On 12/27/12 2:41 PM, wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 12:52:19 -0500, ESAD wrote:

On 12/27/12 12:43 PM, wrote:



That was rendered moot when DC was given home rule in 1968.
They are running their own city now. Personally I think we would all
be better off if they ceded it back to Maryland, only keeping the
Federal Triangle where the national monuments, capitol, white house
and the majority of federal buildings lie.



Statehood, with one voting u.s. rep and two u.s. senators.

I don't believe the district has the critical mass to be a state.
It may be a little more possible now that they are gentrifying
downtown and shoving the poor people out past the beltway but you
still have a revenue problem.

If they did something like that the government would still want to
carve out their patch.

Ceding the commercial and privately owned areas to Maryland is a more
reasonable option. They have the precedent with the Virginia bite out
of the original diamond.


Critical mass? You mean population? D.C. has about the same population
as Alaska, Vermont, and North Dakota though, obviously, much smaller
geographic area.

D.C. doesn't want to be part of another state. It wants its own
political clout and independence.

On 12/28/12 12:11 AM, wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 14:54:21 -0500, ESAD wrote:

On 12/27/12 2:41 PM, wrote:

Critical mass? You mean population? D.C. has about the same population
as Alaska, Vermont, and North Dakota though, obviously, much smaller
geographic area.

D.C. doesn't want to be part of another state. It wants its own
political clout and independence.

Alaska and North Dakota have natural resources and a real economy. DC
just sucks on the government tit. The federal government is the only
industry they have. A lot of that is moving north to the I-270
corridor. The biggest industry downtown is K street. (essentially
legal bribery)


So what?

In article ,
says...

On 12/28/12 12:11 AM, wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 14:54:21 -0500, ESAD wrote:

On 12/27/12 2:41 PM, wrote:

Critical mass? You mean population? D.C. has about the same population
as Alaska, Vermont, and North Dakota though, obviously, much smaller
geographic area.

D.C. doesn't want to be part of another state. It wants its own
political clout and independence.

Alaska and North Dakota have natural resources and a real economy. DC
just sucks on the government tit. The federal government is the only
industry they have. A lot of that is moving north to the I-270
corridor. The biggest industry downtown is K street. (essentially
legal bribery)


So what?

What does DC have to offer the US in the form of revenue and expansion?

In article ,
says...

In article ,
says...

On 12/28/12 12:11 AM, wrote:
On Thu, 27 Dec 2012 14:54:21 -0500, ESAD wrote:

On 12/27/12 2:41 PM, wrote:

Critical mass? You mean population? D.C. has about the same population
as Alaska, Vermont, and North Dakota though, obviously, much smaller
geographic area.

D.C. doesn't want to be part of another state. It wants its own
political clout and independence.

Alaska and North Dakota have natural resources and a real economy. DC
just sucks on the government tit. The federal government is the only
industry they have. A lot of that is moving north to the I-270
corridor. The biggest industry downtown is K street. (essentially
legal bribery)


So what?

What does DC have to offer the US in the form of revenue and expansion?

Tourism.

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 09:07:36 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:



What does DC have to offer the US in the form of revenue and expansion?

Tourism.

Most people who visit DC stay in Maryland or Virginia.
Other than street vendors, DC does not make much money off of them,.
Virtually all of the attractions are free.
Tourists seldom get out of the national monument area.
Tour guides advise them to stay south of Pennsylvania avenue.

Those would be the areas the government would hold on to in any
circumstance.

Tourists need food, transportation, lodging, etc. Ever look at the taxes
generated by lodging alone? Tourists generate more than half of D.C's
sales tax alone!!

http://tinyurl.com/cmryjf3

Which says in part:

"As the seat of the U.S. government and heart of American democracy,
Washington, D.C., is a city that relies heavily on the tourism industry
? so much so that visitors regularly generate more than half of the
city's annual sales taxes.
So it should come as something of a relief to city officials, especially
after a year in which they were forced to close a $322 million budget
gap, that the $5 billion tourism industry grew strongly in 2010 and is
expected to close out 2011 on a high note. Regardless, a weaker forecast
for conventions means the city will have to continue drawing in leisure
travelers, with more and more of them coming from abroad, while picking
up the convention pace in the coming years.
"In 2012 we won't realize as many citywide [conventions] as we did in
2011, however we're optimistic as we're going to focus our efforts and
initiatives on going after the domestic market and the international
visitors market," said Elliott Ferguson, president and CEO of
Destination DC, the city's tourism marketing agency.
In 2010, according to the agency, 15.54 million domestic visitors
flocked to the nation's capital, a 5.1 percent increase over the prior
year. They spent $5.68 billion, up 8.2 percent from 2009, with lodging
and food accounting for a large portion of that total. Things seem to be
looking up for 2011, too. Comparing July 2010 to the same month a year
later, occupancy is roughly holding steady, while average daily rates
ticked up 1.5 percent, according to Smith Travel Research"

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 12:02:38 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 09:07:36 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:



What does DC have to offer the US in the form of revenue and expansion?

Tourism.

Most people who visit DC stay in Maryland or Virginia.
Other than street vendors, DC does not make much money off of them,.
Virtually all of the attractions are free.
Tourists seldom get out of the national monument area.
Tour guides advise them to stay south of Pennsylvania avenue.

Those would be the areas the government would hold on to in any
circumstance.

Tourists need food, transportation, lodging, etc. Ever look at the taxes
generated by lodging alone? Tourists generate more than half of D.C's
sales tax alone!!

http://tinyurl.com/cmryjf3

Those "conventions" and most of the hotel stays are to lobby congress.
The price of a decent hotel in DC is far beyond the budget of the
average tourist. (you have to have "lobbyist money for that)

Of course there are still some flop houses that you might be able to
afford but I wouldn't go there without a police escort.

Most tourists will stay in Maryland or Virginia and hop the Metro to
get into town. The last time we were there we stayed in Old Town
(Alexandria)

Gee, that's not what the cite says......

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:48:16 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 12:02:38 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 09:07:36 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:



What does DC have to offer the US in the form of revenue and expansion?

Tourism.

Most people who visit DC stay in Maryland or Virginia.
Other than street vendors, DC does not make much money off of them,.
Virtually all of the attractions are free.
Tourists seldom get out of the national monument area.
Tour guides advise them to stay south of Pennsylvania avenue.

Those would be the areas the government would hold on to in any
circumstance.

Tourists need food, transportation, lodging, etc. Ever look at the taxes
generated by lodging alone? Tourists generate more than half of D.C's
sales tax alone!!

http://tinyurl.com/cmryjf3

Those "conventions" and most of the hotel stays are to lobby congress.
The price of a decent hotel in DC is far beyond the budget of the
average tourist. (you have to have "lobbyist money for that)

Of course there are still some flop houses that you might be able to
afford but I wouldn't go there without a police escort.

Most tourists will stay in Maryland or Virginia and hop the Metro to
get into town. The last time we were there we stayed in Old Town
(Alexandria)

Gee, that's not what the cite says......

It's an advertisement. Notice the reference to the 'backyard'. That's where folks stay - Virginia
and Maryland. It's why the Metro is so crowded whenever something is happening in DC. Folks are
coming in from MD and VA.

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:48:16 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 12:02:38 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 09:07:36 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:



What does DC have to offer the US in the form of revenue and expansion?

Tourism.

Most people who visit DC stay in Maryland or Virginia.
Other than street vendors, DC does not make much money off of them,.
Virtually all of the attractions are free.
Tourists seldom get out of the national monument area.
Tour guides advise them to stay south of Pennsylvania avenue.

Those would be the areas the government would hold on to in any
circumstance.

Tourists need food, transportation, lodging, etc. Ever look at the taxes
generated by lodging alone? Tourists generate more than half of D.C's
sales tax alone!!

http://tinyurl.com/cmryjf3

Those "conventions" and most of the hotel stays are to lobby congress.
The price of a decent hotel in DC is far beyond the budget of the
average tourist. (you have to have "lobbyist money for that)

Of course there are still some flop houses that you might be able to
afford but I wouldn't go there without a police escort.

Most tourists will stay in Maryland or Virginia and hop the Metro to
get into town. The last time we were there we stayed in Old Town
(Alexandria)

Gee, that's not what the cite says......

Why would a puff piece about how wonderful DC is tell the truth about
how many people don't stay there?
You also notice they said there were not enough hotel rooms and that
DC was $322 million in the hole (in spite of huge federal infusions
of money)

As suspected. Please cite which statistics in the article you dispute
and give cites to what you believe the real numbers are......

wrote:
On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:48:16 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 12:02:38 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:

In article ,
says...

On Fri, 28 Dec 2012 09:07:36 -0500, iBoaterer wrote:



What does DC have to offer the US in the form of revenue and expansion?

Tourism.

Most people who visit DC stay in Maryland or Virginia.
Other than street vendors, DC does not make much money off of them,.
Virtually all of the attractions are free.
Tourists seldom get out of the national monument area.
Tour guides advise them to stay south of Pennsylvania avenue.

Those would be the areas the government would hold on to in any
circumstance.

Tourists need food, transportation, lodging, etc. Ever look at the taxes
generated by lodging alone? Tourists generate more than half of D.C's
sales tax alone!!

http://tinyurl.com/cmryjf3

Those "conventions" and most of the hotel stays are to lobby congress.
The price of a decent hotel in DC is far beyond the budget of the
average tourist. (you have to have "lobbyist money for that)

Of course there are still some flop houses that you might be able to
afford but I wouldn't go there without a police escort.

Most tourists will stay in Maryland or Virginia and hop the Metro to
get into town. The last time we were there we stayed in Old Town
(Alexandria)

Gee, that's not what the cite says......

Why would a puff piece about how wonderful DC is tell the truth about
how many people don't stay there?
You also notice they said there were not enough hotel rooms and that
DC was $322 million in the hole (in spite of huge federal infusions
of money)

We stayed in Maryland and took the rapid transit in to DC in the late 80's
when we took the kids there. Took the White House tour of the East Wing at
8 am and then got a private West Wing tour in the evening. Lots of things
to see in DC but most were like the monuments and the Smithsonian. Mt.
Vernon, etc. But we were in an 27' RV for the 7 weeks we toured the
country.

On Friday, December 28, 2012 1:26:47 PM UTC-5, wrote:

Most tourists will stay in Maryland or Virginia and hop the Metro to
get into town. The last time we were there we stayed in Old Town
(Alexandria)

Last time we were there we stayed at the Crowne Plaza near the Whitehouse. I had a bunch of points I turned in for the room (from work travel), so I'm not sure how much the rooms were, but not cheap.

We spent the money on other things instead. Nice restaraunts and car rental to drive to Mount Vernon and a couple of other places. Ate at The Palm one night and saw Dee Dee Myers there. Rode the underground tram from the Capital to the Senate Building (was a while back). Walked a LOT. Everyone needs to go at least once in their lives.