George,

I can well understand why the capital punishment issue dominates the campaign headlines. Jerry Kilgore wants both a wedge and a hammer in his efforts to divide Democrats and win the election.

But I can't quite understand why Tim Kaine's courageous and important stance on local government powers to manage growth has provoked so little comment. Kaine has done something that I don't believe any gubernatorial candidate in my memory has ever done: he suggests an increase in the power of local government zoning powers even if it can be used to restrict growth. Kaine proposes changes in state law (Dillon's rule) to allow local governments to "restrict development that would overwhelm nearby roads." As expected, the Home Builders Assocation of Virginia through their spokesperson said "We would vehemently oppose that legislative initiative, and it would be a silver bullet to the heart of the housing industry." (The Washington Post, 10/11/05 B5)

Shades of my own campaign stance and Kim Tingley's opposition in the primary. I urge David Toscano to publicly support Kaine's initiative. I urge all of my supporters to see in Tim Kaine's initiative a real breakthrough in gubernatorial politics, and one reason to enthusiastically support Tim' s election.

Rich Collins (electronic mail, October 13, 2005)