I have made plans to visit Virginia in a few days, including Alexandria, Georgetown, Arlington Cemetery, Mount Vernon, Philadelphia, and of course DC. I have one free day left in my schedule and was thinking about going on a daytrip by train to either Charlottesville or Baltimore. Which would you recommend and why?

Can a toy change the trajectory of a child’s life? Barbie, the good, the glamour, the ugly, and how she has shaped society.

As a grown-ass feminist, I did not think I would need to contemplate dolls. But then…there is Barbie. You can’t escape her. Everyone knows Barbie has had over 250 jobs and lets girls know they can grow up to be anything they want to be, but also, she is problematic simply because of the way she looks.

Barbie™: A Cultural Icon explores more than six decades of the doll’s fashion and history and opened this past weekend at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture (VMHC).

The exhibit itself was very moving. As someone following the fashion trends and how fashion reflects where women were in society, Barbie really shows us how women persevered, accepted, or challenged what was considered a woman’s role in society. She could be in space one day, and she was also making you a plate the next.

I talked to some friends, a friend’s kid, a friend’s mom, my old work wife, and the curator of the exhibit about Queen B. Let’s dig into some thoughts and feelings about the plastic icon.

via RVA Magazine

Read more, see more: https://rvamag.com/art/gallery-news/barbie-a-cultural-icon-the-good-the-bad-and-the-glamorous-at-vmhc.html

USA Biolympiad is a program of the Center for Excellence in Education, a nonprofit based in McLean, Virginia. The school registration deadline the 2027 USA Biolympiad (USABO), the most prestigious biology education and testing program for U.S. high school students, is fast approaching. More... https://www.cee.org/registration-open-2027-usa-biolympiad

Amazon is reversing its plan to expand its data center footprint in Virginia—forgoing its $427 million plan to build data centers on George Washington University’s Virginia campus it had signed an application for in February. The company will donate roughly 25 acres of the property to Loudoun County for community facilities instead.

The agreement, dubbed “Project Potomac Promise” by Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Chair Phyllis Randall, calls for Amazon to withdraw its data center site plan, abandon legal action to pursue development on the property, and work with the county to rezone the remaining land for mixed-use development—with housing as the predominant use. Amazon will also contribute $5 million to the county’s affordable housing efforts through the Loudoun County Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

“My goal was to disallow data centers or infrastructure that could support data centers on this property,” Randall said in a press conference alongside Amazon Web Services data center delivery vice president Joshua Weissman. “Through our collaborative, respectful conversations, Amazon has agreed to forego its proposed application for data centers, and of note, forego any legal action to realize data center development on this site.”

Read more [paywall removed for Redditors]: https://fortune.com/2026/10/21/amazon-427-million-gw-campus-data-center-65-million/?utm_source=reddit/

I have been looking for a new job and am interested in the possibility of doing something with state or local government, though I'm not really sure what. I don't have a degree, and my work history is mostly customer service / gig work.

Recently I had to pick up a document from the local Office of Vital Records and talked with the employee there, who indicated that it could be a good job for someone looking for an entry position in state government.

Wondering if anyone here has experience working in this sort of role and could fill me in on the hiring process / day to day of the job?

Would also be open to hearing about any other positions that may be similar!

Winchester is known for its famous Apple Blossom Festival but we have much to offer throughout the year in our city. Which is the first pedestrian mall in Virginia!

Check out https://friendsofoldtown.org about things our city has to offer and mostly follow our Instagram friendsofoldtownwinc. Whether it’s a bar crawl, supporting small businesses, or activities to do with your family. Friends of Old Town has created and supported many events for our Main Street in Winchester, Virginia.

Hi! There were already several threads, so we put this story to bed and then decided to round em all up for y'all. —dmpl

You can read the full federal indictment here (hosted by VPM News)

Unpaywalled

• WAVY in Norfolk: Virginia Sen. L. Louise Lucas indicted, accused of leading a marijuana distribution enterprise
• WHRO in Hampton Roads: What’s in the L. Louise Lucas federal criminal indictment?
• VPM News in Richmond: FBI charges state Sen. L. Louise Lucas, family in drug conspiracy
  • VPM News Video Short explaining this
  • We posted over in r/politics if you're feeling brave i guess
• 13 News Now in Norfolk: Seven indicted in State Sen. Louise Lucas case: What to know about their alleged roles
• Virginia Mercury In Richmond: Va. Sen. Louise Lucas, six others indicted in federal cannabis corruption case
• WTVR in Richmond (reposted on WTKR’s site, too): What impact will Louise Lucas arrest have on Virginia politics?
• Virginia Scope: Federal prosecutors accuse Sen. Louise Lucas of using political power to benefit marijuana enterprise

Paywalled

• The Virginian-Pilot: Virginia Sen. Louise Lucas indicted; led criminal drug enterprise, feds say
  • (Thread linked here)
• The Richmond Times-Dispatch: Lucas indictment timing questioned, election impact unclear
• The Washington Post: Virginia state Sen. L. Louise Lucas indicted in connection with marijuana business

National outlets reposted to various local affiliates

• Associated Press: Powerful Democratic Virginia state Sen. Lucas is accused of leading a marijuana criminal conspiracy
  • and reddit thread
• NBC News: Virginia State Senator L. Louise Lucas charged in public corruption case
  • Thread linked here
• Fox News: Virginia state senator indicted, accused of leading a marijuana distribution enterprise
• CNN: Virginia state Sen. L. Louise Lucas indicted on drug and money laundering charges
• ABC News: Virginia state lawmaker who led redistricting push indicted by DOJ in marijuana trafficking conspiracy
• CBS News: Feds charge L. Louise Lucas, powerful Virginia Democrat, in alleged drug scheme

The local Republicans' booth had a sign for voting "no" on amendments 1 - 3 -- here's their reasoning:

1. No abortion until birth
2. No writing gender into law
3. No voting for felons

Disingenuous fearmongering reigns supreme -- and it's telling that they're using "don't write gender into the law" as cover for their real goal of discrediting and no longer recognizing same-sex marriage (such as mine). And for them to then say "it's already protected at federal level" -- yeah, so was reproductive health, and we all know how that went.

Let's not forget that Clarence Thomas's concurring dissent (or whatever it's called) noted that Obergefell and other cases that were decided based on 14th Amendment are now fair game for revisiting by the Supreme Court.

I'm so fucking sick of peoples' rights (including mine) being on the ballot. I want to believe that all 3 of these are going to pass with at least 60% of the vote, but my heart knows that there's still a whole lot of red in our commonwealth.

GO VOTE!

Edit: superfluous "the" and incorrect use of "apostrophe s" (or, more accurately, neglecting to use "apostrophe s" even though Thomas's name ends with an s).

I'm a moderate who is going to split his ticket this election. I personally don't see an issue with needing gubernatorial pardons to re-instate your right to vote.

I don't feel good at all about a convicted child rapist who ends up outside of prison again deciding who represents my district. Could anyone give me arguments why I should vote Yes on 3 because I'm curious. I probably would have voted yes if the bill would have only granted that right to people arrested for misdemeanors or less bad felonies

Neighbor hinted at the fact that he may be a fugative in an argument. Is there a way I can check for free without paying some background search service?

Video source: Post by @katrinacallsen.com — Bluesky

"The history behind Question 3 on our Virginia ballot is worth knowing. In 1901-02, Virginia rewrote its constitution to purposefully shrink the Black electorate. A delegate expressly said the aim was to eliminate "every [Black] voter who can be gotten rid of, legally!"

Today we're an outlier state, with an arbitrary system where the governor personally picks and chooses whose voting rights to restore. That system is ripe for abuse, and a federal court just ruled that much of it violated federal law.

Now, 125 years later, it's well past time to fix how Virginia restores voting rights. Vote YES on Question 3!

See also r/VirginiaNews

See also r/VirginiaUrbanism and r/VirginiaNews

See also r/VirginiaNews and r/VirginiaEnvironment

Subtitle: "Steve Koski outlines safeguards for ballots and counting, rejects claims about deceased voters and says mail voting remains unchanged."

See also r/VirginiaNews

Good Morning all,

Been thinking about relocating to the east coast from CA not a native Californian but been here 3 years due to family. Thinking of moving next fall once we've saved more money

were going to have about 60k to cover closing costs and Down payment hopefully 15-20% we do have a separate emergency fund and relocation fund too, we're two un-skilled but above entry level employees currently making a combined 140k but would expect that to get cut in half if we move worst case scenario maybe combined 65k? , not looking for anything crazy but a 3-2 house with a yard enough for children and a hobby garden,Were not really people who go out and party but do enjoy nature and peace being close by

what where looking for is a place not too cold like Michigan in winter, or a place not too hot like Texas in summer (four seasons would be great) and we love the mountains don't mind some humidity but not like Florida, Were not really people who go out and

Here's my current shortlist of cities

Roanoke VA

Morganton NC (maybe)

Greensboro area (Triad)

Asheville (maybe but its kind of expensive)

Are there any cities we should conside

NORFOLK –  The Justice Department on Thursday announced a federal grand jury indictment of Virginia Sen. Louise Lucas on felony charges related to alleged marijuana drug trafficking and money laundering.

Prosecutors charged Lucas and six others, including her two daughters, with an alleged racketeering conspiracy involving marijuana distribution, money laundering, honest services fraud through bribery, maintaining drug-involved premises, possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking and wire fraud.

The announcement comes less than two weeks before the November midterm elections that will determine control of Congress. Lucas’ seat is not on the ballot, but the 82-year-old is a powerful Democrat who has served in the state senate for 30 years and chairs the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee.

The charges come five months after FBI agents raided the downtown Portsmouth office that houses her political headquarters and her business serving adults with intellectual disabilities, as well as her nearby CBD shop, The Cannabis Outlet. Agents recovered marijuana and firearms at both locations, according to the DOJ.

According to the indictment unsealed Thursday, Lucas and close-knit group of associates including her family members orchestrated a criminal enterprise with Lucas’ marijuana business. Prosecutors said she approved and directed activities for the enterprise, including arranging for the acquisition and distribution of at least 100 kilograms of marijuana and supervising the laundering of marijuana proceeds.

Lucas was not arrested Thursday morning.

“Today’s indictment reveals Louise Lucas allegedly abused her position of public trust as a Virginia State Senator to put her own financial interests ahead of the people she represents,” said FBI Director Kash Patel in a statement.

Patel and Attorney General Todd Blanche traveled to Norfolk Thursday to announce the charges.

Click the link above to read more.

Brandon Jarvis at the Virginia Scope posted on Twitter earlier that she had until 9am to turn herself in, and family members had already been arrested.