> So it's not like people were left to figure it out on
> their own, there was a huge well-funded opposition lying about it
everywhere
> you looked. The Repub. governor supported it, essentially for religious
> reasons, but that doesn't mean Republicans generally did.
Absolutely. One of the reasons that Alabama's public schools are always among the worst in the nation is that there are no meaningful property taxes, especially because of big timber and agribusiness. And the tax structure is even worse than the NYT reported--the fraction of income paid in income taxes by those making under $11,000 is _higher_ than that paid by those making over $90,000.
>
> You're right, the church has gotta be a big factor--but in this case, the
> pro-tax group framed their position religiously, and my aunt, who is a
very
> conservative evangelical (quotes from Deuteronomy in the bathroom, Pat
Robertson on
> the TV) nonetheless supported the tax.
>
This was one of the most interesting developments in the campaign, and
supports your point about the anti-tax fragility. A whole legion of
evangelicals really started using Christian ethos to _support_ the tax,
which set anti-taxers temporarily on their heels.
Christian