FOUR HUNDRED YEARS Travel can be educational and the legislative bodies of the Commonwealth of Virginia took a short trip down the James River to convened their latest session at the place where they first gathered four hundred years ago.
The Senators and members of the House of Delegates pretty well filled the Visitors Center at Jamestown to hear the Governor of the State Timothy M. Kaine (D) deliver his State of the Commonwealth address. He did so with dignity and a firmly stated opinion that the time has come for passage of pending transportation and other legislation. He used skillful references to historic unity in the past when their predecessors pledged unity and fulfilled their obligations to the people of the area which brought historic criteria of past sessions marking their strong leanings toward agreement. "There is just too much agreement here for us to walks away from the issue for a second year in a row." Governor Kaine repeatedly cited instances in the past when legislative creativity led the people of The Old Dominion - far from being aged, but eager and venturesome enough to set individual and sectional differences aside to work for mutual advancement into realms which have been the basis for so many sterling benefits we enjoy today.
For many Virginians this speech by the Governor was their first real opportunity to see him "in action" speaking to an historic theme on circumstances in existence long ago - four hundred years, mind you! - when circumstances demanded much of all leaders of the people yet, at the same time, focusing formative light on problems, needs and shortcomings of our own time.
His comments on such issues as those facing us today were brief, factual and stated with marked simplicity. His treatment of the historical background was skillfully handled. Modern minds often think of history as being dull, dusty and date-dotted to extremes.
Not so - when Virginia's Governor Timothy M. Kaine, speaks his mind.
We Virginians had been most fortunate in having had exceptional leaders...four hundreds years of it!
Andrew McCaskey Sr. amccsr@adelphia.net 1-11-07 [c357wds]
