City Wants to Split Florida Into Two States

[Garpo]

Alabama annexation proposals
During the course of the century, proposals for ceding the Florida counties west of the Apalachicola River to Alabama were often raised:

In 1811, while Florida was still a Spanish possession,

Hmm, I don't think that changed very much.

 

[FrankT]

LOL, Destin has virtually no crime, few minorities that cause the crime, most criminals come from Al and Crestview when we get them. Our tax and tourists dollars keep the County in business, otherwise it might as well be Alabama.

 

[donr101395]

LOL, Destin has virtually no crime, few minorities that cause the crime, most criminals come from Al and Crestview when we get them. Our tax and tourists dollars keep the County in business, otherwise it might as well be Alabama.

That's pretty funny Frank, but it's wrong at least on the crime. Destin has only .4 lower per thousand violent crime than Crestview and has 21.1 higher property crime per thousand. These numbers are from June 2014

http://www.bestplaces.net/crime/?city1=51215475&city2=51217325

 

[FrankT]

I know more criminals from other areas coming to do crime in the wealthy part of the County, they know where the good stuff is. Those darn Al criminals coming here too...but still lower than other places and they are not counting the Crestview crime outside the City limits but still contributed to Crestview in reality or it would be double, they don't want to do that.

 

[Kentucky Hillbilly]

yeah I was thinking about all the hillbillies, corruption, lack of education, and lesser quality of life...but that is just me...lol

What's wrong with hillbillies?

 

[FrankT]

Nothing outside of civilized society, they are a great group!

 

[LowRiderRed]

Why in the world would anyone choose to be part of Alabama???? It's great if you want state income tax, sales tax on food, sales tax on medication, rampant illiteracy, and bass-ackwardness galore. That doesn't even open the Pandora's box of corruption, blatant discrimination on many fronts, and the presence of....well....just too damn many bammers.

I was born & raised in Alabama and in my mind NW Florida, even with all it's issues, is a FAR better place than Alabama could ever dream of being.

 

[FrankT]

Why in the world would anyone choose to be part of Alabama???? It's great if you want state income tax, sales tax on food, sales tax on medication, rampant illiteracy, and bass-ackwardness galore. That doesn't even open the Pandora's box of corruption, blatant discrimination on many fronts, and the presence of....well....just too damn many bammers.

I was born & raised in Alabama and in my mind NW Florida, even with all it's issues, is a FAR better place than Alabama could ever dream of being.

This!!^^^^ 100%

 

[Viking1204]

Why in the world would anyone choose to be part of Alabama???? It's great if you want state income tax, sales tax on food, sales tax on medication, rampant illiteracy, and bass-ackwardness galore. That doesn't even open the Pandora's box of corruption, blatant discrimination on many fronts, and the presence of....well....just too damn many bammers.

I was born & raised in Alabama and in my mind NW Florida, even with all it's issues, is a FAR better place than Alabama could ever dream of being.

If all that is true about Alabama then I have to agree and remove my support for joining Alabama!

 

[FrankT]

Look I like Al no matter its problems, I like lots of its people, I just don't want to be part of it or live there unless it is away from the populated areas.

 

[LowRiderRed]

If all that is true about Alabama then I have to agree and remove my support for joining Alabama!

My parents and a large portion of my family still live in Alabama. I go up there a lot since my parents are in their early 80's. I promise you every word of it is true.

For a good time log on to AL.com and do some reading.

 

[donr101395]

For a good time log on to AL.com and do some reading.

I read AL.com all the time and don't see anything there that I don't also see in Florida. Stupid people doing stupid things, drugs, corruption in government; it's not exclusive to Alabama. Even with the food tax, groceries are still less expensive in Alabama, gas is less expensive, land/housing is less expensive. I haven't bought gas or groceries in Florida in almost 18 months because I can drive 9 miles further and save 30-35% on my monthly grocery bill, 20 cents a gallon on gas, and almost 50% on the wife's cigarettes.
Don't get me wrong, I like the Florida Panhandle, but it has very little in common with the rest of Florida. The further East and/or South you go the crappier it gets with corruption, crime, drugs, discrimination to just blatant racism.

 

[LowRiderRed]

I read AL.com all the time and don't see anything there that I don't also see in Florida. Stupid people doing stupid things, drugs, corruption in government; it's not exclusive to Alabama. Even with the food tax, groceries are still less expensive in Alabama, gas is less expensive, land/housing is less expensive. I haven't bought gas or groceries in Florida in almost 18 months because I can drive 9 miles further and save 30-35% on my monthly grocery bill, 20 cents a gallon on gas, and almost 50% on the wife's cigarettes.
Don't get me wrong, I like the Florida Panhandle, but it has very little in common with the rest of Florida. The further East and/or South you go the crappier it gets with corruption, crime, drugs, discrimination to just blatant racism.

I have no idea where you go in Alabama to find all that lower priced stuff. I go about 30 miles north of Montgomery to visit family, and I find none of the benefits you're talking about. Keep in mind, it's a small town, about 5,000 people. Gas is about the same, groceries are higher (even at their brand new Wal Mart), and housing costs are absolutely insane. Add in the 9% sales tax on everything and it's just not very attractive to us. I don't know much about the rest of Florida since I never go there, but if what I hear is true there are just too many yankees everywhere and not much in the way of decent jobs.

The one thing that Alabama seems to be doing is attracting some decent jobs, which Florida (especially NW Florida) apparently has no intention of doing. I do hear from one source that Florida seems reluctant to give tax breaks and incentives to industry, something Alabama has been doing for years.

 

[Viking1204]

The fact that Alabama has a state income tax AND sales tax are a deal breaker for me. So you tax my income and then tax me again when I spend it, not good. The one good thing I do find is lower prices on gas. I can normally find 15-25 cent less on gas prices every time I drive through Brewton or Andalusia!

 

[donr101395]

I have no idea where you go in Alabama to find all that lower priced stuff. I go about 30 miles north of Montgomery to visit family, and I find none of the benefits you're talking about. Keep in mind, it's a small town, about 5,000 people. Gas is about the same, groceries are higher (even at their brand new Wal Mart), and housing costs are absolutely insane. Add in the 9% sales tax on everything and it's just not very attractive to us. I don't know much about the rest of Florida since I never go there, but if what I hear is true there are just too many yankees everywhere and not much in the way of decent jobs.

The one thing that Alabama seems to be doing is attracting some decent jobs, which Florida (especially NW Florida) apparently has no intention of doing. I do hear from one source that Florida seems reluctant to give tax breaks and incentives to industry, something Alabama has been doing for years.

We do most of out shopping in Samson at Howell's. Just an example this week they have whole sirloin for $2.99lb, at the beginning of the month it was whole ribeye for $2.88lb. They will cut it anyway you ask them at no charge. We have never paid more than $1.88 for pork chops and quite often they have them on sale for 88-98 cents a pound. Chicken is usually 50-75 cents a pound. All that, plus I can buy ammo while I'm there since they added a feed store that sells ammo. LOL

It's not just Yankees that screw up the rest of Florida, there are plenty of born and inbred Floridians in central Florida to share that blame. Every time I go down to the Tampa area I'm always surprised at the amount of blatant racism I see along with just plain stupid people who shouldn't be allowed in public without supervision. I'm a Yankee transplant 22 years ago and don't really fit in either place. Too much of a hick for Yankees and not enough of a hick for the hicks. LOL

Florida has Disney Land and Destin so from what I hear we don't need any industry or jobs other than those service industry jobs.

 

[LowRiderRed]

Florida has Disney Land and Destin so from what I hear we don't need any industry or jobs other than those service industry jobs.
__________
And there's the problem in a nut shell.

 

[FrankT]

you are right, industry and the jobs Al has gone after would have been great FL lost out. I am moving soon so don't care anymore.

 

[donr101395]

But hey at least we have this............................


http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local/g...st-of-most-conservative-cities-1.390949?tc=cr

CRESTVIEW — Saying area residents “tend to hold strong to traditional Republican values, especially when it comes to taxes and spending,” Livability.com rated Crestview as the second-best city in America for conservatives.

The Hub City was surpassed only by Alabaster, Ala., and came out ahead of conservative strongholds including Clinton, Utah; Slidell, La.; and Olive Branch, Miss.

“Most Republican strongholds are located in small towns,” the website observed.

The study’s results didn’t surprise many locals, including long-time resident Mary Ellen McGrath and Matt Bryant, who moved to Crestview 12 years ago after retiring.

“We’ve always had strong values here,” McGrath said. “It’s nice to have us recognized like this.”

“People around here would vote for my dog if he ran with an ‘R’ after his name on the ballot,” Bryant said.

The authors of the study used data including voting records and ideology of both residents and their elected officials, and coupled them with shopping habits.

The researchers identified restaurants, magazines, stores and TV shows “favored by one end of the political spectrum or another.”

“Then we backtracked and found areas where people used those goods and services to a high degree. For example, we found that liberals like Subaru cars way more than conservatives do.”

THE 10 BEST CITIES FOR CONSERVATIVES
1. Alabaster, Ala.
2. CRESTVIEW
3. Clinton, Utah
4. Bristol, Tenn.
5. Odessa, Texas
6. Yukon, Okla.
7. Slidell, La.
8. Olive Branch, Miss.
9. Peachtree City, Ga.
10. Benton, Ark.

 

[FrankT]

Well there is that...lol I think Destin is 80% or better rep but spend like drunken liberal sailors, not to demean sailors!

 

[JBryan314]

I'm proud to be a Floridian, but if becoming part of Bama is what it takes to get away from the Cubans in the South, then so be it.