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Carroll County is extremelly conservative as well, maybe only second to Garrett in terms of GOP % of vote on a regular basis.
And for the record, Western Maryland is Allegany and Garrett Counties. Washington Co. is more like Frederick, Carroll, Harford, and even Northern Baltimore Co. broad valleys, rolling hills, lots of farms, close enough to commute to the inner metro for the high paying government jobs.
Allegany and Garrett Counties are different animals entirely. Our landscape is dominated (not just flanked in Washington Co.'s case) by the mountains, farming is only feasible in select locations (Allegany Co. doesn't have a single operational dairy farm, for example) and we are outside the commuter loop, and are thus on our own in terms of employment.
I am including this map (I hope the link works) to demonstrate what I mean. You can see that that Hagerstown is closer to Rockville than it is to Cumberland, you can also clearly see where "the solid green" indicating the mountains begins west of Hagerstown. The smaller "solid green" block east of Hagerstown is the Catoctin Mountains (nice place), but it is clear to see that this small mountain range is surrounded by wide and populous valleys on its east, west, and south.
While I somewhat agree with you about Red/Blue divides how many of those state have a large minority population that votes Democrat but is overwhelmingly opposed to gay marriage (see CA)?
As far as the 1st District goes Gilchrist (and Wayne is a personal friend) got beat because rightly or wrongly, the residents of his district felt he wasn't representing them anymore. And he had a very tough primary opponent in Harris, who was the winner this time around.
Westsideboy's Congressman is Roscoe Bartlett, whose politics tend to be somewhat to the right of Atilla the Hun. He pretty much coasts to re-election every cycle.
My Congressman until 10 years ago was Roy Dyson (D) and then Gilchrist (a bit more liberal than Dyson who is considered a conservative State Senator now). I am now in Hoyer's District which was shifted south to create a majority/minority District in PG and southern Montgomery.
Just to drag something else in, because of Maryland's Southern heritage many Democrats here would be Republicans in many other states.
Last edited by North Beach Person; 02-22-2011 at 04:51 PM..
Reason: another thought
As for Bartlett's and Harris's districts, they were gerrymandered to absorb all the most conservative areas of the state. But Maryland has become more liberal since they were last gerrymandered and I believe the Senate will redraw Harris's district to get him booted out.
I am a member of Equality Maryland and I have to say that it feels good to win. North Beach Person was banging the 'state senate won't pass gay marriage' drum in another thread. I look forward to achieving 26 or 27 votes in the Senate; we already have 24 committed in favor (the minimum amount for passage).
If gay marriage does pass in oue state it still won't be legal in Gods law, so in all actuality it can't be legal. It's just like taking your oath under God in court when you raise your right hand and swear under Gods law. it's exactly the same thing. The last time I checked it was Adam & Eve not Adam & Steve.
Leave your religion out of it. I don't want it running our lives any more than I want Sharia law running our lives. You can let it run YOUR life all you want, and I'll oppose anyone that says otherwise. But leave it where all religion belongs: under your own roof and the roof of whatever church you belong to.
And if you really want to get technical about words and definitions, you can keep Holy Matrimony, as that HAS only one meaning. Marriage, as a word has multiple definitions, including simply the union of two or more things, like the marriage of music and video, or the marriage of peanut butter and chocolate. Or the marriage of two tables.
Marriage as a legal construct is a contract between two citizens that gives certain individual rights as though the two citizens are now one legal entity. These rights include the right of proxy automatically, visitation rights in prisons and hospitals, right of insurance coverage, and the right to make medical decisions for the partner in case of incapacitiation.
These are rights that cannot be conferred on a minor or on an animal, so the "slippery slope" arguments that are sure to come are moot before they are even voiced (really, you think a goat is going to want to or be able to sign a contract in proxy for someone or make informed medical decisions in case their person is in a coma? Yeah, riiiight).
And blood relatives, like siblings, already HAVE those rights by virtue of blood relations, so THAT "slippery slope" argument is also moot before it's made. (and I don't know how many guys are looking at their siters and thinking, "damn, I'd like to spend my life with her" and also not realizing they already technically are... so it's probably a very limited and self limiting pool of possible aplicants. Certainly not enough to get up in arms about).
I'm not gay, and I AM married. No one else getting married affects MY marriage one iota. Gays getting married don't devalue MY marriage any more than celebrities getting married, divorced and having affairs multiple times affect the sanctity of my marriage. Marriage is what YOU put into it, not what others around the country or world do.
And blacks should really look at how Southern Democrats were the ones blocking both black and interracial marriages for many, many decades, and making laws that would for example, imprison a black man who married a white woman. Why? Because up until the '60s, many Dems (especially the Dixiecrats) believed blacks to be sub-human and that it was against God's laws to marry interracially. Much like the extreme right wing religious Republicans believe gays and Lesbians to be now. In both cases, the attitude is wrong, and the people affected are citizens who shoudl be afforded the rights and protections of all citizens.
As for Bartlett's and Harris's districts, they were gerrymandered to absorb all the most conservative areas of the state. But Maryland has become more liberal since they were last gerrymandered and I believe the Senate will redraw Harris's district to get him booted out.
I am a member of Equality Maryland and I have to say that it feels good to win. North Beach Person was banging the 'state senate won't pass gay marriage' drum in another thread. I look forward to achieving 26 or 27 votes in the Senate; we already have 24 committed in favor (the minimum amount for passage).
The Bartlett and Harris districts were not "gerrymandered" to take in the most conservative areas of the State. Gerrymandering to eliminate them was attempted and the districts you see now were Court designed. The 1st used to encompass a portion of Southern MD as well as the Eastern Shore. What you have there now will pretty much remain. If anything it will lose the small portion of Anne Arundel it now has and be totally on the Shore.
As far as me "banging" about the State Senate I was stating the prevailing attitude. You just got 24 votes and Rosapepe is still shaky. You know it and so do I. You're being, in my opinion, overly optimistic about getting 27 votes. You'd have to get them out of areas that will vote overwhelmingly against gay marriage in the certain referendum. No State Senator in MD ever goes too far out on a limb.
Delegate for Life Sue Kullen lost this past November for co-sponsoring a bill (with about 30 others) that never made it out of Committee. It would have forfeited any unused after a year gift card funds to the State's General Fund. It killed her. No MD Legislator ever sponsors or votes for legislation his district opposes if they want to keep their job. The "common good" doesn't exist here.
A prediction- Kittleman will lose in 3 years over this bill. His "liberal" constituents in Howard County will kick him to the curb.
I do, however, find it interesting that a Montana resident belongs to Equality Maryland and is spending so much time with this legislation. I wonder what your reaction would be if I was in MT supporting, say, an open hunting season on wolves (I use that since that's the only issue I know of that's creating a stir there right now).
The Bartlett and Harris districts were not "gerrymandered" to take in the most conservative areas of the State. Gerrymandering to eliminate them was attempted and the districts you see now were Court designed. The 1st used to encompass a portion of Southern MD as well as the Eastern Shore. What you have there now will pretty much remain. If anything it will lose the small portion of Anne Arundel it now has and be totally on the Shore.
As far as me "banging" about the State Senate I was stating the prevailing attitude. You just got 24 votes and Rosapepe is still shaky. You know it and so do I. You're being, in my opinion, overly optimistic about getting 27 votes. You'd have to get them out of areas that will vote overwhelmingly against gay marriage in the certain referendum. No State Senator in MD ever goes too far out on a limb.
Delegate for Life Sue Kullen lost this past November for co-sponsoring a bill (with about 30 others) that never made it out of Committee. It would have forfeited any unused after a year gift card funds to the State's General Fund. It killed her. No MD Legislator ever sponsors or votes for legislation his district opposes if they want to keep their job. The "common good" doesn't exist here.
A prediction- Kittleman will lose in 3 years over this bill. His "liberal" constituents in Howard County will kick him to the curb.
I do, however, find it interesting that a Montana resident belongs to Equality Maryland and is spending so much time with this legislation. I wonder what your reaction would be if I was in MT supporting, say, an open hunting season on wolves (I use that since that's the only issue I know of that's creating a stir there right now).
Dude are you serious? Maryland has some of the most obviously gerrymandered districts in the entire country. The entire point of the late 90's gerrymander was to have Bartlett's and Harris's districts absorb the more conservative areas of central MD in order to push out Connie Morella and Bob Ehrlich. Here are the old districts: Maryland Congressional Election Districts, 1992-2000 - Map
And I do not have 24; I have 25 now. Senate held a preliminary vote today and we got 25 votes. Rosepepe will not make or break this bill.
Why does it matter how Maryland's House of Delegates districts are drawn when the issue is how the state senators are going to vote?
I don't know much about NPB's home district, but Rosecoe's 6th district is less a gerrymander than it is the reality that it takes nearly 1/3 of the northern and western parts of the state to come up with the minimum number of residents to constitute a seat. Roscoe's district has had to keep moving east as the population in his western counties declines in relation to the growth the rest of the state. I don't doubt the legislature keeps adding precincts that are heavily GOP into the 6th district, but that is just politics.
Dude are you serious? Maryland has some of the most obviously gerrymandered districts in the entire country. The entire point of the late 90's gerrymander was to have Bartlett's and Harris's districts absorb the more conservative areas of central MD in order to push out Connie Morella and Bob Ehrlich. Here are the old districts: Maryland Congressional Election Districts, 1992-2000 - Map
And I do not have 24; I have 25 now. Senate held a preliminary vote today and we got 25 votes. Rosepepe will not make or break this bill.
Exactly what part of Harris' district is in Central MD? The 4 precincts in Anne Arundel County? You're the first person to claim AA was central.
You're correct that the re-districting that was done to change Ehrlich and Morella's districts. The area that suffered from that was Anne Arundel, not the Shore or Western MD.
A little light reading for you: Same-sex marriage debated
Note the opponents from this area, just some of the more influential Senators.
Westside, I live in Hoyer's District which was pushed south out of PG (Steny had to move from College Park to St. Mary's County). That kicked Southern MD out of what is now Harris' Eastern Shore District.
Gotcha NPB, sounds like either way Southern Maryland is the poor stepchild to some other region's rep.
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