Speaking of democracy...

...maybe a small town in Vermont has finally gotten it right by electing a goat, Ms. Lincoln, as mayor. According to this news story,

That idea to elect an animal as mayor came from the town manager. He thought it would be a fun way to raise money for the school to build a new playground and get kids to start thinking about local politics.

On voting day, the kids took to the polls with their parents and had their very own ballot with 16 candidates ranging from cats and dogs to a goat! Lincoln won by three votes...

"We were really pleased to see it was a civics lesson for the students and that they could be involved and decisions made in the town and it something that we hope to continue in the future getting the kids voting with their parents on a regular basis," said Christopher Stapleton, Lincoln's owner.

The election was also intended to be a fundraiser, but only $100 was raised instead of the $70,000 hoped for.

I could have told them that goats were a money pit. On the other hand, the last few years have shown that could could do a lot worse when it comes to elected officials. 

Back and forth

It's always a good thing on returning from a road trip to wind up with approximately the same number of domestic animals as were there when one departed. I'm happy to day that happened again. All the goats, peafowl, cats and turkeys are present and accounted for.

I'm also glad to report that Arpad (above) was there when we got back and apparently didn't eat anybody important while we were gone.

Every time I go back and forth from Vermont to West Virginia, I think about that hard-hitting work of social realism, The Lord of the Rings. As I've said before, the mountain state to the north reminds me of the Shire, whereas the one to the south is more like a threatened and embattled land on the edge of Mordor where the Dark Lord strives for absolute mastery.

SPEAKING OF WHICH, here's an interesting item from last week about Massey Energy.

SOS. Here's an op-ed by yours truly on the need for Congress to act to extend unemployment insurance.

DITTO. This editorial from Sunday's NY Times also highlights the need to help the unemployed--and urges political leaders to show a little backbone.

DEFICIT COMMISSION. Progressive groups are going to unveil non-draconian approaches to dealing with the deficit this week.

CATS AND DOGS. The latter may have bigger brains because they are more social.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

Ups and downs

El Cabrero just got back from a visit to the in-laws in Vermont. Every time I go, I try to take a side trip to hike up Mount Mansfield, the state's highest mountain. This year, I also wanted to see how little Edith Ann would do on the trail. She turned out to be a natural climber.

The trail I use is "only" 3.3 miles to the summit, but those would be headed largely in an upward direction. The trail starts out in the woods

but as you go up, the trees get smaller and smaller and give way to mostly rock. It's a bit like climbing up a demonic stairway built by ancient Greek Cyclopes. I had to skitter up lizard style at a few points.

The trail is such that it is hard to see just how far away and up there the summit is most of the way, which is probably a good thing.

Going down is less demanding on the legs, lungs and ticker but can be more dangerous. You have to make every step consciously to avoid a nasty fall. I'm not sure why I'm drawn to this mountain so much. It wouldn't be exact to say that I enjoy the climb--it kind of a pain at the time--but I enjoy having climbed it.

MISCONCEPTIONS about unemployment insurance are answered here.

NOT A RAVE REVIEW. Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship was the subject of this op-ed in the Washington Post.

SOMETHING ELSE TO DENY. NOAA just released a report on the state of the climate.

"THE RECESSION GENERATION." Effects of the current downturn on children could be long lasting.

LAST AGAIN. El Cabrero's beloved state of West Virginia didn't come off too good in a recent ranking of states in terms of wellbeing.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED

TWO MOUNTAIN STATES

El Cabrero apologizes once again for irregular postings. I’ve been hit by several weeks of phone/internet problems at home followed by connection issues on the road in Vermont. Goat Rope will run when possible over the next few days and will resume its regular 6 day schedule (Verizon willing) on Monday.

Thanks also for all the messages and emails about the triathlon. Let me know if you hear of any good deals on new hamstring muscles. I'm in the market for one...

COMPARE AND CONTRAST. Every time I travel to Vermont, I’m struck by the similarities and differences between that state and West Virginia. Both states are rural and mountainous, but Vermont had the good fortune not to have been dominated for over 100 years by a colonial economy based on mineral extraction.

As a result (aside from summer and winter people), Vermont is pretty much owned and controlled by Vermonters. And Vermont really is "open for business," especially for locally owned small businesses and farms. It's pretty much sprawl-free too.

To borrow from Tolkien, whenever I come here, I feel like I'm visiting the Shire, home of happy hobbits. West Virginia feels more like an embattled outpost threatened by one Dark Lord or another. But we have managed to win a few.

UTAH. My thoughts this week have been focused on the trapped miners and their families in Utah. That's an all-too-familiar story. The AP reports that safety reforms enacted in the wake of the Sago disaster were too late in coming to have helped in that situation.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED