I attended a reclaim America seminar years ago where it was clearly stated that the gatekeepers were not the problem. The problem is the mentality of the voting block that puts them in office. With 46% of Americans not paying taxes we are unlikely to change the situation.The governing class thinks it must continually legislate so the government grows. My elected representation sends me party line form letters talking down to me, yet they were armchair fillers prior to being elected.
Mistakenly thinking a corporation can be taxed we drove employers out of the country and vilified them. However, the prices didn't come down as the goods were produced in China and Mexico. Since those corporations pay little or no taxes now I say it would be a win/win to bring them home with tax breaks and create American jobs. Some 54% of those put to work might actually pay income taxes.
I built my own house, someone said good luck when I had to face the electrical inspector to get a wiring permit, it seems he had a reputation as being a tough nut to crack. He kicked back in his chair and said I would have to pass a test. He asked how many watts of service a dwelling needed. I said well I think 200 amps, so assuming a unity power factor and 240 volts supply I would say 48 kilowatts. he sheepishly said he asked the wrong question and that 200 amps was correct. With the other questions it became immediately obvious that he was out of his league and he with reluctance issued the permit. My argument is not against the permit, rather against the incompetence of those in control. A friend has a cantilevered balcony over his foyer in a 1.5 million dollar home and since the inspector was not familiar with cantilevers he had to add a support column to pass inspection. The column was removed after given the occupancy certificate.
I attended a reclaim America seminar years ago where it was clearly stated that the gatekeepers were not the problem. The problem is the mentality of the voting block that puts them in office. With 46% of Americans not paying taxes we are unlikely to change the situation.The governing class thinks it must continually legislate so the government grows. My elected representation sends me party line form letters talking down to me, yet they were armchair fillers prior to being elected.
Mistakenly thinking a corporation can be taxed we drove employers out of the country and vilified them. However, the prices didn't come down as the goods were produced in China and Mexico. Since those corporations pay little or no taxes now I say it would be a win/win to bring them home with tax breaks and create American jobs. Some 54% of those put to work might actually pay income taxes.
(a note for yellowjeep, I listen to Bob McClain)
I listen to him too (I take it you figured that).... And you are dead on with your statements.
And a quote related to your 46% figure you stated:
"When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic" B.F.
We are seeing that statement coming true. We are so close to the 50%, I fear there is no turning back.
Building permits didn't even hit WNC until the '70s. Newer homes were frame houses but many were what we called box houses. Walls were just two thicknesses of boards, maybe with felt between. Windows and doors were faced with boards inside and out then sawn out. Many of these houses were added on to as families grew and a great number still stand. Although I wouldn't want to buy one they are not a hazard and have stood the test of time. I built my own house with only a wiring permit and it is one of the best in my neighborhood.
I also was raised on raw milk and it was not a hazard. From a health standpoint I hold to the truth that raw milk is more easily digested and metabolized than processed milk.
My bottom line is that government meddling has done little but drive prices and taxes up for the common man.
In all fairness I need to provide a bit more info on the shelter. It was an open area with army cots. In fact better facilities than many in uniform are experiencing as we debate. Egress was not impeded in any fashion. Handicap access dealt primarily with restrooms.
Obviously, this group is trying to help, and I'm not going to put the blame fully on them. But there are means of working around certain issues like this. In my experience, zoning boards and commissions are willing to look at things like this on a case-by-case basis, and if you can give a good reason, most will (eventually) issue variances for otherwise non-compliant structures. But you can't get those variances from the 20% of the people who handle 80% of the case load - you need to get past the peons, the pencil pushers, the desk monkeys and take the case to someone who can say "yes".
We had the same issue in the former single-family home we turned into our office. It was built in such a fashion that retrofitting it for handicap access just wasn't feasible. But, considering that our field agents work from their homes and we generally meet with clients and customers away from our office, we were granted a variance.
Quote:
Homelessness is an issue of its own. In Johnson City, TN there exists a sub-culture of homeless vets who live in the woods just outside the VA facility in tents, under tarps or whatever and cooking on a campfire. They are there because they won't adhere to the rules of the VA. Occasionally the fire marshal will arrest a couple for having a fire. They could easily live in a shelter of the type that was shut down by officials (in another city).
BTW government employees jokingly cite the 80/20 rule, that 80% of the work is done by 20% of the workforce. That was in NASA I suspect that in the realms of the enforcement minions it is worse. Has anyone ever found themselves at odds with a government official, it's a whole 'nother thing as logic will not prevail.
You misunderstand the 80/20 rule. I touched on it before. 20% of the workforce can handle 80% of cases, because they are rubber-stamp issues. Whether you're talking about the DMV, zoning, building inspection, traffic tickets, whatever - 80% of the cases fit a nice, simple pattern that lets a lowly peon run through those cases with little effort.
But that peon gets stuck on the edge cases - the people coming in with unusual circumstances, unusual problems that take a little effort to figure out. While a peon might be able to crank out 10 or 20 boat registration renewals an hour, it might take a supervisor a couple hours to handle a problem like a typo in the serial number and registration number. (Ask me how I know...)
So yeah, there's nothing unusual about 20% of man hours performing 80% of the tasks. Such a system is actually quite efficient.
__________________
We work together every damn day. --Jon Stewart
Building permits didn't even hit WNC until the '70s. Newer homes were frame houses but many were what we called box houses. Walls were just two thicknesses of boards, maybe with felt between. Windows and doors were faced with boards inside and out then sawn out. Many of these houses were added on to as families grew and a great number still stand. Although I wouldn't want to buy one they are not a hazard and have stood the test of time. I built my own house with only a wiring permit and it is one of the best in my neighborhood.
I also was raised on raw milk and it was not a hazard. From a health standpoint I hold to the truth that raw milk is more easily digested and metabolized than processed milk.
My bottom line is that government meddling has done little but drive prices and taxes up for the common man.
I could point to hippy huts built here in the 1960s and 70s with little to no regard for square or plumb, much less a foundation outside some treestumps and cinder blocks. Glorified chicken coops with lots of lipstick, but still standing too. You know full well that most folks just assume that an exterior wall has insulation in it, or that there's a footing under those stem walls, and rebar in the stem wall or that the electrical is up to snuff, but the truth is that many homes built in times or areas without codes in place or enforced will have things such as that, or should I say lack of that! Basic codes and rules coupled with inspections just help insure that a building has met basic requirements. I grew up on milk we gathered from our own cow and am still around too...........
I attended a reclaim America seminar years ago where it was clearly stated that the gatekeepers were not the problem. The problem is the mentality of the voting block that puts them in office. With 46% of Americans not paying taxes we are unlikely to change the situation.The governing class thinks it must continually legislate so the government grows. My elected representation sends me party line form letters talking down to me, yet they were armchair fillers prior to being elected.
Mistakenly thinking a corporation can be taxed we drove employers out of the country and vilified them. However, the prices didn't come down as the goods were produced in China and Mexico. Since those corporations pay little or no taxes now I say it would be a win/win to bring them home with tax breaks and create American jobs. Some 54% of those put to work might actually pay income taxes.
I built my own house, someone said good luck when I had to face the electrical inspector to get a wiring permit, it seems he had a reputation as being a tough nut to crack. He kicked back in his chair and said I would have to pass a test. He asked how many watts of service a dwelling needed. I said well I think 200 amps, so assuming a unity power factor and 240 volts supply I would say 48 kilowatts. he sheepishly said he asked the wrong question and that 200 amps was correct. With the other questions it became immediately obvious that he was out of his league and he with reluctance issued the permit. My argument is not against the permit, rather against the incompetence of those in control. A friend has a cantilevered balcony over his foyer in a 1.5 million dollar home and since the inspector was not familiar with cantilevers he had to add a support column to pass inspection. The column was removed after given the occupancy certificate.
The reclaim America conference was an offshoot of Focus on the Family and sought to be a grassroots movement to get people out of their armchairs and into local politics at the precinct level. I tried it, I was a dem at the time and became secretary of my precinct. Later I bowed out as I soon realized no one cared about anything excepting getting a dem elected. I learned what the term "yellow dog democrat" meant. The movement fizzled probably as others met the same mindsets that I did. The GOOOH movement had a sound concept for choosing representation but there is a mindset against third parties.
Obviously, this group is trying to help, and I'm not going to put the blame fully on them. But there are means of working around certain issues like this. In my experience, zoning boards and commissions are willing to look at things like this on a case-by-case basis, and if you can give a good reason, most will (eventually) issue variances for otherwise non-compliant structures. But you can't get those variances from the 20% of the people who handle 80% of the case load - you need to get past the peons, the pencil pushers, the desk monkeys and take the case to someone who can say "yes".
We had the same issue in the former single-family home we turned into our office. It was built in such a fashion that retrofitting it for handicap access just wasn't feasible. But, considering that our field agents work from their homes and we generally meet with clients and customers away from our office, we were granted a variance.
My beef is a nanny state that is seeking more control rather than less. I heard one that typifies my argument, an official said, "We will grant waivers forever before we would change the law!"
I put up a 3x6 sign for a pregnancy center. I had to purchase a building permit and provide drawings of the sign including foundation. The official wasn't bright enough to consider a variance it was all about the $35 fee. The inspector was brighter and didn't even measure from center of street and etc., he just glanced at the completed installation and signed off on it.
My beef is a nanny state that is seeking more control rather than less. I heard one that typifies my argument, an official said, "We will grant waivers forever before we would change the law!"
Google "how to catch wild pigs"
You need to be careful of one persons comment however. His out take might not be representitive of the actual department he represents. Just saying. I think in the long run, that these laws governing such things as homeless shelters will remain in place, and for a reason......... even if it annoys us all, just like speed limits do at times.
Variances can present opportunity for graft and personal favor. A friend wanted to build a replica of an old-timey store in his backyard to use a a retreat for cigar smoking and listening to music with cronies. He got help from an official that told him to pour a slab then get a permit to enclose it for a garage. He placed the overhead door on the rear so from the front it was his replica, from the rear a garage. The bewildered inspector said I though this was a garage, he took him to the rear and said it is!
My point, there may always be a way around the system for those in the know but we live in an America where we have to be told we are free rather than experiencing it. And progressives would further encumber us with every legislative session.
).... And you are dead on with your statements.
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