E-mailed item shows five homes owned by Senator John Kerry and worth many millions of dollars

Snopes ^ | 4/1/04 | Snopes

[billhilly]

Snopes does not disappoint! Whenever there is a rumor circulating about some democrat, they are quick to put the label of Urband Legend on it. In this case they could not do that. What they could do, and what they did do, was to ignore the fact that it was John Heinz, United States Senator (R-Pa) who had inherited the Heinz fortune that was passed on to Teresa at his death. She, being bi-partisan, would no doubt have supported a presidential bid by her former husband had that occasion presented itself.

On the other hand, Kerry, ever the opportunist, was willing to accept the republican inheritance to further his political ambitions. I hope he gets exactly what he deserves.

[NativeNewYorker]

Moseley-Braun is worth more than Kucinich? This is the very definition of loser.

[NativeNewYorker]

I can't imagine the priviledge involved in owning multiple $4-5 million dollar estates (and having the means to own them outright).

The dirty little secret to this is that the homes' value is not even the biggest ticket item involved here. The annual cost of maintaining top drawer properties -- from taxes to toilets -- is staggering. The upkeep on ONE of these palaces is a multiple of the average family income. The ability to carry these properties, even without a mortgage, is nothing short of breathtaking.

[CyberAnt]

Aren't these homes owned by Tah-Ray-Sah ..??

[rockrr]

Hey Look1
I'm giving Kucinich a serious run for the money!

[rockrr]

Hey Look1
I'm giving Kucinich a serious run for the money!

[lonestar]

I don't even want to know what SHE pays in insurance every year.

[Zeppo]

A five-story, twelve-room brownstone townhouse (with six fireplaces, a rooftop deck, and an elevator) in Boston's Beacon Hill. This home is John Kerry's main residence and was assessed at a value of $6.6 million in 2003

Snopes could have done a better job of reporting the value - didn't Kerry mortgage half of that property for $6 million, meaning that it is supposedly worth $12 million? Why is Snopes lowballing the value?

A ski/vacation home located near the banks of the Big Wood River in Ketchum, Idaho, fashioned from a reassembled barn originally built in England in 1485 and brought to Idaho by Teresa Heinz Kerry's late husband. It was purchased for $4.9 million in 1988.

Again, Snopes is lowballing the value. The purchase price in 1988 is certainly much much lower than its current value.

[Rebelbase]

"The annual cost of maintaining top drawer properties -- from taxes to toilets -- is staggering."

Oh, I hear you. Its a fantasy world that is so far removed from reality it's pathetic to think someone raised in such could possibly indentify as having "been there and done that" with the "common man".

[an amused spectator]

Snopes does a great job. They printed the truth about the bin Laden family flights. Michael Moore's lies faced the truth at Snopes.

Snopes.com does a great job unless the issue is political. They revealed themselves when they did a bait-and-switch with the meticulous documentation of Alamo-Girl.

I just look at their political stuff and laugh.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so much for remembering!

[swilhelm73]

Yes indeed. I normally peruse Snopes.com as a source for news of the wierd and unusual. For serious political analysis Snopes isn't a completely hack job, but it has a strong leftist bias.

I mean, come on, the houses are in Kerry's wife's name so they don't bare on his living the life of a pampered prince while claiming to be a man of the people? Snopes, seriously, get a conservative to work with you on the political stuff - and you need one badly.

[swilhelm73]

Which bait and switch was this?

[Howlin]

Your post:

Story from a month ago...http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1103095/posts

My reply to you: ABSOLUTELY. I'm damn tired of these people getting this stuff off FR and NOT giving us credit!

[an amused spectator]

Snopes and Alamo-Girl got into it over her Clinton administration lists, and they pretended that she was promoting the "Clinton Body Count" BS, which of course she was NOT.

[Andy from Beaverton]

Snopes.com does a great job unless the issue is political
And the fake story about the bin Laden's flying out on 9/12 was not political?

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank y'all for the pings!

In case you're interested, here's the research showing all sides of the "body count" assertions:

Body Count Research Project

[an amused spectator]

And the fake story about the bin Laden's flying out on 9/12 was not political?

I give them about a 93% on political stories. My standards are a 98%+ for reliability. As you can see, there's about a 5% discrepancy there. Which ain't good enough.

See my above posts on Alamo-Girl, whose standards are considerably higher than Snopes.

[an amused spectator]

You want real reliability, peruse The Downside Legacy (by FR's own A-G)

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so very much for the kudos and encouragements! Hugs!