Public Overwhelmingly Supports Preserving Rural Area!

Many folks, including myself,  had strong reservations regarding the Rural Preservation “Study”.   I was concerned the underlying  premise behind the study was nefarious, intended to dismantle the Rural Crescent.  The results are in, and, by an overwhelming number of respondents, residents in Prince William County support the preservation of the Rural Crescent.  Click here to read the results for yourself.

It is clear to me, residents  not only appreciate  the geographic diversity in the County, they want to actively preserve it!

The weak link in the study, from all that I read, was the somewhat nebulous support for sewer in the Rural Crescent.  Why is that the weak link?  Because for 15 years, no matter who sat on the BOCS,  no matter who was in the pocket of the Developers, approving  high density development within the Rural Crescent was precluded by lack of available public sewer.

Read More

Open Thread………………………………….Monday, December 2


From Mother Nature Network:

Ice is known by a wide range of identities in nature, from tiny snowflakes to Chicago-sized icebergs and canyon-covering glaciers. Still, a neatly shaped circle of frozen, rotating river water is strange to see, even in a wintry place like North Dakota.
The video above shows such a circle spinning serenely atop the Sheyenne River, where retired engineer George Loegering was out hunting with relatives on Nov. 23. “At first I thought, ‘No way!’ It was surreal,” Loegering tells the Associated Press, which published the video this week. “You looked at it and you thought, ‘How did it do that?'”

Separate and not equal: Down right discriminatory

Washingtonpost.com:

Virginia may be for lovers, but for same-sex married couples who already had to go elsewhere to tie the knot, tax time could present new burdens.

The reason is a recent decision by Virginia’s tax collectors to treat gay couples differently than the IRS does.

The Virginia Department of Taxation, after consulting with Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II’s office, has ruled that the state will not conform to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service’s new tax treatment of same-sex married couples because state law and a state constitutional amendment prohibit recognition of gay marriage.

As a result, gay couples must now file their federal tax returns as married couples — either jointly or separately — but will have to file Virginia tax returns as single individuals.

The ACLU of Virginia saw the decision as reaffirmation of the state’s “ongoing hostility toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Virginians, including legally married same-sex couples.”

Read More