Comments on just up the pike: teachers union: the 800-lb gorilla of moco politic...

Over the last 15 years, all of the population grow...

2006-09-22T12:55:00.000-04:00

Over the last 15 years, all of the population growth in Montgomery County has been among racial minorities. In fact, the white population here is smaller than it was 15 years ago.

Run the "slow growth," "we have too many people here" back 15 years and you can see the real-life impact of the NMBY philosphy.

don't look for consistency in the philosophy of th...

2006-09-18T17:01:00.000-04:00

don't look for consistency in the philosophy of the Neighbors for a Whiter Montgomery. Whatever it is, they just don't... want it... here. They have their nice houses and their good jobs and they don't want anyone else to have them.

The "infrastructure" argument for slow growth is a...

2006-09-18T12:45:00.000-04:00

The "infrastructure" argument for slow growth is actually an argument for sprawl. The argument is that development cannot happen unless there is access for automobiles as well as people -- that is, if roads are overly congested development should be held up, even if there is plenty of excess capacity on the transit network. I haven't seen calls from slow-growthers for a moratorium on development in locations that lack adequate transit access, even though the current Master Plan allows lots of such development.

Since there is no room for more roads in the downcounty (certainly not without knocking down houses, which the slow-growthers oppose as I do), this means that the only possible development is in areas where new roads can be built.

I question the infrastructure argument that ‘slow ...

2006-09-18T11:13:00.000-04:00

I question the infrastructure argument that ‘slow growth’ NIMBYs continue to pound into everybody’s head. There seems to be a no-compromise approach with these people. Their one sided approach equates to having their cake and eating it too without understanding the big picture.

What infrastructure is being compromised and if so what is your solution? What is your time frame for having the ifrastructure “catch up”; three, ten or twenty years from now? How do you plan on “slowing growth” without derailing the economy of the county?

Neighbors for a Better Montgomery supports more af...

2006-09-18T08:34:00.000-04:00

Neighbors for a Better Montgomery supports more affordable housing?

Why did they support the Sacks Neighborhood in Bethesda, which insisted that new housing on the parking lot opposite Barnes & Noble must be condos and not rentals?

Yes, they did argue that allowing housing to be built in the parking lots along Battery Lane would destroy the existing affordable housing (through the accompanying renovation). But this ignores the reality that if any possibility of future redevelopment of that area is ruled out, the existing buildings would soon be renovated.

Neighbors for a Whiter Montgomery wants "real affo...

2006-09-18T02:13:00.000-04:00

Neighbors for a Whiter Montgomery wants "real affordable housing" in Prince George's County.

I guess you haven't noticed that housing prices ha...

2006-09-17T23:08:00.000-04:00

I guess you haven't noticed that housing prices have ALREADY skyrocketed. Please don't try to disguise your bias as concern about minorities and the poor. You throw around accusations of "NIMBY" at anyone who disagrees with your blatant build, build, build sentiment. Neighbors has been one of the main advocates of real affordable housing. What they object to is development that outpaces infrastructure. And what's with this "whether or not they are racist' innuendo? C'mon.

If we put a cap on development like NBM wants, hou...

2006-09-17T22:13:00.000-04:00

If we put a cap on development like NBM wants, housing prices would skyrocket. Whether or not they're racist, their policies would keep low-income people and minorities out of the County.

Wow, same stupid comment on the past three blogs I...

2006-09-17T21:12:00.000-04:00

Wow, same stupid comment on the past three blogs I've looked at. You just can't get over the fact that Silverman lost, can you? So now the people who disagree must be bigots? Please explain to us all why these bigots endorsed Ike Leggett for County Executive. Was that just to throw us off so we won't suspect their "real" agenda? How clever you must be to know what is truly in their hearts. Silverman LOST! Just deal with it

You know what I noticed about the Neighbors for a ...

2006-09-17T20:15:00.000-04:00

You know what I noticed about the Neighbors for a Whiter Montgomery? They claimed to have endorsed two Black candidates for County Council, but when they sent out their mailing... whoops! Bailey and Ervin were gone. Their real agenda is to keep immigrants and minorities out of established neighborhoods. no more jobs, no more housing... who do you think is going to be kept out?

If Neighbors for a Better Montgomery was so influe...

2006-09-17T14:23:00.000-04:00

If Neighbors for a Better Montgomery was so influential, how come they couldn't knock off Leventhal? He came in first in the At-Large race and was not among the NIMBY candidates. He was, of course, on the Apple Ballot, as were Elrich and Trachtenberg. I think the Apple was much more important than the NIMBY, excuse me, Neighbors PAC.

You may not want to admit it, but Neighbors for a ...

2006-09-17T11:10:00.000-04:00

You may not want to admit it, but Neighbors for a Better Montgomery had an even bigger effect on this election. Without it, SIlverman would have been our next executive.

I was at three different polls and not a single s...

2006-09-17T00:54:00.000-04:00

I was at three different polls and not a single soul took the apple ballot. Not one.

The apple ballot has always, and always will be, t...

2006-09-17T00:12:00.000-04:00

The apple ballot has always, and always will be, the most important endorsement in Montgomery County.

Why? Because voters care about education, and they trust teachers.

The reason the Apple Ballot had no influence in Council D3 and D4 is because they chose not to endorse anyone in those races.

Agreed - the Apple Ballot is in very real danger o...

2006-09-16T17:29:00.000-04:00

Agreed - the Apple Ballot is in very real danger of becoming irrelevant. The reason why Subin lost and Floreen did so poorly had to do with GROWTH - I know that's something you don't want to acknowledge. Also, look in Council races D-4 and D-3. NO influence there. Come on. You are stating a cause and effect that does not exist.

You must be new to MoCo politics; the Apple Ballot...

2006-09-15T19:17:00.000-04:00

You must be new to MoCo politics; the Apple Ballot has been highly influential and even decisive for years. And how can you possibly know how many voters did or did not already have picks in the "down ballot' races? I spent all day working outside the polls, too: very few of the voters took lit from anyone, and most of those who did took it from everyone.

Equally interesting about this election is that th...

2006-09-15T16:44:00.000-04:00

Equally interesting about this election is that the Washington Post -- thought by everyone to be the 800-lb gorilla -- turns out to be a mouse. Look at District 18. Look at Nancy Navarro's race for School Board. Look at Bo Newsome's poor showing for Council.

Are they finally discredited by their years of cheerleading for the ICC and the invasion of Iraq?

wow, thanks for this extraordinarily accurate and ...

2006-09-15T14:23:00.000-04:00

wow, thanks for this extraordinarily accurate and well-researched post. An interesting aspect of this is the role the teachers' union played in getting School Board candidates to pledge their support for renewing Jerry Weast's contract next year.