Well, He Did it First!

The kids are playing in the backyard. The three-year old boy reaches out and hits the seven year old sister. The bigger kid retaliates. The younger one is crying. The big sister gets caught and punished. And her defense, “Well, he did it first,” is of little consequence.
In the NFL, the guy who throws the second punch usually gets the yellow flag. “Well, he did it first.”
Last year the President suggested Texas should re-map its Congressional districts. Now, Virginia has a special election to gerrymander its 11 congressional districts and Democrats hope it will give them a 10-1 advantage in Congress. Governor Spanberger’s justification…“Well, he did it first.”
Tit for tat. Eye for an eye. Measure for measure. There are many phrases for retaliation, but it all adds up to revenge. But history has taught us that revenge leads us to three things:
- Escalation: Most conflict never stops with one tit-for-tat. It usually escalates.
- Legal Consequences: If the conflict escalates, parties can be prosecuted or sued for damages.
- Reputation: Often the party seeking revenge looks worse than the original offender.
What we’re witnessing is all three consequences of revenge;
Virginia is escalating the grievance. Virginia has seen four lawsuits already and more to come. Virginia’s reputation is suffering.
Proponents of the gerrymandering amendment argue that it’s simply about fairness, but “fair” is subjective, isn’t it? It’s a straw man argument. If Texas disenfranchises many of its voters, Virginia has the moral justification to disenfranchise many of its citizens? That doesn’t seem like fairness. “Relax Dave. It’s just temporary,” a friend told me recently. Never trust a politician that says something is “temporary.” The tax to pay for the War of 1812 (BPOL), was also temporary, yet I write a big check every year.
I’ve met former Virginia Governor Doug Wilder on several occasions. At 95 he is fit, feisty and mentally sharp. He thinks gerrymandering is tyranny. At a forum last year he talked about a path forward in Virginia politics. He advocated for doing things “the Virginia way.” Once upon a time, Virginia’s elected officials worked to find common ground. They knew governing was more important than playing politics. Both sides got stuff done because they agreed to disagree.
The words of the late, great Mahatma Gandhi ring true today, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.”
MONDAY:
WEEKEND WARRIORS
Copywriter Robyn Quarles, husband Anton, and of course, office pup Fred, joined our friends from Holiday Barn at the Richmond SPCA’s 24th Annual Dog Jog, 5K and Block Party! Getting their steps in was easier than ever when they jogged the route with the Richmond SPCA on Saturday to raise vital funds for homeless pets. Fred even got some St.Patty’s themed bejweling on his snoot from the friendly Holiday Barn Pack!

TUESDAY:
AN UPDATE ON JACK’S SCHOLARSHIP
On Tuesday, during “drivetime,” my friend Jeff Katz from WRVA invited me on his show to give an update on the Jack Saunders Memorial Scholarship. ICYMI, the link is here.
To date, we’ve raised over $36,000 (with a goal of $50k). We received 79 applicants for the scholarship from all over the US. The deadline is April 18th, and we’ll announce the winner in May.
To donate to the fund, click here.
To apply for this scholarship, click here.

WEDNESDAY:
LUNCH BELOW THE BELT
Some of our team gathered at the office for a midweek lunch with some of our friends and favorites from Hitting Cancer Below the Belt (HCB2)! We’re so proud to support this amazing charity as they offer education and preventative support, intended to help defeat the spread of colorectal cancer and save lives. Their unique events – like the Boxer Brief 5k – help boost awareness, and bring the community together.

THURSDAY:
ZORCH FOR THE WIN
Our client Zorch Pizza took their tasty creations on the road this week – literally, they had to check their pizza dough on a flight – all the way to the Pizza Expo in fab Las Vegas! And the effort was worth it – their Grandma Pizza placed in the top 25 out of the competition for International Pizzas! You can get this award winning pie a lot closer to home when you swing into one of their two locations, in Carytown and on Forest Hill, or order online.
FRIDAY:
DAVE ON THE (AIR)WAVES
If you’re still planning your weekend, don’t stress. This morning, as usual, I called into WRVA for my weekly update with Rich Herrera to talk about events in the River City – IICYMI, here’s the link.
A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE EVENTS
Commonwealth Crossroads: Virginia’s Immigrant Traditions
Presented by the Virginia Museum of History & Culture and the Center for Cultural Vibrancy, experience a celebration of the richness of artistic traditions brought to Virginia by recent immigrants and refugees.
Experience music, dance, food, visual arts, and ceremonies performed by master artists from around the world now living in the Commonwealth; traditions that were born and nurtured over centuries in places like Mongolia, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Bolivia, Guatemala, and Cambodia; and that are now thriving here. The power and extraordinary range of cultural traditions that immigrants and refugees bring with them, enriching the Commonwealth in many ways, will be on full display.
This showcase event is being presented as a complement to the VMHC’s new exhibition, We the People: The World in Our Commonwealth, which explores the history and stories of immigration in Virginia from the founding of the United States until the present day.
428 N Arthur Ashe Boulevard, Richmond, VA 23220
(800) 358-8701
Presented By: Virginia Museum of History & Culture
Dates: March 28, 2026
Location: Virginia Museum of History & Culture
“The disenfranchisement of voters through manipulated district lines is always tyranny, no matter which party is doing it.” – L. Douglas Wilder, Virginia’s 66th Governor