By Karen Kirk: “I believe we’re on a trajectory for a big win in November because Trump has shown himself to be an incompetent fool and a narcissistic figure,” U.S. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-11) said Wednesday during an online Hunter…
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Lt. Gov. Fairfax is featured speaker at Mt. Vernon protest
By Susan Laume: Va. Lt Gov. Justin Fairfax was on hand to address protesters at the Beyond the Wall March for Justice in the Gum Springs community in Mount Vernon on June 9. The United Methodist Church event was planned…
NAACP rally draws large crowd to protest safely
By Marcus R. Motta: The Fairfax County NAACP drew an estimated 1,000 vehicles to a rally recently designed to demonstrate that large protests can be safely mounted during the pandemic. The event, Justice for Black Lives Car Rally, was staged…
“Today’s the day” — and off we went to protest
By Brad Swanson: My son’s text decided me. “If you wanted to go, I would say today’s the day.” The previous night, he had been caught in the unprovoked rush of police out of Lafayette Square to clear a space…
Lost your job? Here’s how to stay insured in No. VA
By Abby Block: Many of the nearly 73,000 Fairfax County residents who applied for unemployment insurance between mid-March and mid-May have most likely lost their employer-supplied insurance or were already uninsured and are facing hardship paying premiums. What are the…
Gun control in Virginia advances but not far enough
By Bill Brazier: Virginia Democrats should be proud of the legislation passed to lessen gun violence and control deadly weapons, thanks to new Democratic majorities in the state House and Senate. But the proposed bans on assault weapons and large…
Enough already with the Karen memes
By Karen Kirk: At first the memes were amusing, sort of. Then they started being somewhat irritating. Now, calling white women behaving a certain way “Karen” is meandering toward dangerous. A Tweet calling the woman who lied to police, saying…
Is Trump mad or just bad? Mental health experts sound the alarm
By Marcus R. Motta: Do you think Donald Trump needs to see a psychiatrist? Do you still need more motivation to get involved to get Trump out of office in November? If your answer is yes to either question you…
VA dogs get their day: 60 more tethering inches and shelter from a storm
By Susan Laume: (Editor’s Note: This is the second of an occasional series on Virginia’s 2020 animal legislation.) Animal welfare is an issue where “two Virginias” are often evidenced in citizen viewpoints: rural and urban. Perhaps nowhere has the difference…
Phone banking is a great way to volunteer during pandemic
By Steve Verdier: As I first-time phone banker, I am finding much the same satisfaction as canvassing – and often with a higher response rate, as so many voters are at home these days. I used to say about canvassing,…
Fairfax $25 million grant program is latest resource to help our region cope with pandemic
With the covid-19 lockdown in place in northern Virginia until at least May 29 — two weeks later than the rest of the Commonwealth — it is more important than ever to know the resources available to support residents and…
Dems majority proves a treat for animal advocates
By Susan Laume: (Editor’s Note: This is the first of an occasional series on Virginia’s 2020 animal legislation.) Companion animal advocates are among those with reason to celebrate the new Democratic majority in 2020’s Virginia General Assembly. This year, grassroots…
First-person: How the Great Recession prepared me for the pandemic
By Brandon Thurner: Isn’t it amazing how our past is often prologue, and in very unexpected ways? I never thought that being laid off a few times during the Great Recession a decade and more ago would have the advantage…
Pandemic worsens affordable housing shortage in Fairfax County
By Bob Leggett: The pandemic has worsened the affordable housing shortage in Fairfax County, and highlighted the overall needs of the many in our prosperous region who already were on the margins. More than 70,000 people were living in poverty…