Virginia
Letters for May 5: Virginia Beach council members who opposed collective bargaining better be on site working the next disaster
For shame
Re “Virginia Beach rejects collective bargaining of city employees” (April 30): Virginia Beach City Council has made the decision not to support collective bargaining for its employees. What a shame. Our city employees do their best to keep things running smoothly. They do this, despite some challenges in working conditions, despite the fear of the consequences of speaking up about problems encountered on the job and despite pay and benefits that are not on par with other regions in our state.
It would be wise to study our city versus Chesterfield County, a much more accurate comparison than to our surrounding jurisdictions. For the council members who voted against collective bargaining, please let me know that the next time we have a jet plane crash in our city, you will respond without hesitation, even though that could permanently endanger your health and safety. Our firefighters, emergency medical services personnel and police officers responded.
The next time we have an attack in the city workplace and police officers, EMS personnel and firefighters respond to that emergency, I hope you will do your part and respond as well, even though your life would be in danger. You can arrange for a photo op to show to your constituents. The next time we have a major storm move through here with damaging winds, rains and flooding and our first responders and our public works folks are out in the elements to help all of us, please let me know that you will do your part as well.
For all of these emergencies, you simply need appropriate gear, training, years of experience and a willingness to truly serve our community. I’ll be waiting to hear from you.
Ginny Diezel, Virginia Beach
Help needed
“It takes a village to raise a child” is a well-known proverb that emphasizes the importance of a community positively interacting and providing for children to grow up in a safe and healthy environment.
Children are innocent, reliant, sweet and sometimes sour beings who are oblivious to the world and its hardships. As parents, we need our families, neighbors, churches and businesses to play their roles within the village and take accountability to assist with child care. Together, we should ensure that we all thrive and secure our jobs and future.
Expenses mount and being a parent is challenging, especially with the cost of living. All businesses are entitled to make a profit, but the real profit is when we start supporting the needs of families in our community. It would be ideal to have affordable and alternative child care centers in our communities that are friendly to people with disabilities and offer after-school care and recreational activities.
We propose finding a way of giving back to our families, where the burden of child care is no longer a discussion. We need the support of community resources, along with businesses and professionals agreeing to work together to provide coordinated care.
Care is love and support from those around you every day. Together, we can decrease our level of violence and poverty while increasing prosperity for our youth, who are our future.
Chiquita Hubbard, Virginia Organizing member, Newport News
Clean energy
This year Virginia lawmakers advanced multiple measures to promote cleaner air, lower energy costs and foster economic growth — efforts that will create good-paying jobs and attract clean energy investment.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin now has an opportunity to sign into law a policy within his energy plan, which calls for leveraging federal energy investment. The crucial policy to achieve these goals is the Virginia Clean Energy Innovation Bank, which will free up millions of dollars of federal clean energy funding under the Inflation Reduction Act. Introduced by Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, this legislation passed out of the General Assembly with bipartisan support.
The Savings Achieved Via Efficiency Act from Del. Michael Webert and Sen. Creigh Deeds recently became law. This legislation “strengthens energy efficiency standards that were set to expire next year. It also renews the authority of the State Corporation Commission to approve energy efficiency programs for Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power,” according to an April 29 article by energynews.us.
Youngkin signed into law legislation expanding distributed solar generation through shared solar programs. This ensures an equitable energy transition by increasing the number of Virginians who can access solar.
When implemented in tandem, these bipartisan policies will help purify our air, create good-paying clean energy jobs, lower electric bills and secure a cleaner energy future in Virginia.
Heidi Dragneff, Virginia Beach
Student debt
A recent Daily Mail headline read, “Biden cancels $6 billion in student loans for 317,000.” The article stated, “President Joe Biden’s latest handout brings the total forgiveness to $160 billion for 4.6 million borrowers ahead of November’s election. It doubles-down on Biden’s promise to wipe out student debt after the Supreme Court ruled he could not take the sweeping action he wanted earlier in his administration.”
This debt is not cancelled; it is merely added to the other handouts this administration has strapped on our backs. Please do not vote for this socialist puppet.
Dan Bahen, Chesapeake
Virginia
No. 13 Aggies Upset No. 5 Virginia, Advance to NCAA Final Four – Texas A&M Athletics – 12thMan.com
The Aggies (26-7) continued their trend of upsets in the NCAA Tournament with a dominant showing in singles, which was capped off by standout freshman Lucciana Perez to ensure the 4-1 victory over Virginia (25-5), as Texas A&M booked its spot in the tournament semifinals.
High quality back-and-forth play started off the match, as the Maroon & White and the Cavaliers each secured a court in doubles play. The decider came down to court 1, where Virginia snatched a tiebreak victory to lead heading into singles.
Needing to regain the momentum in the match, No. 26 Nicole Khirin did just that with a dominant display on court 3 besting No. 91 Sara Ziodato (6-4, 6-1) to tie the squads up at one.
The nation’s best, No. 1 Mary Stoiana, followed suit on court 1, as the junior captured her 20th-ranked win of the season with a straight-set victory over No. 24 Hibah Shaikh (6-2, 6-1).
Leaving the Maroon & White one point from the win was Jeanette Mireles on court 6. She faced Melodie Collard and after a competitive 6-4 opening set, she closed out the second frame only dropping two games (6-2), to give A&M the 3-1 advantage.
Dealing the final blow and punching the Aggies ticket to the semifinals was the SEC Freshman of the Year Perez. She battled with No. 125 Elaine Chervinsky on court 5 through a pair of tough sets, ultimately outlasting her opponent (6-4, 6-4) to clinch the match result, 4-1.
Both No. 88 Carson Branstine on court 2 and No. 45 Mia Kupres on court 4 were leading in their matches before the overall results was decided.
COACH’S QUOTES
Head coach Mark Weaver on the team’s impressive performance …
“That was a very impressive performance by our group. It was an exciting doubles point that came down to the wire. There was a lot of nerves on both sides. Those doubles points are kind of a roll of the dice and sometimes they can go either way. Excellent composure by the girls to win all six first sets [in singles] and really set the tone there. We brought it, and you could see the confidence growing on our side of the court. It’s a big stage out there and we really handled it well, especially in singles. I’m very proud of our group.”
Mary Stoiana on the team’s confidence …
“We all knew we were capable at playing at this level. We know we can take down any team in any way. We’re really confident and excited to keep it rolling. We’re trying to do something really special here.”
Up Next
The Aggies return to the court tomorrow for the tournament semifinals, where they will take on the winner of No. 8 UCLA and No. 16 Tennessee with first serve set for 6:30 p.m.
Match Results
Singles Results
(TAMU) No. 1 Mary Stoiana Def. (UVA) No. 24 Hiba Shaikh (6-2, 6-1)
(TAMU) No. 88 Carson Branstine – (UVA) No. 67 Annabelle Xu (7-5, 2-2) unfinished
(TAMU) No. 26 Nicole Khirin Def. (UVA) No. 91 Sara Ziodato (6-4, 6-1)
(TAMU) No. 45 Mia Kupres – (UVA) Natasha Subhash (7-6(2), 2-1) unfinished
(TAMU) Lucciana Perez Def. (UVA) No. 125 Elaine Chervinsky (6-4, 6-4)
(TAMU) Jeanette Mireles Def. (UVA) Melodie Collard (6-4, 6-2)
Double Results
(UVA) No. 8 Melodie Collard/Elaine Chervinsky Def. (TAMU) No. 7 Mary Stoiana/Mia Kupres (7-6(5))
(TAMU) Carson Branstine/Lucciana Perez Def. (UVA) Hibah Shaikh/Natasha Subhash (7-5)
(UVA) No. 88 Sara Ziodato/Meggie Navaro Def. (TAMU) Nicole Khirin/Jeanette Mireles (6-4)
FOLLOW THE AGGIES
Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M women’s tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the A&M women’s tennis team on Facebook, Instagram, and on X by following @AggieWTEN.
Virginia
Republican candidates for Virginia U.S. Senate seat speak at public forum
AUGUSTA COUNTY, Va. (WHSV) – In a divisive political atmosphere, and a divided Virginia government, the 2024 election is important in the Commonwealth.
The presidential election is not Virginians’ only item on the ballot this year—the U.S. Senate spot held by Democratic incumbent Tim Kaine is up for election this year.
Kaine plans to rerun for the spot, launching his campaign in Virginia. The Republican Party is looking to take control of the seat and take down the Democrat’s lead in the Senate.
The Virginia Ballot will see five different names on June 18 when the primary elections take place. Those names are:
All of the candidates, except for Cao, were in Augusta County for a public forum to win over voters.
Though they had their differences, each of them agreed on wanting to take down Kaine in November. Kaine has held a political position since 1994, when he was elected to Richmond City Council.
Parkinson was the first to speak at the forum. He hoped to charm the audience with his dedication to his family and his desire to fix issues, like the drug problem the Shenandoah Valley faces. However, he wanted voters to understand he would protect the rights given to them by the Constitution, like the right to a comfortable life.
“I’m running on public safety, ending the illegal immigration crisis from the southern border, stopping fentanyl from getting into our communities and the cost of living is crushing the American family, the middle-class, and I want to make sure we attack “Bidenflation”, and all the policies Tim Kaine is supporting,” Parkinson said.
The next speaker, Emord, said his experience as a constitutional lawyer set him apart from the others. In his career, he “took down bureaucrats” and worked to protect people from bureaucratic leaders attempting to make legislation under the table. He said he would help Virginians keep money in their pockets and live the lives they choose.
“We don’t need bureaucrats telling us how to live, we know how to live ourselves, and we need them to get out of the way. That’s what the people of this area of Virginia believe strongly. I know that, I’ve been here many, many times,” Emord said. “They want the government out of their lives, and that’s what I want to do, I want to get there and get them out.”
Eddie Garcia, a U.S. Army veteran who served for more than 20 years, wanted the crowd to understand he comes from an average background. One of his selling points he said was the lack of endorsements/money given from people in Congress. He said he understands the working class and wants to support them, rather than be above the working class and not support them.
“The people in Washington D.C. have enriched themselves, they have increased their power and control over everybody’s lives. The working people, the farmers, the ranchers, the single moms, the landscapers, the bricklayers, the construction workers, all those people who put on their hard hats, who lace their work boots, they show up to work before the sun comes up and they don’t go up until the sun goes down,” Garcia said. “These people are getting left behind.”
Smith was the last speaker, his campaign focused on the national issues that are constantly debated in Congress but never solved. He emphasized the importance of immigration reform to voters in the crowd.
“I will stand up for the constitution, I will make sure that our border is under check. My personal belief is that we should not have any type of immigration until we get our border fixed. The people who are currently in the system can proceed, but no new applications until we can get our border under control,” Smith said.
You can find more information about each candidate’s platform on their campaign websites.
Copyright 2024 WHSV. All rights reserved.
Virginia
Woman killed in Appomattox County crash
APPOMATTOX COUNTY, Va. (WDBJ) – A woman from Pamplin, Virginia was killed in a crash early Friday in Appomattox County, according to Virginia State Police.
Amanda G. Layne, 44, was taken to a hospital, where she died of her injuries, according to police.
The crash occurred at 4:45 a.m. May 17, 2024 on eastbound Route 460. Police say Layne was driving a Dodge Durango near the intersection with Old Evergreen Road, went off the road to the right, and hit a mailbox and a tree.
Copyright 2024 WDBJ. All rights reserved.
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