MY PAISANO - SECRETARY PANETTA

I was so proud when Leon Panetta was named as the Secretary of Defense...another paisano (NOTE:  Paisano is used by Italians toward other Italians meaning "Italian brother" sometimes shortened to Paisan) made good.   James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano), one of my favorite actors and favorite TV characters played Panetta in Zero Dark Thirty.  That was cool.

A little aside -- as stated above, I loved the Sopranos and the retched and conflicted Tony.  One morning James Gandolfini walked right passed me in the Pentagon.  It was me and Tony ALONE.  

BUT I WAS TOO SHY TO SAY --- HEY, TONY!   

What a wimp!

Anyway, I digress....  Secretary Panetta is quoted in the Washington Post as saying he thought Gandolfini did a great job, but he would have liked Al Pacino to play him.  I think he is right.  This is great.  I can write about three of my favorite Italians in one post.



I like to end my blogs with some comics, but this will have to do today.

Virginia House Approves Bill That Would Allow Commonwealth to Create Own Currency

 
What would you say to having Dave Matthews on Virginia's alternate currency?

Earlier this week the Virginia House of Delegates gave approval to a bill that would allow the Old Dominion to create its own currency based on the gold standard, reports Fox News. The bill, which now goes to the Senate, would authorize a $20,000 feasibility study on "establishing a metallic-based monetary unit.”

The alternate currency is the brainchild of Del. Robert Marshall (R-Prince William)—he of bills to declare fetal personhood and require teachers to be armed. Marshall has said that he is only preparing Virginia for the eventual collapse of the Federal Reserve; a similar bill he introduced in 2011 went nowhere.

In the event that the Senate approves this and Gov. Bob McDonnell signs off, what will Virginia's currency look like? Well, Marshall knows one thing: “We’re not going to be printing money with Dave Matthews or Jeff Davis on the front of it,” he said.

Consider us impressed that Marshall's list of Virginia historical figures includes the leader of the Confederacy during the Civil War and a guy whose music was the soundtrack for the lives of an entire generation of college town bros. That said, should the currency ever come to pass, it should obviously be decorated with Marshall's visage.