Dan Reed of JustUpthePike fame

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dan Reed is one of our most influential public intellectuals. He didn't run for office, although did apply for a position on the Montgomery County Planning Board a few years back, and his candidacy was supported by several County Councilmembers - unfortunately, not a majority.

-person who mostly supports Dan Reed's public positions

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh, hey Dan!

I never even said I was pro widening 270.

But lots of us pay for lots of things we dont personally use. Thats how budgets/taxes work, and I'm just fine with that.

But I wont be shamed for driving (my hybrid) to commute to a job that pays the bills, that happens to be 25 miles from a house I can afford.

I'm a proud MD dem, but just becauase im not a full on DSA, hard leftist, means I'm somehow racist for caring about property values? Most people's biggest investment of their lives?? Yeah- thats where I get off the train, thanks.

That's your decision. If you don't want to be ashamed, then don't be ashamed. Own it!

And also own the things that go along with your decision. If you oppose multi-family and/or affordable housing in your neighborhood because you want to maintain your property values? Own it. If you support expensive, environmentally-destructive road projects because you want to drive to work by yourself in less time? Own it.

Alternatively, advocate for policies that will make your area better to live in for other people as well as you. More transit, more sidewalks, more things in walking distance, for more people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Marc Elrich claims to be progressive, but he is way behind the times. Take police issues, for example. He chaired the County Council's Public Safety Committee for years, and took all his direction from the reactionary Fraternal Order of Police, who supported his candidacy for County Executive. He has been silent on police reform this year, when it was the number one public policy issue after coronavirus. Elrich is captive to the public employee unions. While that may appear progressive to some, be assured that the FOP is reactionary.

He's even farther in the pockets of MCPS. He needs to have some give and take with the powerful public sector unions. And the hazard/extra pay right now has spiraled completely out of control as compared to other jurisdictions, even locally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh, hey Dan!

I never even said I was pro widening 270.

But lots of us pay for lots of things we dont personally use. Thats how budgets/taxes work, and I'm just fine with that.

But I wont be shamed for driving (my hybrid) to commute to a job that pays the bills, that happens to be 25 miles from a house I can afford.

I'm a proud MD dem, but just becauase im not a full on DSA, hard leftist, means I'm somehow racist for caring about property values? Most people's biggest investment of their lives?? Yeah- thats where I get off the train, thanks.

Sure we all pay for things we don't use but the 270 widening alone will cost more than the State of MD has spent on capital costs for Metrorail in its entire history and this is not even a new road - the State spent billions on the current iteration of the road and that is not even getting into the significantly higher costs of building new infra in exurbs or busing kids to school out there in hell.

BTW driving a hybrid doesn't magically get you off the hook for living 25 miles from where you work and all of the negative environmental externalities - driving a more fuel efficient car only lessens those externalities and does nothing about all the negatives of sprawly land use.

So yeah in fact your drive until you qualified for a house with a yard choice disproportionately cost the rest of us (and our planet) so no I'm not really sure the rest of us should be subsidizing it. My family does just fine with a tiny yard and one car which helps to offset our higher housing costs (including higher taxes BTW) so I'm not really feeling the love in subsidizing your planet killing choices so you get a yard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh, hey Dan!

I never even said I was pro widening 270.

But lots of us pay for lots of things we dont personally use. Thats how budgets/taxes work, and I'm just fine with that.

But I wont be shamed for driving (my hybrid) to commute to a job that pays the bills, that happens to be 25 miles from a house I can afford.

I'm a proud MD dem, but just becauase im not a full on DSA, hard leftist, means I'm somehow racist for caring about property values? Most people's biggest investment of their lives?? Yeah- thats where I get off the train, thanks.

That's your decision. If you don't want to be ashamed, then don't be ashamed. Own it!

And also own the things that go along with your decision. If you oppose multi-family and/or affordable housing in your neighborhood because you want to maintain your property values? Own it. If you support expensive, environmentally-destructive road projects because you want to drive to work by yourself in less time? Own it.

Alternatively, advocate for policies that will make your area better to live in for other people as well as you. More transit, more sidewalks, more things in walking distance, for more people.

Again- I dont support widening 270. All too happy to sit in some traffic, or suck up the toll on the ICC. Thanks for your concern! And yes, being concerned or at least wanting to maintain my property value is a perfectly justifiable position. As is buying into a neighborhood and school system. When people say "you bought a house not a school" I immediately think they either dont have kids, or are safely ensconsced in a W school or private, and like to cast stones. When my kids go to a very diverse school, and I like that, thak you very much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh, hey Dan!

I never even said I was pro widening 270.

But lots of us pay for lots of things we dont personally use. Thats how budgets/taxes work, and I'm just fine with that.

But I wont be shamed for driving (my hybrid) to commute to a job that pays the bills, that happens to be 25 miles from a house I can afford.

I'm a proud MD dem, but just becauase im not a full on DSA, hard leftist, means I'm somehow racist for caring about property values? Most people's biggest investment of their lives?? Yeah- thats where I get off the train, thanks.

Sure we all pay for things we don't use but the 270 widening alone will cost more than the State of MD has spent on capital costs for Metrorail in its entire history and this is not even a new road - the State spent billions on the current iteration of the road and that is not even getting into the significantly higher costs of building new infra in exurbs or busing kids to school out there in hell.

BTW driving a hybrid doesn't magically get you off the hook for living 25 miles from where you work and all of the negative environmental externalities - driving a more fuel efficient car only lessens those externalities and does nothing about all the negatives of sprawly land use.

So yeah in fact your drive until you qualified for a house with a yard choice disproportionately cost the rest of us (and our planet) so no I'm not really sure the rest of us should be subsidizing it. My family does just fine with a tiny yard and one car which helps to offset our higher housing costs (including higher taxes BTW) so I'm not really feeling the love in subsidizing your planet killing choices so you get a yard.

Excuse me? Get off your high horse please.

I'm not "on the hook" for anything. And no one is subsidizing my family's choice except ourselves. I'm glad you can afford your expensive house and high property taxes. I dont judge you, and good for you. Dont judge my (and tens of thousand's of other's choice) either. Especially since it was forced by the current zoning and cost of living.

[Anonymous]

A few things.

1) busing kids to "hell"
2) dont bus then! Let kids go to their local schools. Real wild concept, I know.
3) "hell" Up and western county is now "hell"? Good to know what our down county friends think of us.

[Anonymous]

It is physically impossible for all of us to live in DTSS or wherever is "allowed" to live and walk to work.

And even if we could (we cant), should the rest of the county just be a barren wasteland? Should we all have to live within walking distance to our jobs? Good luck with that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Excuse me? Get off your high horse please.

I'm not "on the hook" for anything. And no one is subsidizing my family's choice except ourselves. I'm glad you can afford your expensive house and high property taxes. I dont judge you, and good for you. Dont judge my (and tens of thousand's of other's choice) either. Especially since it was forced by the current zoning and cost of living.

No, that's not true at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is physically impossible for all of us to live in DTSS or wherever is "allowed" to live and walk to work.

And even if we could (we cant), should the rest of the county just be a barren wasteland? Should we all have to live within walking distance to our jobs? Good luck with that.

This really is the insanity right here. Imagine if you were required to live within 5 miles of your job. The entire economy would go to crap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Again- I dont support widening 270. All too happy to sit in some traffic, or suck up the toll on the ICC. Thanks for your concern! And yes, being concerned or at least wanting to maintain my property value is a perfectly justifiable position. As is buying into a neighborhood and school system. When people say "you bought a house not a school" I immediately think they either dont have kids, or are safely ensconsced in a W school or private, and like to cast stones. When my kids go to a very diverse school, and I like that, thak you very much.

PP, I'm a fellow upcounty resident, with children in MCPS.

I think that the rule to apply here is: if it's not about you, don't make it about you. Dan Reed etc. are not supporting Downtown Silver Spring AT you (or me). If your children's school is already very diverse, great.

I'm glad to hear that you don't support widening 270.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is physically impossible for all of us to live in DTSS or wherever is "allowed" to live and walk to work.

And even if we could (we cant), should the rest of the county just be a barren wasteland? Should we all have to live within walking distance to our jobs? Good luck with that.

Wait what? Upcounty used to be productive farmland that generated local produce for us to eat that didn't need to be shipped across the country while doubling as open space that absorbed rain water and for good measure required minimal roads or other county infra to support.

Now it is all paved over or covered with suburban tract homes with heavily fertilized lawns and criss-crossed by planet killing roads that everyone has to use to even do the most mundane daily tasks.

So which version of the upper county is a barren wasteland?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
But when it comes to his actions, he's definitely not progressive when it comes to things like housing policy. He absolutely seems intent on keeping as many poor and brown people out the county as possible.

^^^Does this refer to Marc Elrich or Dan Reed? Dan Reed writes frequently and eloquently about his own experiences as a Black kid growing up in mostly-white suburbs, and how we need to do more to welcome people of every background. Marc Elrich would never acknowledge that his reactionary anti-housing views have the effect of keeping poor and brown people out of the county, and he tries to appear welcoming of diversity, but in fact his reactionary housing policies are extremely exclusionary.

I was referring to Elrich. As you said, he pretends to be progressive and inclusive, but his housing policies are absolutely exclusionary. I've never been able to quite understand whether MoCo residents realize that. Though, I suspect there's a lot of willful ignorance going on by MoCo "progressives" when it comes to the impacts of housing policy.

[Anonymous]

I see Dan Reed and his fan club found this thread. Everybody I know thinks he’s annoying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is physically impossible for all of us to live in DTSS or wherever is "allowed" to live and walk to work.

And even if we could (we cant), should the rest of the county just be a barren wasteland? Should we all have to live within walking distance to our jobs? Good luck with that.

Wait what? Upcounty used to be productive farmland that generated local produce for us to eat that didn't need to be shipped across the country while doubling as open space that absorbed rain water and for good measure required minimal roads or other county infra to support.

Now it is all paved over or covered with suburban tract homes with heavily fertilized lawns and criss-crossed by planet killing roads that everyone has to use to even do the most mundane daily tasks.

So which version of the upper county is a barren wasteland?

People (like myself) couldnt afford to live in Silver Spring, TP, or anywhere else that is preferred. So we moved out farther. And upcounty wasnt just going to be a farmland forever, or the "rainwater absorber for the county". No, thank you. So we have jobs, and schools, and houses, and infrastructure as well. And we are allowed to.

The barren wasteland comment was to answer "what would happen if we all were just living in the "preferred" zip codes. It's not only unrealistic, but would render the other sprawled areas some sort of tumbleweeds.