I've been so busy thinking about Presidential politics that I've forgotten to blog about Mass.

[xiphias]

Massachusetts ballot question 1 terrifies me.

Massachusetts has a 5.3% income tax. There's a ballot initiative that would get rid of this. That would cut out 40% of the state budget, which is what the measure intends to do. The folks behind this claim that the state wastes 40% of the money, so that that would be fine.

Some of the "waste" they identify are things like paying for the Big Dig (I figure they must be thinking, "we already have it -- why should we have to pay for it, what are they gonna do, take it back?"), building schools, fixing roads, attracting bio-tech companies, and pensions.

We're already in a budget crunch.

And Massachusetts' tax burden is under the national average. We spend about 9.5% of our income in state and local taxes; the national average is 9.7%.

Comments

[madcaptenor.livejournal.com]

And Massachusetts' tax burden is under the national average.

really? I believe you, but it's surprising seeing how the state is nicknamed "Taxachusetts".`

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

It's a catchy nickname, but not necessarily true.

[whuffle.livejournal.com]

Well, take your pick, its either taxachusetts or Massholes....

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

Oh, but 'Massholes' is merely descriptive and accurate. ;)

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Yup. It's a totally unfair nickname. In 1977, when it GOT the nickname, it might have been justified, but, since then, our tax burden has dropped.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I voted to keep the tax. I don't mind paying taxes to avoid having undriveable roads and shitty public schools.

[smacaski.livejournal.com]

Ditto; those things, and you know, police and fire departments.

[ron_newman]

I voted no, as did everyone I know. I think people in this state are smart enough to reject this proposal.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

But with turnout this high, we're going to get a much higher percentage of ill-informed voters.

[ashnistrike.livejournal.com]

Damn--I remember Massachusetts' level of public services fondly. Please, my native state, don't do anything stupid...

The only thing that I recall seriously overpaying for in Massachusetts is car insurance. It costs about three times what it does in any other state, because of the lack of a free market. Any time they want to fix that, I will cheer.

[candle-light.livejournal.com]

I believe they have been forcing open the car insurance market here, finally.

[ashnistrike.livejournal.com]

Woohoo!

[ailsaek.livejournal.com]

I voted against as well. My first thought when I heard of it was "And how are they planning to replace the revenue stream?"

[cheshyre]

My first thought when I heard of it was "If you want a low-tax, low-service state, that's what New Hampshire is for..."

[candle-light.livejournal.com]

Indeed. Where they closed the schools for a bit because they ran out of money. Sigh.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

They're not. They're Small Government Libertarians, who want to kill government services.

[ron_newman]

Without specifying exactly what they would cut in order to re-balance the budget. That's what makes their proposal so irresponsible.

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

Wait a second. Hold on. Massachusetts? This sounds like something that a little town in Southern Utah would try to pull off, not something that would originate in your great state!

Utah: Home of resolutions banning the UN and mandatory gun ownership laws (seriously, two Utah towns tried both of those).

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

I hate, hate, hate, HATE the Massachusetts Libertarian party. I apologize to all the Libertarians on my friendslist -- and there are several, including one who just finished her term as an officer in the New Hampshire Libertarian party -- but I am terrified of them, and fear them.

Yes, they're in favor of getting rid of drug laws, and I approve of that. But they're also in favor of getting rid of everything that the government does to support tons of things I like, like schools, libraries, assistance programs, and so forth. And if they ever got any sort of power, they'd destroy many things I care about.

And they managed to get this sucker on the ballot, which is DESIGNED to destroy many things I care about.

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

The Libs in your state actually have power? o_O weird.

I actually voted for a few Libertarians this time around, but not for candidates in positions that would actually influence taxes (not that they'll win anyway in Republican-bastion Utah). There's a lot to like about the party, but their completely unfeasible and all around inhuman ideas about taxation are not among them. In fact, I would submit that these keep them from becoming a true force to be reckoned with as a third party.

[arib.livejournal.com]

Mandatory gun ownership?

As in "you not only have the right to own guns, you actually *need* to own one?"

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

Yes! You have to own a gun to live in Virgin, UT.

Here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgin,_Utah

And here, in case you may rightly distrust Wikipedia: http://archives.cnn.com/2000/US/11/05/mandatory.guns.ap/

[whuffle.livejournal.com]

No argument. I was listening to a co-worker talk about voting for this because he wanted his money to be in his own pocket and I had to walk out of the room to keep myself from screaming at him for his stupidity. And this is a co-worker with a mentally challenged kid who gets special school services that won't exist any more if that tax money isn't around to pay for it. Ugh. Idiot.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

I take it you DIDN'T ask him if he could cover all of his kid's special services out-of-pocket . . .

[whuffle.livejournal.com]

I was already too angry for my own comfort when I walked into work today. I wasn't about to knowingly pick a fight with someone who won't think rationally.

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

Wow. This guy sounds like a piece of work. Education: he be needing it.

[whuffle.livejournal.com]

He's just very selfish. He's the kind of guy who is in a lottery pool at work and keeps insisting while he blows hundreds on it each year that he's winning more than he's lost. Yeah, right. Don't you know? the house ALWAYS wins. He's also the kind of guy who goes to Vegas on his vacations and down to the casinos in CT on his weekends. He loves his money. And anything that has to do with money should, of course, be thought of only in terms of what will put the most money in his pocket RIGHT NOW.

Ugh. I hate this sort of short-sighted behavior.

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

And as a non-resident with lots of family and friends in MA, I'm really hoping that people boil this thing in oil. Especially since my girlfriend and I are looking at moving there some day in part so we can marry (I don't like California, and I grew up partly in Massachusetts, and familiarity is good for me).