Money is Important in Congressional Races

 I have harped on this several times, and am doing it again. Money equals Political Speech. If you (or your candidate) doesn't have money, then it is very hard for them to be heard. They cannot get their message out to the voters. They cannot rent office space, buy or rent equipment, print signs or literature, or place commercials on television and radio.


A candidate who refuses to raise money is one who refuses to avail himself of the opportunity to win elections.


I'll use the 2008 General Election Cycle as an example, and compare it to what info we have so far for the 2010 Election Cycle (as of December 31, 2009). All information is courtesy Open Secrets.










The 2008 Election Cycle for the 11th Congressional District of North Carolina:

Heath Shuler (D) * 
(62% of vote)

Raised:	$1,670,728
Spent:	$769,941
Cash on Hand:	$943,706
Last Report:	December 31, 2008

	PAC contributions	$815,298	(49%)
	Individual contributions	$824,243	(49%)
	Candidate self-financing	$0	(0%)
	Other	$31,187	(2%)

Carl Mumpower (R)
(36% of vote)

Raised:	$134,307
Spent:	$134,199
Cash on Hand:	$107
Last Report:	November 28, 2008

	PAC contributions	$0	(0%)
	Individual contributions	$90,131	(67%)
	Candidate self-financing	$42,646	(32%)
	Other	$1,530	(1%)

Keith Smith (L)
No reports on record for this candidate.

The votes:

61.96%.....211,112 Heath Shuler

35.38%.....122,087 Carl Mumpower

02.21%.........7,517 Keith Smith

Of course, there were other factors in the race above. Mumpower (and his supporters) spent most of the time attacking fellow Republicans or the Republican Party itself. 

My suggestion to candidates in the future is to run as a Libertarian or Unaffiliated if you hate the Republican Party so much.

Now for the 2010 Election Cycle...


A look at the numbers in 2010 before the race got underway (as of December 31, 2009):

Heath Shuler (D) *

Raised:	$563,822
Spent:	$237,311
Cash on Hand:	$1,270,216
Last Report:	December 31, 2009

	PAC contributions	$282,100	(50%)
	Individual contributions	$260,961	(46%)
	Candidate self-financing	$0	(0%)
	Other	$20,761	(4%)

Gregory A. Newman (R)

Raised:	$11,275
Spent:	$1,261
Cash on Hand:	$10,013
Last Report:	December 31, 2009

	PAC contributions	$0	(0%)
	Individual contributions	$11,275	(100%)
	Candidate self-financing	$0	(0%)
	Other	$0	(0%)

Dan Eichenbaum (R)

Raised:	$8,212
Spent:	$6,975
Cash on Hand:	$1,237
Last Report:	December 31, 2009

	PAC contributions	$0	(0%)
	Individual contributions	$5,962	(73%)
	Candidate self-financing	$2,250	(27%)
	Other	$0	(0%)

Jeff Miller (R)
No reports on record for this candidate.

Kenneth D. West (R)
No reports on record for this candidate.

The next report will give us much more information that will allow us to be able to draw some conclusions. The close of books is March 31 and the deadline to file is April 15, so the numbers will be available only a few weeks before the primary. 

As it stands now, just by looking at the numbers, things are looking bleak for the Republican hopefuls. I hope to see some numbers nearing $100,000 then. I am disappointed by the appearance that no one is serious about raising funds per this report. (I understand that a couple of candidates in the race now have only started raising money recently, so we'll see).

If you have a candidate that you support, I expect you to get involved and part with some of your money and part of your time. 

Here are links to the candidate websites (in alphabetical order):

Dan Eichenbaum

Jake Howard

Ed Krause

Geg Newman

Jeff Miller

Kenny West

Here is the schedule for the 2010 Primary:

Primary Election Schedule for 2010

• Monday, February 8, 2010 at 12:00 Noon filing period will open. (passed)
  
• Friday, February 26, 2010 at 12:00 Noon filing period will close. (passed)
• Voter Registration will end on Friday, April 9, 2010. (3 weeks away)
• Absentee by Mail Request will begin on Monday, March 15, 2010 (started Monday)
• Absentee by Mail Request will end on Tuesday, April 27, 2010
  *ALL VOTED BALLOTS MUST BE RECEIVED IN THE COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS OFFICE BY 5:00 P.M. ON MONDAY, MAY 3, 2010.
  *Subject to change due to acts of the NC General Assembly
• One-Stop Absentee Voting will begin on Thursday, April 15, 2010 and will end on Saturday, May 1, 2010 at 1:00 P.M.
• Primary, May 4, 2010 Polls open at 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
• Canvass Day May 11, 2010 at 11:00 a.m.
• 2nd Primary if needed, will be on June 22, 2010

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New “CAIR Observatory” website connects the dots on CAIR’s foreign funding and lobbying

PRESS RELEASE

March 17, 2010: WASHINGTON, DC – The Center for Security Policy announces the launch of the website CAIR Observatory at www.cairobservatory.org. The website presents comprehensive open-source evidence and analysis alleging that the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has acted as a foreign agent on behalf of Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. TheForeign Agents Registration Act (FARA) requires any agent of a foreign principal - including agents of foreign states, political parties, corporations, non-governmental organizations and even individuals - to register with the U.S. Department of Justice as a foreign agent.


The centerpiece of the website is the report “CAIR and the Foreign Agents Registration Act,” which details the foreign funding, foreign direction and domestic political influence operations of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the United States.


The report documents these CAIR activities as a foreign agent:


CAIR received at least $2,192,203 in Contributions, Income and Money from foreign principals in the form of 10 distinct transactionsReceived a $2,106,251 mortgage loan from a foreign principal for their Washington, D.C. headquarters


CAIR secured the promise of at least $54,500,000 in pledges from foreign principals


CAIR met and coordinated with foreign principals on at least 30 occasions


CAIR engaged in at least 50 political influence operations on behalf of foreign principals in the United States


The Center has additional evidence that cannot be made public at this time documenting an additional $2.4 million in foreign donations and loans given to CAIR since 2000.


The goal of the “CAIR Observatory” (http://www.cairobservatory. org/) is to build a model for researching and compiling evidence of illegal behavior by Muslim Brotherhood front organizations, with a focus on organizations operating in the United States as unregisteredforeign agents for the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) and its member states.


The website’s name-- “CAIR Observatory”-- is a direct counter to the so-called “IslamophobiaObservatory” maintained by the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). The Jeddah, Saudi Arabia-based OIC has been a contributor to CAIR, and the two have a history of coordinated meetings, methodologies and goals. 
The website will be updated regularly with new evidence on CAIR’s ongoing activities as a currently unregistered foreign agent.

The Center for Security Policy is a non-profit, non-partisan national security organization that specializes in identifying policies, actions, and resource needs that are vital to American security and then ensures that such issues are the subject of both focused, principled examination and effective action by recognized policy experts, appropriate officials, opinion leaders, and the general public.

SECUREFREEDOM.ORG

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Bill Fishburne Calls Shenanigans on the Asheville Tea Party

Looks like the shenanigans of the Asheville Tea Party have not gone unnoticed. 


Go get 'em, Bill. I've noted before that an endorsement of Eichenbaum was not a surprise, and questioned their use of weird voting.


And, shortly after the WCU Young Americans for Liberty Forum, the moderator of that event (Matthew Hoaglan) announced that he was going to be Eichenbaum's Campaign Manager. You can see a video of Matthew at the event here. 


This is not the first time that ethical concerns have been raised about members of the Asheville Tea Party. Read this comment thread at Conservative Thunder.

The common thread in all this is most of the people involved are Ron Paul Supporters and have been involved in an attempt to take over the Buncombe County Republican Party. 


Related: 

Are Conservatives Awakening to the Libertarian Takeover of the GOP?

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Macon County Board of Commissioners Meeting Agenda March 22, 2010

I'll be attempting to webcast this meeting live from the County Commission Board Room and will put up a post containing the video player sometime Monday afternoon.

MACON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
MARCH 22, 2010 - 2 P.M.
AGENDA

1. Call to order and welcome by Chairman Beale
2. Announcements
3. Invocation 
4. Pledge of Allegiance
5. Public Comment Period
   
6. Adjustments to and approval of the agenda
   
7. Public Hearings:
   
   
   1. Transit
      
      1. Community Transportation Program Grant
      2. Federal Transportation Administration section 5310 Grant
      3. Adjourn hearings - Adopt resolutions
   2. School Property - Iotla and Nantahala
   
   
8. Reports/Presentations:
   
   
   1. USFS - Mike Wilkins - Update on USFS Roads, etc.
   2. NCDOT - Wesley Grindstraff - Secondary Roads
9. Old Business:
   
   1. School architects contracts and interlocal agreement
   
   
10. New Business:
    
    
    1. Private Drinking Water Well resolution
    2. Highlands School Change Orders
    3. Veterans Memorial - Rock Work
    
    
11. Consent Agenda
    All items below are considered routine and will be enacted by one motion. No separate discussion will be held except on request of a member of the Board of Commissioners. 
    
    
    1. Minutes
    2. Budget Revisions
    3. Tax releases
    4. Tax refund
    5. Tax Reappraisal Resolution (Correction)
    6. Economic Development Guidelines (Correction)
    7. Health Department - Billing Guide
    8. Highlands July 4^th Fireworks
    
    
12. Appointments (Pending) 
13. Closed session (If necessary)
    
14. Adjournment/Recess 

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Now is the Time to get involved...

There will never be another time like this to push back the progressive agenda of the national, state and local Democratic parties. This is the time for you to become involved in the campaign of your choice.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be highlighting races from the Local, State and Federal levels. Where I have access, I'll be attempting to get video of the candidates speaking for their case to be elected by you. If you have a camera, and feel comfortable doing so, feel free to get your favorite candidate on video as well. Be creative. Get other people to talk to you about why they are for so and so and upload the videos here, on YouTube, or the video sharing platform of your choice.

Just don't launch personal attacks against each other or the other candidates. Keep it civil and focused on the issues, because, after all, we are the Republicans. We are supposed to be the grown-ups. Let the Democrats and Anarchists yell their fool heads off at us and each other. I've had to ban people from other forums because they couldn't keep their hatred in check...


Read the rest at Conservative Thunder.

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Volunteers to Read the Healthcare Bill Starting at 8am today...Watch it Live

Read the Bill! Beginning today at 8:00 a.m., tune intowww.RPV.org/ReadTheBill to hear volunteers from across Virginia read all 2,400 pages of the proposed health care bill out loud in 30-minute shifts, a process that will be ongoing day and night for almost 48 hours.

If Congressional members cannot read the bill for themselves, everyday Americans will read it for them. Organized by the Republican Party of Virginia, it will be live-streamed at RPV.org/ReadTheBill to anyone with a computer at home, work, school, Congressional offices, laptops ... anywhere.

Source: SWAC Girl (read the rest there)


This is a very good idea!!!


You can watch it live below...


Live Video streaming by Ustream




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Spring Fever 2010 Blogburst, First Edition

I've experienced a bit of the doldrums lately as I've contracted a severe case of spring fever. I've spent too much time going over my seed collection and garden design plans for the coming growing season. Here are some excerpts and links to what other people have been blogging about to hold you over until I work my way back from the depths of this illness...

The essay notes that the purpose of the Nobel Peace Prize has changed from its origins in the first few years following Alfred Nobel's death, during the first decade of the 20th century. According to Nobel's will, the award was to go to those whose "accomplishments" had most advanced the cause of international peace. But over the life of the recognition -- and especially in recent decades -- the Nobel Prize Committee has sought to honor those showing the greatest promise of future peace. This is the Nobel's "aspirational" mode -- that is, an award for the best of peace to come. Not only is this a corruption of Alfred Nobel's original vision, it is deadly international politics as well. As Krebs shows:

Source: American Power

Public Policy Polling found in January that 49 percent of those surveyed trusted Fox News. In contrast, only 39 percent trusted CNN. Next came NBC, including its sister network MSNBC, with 35 percent. Least trusted were CBS with 32 percent and ABC with 31 percent.


That trust shows up in ratings and profits. While competitors have been laying off employees, Fox has been expanding.

Source: Fox News Still Number One from A Watauga Conservative

“The longest suicide note in history” is not a phrase I came up with. I stole it from some talking head on TV. For the life of me, I cannot remember his name. But, whoever said it was “spot on!”


This week the Democratic Party is scheduled to commit suicide. Their intention to ram ObamaCare, a socialized medicine bill, down the collective throats of a highly P.O.ed America will finish them off for the remainder of 2010 and most likely return them to the wilderness whence they came. For the record, we’d like to say: “Good Riddance!”

Source: The Longest Suicide Note In History! Democrat’s Healthcare Bill A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

The only way to legally change or adjust the Constitution is through amendments. Precedent Law and Implied Powers were first utilized by Alexander Hamilton and the Federalists, and later used by John Marshall in order to subvert the Constitution because they did not like the limiting principles of the document. What you are falling for is the same garbage pushed by the Federalists in order to try to turn America's government into a system similar to what we fought against with Britain. The shock troops of the Federalist Party used Hamilton's arguments for a centralized nationalist system as federally appointed judges so that they could rewrite history and the Constitution. That was the beginning of liberal judicial activism. They made sure to get those judges in place under John Adams by appointing hundreds of "midnight judges" to the federal judiciary during the final hours of his administration. With Jefferson coming into office the hope was for the judges to subvert the new administration's strict construction of the Constitution and its limited government policies.


When Jefferson canned the judges, he was accused of waging war on the judiciary, and one of those judges sued. You guessed it, the judge was Marbury. Marbury v. Madison resulted in an opinion being written that was later used as an excuse for the Supreme Court of the United States to claim it was the final arbiter of the Constitution.

Source: Precedent Law and the Constitution from Political Pistachio

Got my census form in the mail today. In a box on the front of the envelope, in big bold letters, is says YOUR RESPONSE IS REQUIRED BY LAW. Ok, let's see what these bastards want....


There is a page that informs me that my information is "confidential", and will only be used for "statistical" purposes. Right, like the "statistics" that sent Japanese and German immigrants to internment camps during WWII.


Question #1 wants to know how many people live in this house, apartment, or mobile home. I am also advised not to count anyone currently serving in the military, away at college, in a nursing home, or in jail. Fair enough, they can know that, because it's Constitutionally required to set the number of "representatives" in CONgress.


Question #2 wants to know about any additional people not accounted for in question #1. A bit redundant?

Source: Census from Keep It Simple Survival

Update: Also, Michigan Coffee Party linked to MoveOn and DFA here.
The initial photo set was linked out to by Bill Jacobson. Plenty more groups there. I got a tip to follow up on from that.
Let's see - Colorado Coffee Party chapter leader- Niccolo Cassewit, Community organizer Transition Colorado -also home to MoveOn types and efforts to give Barack some good ideas - candidate - Denver City Council, 4% of vote total. Not new to politics our boy Niccolo. Does he connect with anyone not Far Left? No, not really. Krugman fan, bleech!

Source: Denver Coffee Party - 2 Tsp Of Dem Politics And A Dash Of Progressivism, Please from Riehl World View

Possessing a treasure trove of political capital -- and fresh from narrow legislative victories over Republicans in passing a Stimulus program; an Omnibus spending bill; auto company takeovers; housing recovery programs and cap-and-trade -- Democrats decided it was time to target the health care industry.


Their goal -- using accounting gimmickry, outright fabrications and straw villains (doctors who do too many amputations, health insurers, pharmaceutical companies, etc.) -- convince the public that a government takeover of the entire health system would result in higher quality and lower costs while insuring between 30 and 50 million more individuals.


The people rebelled. They said hell, no.

Source: Fourteen Months of Hell: A Brief, Illustrated History of the Ill-Fated Democrat Health Care Nationalization Efforts of 2009-10 from Doug Ross @ Journal

Check the video at about 2:45 minutes. We have "Coffee Party" founder Annabel Park claiming that "Democracy isn't supposed to be about two teams fighting ... it is community of people advancing common good."


Well, that's an odd definition of democracy (since, for example, political scientists consider two party competition, er, fighting, as essential to democratic government). But check Ed's additional comments on the hypocrisy.

Source: The Coffee Party War! by Donald Douglas (I had to double-dip a source for this piece)

In light of Israel's rebuilding of the Hurva Shul in the Old City of Jerusalem, Hamas has declared a "day or rage".


- Khatem Abd el-Kader, holder of the Fatah's Jerusalem portfolio, called on Palestinians to “converge on Al-Aksa to save it” from “Israeli attempts to destroy the mosque and replace it with the temple.” (JPost)


- Khader called the renovation of the Hurva a “provocation” and warned Israel that it was “playing with fire.” (JPost)


- Mayor of the Beduin city Rahat, Faiz Abu-Sabihan , expressed his support in the struggle, saying that Jews have no right over the Temple Mount, and that Israel's "provocative actions, which undermine the peace, must be stopped." (JPost)


Starting their rage, masked Palestinians clashed with Israeli police in multiple Jerusalem neighborhoods today, hurling rocks and burning tires.

Source: Day of Rage from The Muqata




That's all I have for you for now. For more updates on what I'm reading and passing along, try following me on Twitter and checking out my Shared Items Feed on Google Reader. I comment on those everyday...

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Memories of Ghost Town in the Sky: 2007 Opening Day Videos/Photos

Sign at Entrance to Ghost town in the Sky




Ghost Town in the Sky has been facing bankruptcy lately and can't seem to generate enough tourist traffic to keep the amusement park solvent. I've always thought that odd. Perhaps the park is just a victim of a slumping economy or a lack of marketing. If you're planning to be in the area (or if you live in the area, I'd suggest checking it out this spring and summer.


Official Website


Wikipedia article


I went to the park on the Opening Day and took a video of the first public gunfight in the re-opened amusement park, and it remains my most popular video in my three years on YouTube, currently grossing over 142,000 views:












I also recorded the bus ride to the top (the chairlift was not working on opening day) of the mountain that Ghost Town is on:










Here are a few of the photos I took that day:








The View of Maggie Valley was stunning in May of 2007








Main Street, Ghost Town in the Sky








Don't Mess with the Law Enforcement in Ghost Town








The actors posing for photos after a gunfight








Frontier Church in Ghost Town








The pulpit inside Frontier Church


I should probably go back to Ghost Town this spring since I've got a better video camera (Kodak Zi6 HD camera) and photographic camera (Kodak Z950). Back then, my trusty Kodak Z710 did double duty as video camera (at 320x240 resolution) and 7 megapixel still shots.

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The Macon County Republican Party 2010 Convention March 20, 2010

For more information, visit Macon GOP. 


Directions can be found at Conservative Thunder.

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Macon County Commissioner Meetings Webcast Live First Test on March 22, 2010

I'm gonna take the plunge. The County IT has assured me that I'll have enough bandwidth to webcast the meeting live via my wireless connection, so you'll be getting the chance to watch the first live webcast of a Macon County Commissioner Meeting on Monday the 22nd of March at 6:00 PM here on Thunder Pig and Conservative Thunder (I'll put a player front and center so you can't miss it). If you have a website and would like to embed a player on your site, feel free to do so. Details are on Ustream. If the techno babble confuses you, send me a DM on Twitter, and I'll help you embed it on your site.

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Tree and Silo with a Stormy Sky

I've been out today putting my Kodak Z950 through it's paces, and I'm pleased. The photos are looking good, and the generic battery lasted for over 220 photos (including a four minute HD clip) and the battery meter is showing about 1/4 left.


More photos are coming...




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Foggy Panorama

Click photo to see larger size.

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Have You Seen Our Congressman? (A Study in Cowardice)

PRESS RELEASE




Once again, Heath Shuler is showing his complete political cowardice.


The entire nation is focused on how House members will vote on the Health Care bill but Congressman Shuler is silent.


No statement, no position - and voter phone calls, just as before the last House vote on Health Care. are being met with no position whatsoever.


(The Hill is tracking all statements from members to track how they are trending - Shuler somehow has evaded capture. They list the position of every Republican and all but 76 Democrats. Shuler is one of the 76 brave "undecided" http://thehill.com/homenews/house/85693-whip-watch-the-hills-survey-of-house-dems-positions-on-healthcare- )


He claims to be a "leader" of the Blue Dog Democrats - then why isn't he leading?


Either he is for it or against it. After a full year of debate, and already voting No on it once, are we really supposed to believe that he has no position?


He balonied the voters on this vote the last time, by telling them until the last moment that he was "still considering the bill", but then telling the press after the vote that he had in fact decided well in advance and informed House leaders and the White House of his vote.


Will he get away with this con game again?


He holds no town halls, he refuses to this day to give a position on the terrorist trials issue, now again he is hiding his position on this issue.


WNC deserves a leader!


Robert Danos
Henderson County GOP
www.hendersoncountygop.com

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Commentary


I'll add my two cents...




Photo from a Town Hall in Sylva, NC in August 2009 Congressman Shuler refused to attend, despite being in the area




I remember that Heath Shuler (and his supporters) hit Congressman Charles Taylor pretty hard during the 2006 election cycle for not showing up in public, or showing up for debates. Now that Shuler is the Congressman, he has refused to show up in public for debate.


Witness an encounter I had with him on September 2, 2008 at Western Carolina University when he refused to even answer the question when I asked if he was going to debate his opponent in that race: (Footage of him and his supporters mocking Congressman Taylor for not showing up to debate is included)

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Celebrating the Second Amendment: Introducing the KRISS Vector CRB/SO™.45 ACP A Post for Jessica B

I'm dedicating this post to Jessica B (a sometime commenter here) and all those other Lefties who are afraid of people who are practicing their Second Amendment Rights by owning (and using) firearms.


A new submachine has been making the rounds over the past couple of years that uses a .45 ACP round (SQUEE!!!) and is named after an Indonesian sword called the Kris.


My favorite version of the KRISS is the one with the much shorter barrel, as pictured at the top of this post. It is a submachine gun that is available in a .45 ACP version. That's right, kids...why play with mere 9mm or .308 SMGs when a grown up .45 ACP is available? Especially one that doesn't kick like a mule.


The KRISS employs a revolutionary design in submachine gun design, the impact of the recoil is directed downward and counteracts the muzzle climb tendency of the weapon. From the KRISS-TDI website:

All traditional firearms share a common problem; they utilize heavy linear operating mechanisms that deliver recoil forces directly into the operator's shoulder. These forces cause the operator to constantly re-acquire his sight picture due to felt recoil shock and the resulting rotational muzzle climb. Newton's 3rd law; run amok.


In other words, if the point of operating a firearm is to put rounds in a specific location, why is it that traditional firearms, no matter how many tricky buffers, springs and pads are deployed, all work against the operator's goal?


The engineers at KRISS-TDI, starting with a clean computer screen and one goal in mind, have solved this century-old problem by creating the patented KRISS Super V System-the only firearm operating system in the world that actually works with the operator to help put more rounds on target, more of the time.

Here are a few videos that explore this submachine gun and the problems it solves for shooters...


First, an overview from the Discovery Channel:






And here is an overview brought to us by MilSpecMonkey:










Of course, nothing can top the stopping power of an automatic 12 gauge Street Sweeper:








It's great to be an American and to enjoy our God-given right to keep and bear arms!!!

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Apple Grafting Class will be held at the Macon County Environmental Resource Center on March 16th

The Macon County Center of NC Cooperative Extension will hold a grafting workshop on Tuesday, March 16. The class will held at the Macon County Environmental Resource Center Starting at 9 AM. Due to the hands on nature of the class, the number of participants will be limited. The class will learn grafting principles and techniques followed by grafting three apple rootstocks with available varieties. Each participant will leave with three grafted apples and the ability to graft apples and other plants. Pre-registration is required. A materials fee of $10.00 is due at registration. Please register at the Macon County Cooperative Extension Center. Call 349-2046 for more information.


You can obtain directions from the map below:


View Larger Map

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US Senate Sgt-At-Arms Bans Staffers and Senators from Reading the Drudge Report in the US Senate!!!

Talk about only having "approved sources of information". It looks like the Obamites will stop at nothing to be able to control the flow of data!!!!  Read on...

In the very body sworn to protect and defend the Constitution, an e-mail is circulating warning U.S. Senate staffers not to view one of the most popular news sites on the Web, claiming it could spread computer viruses.


The Senate Sergeant-at-Arms, the chamber's official gatekeeper, said the Drudge Report, a news aggregator, and whitepages.com, a telephone directory site, "are responsible for the many viruses popping up throughout the Senate," according to an e-mail from the Environment and Public Works Committee obtained by FoxNews.com.


Another e-mail from a separate office warned that staffers who had visited the Drudge Report or White Pages had experienced viruses on their PCs.


"Please avoid using these sites until the Senate resolves this issue," the e-mail read. "The Senate has been swamped the last couples (sic) days with this issue."


But the Drudge Report suggested that politics might be behind the warning, noting in an original story that the e-mail came as the "health care drama in the Capitol reaches a grand finale."


The Drudge Report noted that it served more than 29 million pages Monday without an e-mail complaint about "'pop ups,' or the site serving 'viruses.'"


"The site was seen 149,967 times since March 1st from users at senate.gov and 244,347 times at house.gov. [10,825 visits from the White House, eop.gov]" the Drudge Report wrote.

Source: Fox News
Hat Tip: The Drudge Report (where else?)


 I've been reading the website for over ten years and have never gotten a virus from it. I think that either this is politically motivated or the Sgt-At-Arms is a moron when it comes to computer viruses.

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Macon County Community Garden Accepting Applications

Macon County Community Garden is accepting applications from groups and individuals for garden plots at this time.  Plots are available for $25.00 per plot for a year.  The applications will be accepted on a first come first serve basis.   Applications can be   dropped off at the Macon County Cooperative Extension Office at 193 Thomas Heights Rd. 


Deadline is April 1st, and a percentage of crop yields will be donated to CareNet.

Click here for more information and for an application.  

View Larger Map

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Pink Contrail

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NC General Assembly 03-09-2010 Legislative Calender

Here is what is on the calender for the North Carolina General Assembly for today, plus links to document downloads and a rant about the General Assembly website.


The meeting agendas are attached to the mirror of this post on Conservative Thunder.


It irritates me to no end that most of these committees have web space on the Internet, yet one has to do quite a bit of searching in order to find them. As far as I know, there isn't a site map that is user-friendly to the members of the public. When a committee has a meeting, it would be nice if the person who put the calenders on the NC General Assembly webpage would put up a link to that website as well.  (okay, rant over)

10:00 AM	Joint Legislative Study Committee on State Funded Financial Aid	421 LOB
10:00 AM	Global Climate Change (Rescheduled to March 15)	N/A
1:00 PM	Education Oversight Committee, Joint Legislative	544 LOB
2:00 PM	Joint Study Committee on Alcohol Beverage Control	643 LOB

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A Tribute to Communism

Beware that the Progressives would send us down the very same road that slaughtered millions...



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Maple in the Morning

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Western North Carolina Railroad: The NVMR Version

The Northern Virginia Model Railroaders have built an impressive model of the Western North Carolina Railroad at their clubhouse in Vienna, Virginia, and the above video does a good job of showing you around it. The club has a website that promises more information for those who want it.


The original Western North Carolina Railroad (WNCRR) was first built in 1855 and sold to the Richmond and Danville Railroad in the 1880's. [wikipedia]

An act to incorporate the Western North Carolina Railroad Company was ratified by the General Assembly February15, 1855. The railroad opened Fall 1858 with 84-mile line from Salisbury to within four miles of Morganton. The first train arrived in Marion in 1870 and Old Fort in 1873.


The state of North Carolina officially took over the operation of the Western North Carolina Railroad in 1875. The state operated the Western North Carolina Railroad until 1880 when it was sold to a local group (". J. Best), which immediately resold its interest to owners of the Richmond and Danville Railroad.
On Oct. 2, 1880, the Western North Carolina Railroad was completed into Asheville. On April 5, 1882, the line was completed to Paint Rock.
In 1894, the Richmond & Danville Railroad became part of the Southern Railway Company. Southern Railway took over operation of the Western North Carolina Railroad in 1896.

Source: History NC (check it out for more information on this and other railroads in North Carolina)


Below is a video of the eventual successor to the WNC RR, the GSM RR (Great Smokey Mountains Railroad) on one of the runs of the dinner train I captured in 2007 before it was shut down a year or so later:




I didn't know it, but the Great Smokey Mountains Railroad is apparently still in business. I thought that they went bankrupt when they left Dillsboro. Check out their website.

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Saturday Morning Moon

Taken this morning with my new toy.

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March 4, 2010 ISS Pass over Franklin, NC

Here is a short video I shot last night during a flyover of the International Space Station...




I apologize for not posting much lately...I've had several projects in the works that have required my undivided attention.

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Grover Norquist: Friend of the Jihad

Pamella Geller clues us in on Grover Norquist, who has been a friend and enabler of the jihad. His support of radical Islam and hatred of Israel is part of the reason I do not participate in the American Conservative Union [I'm not linking to website] and do not go to CPAC. Although I am hearing that Pam and Robert shook things up this year with their Freedom Defense Initiative. Anyway, here is an excerpt from her most recent article:

The Freedom Defense Initiative, a new organization I started with author and scholar Robert Spencer, hosted its inaugural event to an enthusiastic standing-room-only crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference on February 19. But this event was at CPAC, not of CPAC. Could this be because of the influence of conservative kingmaker and power-broker Grover Norquist, who is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Conservative Union, which hosts CPAC? The only event concerning the war on America at CPAC was worse than nothing at all: It was an Islamic propaganda (taqiyya) presentation entitled "You've Been Lied To: Why Real Conservatives are Against the War on Terror." Its message was that "real conservatives" don't support the war on terror because it is a creation of the "Israeli lobby."


How did CPAC come to this?


Grover Norquist's ties to Islamic supremacists and jihadists have been known for years. He and his Palestinian wife, Samah Alrayyes -- who was director of communications for his Islamic Free Market Institute until they married in 2005 -- are very active in "Muslim outreach." Just six weeks after 9/11, The New Republic ran an exposé explaining how Norquist arranged for George W. Bush to meet with fifteen Islamic supremacists at the White House on September 26, 2001 -- to show how Muslims rejected terrorism. Wrote TNR author Franklin Foer...

Source: The American Thinker (be sure to rest the rest of the article over there)


Also check out these excellent related websites:


Atlas Shrugs
Jihad Watch
Freedom Defense Initiative

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