We should support whatever Ann Nyberg's promoting

Ann Nyberg's a nice lady who by virtue of her staying power has become such a familiar figure that she's almost an  institution in here Connecticut. Ann's generous with time and her celebrity draw as well.

She's also more than just a talking head, she's a trained journalist and a professional at that, seeing as one can't get a handle on where she is politically. Never a wink, sigh or cleverly timed raised eyebrow. She does the news dead straight with no slant.

I've come the conclusion that she's actually the same lady that tells us the news in real life as she seems on the tube.
Sort of like the late Bob Steele (only prettier) who had no real schtick but was simply a wonderful friendly soul who had a radio program. I knew Steele well enough to realize he had no act; on air or off he was the same guy! If you enjoyed him on WTIC-1080 you loved him in person as that same on-air wry, dry wit was built right into the man. It was just how God made him I guess.

When God was building Ann Nyberg He seemed intent on creating one of those kind thoughtful women who never seem to run out of time or energy. You know the type; those where just  a glance at their schedule is impressive if not dumbfounding.

Nyberg's always up to something, she seems to get herself involved directly or simply promoting one goodie two-shoes project or event after another. Just following her on twitter can be exhausting.
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One of December's big thing's is 

Saturday, December 11, 2010 from 1-4pm  36 Town Woods Road, Old Lyme, CT  06371

Take out your PDA and punch this in now so you don't forget, it's a nice drive and your wife & kids will love it.

“A Connecticut Christmas”

To Benefit the Connecticut Food Bank and Tiffany Farm

From Nyberg's own website, Annie Mame:

This has come together fast and furious in the last two weeks over a cup of coffee and now it’s time to tell you all about it.
We can all work together to put food on the table for so many struggling families in Connecticut and help save a long time dairy farm at the same time.
This is being lovingly produced by, Heather Colby, Carol Dahlke, Ann Nyberg and Anna Rubino and we hope you will join us for our fundraiser: “A Connecticut Christmas – for Connecticut Food Bank and Tiffany Farm”, will be held at High Hopes in Old Lyme, CT!


This event is being hosted by High Hopes Therapeutic Riding, Inc. and we thank them for that. When you head out to this event, if you’ve never been to High Hopes you are in for a treat and you will hear all about what they do.
We will have music and hot coffee and this will be neighbor helping neighbor. Your price of admission is non-perishable food.

It is time to help our neighbors: 
Connecticut Food Bank reports that the need for food in Connecticut is up an incredible 30% over last year.* The need is up a stunning 100% in areas that never needed to ask for food.*

About Tiffany Farms

Tiffany Farms has been around since 1841 in Lyme, CT.  In September 2010 the lower barn burned down and at the time was holding equipment, antiques and over 1000 bales of hay that would have fed the dairy cows over the winter.  The Farm is in need of our help to rebuild the barn and replace the hay for the animals this winter.  Please join us this holiday season to make their season a little brighter.
Enclosed are more details about the farmers market portion for Tiffany Farm.  The Farmers Market will be a component of an over all fundraiser for Tiffany Farm and the Connecticut Food Bank.  We appreciate the instant interest by many of you for participation and look forward to working with all of you to make this event a great success.

The Mayflower Separatists were NOT Puritans

The `Pilgrims' (our name for them, not theirs) were not Puritans regardless of how many dimwits think they were, author text books with the same disgusting lie, or post articles in print or online repeating the same nonsense.

It's a lie and the Puritans were nothing less than horrid. Defending them or boasting of one's lineage to them is akin to the same as it regards members of Germany's 3rd Reich SS Nazis.

There is no defense for the Puritans.

The Mayflower Separatists neither robbed nor disabused the native Americans (Henceforth here referred to as "Pilgrims" and "Indians" due only to the commonality of the terms as it applies to them.)  they encountered and who were kind enough to befriend the small colony. Quite the contrary in fact as the two groups found themselves in a symbiotic relationship in no time at all. The Indians being familiar with local food sources and the Pilgrims access to then modern hunting gear such as early firearms.

A decade after the arrival of the Mayflower Pilgrims the horrid Puritans began arriving setting up their own adjacent Massachusetts Bay Colony (and running roughshod over Plymouth Colony at every opportunity) 
It was a scant 7 years before Thomas Hooker led a group to what became Hartford and later Connecticut so as to escape the reach of the dastardly theocracy the Puritans were creating.

 From: Pilgrims, Not Puritans

Written by Duane A. Cline, GSMD

Arrived 1620	Arrived 1630
Governors Carver and Bradford	Governor Winthrop
Plymouth Colony	Massachusetts Bay Colony
Friendly with Indians for 40 years	Indian problems from the outset
Paid Indians for land	Seized Indian lands
Communal living first seven years	Individual profit from the outset
Democratic, consensus of the governed	Authoritarian
Separated from the Church of England	"Purified" the Church from within
Not a single prosecution of witchcraft	Prosecuted and executed for witchcraft
Representation and equal inheritance	Nothing to compare
Forerunner of US Constitution & Declaration of Independence	Nothing to compare
More tolerant than the Church of England	Intolerant

Governor Wilbur Cross on Thanksgiving

A Connecticut Thanksgiving Proclamation
State of Connecticut
By His Excellency WILBUR L. CROSS, Governor

Proclamation

Time out of mind at this turn of the seasons when the hardy oak leaves rustle in the wind and the frost gives a tang to the air and the dusk falls early and the friendly evenings lengthen under the heel of Orion, it has seemed good to our people to join together in praising the Creator and Preserver, who has brought us by a way that we did not know to the end of another year. In observance of this custom, I appoint Thursday, the twenty-sixth of November, as a day of

Public Thanksgiving

for the blessings that have been our common lot and have placed our beloved State with the favored regions of earth -- for all the creature comforts: the yield of the soil that has fed us and the richer yield from labor of every kind that has sustained our lives -- and for all those things, as dear as breath to the body, that quicken man's faith in his manhood, that nourish and strengthen his spirit to do the great work still before him: for the brotherly word and act; for honor held above price; for steadfast courage and zeal in the long, long search after truth; for liberty and for justice freely granted by each to his fellow and so as freely enjoyed; and for the crowning glory and mercy of peace upon our land; -- that we may humbly take heart of these blessings as we gather once again with solemn and festive rites to keep our Harvest Home.

Given under my hand and seal of the State at the Capitol, in Hartford, this twelfth day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and thirty six and of the independence of the United States the one hundred and sixty-first.

Wilbur L. Cross

A 389 Year Tradition

There were only 53 surviving Pilgrims at the 1st Thanksgiving.

(Seems to be a lot more folks than that enjoying the holiday these days.)

We hope you and yours have a great day!

The 53 Pilgrims at the first Thanksgiving

4 MARRIED WOMEN :
Eleanor Billington, Mary Brewster, Elizabeth Hopkins, Susanna White Winslow.

5 ADOLESCENT GIRLS :
Mary Chilton (14), Constance Hopkins (13 or 14), Priscilla Mullins (19), Elizabeth Tilley (14 or15) and Dorothy, the Carver's unnamed maidservant, perhaps 18 or 19.

9 ADOLESCENT BOYS :
Francis and John Billington, John Cooke, John Crackston, (2d), Samuel Fuller, Giles Hopkins, William Latham, Joseph Rogers, Henry Samson.

13 YOUNG CHILDREN : 
Bartholomew, Mary and Remember Allerton, Love and Wrestling Brewster, Humility Cooper, Samuel Eaton, Damaris and Oceanus Hopkins, Desire Minter, Richard More, Resolved and; Peregrine White.

22 MEN : John Alden, Isaac Allerton, John Billington, William Bradford, William Brewster, Peter Brown, Francis Cooke, Edward Doty, Francis Eaton, [first name unknown] Ely, Samuel Fuller, Richard Gardiner, John Goodman, Stephen Hopkins, John Howland, Edward Lester, George Soule, Myles Standish, William Trevor, Richard Warren, Edward Winslow, Gilbert Winslow.

Rob `Landslide' Sampson

Robert C. Sampson is the caliber individual we too rarely are able to attract to public service at any level, much less see run for elective office.
He's an honest ethical decent man with a work ethic more often seen in newly arrived immigrants. Plus he enjoys a quick wit, and an irrepressible level of enthusiasm coupled with a pleasant and likable disposition.    
 
I received an email from Rob Sunday evening  January 31st expressing his desire to explore running for the 80th assembly seat in Wolcott / Southington.
He claimed to have met me, but I couldn't put a face to his name at the time so I called and emailed other members of the organization he'd referenced to see what they thought of him prior to contacting him myself.

Sean Hughes, the Sect, of the Waterbury Republican Town Committee gave me in about 17 seconds flat a complete endorsement speaking rapidly (not his style) and sounding almost excited.
Sean's a *very* calm fellow, "level headed" doesn't begin to describe him and he's not prone to excitement, so his response piqued my curiosity as Hughes had just totally endorsed the fellow claiming he would not only out-work anyone I'd ever seen but would win any seat he ran for no matter what.

Knowing Sean pretty well and having developed a healthy respect for his intellect and superb political instincts; plus realizing he's not one to embellish - I called Sampson back the same evening and set up a meeting for him to sit down with both Dennis Cleary, the other GOP state central representative from the district, and myself,  late the next afternoon.
Driving home following the meeting, where Rob had impressed me, Dennis called; "Where did you get that guy?" he asked incredulously.

Indeed - Rob Sampson did everything Hughes said he would, he worked like a man possessed, hit every door in the district plus about 25% of them a 2nd time and won by 45 votes!
So folks - that's how he earned the name: Landslide

Charm School Drop Out

From the reliably left New York Times:
Ms. Bysiewicz, has fallen from the top of Connecticut’s political world to its most uncomfortable depths, becoming fodder for comedians and a favorite chew toy for Republicans. (continued below picture.)

Connecticut Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz explains how big of a lie she can tell. Bob Adams Photo

As Suzy B. leaves office, all of Connecticut finally learns what many of us already knew.
She's totally inept, disagreeable to a point of caustic, and intellectually bankrupt.

A loud shrill woman, prone to ranting hysterically; rumor has it that her entire neighborhood `knows' when she's home.

We hope Connecticut remembers in two years when she wheels out the all new version of Suzy B 2012.

The Head of Chris of Healy

The natives have become restless and are calling for the head of
Republican Party Chair Chris Healy.

Healy texting for reinforcements.

Angry mob outside Connecticut GOP headquarters in New Britain.

Having won nothing, not a Senate seat nor a single Congressional district or State Constitutional Office, defending Healy has become difficult at least; the work of a masochist at best.
The blame falls at his feet, and rightfully so.

Matt Daly, who briefly ran a quite forgettable campaign for congress in CT's 2nd district himself, called for new leadership in an Op/Ed piece in Sunday's Hartford Courant, and even Healy's former employer, the Torrington based Register-Citizen called for his removal in their November 4th editorial.

However - take a deep breath.
If not Healy - who?
What? You gasp.
You're not going to defend Healy are you?
Well in a fashion, only because I'm probably a masochist and despite himself I like him in the same way I like cigarettes. I know cigarettes are no good for me, but I enjoy them anyway.
While I enjoy Healy's acerbic wit immensely I find myself no happier with this year's end results than even the most rabid  members of the Tea Party.

Reasons to dump Healy.
As a member of the Republican State Central  Committee there's much I could criticize regarding the convention in May and the actions and activities emitting from headquarters since. 
I won't elaborate on any of it here.

Reasons to leave Healy in place.

• Funding - Healy's been better than good at bringing in the cash.
• Stability - Dragging the losing party chair off to a firing squad without a ready, willing and suitable replacement is just plain shortsighted and stupid.
• Pit-bull - Healy can be as vicious as a junk-yard dog. While some believe that contributed to our dismal results, I would disagree. Besides what's the difference at this point? 
• Entertaining - We might as well enjoy his witty remarks for at least a little longer.
  
• How? - The process for forcible removal is difficult. Connecticut Republican Party Rules.

Connecticut Republicans will select new State Central members next May with those members selecting a new chairman the following month.

In the meantime we should calmly review last weeks train wreck. election, as well as critically observe the response from New Britain.

Ballots from Chicago

Quick! Get these ballots to the Bridgeport City Hall!