He Lives!

Contrary to rumors circulating widely on the 'Net, and much to the chagrin of many folks here, Brad Drell is very much alive. Though, what is occupying his time seems to be pretty darn, um, complicated.

If It's Tuesday, It Must be Project Meetings.

Sorry for the lack of posting yesterday - I was in New Orleans all day, in meetings (again!) on a rebuilding project.

And to think - I ASKED for this project. Ugh.

Governor-elect Jindal: If you want to do one thing to truly help the post-Katrina recovery, eliminate the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP). Or, at least, get them out of the recovery process and give rebuilding decision-making back to the folks in State government with the professional qualifications to do just that. It's time the carpetbaggers out-of-town consultants go home.

There. That may get me fired from the project, but it needed to be said - the rebuilding process for public infrastructure is a joke.

We Are The Champions. Of The World.

Yes, we WON last night. The World is Ours! And in a sweep at that. I don't quite know what to say at times like these; but if a pictrure is worth a thousand words, here's at least a grand for all you who trashed my boys from Landsdowne Street:


See you bums next year.

Blanco Shout Out.

Chris Muir at 'Day by Day' mentions our outgoing governor's leadership qualities in today's strip. Though, "indifference" is not the word I'd use.....

Michael Yon on Afghanistan

Michale Yon's latest post is up: The Perfect Evil: Coming to Roost. He's not optimistic about events in Afghanistan.

As usual, read it all.

Good to be back among the speaking. I spent the weekend at a silent men's retreat at Manresa House in Convent, Louisiana, being quiet and getting a bit closer in my walk with the Almighty. I do this yearly, along with my father and (sometimes) my brother. Manresa is the former site of Jefferson College, but has been run by the Jesuits as a retreat house since the 30's. ("Jesuits?", I hear you ask, "But aren't you Anglican?" I am. But the Jesuits have this retreat thing down with the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatious Loyola. And besides - I'm closer, theologically, to my Roman brothers than many of my Episcopal brothers/sisters/whatevers.) And it is the silence, I think, what makes the retreat for me. Three days inside one's own head, just you and God, can be a mind-bending experience - it is for me, every year. My "2x4 To The Head" time. Manresa is indeed idyllic:









If you can't find God in a place like that, in silence, you're in trouble.

Spiritual Exercises.

I'm going to be away for a few days on personal business, so no postings unless there is something urgent. Until I great back, check out the many fine blogs in the blogroll on the right (which you should be doing anyway). And, GO SOX!!

God's peace, one and all.

P. S. Naked Emperor: Wish you were here.

Your Basic Blowout.

13-1. What the heck happened to Colorado last night??

Just three to go for the Boys from Landsdowne Street.

Going Postal With Numbers.

I am highly suspicious of this report: Estimate puts N.O. population at 70 percent of pre-Katrina.

If you read through the article, you see the claim is based on postal deliveries to addresses. Hmmmm. If an address had a family of, say, four or five before Katrina, but now the house is occupied by one or two, that can skew the actual result by a large factor. With entire swaths of New Orleans East, the Lower 9, and Lakeview unoccupied, I can not see how 7 out of 10 have returned.

(My parents often had mail delivered to their flooded house in Lakeview before it was torn down. I wonder if that is one of the addresses counted....)

"All We Are Sayyyyying, Is The Same As Before...."

You gotta love the Boomers - they've got sticking their head in the sand down to an art form. And whole bunch of 'em got together the other night at the National Cathedral to practice their art, and to let folks know that.... war is bad. (Really?? I had no idea.)

"It was an extraordinary night of prayer and music in the nation's capital when more than 2,500 gathered October 16 for an interfaith celebration at Washington National Cathedral to express their desire for global peace and an end to the continuing war in Iraq."

Apparently, not all wars are bad enough to get David Crosby into a church, just wars that Republicans fight. (I guess he was booked solid during that Bosnia thing.) Chris Johnson over at MCJ has a wonderful analysis of the event.

But the last line from the ENS article quoted above got me wondering: Why just "an end to the continuing war in Iraq?" Is continuing to fight in Afghanistan alright with them?

It's Tough To Find Shoes To Match The Magazines.

My daughter loves 'Hello Kitty', and she loves to shoot. So please don't let her know about this.

When The Numbers Don't Fit The Theory....

A good national analysis of the results from the Governor's Race last Saturday, refuting the major excuse(s) of The Left as to why Jindal won outright. Note that, contrary to the protestations of those few, the vote from New Orleans - or the lack thereof - was not the deciding factor in Jindal's win. This is, I think, the reason he won:

"Hurricane Katrina did have an effect on this year’s governor’s race — it just isn’t the one that the Left wants to claim. The election was not determined by the attrition of Democratic voters in New Orleans as much as it was by Katrina’s revelation of the major problems with the Democrats who have run things from Baton Rouge."

Maps. I Just Love Maps.

Parish map of the Governor's election on Saturday. Note that all of the major metropolitan areas, except New Orleans, went more then 50% for Jindal.

Hattip: The Dead Pelican.

Duck And Cover - It Ain't Just For Nuclear War Anymore.

The Naked Emperor gets to see some of Ray Nagin's New Orleans "brand" up close and personal. (Yes, I know it's technically Gretna, but just.)

Pennant!!

The Boys from Landsdowne Street have done it again, coming from behind to claim the AL Pennant.

First Jindal, now this. It's been a great weekend.

Chris Is Back.

Chris Muir's Day by Day cartoon is back up, so make sure to stop by. It's also over on the right side of this blog, every day.

Let The Chattering Begin!

Roundup of yesterday's election results and commentary: The Dead Pelican and Louisiana NewsLink. Here is a national view.

The Louisiana Secretary of State has the raw numbers. Very interesting reading, it you're into that kind of thing. John Georges actually won Orleans Parish, but even with the support of Ray Nagin he only beat Jindal by 1,092 votes. It appears that Nagin doesn't have much clout in the Big Easy anymore, and even less outside of Orleans Parish. Baton Rouge had 124,000 total come out to vote in this election, with Jefferson Parish at 116,000, and Orleans with just over 75,000. I think the implications of those numbers for the future are obvious.

Off to watch Game 7.

A LIVEblog Two-fer!!

With so much going on tonight, the crack staff of Red Stick Rant will attampt to liveblog BOTH today's election results and Game Six of the ALCS. (I figure most folks will already be watching the LSU-Auburn game...) Posts will be quick, so pardon the typos and syntax errors.

And away we go....

7:55 ALCS: Bottom of the first, and Drew just hit a Grand Slam HR! Bos 4, Cle 0.

8:17 ELECTION: WAFB-BR at 1%: Atty General - Alexander, Caldwell, and then.... Foti. Governor is Jindal at 55%, with Boasso and Campbell at 14% each, and Georges at 9%. Hope it stays this way.

8:20 ALCS: Cleveland scored one top of the second, Sox stranded two in the bottom. BOS 4, CLE 1. Third inning starting.

8:27 ALCS: Two Cleveland base hits, and two on....

8:31 ELECTION: WAFB and WBRZ both still showing 1% reporting. Check back in a minute.

8:34 ALCS: Cleveland goes nowhere. Bottom of the third coming up.

8:43 ALCS: Drew up again, with two on, no outs.... Base Hit! Manny comes home! BOS 5, CLE 1. From the yelling in the in the other room, seems the Tigers just scored, too!!

8:48: ELECTION: Sec. State's office has 135 of 3,967 precincts reporting - Jindal still up at 58%, with Boasso 17%, Campbell 13%, and then Georges 11%. Don't know where in the state these numbers are coming from.

8:50 ALCS: Elsbury, 1 RBI!! Lugo doubled, two more in!!!! BOS 8, CLE 1.

8:58 ELECTION: 344 precincts in to the Sec. State. Governor: Jindal, 54%, Boasso 18%, Campbell 14%, Georges 12%. Lt Gov. Mitch 50%, Kershaw 38%, Beard, 10%. AG's race is all tied up at 33% each - Alexander slightly ahead.

8:59 ALCS: Two more for Boston! 10-1 now.

9:02 ELECTION: 440 in at the Sec. State. Jindal still above 50%, but not by much. Boasso is a real surprise - 18% right now. Georges? 12%.

9:06 ALCS. 3rd inning is over. Thankfully for Cleveland.

9:10 ELECTION: WAFB-BR is saying Jindal at 35%, but Sec. State office has him at 53%. Sec. State's website has slowed to a crawl.

9:15 ALCS: Top of the 4th - no result for Clevelend. Bottom of the 4th coming up.

9:25 ELECTION: Sec. State has 1,378 precincts in. Jindal 52%, Boasso 19%, Campbell 14%, Georges 13%. LT. Gov: Landrieu 50%, Kershaw 37%. Att. Gen: pretty evenly split, with Alexander trailing slightly.

9:26 ALCS: 4th inning over. Still 10-1, Boston. 5th starting. Shilling still in for the Sox.

9:33 ELECTION: 1,670 precincts showing at the Sec. State's office. Jindal sliding to 51%, Boasso still in second at 19%. Walter Boasso seems to be the real surprise tonight, and Georges the real disappointment. But there is more than 50% to come.

9:37 ELECTION: WBRZ is saying that most of the reported precincts are from north Louisiana, which would explain Campbell's numbers - but not Boasso's. They are saying that New Orleans has not reported in, so much of Jindal's and Georges' (and Boasso's?) base has not been counted.

9:39 ELECTION: 1,840 precincts reporting in, and numbers are about the same.

9:42 ALCS: Top of the 6th. Shilling still in. Just struck out his fourth of the night.

9:46 ALCS: Shilling just got his 5th strike-out. Sox at bat.

9:47 ELECTION: Sec. State's website is pretty much locked up. Switching to TV......

9:52 ALCS: Lowell doubles off the Green Monster. 2 outs right now.

9:55 ALCS Nope. Lowell stranded. On to the 7th.

9:58 ELECTION: 2,626 precincts in. Jindal creeping up - 53%. Boasso at 18%. Georges now in third, with 14%, and Campbell at 13%. Looks like the New Orleans area is coming in. Landrieu is now at 56%; Kershaw is sliding, at 32%. In the AG's race, Caldwell is up, but it's still pretty evenly split. Bob Odom is looking like he's in a runoff with Mike Strain.

10:00 ALCS: Cleveland scores on a sac-fly - 10-2 now, Boston leads.

10:02 ELECTION: WAFB-BR is reporting that Jindal has only 47%, but they're saying that there is a "computer error." Hmmm.

10:09 ELECTION WAFB-BR is not showing Jindal at 53%, and Boasso at 18%. Whew. More in line with what we've seen with the Sec. State's numbers.

10:12 ELECTION: WBRZ-BR is showing Landrieu at 56%, and Kershaw at 37%, with 77% reporting. Looks like that one is over.

10:16 ELECTION: Boasso speaking at this campaign headquarters now. Just wanted to say "hello" to supporters. Says it isn't over yet.

10:16 ALCS: 7th inning over. Top of the 8th - nothing for the Indians.

10:19 ELECTION: Finally. Update from the Sec. State's office. 3,214 precincts reporting - same precentages as before in the Governor's race, but now with 81% of the vote in. Landrieu seems to be re-elected. AG's race too close to call - but Caldwell is currently leading. Sec. Agriculture race seems to be Odom and Strain seem to be headed for a runoff.

10:23 ALCS: Ortiz doubles off the Green Monster. Manny up next......

10:25 ALCS: Manny had a sac-fly. Another Sox run in. 11-2, Boston.

10:27 ALCS: Lowell has RBI single. Another one in for the Sox. Drew singles just after.

10:30 ALCS: Sox strand loaded bases. Into the 9th. 12-2, Boston. Indians better explode here, or it's Game 7.

10:34 ELECTION: 3,428 of 3,967 precincts reporting at the Sec. States website. Precentages still the same. Jindal still at 53%. This could be historic, folks.

10:37 ALCS: We are one out from Game 7.

10:38 ALCS: Game 7 is on. 12-2, Red Sox. Tomorrow night is it!

10:42 ELECTION: 3,529 of 3,967 precincts reporting. Jindals lead still at 53%. Boston and Bobby look like winners tonight. The amazing thing is the poor showing of John Georges. I guess Ray Nagin hasn't got the coat-tails Georges, or Nagin, thought.

10:45 ELECTION: Foster Campbell concedes. Jindal is about to speak....

10:48 ELECTION: WAFB-BR is projecting Jindal winning outright. Bob Odom is in a runoff for the first time since 1979.

10:55 ELECTION: Still waiting......

10:57 ELECTION: Walter Boasso now speaking. Concedes. No word from Georges....

11:00 ELECTION: Bobby Jindal is at the podium. Claims victory. Thanks challengers, thanks wife, thanks parents. Still speaking, mostly boilerplate. New day for Louisiana. New image for the state. Will tackle corruption. Lots of talk of change.

11:08 ELECTION: Looking over the crowd on TV it is amazing the ethnic and racial diversity in the room. I hope the national Republican Party is taking note. If he can pull this off, you may be looking at the GOP presidential nominee in 2012 or 2016.

11:12 ELECTION: 3,803 of 3,967 precincts reporting. Stick a fork in it - it's done. The Republican realignment in Louisiana is here. We are truly a Red State. The Democratic candidates for Governor got only 31%. Huey Long is whirling in his grave(and Edwin Edwards in his cell...).

11:35 ROUNDUP: Jindal wins in the first primary. Georges has not conceded that I know of. Very bush league, John. Ray Nagin, who backed Georges, clearly doesn't have the stroke everyone thought. Bye, bye, Ray. Mitch Landreiu (D) wins in the first primary, too. Jay Dardenne (R) easily wins the Secretary of State's office. The Attorney General's race is the only one too close to call - Caldwell leads, with Foti second and Alexander a close third. The vote difference between Foti and Alexander is less than 4,000 as of now. Jim Donelon (R) was reelected as Insurance Commissioner, but there will be a runoff between Bob Odom and Mike Strain for the Commissioner of Agriculture.

11:36 LSU-AUBURN: LSU 30, Auburn 24. LSU, Sox, Jindal - lots of victirues tonight!!

11:40 ELECTION: Foti, the incumbent, has just dropped down to 3rd place in the AG race. If this holds, he will be out. (UPDATE: It has held. Foti is out.)

11:47 ELECTION: Quick and dirty review: of the 31 Senate seats in play, The Republicans seem to have taken 8, and are in runoffs in 4 more.

12:00 ELECTION: Quick and dirty review: of the 78 House seats in play, The Republicans seem to have taken 17, and are in runoffs in 28 more. Seven of those runoff seats both run-off candidates are GOP, so those can be counted in addition to the 17. It wasn't the sweep some predicted, alas.

12:02 COMMENTARY: I'm done. Great time, but I'll see you tomorrow. Hope this helped.

Flyer, Flyer, Pants On Fire.

Ah, Election Day in Louisiana.....

If you were a regular reader of this site, then this flier for John Georges wouldn't come as a surprise.

We'll see tonight weather racial pandering like this will allow the candidate who went to an all-white private school in Metairie to make the run-off.

Hattip: The Dead Pelican

And It's One, Two, Three, What Are We Votin' For....?

Call Harry Reid. No, wait - call Joni Mitchell. The things you find in Labor/Education appropriations bills these days:

"Would the Democratic-controlled Senate approve a $1 million earmark to celebrate Woodstock-era baby boomers, carved out of a bill funding health care and education? It would because it is sponsored by New York's influential senators, Hillary Clinton and Charles Schumer. It would because they promote the pet project of a big-time Democratic campaign contributor."

Which would be a performing arts center at the site of the 1969 Woodstock Concert/Event/Hyped Legend.

Gimme an F! Gimme a U! Gimme a.....