climbing

climbing, originally uploaded by mhartford.

Up the Mount Washington cog railway.

---

Oh, the Anticipation!

---

October 24, 2007, 1:21 PM
Levin: Michigan Could Set Same Date For Nominating Contest As New Hampshire
Posted by Brian Montopoli


Sen. Carl Levin has a problem with the Granite State.

The Politico reports that the Michigan Democrat is threatening to hold Michigan's presidential nominating contest on the same day that New Hampshire holds its primary.

Why? The present, "cockamamie" primary system isn't in the best interest of America.

“No state should have that dominant a role,” Levin said at a breakfast with reporters, Politico reports. “New Hampshire has a hammerlock, folks.”

Levin's plan would entail holding a caucus for Michigan Democrats on whatever day New Hampshire decides to hold its primary. (That date still up in the air, because New Hampshire has been biding its time in order to protect of its traditional role as the state that holds the nation's first primary.)

As Politico points out, New Hampshire is very good at organizing its primary quickly once a date is set, and that might make things tough for Levin. New Hampshire Secretary of state Bill Gardner is threatening to hold the primary as early as December 4.

Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is saying he wants New Hampshire and Iowa (which holds caucuses, not a primary) to maintain their front of the line position in the nominating process, the Associated Press reports.

But he also says that he wants all Republican delegates seated at next year's GOP National Convention. The Republican National Committee is threatening to punish a number of states, including New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Florida, for setting their primaries in January or earlier by stripping them of half their delegates. (Iowa, despite its early caucus, formally selects its delegates later.)

``I would like to see all the delegates seated, but I also want to protect the Iowa first, New Hampshire second process,'' Romney said in South Carolina.

through the lens

through the lens, originally uploaded by Ben McLeod.

State Sen. Martha Fuller Clark (and the media) watch as Sen. Obama signs his papers.

Wanna feel like you were there? Watch the audio slide show I put together.

---

OCTOBER 23, 2007, 7:59 PM
On the Road: New Hampshire Filings
By MICHAEL COOPER

CONCORD, N.H. – Behind the imposing granite Statehouse here, a crew of workers were sweeping piles of red and gold leaves into a contraption that looked like a giant vacuum cleaner. Inside, down a hallway lined with oil portraits of governors with names like Person C. Cheney (1875-77) and Moody Currier (1885-87), a small but steady stream of presidential aspirants has been making the way to a second-floor office to pay a $1,000 fee to get on the ballot for the New Hampshire primary.

A man named Albert Howard, 41, flew in from Ann Arbor, Mich., to enter the primary. Mr. Howard, a father of eight who gave his occupation as “family man,’’ said he was running as a Republican on a platform of shutting down the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Reserve, and withdrawing from the United Nations. He said he was heartened to be getting more hits on his website, alberthoward.org. The site quotes him thus: “The Angel of the Lord told me in January of 1992 that Hillary Rodham Clinton and I would meet and be running against each other and that she would lose.’’

Some New Hampshire reporters asked him a few questions, to be polite.

Then there was a rumble outside: Rudolph W. Giuliani was on his way up. Cameras and boom microphones sprouted, and a few elbows were thrown. One of the women who works in the office, Room 204, stood on a desk to make sure she should get a snapshot over the commotion.

Mr. Giuliani made his way behind an old, ornate writing desk, believed to be the only piece of furniture that was original to the Statehouse when it opened in 1819 (it cost $16 back then), and signed a poster known as the “Notice to the Voters,” which is posted in every town to tell the voters when and where the primary will take place.

Of course this year, with New Hampshire trying to guard its first-in-the-nation primary against leapfrogging upstarts, no one knows how early the primary will be held.

“Notice to Voters,’’ the sign reads right now. “The Presidential Primary will be held in the voting plan in __________ on _________.”

One member of the Giuliani entourage, Paul Celluci, the former governor of Massachusetts, asked, “Can he fill in the date?”

The inscrutable New Hampshire secretary of state, William M. Gardner, who has spent 31 years defending New Hampshire’s primary, and who has the sole discretion over setting the date, just laughed.

“Can you give us a hint?’’ Mr. Giuliani asked.

“Not quite yet,’’ Mr. Gardner responded, with a patient smile.

Mr. Giuliani signed the Notice in a large, slightly looping hand, and handed over his check for $1,000. “God Bless America!” he wrote with his signature.

The Notice looked a bit like the poster for a high school play, slowly filling up with autographs. “It’s time for real change!” Senator Barack Obama wrote. “Keep N.H. First,’’ wrote Senator Christopher J. Dodd. “Thanks for being the first in the nation and giving America hope!” Mike Huckabee wrote.

Senator John McCain, who won the primary in 2000, may have been channeling “Poltergeist” a bit when he wrote “He’s BAAACK!” over his signature.

Mr. Gardner, a student of history who wrote a book on the New Hampshire primary with Hugh Gregg, the late former governor, paused to spend a little time chatting about the state’s primary traditions between filers. He cracked open a 1906 biography of Edward H. Rollins, a senator from New Hampshire, which gives a century-old account of New Hampshire which, literary style aside, still sounds remarkably current.

“The intensity and excitement of these campaigns have never been exceeded in any state,’’ it read. “The voter who was not willing to make his vocation or business subsidiary to politics was regarded as unpatriotic.’’

It went on to describe the campaigning. “Men of national reputation on both sides, leaders prominent in other States, distinguished members of Congress, took part in the campaign, speaking upon the stump,’’ it said. “The state was visited by correspondents of leading metropolitan newspapers, who gave their readers thrilling accounts of the campaigns, forecasting the result.’’

(Note to readers: are you thrilled yet?)

Mr. Gardner – who can talk knowledgeably about New Hampshire’s role in creating the modern national political convention system, or the way Eugene J. McCarthy’s strong finish in the 1968 New Hampshire primary was followed closely by President Lyndon B. Johnson’s decision not to seek reelection – said that New Hampshire was notable for its inclusiveness. He said that anyone who cannot afford the $1,000 filing fee can get it waived, and mentioned that the state invites all the candidates – even the lesser-known ones – to participate in a debate late in the fall.

Then the Giuliani entourage decamped. Mr. Giuliani, who never officially announced his candidacy with a big speech or anything, may have been feeling even more of an official candidate. At the next stop, a town-hall-style meeting with employees of the Lincoln Financial Group, he drew nervous laughter by beginning his speech with what sounded obvious: “I’m running for president of the United States.’’

Back at the Statehouse, the windy side streets began to fill with people wearing pins and stickers that proclaimed them supporters of Representative Ron Paul of Texas.

He was on his way to file for the New Hampshire primary.

Glowing Colors in the South Cemetery

Glowing Colors in the South Cemetery, originally uploaded by roxieffcc.

---

Ready for Halloween?

United Church of Christ

United Church of Christ, originally uploaded by StarrGazr.

---

ANTI-WAR VOTERS PLANNING IOWA/NEW HAMPSHIRE SURPRISE?
by John Adams
Saturday Oct 20th, 2007 8:17 PM

Anti-war voters throughout Iowa and New Hampshire are acknowledging the inevitability of Hillary Clinton as the Democratic presidential nominee. “I’ve never seen anything like it!” says Richard Stanton of the California based POLLS’R’US, “Every major poll across the country is indicating the same outcome for the Democratic presidential primary race! Zogby, USA Today/Gallup, Harris, CNN, ABC/Post, you name them, Hillary Clinton wins them by a comfortable margin over Obama and Edwards. The race is going to be over before Super Tuesday even happens!”

Major pollsters across the country have been predicting for some time that the Democratic primary race would be a blowout, while the Republican contest would be the real horse race. “The Republican field is still wide open”, says Stanton. “Guiliani, Romney, Thompson and McCain are all viable, and then there’s the surprise anti-war candidate, Ron Paul.”

Stanton points to some underlying polling data which suggests over a quarter of Republican voters are unhappy with the Iraq war. “The numbers are pretty steady”, according to Stanton. “The pro-war candidates are splitting the pro-war vote, while nearly all the anti-war Republicans are supporting Ron Paul. The methods being used by the major pollsters seems to drop this data completely out of the mix. It’s not being fully reflected in their polls. Ron Paul could be the next Iowa/New Hampshire surprise.”

Anti-war voters in Iowa and New Hampshire seem to be getting the same message. They are turning their sites toward impacting the Republican caucus/primary races in their respective states. “I would have preferred Kucinich. He would have ended the war immediately!” says Barb McClintock of Iowans Against the Iraq War. “But, I’m not going to waste my vote. I’m going to register as a Republican and vote against the pro-war Republicans in their caucus, then I’ll be voting for Hillary in the general election. I have lots of friends who are doing the same thing.”

Bill Moore, a New Hampshire shop owner, says he’s been a staunch Democrat all his life. “I’ve been voting Democratic since John Kennedy ran in 1960! And, I’m so mad about this war I could spit!” Bill says he doesn’t follow the polls very much. “I have a feel for these things and I think Ron Paul could win this state! There’s a bit of Libertarian in all of us up here, Democrat and Republican alike. Besides, I like the idea of throwing a wrench into the Republican pro-war machine!” Bill laughs.

He might just have his way. Ron Paul has finished first in 17 of 36 Republican straw polls around the country, and in second or third place in another 12, far exceeding any other candidate. Successful fundraising, through the internet, has placed him in a solid position to compete with pro-war candidates through Super Tuesday, according to many campaign analysts.

Richard Stanton says Paul may have another distinct advantage over his pro-war rivals. “He’s definitely an underdog, but that can be a big plus. Thompson, Guiliani and the rest need to win Iowa or New Hampshire outright. It’s expected. But, if Ron Paul were to only come in a strong second or third, then he’s off and running, because it would be a huge surprise. The longer the pro-war candidates all stay in the race, the better he will do. Even if he doesn’t win the nomination, I could see him taking the anti-war message straight to the podium of the Republican convention. I’m sure that would make the anti-war folks very happy!” Stanton said.

Can Ron Paul pull it off? The majority of voters ages 18-30 seem to think so, and their media of choice is cyberspace. The internet is awash with Congressman Paul’s supporters. Meetup, one of the internet’s most successful e-forums, reports Paul supporters out number their nearest Democratic and Republican rivals by more than thirteen to one. I spoke with a number of them and the war was always high on their list of issues. They also wanted to remind everyone to register as a Republican and vote for Ron Paul in the caucuses/primaries.

I don’t know who’s correct, the pollsters or the cyber-gurus, and I can’t predict how the races will turn out. But, in the world of boring, big money presidential politics, it’s nice to think that a Cinderella can still make it to the ball.

we don't need no education

we don't need no education, originally uploaded by javier.izquierdo.

Keene, NH

---

Hordes 'n' gourds

Despite pumpkin shortage, a good time was had by thousands at Keene's annual festival
David P. Greisman reporting

The Keene Sentinel

Twenty-five thousand, six hundred forty-four.
The pumpkins towered over downtown from scaffolding set up on Gilbo Avenue, Main Street and Railroad Square. They sat on milk crates and wooden planks, in medians and storefront windows.

They did not land Keene back in the record book.

That honor, marking the most lit pumpkins in one place, still belongs to Boston, whose Life is Good Festival last year brought in 30,128 orange orbs. That beat out the previous world record of 28,952 set by the Elm City in 2003.

“We can consistently deliver 24-, 25-, 26,000 pumpkins, we just have to figure out how to push ourselves over the 30,000-pumpkin mark,” said William Harris, president of festival organizer Center Stage Cheshire County.

“I hoped for more, but I don’t want that to be a focus; the focus is that we had a great day,” he said Saturday. “Pumpkin record or not, the festival’s a winner for the community. That’s really what it’s all about.”

Suffice it to say, Keene was still far from a gourd-forsaken place.

People and pumpkins started filling Main Street in the morning, with the warmer air and cleared skies helping Friday’s puddle festival give way to Saturday’s 17th annual Pumpkin Festival.

Stations had been set up around town at which people could log in their carved creations. From there, the pumpkins were transported to their eventual destinations, be it by hand or by appropriately orange shopping carts.

“You get to look at them more when you’re picking them up and putting them up than when you have thousands to look at,” said Josh Rudolf, 16, of Swanzey, one of the volunteers pushing a cart.

Some people had trouble taking their eyes off one gourd in particular — a large smiling pumpkin face worn over the head of Mike Hudson.

“I’ve moved maybe 50 feet in the past half an hour from people stopping me to get pictures,” said Hudson, 19, of Sandwich.

“On days like this, it’s very hot and kind of heavy, but the looks that people give me and the smiles I get are all worth it,” he said.

Another creative mind set up a coffin near the corner of Gilbo Avenue and Main Street. Inside was a vampire made from more than two dozen pumpkins.

A tube led from the vampire’s mouth to a pole of pumpkins that held what was meant to be a bag of blood. The bag was labelled “O Be Positive.”

“We try to stick with a Halloween theme,” said Heidi W. Wheeler, whose family has crafted pumpkin creatures for several years.

“We think about it throughout the year. We enjoy their reactions to it. It’s great to see,” she said.

For others who came to the festival unprepared, stations had been set up where they could buy pumpkins.

“Some of them are embarrassed that it’s last-minute, some of them showed up without a pumpkin and then they wanted to participate,” said Ed Gartin, creative director of Holiday Arts. The Virginia Beach, Va., company had a booth in Railroad Square.

Other visitors, like the Mukon family of Hebron, Conn., arrived with their pumpkins in hand and then asked how else they could help.

“I’ve never seen so many pumpkins in one place,” said Melody Mukon, 52, as she lit candles in pumpkins along Main Street. “For a small town, it’s pretty cool.”

The festival also catered to shoppers and the hungry, with merchandise booths near Gilbo Avenue and an array of food stands along Main Street.

“Business is steady,” said Karen LaPorta, 40, of Salisbury, Mass., who was selling jewelry. “The people are really nice, it’s beautiful outdoors, Keene’s a beautiful area and we’re doing well for what we’re selling.”

Many of the food stands raised money for local organizations.

“This is one of our biggest fundraisers,” said Sharon Driscoll, 48, of Harrisville, a member of Community Church of Harrisville and Chesham. “Business has been great. The weather’s just been incredible. How can you complain when it’s almost 70 and no rain?”

Although temperatures cooled as night fell, the festival had already left its mark on many who were experiencing it for the first time.

“It is just incredible to see all these things on every level of artistic attempt,” said Charlie Pysz, 53, of Northampton, Mass. “Just to see the way the town got involved in this, I wish more towns could do it.

“It’s nice to see how well it’s done here,” he said. “I’ll definitely be back next year.”

House by the Lake

House by the Lake 3, originally uploaded by dpower1.

---

First signs

First signs, originally uploaded by 5-points.

Mt. Lafayette with its new coat

---

And to think, the forecast is for 80 degree temperatures on Friday in the southern part of the state.

How says global Warming is a myth?

Have you bought your season lift tickets yet?

Rushing Waters

Rushing Waters, originally uploaded by Rahool5.

The waterfalls of Rocky Gorge in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

---

October Sky

October Sky, originally uploaded by My Name is Merle.

---

Thursday, October 11, 2007
N.H. will prevail in being the first primary state

The muddle continues.

Four Democratic candidates have pulled out of the Michigan primary and one of Michigan's U.S. senators, Carl Levin, is all but calling for revocation of New Hampshire's statehood.

Tuesday, Barack Obama, John Edwards and Bill Richardson formally withdrew their candidacies and Joe Biden said he was bypassing the primary.

Hillary Clinton, Christopher Dodd, Dennis Kucinich and Mike Gravel are still on board.

Let the primaries begin.

Does the backing down of Obama, Edwards, et al make the primary irrelevant? It all depends on the turnout, who wins and by what margin.

Primaries are about people, not parties, and what we're seeing as the run-up to February are two free-for-alls.

U.S. Sens. Obama and Biden, former U.S. Sen. Edwards and Gov. Richardson have tossed the dice.

Sen. Clinton is going for the best of both worlds in Michigan. Her name remains on the ballot, while her position is, as iterated by an aide, "We're honoring the pledge and we won't campaign or spend money in states that aren't in compliance with the DNC calendar."

What is the effect on the timing of the New Hampshire primary? It might be related to whose position you believe.

New Hampshire Democratic Chairman Ray Buckley says, "Today's (Tuesday's) turn of events only further amplifies that the Michigan primary is irrelevant. Our secretary of state, Bill Gardner, now has more flexibility in his scheduling decision, because the Michigan event is no longer 'a similar event' to the New Hampshire primary."

Or is it?

The date of the Michigan primary is set by law — and that date in 2008 is Jan. 15 for both parties. If Buckley is right, the relevancy wheel turns on the number of candidates or their celebrity that determines its similarity to the New Hampshire. It's a question for Gardner to settle.

Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm said she was pleased Clinton is staying the ballot and disappointed Obama and the others have backed off.

We hope we'll be excused in disagreeing with what Granholm means when she says, "There is no road to the White House that doesn't pass through Michigan." She has her geography wrong.

As for Sen. Levin ... .

The withdrawal of four candidates demonstrates "the stranglehold New Hampshire and one or two other states have on the process," Levin said this week.

Levin and others have been trying to kick New Hampshire off the high seat it has held for decades. Yes, New Hampshire is the center of political attention every four years. It's where the serious and comical candidates come to promote their wares. It is in New Hampshire where candidates have to go eyeball to eyeball with the voters. It is in New Hampshire where the people can ask candidates the tough questions and stare them down. It is in New Hampshire where voters can watch and listen and before deciding they can trust one candidate or another.

The string-pullers in American politics don't like leading with states like Iowa and New Hampshire because the voters there cannot be manipulated; they cannot be bought and they cannot be fooled. New Hampshire is a state in which some candidacies are launched and some are sunk.

The wiseguys of politics in our country want primary and general election campaigns viewed through the single eye of a television camera. What they want are outcomes driven by special interests and carefully scripted presentations.

What of Michigan — is it relevant or not? It depends on how up front and candid you expect candidates to be.

The Democratic National Committee has attempted to dictate the date of the Michigan primaries, but those elections are still slated for Jan. 15.

Whether New Hampshire will conduct its primaries before or after Michigan is up to our secretary of state — and Bill Gardner has all the flexibility he needs.

Moving the sheep

Moving the sheep, originally uploaded by LisaNH.

From the front of the mob. I actually really enjoy moving them around. They are just the sweetest. I talk to them the whole time, and they chat back. I know all of them by name and by voice, and I make sure to make eye-contact with many of them, give lots of pats. They are sweeties.

---