We're Back. But Please Read.

by: Dean Barker

Wed Jan 07, 2009 at 13:24:41 PM EST

Major major problems.

More when I know more.

And while we figure out a battle plan, now would be a good time to save the diaries from your account that you would like to save. The preservation of our data archives is an open question right now.

Update: looks like we're back in a more sustainable way. The advice about saving stuff, imo, still stands.

Update 2x: I just want to take a moment to thank everyone who has reached out to us, both with offers to help and also to underscore what a loss it would be to have to rebuild BH from scratch.  We've certainly had outages before, some of them maybe for even longer periods of time.  But what made this one unique was the possibility that the hackers were going to end the very concept of soapblox, which would have meant a major infrastructure project for us and probably some 100 other sites.

Special kudos to Jim C. for offering us an extended sleepover at Blue News Tribune, even as he was unaware of the fate of his own, new soapblox gig, and to Skip at GraniteGrok, who, knowing that keeping grassroots New Media going is a non-partisan issue, quickly offered a helping hand.

Update 3x: Looks like we're on the road to recovery.  And I'll have more on how you can help BH and the 50-state network strengthen its presence in the coming days.

Top 20 Blue Hampshire Diaries of 2008 (and other Quantitative Highlights)

by: Mike Hoefer

Wed Dec 31, 2008 at 08:00:00 AM EST

The 20 Most Popular Diaries of 2008

1. Sununu: Protecting Net Neutrality is "Dangerous"
   
2. One of These Quotes is Not Like the Others
   
3. Stevens & Palin: "Singing from the Same Sheet of Music"
   
4. May Be. Maybe Not.
   
5. Why does the CNBC store carry the "Hillary Nutcracker"?
   
6. NH Senate 2008 Tracking Diary
   
7. Who Should Run for Senate from New Hampshire?
   
8. How Obama Lost New Hampshire
   
9. NH Primary Results and Open Thread
   
10. Nine Comments on Phonebanking With John Edwards's Parents
    
11. On Recount Results and Election Integrity
    
12. I Won't Be Watching the Inaugural
    
13. The Big Day: Open Thread
    
14. Lynch endorses Republican
    
15. Shoveling Central Square For Richardson
    
16. Clinton-Obama Debate LiveBlog and Open Thread
    
17. If PUMA, Then DOPEY, Too
    
18. Blowback from Clinton's NH-Primary Choice Mailer
    
19. Advantage for whom?
    
20. Really Losing My Patience with Hillary Clinton

Join me after the jump for a bit more fun with numbers.

It's the Most Slow-Going Time of the Year...

by: Dean Barker

Mon Dec 29, 2008 at 18:37:31 PM EST

Basically, we are in the middle of the slowest possible stretch for New Hampshire political blogging. Yet... this place is humming along with lots of excellent discussions in the various threads.

You guys are awesome. Merry merry, and don't forget to give us some feedback for the road ahead.

Blue Hampshire Meta: Your Feedback is Requested

by: Mike Hoefer

Sun Dec 28, 2008 at 16:08:56 PM EST

In the comments section of this diary you will find four threads, please take a few minutes to comment on the following questions:

  1. What do you like most about Blue Hampshire? (Strengths)
  2. If you could change one thing about Blue Hampshire what would it be? (Weaknesses)
  3. What ideas do you have for Blue Hampshire in the year ahead (Opportunities)
  4. What could "move Blue Hampshire's Cheese"? (Threats)

Corporate types will recognize this as a thinly disguised "SWOT Analyisis".

Please feel free to comment briefly (one or two word responses are acceptable and encouraged)and openly (no sacred cows here).

You can "Ditto" or "Me Too" a comment by voting it up with the ranking tool.

It will be interesting to see what folks have to say, and we'll use this info to plot our course for the next two years.

Thanks in advance for your comments!

Update (Dean): Just want to say that this is a great idea from Mike, and that except for cracking a few jokes here and there, I'm going to make myself scarce from the thread so that y'all can feel more comfortable about saying whatever comes to mind, good, bad, and ugly.

Happy Holidays to the Hamsters, from Carol & Gene

by: Dean Barker

Sat Dec 27, 2008 at 09:28:34 AM EST

Water and Fire

by: Dean Barker

Sat Dec 13, 2008 at 18:53:22 PM EST

Right now I'm trying to keep separate three kinds of water.

1) Potable water (run to store that recently got power back to get some more).
2) Ice that fell off the roof that melts in front of the woodstove and that will be for the sheep.
3) Marshy water from the field for flushing toilets.

Hoping we don't have any frozen hamsters out there...

And my apologies for the light posting - things are going to be fairly sporadic until the power comes back on.  But I can't wait to post the pix I took - this incredibly dangerous event is also unbelievably beautiful.  I'm just sad that my stand of birches has been bent for so long that they're pretty much going to stay that way. :-(

Update (Sunday): Power's back late this morning.  Thank you New Hampshire Electric Co-Op and the fellow from Vermont that brought the lights back on for me and the two other houses at the top of our hill.  And boy, did I see some remarkable damage driving through New London. Ice storms are serious business.

Blue Hampshire: Like Getting the Paper a Week Early*

by: Dean Barker

Mon Nov 24, 2008 at 06:11:17 AM EST

How did Shea-Porter pull away from Bradley so convincingly this second time around, with almost four times the victory plurality as she had received in 2006? Shea-Porter beat Bradley the first time by 5,100 votes; this time, it was by 20,000.

For starters, she won in more places. Two years ago, Bradley actually won more than Shea-Porter did, edging her out 41-39. But she turned the tables on Nov. 4, winning 47 communities to 33 for Bradley.

Manchester was pivotal for the Democratic victor. Two years ago, Bradley won two of the 12 wards and lost the city by only 1,000 votes. This time, Shea-Porter skunked him throughout and built up a bigger winning margin there - 6,066 - than she had in the entire district during their 2006 contest.

* h/t to Kagro X's meme on dKos.

p.s. I hope to have my Hodes' version of this up tonight. And a sneak preview: what I thought would be a fairly tedious numbers exercise in Hodes' pwnage over Horn turned out to hold a real surprise - one that Mr. Landrigan in particular will find of interest.

p.p.s. - And to the part of the Telegraph column that addresses the UNH numbers - our issue with the UNH poll isn't about the 11th hour daily tracking poll numbers. Of course those are going to be close to the outcome.  The problem is the ridiculously small sample sizes for the CDs, combined with the non-attention to party ID data, which both combine to create all kinds of drama that don't necessarily exist.  And then get widely reported in the state media. Like, e.g., that the NH-01 re-match would actually be close.

Two Years, Two Days: Happy Birthday to BH

by: Dean Barker

Thu Nov 20, 2008 at 21:11:59 PM EST

So, who remembers the shark fin logo?

Anyway, I feel like I'm stuck in a time loop.  Our first post highlighted the UL telling the NHGOP that they need to remake their party after getting pwned in the election. Sound familiar?

Happy Birthday to Us!

And many thanks to all the Hamsters here who make this place the vibrant community that it is.

Hamster News

by: Dean Barker

Tue Nov 11, 2008 at 11:49:18 AM EST

* Paula DiNardo is the winner of the 2008 UNH Professional Advising Award:

Throughout her tenure, and no matter her role, colleagues cite her work ethic as admirable, her skills as precise, and her demeanor as perfectly suited. Through it all is DiNardo's tightly held belief that all students should be the beneficiaries of what the University offers in these programs.

* Christian Avard (a.k.a NH Ex-Pat) emailed to let me know he's landed a gig blogging for Air America Radio website. He'll mostly be doing exclusive interviews - very cool. And since he's mentioned it in the comments, I can now say that his first interview is with Michael Moore.

* As noted earlier, Landrigan floated speculation that Paul Twomey could be a great fit for US Attorney under the coming Obama Administration.

* The GOP are urged to come back - by imitating Kathy's success:

So, how do the Republicans come in from the cold? The party's base has to be expanded. The GOP will be shivering for a long time if it doesn't build a bigger tent - one in which the party's center will be welcome, not just as observers, but as participants and leaders, as well.

The leadership of the Democratic Party in New Hampshire is not a cadre of left-wing nuts. The House that Kathy Built (former Democratic State Chair Kathleen Sullivan) is a monument to smart political organization and implementation.

* As for BH, I'm still recuperating from the past election and - frankly - getting over the shock that we were able to overturn eight years of disaster.  And I've got lots of post-election data to sort through that I want to present in one way or another.  But for the long-term, my hope is to make this place even bigger and better for the future, and we will be working in the background to offer a better product, both in form and content, going forward.

All Done

by: Dean Barker

Sun Oct 05, 2008 at 20:47:37 PM EDT

Comment and diaries are back online. Have at it!

(and let me know if you are having any BH issues that you didn't have an hour ago...)

Important Site Maintenance Note

by: Dean Barker

Sun Oct 05, 2008 at 19:33:33 PM EDT

We're doing some scheduled site work tonight - gotta keep the Tubes clean and spiffy.

But to do this particular bit of maintenance, we have to turn off your ability to write diaries and comments until we're done.

This shouldn't take very long, and I'll update this post when we're done. Thank you for your patience.

Good Morning America

by: Dean Barker

Fri Oct 03, 2008 at 05:41:12 AM EDT

I was interviewed last week in Exeter by Good Morning America weekend anchor and ABC news political reporter Kate Snow for their 50 States/50 Days series on New Hampshire (presumably there will be vid up at that link).  It should be airing tomorrow (Saturday) between 8-9am.

Who knows what ends up on the cutting room floor, so please don't change your Saturday routine to watch something that might not even mention BH.  And I'm keeping my fingers crossed I didn't say anything that'll come off as cringe-inducing or Palin-worthy.  Though the worthiest thing I did say, imho, concerned her, so I hope that part is in there.

Thanks, Mike and Laura

by: Dean Barker

Sat Aug 30, 2008 at 19:46:45 PM EDT

Between their insider's view of the proceedings, replete with excellent written pieces, photos, and video clips, and watching the proceedings live at the DNC convention stream, I, from the comfort of my home, was able to divorce myself completely from the pundit/network filter. That is a really wonderful thing.

I think we'll keep the blue banner up top on for a while so folks can peruse all the goodies up there.  And for those of you who may not have done so before, but who found Blue Hampshire's coverage of the convention as new and different as I did, the yellow button on the left leads you to a secure way to help defray the costs Mike and Laura accrued for the trip.

In addition to the Great Blue Banner up top, I'm going to add some of my favorite speeches from the convention below, starting with the one that got Bill Clinton up on his feet shouting - Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer...

Scooped by The Exchange... Denver Delegates on Tuesday

by: Mike Hoefer

Mon Aug 18, 2008 at 23:28:24 PM EDT

I do have a bit of guilt about not doing more ahead of time. But the new job has been keeping me more than fully occupied. I have to take comfort in the fact that next week, I get to be a full-time blogger.

Things I have been doing to get ready...

I found a fairly inexpensive backpackthat will let me carry my laptop and DSLR with ease.

I've arranged to rent a 300mm lens(and flash) that will let me get close up shots from some distance.

I've purchased a "Flip" Digital Video Camerathat should make video posts fairly easy to do.

We've been talking amongst ourselves about how to handle content during the week (I will probably start playing with the right-column Friday or Saturday Night).

Agreed with "Zannel"to use their tools to post video content and embed their video widget here through November 8th. In exchange they will be providing some travel expense reimbursement.

Talked to Arnie about calling in to her radio shows while in Denver.

Blograiser Follow-Up: Thank you!

by: Dean Barker

Fri Aug 08, 2008 at 12:24:14 PM EDT

(I also have a mountain of email to answer, so my apologies to those of you who have written me - please bear with me, I'm slowly getting back on track!)

So, without further ado: I am happy to report that you fantastic Blue Hamsters out there gave over $500 macaroons to help Mike Hoefer and Laura Clawson with the travel and tech needs for covering the upcoming DNC convention in Denver.  Our coverage of the event will no doubt be the better for it.

Thank you!

And in case there's anyone out there who might be interested but was away at the time, I'm going to leave the secure yellow donate button up until the convention starts.

Our First Blograiser: Help Send Laura and Mike to Denver!

by: Dean Barker

Fri Jul 25, 2008 at 20:53:50 PM EDT

In addition, we have tried, successfully I think, to build an online home for like-minded progressives to engage in open debate and to build ideas for activism.  Along the way we have gathered a group of BH bloggers that includes luminaries such as past and present chairs of the state Democratic party, mayors, state senators and representatives, congressmen, a retired general, and even a presidential candidate.  But among the lurkers and commenters, occasional diarists and long-time activists, our greatest strength is you.

But here's the thing: none of the admins and front-pagers on Blue Hampshire are in it to get rich.  All of us have full-time jobs and full-time lives, and the effort we put into this project often comes out of what little free time we have. And while we do accept advertisements now, in reality those pay chiefly for site hosting and maintenance.

Here's where you come in, Dear Hamster. You may have heard that Blue Hampshire was honored with a press credential to accompany the New Hampshire delegation to the DNC convention in Denver.

This is, to be sure, a once in a lifetime opportunity.  Mike Hoefer and Laura Clawson will be going to Denver on behalf of Blue Hampshire, and will be providing the kind of behind the scenes, with a view to the Granite State, coverage you definitely won't be seeing on the major news networks.

But since none of us are paid to do what we do, this unbelievable opportunity comes at the price of travel/hotel fees, technology costs, and the like.

So all this week we are going to be highlighting our first ever "Blograiser" to raise as much as we can for Mike and Laura's expenses. The fancy yellow Donate button just below the logo on the left takes you to a secure PayPal contribution page. Please give what you can to help our convention coverage be the best it can be.

We will update you on our progress throughout the week, and Mike and Laura will chime in at some point to give you a sense of what the convention will be like, and what plans they have for bringing it to you here.  I personally would love to see if we can get to fifty contributors during the course of the week, but since this is our first time at this I really have no idea of what the response will be.

No contribution is too small, and as always, thank you for making this place what it is.

Rockpuppet

by: Dean Barker

Wed Jul 23, 2008 at 08:41:02 AM EDT

Update: From some of the comments I've been seeing on threads from other places, it's clear that some are either not bothering to read the post, or else are intentionally misreading it. RockinNH was not banned from this site because she was an anonymous user who was in favor of NHAC. We welcome anonymous users of all partisan stripes, although it's pretty obvious from our logo and description that this is a community of progressive politics.

RockinNH was banned, because she claimed, among other deceptions, to be an undeclared voter who had no knowledge of who ran NHAC, and to our surprise turned out to be, from abundantly public information, a Republican activist and State House candidate who is also the Executive Director of NHAC.
End Update.

Last Thursday I wrote about a Granite State Progress action during Concord's Market Days that was intended to highlight opposition to the NH Advantage Coalition's town by town anti-tax initiative. Four more NHAC and/or tax-related posts later, and suddenly Blue Hampshire found itself with a number of new users who were aggressively pushing the NHAC agenda, writing what has amounted to hundreds of comments back and forth.

So we took a step back and looked at the initial one, from a user who had signed up on our site right after that first post on Thursday, RockinNH. In looking over the comments, the detailed knowledge expressed about the right-wing NHAC in some of them fit poorly with other ones that suggested someone not associated with it. This aroused our suspicions, and we did a little digging.  

I should perhaps note here that despite our previous brushes with unethical sockpuppets and recommend astroturfing, we don't normally take such steps (nor could we possibly have the time).

However, when there are users out there who may be  abusing the anonymous nature of blogging to dishonestly portray themselves as something other than what they are, and to do so to pursue an agenda, we have a responsibility to clean our house of fakery.

So. When we did a simple Google search of the email address used to register RockinNH, we were surprised and disappointed to discover that it led to several publicly available web sites showing it to be the email address of Tammy Simmons (one example here with name and the address in question). As this article from Foster's shows, Ms. Simmons is the Executive Director of the NH Advantage Coalition.

(More below the fold...)

What's Left of the Constitution

by: Dean Barker

Sun Jul 20, 2008 at 11:47:41 AM EDT

Even if the quote from me is divorced from the context of rewarding good behavior and helping to retire debt from a candidate I have been frequently critical of and instead makes me look like a charter member of PUMA. Even if a quick search about the my FISA posts turns up words precisely intended to ward off misunderstanding:

Barack Obama is in so many ways a fundamental change from what we have had that I will work my heart out for him, and I'm no purity voter.  I just can't in good faith be a cheerleader right on the heels of this FISA business.

I really don't mind any of that - it's the nature of the business.  

What I do mind is the incapacity or unwillingness of the traditional media, here and nationally, to separate FISA from the left-right spectrum. Try as the netroots might -  and boy have we tried, in blogs large and small - Old Media by and large has lumped corporate amnesty for spying on you and me into the same partisan index group as, e.g., abortion and Iraq policy.

And every time they do so, it helps John McCain and John Sununu and Bob Clegg and Jeb Bradley, who would like nothing more than to frame Republican George Bush's breaking the fourth amendment as a "liberal" issue.

Too bad it isn't.  Here's what some who frequent the UL's comment section thought of Sununu's vote for FISA and telecom immunity:

Sununu--betrayer of the Constitution, betrayer of America, worse than terrorists, at least they don't pretend to work for us. Thank God for our second Amendment rights, at least we can go down with a fight.
- Tom, Dover-Foxcroft, Me.

Tom from Dover-Foxcroft hits the nail on the head - including the second amendment, which was designed to help us resist losing our rights. And yet for all intents and purposes we have gone down without a fight. Sad.
- JohnC, Newfields

If we get Comrade Shaheen out of the deal the it won't be because Sunnunu was too conservative. John Sunnunu does not seem to understand the rules clearly laid out in the Constition.
- Brian Fellers, Grafton NH

Well accountability is dead everywhere else, why break the trend with big business.

I wonder if these "I have nothing to hide" types would have a problem with the police searching their cars randomly for no reason. You have nothing to hide, no big deal!

Right, it's transparent and doesn't inconvenience you so that makes it okay! I moved to NH for more sane politics but so far NH has disappointed, big time.
- Matt, Derry

It's the one single point I wanted to get across when I tried to reach the reporter (who had contacted me) for the piece in time, and didn't.

The Blog of the New Hampshire Democratic Party

by: Dean Barker

Thu Jul 03, 2008 at 22:31:38 PM EDT

Meanwhile, Clark's comments are received with applause, not condemnation, on the blog of the New Hampshire Democratic party, www.bluehampshire.com.

But, for those of you who might be new or newish to BH, let me be clear.  Blue Hampshire is not "the blog of the New Hampshire Democratic party."  Nor do any of the admins or front-pagers work for the NHDP.  An obvious point, given how often we criticize our own party here, but still.

You know what was official, though?  The NH Republican Party newsletter in which Fergus included this "family-appropriate" humor:

HUMOR (Send your family-appropriate political jokes to fergus@nhgop.org):

Almost seven years ago I sat, as did millions of other Americans, and watched as our government underwent a peaceful transition of power. At first, I felt a swell of pride and patriotism as I watched George W. Bush take his oath of office. However, all that pride quickly vanished as I later watched the Clintons board Air Force One for the last time. I saw 21 Marines, in full dress uniform with rifles, fire a 21-gun salute to the outgoing President and first lady. It was then that I realized how far America's military had deteriorated under the Clinton administration. Every last one of them missed.

p.s. Did you know that Vietnam vet, retired General, and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Wesley Clark is also a Blue Hamster?

Ozymandias, or, Shorter WaPo Op-Ed

by: Dean Barker

Thu Jul 03, 2008 at 12:43:07 PM EDT

We beltway elites who read and write our news on dead trees know more than you stoopid bloggers, so why don't you just STFU about your civil liberties?

Ozymandias:

...And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains: round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.