summer today, an ice cream might taste that much…
‘Song for Sarah’
Check out this Sarah Palin ode by two recent Middlebury College grads. Full disclosure: one of the guys, Lucas Kavner, was my former college roommate. Last month, this was the #1 most viewed YouTube video in Russia.
Proud to Vote for Obama in Winooski
When I went to Winooski to vote this morning, I stood in line near my neighbor, Nari Penson, an Obama supporter. Nari got to the polls around 6:45 a.m. She was #9 in line. She took the day off work to vote, and then to drive voters to the polls. “I always try to make…
Confusion Over Poll Opening Times Causes Voters to Miss Out in Winooski
I got to the Winooski polls at 6:20 a.m. and was glad I did. A woman in a headscarf pulled into the parking lot in front of me in and rushed out toward the Winooski Senior Center, eager to cast her vote. Unfortunately, the polls in Winooski don’t open until 7 a.m., so she was…
