Democratic Debate from Winthrop U in Rock Hill, SC (3 of 3): Marijuana Is NOT Legal in the Palmetto State

Amazingly enough, a woman from Atlanta tries to smuggle marijuana into the Democratic Candidates Forum at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC, earlier tonight.

The images above are of Cong. James Clyburn (D-SC, he represents the Charleston area), the only Democratic member of the House in Congress is also one of the most powerful Democrats on the Hill. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) who, along with Martin O'Malley, is running against front-runner Hillary Clinton.

Here are the tweets:

1) Catholic Democrats: Contrast to the GOP_ they want softball moderators who support their typical ideological position. Liberal Rachel Maddow is asking sharp questions.

2) Philip Rucker (Washington Post): O'Malley did pretty well tonight: Some tough questions, but he gave sharp impassioned answers and drew contrasts with Clinton and Sanders.

3) Rock Hill Herald: Woman arrested on pot charge at Winthrop's DemForum in Rock Hill.

4) Ana Kasparian (liberal tv host): Who else is feeling the Bern!? (Bernie Sanders)

5) Brad Gorham (Syracuse University): Good showing for O'Malley; no major flubs, thoughtful answers, didn't dodge the tough questions.

6) Lex Alexander (liberal activist): O'Malley didn't say he'd close Gitmo, and Rachel Maddow let him off the hook.

7) Liz Mair (Republican strategist): Martin O'Malley.....still the only D that makes me look favorably on Hillary Clinton. What a clown.

8) Dan Zak (Washington Post): Martin O'Malley brought a Martin O'Malley to a knife fight.

9) Ari Melber (MSNBC): Martin O'Malley says Dems have lost SC because they've forgotten the middle class.

http://scdp.org/

https://www.hillaryclinton.com/

http://www.winthrop.edu

http://www.catholicdemocrats.org/

Democratic Debate Tweets (2 of 3): Starring Martin O'Malley as Hercules

Here is our second tweet script from tonight's debate at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC. These tweets were taken as Martin O'Malley (pict. top) the former Democratic governor of Maryland took the stage.

 One female tweeter's enthusiasm for his physical appearance made us decide to compare him with Hercules, last played on film by Lou Ferrigno (pict. bottom), well, not that may not be entirely accurate!

Brer Rabbitt (pict. center) is our way of making sun of the South (my mom's side of the family is actually from South Carolina). On a personal note, my late grandfather Dudley "Doc" Sturgis taught at Winthrop. Here are the tweets:

1) Jessica Taylor (NPR): O'Malley applauds Obama on Keystone decision but not Secy. Clinton got there just last week.

2) Abby Miles: Could not be prouder to be a student at Winthrop University than I am tonight.

3) John Iodorola (Liberal talk show host/producer): On O'Malley's etch-a-sketch, he's winning in a landslide.

4) Dayna Colbert: I'm loving this. We need more forums.

5) Rachel Wright: O'Malley brought up the zeitgeist. I love fancy words.

6) David Doyen ("Salon"): None of the things O'Malley is saying will help him in the South.

7) Phillip Kessler: Candidates get to talk turkey without interruption from other candidates.

8) Kay Hanley: Martin O'Malley has ripped abs and glistening pecs but for some reason he insists on being in politics.

9) Toasty Poptart (Bernie Sanders supporter): I don't hate Martin O'Malley, but he has ZERO chance. He's barely a contender. This is a waste of time.

http://www.winthrop.edu

https://martinomalley.com/

Democratic Debate Forum Tweets from Winthrop U in Rock Hill, SC (1 of 3): Larry David 2016

Tonight, we give you live tweets from the Democratic Debate/Forum aired on MSNBC (which we are taping, but first we want to inform the world that the University of North Carolina women's volleyball featuring Paige Neunfeldt (pict. bottom) won on the road at Syracuse University by a score of 3-1 (25-19; 18-25; 26-24; 25-21). Kudos to the Tar Heels.

The Democratic debate took place at Winthrop University (center image is school mascot) in Rock Hill, SC, where my late grandfather Dudley "Doc" Sturgis once taught economics.

Though we didn't find any tweets we could use referring to comedian/actor Larry David (pict. top), there was much mention of him as he played presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) who was joined at Eagles U by Hillary Clinton and Martin O'Malley.

Since the last debate in Las Vegas, candidates Jim Webb and Lincoln Chaffee have dropped out of the race.

Here we go; most of these tweets were right before the start of the forum. Others are about politics or political views  in general:

1) Winthrop U: As Byrnes Auditorium filled up before the forum, attendees took time to document the special night with selfies.

2) Jim Bradley (A WSOC-TV reporter; ABC/Charlotte, NC): "Supporters outside Byrnes Auditorium. National spotlight on Rock Hill, SC. I'll let you know what the candidates say."

3) Bernie Sanders (from earlier in the day): Anybody who suppresses the vote, who intentionally tries to keep people people from voting, is a political coward. They are undermining democracy." (Ahhh, it's too bad Sanders didn't run against Pres. Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey; we aren't a fan of his).

4) Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va., from earlier in the day): Effects of climate change in VA are real. Sea levels rise and recurrent flooding putting community of Hampton Roads at most serious risk."

5) Cong. Virginia Foxx (R-NC, from earlier): "The president's rejection of Keystone XL pipeline, which has strong bipartisan support, is shameful."

6) Anna Douglas (newspaper reporter for "The Rock Hill Herald"): "The stage seats are full now too. I see many Winthrop students. They look excited."

7) David Corn (liberal journalist with "Mother Jones" referring to the next GOP debate): "Chris Christie in the kiddie debate will be like Godzilla against the kittens."

8) Michael Clark (WBTV-TV; CBS/Charlotte, NC): A mix of Hillary Clinton and Sen. Sanders supporters outside forum.

9) Chris Cillizza (Washington Post blog "The Fix" discussing GOP contender Ben Carson): "Just to avoid future controversy; I applied to Stanford. They saw fit not to admit me."

High Schools of the Week_ From Northside HS to Northwestern HS

Since we last blogged about our high school films, we thought we'd dedicate at least one entry to 'our favorite high schools' in America. I decided not to use my own alma mater of Glenvar High School in Salem, Va., to avoid a conflict of interest. But, we are featuring Huntington High School from Huntington, W.Va., which has the same school nickname: The Highlanders.

And, greeting our blog readers in Croatia (kudos on getting into the European Union), Sweden and Azerbaijan.

We do wonder if any of the high school biology teachers in this respective school is showing the episode of the PBS series "Nature," which illustrated why the Black Mamba snake, found heavily in Swaziland, is among the deadliest reptiles on the planet.

Here are our high schools:

1) Northside High School (pictured top). Nickname: The Vikings. Location: Roanoke, Va. Principal: Frank Dent. The school had 988 students in 2007-08.

2) Clarke Central High School. Nickname: The Gladiators. Location: Athens, Ga. Principal: Dr. Robbie Hooker. Notable alumni: Kim Basinger (class of 1972).

3) Huntington High School. Nickname: The Highlanders. Location: Huntington, W.Va. Principal: Greg Webb. Enrollment: 1,600. Notable alumni: O.J. Mayo of the Dallas Mavericks.

4) Western Alamance High School (pictured center). Nickname: The Warriors. Location: Elon, NC.
Newspaper: "West Side Story." Head football coach: Jeff Snuffer.

5) Walt Whitman High School. Nickname: The Vikings. Location: Bethesda, Md. Principal: Dr. Alan Goodwin. Enrollment: 1,928. Newspaper: "The Black and the White." Notable alumni: Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), Mark Halperin (news reporter/analyst) and Spike Jonze (film director).

6) Northwestern High School (pictured bottom). Nickname: The Trojans. Location: Rock Hill, SC.
Principal: James Blake. Enrollment: 1,800 Notable alumni: Former NFL and Notre Dame star Jeff Burris. Then-candidate Barack Obama spoke at the school on Oct. 6, 2007.


SIDEBAR: Kudos to Caroline Brailsford of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Va. The volleyball player was named the Girls Athlete of the Year by "The Roanoke Times."

https://www.alumniclass.com/clarkecentral


https://www.alumniclass.com/northsideva

http://www.waltwhitmanhighalumni.com/

https://www.alumniclass.com/northwesternhighschoolsc

http://www.roanoke.com

Spoecial Quote of the Day/Week- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Since all the public libraries in Rock Hill, SC*, where I was eagerly awaiting the arrival of Jon Huntsman** at the same Golden Corral where Fred Thompson*** spoke four years ago, were closed yesterday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we are quoting the great Civil Rights leader today instead:

"A man can't ride your bak unless it's beat."

*- Not really where I am at

**- For those of you in Karachi, Pakistan, and other places far away from American shores, the former Utah governor dropped out of the Republican presidential race over the weekend.

***- This part is true, Fred Thompson did indeed have a rally at the Golden Corral in Rock Hill, SC, but he still didn't win the South Carolina Republican Primary.

Happy Thanksgiving from Weird Al Yankovic!

I am blogging today from a computer in Rock Hill, SC, which might be the new home of the world's largest Wal-Mart............I'd rather watch the last few minutes of the Detroit Lions-Green Bay Packers football game!

Incidentally, Weird Al Yankovic has a new two-disc greatest hits cd out, and he recently performed on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon."

And, my friend Chris Knight who has a blog called "The Knight Shift" is claiming that he will deep-fry a kitten every time he hears a Christmas song before Thanksgiving...........does "Father Christmas" by The Kinks count?

Facebook Friend of the Week- Patrick Dawkins

This is my second entry which features a family member. It may be hard to believe that someone with the last name of Gokbudak and someone with the last name of Dawkins are first cousin but this is the world we now live in!

Patrick Dawkins is a freshman at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC.

He was born two days after my 19th birthday on March 6, 1989.

My alma mater Radford University plays his school in Rock Hill on Feb. 2.

Last night, we defeated our arch rivals Liberty University of Lynchburg, Va., by a 94-82 count in double overtime (Yay!). The assistant coach of Radford U is my friend Ali Ton.

As for Patrick, he is a fan of McAlister's Deli in Rock Hill and he is a member of WU Amnesty International.

Patrick is one of 45 cousins on my mom's side........ok, that's an exaggeration, but not by much!

This picture is of the WU mascot (the eagle) meeting with the Oregon University (the duck) mascot during an NCAA men's basketball game. The effing ducks won this particular game!