Big house a symbol of an American tragedy

The Boston Globe ^ | 1-28-07 | Beverly Beckham

[BronzePencil]

It sits on top of a hill, overlooking a busy road -- a big, pink stucco house that dwarfs all the houses around it. It is conspicuous consumption at its worst, or at its best, depending on your point of view.

It's not the biggest house around. There are many bigger -- one just a few miles from where I live, not on top of a hill but practically on the offramp of a highway. So many smaller houses have been knocked down to make room for these Goliaths. This is called progress.

I don't understand who lives in these massive homes or who can afford them

[definitelynotaliberal]

I'm guessing it's John Edwards' home.

[nascarnation]

instead of liberal bleating, the writer should have done some due diligence

maybe there's a Kennedy or Kerry relative in this place somewhere - that would make it OK

:-)

[Muzzle_em]

Looks like a fleet of gas guzzlers over in front of the GIANT red barn. What a HYPROCRITE HE IS! All liberals are.
The rest of us little people should drive Yugos and live in 500 sq. ft. condos stacked on top of each other, freeing up giant parcels of land so that they each can live in their very own state park!

[Cementjungle]

Sheesh! What do the Edwards have against TREES??

That's for a really, really big septic tank. He produces a lot of crap.

[BigBobber]

Any time leftists complain about the "excesses" of modern life it always boils down to this: It is a reaction by rich people who realize the middle class is enjoying the things only they used to enjoy. What usually follows is government action that taxes or restricts the use by the middle class of what only rich libs deserve.

A few cases in point:

When only rich people had mobile phones, use was unrestricted. Now we need laws to prevent the little guy from using one in a car, restaurant, public transit, etc.

When only rich people could publish books, movies, articles, anything went. Controversial works of art were looked upon favorably by the elites. Now that virtually everyone can publish worldwide over the Internet, we must have regulation.

There's lot's of examples that go back to the beginning of industialized society. The liberals hate it when technology and capitalist wealth building allow so many to enjoy their lifestyle.

[redangus]

My mom and dad bought a new house in Indiana in 1966 for $19,000. Other than normal maintenance nothing has been done to it over the ensuing 41 years. If mom sold it today she could easily get $100,000 for it.

[politicalwit]

take a look at military pay by grades from 1949 to 2006

http://www.dod.mil/dfas/militarypay/2006militarypaytables/militarypaypriorrates.html

[billhilly]

Thanks for the picture. It is the one I remembered, and I still believe that country boy outclasses the wanna be president.

[politicalwit]

working link
http://www.dod.mil/dfas/militarypay/2006militarypaytables/militarypaypriorrates.html

[Mr. Brightside]

I don't understand who lives in these massive homes or who can afford them

Corrected.... "I don't understand."

[The_Media_never_lie]

Pick up a copy of Pinnacle Living Magazine sometime and look at all the gated communities they are building in the mountains of the southeast these days. The starting price for a 1/2 to 1 acre lot runs $60-100,000.

Absolutely insane and immoral. Not only are some of these "developments" very tacky, the majority of owners don't plan to live in them year round. Some sit high on ridges so they are visible for 20 miles, cluttering up the landscape for everyone to see.

I am all for the Horatio Alger story repeated 1,000,000 times in America, but I just wish the noveaux rich would learn a little class and respect for their neighbors.

[MSM Hater]

The Carolina Journal web site was inundated by link hits from Drudge on this, but here is a link to their site with the Edward's house story.

http://www.carolinajournal.com/

[bruinbirdman]

"It should be noted that that is John Edwards' house. "

Looks like he adds a guest house for every big extortion he receives.

yitbos

[The_Media_never_lie]

Wonder what Edwards constinuency thinks of Edwards hatred of trees, so evident in his mansion's layout.

[MSM Hater]

Wonder if Johnnie boy has calculated the carbon footprint for his 28,200 square foot house.

[redangus]

Does this woman understand that liberal rent control laws and land use regulations are part of what drives high home prices? There is only so much land and when her liberal friends tie it up in conservation easements and no build zones the price of what is left goes up. My guess is her parents didn't have to wory about such things when the built their castle for $10,000. Also what does $10,000 in 1954 equal in today's dollars? And how does that amount compare to the average home price today in her area?

I am not a great fan of McMansions and urban sprawl both of which we have too much of here in central Indiana, but you can't divorce government policy from economic outcome.

[CFC__VRWC]

As for the author's parents I bet to them a fancy restaurant was Howard Johnsons and a deluxe seafood dinner was the all you can eat clam strips.

These days, that's become the all you can eat snow crab legs on Fridays at the local Chinese buffet.

[redangus]

I tend to agree with you assessment, but my point was that somebody is making enough money to build these houses, and many as you say only live there part time which means they have another equally ostentatious house somewhere else.

[MSM Hater]

Wonder what Edwards constinuency thinks of Edwards hatred of trees, so evident in his mansion's layout.

They'll never find out because the only news they watch - CNN - will ignore this story as they do all things damaging to their liberal buddies.

You could house hundreds of the displaced Hurricane Katrina victims that Edward's photo-opped with last week in his new mansion.

[6SJ7]

don't understand who lives in these massive homes or who can afford them...

Try your own Governor!

BERKSHIRES VACATION HOME -- The Patricks are building a 24-room, 10,000-square foot mansion on 77 acres in Richmond, a rural town drawing affluent second-home buyers. They are carrying mortgages of $4.6 million on the Richmond house and 14 acres adjacent to it. (Nancy Palmieri for the Boston Globe)