Delaware
Wilmington as the 8th Unfriendliest City in America?
This is the result of one of those Conde Nast Traveler surveys, which asks its readers to rate hotels, resorts, airlines , cruise ships and even cities. There is even a category for Friendliest and Unfriendliest City, and Wilmington made the Unfriendliest City list, ranked at 8
Wilmington, the state’s largest city, didn’t appeal to our survey takers as much as Delaware’s better known beach areas. One reader says he “would rather avoid” the city that is only “necessary to visit on business.” Other readers say Wilmington is a place with “not much charm” that “needs work.”
What do you think about this? The NJ reports on this and got plenty of reaction from locals, mainly of the cheerleading variety.
Decision Making In Shades Of Gray – Is It Time?
I’m a decisive person. Give me a choice and I’ll make it – quickly and, in most cases, easily. Raising children means constant decision making. So yeah, I’ve had some practice.
But now I’m facing a decision that’s far from clear cut. Our dog, a black lab mix (aka mutt) is fourteen years old. She has hip dysplasia, a torn ACL (surgery wasn’t an option due to her age, but she is on medication), is partially blind, and almost completely deaf. She also appears confused and easily frightened – and just for fun, she is now having trouble controlling her bowels. Lucky me! None of these symptoms is life threatening. And we won’t make a decision in the name of convenience (altho, some days I want to).
Due to her hip dysplasia/ACL tear, she has trouble getting up from a resting position. She still attempts stairs, but usually ends up stuck, or worse, sliding backwards down them. Trying to keep her downstairs while we go to bed results in her howling loud enough to wake the dead – and the neighbors. Lately, Mr. Pandora has been carrying a 70lb dog up the stairs. At the beach, I’ve been placing pieces of Beggin’ Strips on every other step and supporting her weight as she slowly makes the climb – which we only let her do three times a day. Dog’s gotta go potty.
And here’s where things get tricky.
GOP Bamboozlement on SNAP Benefits
SNAP benefits have been in the news over the past few weeks as Congress tries to pass a Farm Bill. The Senate passed a bill that made some cuts to the SNAP program, while the House separated SNAP from the Farm Bill and proceeded to cut SNAP so that 5 million people would no longer be eligible for food support. The GOP ( including the locals who don’t have much to say other than to repeat the talking points sent to them each day, and the media, unfortunately) are pushing messaging that tries to link the SNAP program with economic recovery. This messaging ignores some key points….
Sam Wilson and the Lesbian Bible Killers
Sam Wilson is the Vice President of the Sussex County Council and is pretty het up over the defeat of the Bible Study course at Cape Henlopen School District. Het up enough to have taken to the airwaves (not sure what program this is) to tell the radio host that he was plenty disturned over the 3-3 vote. According to him, at least one of the Cape Henlopen Board members is a *gasp* — lesbian! And (according to Wilson) lesbians are “not strong on the bible”. He seems to think that said lesbian(s) had too much influence over the vote. But thank goodness there is western Sussex to hold strong on the bible and morals, because I think that eastern Sussex doesn’t have time to demand that their neighbors “Show Us Your Bibles!” — since they are too busy tending to their own lives (and getting reservations to all of the good restaurants). Take a listen (approx 4 minutes):
Sussex County As Key to Keeping Delaware Blue
This seems to be the thesis and part of the organizing motivation of Sussex County Democratic Chair, Mitch Crane. Mitch spoke to Don Flood at the Cape Gazette some days back, explaining why he thinks that focused effort now in establishing the Democratic Party and in getting more seats in local government is crucial to the long term health of the party:
Sunday Open Thread [7.28.13]
The NJ does a long piece today about the red-light camera industry here in Delaware. Most interesting is that Wilmington’s program seems most disconnected to any effort to increase traffic safety, even though safety data is available for analysis. I’m also intrigued by the fact that Wilmington operates its camera on a revenue-sharing basis with its contractors, while DelDOT does not. Revenue-sharing with an entity that is supposed to make money obviously changes the incentives for camera placement and enforcement, and is one more deal that Wilmington was willing to cut that doesn’t look like it was for the benefit of its taxpayers.
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