STATES SAYING 'NO' TO CITIES SEEKING TO REGULATE BUSINESSES

We save and reuse our plastic bags too. When we get too many stored up, we pile them into plastic bags and drop them off in the recycle bins Walmart supplies in the store.

"None of the issues presented in the story seem to be anything beyond local liberal agenda being enacted and then thwarted by conservative state legislatures."

When the Republicans held the Presidency and either had no control or limited control of the congress, the Republicans including most conservatives, thought it would be a good idea to give more and more power to the executive branch. More and more executive orders, more and more foreign policy decisions being made exclusively by the administration.

Now that the presidency is held by a Democrat, most of us realize what a bad idea that turned out to be. Totally undermining the constitutional separation of powers (perhaps for all time) in exchange for a short term gain of four or eight years of getting Republican policies in place.

If conservatives aren't for local control, then what are we for? Evidently all we're supposed to care about is that conservative policies get enacted. If we happen to have control at the federal level, then every law becomes a federal law. If we have control at the state level, then state's rights is the order of the day. Only when it is the case of a Republican city council in a Democrat state under a Democrat-Run federal government are we supposed to support the locals.

In California we decided that keeping property taxes low was more important than local control. We may have some of the lowest property taxes in the country, but we have one of the highest income tax rates, so on average we really haven't lowered our overall taxes. The state imposes lots of mandates on the cities who now have very little choice but to take state funds and lose more control.

So when the state decides that every school board has to teach the "wonders" of gay sex or the "normalcy" of transsexuals, then they will have to or risk losing necessary funding. When every restaurant in every city is required to modify their restrooms to be transsexual-friendly, then there will be no recourse.

No Child Left Behind, Common Core, etc. were all put in place at the federal level. If/when launched by "conservative" Presidents conservatives supported them. When launched by Democrats we now oppose them even if both are basically the same lame attempts to control people at the highest level rather than at the most local.

All of the recent talk about repealing the 17th Amendment or calling a convention of the states, despite all of the attempts to provide some sort of rational justification, is really just a rationalization in support of shifting more control to state legislatures because right now Republicans have control of a majority of state legislatures. If/when the majority of state legislatures is controlled by Democrats talk of repealing the 17th Amendment or calling a convention of the states will certainly fizzle out.

Similarly whether someone prefers to keep the electoral college method for determining the winner of the Presidential election or replacing it with the popular vote is often more about which method is more likely to result in that person's favorite candidate winning than about which is fairest or most likely to yield the best candidate.

Immigrants, legal and illegal, are pouring into every state. It will not be too long before most states are controlled by the Democrats. At that point Republicans and conservatives will be begging for local control, but the current generation of "conservatives" who are bent on taking advantage of our current majority at the state level will put in place the tools for future Democrat state legislatures to deny local control to the remaining Republican enclaves.

>> Just another reason why we moved to Lakeway instead of Austin when my hubby retired. <<

I know what you mean. We’re in Leander and we pretty much avoid Austin except for work.

It’s ironic that the ‘civic improvements’ there hurt local businesses and stimulate the ‘burbs more than the city.

I remember Paper Bags, liked em, still do, recycled them as well, they are a lot less likely to get caught by the wind and end up where they are not wanted... even if they did after the first or second rain they become compost.

It is Govt and all of those that have nothing better to do than try to make other people bend to their will, for good or bad, they don’t care as long as they can make people do what “THEY” say, an hell if there is a kickback or a profit... all the better. For them Freedom is a commodity.
TT

I’m with you - I can still smell the paper as a full bag is carried into the house. Many more uses than the plastic and they made good tinder or charcoal starter too...not to mention a great table protector for small projects.