If you were expecting to get our daily ARLnow.com Afternoon Update email newsletter, rest assured that it is still coming, but a bit later than usual.
We’ve temporarily adjusted the timing of the mass mailing in order to protect against a spike in web traffic. With more than 3,000 email subscribers, many of whom click on articles simultaneously after receiving the newsletter, we’ve had difficulty keeping our server stable during the otherwise high-traffic time between 4:00 and 5:00 p.m.
Switch on the TV last week, and it sounded like a disaster movie in the making. As it approached, evacuations were ordered on the coast and local residents stocked up on supplies. Then, as Hurricane Irene finally made its way up the eastern seaboard, local TV stations and the cable news channels went with wall-to-wall coverage.
No doubt you’ve already seen the damage reports and the damage photos. In your mind, was the storm’s impact worse than or not as bad as expected?
(Updated at 9:10 a.m.) The polls are open until 7:00 tonight in Arlington. That should give residents plenty of time to cast their votes in the four primary races on the ballot. As a recap, here’s a list of who is running, along with links to their candidate essays.
If you’re a registered voter, when are you planning on voting, if at all?
Here is the unedited response from Jaime Areizaga-Soto:
I am Jaime Areizaga Soto and I’m running to represent the 31st district in the Virginia Senate. I graduated from Georgetown and got a masters and law degree from Stanford. I’ve served our country as an Army officer for over twenty years and am currently a JAG Lieutenant Colonel in the National Guard. I am an attorney with over 12 years of infrastructure experience, a former White House Fellow, a member of the Arlington County Transportation Commission, and a lifelong Democrat. Over the past two General Assembly sessions in Richmond, I served as Policy Advisor to Senator Whipple supporting and advising her on legislation and caucus-related matters. The Obama Administration appointed me to the Office of the General Counsel at the U.S. Agency for International Development – I stepped down from that position in order to be a candidate to represent you in Richmond.
Here is the unedited response from Barbara Favola:
I am running for the State Senate because I want to create a Virginia that is more progressive, more compassionate and more inclusive and I offer the skills and experience necessary make this vision a reality. I ask for your vote on Tuesday, August 23rd.
Yes — Alex and his partner Jennifer do all of those things, and do them well. But he’s also a wizard when it comes to Linux servers, open source server software, and the IT needs of small businesses, and that’s why we’d like to thank him today. Alex has been helping us with our technical/server issues since shortly after we launched, and now he’s spending hours of his scarce free time helping us transition to a newer, faster and more reliable server.
Without Alex’s help, we would have been hard-pressed to keep the site up and running as it grew. Plus, Alex has been our go-to guy for random technical questions and information security-related services.
Here is the unedited response from David Deane:
My name is David Deane and I am seeking the Democratic nomination for Commonwealth’s Attorney for Arlington County and the City of Falls Church. As Commonwealth’s Attorney I will make the office more accountable and accessible to the citizens of this community. While the office has been well run under the current leadership, I believe that we should always be striving for better. I am committed to starting a Drug Court Program, working in collaboration with Arlington’s judges and community services agencies to treat and intensively supervise non-violent addicts rather than abandon them in jail. I am committed to hiring Spanish speaking prosecutors and educating the Hispanic community so that all citizens, regardless of their ethnicity, heritage, or immigration status feel safe. I am staunchly opposed to the death penalty. I believe that the citizens of this community understand that this draconian means of punishment is expensive, ineffective, and inhumane. As both a former prosecutor and a practicing defense attorney I have the breadth of experience to achieve these goals and to improve the level of service provided to the members of our community. I would be honored to have your vote on August 23rd, 2011.
Here is the unedited response from Theo Stamos:
My name is Theo Stamos and I am running for Commonwealth’s Attorney for Arlington County and the City of Falls Church. For the past 25 years I have been on the front lines of the criminal justice system, beginning as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney in 1987 and serving as Chief Deputy since 2002. I have prosecuted and supervised the prosecution of thousands of cases, always guided by the truth that the role of a prosecutor is to seek justice for victims and fairness for all.
Here is the unedited response from Libby Garvey:
Why You Should Vote for Libby Garvey:
Here is the unedited response from Rob Krupicka:
My name is Rob Krupicka, and I started this campaign with the simple idea that we need new ideas in Richmond. I’m tired of the politics of blame that we see everyday in Washington D.C. I’m tired of the same old finger pointing and partisan bickering that takes us backwards. I’m running for Senate because Northern Virginia deserves a leader who will reject the politics of blame, and work tirelessly to produce results.
Here is the unedited response from Adam Ebbin (typo corrected at 6:20 p.m. upon request of the campaign):
The question before voters in the August 23 Democratic primary for the 30th Senate District isn’t about policy or politics. With three solid Democrats running, there’s very little difference between our positions on major issues. Instead, the question voters must answer is, “who can best get the job done in the Senate?”
Here is the unedited response from Alfonso Lopez:
My name is Alfonso Lopez, and I’m running for Delegate to uphold our community’s values in Richmond.
