Freyne Land

Nice to see a little snow. Been a while, eh?

In fact, Vermont's newest U.S. senator held a morning presser on global warming at his Church Street office that coincided with the white stuff.

Not "news" really - everyone already knew - but U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders will reintroduce former Sen. Jim Jeffords' global warming bill this week. It went nowhere last time with the Bush Republicans in charge.  Let's see what happens this time. Bernie was flanked by three environmental activists including  Bill McKibben, a guy who's everywhere lately.

"The power of Big Energy and the money of Big Energy is enormous," said Sanders. "There's no question about that. And we're going to have to work very hard to get legislation like this passed."

But change is in the air, said the brand new senator from Vermont.

"All that I can say is the good news is that from the grassroots to the halls of Congress, there is no question there has been a sea change in the understanding of the global warming problem," said Ol'Bernardo.  Awareness is rising rapidly, he said,  "that society must deal with it in an extraordinarily bold way if we are going to save the planet for our kids and out grandchildren."

Sanders, an Independent aligned with the majority Democrats, holds seats on both the Energy and the Environment Committees.

Nice position.

"For years," said Sen. Sanders, "the Bush Administration has turned a deaf ear as the scientific community warned us of the problem of global warming and the disastrous impact it will have on our planet. Sadly, many of these predictions are now becoming a reality."

Stay tuned.

Bachelor Pete was up and at ‘em early this snowy Sunday morning, just as the first flakes started falling over the Peoples Republic of Burlington. Headed for Greer’s on Dorset Street with a laundry load.

That’s where we had the pleasure of meeting Karen Stoodley, 41,  of South Burlington. Karen had done the family wash (her and her husband Larry) at their nearby duplex, but their dryer had been busted for a while and they hadn’t been able to replace it.

Both are out of work. Lost their jobs when York Capacitor Corp. in Winooski closed a few months back. Moved the jobs to Mexico. Cheaper wages.

Karen had worked there for 18 years. Paid $10/hr. and got health care benefits. Met Larry there 16 years ago. They’ve both been looking for jobs for six months.

“There’s nothing up here,” said the Vermont native. “Nothing.”

So, in March they’re moving to Ruskin, Florida. Her parents are already down there and bought them a trailer. Finding work will be their challenge. “Hopefully,” she said, “we’ll find something better than up here.”

Karen, a friendly, gentle soul, has overcome many obstacles to even get this far. She told us she’d been in a serious car accident when she was five. Was in a coma for weeks. Lost the sight in her right eye. Has problems with short-term memory. It happened in Grande Isle where she grew up. Her father was driving. She thinks he was drunk at the time, since he was an alcoholic.

Karen came up the vocational rehabilitation route and graduated from Essex High School. She's a hard worker - wants to work - and loves to watch wrestling when she's not.

“You know, Bernie Sanders helped me,” said Karen. Bernie the independent congressman now senator.  “He got me my disability,” she told us, “from social security. He pushed it through,” she said with a smile. “Bernie helps everybody.”

“I want to work. I must have at least 50 applications out there. My husband must have a least 50, too. He’s cashed out his retirement to pay the bills. It’s sad when you have to go out of state to find something,” said the Vermont native.

Wonder if the Karen Stoodleys of Vermont even make Gov. Jim Douglas’ “Vermont Moving Forward” radar screen?

In the last four years, the U.S. has lost 2.8 million manufacturing jobs - 10,000 in Vermont.

"Global warming," that is.

How nice of Mother Nature to give Montepeculiar, Vermont an increasingly rare little dusting of snow Wednesday morning. A reminder of the way it's supposed to look in January.

Ah, the good old days!

Room 11, the largest hearing room, was packed to overflowing as four Senate and House committees - the environment and transportation ones - kicked-off three weeks worth of hearings on global warming. Senate leader Peter Shumlin (D-Windham) told the packed room, “The long and the short of it is, climate change is the single greatest challenge, frankly the single greatest catastrophe that our children and grandchildren are gonna face.”

"It is one of those issues," said Putney Pete, "where the more youknow, the less you wish you knew. I mean, it’s absolutely frightening."

Shumlin said is was "encouraging to see 6th graders from MainStreet Middle School here today because it’s their future that we’retalking about.”

Yes, it most certainly is. Anyone want to volunteer to be 11 years old again?

The first witness was distinguished author and environmental activist Bill McKibben of Ripton. McKibben (on the right with Sen. Shumlin),  made it perfectly clear that, "We do not need any more proof. Global warming is no longer an hypothesis," said McKibben, "but rather, a well-established scientific fact. The burning of fossil fuels and the greenhouse gases it produces is sparking a rapid increase in the earth’s temperature."

Said the visionary End of Nature (1989) author:

“We do know all the computer modeling tells us that if we don’t get a lot done, we’re going to have winters like New Jersey in 20 years. It’s time and it's possible and indeed profitable for Vermonters to quickly grapple with this issue and begin to take the lead. Not the sort of small bites that we’ve taken out of this problem in the past, but real powerful leadership."

Democrat Peter Shumlin raised the global warming banner big time shortly after the November election, putting it at the very top of the 2007 Vermont Legislature "to-do" list. He struck a chord. Two months later, global warming became a surprise key focus of Republican Gov. Jim Douglas' third inaugural address.

Said Sen. Shumlin as the morning session wrapper-upper:

"I think the beauty of what’s happening here now is that you’re seeing the first state legislature in the country make this the most important issue that we’re facing. Our kids and grandkids are going to look back on this and say there was a bright light somewhere in Vermont. We’ve got to get to work. We have a lot of ground to make up."

Damn straight.

The current U.S. Ambassador to the Slovak Republic was home in Vermont over the weekend to pay respects to his "first boss and mentor," as he described him: the late U.S. Sen. Robert T. Stafford.

Way back in 1982 after graduating Williams College, Ambassador Skip Vallee started out as Stafford’s southern Vermont regional campaign manager. He then went to Washington and worked for the senator on the education subcommittee

In the 1990s, Skip was CEO of R. J. Vallee fuels and started up Maplefields, the northern Vermont mini-mart chain with the fresh flowers in the bathrooms. We used to call him “Gasoline Vallee” in the ‘Inside Track” column.

He loved it!

Skip was Vermont’s Republican National Committeeman (1999-2004) and his outstanding fundraising on behalf of George W. Bush in the 2004 camapign was, in addition to his political smarts, the reason Dubya made him an ambassador. He also has a sense of humor - an invaluable trait in a politician.

We thought we’d squeeze him into this week’s print column but other things popped up. Sorry, Mr. Ambassador.

Asked to comment on remarks of freshman Independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, Ambassador Vallee pointed out that he had been taught that “Ambassadorial trap No. 1 is to make a comment on something a sitting member of Congress has said.”

Skip said the days in Slovakia are long and “chock full of events.”  He said it’s “important” for him to be “out in the country,” playing soccer or ice hockey. He’s already visited 150 towns, cities and villages.

Wonder if they have Maplefields mini-marts yet?

Just kidding.

Asked how long he'll be plying the ambassadorial trade, Vallee said he "serves at the pleasure of the president."

Check out this interview with the Vermonter, born and raised in Franklin County, in the Slovak press.

Today was the day of the annual kickoff breakfast of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce's  winter series of Legislative Breakfasts. A Sheraton Burlington Ritual. A chance for lobbyists to buy breakfast. The first one under the LCRCC leadership of former state government bureaucrat, sorry, distinguished career agency/department head  - Tom Torti. Tom Terrific, however, stayed away from the stage up front and instead hung out with the "players" parked on the back wall, beyond the tables just like the old days. Old Montpeculiar comrades like Dawn Terrill, Doug Racine (remember him?)  and Gaye Symington.

Speaking of Symington, other than the Governor, nobody had more people wanting to talk to them after the breakfast ended than the Vermont woman who had become "Speaker" long before Nancy Pelosi did.

So why did I take a picture of Gov. Jim Douglas and UVM Prez Dan Fogel, you ask?

'Cause I haven't seen Ol' Danny Boy since he came back from a little health problem. Lost weight (as have I), and looks great, eh?

Besides, I was the only rep from the fourth estate who wanted to ask our chief executive a question. A question about the weather, actually.

"How serious do you consider this situation - no snow and global weather change. And is Vermont ever going to be the same again? I’m a little scared myself," I confessed.

Replied Gov. Douglas:

“I’m very worried about the economy this season when we see people skateboarding and playing golf in January instead of snowboarding and skiing, it’s very disconcerting because our winter economy depends on snow. There still is time but with each passing day that we don’t get a good snowfall, it’s troubling and our economy is certainly at risk.

"What the future holds is hard to say. The warmest year on record was 1891  but we’ve had several warm years in a row and I certainly hope that this won’t continue.

"Vermont will do its part to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, to participate on a national and international basis to provide some leadership on climate change but that’s going to take some time."

No rush.

Worried about irreversible climate change, are you?

Relax. Thanks to global warming, the Burlington Parks Department is saving a lot of money on keeping City Hall Park's walkways free of ice and snow this January, eh?

"Our generation," said "Dillon," 20, the dude on the bike, "the people growing up today, we're the people who are going to have to deal with it."

He's got that right, doesn't he?

Heck, I turned 20 in 1969. Earth Day hadn't even begun yet, had it?  Why hasn't my generation, the babyboomers, why haven't we delivered on solar energy and saved the planet for these folks, our successors?

Answer: Exxon-Mobil.

Even if we stopped it {global warming] today," said "Tewks," 22, in the yellow shirt, "it wouldn't change it."

Ah, but we could slow it down significantly, stem the tide and save a whole lot of lives and a whole lot of suffering.

All three, including "Ross," 21, are or have been students at Champlain College. Tewks dropped out, he said. Couldn't afford it any longer.

All three made it perfectly clear to yours truly during a late Sunday afternoon chat that - contrary to the on-the-street comments made by members of their generation on the Channel 3 News Saturday evening - they are very worried about global warming and its impending impact on their futures.

Said the female college student to WCAX while strolling on Church Street Saturday:

"It's really nice compared to like past January's [but] it's really strange because it's 60 degrees and the grass is green and I've never seen that in January - it's cool not having to wear a winter hat and gloves and go shopping and stuff."

Cool?

It's not the Louve in Paris, France. In fact, it's the alley outside a giant commercial storage locker on an anonymous industrial strip in Santa Fe, New Mexico a few hours before the snow started pouring down. But Maureen Freyne, the older sister I have not seen in 18 years, has certainly left her mathematics/computer/IBM/Xerox background of the 1960s, 70s and 80s far, far behind.

You'd think an artist in Santa Fe would be a great success, right?

Not Maureen. I left with a realization that while she loves to paint, success is not necessarily on her to-do list. She lives in two rooms on a tiny fixed income. "Struggling" artist is the kind of artist she wishes to be. I'm reminded of Ol' Vincent of starry, starry night fame. I recall he never sold a single painting while alive.

Nonetheless, Ms. Freyne's work is beautiful, special and unique. She's traveled the Land of Enchantment in the last 15-plus years painting New Mexico's adobe churches...her way! And painting much, much more, too. But it's all sitting unseen in a couple of strip-mall storage lockers.

Ah, life!

I know there are folks who will be struck by some of this work. If interested, her email is: [email protected]

T’was a lovely, warm spring day, eh?

Not connected in any, way, shape or form with “global warming”  - which everyone knows is nothing but a leftist/Democratic Party public relations scam, right? 

And everybody knows, the Union of Concerned Scientists doesn’t know shit from Shinola when it comes to climate change. Amazing the propaganda the UCS puts out, eh? 

Tell it to the ski instructors and snow plowers and snowmobile-owners.

Anyway, I’ve been in just about all day, catching up and “recovering” from the New Mexico adventure. There in the Land of Enchantment were reminders of global warming happening faster than I’d imagined, as well as reminders of my Eugene O’Neill-style Irish family roots. And yes, I will, in response to requests, post a couple of sister Maureen’s paintings - her fixation with New Mexico’s churches is unique.

BUT, I just did a run to Price Chopper on Shelburne Road. Very quiet tonight after 7 pm. So I hear this young woman’s voice in the vegetable section. She has a shopping cart and is standing in front  of the peppers, peppers of all colors, types and sizes. And she’s talking to them. Having a conversation with them!

Hey, each to his own.

But the curious journalist within could not resist. Besides, the Price Chopper, normally a bustling madhouse, was practically empty.

I approached and introduced myself.

Jaime Elliott of Burlington was actually doing one of those hands-free cell phone thingies. I know. I admit it. I’m 57 and I have never owned a cell phone. Don’t want to. Life has been just fine without one.

Jamie, 28, is a counselor at the Baird Center. Very nice person. She does the shopping in the household, she told us. Has for the last couple years.

Boyfriend Chad, at home, is the cook. She’d been on the second call to Chad the Cook since she’d arrived at the store. Might be another one before she was done.

Teamwork, eh?

So what’s a political columnist/blogger doing writing about vegetables?

I think it’s because he’s worried. Worried about an out-of-control human “community.”  A community racked by war, hate, greed and the profit motive. A community where "communication" is high-tech.   

But it's become a community in which the voices of peace and justice are too few and too far between. Where communication among world leaders is pathetic.

Yes, in my lifetime we’ve built a society where one can shop with one’s spouse or boyfriend - even if one party stays home. Hooray for technology.

But we have lost a great deal of ground in building a society where the peace motive is stronger than the profit motive. A society where the stockholders’ interest isn’t the only interest.

Because Jamie and Chad's kids will be facing an even more bloody and much warmer world if you and I don't do something about it right now.

Know what I mean?

Got in late last night at Burlington International via Denver and Chicago - airports, that is. Four days late. All the ice and snow we're supposed to have is in New Mexico and Colorado. New Mexico was unprepared. That's outside my sister's door at right. Did not see a single snow-blower.

Did I tell you I haven't flown in 15 years?

At least not in an airplane.

In fact, I haven't been past the homestretch at Saratoga since Madeleine Kunin was governor in the 1980s.

Why leave Vermont?

That little lesson, I admit, is one this extended, unpredictable excursion to snowbound, frozen New Mexico and the Big America out there has taught me...big time. 

Not ready to go into all of the details - saving it for the novel. But on Thursday's cross-country three-legged trip home across the USA, I touched souls with one very special person. One unique soul in the enormnous, plastic Denver Airport, where I had a three-hour layover yesterday. An airport with fast-food restaurants that containedno hint whatsoever it was in Denver, Colorado.

Courtenay was on her way to spenda week with her 23-year-old boyfriend.  Met on the internet. "Instant-messaging"is their thing, she said with a smile.

He's in Colorado somewhere and she lives in a small town I never heard of that's 50 miles from Talledega, Alabama (famous for its raceway). He's finishing up to get his degree tobe an elementary school teacher. She works at a steakhouse jointwhere white Bible-Belters go to drink, talk like racists and tip lightly.

She was waiting another 3 hours after me for her flight. Came and satclose by and looked at me like a lost soul who wanted to talk to a real person. Courtenay was feelingas alienated and bummed out as me in that humanless, enormous Denver airport where no one makes eye contact. She was gentle and real and also scared, lonely and lost living out there in the big wide land of Wal-Mart and traffic jams, a land where the crooks and liars are in charge and all the clothing and plastic consumer-goods we wear and fill our lives with come from the Third World.

And she's not alone in feeling that way, is she?

Good to be home, gang.

Whew!

It may take a couple days to adjust.

Bear with me. That's the Denver area below.

Just not my cup of tea.

Was supposed to fly home to Vermont on Sunday, but if you haven't heard, there's been a bit of a blizzard down here in New Mexico and I haven't been able to get out. At present, I'm booked on a Thursday morning United flight through Denver and Chicago - fingers crossed, eh?

But, I've been stuck since Saturday at the El Rey Inn (www.elreyinnsantafe.com), here in Santa Fe (fortunately with a friend). However, my BUDGET rent-a-car remains stuck in over two-feet of the white stuff back on the private dirt road by my sister's place south of town. Got to drive it for all of three days on a seven-day lease. The Express Tow Truck driver who works for Budget just called to say he can't get it out since the road's unplowed. Even if he had 4-wheel-drive, Ol' Chris says he couldn't get it out.

New Mexico's an official disaster area around and the temperatures remain frigid - like Vermont ought to be.

Anyway, we're about to find out just how much BUDGET believes in customer service. After being closed for the weekend, the local Santa Fe BUDGET manager is due in at noon. "Darcy," the BUDGET ROADSIDE SERVICE rep in Denver, says the BUDGET policy is to not issue a replacement vehicle until the old one has been returned. But, as we mentioned, the old one's buried in the blizzard and the tow-driver says he can't get it out until the road's been plowed. The reality is there aren't many snow plows in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Great.

Of course, we did check BUDGET's policy online here in the El Rey lobby:

"We provide consistent and dependable service that exceeds expectations and creates loyal customers."

Guess we'll see if that's actually for real or just a bunch of advertising propaganda when "Kristin" the local BUDGET manager arrives at work at noon today.

Stay tuned, folks.

Starting to miss Vermont awful bad!

P.S. The current weather conditions down here on the Mexican border - deep snow and single-digit temps - compared to the weather conditions up north, have a lot of folks around here uttering the phrase "global warming."

Bunch of left-wing hooey, eh?