RVANews

Joe Paterno, Oscars!, and buying local

Ross Catrow — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:46:18 +0000

Sunday

Saturday night, during the VCU Rams' beatdown of cross-state rival ODU, a Penn State-specific news site (onwardstate.com) reported that Joe Paterno had died. Quickly the information spread over twitter, but shortly thereafter (I mean really shortly) Paterno's son quashed the rumor, say JoePa was alive and fighting.

Paterno eventually died on Sunday of, what was thought to be, a treatable form of lung cancer.

The whole thing was a fascinating, if sad, look at how quickly rumors can spread and die through social media.

Tuesday

OSCAR NOMS!! If you're like me, and UNFORTUNATELY YOU PROBABLY AREN'T, you love the poop out of movies. Watching movies is part of what the Catrow family does, so every Oscar season is like a special Bonus Christmas. It's when people who hate sports finally can bet on something and shout at the TV.

Long live the Oscars!

Oscar nominations

— ∮∮∮ —

The State of the Union happened. Here's the whole thing, plus little helpful notes from the White House:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Zgfi7wnGZlE

Thursday

Remember when the City of Richmond awarded a bid for some branding work to a company out of Denver? It was quite the kerfuffle. A new "statewide business coalition" called Local First Virginia¹ is lobbying for some legal changes to give Virginia companies preferred treatment when it comes to procurement.

Why local first hurts Virginia; Bearing Drift

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So far we've weathered around twenty Republican primary debates going back to early summer 2011. After two dozen of these things the moderators are running out of questions to ask, last night's best example: "Why do you think your wife would make the best First Lady." Great. Thursday's debate was Gingrich's chance to capitalize on his victory in South Carolina, but he failed to take advantage. Here's how @fivethirtyeight thought everyone performed:

[blackbirdpie url="https://twitter.com/#!/fivethirtyeight/status/162731508375891968"]

Florida's primary is on Tuesday and thus far the scoreboard reads: Santorum-1, Romney-1, and Gingrich-1. For anyone other than Romney to take Florida would be a Major Upset (Intrade currently gives Romney a 91% chance of winning).

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Footnotes

Note: Local First Virginia's executive director is Dave Saunders, head of the Richmond ad firm Madison+Main. Madison+Main bid on, and lost, the contract in question. He also headlined most of the critical media coverage last July. ↩

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Golden Globes, Rick Perry, and Nate’s Tacos

Ross Catrow — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 16:42:51 +0000

Sunday

Did you know the Golden Globes are put on by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association? So weird. Anyway, this year marked the 69th Golden Globes; Twitter blew up, red carpets were walked, and awards handed out. The whole thing feels like our national pregame for the Oscars.

The Globes get joked for being the everyman's Academy Awards, but they get one thing really right: distinct award categories for Comedy/Drama and Film/TV. THIS IS OBVIOUS AND SMART.

Check the link below to see a complete list of winners and start to bone up for Oscar season.

69th Golden Globe Awards; Wikipedia

Tuesday

Earlier, Rick Perry's (now defunct) presidential campaign had filed a lawsuit claiming that the requirements to get on the Virginia ballot were too stringent--unconstitutionally stringent. U.S. District Judge, John A. Gibney, disagreed and (awesomely) had this to say in his opinion:

In essence, they played the game, they lost, then they complained about the rules

But, in the end, none of it really mattered. On Thursday, Perry suspended his campaign and endorsed Newt Gingrich.

Judge rejects bid by Rick Perry, 3 others to be added to Virginia GOP primary ballot; The Washington Post

— ∮∮∮ —

Taco lovers rejoice! Richmond's favorite taco slinger, Nate Gutierrez, has landed a new gig as the head chef of a soon-to-open restaurant in Carytown. The restaurant will be called "Don't Look Back" and will be located across from New York Deli in the old Viva Mexico location. Please let there be chicken skin tacos.

Don't Look Back: Nate's tacos likely coming to new Carytown restaurant; RVANews

Wednesday

In protest of SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) several major website "went dark" on Wednesday, including Wikpedia! WIKIPEDIA. It was challenging to get some of my work done which, I guess, was the point.

What the SOPA blackout really looks like; Poynter

Thursday

William & Mary took VCU into overtime and down to the wire in a game that should have been a blowout. I may have yelled some obscenities at the television. Sports!

Unexpected thriller on Broad Street; RVANews

Friday

Surprising just about nobody, Governor McDonnell gave his endorsement to Mitt Romney. It's looking like things might be pretty boring by the time the Virginia primary rolls around.

McDonnell endorses Romney; will campaign in S.C.; Richmond Times-Dispatch

Mitt Romney wins New Hampshire, a mysterious death in Iran, and Michelle Obama speaks at VCU

Ross Catrow — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:54:21 +0000

Tuesday

Mitt Romney won the nation’s second Republican Primary, coming in first with 39% of the vote in New Hampshire. That gives the former Governor two straight victories--albeit the first one was insanely close. Up next is South Carolina on January 21st where Romney has a pretty sizable lead in the polls.

New Hampshire Republican Primary coverage; Five Thirty Eight

Wednesday

First Lady Obama stopped by VCU on Wednesday to announce a commitment (part of the larger “Joining Forces” initiative) between medical colleges to research Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury. VCU was selected to host the First Lady’s speech because of their already strong work with TBI and their relationship with Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center Veterans Affairs Hospital.

Michelle Obama at VCU to Announce National Initiative; VCU.edu

— ∮∮∮ —

Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan, a 32-year-old Iranian scientist that was linked to the middle eastern country’s nuclear program, was killed by a “bomb-wielding assailant” on Wednesday in Tehran during rush hour. The fact that no one has taken responsibility for the murder has caused many people across the world to speculate as to who to the organizers, with the U.S. and Israel being the two names at the top of most lists.

Iranian scientist involved in nuclear program killed in Tehran bomb attack; the Washington Post

Thursday

Head of an Army tribunal tasked with hearing the case against former intelligence analyist Bradley Manning, who allegedly leaked US government documents to WikiLeaks, has recommended that Manning’s charges be referred to “general court martial.” Manning was arrested in May 2010. Prosecutors argue that Manning deliberately colluded with WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, while Manning’s defense attorneys argue that their client struggled with personal issues, including his gender identity. How that justifies Manning’s alleged actions, who knows!?!

WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning ‘should be tried’; BBC News

Friday

On the heels of his New Hampshire win, leading Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney, began a counter-offensive against those who claim that his previous involvement in Bain Capital, an investment firm Romney co-founded, needlessly fired workers after takeovers. Fellow Republican presidential hopefuls, like Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry, accuse the former Massachusetts governor of leading a ruthless group. Will this affect the candidate's chances to win the Republican nomination? Who knows!?!

Romney Launches Bain Defense; PBS

photo by Gage Skidmore

Cellphones, the James River, and Christopher Hitchens

Ross Catrow — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 16:42:10 +0000

Monday

One of my favorite Richmond restaurants, Nate’s Taco Truck Stop, is closing up shop. Today is the last day for you head over to 2nd Street and jam a chicken skin taco straight into your mouth. It’s more appealing than it sounds, trust me. That a place getting national press couldn’t make it work is a huge bummer.

If you want to go full bummies, read our interview with Nate on why he’s shutting things down.

The Truck Won’t Stop Here Anymore; Greater Jackson Ward News

Tuesday

The National Transportation Safety Board announced their recommendation for a federal ban on using any “personal electronic device” while driving. There’s a good chance you’re reading this very article on your phone while driving. If that’s the case consider this:

...a Virginia Tech Transportation Institute study of commercial drivers found that a safety-critical event is 163 times more likely if a driver is texting, e-mailing, or accessing the Internet.

No call, no text, no update behind the wheel: NTSB calls for nationwide ban on PEDs while driving; National Transportation Safety Board

Wednesday

Hargreaves Associates presented their final proposal for Richmond’s riverfront, and it’s jam packed with creative opportunities. The recommendations range from big ticket ideas like buying Mayo Island (of which Venture Richmond's Jack Berry says “without property, you can't do any of this”), to easier things like converting old rail lines to trails.

Now, will any of these ideas actually be executed?

Third Riverfront Forum Brings Surprising Proposals; Richmond.com

Thursday

President Obama announced that he would withdraw 100% of the remaining US troops (39,000) in Iraq by the end of this year. The Whitehouse has a cool scrolly timeline thing of our war in Iraq that’s worth checking out.

Barack Obama: All US troops to leave Iraq in 2011; BBC News

Friday

People from writer Christopher Buckley to comedian Patton Oswalt expressed sadness after hearing that essayist Christopher Hitchens passed away yesterday evening. Often acerbic and well-sauced, Hitchens weighed in on topics as varied as religion, Bill Clinton, Henry Kissinger, and the (recently ended) Iraq War.

Lincolnbeard, the State Fair, and Short Pump Mall

Ross Catrow — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 12:39:38 +0000

Saturday

Friday/Saturday saw two murders which brought the City’s 2011 total to 33. In comparison, at this point last year there had been 40 homicides. Barring a record-breaking (for 2011) eight murders in the month of December, 2011 will have fewer murders than 2010.

While murders definitely are down, we’ve been experiencing a qualitative crime wave over the last couple of weeks. Robberies and burglaries are on the rise, make sure you lock your cars and make smart decisions.

Homicides in Richmond, 2011; RVANews

Monday

Short Pump Mall decided to pull the plug on their controversial (and creepy) customer tracking system. The technology anonymously logged shoppers’ locations via cell phones as they moved from store to store and would have provided retailers with a super-accurate data set on customer habits. People were not too stoked on this idea.

Short Pump Town Center Ceases Controversial Cell Phone Tracking Program; Downtown Short Pump

Tuesday

Michael Jackson’s personal physician, Conrad Murray, was sentenced to four years for his role in MJ’s death. Word is, two years of that sentence will be suspended.

Conrad Murray sentenced to 4 years in Michael Jackson’s death; Washington Post

Wednesday

The first photo of Daniel Day-Lewis in his Lincolnbeard hit the twitters on Wednesday. The photo, by @UVAMichael, eventually ended up on national sites like TMZ and the Huffington Post.

Some folks in Richmond object to the timbre our nascent paparazzi, and suggest that we leave the famous people alone, that it’s making Richmond look bad. Others, like Ettamae’s owner Laura Morand Bailey, say we need to up our famous-people game and provide the stars with top-rate Southern service.

Daniel Day-Lewis -- Spotted!; Richmond.com

Thursday

The State Fair of Virginia has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Fear not, loyal fans of all things fried, live calf births, and general fair-related mayhem! The Fair’s not going anywhere, this is all just part of a little debt restructuring. Sounds complicated.

Anyway, everything is all set to go for 2012, so no worries (yet...DUN DUN DUN).

State Fair of Virginia files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy; RVANews

Pepper spray everything, SPORTS, and Short Pump Town Center

Ross Catrow — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 16:50:05 +0000

Friday

On Friday #occupiers at UC Davis were pepper sprayed at close range by UC Davis Campus Police officer Lt. John Pike. The (apparently) casual demeanor in which he pepper sprayed the mess out of the protestors has caused outrage and created a meme (Casually Pepper Spray Everything Cop). If you haven’t seen the video (one thing #occupy is good at is documenting everything that happens), take a minute and watch/decide for yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=WO4406KJQMc

As you can imagine, UC Davis Chancellor is under some pressure to figure what exactly (if anything), needs to be done in respond to the incident. Some faculty are even calling for her resignation. If you want to see an effective protest tactic check out this video of hundreds of protestors silently lining the path from the Chancellor’s office to her car.

Saturday

Did you miss the craziest night in college football in a long time? In one night UVA beat FSU, Baylor beat Oklahoma, Iowa State beat Oklahoma State, and USC beat Oregon. You should watch the highlights, I’m not kidding.

— ∮∮∮ —

While we’re talking about sports, the Rams are having a roughish start to the season. After winning their first game, VCU dropped their next two, and won their last two--both against Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers account for more than half of the Rams’ wins at this point in the season.

VCU basketball recaps and results; RVANews

Tuesday

Short Pump Town Center will be tracking your movements as you shop this holiday season using ominous-sounding hidden sensors. The mall--one of only two in the US--will track your cell signal and use the data in aggregate to analyze shopping behaviors. Get ready for malls laid out like a QWERTY keyboard, with your favorite shops located far far away from each other. Hooray!

Short Pump Town Center Makes National Headlines with Plan to Track Holiday Shoppers’ Cell Phones; Downtown Short Pump

Thursday

Thanksgiving! There were reports that people city-wide overate and then fell asleep in front of the TV.

Friday

Today is Black Friday. A “holiday” built around the concept of annihilating your fellow man if they stand in the way of a sweet deal. It is not entirely unheard of for people to be seriously injured, and even killed, in pursuit of savings. So far today, I’ve only heard of a custom pepper spraying other customers in a Walmart.

Shootings, pepper-spray attack mar Wal-Mart Black Friday sales; Los Angeles Times

JoePa, Rick Perry, and Wilson Ramos

Ross Catrow — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 11:00:04 +0000

Saturday

Jerry Sandusky, former Penn State defensive coordinator, was arrested after a three-year investigation and charged with several counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, corruption of minors, endangering the welfare of a child, and other offenses. His arrest set off a chain reaction of firings, resignations, and accusations which would culminate Wednesday night.

Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal; Wikipedia

Monday

Two and a half years after Michael Jackson died in his sleep, his personal physician, Conrad Murray, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter. He’ll be sentenced on November 29th.

Tiral of Conrad Murray; Wikipedia

Tuesday

Every Tuesday after the first Monday, us crazy Americans get together and vote our socks off. This year, for Richmond, things were pretty boring. Republicans did, however, pick up a majority in the Senate. Well, technically the Senate is split 20–20, but Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling (R) gets to be the tie breaker. See, the Lt. Governor is important!

2011 election results; RVANews

Wednesday

The weekend’s turmoil at Penn State culminated when the interim-President fired Joe Paterno. Paterno had coached at Penn State for 62 years, 44 as head coach. For their failure to report Jerry Sandusky to the police for sexually assaulting a minor, Paterno, the Athletic Director, the Senior Vice President, and the President were all fired or resigned.

Board of Trustees fire Joe Paterno, Graham Spanier; The Daily Collegian

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This is awkward:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUA2rDVrmNg

Although, the Perry campaign’s damage control is not half bad.

— ∮∮∮ —

Rounding out the craziness blowing up my Twitter on Wednesday night was the news that National’s catcher, Wilson Ramos, was kidnapped in Venezuela. While other Venezuelan MLB players’ families have been involved in kidnappings, this is the first time that a player has been kidnapped. Interestingly, this news broke on Twitter.

Major league catcher kidnapped in Venezuela; CNN

Thursday

Early, early, early Thursday morning Occupy Richmond took again to occupying. This time, things began at Monroe Park, headed down to City Hall, and ended up at the Canal Walk.

Tweets from Last Night: Occupy Richmond; RVANews

Photo by: divinemisscopa

Robert Wood found alive! Also: Turkey, deer, and Squirrels

Ross Catrow — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 19:00:12 +0000

Sunday

Update!

Incredibly, six days after he went missing, Robert Wood was found--alive! Mind blowing!

Robert Wood Jr. found alive on Day 6 of search in the woods

Original

On Sunday, a nine-year-old autistic boy named Robert Wood, Jr. wandered away from his father, brother, and a family friend in North Anna Battlefield Park. Hundreds of volunteers have joined Hanover County Sheriff’s office in searching for the boy. Honestly, I’ve tried to avoid this story as much as possible; it’s awful and terrifying. ~~At publication time Robert was still missing~~.

The search for Robert Wood, Jr.; NBC12

— ∮∮∮ —

A 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit the city of Van in eastern Turkey leaving tens of thousands of people homeless. Several hundred are confirmed dead, but the death toll is expected to rise as the rubble is cleared.

2011 Van earthquake; Wikipedia

Tuesday

When the Flying Squirrels came to Richmond part of the agreement was to have a new or very refurbished Diamond in a couple of years. Well, the plans for that stadium have been steadily delayed until the earliest we’ll see anything is 2015. Augh! On Tuesday the president of the Squirrels let fly his thoughts on the sad state of affairs. He then issued a statement to clarify. Then the Mayor issued a statement. So many statements, but I’m not sure we are any closer to a new Diamond.

The Diamond in the rough: recapping the soap opera that is Richmond baseball; RVANews

— ∮∮∮ —

DEER RAMPAGE. This is a quintessential local news stories: deer gets loose downtown and bashes up the place. Unfortunately, this particular deer was killed by police to prevent further damage to property. Seems a little intense. Whatever happened to tranquilizer guns? Do we still have those?

Police kill deer during downtown Richmond rampage; WTVR

— ∮∮∮ —

As the #Occupy movement continues grow and...occupy...it continues to have run-ins with the police. The folks out in Oakland had a violent clash with police involving bottles, vinegar, paint balls, tear gas, and rubber bullets. It’s like Clue: you decided who was using what weapon.

Okland Local has a bunch of great firsthand reports, if you are interested.

Occupy Oakland; Okland Local

Folk, Plan 9, Obama, and Gaddafi

Ross Catrow — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 10:00:55 +0000

Sunday

It seems like RVA spends the majority of the summer gearing up for the violent, festival onslaught that is October. And, of course, the Folk Festival is the blood-crusted scimitar leading the charge. Or something. Anyway, this year’s festival was the largest on record, bringing 200,000 people downtown over the weekend. Like, whoa!

RichmondFolkFestival.org

Wednesday

Everyone’s favorite place to hangout in Carytown as a teenager filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection: Plan 9, guys! I have many, many memories of buying physical copies of music in that place. Ah well, the changing landscape of the music business is complicated and fraught with sad stories like this (assets of less than $50,000 and liabilities between $1 million and $10 million, yikes!). It really is something best expressed by haiku:

Record store of old
Must this be the end for us?
Listen 'fore you buy :(

Plan 9 Music files for Chapter 11; Richmond Biz Sense

— ∮∮∮ —

The President made his second stop in the Richmond area in just a couple of months. That guy just can’t get enough of us! He was here stumping for his job bill at a fire station in Chesterfield. Some people were a little peeved that he chose not to stop by Louisa County and see some of the earthquake damage (for which FEMA has denied disaster aid) first hand.

Obama to visit Chesterfield county on Wednesday; RVANews

Thursday

Muammar Gaddafi is dead. Before being killed by opposition forces in Libya’s ongoing (but nearing its end, you’d think) civil war, he was the fourth longest ruling non-royal leader in the world. There is a wikipedia page about that. For 42 years he ruled Libya after seizing power in 1969--ten years short of the number one spot, which is held by Fidel Castro.

Muammar Gaddafi; Wikipedia

Al Davis, road rage, and Qwikster (again)

Ross Catrow — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 10:00:29 +0000

Saturday

Guys! Al Davis died. WHO WILL BE THE THIRD?

Al Davis, in case you’re not an NFL fan, was the guy who invented football. Jk jk, KIND OF. Coach, manager, owner of the Oakland Raiders, the dude had plenty of influence on what is now America’s Greatest Game (that’s right). Also, lots of people hated that guy.

— ∮∮∮ —

Two men were murdered on Sunday in two unrelated incidents, bringing the City’s homicide total to 30. The last three weeks have seen seven murders, making it the most violent three week stretch this year. There were 33 murders at this point last year.

Monday

Remember Qwikster? That was “qwik,” amiright!? Netflix, in their infinite wisdom, decided that splitting off the DVD side of their business into a separate, awesomely named, company called “Qwikster” was maybe not a great idea. CEO Reed Hastings is either a genius or soon to be unemployed, I can’t tell.

DVDs will be staying at netflix.com; Netflix Blog

Wednesday

iPhones! We love ‘em! I can’t tell you how long I sat in front of iTunes clicking the “Check for Update” button. It was many hours. But finally I was able to download and install iOS 5. Hurrah? I dunno guys, a software release doesn’t seem like a big deal, but I’ve had at least four group conversations about what exactly my iPhone can now do. Turns out: all kinds of things!

iOS 5; Apple.com

Thursday

Two arrests were made in the September 22nd road rage incident that left one man dead near the toll plaza on Powhite. People, cars are not toys.

North Carolina couple arrested in “road rage” incident that killed man on I-195 in September; RVANews

Friday

Technically this even is in the future. But still, the Richmond Folk Festival is the biggest and baddest of all Richmond festivals, and it deserves to be mentioned even if it exists--at this particular point in time--only in our minds. Of course, starting at 7pm tonight it will exist in the Real World! Beat a path down there, my people!

The Richmond Folk Festival guide; RVANews

iPhones, Lincolns, nonprofits, oh my!

Ross Catrow — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 10:00:36 +0000

Tuesday

Tim Cook launched his first product, the iPhone 4S, as CEO of Apple. The iPhone/iOS event left some people disappointed that Apple didn’t launch a device with more features or a different hardware design, but guys, you can talk to the thing like the computer on Star Trek!!! I have been waiting for this moment for 25 years. TWENTY FIVE YEARS.

Apple iPhone 4S reveal in 90 seconds; CNN Money

Wednesday

Lincoln is in town! Well, not really Lincoln, but Daniel Day-Lewis. Which, if you’re honest with yourself, might be slightly better? The whole crew, including Day-Lewis and Spielberg, is in town filming the Lincoln movie, so keep your eyes peeled for celebrity sightings! First one with a pic of Daniel Day-Lewis drinking a milkshake wins...nothing? Honor? My ever loving affection?

— ∮∮∮ —

Steve Jobs, the man who helped make living in the future a present-day possibility, died Wednesday night. It’s easy to be trite or over-sentimental about these sorts of things, so just read the thing I wrote Thursday morning.

Steve Jobs, 1955-2011; RVANews

Thursday

The Amazing Raise, a 36 hour Richmond-specific non-profit fundraising event, generated $491,245 for Richmond-based non-profits. This is...a lot of money! Church Hill Activities and Tutoring won the big prize by receiving 382 gifts ($41,921 total!?) over $50, which nets them an additional $10,000. Crazy!

The Amazing Raise leaderboard

ACC expansion, Qwikster, and spandex

Ross Catrow — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 15:26:09 +0000

Sunday

In what seems to be the final move in The Great Conference Realignment Saga of 2010/11, the ACC officially welcomed Syracuse and Pitt as new members. There have been a lot of changes to the college conference landscape in the last two years:

BYU became an independent
Colorado and Utah joined the Pac-12
TCU joined the Big East
Nebraska joined the Big Ten
Texas A&M joined the SEC (pending some lawsuits)
Pitt and Syracuse joined the ACC

And, the whole thing’s not over yet, either. The Big East will need to pick up some more members, and the future of the Big 12 is uncertain at best.

No one is quite sure when the new ACC members will begin regular season play (the Big East requires 27 months of notice before existing members can leave), or what the new divisions will look like. For Hokie fans, a “previous members of the Big East” division and an “old ACC members” division is not desirable.

Monday

Well, Netflix, you’ve really gone and fudged the bucket on this one.

In the very letter apologizing for the lack of communication leading up to the the recent price increases, Netflix CEO Reed Hasting announced they would be splitting Netflix in half and launching Qwikster. BAM, JUST LIKE THAT! The two services (Netflix for streaming, Qwikster for discs) will have separate websites, separate queues, and separate bills.

Wednesday

What started out as an incredible safe year for the eastern part of the City has started to slip: this week alone there have been three murders in East End’s housing projects. September, with five murders, is the second most violent month of the year so far, January had seven.

— ∮∮∮ —

We did it! We won a Major Award! Richmond won the bid to host the 2015 UCI World Road Cycling Championship. This is a pretty big deal and meshes nicely with Richmond hiring a new bicycling coordinator. Get your spandex ready--I’m wearing mine right now (under my clothes).

Richmond to host international cycling championship in 2015; RVANews

photo by Team Traveller

New abortion regulations, VCU is #1, and Rick Perry in the house

Ross Catrow — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 14:36:21 +0000

Tuesday

A murder on Richmond’s south side brings the city-wide total to 23, with two murders in September. As I said last week, Richmond is experiencing a historic low in its murder rate.

Homicides in 2011; RVANews

Wednesday

Does U.S. News & World Report do anything other than rank colleges? Their annual rankings came out, and VCU is near the top of several lists, with two programs that rank number one in the country: Sculpture and Nursing-Anesthesia. Also of note: a #4 ranking for the Fine Arts graduate program.

UR is also listed as the #3 “Up-and-Coming” school and the #9 “Best Value” school.

— ∮∮∮ —

Presidential nominee Rick Perry stopped by Richmond to speak at the Republican Party of Virginia’s Grassroots Luncheon. Governor Bob McDonnell was also on hand. Could the (currently) presumptive Republican nominee be getting chummy with MickyD? Is McDonnell making a play for the VP spot? Interesting, very interesting.

Ricky Perry visits Richmond; RVANews

— ∮∮∮ —

The best sound bite to come out of the 2009 Downtown Master Plas was: “the James River is Richmond’s great, wet, Central Park.” I mean, true! Part of that plan was to come up with another plan for all of our un/under-used riverfront. To that end, the Mayor hired Hargreaves Associates who have a trillion experience points in this area. They presented their initial inventory and findings on Wednesday and will follow up with two more meetings to collect public input.

Richmond’s Riverfront: Don’t turn the James into a culvert; James River News Hub

Thursday

The State Board of Health, the body that “reviews and promulgates” Virginia’s health regulations, approved a new set of requirements for the Commonwealth’s abortion clinics. Now facilities that provide abortions are classified as surgical centers. This means that an estimated 17 of the 21 facilities in Virginia will either have to undergo expensive renovations, quit providing abortions, or close. The regulations go into effect January 1st, and facilities have two years to comply.

Health panel approves new rules for abortion clinics; Richmond Times Dispatch

Photo by: Jennie Lynn Price

Obama in town, a Squirrels miracle, and the City’s murder count increases

Ross Catrow — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 10:00:19 +0000

Saturday

For the third time in a row the Richmond Spiders defeated the Duke Blue Devils. Pretty solid work for Coach Lineburg’s first outting. I foolishly picked against them which is not something I’ll do again!

Spiders pull of the FBS hat trick; RVANews

Sunday

Ronald “Pee Wee” Carter was shot and killed in Fairfield Court on Sunday. Officers were called to the scene at 1:01 a.m. and found him dead of a gunshot wound. This is the 22nd homicide in the City this year and only the 6th in the East End. For comparison, by this time in 2010 there were 26 homicides.

Homicide in Fairfield Court

Monday

Using a crazy finish, heavy rains, and plenty of luck, the Squirrels beat the Altoona Curve 2-1 and head to the Eastern League playoffs. Wes Hodges hit a home run on the last pitch of game before officials called things off due to weather. Think about it: a home run on the last pitch of the last game to advance to the playoffs. Pretty awesome.

HAVE FUNN, GO NUTZ.

Divine Intervention Sends Squirrels to Playoffs; SquirrelsBaseball.com

Thursday

The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed Virginia’s challenge to the President’s health care reform plan. Now, I don’t claim to understand how this stuff works, but I do know that there is a whole lot of political strategery going on here. Regardless of this ruling most everyone seems to think that this case (or a similar one) is headed to the Supreme Court.

4th Circuit Court of Appeals Rules Against Virginia Health Care Freedom Act; Bearing Drift

Friday

Today is President Obama Day! Around 11:30 this morning President Obama will deliver a speech at the University of Richmond’s Robins Center. Word on the street is that he’ll focus on job creation--playing off the speech he delivered on Thursday to a joint session of Congress.

Not to be outdone, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor will be giving a rebutal speech today as well. The where and when of the speech are still being worked out.

President Obama to Speak at UR

Hurricane Irene, week-long blackouts, soccer, and football

Ross Catrow — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 15:29:56 +0000

Saturday

Hurricane Irene gusted into central Virginia and dumped a trillion gallons of rain on Richmond Saturday night. Many, many trees fell over. There was damage, there was even loss of life, but the big story this week was the incredible number of people left without power for an extended (and still extending) period of time.

Dominion hopes to have power restored to nearly all customers by today (hopefully)! But, as of right now there are still about 85,000 people in the region without power.

Also, some of the aftermath pictures of Irene are kind of intense.

Tuesday

The Kickers lost 2-1 in the semifinals of the US Open Cup to the Chicago Fire. The US Open Cup is pretty cool in that it pits soccer clubs from all three levels of American professional soccer (MLS, NASL, USL) against each other in one big fat tournament. While it’s not unheard of for a USL team (think AA) to make it to the semifinals, it is still a Pretty Big Deal. Great job on the season Kickers!

Open Cup dreams dashed; RichmondKickers.com

Wednesday

Another week, another disgusting bout of political posturing by our nation’s leaders. This time around, the Speaker of the House--John Boehner--denied (for the first time in the country’s history) President Obama’s request to give a speech to Congress at a particular time. Oh also, Obama wanted to give the speech during the GOP debates, NBD. Can’t wait for election season!

Thursday

COLLEGE FOOTBALL. The season has finally begun! It has been an insane off season, and I’m just glad to finally get down to sports instead of rumors and scandals. The big opening weekend match-up to look forward to is Oregon vs. LSU on Saturday night; kickoff is at 8pm.

Football is here: ACC & CAA previews; RVANews

Friday

Just a reminder: while it is the first Friday of the month, there is no First Fridays Artwalk tonight. After all the recent shenanigans the organizers decided to skip September’s event and work on improving October’s event.

Steve Jobs resigns, Coach Scott resigns, Gaddafi “resigns,” oh and an earthquake

Ross Catrow — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 15:52:58 +0000

Saturday

Best Friends Day 10! For a decade now Best Friends Day has brought thousands of out-of-towners into Richmond for a weekend of music, booze, and a massive pool party at Hadad’s. Say what you will about the event; it’s one of Richmond’s nationally recognized and most popular events.

Best Friends Day 10; RVANews

Sunday

What Wikipedia is calling the 2011 Battle of Tripoli began Sunday night. After a failed February uprising (an early part of the Arab Spring), rebel forces entered Tripoli and captured two of Muammar Gaddafi sons.

Qaddafi Losing Grip on Libya; The Atlantic

Tuesday

Hmm, what happened Tuesday? OH JUST THE SECOND BIGGEST EARTHQUAKE IN VIRGINIA EVER. Guys, it was pretty wild.

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In what has to be a huge disappointment for Spider fans, Latrell Scott resigned as head coach of the football team after being arrested for a DWI on Monday night. It was Coach Scott’s second DWI in 5-10 years which in Virginia carries a mandatory minimum jail sentence of 10-20 days. Offensive Coordinator Wayne Lineburg was named the interim head coach.

Latrell Scott resigns as Spider head football coach; RVANews

Wednesday

Steve Jobs unexpectedly resigned as Apple’s CEO on Wednesday. From his succint letter to the Board of Directors: “I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.”

Letter from Steve Jobs; Apple

Friday

Hurricane Irene, which has been threatening the east coast for the last couple of days, is finally projected to make landfall sometime tonight / early tomorrow. Over 50 million people are under some sort of severe weather warning or watch. Our own Weather Dan is predicting rain and wind (lots of it). Keep checking back today for more updates.

Hurricane Irene Tracker; New York Times

Brain-eating amoebas, ranked Spiders, and Republican governors

Ross Catrow — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 15:46:24 +0000

Sunday

A 25-year-old man was shot and killed in front of the Chimbo Market in Church Hill. This brings the City’s homicide total to 19, and the East End’s total to four--which, by the way, is historically low.

Man shot at Chimbo Market; Church Hill People’s News

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The Sunday edition of the Richmond Times Dispatch featured a full page ad for the Wachovia-to-Wells Fargo transition...on the front page of the paper. National meta-media outlet Poynter picked up the story as did the Huffington Post. Publisher Tom Silvestri said that “compared with changes to comics and obituaries, the reaction here is a real snoozer.”

Newspaper ad covering front page ‘shocks’ staff, but it’s ‘a real snoozer’ to readers; Poynter

Monday

The Republican Governors Association named Governor McDonnell (who, by the way, has mentioned he’d be interested in a VP nomination) as their new Chair. Texas Governor Rick Perry used to hold this position until he announced he was running for president.t

McDonnell tapped to lead the Republican Governor’s Assocciation; DecisionVirginia.com

Tuesday

The Richmond Spiders are ranked #16 in the Sports Network preseason poll. This is kind of crazy: every single CAA school is listed in this poll except Towson. If you’re interested: William & Mary (3), Delaware (5), New Hampshire (10), Villanova (14), JMU (15), Massachusetts (25). ODU, Maine, and Rhode Island are also receiving votes.

The Sports Network/Fathead.com FCS Top-25 College Football Poll; The Sports Network

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A nine-year-old boy from Henrico was infected with Naegleria fowleri and ultimately died of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis. You probably saw a bunch of headlines like “Boy killed by brain-eating amoeba!” This whole thing is extremely rare with only 300 cases reported worldwide as of 2008. To be infected you need to get warm, contaminated water WAY up your nose. Like way up there. It really isn’t something to worry about catching from the James River. If you are concerned, wear noseplugs.

This week: riots in London, AAA ratings, college hoops

Ross Catrow — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 17:45:54 +0000

Friday

The experience that Richmond has come to expect from First Fridays continues to change (degrade?). This time, everything went swimmingly until around 9.15pm, fifteen minutes after the official end of the event--then things got a little wild. After taking the weekend to think about it, organizers are considering changing the date and even canceling September’s event.

After all that posturing and theatre around the debt ceiling, the dang S&P downgraded our (well America’s) rating from AAA to AA+. I’m convinced that no one actually understand what this means, how to fix it, or even if it needs fixing.

Downgrading our politics; The Economist

Saturday

The shooting of alleged drug dealer and gang member Mark Duggan by police sparked a week of riots in England. Buildings were burned, stores were looted, and hundreds of people were arrested.

Sunday

Thirty members of Navy Seal Team 6 were killed when a Chinook helicopter crashed in Afghanistan. Seal Team 6 carried out the raid of Osama Bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan (a thrilling account of that raid is available here, and a criticism of the thrilling account here).

Worst US loss of life in Afghan war as helicopter crash kills 38

Tuesday

Governor McDonald announced that he was creating the Governor’s Holiday Hoops Classic, a “basketball double header that will match four of the state’s top programs a year.” The Rams will take on the Hokies in 2013.

Governor McDonnell Announces “Governor’s Holiday Hoops Classic”; VCU Ram Nation

This week’s news (in review!)

Ross Catrow — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 00:11:17 +0000

Friday

Another in a list that stretches from to infinity and beyond: Virginia’s outdated ABC laws shut down the Richmond Varietease burlesque performances at the Canal Club.

Burlesque shows banned at the Canal Club; RVANews

Monday

The Cardinals traded Spider alum, and four year NFL running back, Tim Hightower to the Washington Redskins. I’m not sure whether to get excited or feel sad for the guy.

Busy Skins get Hightower, Jammal Brown; ESPN

The City of Richmond awarded a “brand development strategy” job for the Department of Economic Development to a Denver marketing firm. This raised the eyebrows (and hackles) of some of the City’s creative folk. Keep in mind that with the procurement process still ongoing there is a lot of information that we just don’t have.

Creative leaders question decision to send ad work to Denver; Richmond Times-Dispatch

Tuesday

After week of posturing by just about everyone involved President Obama and Congress finally agreed on a way to increase the debt ceiling.

The Fine Print on the Debt Deal; FiveThirtyEight

Thursday

Thursday morning three juveniles visiting Virginia Tech for a summer camp reported they saw “a white male, 6 feet tall, with light brown hair outside of New Residence Hall East holding what may have been a handgun.” No one matching that description was ever found. That, however, didn’t prevent the twitterspace from blowing up and spreading rumors. Sigh.

Alert lifted: Increased police presence to continue, people encouraged to remain vigilant; vt.edu

Friday

The City of Richmond hired a “bicycle, pedestrian, and trails coordinator.” This has the potential to be a Big Deal and will hopefully move Richmond towards a more bikeable/walkable future.

Richmond hires a bicycle, pedestrian, and trails coordinator; RVANews