Granite Slate

The Ninth State and the North Pole

Interesting event tomorrow at the Statehouse: Governor Lynch is to accept a New Hampshire state flag flown at the North Pole by the crew of the USS New Hampshire, a Virginia-class submarine named for the state in 2009.

Bill Morrissey

    The folk singer-songwriter and author Bill Morrissey died Saturday while on a Southern tour. He was 59.

    I saw Bill Morrissey perform maybe 10 times over the past 15 years, which is to say, in no small way, that I'm new to his scene. In New Hampshire and New England, there are those who have appreciated his art for two or three decades. If Bill and his guitar and that voice of his showed up within two or three hours driving time, you could find these people waiting patiently for the first chord. I'd count my wife, the hula-hooping journalist J.L. Stevens, in this camp.

    The Grammy-nominated musician was a colorful character. Friendly. Witty. Deep. Dark. Funny. And sad. Sad, as in taking "a borrowed .22" out back of the bar to relieve a sick dog's suffering (and more, from "These Cold Fingers"):

Everything slips through these cold fingers /like trying to hold water /trying to hold sand /close your eyes and make a wish/ and listen to the singer/one more round bartender, pour a double if you can.

    His discography is really something. It has range. It has meat to it.

    And still, Bill Morrissey's music is -- much like the man was -- immediately approachable. Tributes have already noted that he wrote of the human condition (and his own: he battled the drink, with a few losing seasons). He conveyed life's trials and her little victories that people everywhere can appreciate. But it definitely plucks away at the heart strings of anyone who has ever spent a winter in New Hampshire. He wrote and sang of small towns, mill work, generous bartenders (hopefully), variable love affairs, loss and redemption, fishing and ice fishing, a musician's dream heaven, and the wicked, beautiful nature of snow storms ("When it snows in Pantherville the road just disappears").

    I could go on. But we've a dozen or more Bill Morrissey discs here that need spinning. Bill Morrissey's gone. His music? It remains essential. Time for another long listen. Time, as it were, for one more round, bartender.

Primary Leapfrog, Again

    Primary Leapfrog, redux. Everyone's looking at a New Hampshire Primary date of Feb. 14, 2012, but does anyone really think Cupid's Day would be the first presidential primary? No, and certainly not New Hampshire Secretary of State William M. Gardner, who is statutorily charged with making sure the state's primary election comes at least seven days before a  similar contest.

    Enter the Republican Party, which wants a reasonable schedule so that the eventual nominee will be ideally positioned to challenge President Obama. Jeff Zeleny writes in today's Times that the calendar is creating some anxiety for the GOP. An excerpt from his story:

"At the same time, the rush toward the front of the calendar by Florida, Michigan, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia and Missouri is accompanied by another trend: several states are pushing back their presidential primaries — or canceling them entirely — because of tight state budgets."

Debt Ceiling

    States rights ... to pay up?

    The debt ceiling debate include this story in The New York  Times on how the debt limit, if it's not adjusted by the  Aug. 2 deadline, could impact federal spending for states.

Scoring points, 140 characters at a time

Before President Obama's 50th birthday on Aug. 4, his campaign people are trying to get supporters to muster 50 donors or convince 50 people to attend campaign events. No doubt, there'll be many more "50" themes over the next three weeks.

Rudy Returns

    Rudy Giuliani returns to New Hampshire on Thursday. The Seacoast  Republican Women's group has invited him to speak at One Liberty Lane in Hampton.

A New Border War?

    The friendly rivalry between Massachusetts and New Hampshire is not always so friendly. Here's another story on how the states work to lure companies across the border.

Poll Position

    Poll Position.

    Another UNH poll. Another UNH poll showing Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney with a commanding lead in the first-in-the-nation state.

    Democrats are calling him a flip-flopper, claiming rampant inconsistency in his comments. But, as the Times reports today, the candidate thinks the debate (on the economy) plays to his strengths.

Useless Signs

The wild consumes this Wild and Scenic sign on the coast.