The Other McCain

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Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley Is a Stupid, Dishonest and Incompetent Swine

Posted on | January 25, 2012 | 37 Comments

Just printed my boarding pass for Jacksonville, where I’m sure CNN’s lovely and charming Jennifer Scoggins will approve my media credential request for Thursday’s super-awesome Florida Republican debate. (There was an e-mail mix-up earlier, but I’m sure we’ve got that straightened out, right?) Because of scheduling contingencies, I booked my flight to Florida one-way and, given the crooked thieving shenanigans of state government here in Maryland, I may never come back:

One of Gov. O’Malley’s tax proposals this year is to extend the sales tax to digital products. That means digital media you download: ebooks, apps, music, newspapers, videos, ringtones, audio greeting cards and more could become subject to the state’s sales tax of 6 percent. So that 99 cents iTunes song you buy would cost around $1.05.

My friend Jeff Quinton at QuintonReport.com alerted me to this outrage and got an Instalanche out of it. And this could be the last straw for me.

I’ve lived in Maryland more than 14 years, ever since I moved up here to work at The Washington Times in November 1997. My friends have often asked, “Why Maryland? Their taxes are so high. You should move to Virginia.” And there was always a reason, or at least a plausible excuse.

For years, the commute to the Times office on New York Avenue, and the availability of a more direct bus/rail connection than could be found in Virginia, was the best argument to stay in Maryland. Then our daughter enrolled at Highland View Academy here in Hagerstown, and we moved into faculty housing on campus, where my wife subsequently became the food service director or, as she prefers to call herself, The Cafeteria Lady.

Frankly, however, the best argument for staying in Maryland now is inertia. We’ve lived in this house for seven years, and the mere thought of having to pack everything into a moving truck — my office library alone would take days to pack — is enough to give me a headache.

Nevertheless, O’Malley’s lamebrain Internet tax might make me do it. Because in all likelihood, as we witnessed in California last year, if the state tries to tax online sales, Amazon will pull out, and I need that Amazon money.

This past year, I finally figured out how to promote Amazon sales the way they should be promoted, and my commissions on associates sales during the Christmas holiday season exceeded $1,000 a month for the first time. Maybe some people don’t think $1,000 a month is a big deal, but for an independent blogger like me, that was a spectacular financial windfall. And if that corrupt idiot swindler O’Malley causes me to lose that income, I’m outta here.

Gonesville. Arrivaderci. Hasta la vista.

We’ve got family and friends in Florida, where there’s no state income tax and, during the past few weeks on the campaign trail, I’ve set up the National Affairs Desk in hotels, airport lounges and McDonald’s from Cedar Rapids to Manchester to Charleston. So I’ve proven I can work from anywhere there’s a WiFi connection.

Proximity to D.C. is nice, of course, but there’s no reason why I couldn’t start racking up some frequent flier miles on the Orlando-to-Washington route, if there was anything I needed to cover in The Nation’s Capitol.

Why not move to Florida? Or Georgia, Alabama, Ohio — it doesn’t really matter, does it? Just find someplace cheap to live, tell my wife to quit her job, load up the truck and go. An excellent idea, and then the vicious bastards who are flushing Maryland down the toilet won’t see another dime of my tax money.

When you people hit the tip jar, I have to pay Maryland taxes on that income. Do we really want that money going  to prop up O’Malley and his gang of thieves in Annapolis? I think not.

The Florida real estate market is at rock bottom — thank you, President Obama! — and it’s a swing state, so if I move down there sometime in the next few months, my wife and I (and our 19-year-old twin sons) could all register to vote in the November election. That’s four extra GOP voters in a crucial state where, as we saw in 2000, every vote counts.

Hell, yeah.

Thank you, Governor O’Malley, for this excellent idea.

Update (Smitty): linked at Inside Charm City

Category: Amazon, Maryland, Quinton Report, Taxes

Comments

37 Responses to “Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley Is a Stupid, Dishonest and Incompetent Swine”

  1. Compuwise
    January 25th, 2012 @ 5:02 pm

    I like both states and the idea of you sticking it to the man but wouldn’t the expense of moving and just one flight out weigh years of taxes on itunes and whatnot?

  2. Bob Belvedere
    January 25th, 2012 @ 5:13 pm

    Godspeed on the immediate trip to Florida.

    As for the tax: this is the start of a trend that will soon be seen in many states.

  3. Anonymous
    January 25th, 2012 @ 5:20 pm

    Yes, in the short term, there would be the one-time re-location expense. But we’d make that up in a year or two of tax-free income, and if we can find someplace cheap to rent — it’s not like we need beachfront property — we might save enough on housing to earn back the relocation costs in a matter of months.

    Also: Both of my teenage twins have Red Cross lifeguard certification, and there’s lots of that kind of opportunity in Florida.

    I’m not saying we WILL move to Florida, I’m just saying that the O’Malley regime has given us an excellent reason to seriously consider it and, like I said, we’ve got family and friends in the vicinity of Orlando who might be able to help us get relocated.

  4. rain of lead
    January 25th, 2012 @ 5:30 pm

    hey Stacy
    Tennessee does not have and income tax either
    and BBQ
    and country music…….
    just sayin

  5. Dell Hill
    January 25th, 2012 @ 5:31 pm

    Whoa, Bucko! Not so fast.  Vanuatu is on line one for you.  Your beach house is almost ready.

  6. Adjoran
    January 25th, 2012 @ 5:37 pm

    Have a safe flight!

    The argument for taxing online sales is typical liberal crap:  it isn’t “fair” that brick-and-mortar local retailers have to charge the tax when online retailers do not.  Baloney.

    Online retailers get no services from the state.  No police, fire, or rescue protection.  They do not add to wear and tear on roads and bridges.  Why should they pay for them?

    If the states wish to “level the playing field” (a common phrase the government uses when placing its thumb on the scale), all they have to do is repeal their own sales taxes.

  7. Danby
    January 25th, 2012 @ 5:55 pm

    I’m pretty sure it’s not the extra taxes to be paid, its the loss of income when Amazon pulls out.  At $1000/month, it doesn’t take long to make a case for moving.

    Every state that tries this sees their tax revenues go down.  How many tries does it take before Democrat-controlled states figure out it’s a bad idea? Or is the emotional rush they get from raising taxes overwhelming their ability to count?

  8. Ft. Ritchie dude
    January 25th, 2012 @ 6:00 pm

    one word stacy texas dont worry the other rick has no axe to gring withya

  9. Steve in TN
    January 25th, 2012 @ 6:10 pm

    Yeah, but our TN pols have all but rammed through that internet sales tax…

  10. Chip Jones
    January 25th, 2012 @ 6:14 pm

    Florida is a “Right to Work” state, too…..justsayin.

  11. Paul Zummo
    January 25th, 2012 @ 6:18 pm

    On the one hand, Maryland is a socialist republic.  I somehow manage to pay more in taxes to the state – and by a good margin – than the feds.  My neighborhood list-serve is a perfect encapsulation of the smarmy self-righteousness of the left.

    On the other hand, northern Virginia sucks donkey balls.  

    So for now I’m gonna rough it out in Maryland, but the day may come where I’m just pushed over the edge and out.

  12. Adventures! In! Spamland! « The Camp Of The Saints
    January 25th, 2012 @ 6:55 pm

    […] Bob: Ah, I think you want to talk with Stacy McCain. […]

  13. Anonymous
    January 25th, 2012 @ 7:03 pm

    No, it’s a semi-fascist oligarchy.  One party, crooked elections in gerrymandered districts.  

    They day after I retire, I’m off for a free state.

  14. ThePaganTemple
    January 25th, 2012 @ 7:32 pm

    I thought Florida was bad for sales taxes. You have a state sales tax, and other country and city sales taxes. I think it some areas it approaches the neighborhood of 18%. That’s just what I’ve heard from people who’ve been there on vacation, I don’t really know.

  15. Mike Rogers
    January 25th, 2012 @ 7:58 pm

    Don’t forget NH, and relatively cheap US Air flights to DCA. Also Southwest connects to a lot of places.
    No income ax, no sales tax, but the property taxes are a bit higher,

  16. richard mcenroe
    January 25th, 2012 @ 8:11 pm

    You forget the Progressive learning curve:

    _______________________

  17. richard mcenroe
    January 25th, 2012 @ 8:12 pm

    Snow.  And deer.  And skinny little roads.

  18. Mike Rogers
    January 25th, 2012 @ 8:29 pm

    Hah! Are you saying that deer, and snow, and Kia cars don’t mix?

  19. Mike Rogers
    January 25th, 2012 @ 8:32 pm

    Hah! Are you saying that deer, and snow, and Kia cars don’t mix?

  20. Dave
    January 25th, 2012 @ 8:48 pm

     As a fellow resident of the Soviet Republic of Marylandistan, I feel your pain Stacy. But what am I to do? I’m in insurance, I just did the numbers for last year: Obamacare cost me personally $42K last year. 42 grand! John Stewart may make that in a day, but to me that’s real money. Where do I go to escape that?

  21. Baltimore Sun, Amazon, and iTunes would be most affected by the new digital download proposal? | Inside Charm City: Baltimore, Maryland blog
    January 25th, 2012 @ 10:55 pm

    […] The questions of enforceability loom large over this idea too. Amazon will pull out of affiliating with any Associates in Maryland which will take money out of the hands of Marylanders. […]

  22. Anonymous
    January 25th, 2012 @ 11:03 pm

    If he’s moving for purposes of work, the cost of the move is deductible from his income taxes.

  23. richard mcenroe
    January 26th, 2012 @ 12:26 am

    Of course they do.  Once.

  24. Zilla of the Resistance
    January 26th, 2012 @ 8:16 am

    I live in the horrible state of New York. Every time husband bitches about how expensive and crappy it is here, I bring up New Hampshire. I have been working on him for over a dozen years, slowly wearing him down.  I like North Conway. How much does a pack of cigarettes go for these days in NH? It is between ten and twelve dollars here, and fifteen dollars or more in NYC.

  25. Bob Belvedere
    January 26th, 2012 @ 8:40 am

    The property taxes are high, but when you do the calculations of that versus what you pay in other states for their various taxes, it still makes NH a bargain.

    The wife and I can’t wait to move there in a few years.

  26. Bob Belvedere
    January 26th, 2012 @ 8:41 am

    They know how to plow the roads up in NH.

    Ten inches fall overnight and the roads are down to pavement by mid-morning at the latest.

  27. Andrew Patrick
    January 26th, 2012 @ 8:46 am

    I also live in the People’s Republic of Prince-Balti-Gomery, and inertia is likewise keeping me. Fact is, I basically grew up here, with the occasional extended visit to Ohio and California (Dad was in the Coast Guard). Our roots are here. I don’t want to move again. I moved too many times as a kid. I moved two years ago and am just now getting my house the way I want it. 

    But I’m starting to wonder if I would make good being a Pennsylvania tax refugee. Pennsylvania real estate taxes suck, but their state income tax is a pittance compared to Maryland. I live in the northern part of the state, so PA would be a better move than Virginia. Never could abide Virginia.

  28. Anonymous
    January 26th, 2012 @ 9:00 am

    No, the Democrats just plan to take it national (and international; do you think they wouldn’t give the UN both police and taxing powers if they could get away with it?).

  29. Anonymous
    January 26th, 2012 @ 9:04 am

    Wombat, I actually went through that in 2006 when I moved from AL to TX. Since I moved for personal reasons (my NYC-born and raised non-driving wife wanted to move to a city with decent mass transit), not for work or work-related reasons, it wasn’t deductible.

    Stacey, especially since he works for himself, will have a tough time making the case his job requires it. I expect this to become more common since an increasing number of jobs can be done  “wherever there’s WiFi.”

  30. Mike Rogers
    January 26th, 2012 @ 10:20 am

    $6-$7 per pack, $56-$65 per carton.

    Where you live depends on how much you travel out of state, and what services you require.
    Top speed internet isn’t available everywhere, and living within an hour of Manchester Airport may be important to you.

    FSP would be glad to have you here.

  31. Mike Rogers
    January 26th, 2012 @ 10:25 am

    And, if you’re “on fire”, like Zilla, the cigarettes are cheaper, too.

  32. McGehee
    January 26th, 2012 @ 3:22 pm

    Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley Is a Stupid, Dishonest and Incompetent Swine

    Just imagine what you’d say if you wanted to insult him.

  33. Oh (Big) Brother « The Cranky Conservative
    January 26th, 2012 @ 6:44 pm

    […] of RS McCain comes news of the latest tax proposal here in the People’s Republic of Maryland: Maybe you […]

  34. Movin’ on out : monoblogue
    January 26th, 2012 @ 7:32 pm

    […] McCain is also a Free State resident who says the the idea of the “app tax” may be the last straw: I’ve lived in Maryland more than 14 years, ever since I moved up here to work at The Washington […]

  35. BS
    January 27th, 2012 @ 10:49 am

    That comment is a lie and full of shit…Where do you work, at Walmart?  You guys…always complaining about taxes.  Bunch of babies.  6 cents, really?  Thats going to ruin your world?  True socialism does not exist in this country yet you guys think it will happen.  They system here is very flawed.  If the fed and states would just have the balls to raise taxes on everyone we wouldnt have to go through this.  All of you, we pay no taxes…the least out of all 1st world countries, yet you still complain.  Whatever, typical idiots.  Just quit working and you wont get taxed.  Enjoy your life then.

  36. Anonymous
    January 29th, 2012 @ 12:57 pm

    I pay 7% sales tax:  6% state.  1% county.  This is in Pasco north of Tampa.  Stay out of the tourist areas and you’ll do fine in FL.

  37. Odds and ends number 43 : monoblogue
    February 6th, 2012 @ 8:11 am

    […] to be taking votes or attending a hearing. Aside from that, they are right on target. And as others have pointed out, losing the Amazon sales via the ‘app tax’ could really hurt their bottom lines. Not so […]