Christian conservative/gay neighboring business owners fiasco in The Plains, VA

[Anonymous]

To summarize:

Couple has nice restaurant in Plains
Couple has extensive history in founding/running prominent LGBTQ rights groups

New neighbors move in, to commercial district, right next to restaurant & quickly decide they don't like dumpsters or delivery trucks (in a commercial district)
New neighbors file repeated complaints, refuse to wear masks during height of pandemic, are banned from property
New neighbors allegedly call owner couple the f word (confirmed by employees by WaPo)
New neighbors caught on video flinging rat onto restaurant property & photographing (new neighbors claim that rat left on their porch but no verification of this by any source)
New neighbors consist of a proud Jan 6 attendee (mom), former convicted drug dealing felon who claims that he was just buying 5000 units of MDMA "for friends" (this piece strangely not even in the WaPo article) & the son who won R primary recently, who apparently goes by middle name bz of drunken rage issues (haven't seen evidence for this yet)

That all? It's actually a pretty interesting story bz it reflects a lot of hot button culture war issues, *and* everyone has strong feelings about tough neighbors. I personally think if you don't like trash or truck deliveries you should not buy a home in a commercially zoned area so that forms my basic understanding of the dispute & I only see one side as bad actors. But, I also deeply dislike those who think it's reasonable to fling a rat onto someone else's property for really any reason. GTFOH

Final point: no one raised this previously but the restaurant owners have been driven out & put their restaurant on the market in Feb. Bad neighbors really are the worst so I understand it, but I am annoyed that the Washers essentially win in the end.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To summarize:

Couple has nice restaurant in Plains
Couple has extensive history in founding/running prominent LGBTQ rights groups

New neighbors move in, to commercial district, right next to restaurant & quickly decide they don't like dumpsters or delivery trucks (in a commercial district)
New neighbors file repeated complaints, refuse to wear masks during height of pandemic, are banned from property
New neighbors allegedly call owner couple the f word (confirmed by employees by WaPo)
New neighbors caught on video flinging rat onto restaurant property & photographing (new neighbors claim that rat left on their porch but no verification of this by any source)
New neighbors consist of a proud Jan 6 attendee (mom), former convicted drug dealing felon who claims that he was just buying 5000 units of MDMA "for friends" (this piece strangely not even in the WaPo article) & the son who won R primary recently, who apparently goes by middle name bz of drunken rage issues (haven't seen evidence for this yet)

That all? It's actually a pretty interesting story bz it reflects a lot of hot button culture war issues, *and* everyone has strong feelings about tough neighbors. I personally think if you don't like trash or truck deliveries you should not buy a home in a commercially zoned area so that forms my basic understanding of the dispute & I only see one side as bad actors. But, I also deeply dislike those who think it's reasonable to fling a rat onto someone else's property for really any reason. GTFOH

Final point: no one raised this previously but the restaurant owners have been driven out & put their restaurant on the market in Feb. Bad neighbors really are the worst so I understand it, but I am annoyed that the Washers essentially win in the end.

Actual source (not a screenshot of Yelp) for the felony conviction statement?

[Anonymous]

We’re at 8 pages and no one has provided a cogent explanation as to why the Post tripled down on the what the couple being gay and the jerk being a Trumper has anything to do with the actual dispute. This guy would have been a jerk if a Hobby Lobby opened next store. But then the Post would get any clicks. This is Covington Catholic 2.0.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’re at 8 pages and no one has provided a cogent explanation as to why the Post tripled down on the what the couple being gay and the jerk being a Trumper has anything to do with the actual dispute. This guy would have been a jerk if a Hobby Lobby opened next store. But then the Post would get any clicks. This is Covington Catholic 2.0.

“ combined with the family’s political ambitions, as the potential dawn of a new, more development-happy era in The Plains. They’ll note that Melissa ran for town council in 2020, a year after the family moved to The Plains. (She finished fourth and didn’t earn a seat.) The couple’s son, Regan, recently won his Republican primary for a seat on the county supervisors board.”

it’s relevant because the family 9has political aspirations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’re at 8 pages and no one has provided a cogent explanation as to why the Post tripled down on the what the couple being gay and the jerk being a Trumper has anything to do with the actual dispute. This guy would have been a jerk if a Hobby Lobby opened next store. But then the Post would get any clicks. This is Covington Catholic 2.0.

Gosh, why did the reporter include information about the people involved in the dispute? Why? Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?

/s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To summarize:

Couple has nice restaurant in Plains
Couple has extensive history in founding/running prominent LGBTQ rights groups

New neighbors move in, to commercial district, right next to restaurant & quickly decide they don't like dumpsters or delivery trucks (in a commercial district)
New neighbors file repeated complaints, refuse to wear masks during height of pandemic, are banned from property
New neighbors allegedly call owner couple the f word (confirmed by employees by WaPo)
New neighbors caught on video flinging rat onto restaurant property & photographing (new neighbors claim that rat left on their porch but no verification of this by any source)
New neighbors consist of a proud Jan 6 attendee (mom), former convicted drug dealing felon who claims that he was just buying 5000 units of MDMA "for friends" (this piece strangely not even in the WaPo article) & the son who won R primary recently, who apparently goes by middle name bz of drunken rage issues (haven't seen evidence for this yet)

That all? It's actually a pretty interesting story bz it reflects a lot of hot button culture war issues, *and* everyone has strong feelings about tough neighbors. I personally think if you don't like trash or truck deliveries you should not buy a home in a commercially zoned area so that forms my basic understanding of the dispute & I only see one side as bad actors. But, I also deeply dislike those who think it's reasonable to fling a rat onto someone else's property for really any reason. GTFOH

Final point: no one raised this previously but the restaurant owners have been driven out & put their restaurant on the market in Feb. Bad neighbors really are the worst so I understand it, but I am annoyed that the Washers essentially win in the end.

Actual source (not a screenshot of Yelp) for the felony conviction statement?

https://brokercheck.finra.org/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To summarize:

Couple has nice restaurant in Plains
Couple has extensive history in founding/running prominent LGBTQ rights groups

New neighbors move in, to commercial district, right next to restaurant & quickly decide they don't like dumpsters or delivery trucks (in a commercial district)
New neighbors file repeated complaints, refuse to wear masks during height of pandemic, are banned from property
New neighbors allegedly call owner couple the f word (confirmed by employees by WaPo)
New neighbors caught on video flinging rat onto restaurant property & photographing (new neighbors claim that rat left on their porch but no verification of this by any source)
New neighbors consist of a proud Jan 6 attendee (mom), former convicted drug dealing felon who claims that he was just buying 5000 units of MDMA "for friends" (this piece strangely not even in the WaPo article) & the son who won R primary recently, who apparently goes by middle name bz of drunken rage issues (haven't seen evidence for this yet)

That all? It's actually a pretty interesting story bz it reflects a lot of hot button culture war issues, *and* everyone has strong feelings about tough neighbors. I personally think if you don't like trash or truck deliveries you should not buy a home in a commercially zoned area so that forms my basic understanding of the dispute & I only see one side as bad actors. But, I also deeply dislike those who think it's reasonable to fling a rat onto someone else's property for really any reason. GTFOH

Final point: no one raised this previously but the restaurant owners have been driven out & put their restaurant on the market in Feb. Bad neighbors really are the worst so I understand it, but I am annoyed that the Washers essentially win in the end.

Google “Arthur Washer” + vandalism

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"On her Facebook page, Melissa posted a photo of herself, her husband and their son, Regan, outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, when rioters stormed the building to prevent a peaceful transfer of power, leading to multiple deaths.

“It WAS an AMAZING day in DC!!” Melissa wrote in the post, which she has since taken down. “Truly an unforgettable experience everyone was peacecful [sic], kind and friendly with one another, no matter their race, nationality, socio-economic level, background or religion.” She later told The Post the family did not enter the Capitol. “We didn’t actually even know anything that was going on until we got home that night,” she said."

To ACTUALLY be unaware of what was going on at the Capitol on January 6, when you were at the Capitol on January 6? You'd really have to work hard at that.

Actually no, tons of people have said the same thing. How would you know what was on the TV coverage if you’re standing outside?

Why would you need TV coverage to be aware of something happening with you right there?

While it was at home watching in horror from mid afternoon on, from what I read in the coverage afterward there were different situations at different parts of the Capitol. The violent breaking in actions were not happening at all entry points.

Yes, certainly, if you had kept your eyes shut and your ears plugged, there's a good chance you wouldn't have seen or heard anything...

Maybe. The scenes from Post reporting on the Mall side of the Capitol seemed to be super different than the back side though.

Super? You’re both dumb and unintentionally funny.

[Anonymous]

Here is an article from the local Fauquier news that follows up on the Post article:

https://www.fauquier.com/news/article_f8edd376-241a-11ee-8841-8f39fa85b394.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why did the Washington post include the bit about the reserved parking? That seems like a normal thing for businesses to do. The restaurant is taking up parking spots away by the other business. I see reserved parking for X business only all around town.

I’m sure there’s a feud but that part threw me off.

My thoughts exactly. Seems nitpicky. Happens all the time in small towns around here.

Are you saying parking disputes, specifically, happen all the time in small towns?

Yes. That part did seem “nitpicky” (as the pp said) to me. Parking disputes happen everywhere between all kinds of people from all kinds of walks of lives. All sorts of businesses have reserved parking spots even with an adjacent businesses. Just as an example. I live in Olney and my kids take music lessons at the music and arts Center. The music center shares a building with a chiropractor’s office. It’s a small parking lot, but there are designated reserved parking spots just for the chiropractor‘s office and I don’t even think there’s bad blood between the two businesses. So when the Washington post adds information like that, it detracts from the argument. A shopping center across town has reserved parking spots for dry cleaners, and ironically, the other chiropractor’s office.

Most of that whole area is parking lot. There is no shortage of parking in that area.

Right, but according to the story a few of those are his and he gets to reserve them for his business.

I don’t think the restaurant disputed that. I think it was meant to show escalating tensions (at first the Washers didn’t protest the parking, but as things got worse they put up signs). I think the fact that they actively patrolled the spaces (probably including the evenings) and confronted customers also gives context to the escalating issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’re at 8 pages and no one has provided a cogent explanation as to why the Post tripled down on the what the couple being gay and the jerk being a Trumper has anything to do with the actual dispute. This guy would have been a jerk if a Hobby Lobby opened next store. But then the Post would get any clicks. This is Covington Catholic 2.0.

m


The Washers are claiming they are being treated unfairly because they are conservative. In a majority Republican area where I have seen Trump signs along the road. To the extent that the restaurant owners, who are vocal gay rights advocates, are reacting to that, it’s because the Washers are loudly making their divergent political views known.

Also their political views are relevant to their refusal to wear a mask, which is one of the primary things that lead to the no trespass order.

[Anonymous]

I live near The Plains and have been following this story for sometime.

I don’t think the motivation of the Washers is anti-gay bigotry, that just fuels their rage. I think they’re annoyed with living next to the restaurant that was there long before they moved in. But they’ve turned it into a quest to shut them down and are definitely motivated by culture issues.

However their primary motive now it appears (unclear if this has been it all along), and this belief has been expressed by people more in the know than me, is to make a restaurant (and possibly any other business needing a SUP) totally untenable in that location, drive down the purchase price, buy it, and then provide the property special access to parking, etc and re-apply for a new SUP, thereby instantly raising the property value.

As noted in the article, the family appears to be pretty fly-by-night con artists. They sling high priced annuities, seem to engage in tax fraud (thousands in business lunches for he and his wife??), and have political ambitions. Their son, running for county supervisor, comes across as incredibly fake and disingenuous. He’s fooled the redneck contingent out here that he’s one of them but he’s all hat and no cattle. He’s being led around like a show pony through the county by a contingent of far-right near fascist preppe/property right extremists who have been buying up a ton of property in recent years. The candidate himself bought a farm just recently to “run cattle” but it appears only for instageammable moments. It’s all very contrived. His handlers have a major agenda that have nothing to do with the “conservation” message he has the audacity to run on. They want to be able to have absolute property rights to do what they want on their property - whether it’s subdivide it into tiny lots or have a militia training camp. They’re scary people and Washer is their front man. He has a lot of the long-time conservative residents fooled that he represents their interests, has huge support from younger newer rednecks and the children who never got out of the area from big families out here. His opposition is mostly retirees who moved out here and blue bloods. It used to be that retiree/blue blood faction would carry that district but times have changed and Washer will likely win. Who knows what happens after that but he will undoubtedly use his political position for personal gain.

So, long story short: the gay stuff is relevant but as a subplot, not the main story. The washer family seems to be con artists. This is all about money and power in the county.

Oh, and The Plains is definitely rural… but the commute isn’t that bad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live near The Plains and have been following this story for sometime.

I don’t think the motivation of the Washers is anti-gay bigotry, that just fuels their rage. I think they’re annoyed with living next to the restaurant that was there long before they moved in. But they’ve turned it into a quest to shut them down and are definitely motivated by culture issues.

However their primary motive now it appears (unclear if this has been it all along), and this belief has been expressed by people more in the know than me, is to make a restaurant (and possibly any other business needing a SUP) totally untenable in that location, drive down the purchase price, buy it, and then provide the property special access to parking, etc and re-apply for a new SUP, thereby instantly raising the property value.

As noted in the article, the family appears to be pretty fly-by-night con artists. They sling high priced annuities, seem to engage in tax fraud (thousands in business lunches for he and his wife??), and have political ambitions. Their son, running for county supervisor, comes across as incredibly fake and disingenuous. He’s fooled the redneck contingent out here that he’s one of them but he’s all hat and no cattle. He’s being led around like a show pony through the county by a contingent of far-right near fascist preppe/property right extremists who have been buying up a ton of property in recent years. The candidate himself bought a farm just recently to “run cattle” but it appears only for instageammable moments. It’s all very contrived. His handlers have a major agenda that have nothing to do with the “conservation” message he has the audacity to run on. They want to be able to have absolute property rights to do what they want on their property - whether it’s subdivide it into tiny lots or have a militia training camp. They’re scary people and Washer is their front man. He has a lot of the long-time conservative residents fooled that he represents their interests, has huge support from younger newer rednecks and the children who never got out of the area from big families out here. His opposition is mostly retirees who moved out here and blue bloods. It used to be that retiree/blue blood faction would carry that district but times have changed and Washer will likely win. Who knows what happens after that but he will undoubtedly use his political position for personal gain.

So, long story short: the gay stuff is relevant but as a subplot, not the main story. The washer family seems to be con artists. This is all about money and power in the county.

Oh, and The Plains is definitely rural… but the commute isn’t that bad.

Someone needs to tell the Post that the gay stuff is not the main story. The headlines, the pictures, paragraphs describing LGBTG activism. The Post is trying to create a narrative that’s not there. It’s as disgusting and bullying as how the Washers conduct themselves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live near The Plains and have been following this story for sometime.

I don’t think the motivation of the Washers is anti-gay bigotry, that just fuels their rage. I think they’re annoyed with living next to the restaurant that was there long before they moved in. But they’ve turned it into a quest to shut them down and are definitely motivated by culture issues.

However their primary motive now it appears (unclear if this has been it all along), and this belief has been expressed by people more in the know than me, is to make a restaurant (and possibly any other business needing a SUP) totally untenable in that location, drive down the purchase price, buy it, and then provide the property special access to parking, etc and re-apply for a new SUP, thereby instantly raising the property value.

As noted in the article, the family appears to be pretty fly-by-night con artists. They sling high priced annuities, seem to engage in tax fraud (thousands in business lunches for he and his wife??), and have political ambitions. Their son, running for county supervisor, comes across as incredibly fake and disingenuous. He’s fooled the redneck contingent out here that he’s one of them but he’s all hat and no cattle. He’s being led around like a show pony through the county by a contingent of far-right near fascist preppe/property right extremists who have been buying up a ton of property in recent years. The candidate himself bought a farm just recently to “run cattle” but it appears only for instageammable moments. It’s all very contrived. His handlers have a major agenda that have nothing to do with the “conservation” message he has the audacity to run on. They want to be able to have absolute property rights to do what they want on their property - whether it’s subdivide it into tiny lots or have a militia training camp. They’re scary people and Washer is their front man. He has a lot of the long-time conservative residents fooled that he represents their interests, has huge support from younger newer rednecks and the children who never got out of the area from big families out here. His opposition is mostly retirees who moved out here and blue bloods. It used to be that retiree/blue blood faction would carry that district but times have changed and Washer will likely win. Who knows what happens after that but he will undoubtedly use his political position for personal gain.

So, long story short: the gay stuff is relevant but as a subplot, not the main story. The washer family seems to be con artists. This is all about money and power in the county.

Oh, and The Plains is definitely rural… but the commute isn’t that bad.

Someone needs to tell the Post that the gay stuff is not the main story. The headlines, the pictures, paragraphs describing LGBTG activism. The Post is trying to create a narrative that’s not there. It’s as disgusting and bullying as how the Washers conduct themselves.

Correct. The post story has done nothing but whip up support for the Washers, now being seen as a target for the woke mob.

[Anonymous]

Love that DC eater recently highlighted Front Porch in an article.