2018 – Page 18 – Vic Socotra

January 28, 2018 Vic Socotra

Life & Island Times: America’s New Silence is Death Epidemic

A terse emailed note from a friend announced another of his children’s close high school friends was found dead of a heroin overdose. That brought the total in his child’s small midwestern town high school class to six in twenty three years. The details were heartbreaking in their recitation, but there was a leaden sameness […]

January 28, 2018 Vic Socotra

Arrias: Davos Economic Forum and School Redistricting

One constant issue here in the Tidewater is ‘school re-districting.’ Everyone is very conscious of which school district they are moving into, wanting the best for their kids. So, it’s quite frustrating when a city council approves construction of more housing, knowing it will force changes in the school district boundaries, and when citizens push […]

January 27, 2018 Vic Socotra

Life & Island Times: PonziCoins

Because money doesn’t grow on trees, here’s a pitch to my readers to become rich real quick. Invest in PonziCoins. They are based on blockchain software technology that is all the rage. Below is a simple primer on how this works. Look, PonziCoin’s developers are completely transparent and honest — the above white paper primer […]

January 26, 2018 Vic Socotra

TAPS: Rosie the Riveter

Editor’s Note: This is not an intelligence passing, but it is one that represents something extraordinary in American history. The pressures of the war demonstrated the ability of women to perform in many formerly all-male industries. Rosie and her sisters changed everything about how our society worked. It is worth some reflection on just how […]

January 26, 2018 Vic Socotra

Nellie Bly

(Elizabeth Jane Cochran, from Pittsburgh). Thursday is what passes for my biggest business day of the week, and to my mild surprise, I got through it again. Then I ran a couple errands that had been nagging since the weekend, and took myself off the clock sometime after three. I unloaded the groceries and bundled […]

January 25, 2018 Vic Socotra

Life & Island Times: What is Suitable?

A Black Tie Optional invitation to a family wedding looms in my future. I understand the suitable sartorial requirements for such an event. Or I used to. As a gentleman of leisure (aka retired old dude), my current lifestyle requires nothing more than the occasional wearing of a sport coat. None of my old suits […]

January 24, 2018 Vic Socotra

Postcard from the Swamp #30

I had a case of the flu or something that came on hard just as we thought we had a deal on the Budget. As it turned out, there was some petulance expressed on both sides about promises made and ignored. There was bluster and a member of the President’s party on the floor of […]

January 22, 2018 Vic Socotra

Arrias: Continuing Irresolution

What really happened last week is this: Congress didn’t fail to pass a Continuing Resolution, Congress failed to pass a budget. The federal government’s fiscal year begins on October 1st. If the government is functioning properly, a total budget, with 12 separate budget bills, would have moved through the various committees of Congress, been passed […]

January 21, 2018 Vic Socotra

A Tale of Two Cities – Part Two

Here is the second part of the story about my experiences in dealing with the Russians, this time the return trip in 1995. In the true sense of contrasting the difference between two cities, Part One was more centered on Moscow; the highlights of Part Two center more on St. Petersburg. In that regard, allow […]

January 21, 2018 Vic Socotra

A Tale of Two Cities – Part One

Editor’s Note: We lurch into the second day of the Federal Government Shutdown. Days ago, we wondered if anyone would notice if the Feds were not working. It suddenly comes to a dramatic revelation: the Commonwealth of Virginia maintains it historic blue laws on the commercial sale of bonded spirits on Sundays.Naturally, this does not […]

Year: 2018