Charlottesville Words

A friend invited me to accompany her to a presentation today on Virginia Politics: Where Have We Been, Where Are We Going. My plan was just to get out of the house and see my friend, but I was pleasantly surprised by how interesting and engaging the presentation turned out to be. The presenters were Frank Atkinson and Garrett Epps.

The discussion ranged widely over such topics as whether or not Virginia is truly a “red” state, the recent controversy over an apology for slavery, the Jamestown anniversary (Mr. Atkinson is chair of the commemoration committee, which I suppose means he will be meeting the Queen), the “marriage amendment,” and redistricting. I found the discussion very informative, even at my relatively naive level.

I’m afraid Mr. Atkinson, a former member of the Reagan and George Allen administrations, was at a bit of a disadvantage with the Charlottesville crowd, but he seemed equal to the challenge. Mr. Epps was more of performer and quite a bit more passionate about his specialty, the 14th Amendment.