Why is there such a big deal about Bush and VA

[@DCGoldPants]

then I guess that's great news.

Who wants Hilary? Besides Hilary?

[Destino]

Can't put "liberal NOVA" in quotes. You elect Kaine, you are liberal. Period. It's nothing but the cancer spreading out from DC. Virginia is the first stop for liberals running south to get away from high taxes, and this is the result.

We'll see what Kaine does though. If he tries to do what he really wants to do, there's going to be some serious buyers' remorse from dupes south of NOVA who voted for Kaine/stayed home yesterday because Kilgore was weak and they're disgruntled with the GOP.

What about Kaine makes him a liberal?

Are you one of those lunatics that thinks all democrats are liberals?

[Kilmer17]

Kaine would be a Republican in over half the states. He's far from a liberal.

[Burgold]

From what I understand from Kilgore's ads is that in a pretty red (does that mean conservatives are communists) state an extremely liberal democrat won governor, the attourney general was deadlocked, the lt. gov. was practically a tie, and the democrats picked up a number of seats in the state Senate. All of it together could mark a philosophical change or recognition.

[Kilmer17]

Well of course the ads will paint him that way.

The GOP picked up the Lt Gov seat (30 thousands votes isnt close to a tie). That was the only major change. And the fact that the ATTY General is as far rright as he is shouldnt be ignored.

[Burgold]

Noticed that you ignored the fact the State Senate has changed constituency. The 50 vs. 49% in the LT. Gov. race is very tight... 1% is not much in what some posters here are calling a very conservative state. Losing delegates is more telling. Whether it speaks more to Bush, Warner, or a bigger political shift I don't know. The fact is Virginia may be more purple than red after today.

[Kilmer17]

Is the Senate and House of Del still controlled by the GOP?

It's expected in any political race for a "coattails" effect to occur. The Dems should be very worried that the coattails were as small as they were and werent big enough to defeat 2 GOPers lower on the big ticket.

[Prosperity]

There is no big deal Northern Virginia is more liberal while southern Va is God's country and where you see most of your patriots residing and thus conservative.

Kaine was replacing a democrat no big.

God's country=poor hicks? ok God's country sucks then

[Destino]

Is the Senate and House of Del still controlled by the GOP?

It's expected in any political race for a "coattails" effect to occur. The Dems should be very worried that the coattails were as small as they were and werent big enough to defeat 2 GOPers lower on the big ticket.

Dems should be very worred that they gained ground in a RED STATE?

lol Sorry Kilmer but I disagree. Any gain in VA for the democrats is icing on the cake, because this state plays no role in the national picture for them.

[SkinsHokieFan]

The GOP still has a very very strong majority in the General Assembley in VA

So Governor Kaine will get to work with a GOP House and Senate and a GOP Lt. Governor and GOP AG

Sounds like some shift in the VA

[AJ_Skins]

Im shocked I tell you SHOCKED that the non-liberal media is making this such a big story (insert as many sarcasm emoticons as possible here).

A popular conservative Democrat sitting Lt Gov held onto a seat held by an even more popular conservative Democrat. While a very Conservative Republican won the Lt Gov seat defeating a Dem and a Pat Robertson puppet won the AG seat.

This is supposed to be big news and a positive for the Democrats?

The big loser yesterday in the VA Gov election was Hillary Clinton. Mark Warner's status as a major player just skyrocketted.

Only one problem: Kaine is not a conservative.

[Kilmer17]

And if you look at the "gains" the Dems made, they were seats picked up by moderate Dems running against right wing nutjobs like Dick Black.

I hope, though, that the Dems sit back and pat themselves on the back thinking they've accomplished something. It will make next years election that more disappointing for them.

[Ax]

God's country=poor hicks? ok God's country sucks then

Spoken like a city boy Richard Whiskey.

[Kilmer17]

Only one problem: Kaine is not a conservative.

It depends on what you use as the baseline. Compared to Kilgore he wasnt, but he certainly would be on a national scale.

[AJ_Skins]

What about Kaine makes him a liberal?

Are you one of those lunatics that thinks all democrats are liberals?

:doh:

Obviously this thinking is what happened yesterday. Just because he was LT while Warner was Gov. doesn't mean he's Warner. Warner legitimately and substantially broke from the Democratic Party mold (except the part where he lied about not wanting to raise taxes). Kaine is a died-in-the-wool liberal who just took whatever positions he had to in order to masquearde himself.

Also, he was mayor of Richmond. Maybe if you're not from Richmond, you don't know what that means, but it means he's a crook. Up until very recently, the mayor of Richmond was not directly elected, they were chosen from the city council by a vote of its own members. About half of the city council that made Tim Kaine mayor is now in jail.

Chuck Richardson, Saad El-Amin, Gwen Hedgepeth. If you know who those people are, you know what I'm talking about.

[chomerics]

Ok Chom, prove that Virginia isn't one of the most conservative states in the US. Virgina is 2nd behind Texas in executions, we still have anti-sodomy laws on the books, Republicans control the House/Senate/Lt Gov/Attorney Gen, and Virginia voted by a large margin for Bush in the last election.

What is the percentage in real estate and personal propery taxes?

In Saugus, the town that I live in, I currently pay $2200. The house is worth around $400K, but it has not been re-assesed yet. If you look at TOTAL revenues generated, then Massachusetts is high in taxes, I believe 11th in the country (13 in population). . . but that is not the whole story. Massachusetts ALSO has one of the highest incomes in the country, second only to Conn. When you look at tax as a % of income, Massachusetts drops to 28th, and that is really what we are looking at right?

I mean we are concerned about the % of earnings taxed right, not the total amount. Here is the reason for it. You can live in a really rich state, and pay a really low tax rate, say 1% for example but you will pay more in taxes then a poor state with a high tax rate, hence revenues are not important when comparing taxes, but tax rate as a % of income. So in other words, we have revenues in the top 15, yet we are below average in % taxed on the population.

To the Editor:

The story on the Census Bureau’s release of state tax collection data paints a distorted picture of the Massachusetts tax burden. (“Tax man taketh tons from Bay State,” May 22). Our tax burden in Massachusetts is lower than in most states.

The story does not account for differences in the size of states and of their economies. For example, Massachusetts ranks 11th in total taxes only when variations in state size are ignored. Massachusetts has the 13th largest population, and of course, the largest states will generally collect more total dollars in taxes than smaller states.

Similarly, if two states have the same tax rate and average income in one state is higher than another’s, the higher income state will collect more in revenue. A proper measure of tax burden looks at total taxes as a share of total personal income. By this measure, Massachusetts ranks 28th in the nation. Indeed, its tax burden is below states like Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Utah.

http://www.massbudget.org/article.php?id=220

We have one of the LOWEST state taxes for business!!! Yes, you read that right, Massachusetts, the "liberal" state ranks at the bottom of the barrel when concerning business tax. . . guess that will of those damn never met a tax I didn't like liberal huh.

http://www.massbudget.org/Facts_at_a_Glance_Business_Taxes.pdf

As for Virginia being one of the most conservative states? you think the death penalty is what makes it conservative? That you have a sodomy law on the book? That just makes your state backwards, not conservative. I have shown you election results, and simply saying it is conservative does not cut the cake.

BTW, you were the one who made the assertion, the burden of proof is on you to back your claim up, not on me to prove you wrong with a claim with no backing.

[chomerics]

Can't put "liberal NOVA" in quotes. You elect Kaine, you are liberal. Period. It's nothing but the cancer spreading out from DC. Virginia is the first stop for liberals running south to get away from high taxes, and this is the result.

You need to re-examine your facts if you truly think that. Look at my other post for the true facts regarding the "high taxes" of the north.

[AJ_Skins]

As for Virginia being one of the most conservative states? you think the death penalty is what makes it conservative? That you have a sodomy law on the book? That just makes your state backwards, not conservative. I have shown you election results, and simply saying it is conservative does not cut the cake.

Don't you think it's kind of strange for somebody from Massachusetts to be telling people in Virginia what Virginia is like?

The situation is this: there are two Virginias, not unlike the larger picture of the U.S. There is the traditional Virginia of those who were born and raised here, which is very socially conservative, and very big on limited government (due in part to the legacy of Thomas Jefferson). Then there are those who have moved in in recent decades, who have no sense of nor interest in what it is that created the favorable environment they chose to move into, and are slowly proceeding to hijack the state from the original residents.

In other words, the "real" Virginia is very conservative, but the favorable conditions created by that conservatism have made it an attractive place for out-of-state liberals to descend upon like parasites to a fresh fattened host. Further complicating it is the deep historical ties the state has to the Democratic Party. There are still a lot of people whose parents, grandparents, and great grandparents voted for the Democrats that keep wanting to do the same against their own better judgement.

[AJ_Skins]

You need to re-examine your facts if you truly think that. Look at my other post for the true facts regarding the "high taxes" of the north.

High taxes, cultural rot, whatever it is, there are definitely a lot of people coming here from out of state. Quite a few from California as well for whatever reason.

You may be right about overall taxes in MA. When people say the "northeast" a lot of times it's basically shorthand for NYC, where the taxes are indeed astronomical. People may have more money, but everything also costs twice as much. What's the price of gas right now in MA? It was down to about $2.50 here last time I filled up.

[chomerics]

High taxes, cultural rot, whatever it is, there are definitely a lot of people coming here from out of state. Quite a few from California as well for whatever reason.

You may be right about overall taxes in MA. When people say the "northeast" a lot of times it's basically shorthand for NYC, where the taxes are indeed astronomical. People may have more money, but everything also costs twice as much. What's the price of gas right now in MA? It was down to about $2.50 here last time I filled up.

Price of gas was $2.13 the last time I filled up, and this is 5 miles north of Boston, and there is a station where gas is under $2 less then 5 miles from my house. It is a perfect example of how your preconcieved bias of the "north" has verry little to do with reality, but instead shows who you listen to.

As I mentioned before, Mass has fairly middle of the road taxes, much lower then many red states. You really need to re-evaluate the platforms of both parties, especially concerning taxes and spending because you've thrown out some baseless and patently false propaganda in this thread.

You can also call treating everyone fair "culture rot" if you want to. . . but then again, the people complaining about the "cultural rot" from the Northern states were the same ones who wanted segregated schools in the 50's.

[chomerics]

Don't you think it's kind of strange for somebody from Massachusetts to be telling people in Virginia what Virginia is like?

Seeing as how I lived for almost 1/3rd of my life in VA., no I do not think so.

The situation is this: there are two Virginias, not unlike the larger picture of the U.S. There is the traditional Virginia of those who were born and raised here, which is very socially conservative, and very big on limited government (due in part to the legacy of Thomas Jefferson). Then there are those who have moved in in recent decades, who have no sense of nor interest in what it is that created the favorable environment they chose to move into, and are slowly proceeding to hijack the state from the original residents.

In other words, the "real" Virginia is very conservative, but the favorable conditions created by that conservatism have made it an attractive place for out-of-state liberals to descend upon like parasites to a fresh fattened host. Further complicating it is the deep historical ties the state has to the Democratic Party. There are still a lot of people whose parents, grandparents, and great grandparents voted for the Democrats that keep wanting to do the same against their own better judgement.

In otherwords, Yankee money is infultrating your state. . .just come out and say it, don't beat around the bush.

As for the "favorable conditions" . . . ummm, the only thing real favorable to VA is the proximity to DC. And when you have conservative leaders who expand government, the people have to live somewhere right.

It is people like yourself who cause the polarization of this country, and it reeks of hate radio. You need to stop being so polarized in your views, and actually look at the facts before spewing off false propaganda, distortions and outright hate filled dirbble like you have in your last couple of posts.

[Predicto]

Don't you think it's kind of strange for somebody from Massachusetts to be telling people in Virginia what Virginia is like?

The situation is this: there are two Virginias, not unlike the larger picture of the U.S. There is the traditional Virginia of those who were born and raised here, which is very socially conservative, and very big on limited government (due in part to the legacy of Thomas Jefferson). Then there are those who have moved in in recent decades, who have no sense of nor interest in what it is that created the favorable environment they chose to move into, and are slowly proceeding to hijack the state from the original residents.

In other words, the "real" Virginia is very conservative, but the favorable conditions created by that conservatism have made it an attractive place for out-of-state liberals to descend upon like parasites to a fresh fattened host. Further complicating it is the deep historical ties the state has to the Democratic Party. There are still a lot of people whose parents, grandparents, and great grandparents voted for the Democrats that keep wanting to do the same against their own better judgement.

Born and raised in Virginia, and happy to be the heck out of there. As far as I can tell, the parasites live in the "real" Virginia of which you are so proud. Tax dollars are sucked out of NoVa and transferred downstate to those disciples of "limited government," year after year, decade after decade. It's easy to spout about limited government when you get services that you don't have to pay for.

[AJ_Skins]

Price of gas was $2.13 the last time I filled up, and this is 5 miles north of Boston, and there is a station where gas is under $2 less then 5 miles from my house. It is a perfect example of how your preconcieved bias of the "north" has verry little to do with reality, but instead shows who you listen to.

That's surprising, although it has been about a week since I got gas, so it's probably that low here now as well.

As I mentioned before, Mass has fairly middle of the road taxes, much lower then many red states. You really need to re-evaluate the platforms of both parties, especially concerning taxes and spending because you've thrown out some baseless and patently false propaganda in this thread.

You can't tell me Democrats are for lower taxes. That's ridiculous.

You can also call treating everyone fair "culture rot" if you want to. . . but then again, the people complaining about the "cultural rot" from the Northern states were the same ones who wanted segregated schools in the 50's.

On the contrary, those who wanted segregated schools in the 1950s were all Democrats, and they're also DEAD. This is the monumental blunder liberals make in misunderstanding the rest of the nation. Their concept of their fellow Americans is 50 years out of date. Also, no matter how you spin it, the mainstreaming of sexual perversion has absolutely no relationship to issues of racial equality. Keep trying to link it, but you will fail.

[AJ_Skins]

Seeing as how I lived for almost 1/3rd of my life in VA., no I do not think so.

In otherwords, Yankee money is infultrating your state. . .just come out and say it, don't beat around the bush.

Uh..."yankee money"? Don't even know what that means. Virginia was doing quite well before the recent influx from outside.

As for the "favorable conditions" . . . ummm, the only thing real favorable to VA is the proximity to DC. And when you have conservative leaders who expand government, the people have to live somewhere right.

It is people like yourself who cause the polarization of this country, and it reeks of hate radio. You need to stop being so polarized in your views, and actually look at the facts before spewing off false propaganda, distortions and outright hate filled dirbble like you have in your last couple of posts.

Uh huh. I've seen your posts...you have the stones to talk about "spreading propaganda"? :laugh:

[AJ_Skins]

Born and raised in Virginia, and happy to be the heck out of there. As far as I can tell, the parasites live in the "real" Virginia of which you are so proud. Tax dollars are sucked out of NoVa and transferred downstate to those disciples of "limited government," year after year, decade after decade. It's easy to spout about limited government when you get services that you don't have to pay for.

Ah...first Boston, now San Francisco. The thread is complete.