Here are a few Virginia (and national) news headlines, political and otherwise, for Sunday, May 5. Happy Cinco de Mayo! Also, check out Saturday Night Live’s mocking of the utterly absurd, eminently mockable “Fox and Friends.”

*Israel strikes Syria again, rocking Damascus (“Western intelligence source told Reuters the operation hit Iranian-supplied missiles headed for Lebanon’s Hezbollah.”)

*New Study: The Economic Benefits of EPA Regulations Massively Outweigh The Costs

*Democrat Terry McAuliffe kicking off Virginia gubernatorial campaign with policy speeches

*Poll: Cuccinelli has early lead over McAuliffe in Virginia governor’s race (I’m certainly not going to try and argue that these poll results are good. They are certainly not. However, I would recommend you check out the table of poll results from 2005, which I’ve posted in the comments section, before putting your home on the market and planning your move to DC, Maryland, etc.)

*McAuliffe has 69% of blacks’ support, but it might not be enough (In the end, this will need to be 90%+, with strong turnout, for Terry to win.)

*McDonnell, Cuccinelli and Star Scientific (“Who ever would have thought that Gov. Bob McDonnell would have been done in by the chef, in the kitchen, with a cleaver?”)

*A new tune for Virginia Republicans (“Recent revelations show it is time for the state GOP to reconsider its presumptive candidate for governor and dump Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli. Many already considered him too far right to win. Now they can add inept and even suspect to the list.”)

*The Cuccinelli standard bites back (The author of this is a Tea Party nut, but he’s on to something…)

*Cabinet member discloses gifts from Star CEO (“Secretary of commonwealth discloses flights paid for by Star Scientific executive”)

*Bell, Obenshain square off for GOP nod for AG

*State leaders have a duty to Virginia Tech (“…if Virginia’s colleges are expected to remain accessible and affordable, and produce the workforce for the top jobs of the 21st century, the state’s commitment must continue to grow after McDonnell leaves the governor’s office.”)

*Arlington National Cemetery plans expansion to take it into 2050s (“The historic burial ground is running out of space, but critics say some plans would hurt its environment.”)

*Ryan Zimmerman helps the Nats steal a 9th inning victory from the Pirates

*NHL playoffs: Mike Green’s goal in overtime gives Capitals 2-0 series lead on Rangers  

This speech, Romney’s second public speech since he lost the 2012 election, demonstrates yet again why we are all SO fortunate that he DID lose that election. The fact is, the guy simply has no conception of – or respect for – the world most people live in nowadays. A few examples from this speech reflect a lot of what’s wrong with social conservatism, which in turn makes up a significant chunk of the off-the-deep-end Republican Party.

First, after erroneously congratulating the Southern Virginia University – a liberal arts school which “embraces the values of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” – “class of 2012” (once again, appropriately, a right winger clinging to the past…), Romney launches into a speech that is relentlessly anti-modern, as well as relentlessly intolerant of anyone who doesn’t think like him, and relentlessly clueless about today’s reality.

For instance, at around 1 minute in, Romney makes a big joke about how it’s tough for parents to get their kids out of the home these days. In reality, of course, it’s not so funny, especially when you consider that the right-wing economic policies (austerity, cuts to the social safety net, disinvestment in education and other crucial human and physical capital, opposition to universal health care, the economic “race to the bottom,” equating corporations with people, encouraging wealthy people – and corporations – to pay the absolute minimum in taxes, crony capitalism run amok, offshoring/outsourcing, etc.) that Romney and his party support not only contributed greatly to the “Great Recession” that began in 2007, but have prolonged it and worsened it. And that, to a large extent, is why young people these days aren’t getting out of their parents’ houses as quickly as they’d like to — because Republican economic policies keep squeezing the middle class, keep making the poor poorer, and keep enriching the already super-rich. That’s the world Romney sees, and he thinks it’s just hilarious!

Second, it’s one thing of Romney personally wants to have a “quiver-full of kids” (he actually uses that exact phrase). Fine, that’s Romney’s own “lifestyle choice,” to use the phrase right wingers use about LGBT people and others they don’t approve of. To each his own, I suppose (although I’d also note that the world would benefit greatly from the population NOT increasing any more, and that the LAST thing we need is for 7 billion people to all have a “quiver-full of kids” and explode that population to 14 billion, 21 billion, whatever, when we’re already far beyond the earth’s carrying capacity).

The biggest problem, though, is that Romney mocks the very concept of NOT getting married young, of NOT having that “quiver-full of kids” while you’re in your 20s, etc. Thus, according to Willard, if you don’t do that, you’re “living in the shallows.” Let me quote the jerk directly:

Getting married is one way of launching into the deep. I’m so glad I found Ann when I was still so young; combining your life with another person, particularly someone when men and women are as different as we are, this combination is extraordinarily challenging and enormously rewarding. Some people could marry but choose to take more time, they say, for themselves. Others plan to wait until they’re well  into their 30s or 40s before they think about getting married. They’re going to lose so much of living, I’m afraid. From the beginning of recorded time, the prophet Adam told us this life secret: “therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave unto his wife.” Marriage is a gift from god. Now, some may dismiss the council coming from the Bible because it comes from a book that they’ve discarded…

OK, OK, enough of this nonsense, scorn, straw men (that last comment in particular), and reactionary rubbish. As Mother Jones explains, this is insidious stuff, part of something called “the Quiverfull movement” (“Children are a heritage of the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is His reward. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them“), which “has become almost synonymous with an absolutist rejection of all forms of contraception or family planning, and an embrace of what believers describe as ‘biblical patriarchy.’” In that nightmarish, Handmaid’s Tale-style worldview, offspring are viewed as “‘arrows’ in a divine army,” while the adults “follow rigid gender roles in the home, where men are the spiritual leaders and women the submissive helpmeets.”

In addition, the strong subtext here is that anything else other than Romney’s approved way of life – homosexuality, for instance, or simply a decision not to get married young, not to have a “quiver-full” of kids, etc, etc. – is a really bad thing, a violation of divine law, not to mention a waste of your life, “shallow,” and selfish.

Again, let me emphasize: if you want to have a “quiver-full” of kids, that’s your choice. I personally believe the world has plenty of people, that we’re wildly overloading the planet’s carrying capacity, and that it would behoove us all to think VERY carefully about that in our decisions about procreation. But that’s just my personal view; I’m not trying to impose it on anyone (nor do I have any power to do so, nor would I ever want such power). In stark contrast, Romney and the theocratic wing of the Republican Party – from Rick Santorum to Ken Cuccinelli – DO want such power: the power to tell women what they can and can’t do with their own bodies, the power to outlaw abortion and in many cases contraception as well, the power to make homosexuality and other “alternate lifestyles” as difficult as possible (given their belief that those “lifestyles” are  abhorrent and against the Bible).

In sum, Willard “Mitt” Romney perfectly reflects the worldview of right-wing, theocratic, social conservative Republicans: absolutist, intolerant, judgmental, reactionary, and wildly at odds with how most people live their lives – or WANT to live their lives – in the modern world. All I can say is, thank god Romney wasn’t elected president. Let’s just make d*** sure nobody like him ever is!

There’s been so much misinformation (and, frankly, DISinformation) spewed around about the Arlington streetcar project, that it’s great to see people who know a TON about transit options respond. For instance, David Alpert of Greater Greater Washington, who has a new op-ed in the Washington Post entitled, Rail, streetcars or BRT? The definitions matter.  A few key points.

1. As I’ve pointed out, and as others – Arlington County Board experts, for instance – have explained time and again, “modern bus transit” (whatever that is exactly) or “Bus Rapid Transit” (which requires a dedicated right-of-way) are simply not possible on Columbia Pike. As Alpert explains, “It would be fantastic to dedicate lanes on Columbia Pike, but the Virginia Department of Transportation isn’t willing to consider reallocating space from cars to transit, even if more people would be moved in the higher-capacity trains or buses.” End of story. Next subject!

2. BRT supporters can deny or hand-wave this point away as much as they want, but it doesn’t make it (aka, “reality”) disappear. As Alpert humorously puts it, “Personally, I favor ‘Star Trek’-style transporters on Columbia Pike, which would be far faster than any car, bus or train, but those are just as nonexistent.” LOL – exactly! Nor are there dedicated lanes for any BRT or “modern bus transit” (whatever that is; it remains undefined by people who throw that phrase around as if it actually means something).

3. Among the MANY advantages of streetcars, Alpert explains, is that they “can transport more people than buses can and usually stimulate more economic development than an equivalent bus project.” Let’s see, it transports more people and brings more economic value to the community than adding more buses. Hmmm…gee, this is a really tough call! (not)

4. Of course, nobody’s arguing that streetcars are the right fit for every situation. You have to analyze the specifics of each particular case, which is exactly what Arlington’s done for over a decade now. And, not surprisingly, Arlington’s come to the same conclusion over and over again, that – as Alpert puts it, “streetcars are Arlington’s best bet” – the “right mode” for Columbia Pike.

The bottom line here is that the Columbia Pike streetcar’s almost certainly going to happen, barring a truly bizarre turn of events (e.g., the Tea Party takes over the Arlington County board?). For starters, it’s conceivable that somebody could primary leading streetcar advocate and County Board member Chris Zimmerman next year (in fact, I’ve heard VERY strong rumors that this is EXACTLY what’s in the works) and try to replace him with someone who opposes the streetcar. That would be a huge mistake, to put it mildly, and we should all strongly oppose any candidate who runs on such a platform.  

Here are a few Virginia (and national) news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, May 4. Also check out President Obama’s weekly address, in which he “describes the incredible opportunities to create middle-class jobs in the United States by deepening our economic ties and expanding trade in Latin America and discusses recent Senate bill that takes commonsense steps to fix our broken immigration system.”

*Stocks rise as 7.5% jobless rate dispels fears that the recovery has stumbled (See, America, these are the HORRORS you see when Democrats are in charge. Oh wait…LOL.)

*The Loss Of Government Jobs Is Holding Back The Economy (And THAT is thanks to Republicans!)

*The legal mess on emergency contraception (“We think the greater danger lies in discouraging desperate teens from using this safe contraception.”)

*Sources: U.S. believes Israel has conducted an airstrike into Syria

*Obama tells Mexicans a ‘new Mexico’ is emerging

*Who had the worst week in Washington? Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell. (“Bob McDonnell doesn’t live in Washington, but any hope he had of moving here when his term is up took a serious beating this past week.”)

*McDonnell Endorses Springfield Site for New FBI Headquarters (But only if they pay his food and entertainment expenses for the next 20 years or so. Just kidding, but you never know with Gov. Quid Pro Quo.)

*Howell: Gift disclosure worth a look

*Warner criticizes House’s approach on immigration (“Democratic senator reacts to push by Republican Rep. Goodlatte”)

*Absurd decision on Virginia FOIA (“But the notion that a person could work and play in Virginia and be denied access to records through FOIA simply because he maintains his home across state lines is absurd.”)

*Dominion asks Virginia regulators for first fuel rate increase in 2 years

*Terry McAuliffe proposes local tax reforms

*Warner stays away from Star-Scientific saga (“U.S. Senator Mark Warner (D) who has a very loose connection to the Star- Scientific saga plauging leading Republicans in Richmond, chose not to attack and instead said that he will wait see how the case plays out.”)

*Looking up! Region’s housing market feeling 5 years younger

*Nationals bats go quiet again in 3-1 loss at Pittsburgh (This team really hasn’t hit a rhythm yet this year. Hopefully that will change soon, or it could be a long season…)