Jeff Davis | Vent Section Manager
The following is an excerpt from Governor Jim Gilmore's (R-VA) website:
"When Governor Jim Gilmore took office on January 17th, he promised to deliver meaningful tax relief to the people of Virginia. In his first one hundred days in office, Governor Gilmore delivered. The Personal Property Tax Relief Act of 1998 is the largest tax relief measure in the history of the Commonwealth. This legislation will eliminate the car tax on approximately 90 percent of all Virginia vehicles during a five-year phase-in period beginning January 1, 1998."
Sounds pretty good, right? Money going back to the consumers...sounds democratic to me. By 2002, taxpayers will be getting a 100% reduction in this tax. Alas, things are not black and white.
The golden rule of tax cuts still applies. To make up for the revenue lost, you have to take money from somewhere else. It's not like there was nothing being done with the car tax money before; in fact, it was being used for plenty. So where is the money being taken from now? Look around you. That's right. It's being taken from our schools.
I'm not the least bit surprised. This is coming from a party that once wanted to eliminate the Department of Education. Thank God Newt Gingrich went back under the rock he crawled out of, but there's so little common sense being employed even here.
This next quote is also from Gilmore's website. Apparenty Gilmore said this himself: "The 'No Car Tax' pledge grew from the understanding that working families would no longer allow themselves to be left out while watching government prosper." Well, Jim, the suffering's not ending. You're taking away money, vital money from that which helps shape the future of this state, and the nation. While these families may not be paying what essentially amounts to pocket change on their cars that are worth less than $1,000, you're cheating their kids out of a good education. Yes, teaching methods and what not are a factor too (remember Sen. George Allen (R-VA) and his precious SOLs), but schools cannot thrive without funding.
As a result, Radford University is now the second-most under funded university in the state. I shudder to think of what we could lose. Just talk to Dr. Covington or any member of the administration. I can assure you Gov. Gilmore is not on his list of favorite people at the moment.
This annoys me so much. I'm tired of funds being misused. In the area where I'm from, my high school has had the same bathrooms it had when the school was built in the late 1950s. There's no hot water. No doors on the stalls. Still, they managed to build an entirely new school, with all the trimmings, in the ritziest part of the county. I bet you could eat off the floors of their bathrooms. There should be more education as to how funds are being used in the government on both the state and federal level. But, Governor, I'm just a talking head, I need to shut up, what would I know?
Who're you gonna take it away from next, Jimmy Boy? Hmm? Preschools? Medical care? One thing's for sure, while Lt. Gov. Hager and Mark Earley were fighting over a stinking-like-rotten-eggs nomination, Mark Warner was already out campaigning and now holds a huge lead in the poles. Governor Gilmore, your idiocy has nearly ensured that a Republican won't be elected.
I'm not a Democrat, but I'll welcome the donkeys by the hundreds to our fair state.
Name: Tom Selvey
Name: Spider Monkey
Comments:
"Ha, ha, nanny, nanny, boo, boo, my college has more money than your college!"
Year: Senior
Major: MSTD
Comments:
The car tax is getting pushed through so that all the yuppies in the richer parts of the states, who are in Gilmore's pocket, can drive their big SUV and not pay for it. The old, I'll scratch you back if you do mine. While in the mean time, the MSTD department doesn't have any paper in the printers, no new equipment, classes had to be dropped for fall semester, no new staff members, and no raises for the existing staff. All this so his rich F@#ks can have their big cars. Don't you love modern politics?