Va.-Lousiville slugger picked as official state "bat" not the mammal

[underpants]

Later changed. First there was the miscarriage bill (almost ZERO local attention paid to that) then the underwear bill now this. See what happens when Republicans are in charge?

The Virginia Senate yesterday briefly took a bat -- a Louisville Slugger, to be precise -- to a bill designating a fluttering, squeaking kind as the state's official bat.

Again annoyed by legislation passed by the House of Delegates that they consider trivial, senators temporarily gutted the measure by removing its reference to the Virginia big-eared bat.

Never mind the Slugger is manufactured in Kentucky, one of eight states carved from Virginia's original boundaries.

The Senate, by voice vote, adopted Chichester's floor amendment substituting the renowned baseball bat for the flying rodents, which Chichester -- a huge fan of the World Series champion Boston Red Sox -- labeled "glorified mice with wings."

A short time later, Chichester withdrew the amendment and the Senate approved 31-0 the original bill by Del. Jackie T. Stump, D-Buchanan.




Stump said the designation of an official bat would call attention to the importance of the state's caves as tourist attractions and habitat for unusual creatures. The brown, furry Virginia big-eared bat has a 12-inch wingspan and 4-inch body.




http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD%2FMGArticle%2FRTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031780824125&path=%21news&s=1045855934842