Out with the old?

This & That

A treat to see the smiling face of Bridget Burns yesterday on the Church Street Marketplace in Big, Bad Burlap.

Usually the only place we catch Bridget is behind the front desk at a certain successful local Vermont weekly where she's the office manager. But Seven Days has a week off!

In her free time, Bridget's been busy in the fight against the truly anti-American Bush-Cheney Iraq War. She's a reminder to this gracefully-aging Vietnam War protester that the "younger generation" of today is not silent.  If anything, they're ignored by the "mainstream media."

Take a look at how 18 different panelists on Vermont Pubic Television's "Vermont This Week"  rated the year's "top" stories as compared to 39 "viewers."

To the press, the action by almost 40 Vermont towns to back resolutions calling for the impeachment of the current president of the United States was no big deal. Here we are, once again, leading the nation at the grassroots level and the story just barely squeaked onto the press' list in 10th position.

To the VTW viewers, however, it came in 4th.

Hmm.....

Compare for yourself:

As selected by "Vermont This Week" panel members (18 votes)

1.    Vermont Yankee cooling tower collapse causes alarm         
2.    Federal Court upholds Vermont’s emissions law            
3.    Climate change dominates much of legislative session            
4.    Democrats fail to override Governor’s vetoes          
5.    Leahy assumes leading role in battle with White House    
6.    Catamount Health begins                      
7.    PSB OK’s industrial wind project for Sheffield            
8.    Verizon seeks to sell landlines to FairPoint               
9.    Valentine’s Day blizzard sees up to 30” fall          
10.  Communities back impeachment resolution               

As selected by "Vermont This Week" viewers (39 votes)

1.    Democrats fail to override Governor's vetoes            
2.    Leahy assumes leading role in battle with White House
3.    Vermont Yankee cooling tower collapse causes alarm
4.    Communities back impeachment resolution   
5.    Rep. Welch targeted by anti-war activists
6.    Federal court upholds Vermont's emissions law
7.    School spending caps increases
8.    Climate change dominates much of legislative session
9.    Valentine's Day blizzard sees up to 30" fall      
10.  Catamount Health begins

Bhutto assassination

And is anyone out there surprised by the news?

Was it not inevitable?

I heard it when I tuned in Peter Mallary filling in for Mark Johnson on WDEV.

My first gut reaction was: Amazing that Benazir had survived this long since returning in October to her native Pakistan where her family had been a political dynasty and her father hanged. She was the first woman to lead an Islamic state. There the Harvard grad also served five years in prison - mostly solitary confinement.

Such a courageous woman.

I won't pretend to know anything about "Pakistan" beyond how to spell it.

It's 10:20 a.m. - no statements from Vermont's congressional trio... yet.

Any thoughts?

**********

From U.S. Sen. Patrick J. Leahy [12:38 PM):

"This is a sorrowful day for Pakistan and for people of goodwill across the globe.

"This election is important in what it will show about the vigor of democratic institutions in Pakistan.  The lack of real democracy and the crippling of Pakistan’s judiciary have been grave setbacks.  The earlier protests by Pakistan’s lawyers in defense of the rule of law helped show the world what is at stake, and now, with this tragedy, the whole world again is watching Pakistan.

"The people of Pakistan deserve to know that the people of the United States stand with them as they struggle to restore constitutional government and to prevail over thuggery.  They will want to know that our military aid is no longer blind to their aspirations.  And they need to know that we share their profound sense of loss."

From U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders [1:11 PM]:

“Despite the grave dangers she faced, Benazir Bhutto showed enormous courage by continuing to participate in Pakistan’s democratic process.  I am saddened and outraged by this cowardly assassination and I urge the Pakistani government to undertake a vigorous investigation to apprehend those responsible for this terrible deed.  Pakistan, a nation armed with nuclear weapons, is now in the midst of dangerous political crisis.  The United States must increase its diplomatic efforts in working with the democratic forces in Pakistan to promote stability, democracy and peace.”

Boxing Day

Or St. Stephen's Day as it was known in the Old Country of dear Ol' Papa Freyne. The day after Christmas.

Took this shot at Borders Books on Church Street in downtown Burlap this afternoon. Had a nice chat with Charlotte who was in town from Boston visiting her son who has been working at UVM for a year. Loves it, said she. 

Should have taken a picture of her, but I was feeling shy - Charlotte traveled with the aid of her walker. Has a hip-replacement operation scheduled for March, she told me. Spent most of her life in San Diego.

Then veteran Burlington jazz musician/playwright  Steve Goldberg appeared. Always remember the image of Steve playing his trumpet on the balcony outside Mayor Bernie Sanders' office to kick off the first Burlington Discover Jazz Festival...in 1984. Perfect timing - Steverino had both of his hips replaced.

I called out to him and he swung over our way. Steve's 68, about her age. He told her how he rides a bike and plays tennis. Boosted Charlotte's spirits.

Took this shot of Snake Mountain yesterday from across Dead Creek. Coming home from the Empire State was I, the official land of my birth.

Hadn't been there - over the Crown Point Bridge - in more than a decade.

They've spruced things up a little.

Yours truly's survived the holiday. In fine health. No big rigamarole. But I could not help but notice the layer of stress many others appeared to be bearing. The annual ritual of family obligations. Stirred the memory of those Irish-Catholic Christmases of my childhood - the early 1950s and 60s in Westchester County. Christmases that usually tore this baby in the family's innards apart in a rather Long Days Journey into Night way, if you know what I mean.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph!

A wee bit damp here at the flat in Burlap, but it's the unexpected that makes life interesting, eh?

Christmas Eve '07

Also "Recycle Day" in Ward 5 on the South Side of the People's Republic of Burlington, Vermont.

And I was up early this morning - had some "extra stuff" for the Recycle Man.

Rick was a new face. He also looked my age - 58. Turned out I had a good eye. He's 57. Here come the Baby-Boomers!

Hey, we'll work 'till we drop, right?

Told me he'd worked at E.B. and A.C. Whiting on Pine Street, a stone's throw away, for 32 years [they made plastic brush bristles]. Whiting closed about two years ago, moved out of state. Dealer.com is in there now.

"Got to do something," he said.

My "extra stuff" was wet newspapers. Good thing I had a pile because Freyne Land's downstairs, "mother-in-law" apartment got a wee bath last night.

Looks like a little rodent hole from last summer is behind it. And, yes, I caught the little critter - a mouse - but he obviously left his mark.

Called the landlord at 7 a.m. and he had this fine crew over by 8.

Everything under control.

Great vacuum.

Nothing like good suction, eh?

Merry Christmas, folks!

Following the $ and the flesh...

Yes, that was our junior U.S. senator on the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric last night giving the Pentagon, specifically the Air Force, a well-earned hard time. So much for his critics who assured us no one would pay any heed to him when he arrived in the United States Senate:

“The idea that over $200 million in spare parts that has not yet come into the Air Force is already marked for disposal!” said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. “They’re planning to get rid of it and it hasn’t even come in!”

Sanders wants Congress to cut Air Force funding if it doesn't get a serious grip on its inventory problem.

It costs up to $30 million dollars a year just to store the stuff they don't need.

Nobody at the Air Force would agree to an interview, but told us they're "taking steps" to fix the problems and to "serve the best interest of the American public."

“We have almost $19 billion in absolute waste in spare parts in the Air Force,” Sanders said.

They are taxpayer dollars squandered in the wild blue yonder.

Watch him yourself here.

Then, this afternoon, I bumped into these four gents at the Green Door Studio around the corner off Pine Street. Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?

Four Iraq War veterans...from l-to-r: Eli Wright, served as an army combat medic with the Ist Infantry Division; Jon Michael Turner, 8th Marines; Liam Madden, 31st Marine Expeditionary Force; Matt Howard, two tours in Iraq with the Marines. Wright's the only one still on active duty over at Ft. Drum.

What are they doing?

They're cutting up their old uniforms to make paper and other works of art.

Everybody's got to do something, right?

"I am shredding these uniforms because they are symbols of a betrayal," said Madden, "and I think it’s pretty liberating."

Feels good?

"Feels real good," said he.

Making paper out of old soldier uniforms?

Check it out. I missed the Seven Days story last April, too.

Douglas Not Surprised

Republican Gov. Jim Douglas told reporters at his Statehouse press conference Thursday that he is not surprised by the gubernatorial candidacy of Anthony Pollina, the distinguished Progressive. Tony the Prog has come out of the candidate closet with a gubernatorial campaign ad in this week's Seven Days. He's looking for money and he's looking for paid campaign staff.

Asked about Pollina's candidacy at his weekly presser, Gov. Scissorhands said he's always assumed Pollina was running.

"He’s indicated he plans to [run] publicly," said Douglas,  "and is raising money, I understand."

Mr. Pollina continues on the WDEV radio airwaves with his one-hour afternoon talk show that airs four days each week. Asked if he thought it was kosher for Tony the Prog to continue with the talk show while running for governor, the current Guv said he was "not a federal official so I don’t know the FCC rules, but I guess I’m not too concerned about his listening audience and what impact it might have on the outcome of the election."

Q. Would you welcome him into the race?

DOUGLAS:  Well, I certainly expect a credible  well-funded opponent. I don’t know who it might be at this point. He’s certainly indicated an interest in running and there may be others. I’m really not worried about that. I’m focused on the immediate future. I’ve got a couple major presentations to the Legislature as you know.  This is a time when we’re putting together a budget in the most challenging time that I can remember.

ALSO:

Yours truly was late to Doug Racine's 11th-hour attempt to keep his name in play as a gubernatorial possibility.  The Ds have been getting desperate to come up with a gubernatorial horse.  Ol' Dougie called a bunch of my press colleagues refuting what appeared in a little item in Wednesday's "Inside Track" about the Chittenden County state senator [who lost to Douglas in 2002] being "not interested" in running in 2008. "Trust me," I wrote.

Funny. Racine did not call me.

Mention of the "Pollina for Governor" campaign print ad, and my comment about Racine not being interested in running [his name had been floated as a kind of last-chance Democrat possibility in the mainstream press the first week of December] made it into a story in Thursday's distinguished Brattleboro Reformer.

I'm flattered.

Here.

It also has been a hot topic over in the Green Mountain Daily Blog which Freyne Land links to column-right [a hot topic that I missed yesterday, sorry, Odum]

However, I stand by what I wrote. State Sen. Racine the distinguished auto/truck dealer is correct when he tells The Reformer I didn't call him about it. That's because we spoke face-to-face at the Statehouse.

Racine is not running for governor in 2008.

Hey, I like the guy!

Thursday Snow Jobs

Sure "looks" like Christmastime, eh?

Nice fluffy dose of the white stuff this morning. There's a shot of the street out front. Burlap's South End - Five Sisters Neighborhood.

Gonna go grab a little coffee then hit Gov. Jim Douglas' weekly press conference - which he hasn't held for a few weeks.

In fact, this one has been moved over to the Ceremonial Office at the Statehouse for a prime photo-op.

There, according to Ol' Jason's missive,  our beloved Guv [left] "will join officials from Medicare and the Green Mountain Council of Boy Scouts to encourage eligible senior citizens to enroll in the federal Medicare prescription drug program.

Thousands of Vermont’s senior citizens have taken advantage of the federal prescription drug benefit implemented in January 2006.  According to officials, however, there are several thousand more Vermonters who are eligible but who have not yet enrolled."

Anybody notice the "Pollina Governor ‘08" ad in the current print edition of Seven Days?

It's now or never time for Tony the Prog...some say.

That's Anthony [right] in a recent shot taken at Uncommon Grounds on Church Street. Think the long hair would be a plus or a minus?

The campaign print ad, "Paid for by Pollina for Governor," says, "We're looking for volunteers, donors and campaign staff to help build this important grassroots campaign."

Interesting.

Play it as dealt....

Started off with an 8 a.m. doctor's appointment up at UHC.

Got the call on Monday morning - the first one from a human, telling me I had the appointment with Dr. Morris, the neurologist.

Hey, I do what I'm told.

In the afternoon, the computer called to remind me of it.

Cool.

Time is money. Got to have patients fill the time slots.

Only problem is, the appointment was a mistake.

It had been six weeks since last I'd seen Doc Morris. But he hadn't wanted to see me for six months. The appointment was a UHC mistake. The Doc said I won't be billed.

Nice of 'em, eh?

Next stop?

Lake Champlain Chocolates on Pine Street. A couple Christmas presents to mail west. Problem was one of the recipients operates through a post office box and the LCC rep  informed me they don't mail gift-boxes to a P.O. box address.

Bummer. Life goes on....

Hey, there's Ho-Ho on with Wolf Blitzer on CNN. Looking a little bedraggled. DNC Chairman Howard Dean turned 59 last month.

The Tuesday Crunch

It's a little after 7 a.m. and +3 degrees in Burlington, Vermont.

Listening to Roger Hill give the weather on WDEV as only Roger Hill can.

Thanks, Roger.

That's a shot taken yesterday afternoon of the fountain in Burlington's City Hall Park.

The days of the long shadows, eh?

Roger says sunshine this morning, too!

Take it when we can.

It's an "Inside Track" Tuesday here in Freyne Land.

Lot of balls in the air.

Was just thinking....that first "Inside Track" hit the street in 1981, soon after that Bernie Sanders fellow took over the mayor's office in city hall.

Whatever happened to him?

Monday, Monday

"Can't trust that day."

Remember The Mamas & Papas?

Good lord, they were playing them, the music of that era - my era - down at Speeder & Earl's today.

Stopped in there after paying a visit to McCaffrey Sunoco in the Old Neighborhood at North & North. Woke to a little more than snow today - how about a tire that was going flat, too?

Don't panic, I says to myself. If you make it to McCaffrey's, you'll be OK.

Always feel safe in the hands of Ol' Pat McCaffrey. That's his kisser [left]. One of his boyos, excuse me, highly-skilled mechanics, pulled a nail and slapped a new nozzle or some kind of doo-hickey on it and, while waiting, who stops in for some auto service but veteran arts writer Susan Green and former College Street saloon-keeper Pat Finnigan!

Everybody's got a car in the Age of the Auto, eh?

And it's fair to say yours truly is among those who have contributed a wee bit to paying for Finnigan's as well as McCaffrey's.

Ah, the good old days...my pleasure.

AND...

Gov. Jim Douglas didn't get his "Weekly Public Appearance Schedule" emailed out until 4:58 p.m. this afternoon.

Heck, we missed the Vermont Timber Frames Ribbon-Cutting at 10:30 this morning in Bennington!

"Nobody cuts it better..."

Sunday Snowstorm

Woke to about 5 inches of the white stuff tumbling down in beautiful Burlap. Soft and fine. I could clear the walkway just with a brush of the boot. Heavy overcast. So dark the auto-flash lit up the snowflakes. It's still coming down steady, too.

Work day in Freyne Land.

End-of-year deadline crunch for a couple fine Vermont publications.

And what a year it has been...

Another Queen City loss

First it was CEDO Director Michael Monte departing Burlington City Hall where he'd been a regular since the Sanderista Revolution of the early 1980s.

Next it was Chief of Police Tom Tremblay, a regular with BPD since 1983.  Tom 's Gov. Jim Douglas' next  Commissioner of Public Safety - Vermont's top cop.

And now another longtime Burlington City Hall regular is moving on.

Jo Lamarche [left] started with the city back in 1981 at the ol' police department as a dispatcher. Moved on to the clerk's office in city hall in 1985. The Richmond resident has been a reliable fixture - in the city clerk's office and at city council meetings - for more than 20 years. She is currently director of elections and records.

LaMarche has become a city-hall institution, dare we say, while the building around her and the bosses above her have changed over the years.

Her next mission?

She starts next month as the new county clerk in Addison County.

Congratulations, Jo, and congratulations Addison County!

New Capitol Duds

A dramatic change at the Statehouse in Montpelier, Vermont.

The coppers have new outfits!

Veteran Capitol Police Chief Dave Janawicz [left] and the other three gentlemen who make up the distinguished Capitol Police Force have bagged the white shirts and gray pants and ties and gone dark blue!

"It's different," said Chief Dave, who has been patrolling the halls under the Golden Dome since 1995. "If you have dandruff, it'll show," he quipped.

Why the switcheroo?

Chief Dave said the idea was to make the Statehouse police "more easily recognizable as police officers."

I don't know. I never had any trouble recognizing him, even with the goatee.

What do you think?

I miss the white shirts. It's the Vermont Statehouse not Detroit.

Two pounds of what?

Best line of the day!

Got it from the lips of the state GOP chairman after the Gaye & Shummy Show today at High Noon in the crowded Cedar Creek Room.

"Healthcare Reform" was the hot topic for the two Democratic boss-types who allegedly run things under the Golden Dome in Montpeculiar: House Speaker Gaye Symington and Senate President pro tem Peter Shumlin.

Didn't they already cave on healthcare reform to Republican Gov. Jim Douglas?

The doomed-to-failure Catamount Plan that started up this fall - a "product" to provide health insurance coverage to the uninsured - won the Republican Guv the AARP award - not the two Democratic leaders.

Look, it's no longer a secret. In America, we pay double what the rest of the civilized world does and get much worse outcomes. Great platitudes today from Gaye and Shummy.

“The Legislature is committed to taking the next step to make sure that all Vermonters have access to the healthcare they need when they need it at a price they can afford," said Symington.

"And I’d just add," said Pistol Pete, "that the Legislature understands that small businesses now need help too, that we’re not just talking about the uninsured. We’re talking about all the Vermonters who are struggling everyday to afford health insurance and do the right thing for their employees and we feel it’s time we do something for you.”

Among those in the pack listening to all this was Rob Roper [waving], the somewhat low-key chairman of the Vermont Republican Party. His reaction?

Chairman Roper had the line of the day - he suggested Shummy & Gaye were trying to squeeze "two pounds of manure in a one-pound bag."

"What they’re offering is extremely vague," said the GOP Chair.  "The one thing Peter Shumlin was not vague about is that taxpayers will be left on the hook to pay for this."

*UPDATED*

Yours truly also asked Gaye & Shummy a question on another hot healthcare-related topic they had chosen to entirely ignore - Jim Douglas, State's Attorney Bobby Sand and criminal prosecution of marijuana smokers.

FREYNE: Where are you guys on marijuana in the coming session?

SHUMLIN: We’re going to need a lot of it to get through.

SYMINGTON: Thanks.

SHUMLIN: I’ve been pretty clear on that issue. I think that we are wasting tremendous resources in small charges and researching small charges to take them to court for marijuana related offenses. We’re going to be asking the Senate Judiciary Committee to find a better way to proceed.

SYMINGTON: I would say that I appreciate the Governor has found a way to retreat from his intrusion into the prerogative of the world of the state’s attorney and that it seemed to have resolved their differences.

SHUMLIN: You know, every once in awhile even the governor is wrong and he was wrong on that one. 

End of the pot paragraph?

That's what GOP Gov. Jim Douglas would like to find - and find swiftly. The end of the paragraph that closes the public dust-up he's had in the last week with Windsor County State's Attorney Bobby Sand over marijuana prosecutions

Declaring Sand had a "blanket policy" on letting first-time marijuana possessors off with court diversion, Gov. Scissorhands had issued an order that, henceforth, first-time pot cases in that county brought by state police will be prosecuted by the attorney general or the U.S. Attorney.

But Sand [pictured at left],  had no such policy. Ever. Though he has publicly suggested some of our current drug laws may do more harm than good. Sand was a guest on VPR's Vermont Edition during the noon-hour today. I missed it 'cause I was at the gubernatorial ribbon-cutting, but it is available for listening online.

"The end of the paragraph,"  Gov. Douglas told us, "is we should look to the future. We should focus on enforcing the law, confronting the serious drug problems that we have in Vermont, more and more people coming from out of state to prey on our kids, to peddle their illicit wares and we need to focus on that as an important strategy to maintaining public safety. Whatever happened in the past is prologue."

"Did you misinterpret what Sand said," asked Freyne Land, "or did you overreact?"

"I stand by everything I've said, Peter," the Guv replied, "but let's look to the future."

Why not? Especially since looking at the past does you no good whatsoever on this one, eh?

Gov. Douglas spoke to yours truly prior to his remarks at the official ribbon-cutting marking Dealer.com's grand opening on Pine Street in the People's Republic of Burlington. The company gives one a little of that Silicon-Valley feel. There are 150 techie-types. Been operating out of Burlap since 1997. That's Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss the Progressive socialist to the left of GOP Jim and the Dealer.com founders and top executives surrounding them.

Mellow, brainy, laid-back, personable crew. The re-roofed and redesigned former Specialty Filaments factory that produced plastic brush-bristle fiber for brooms, now has an organic cafe and big new gym.

Cool.

Eating what?

According to Vermont bird & butterfly man extraordinaire Bryan Pfeiffer at Wings Environmental that's a male Yehl Skipper he photographed a few years ago. What a beauty!

What's he doing, you ask?

Why, he's eating bird crap!

According to Bryan the Birdman, bird crap is a source of protein and amino acids.  And Bryan knows his bird crap. Heck, once upon a time, this Birdman was a journalist on the Vermont political beat, writing for the Rutland Herald/Times Argus Statehouse bureau and, before that,  the weekly alternative paper - the Vanguard Press.

Anybody remember the ol' Vanguard?

In fact, the birdcrap-eating Yehl reminded us of the Guv's Tuesday afternoon statement in which he ate his recent "Reefer Madness" declaration - the one where he directed Windsor County marijuana busts of first-time offenders that are conducted by state police shall henceforth be prosecuted by the Office of the Attorney General.

Apparently it never occurred to Gov. Jim Douglas that Attorney General Bill Sorrell's office is a little busy these days prosecuting things like murder and child molesting, eh?

Yikes.

Douglas claims there was a miscommunication. He thought veteran Windsor County State's Attorney Bobby Sand had a "blanket policy" of giving diversion to all first-time offenders.

Nice try, Jimbo.

Ain't true.

Frosty the Snowman...

Got some attention this evening on Burlington's Church Street Marketplace from this suspicious-looking band of older fellas singing in the snow.

Singing pretty damn well, too. A real treat. And the snowflakes obliged.

It's the one-and-only Green Mountain Chorus!

More here.

Thanks, guys!

Just had a conversation in Uncommon Grounds about what an especially depressing Christmas Season this is given:

1. The endless Bush-Cheney War in Iraq that everyone knows is based on Dubya's success in deceiving the American people.
2. The melting ice caps and the global-warming crisis that worsens day-by-day in the Age of Exxon.
3. The cost, quality and accessibility of healthcare in our beloved America, and
4. The fact we've got more than a year left of America's worst staying in charge.

Ti's the season to be jolly
Fa la la la la,
la la la la.

Mayor Who?

Quick.

Who's the mayor of Burlington, Vermont?

Mayors come and go, folks, but the mayor's secretary doesn't change, at least she hasn't changed in the last 20 years.

Faye Lawes started behind the big desk as mayoral gatekeeper in Vermont's largest city back in 1987 when that socialist guy with the Brooklyn accent and the frequent press conferences was in the job.

And she's still the gatekeeper for the current occupant of the corner office at Church & Main - whatshisname? The quiet guy?

Stopped in for a chat with Big Bad Bob yesterday.

Interesting fellow. Loves the job.

More in the "Inside Track" on Wednesday.

Secret Government?

Took a break over the weekend from the hustle and bustle, so I didn't catch the House Republican Caucus on Saturday In Montpeculiar.

Looks like nobody did.

Veteran Ch. 3 Reporter Andy Potter tried, but had this to tell viewers Saturday night.

Republicans held their meeting behind closed doors Saturday, without reporters present, calling it a planning session rather than an official party caucus.

Then he gave the GOP House Leader Rep. Steve Adams [left] of Hartland face time to say what terrible things he anticipates the House Democrats will try to do in terms of raising taxes.

Excusez-moi.

This is a democracy. An open government.

And the GOP holds its pre-session caucus "behind closed doors?"

Just change the name of the meeting of elected representatives from "caucus" to "planning session," and y'all can lock the damn doors and keep press and public out?

What kind of an example is that setting?

Has the law been violated?

And are Vermont Democrats, Progressives, Independents  - heck - even other Republicans - going to let such officially-sanctioned secrecy stand unchallenged in Vermont?

We'll see, won't we?

P.S. Vermont House Democrats met in Montpeculiar the previous Saturday for their pre-session caucus -  no "behind-closed-doors" secrecy.  Public and press were admitted, as usual,  to observe the discussion you elected them, and pay them, to have.
 

Changing of the Guard

No, we're not getting any younger.

And this week, two People's Republic of Burlington regulars are moving on.

Michael Monte's been in City Hall since the magical election of March 1981 when the candidate of "poor people, working people and the elderly" he worked for - some guy named Bernard Sanders - won the mayor's race by 10 votes. He started up and ran the Community and Economic Development Office and proved that socialists do indeed know how to do business.

Bright, personable, fair and decent, Michael [right] was a key player [along with Phil Fiermonte who he's about to share a hug with at last night's Community Boathouse celebration], in the political revolution that changed Burlington, Vermont from a dusty, bedraggled town without a decent waterfront into the people-friendly "metropolis" that you see today.

"Well, that was the idea," said Monte. "To foment a small revolution that had some long-lasting value."

Michael starts Monday as the Chief Operating Officer at the Champlain Housing Trust.

Also departing is Chief of Police Tom Tremblay. Tommy Guns has been tapped by Republican Gov. Jim Douglas to be the next commissioner of public safety which will put him in charge of the Vermont State Police.

Maybe Commissioner Tremblay will have a wee chat with Gov. Scissorhands about the Guv's current law-and-order view on prosecuting marijuana cases, eh?

Incidentally, Windsor County State's Attorney Bobby Sand is scheduled to appear on "The Mark Johnson Show" this morning on WDEV AM-FM in the 9-10 o'clock hour.

He's the brave prosecutor who's willing to say publicly our drug laws simply do not work!

Politics goes positive?

Democratic House Speaker Gaye Symington of Jericho shared with reporters, Thursday, what she described as the “still evolving outline of my vision for economic development in Vermont.”

It’s a product of her travels around the state this fall, listening to Vermonters with an emphasis on what works in Vermont and why.

“It really helped me from my thinking for this strategy for economic development in Vermont. I have, for the last five or six weeks, really been test-driving this approach, building on Vermont’s strengths, articulating and being intentional about what we do well in Vermont and why people come to Vermont to locate and grow a business and then using those strengths as the place from which to build."

She told us she intends to kick off the 2008 Legislative Opera with a “Why Vermont Works" Forum on the second Wednesday of the session. A dozen business leaders will be invited to discuss what works in Vermont and what can we be doing to make things work better.

Asked by a reporter what she had heard raised in her travels as the No. 1 concern of Vermonters, Speaker Symington said it was "the cost of health care." She said she’ll have more to say on that issue next week.

Good. Because a lot of Vermont small business opened the mail within the last few days and read that their health insurance premiums are increasing 15-20 percent.

Speaker Gaye's "Why Vermont Works" six-pager is a work in progress, but it is available for your perusing on her website - column left.

Asked where all the "negativity" out there is coming from, Speaker Gaye replied:

"There’s an increasing message and much of it is driven by Gov. Douglas and the message he puts out, but I also find it in the business community itself and I am trying to suggest there’s a more constructive way of framing issues so that we can make progress and not get entangled in all of the negativeness."

Christmas Spirit

Here's a shot of the Vermont tree all a glitter keeping an eye on the United States Capitol in Washington.

Somebody's got to, eh?

Taken by a tall, follicly-challenged Vermont guy who has a job in the building.

Thanks, Senator.

Happy Campers, eh?

The Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce held its annual reception for Chittenden County legislators at the newly refurbished Hilton Hotel in Burlington Tuesday evening. Yours truly swung by after putting the ol' "Inside Track" to bed over at Seven Days.

The weather kept the crowd down a bit but still, more than 200 people showed: folks from the congressional offices, business leaders like Melinda Estes and Theresa Alberghini DiPalma from Fletcher Allen Health Care [aka the "Mary Fanny"], GM Paul Sands from WPTZ-TV and Bill Young, the former SRS Commish who's been running Maple Leaf Farm in Underhill the last three years.

That's Bill with State Sen. Vince Illuzzi (R-Essex/Orleans (left) and the LCRCC' distinguished Top Dog - Tom Torti. [What's Tommy Guns tucking inside his sport jacket?]

A bunch of Chittenden County legislators were there including State Sen. Doug Racine (D) whose name was in the news as "thinking about" a gubernatorial bid.

Let me tell ya something. A gubernatorial candidate would have been "working the room," as they say.

Ol' Doug wasn't.

But Illuzzi, the "King of the Kingdom" was!

Why?

"Economic development in Vermont revolves around Chittenden County," Sen. Illuzzi explained. "As chairman of the Senate's Economic Development Committee," said Illuzzi, "I've got to be there or be square!"

Very upbeat crowd, I must say. Despite the gloomy, depressing times, folks were particularly open, warm  and friendly - more than usual. Hey, all we've got is each other, right?

"The stock market may be going into the tank," quipped Vince the Prince, "but you wouldn't know it in this crowd."

Amen.

New kids in town...

Did you catch 'em on the box last night at 10 O'Clock?

First impressions?

Vermont's brand new TV news operation, finally kicked off on Fox 44 [that's Ch. 9 on Comcast] with a half-hour nightly news - seven nights a week.

Hey, the snowstorm made it easy on Opening Day, eh?

It's been a little over four years since ABC22 pulled the plug on their local news operation. It's been just WCAX vs. WPTZ since. Seems the whole Vermont news biz has been shrinking.

I sat down the other day with the folks behind getting our new TV news operation up and running. The folks behind the camera.

I'm saving that for tomorrow's "Inside Track."

Very interesting.

First Snow Storm

But that didn't stop the People's Republic of Burlington from doing the blue-box recycle run here in the South End.

And I hope you, too, are enjoying Public Safety Commissioner Kerry Sleeper's appearance with Mark Johnson on WDEV AM-FM this fine morning.

The veteran state trooper who rose to the top, Kerry Sleeper is retiring --- looking for a little consultant work as he hits his "older" years.

Kerry declined to comment directly on Windsor County State's Attorney Bobby Sand's suggestion we  take another look at how we handle marijuana and other "illegal" drugs since treating drug abuse as a crime issue instead of a substance-abuse/healthcare issue clearly has not shown any indication whatsoever of working.

Sleeper did say, however, that most young people in treatment for substance abuse are marijuana smokers.

As for the illegal-drug biz that's sparked an up-tick in violent crime in Vermont in the last year, Ol’ Kerry said it primarily involved cocaine and crack cocaine. 

One caller just asked why if Prohibition [of alcohol] didn't work in the 1920s, what makes him think prohibition of other equally popular drugs will work?

Good question.

Good timing!

Was sitting on a window stool at Capitol Grounds on State Street in Montpeculiar yesterday while the House Democrat Caucus took its lunch break.  Commiserated with Steve from Chelsea. Old dudes lamenting the absence of a voice of any kind emanating from the youth of today.

And sharing a smile over how sweet it was to pick up the Gannett-chain daily paper - Le Freeps de Burlington - and read the story about the high school kids protesting the Iraq War at the National Guard recruiting office in Williston Friday afternoon - 13 arrests for trespassing. The Freeps even has some excellent video of it all on its web site.

It was a Sixties flashback for the two old guys sitting in the window sipping coffee and swapping stories about the Vietnam War protests of our younger days.

Finally.

Then comes more good news this morning from Montpeculiar!  Montpelier High School has not only been picked 5th best in the friggin' country by US News, but grad Garrett Graff's first book has hit the street!

Yes, that Garrett Graff. The high-school "kid" who set up Gov. Howard Dean's first website 10 years ago in 1997 when all this internet stuff seemed so new,

Garrett's book is titled The First Campaign.

Subtitled: Globalization, the Web, and the Race for the White House

As his book website notes, Graff:

"comes from a long line of journalists: His grandfather, Bert McCord, was the drama critic for the New York Herald Tribune; his father, Christopher Graff, was the long-time bureau chief of the Associated Press in Vermont, and his mother, Nancy Price Graff, is a historian, children's book author, and former magazine editor."

Bravo!

The Montpelier kid also has an interesting article in today's Washington Post.

Speakers Speak

Nothing better for this non-skier to do this sunny and frigid Saturday than to hit the Vermont Statehouse to catch the House Democratic Caucus in action!

Ah! How we've missed the Legislature, Vermont's House of Commons, eh?

It was the annual pre-session preview for the majority party that "controls" the 150-member House. Plus the legislative "pages" and their parents were there for their introduction to some interesting times ahead come January. 

Here's current House Speaker Gaye Symington {2005-present] of Jericho having a wee up-close and personal little chat with former House Speaker Michael Obuchowski [1995-2001] of Bellows Falls in Room 11 under Montpeculiar's beautiful Golden Dome.

More on the behind-the-scenes and between-the-lines later.

The show started at 10 am and wrapped up around 3:30 pm. Nancy Remsen was there for The Burlington Free Press and Louis Porter for the Rutland Herald/Barre-Montpelier Times Argus.

Ch. 3's Andy Potter, my old radio-news sidekick from the days of President Ronald Reagan, popped in for a quickie. He did a stand-up with Speaker Symington.

His went a lot smoother than mine...

Pinch me. It was the Democrat Caucus, not the Republican, right?

Antiwar Protests

Nice to hit the online edition of The Burlington Free Press, my favorite local daily, this morning and catch Matt Sutkoski's article about the antiwar protest on Friday at the Vermont National Guard recruiting office in Williston.

Everyone from local high school students to soldiers who fought in the Bush-Cheney madness in Iraq participated. The Freeps reports 13 people were arrested and charged with trespassing.

Yours truly had other items on the Friday agenda including checking out the new TV news operation our local Fox affiliate will be offering local TV news junkies starting Monday at 10 pm.

Protest-wise, however, I did swing by what has become a Monday-Friday ritual at the top of Church Street in front of the Unitarian Church. An older bunch of protestors have been "religiously" demonstrating their antiwar feelings Monday-Friday from 5 pm to 5:30. It's an antiwar protest that one of its regulars, author Marc Estrin (with the "got fascism?" sign) told me "has logged more person-hours than any demonstration of its kind."

They started the daily antiwar protest, said Marc, way back before Dubya even launched his Iraq invasion - on September 13, 2001 - more than six years ago.

That's persistence, eh?