I recently moved to Saint Mary's County from Alexandria, Virginia. It's been quite a transition, moving from a vibrant area with plenty of shopping, fine dining, and cultural activities to an area that could charitably be described as "bucolic" (although a number of coarser adjectives definitely leap to mind). But that's a gripe for another time and post.

My gripe for today is the county tax. In Saint Mary's County, which has the highest "piggy-back" tax in Maryland, this amounts to 3.1%. This is simply unbelievable. I've lived many places in the country, and this is the first that's had anything other than a "point something percent" local income tax.

So what I would like to know, fellow forum members, is this: Has anybody an idea where all this money is going? It's clearly not going to:
<ul>
<li>Roads (235 is apparently under perpetual construction and boasts a number of potholes)
<li>Police (Just a sheriff's department; no real local police)
<li>Fire department (Seems to be all-volunteer)
<li>Schools (Lots of kids in my neighborhood; they all look half-retarded.)
<li>MVA (I had to drive to Waldorf* to register my car.)
</ul>

So what services are there of which I'm not taking advantage? I want to be sure to get my money's worth.

Doc
<hr>
* "I had to drive to Waldorf to..." has been officially recognized as the most commonly spoken phrase by transplants to St. Mary's County.

I must say I do have to agree. The taxes do seem high for what we get around here. Alothough I feel that the construction is a pain, I think in the long run we are better for having it but they do it so slow and they are inconsiderate in how they do it.

I definately know that the taxes aren't helping me in any way: I went to high school here that was a complete joke, we didn't even have air conditioning. The police....what police! Oh it must be the end of the month if you saw one of those. Although has anyone noticed how many bars and liquor stores there are around here? Perhaps the money goes there? Either way I don't know where my money goes but I would like to on the other hand.

Doc your just used to city life and fast paced. Down here things are slow and the govt doesn't know there a@@hole to a hole in the ground. Waldorf isn't any better and I'd much rather go to St. Marys to do my shopping. Want to switch places!

All the fire depts in Maryland are all volunteer. The school system sucks (except Calvert). The roads are always under construction because more people are moving down here!!! And the police, well we just the state police. Well welcome to the country!! If you want "fine dinning and cultural activities" go to DC, because you want find it around here.

I'm sorry cari. I was thinking that Doc might be talking about big city events and museums and other things. I wasn't slamming the country life, I love it. I wish I was there!!! I was saying that if he\she is looking for big city, there not going to find it here!

Originally posted by cariblue
I take offense at your reference to half the children in your neighborhood looking "retarded". For all I know you've moved into my neighborhood and are referring to my child. FYI, she's not retarded, she's expressive.

Well, that's my opinion, based on direct observation. Here's what I saw as I drove home the other day through my neighborhood:

<ul>
<li>One sprog standing to the side of the street with a stick in his hand, whacking himself repeatedly in the head with it.
<li>A couple of twerps with some rusty, wheeled shelving units that they must have scrounged from a trash bin, pushing them back and forth through the middle of the road whilst screaming, "Bleeeaaaaarrrrghgh!" at top volume.
<li>Three morons sitting on top one of those big green metal SMECO junction boxes, that have big orange warning signs saying, "Do not play on or around!" and "Risk of electric shock!"
<li>A twit with her finger jammed up her nose to the first joint, vapidly watching some pieces of paper from her school bag blow lazily across the lawn.
</ul>

Call it "expressive" or "retarded," it all adds up to a pretty grim view of the future, and calls into question the effectiveness of local education practices.

And mind you, it's not a bad neighborhood I live in, either. If this were a trailer park, I'd expect that sort of nonsense.

(And to answer your question, I've been here several months).

Doc

Not to change the subject...but what does SPROG mean?

Originally posted by missi1013
The school system sucks (except Calvert).
'taint know bitter ofer hear.

When my son was in elem. school they had spelling lists that they had to learn. I went to visit the class one day and read one of my son's papers and pointed out that he had an awful lot of misspelled words in it. The teacher overheard me talking to him and said that they don't correct the spelling, they can spell anyway they want. Now, beat me with a red rubber rooster, but why have spelling lists if what they write in english doesn't count. He was in 2nd or 3rd grade.

Originally posted by Katie
Not to change the subject...but what does SPROG mean?

<b>sprog</b> <i>n., syn.:</i> yard ape, busted rubber, semen demon, rugrat, disease vector, nose miner, loin monkey, curtain climber, carpet shark, income sapper, germ monger, crotch trophy, shriekling, womb dropping, yuppie larva, brat

So I don't like kids. Gotta problem wi'dat?

In answer to cariblue, the nasaly entranced sprog looked about 10. Old enough to know better.

Alas, my point in starting this thread wasn't to "dis" on the sprogs down here, but rather to find out where my taxes go. Sorry for the excursion.

Doc

Doc, man you crack me up. This area is so lame but yet it makes it so funny. Who knows and who will ever know where all our money goes. Deffenitly not toward the morons that try and pave a road for over a year. You have to go to DC to get in with civilization. As to something in the water..yes i must agree since most of girls here have kids by age of 16 and the ones who dont are the ones on the corner beating their heads with a stick. Your in a place where you can drive down the road in what almost June now and still see Thanksgiving decorations sitting infront of their house for all to see. All I can say is man you been here 2 months to long. Get out while you still can!!!

Originally posted by FunnyGuy
Get out while you still can!!! Yeah...go on, get! :whip: It's getting too crowded for us locals. I grew up right outside DC and have relatives in Baltimore. They're nice places to visit but I wouldn't want to live there anymore. Those turkey decorations in June add character to the place.:D Sure beats those cookie-cutter neighborhoods up north.

You tell them Sharon. If you don't like it here get out. We don't want you here anymore then you want to be here. And don't give me that "I can't because of my job" crap. Pick up any paper anywhere around the country and guess what, they're hiring. If you're interested where tax money is spent it's laid out fairly well on the counties web page which any sprog could find if they were really interested.

Yeah, the Mixing Bowl has got nothing on the mess that is 235, right?

And don't even START with DC as some kind of example of efficient city government.

You don't like it here, go back to the pristine cleanliness of Baltimore and DC, where the average man in the street is a scholar, and all those kids with guns are just playing cops and robbers. Where they give away the loveliest homes for free, and there are never any taxes. The traffic moves just as smooth as silk, the water is champagne, and the river is so clean you can see straight to the bottom (if it weren't for all the lively fish jumping about). The police force is a credit to the nation, and city leadership is a model for the world.

Yep, we're a backwater.

Cariblue, you sprog you.

I'll give you the home page and let you find it yourself, call it a course in sprog advancement. Try http://www.co.saint-marys.md.us . Hint try agencies and departments.

Give 'em hell Frank!!!!!!!!

Originally posted by cariblue
Thanks Ken.

I can hardly wait for the sprog gathering. It'll be better than bucksnort! Yee Ha!

Have you ever been to a Bucksnort?

Originally posted by Frank

Yep, we're a backwater.

'Ole blackwater keep on rollin. Mississippi moon keep shining on me...

Originally posted by Barbara Doc, you have to understand that us backward folk have a tendency to completely derail the train and go off
Dagdurnit--you're right! And now I've got 'nother song doing loops in my head. :getdown:

Barb, you ain't drinkin' that ale straight are ya?:crazy:

The phrase "All the advantages of the big city but none of the drawbacks" is often used to discribe places, but not here. Its more like all of the disadvantages of the city but none of the advantages.

For a sleepy "backwoods" place there is a fair amount of crime, drugs, drunks wandering the streets, traffic, and unfriendly neighbors.

I was walking to the Post Office the other day (for exercise) arround 6PM a police officer stoped me and asked me what I was doing. I told him and he advised me against walking in the area. He originally stopped me to see if I was up to no good. I always enjoyed walking places instead of driving my car a mile or so, but arround here that isn't very convienient. That leads me to say I wish some of that tax money went toward better sidewalks and pedestrian concerns.

Im from a backwoods place, Lexington Park isn't even close to backwoods. I guess most people that dont like it say its backwoods.

Originally posted by StarBuck

I think people are entitled to rant about So MD if they want to w/o the old "if you don't like it, GET OUT" line. It's getting kinda old. How about "If you don't like their rants, (1) don't respond to it, (2) go read another thread." :boo:

So they are entitled to rant but those that love the area can't. Talk about hypocracy. You can take your Clinton loving ass back to Arkansas or up to Harlem where your boy now hangs out for all I care. You, like these other morons, are never happy no matter where you are. All you want to do is bitch about how bad it is here when in fact you have no clue what bad really is. Southern Maryland, love it or leave it.

There is one tax that no one should never be complained about and that is you fire tax. Volunteer departments save this county millions of dollars by not going paid departments. If you get a chance drive by a scene of an accident, house fire, or medical call. Count the number of volunteers that are out there, just because they care to help the community. There is no paycheck at the end of the day. They are just there to give a helping hand. Your fire tax money helps us go to classes and purchase the equipment that is needed to get the job done. Yourself and your family may need it one day. Just something to think about.

I'm with Ken, if you don't like it here then don't let the door hit you where the good lord split you.

Originally posted by cariblue


No. I haven't actually. I've heard it's a lot of fun, just never seem to hear about it until after the fact. I just thought "bucksnort" sounded like it should be thrown in there, what with all us backwater folk on the bb, it just has a ring to it. Know whut ah mean, Vern?

I guess you didn't know about all the activities the Bucksnorts did besides the annual party (which was actually a fund raiser). It was a philanthropic organization that helped those in need which for me isn't very backwater.

Originally posted by FIREMAN
If you get a chance drive by a scene of an accident, house fire, or medical call. Count the number of volunteers that are out there, just because they care to help the community. There is no paycheck at the end of the day. They are just there to give a helping hand. Your fire tax money helps us go to classes and purchase the equipment that is needed to get the job done. Yourself and your family may need it one day. Just something to think about.


Woohoo...fireman. You tell'em. I am from up north and they have PAID fire Departments, but also volunteers.

Originally posted by cariblue
...if you weren't so sarcastic and negative. You simply ooooze the ####.

Thank you. It's a gift.

Originally posted by Ken King
If you don't like it here get out.

Gladly. I plan on being here only a couple of years before returning to Alexandria. I derive immense satisfaction from my job--enough to outweigh my dislike for this area. Until then, I'll continue to gripe about it. (This is a forum for <i>discussion</i>, not just unmitigated praise, right?) And you're free to defend it.

...who furthermore sayeth
Try http://www.co.saint-marys.md.us . Hint try agencies and departments.

Nope. Not enough detail; too vague. I want to know <i>how much</i> money is going to <i>what</i>. I need a budget. Thoughtfully, StM's hasn't bothered to create an online version. Guess it's time for a trip to the library...

Originally posted by Frank
Yeah, the Mixing Bowl has got nothing on the mess that is 235, right?

Ha ha. You realize, of course, that they're entirely different? The MB is a massive, multi-billion-dollar construction project, involving many miles of roads, and hundreds of different contractors. 235, on the other hand, is a rinky-dink stretch of road that ought to take about a month to finish, except that they never bother to put more than a couple guys at a time out there to fool around with shovels.

...who furthermore sayeth
And don't even START with DC as some kind of example of efficient city government.

You'll get no argument from me on that point. Of course, I wasn't talking about DC. I'm comparing this area to northern Virginia. (Where there's more than one bookstore per county, plenty of <i>good</i> movie theaters, numerous good restaurants, lower income tax, lower car registration price....)

Originally posted by Heretic
For a sleepy "backwoods" place there is a fair amount of crime, drugs, drunks wandering the streets, traffic, and unfriendly neighbors.

Definitely. I grew up in the Midwest (Iowa, Wisconsin), where one truly can find "all the advantages of the city but none of the drawbacks." Think SoMD, with less white trash, fewer trailer parks, better shopping, and more culture.

Originally posted by StarBuck
I think people are entitled to rant about So MD if they want to w/o the old "if you don't like it, GET OUT" line.

No, folks are entitled to use that line if they like. It's a perfectly valid, albeit hackneyed, criticism.

Originally posted by FIREMAN
There is one tax that no one should never be complained about and that is you fire tax.

I may complain about whatever tax I choose. But I agree with you--the "fire tax" is certainly worthwile. My complaint lies in the fact that for the county to rob me of 3.1% of my income, it ought at least to pay the folks on the squad.

Originally posted by Doc


Gladly. I plan on being here only a couple of years before returning to Alexandria. I derive immense satisfaction from my job--enough to outweigh my dislike for this area.



I feel bad for your poor coworkers that have to put up with the cynical outlook that you have towards this county. There are lots of people in this county who do love it here for many reasons.

Originally posted by Doc


The MB is a massive, multi-billion-dollar construction project, involving many miles of roads, and hundreds of different contractors. 235, on the other hand, is a rinky-dink stretch of road that ought to take about a month to finish, except that they never bother to put more than a couple guys at a time out there to fool around with shovels.



I kind of have to agree with you on this one, becasue I am from Boston the home of the "Big Dig" another nickname of it is the "Big Joke". They are putting all the exressways of Boston underground and it has been worked on now for about 10 years. And still isn't very far, so it isn't just so. MD that has this problem.

I love Southern Maryland. I was raised and choose to live here, but I will be the first to say that it can be a better place. Just because it has changed, doesn't mean that it is all bad.

When I went to Stone, everybody from Stone made fun of the place and each other. As soon as someone from another school decided to say something, then it was no longer funny, and they were fighting words.

I am not is school anymore. I have pride for the area, I think it is one of the better places to live, but the area is far from perfect. If a person wishes to talk bad of the area, that should in my mind anyhow, mean they are looking to volunteer in some way to teach the children to be better than their peers.

Because if a person is not willing to put up, then please shut up.

Hey DOC.... you make a good point and I totally agree with you about this county's tax.... I read through all the replies and I must say that this is not the normal mentality you'll get around here. (btw, I been told to leave if I didn't like it too, what a lame comeback!)

I also lived in northern virginia (93 thru 95) in Woodbridge... and what a difference. I moved down here from the west suburbs of Cleveland Ohio... before that I was in the east suburbs of Indianapolis, IN... before that, all over the world with the military.... and I hail from central PA (in da mountains)... just to give you an idea that I have been around quite a bit... When I filed my first state income tax... I noticed St Mary's percentage as one of the highest. The 235 project has been a mess since I came here and I am constantly scratchin my head trying to figure out what they are tryin accomplishing! Gate 2 of the post is going nowhere... but there remains the worse bottle-neck traffic in the whole area... perhaps someday those brilliant engineers will realize to TURN OFF THE DAMN red light when the gate is closed.

I don't think I can comment on the kids you seen... but perhaps you should invest in a digital camera or camcorder.... lol Would make an awesome website! :bubble:

Remember one thing though... this place WILL die if the base ever decides to pack it's bags (which is possible).... and someday the locals are gonna appreciate who and what we are here! Not so long ago, once upon a time, this whole area was nothing more than a swamp.... so it must be the water! :cheers:

But there are ALOT of nice people here and there is alot of happening in the summer... I'm not happy with the higher percentage of tax and little to show for it too... But it is where I work for now..... good luck!

Remember one thing though... this place WILL die if the base ever decides to pack it's bags (which is possible).... and someday the locals are gonna appreciate who and what we are here! Not so long ago, once upon a time, this whole area was nothing more than a swamp.... so it must be the water!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This whole area was nice and peaceful, with beautiful farm land and woods unitil we had to accomidate for all you people up the road and you wonder why taxes are so high.

Maybe we can get back to the simpler things in life. C-ya.

Originally posted by FIREMAN

This whole area was nice and peaceful, with beautiful farm land and woods unitil we had to accomidate for all you people up the road and you wonder why taxes are so high.

Maybe we can get back to the simpler things in life. C-ya.


AHAHAHAHAHAHAH! That's funny!

I am not from "up the road"! NAVAIR had already moved here before I came here. Perhaps the country side was nice at one time... so was Washington DC (perhaps the 1700's). Times have changed and the local board of commissioners and other party's that make the county decisions are gonna have to adjust to it!

Taxes aren't high because the Naval Base! Taxes are high because the county is as much corrupt -- as the state -- in reference to taxes! I have lived in MANY other towns & cities with military bases and they didn't raise the taxes because it was there... they prolly lowered it because it progressed and enhanced the area. You think the unemployment rate is low around here? WHO is responsible for that? Well, soon we have a round coming up in congress for base closure... the test pilot school has been here for a few decades and is not going anywhere, but the rest of the base could close and move... if that happens, see what southern maryland will look like 5 or so years later.... I was last stationed at Ft Benjamin Harrison @ Indianapolis and it was a high employment, awesome country side, growin and prosperous place... in the late 80's they closed the base... go take a ride threw that area now! Crime corrupted, Section 8 breeding, low-life trailor-park infested place to be! I rest my case....

One last thing... DOC was ALL for you fireman getting a paycheck for your services... I am in agreement... the whole point is this county is high-taxed, but nothing MORE to show for it -vs- counties and areas that have lower taxes and have resources we do not.....

bumpy

bumpy

:killingme