A Nicely Balanced Letter to Editor
This letter to the editor of the Washington Post is well-balanced so I won’t comment further.
original source:
Category Archives: The Book
Texas Tort Reform Sadly Insufficient
Governor Rick Perry talks frequently about how tort reform in Texas has turned around a medical malpractice crisis.
Possibly it did work. But after reading the article linked below, ask yourself if deceptive HOA fines, liens and foreclosures in Texas shouldn’t attract the same kind of reform?
Texas is one of the top states where the HOA system has deprived homeowners of fundamental Constitutional rights.
I used to live in Texas. In fact, I grew up with the ‘Blue Book’ which was required reading for all Texas elementary school students. It taught Texas kids to be proud of their state’s revolutionary heritage and to question authority. Back then it was a thing of pride to be a Texan. But that was before the HOA Movement put millions of Texas homeowners in a death grip.
If you know someone who lives in a Texas HOA, ask him or her if they’ve observed out-of-control HOA boards and ridiculous fines and lawsuits. Or give them to link to my blog from last night about the San Antonio man who’s facing $200,000 in fines and legal fees for not keeping his grass short enough.
Come on, Governor Perry. Do the right thing! Get your HOA lawyers under control, too!
original source:
http://www.statesman.com/news/news/opinion/rollins-tort-reform-sparked-texas-miracle/nWzRP/
Nice To See When A Lawyer Finally ‘Gets It’
Sure, this guy has his own vested interests and he can likely face criticism for lobbying for one side over another. But he’s right about the Legislative conflicts-of-interest that have left Floridians with some of the worst HOA laws in the country. Florida wouldn’t have faced a fraction of its recent housing bubble if these laws hadn’t been in place.
So, like him or not, this lawyer needs to be heard. I just wish he’d thrown around some words like ‘corruption’ and ‘Las Vegas style HOA scandal.’ Betcha dollars-to-donuts, the Feds could nail ten times as many swindlers with a West Boca Grand Jury investigation.
(original source)
Hey, You Brats! Inside! This Is An HOA!
by Guest Blogger Nila Ridings
Nearly everyday I see something about “Let’s move!” America’s move to raise a healthier generation of kids. Well, that program seems to apply only to kids outside of Boca Quay, Florida.
With the new “no wheels” policy, kids in the Boca Quay Homeowners Association are probably supposed to sit inside on their computers honing their cyber-bullying skills!
This battle-ax of a board member hides behind a door when the TV cameras show up and yells, “No comment!” She had plenty to say in a letter warning homeowners to keep their kids inside, but “No comment” for the news media?
Where does this anti-kid attitude come from? It probably stems from the flood of lawsuits against HOAs where someone gets hurt. Tort lawyers have sure messed up the neighborhood, haven’t they?
When I was growing up, all the neighborhood kids played on the street. We rode our bicycles. Sure, there was the time when I went airborne over the handlebars of my pink Schwinn and messed up my face on the asphalt. But I didn’t sue the neighborhood. None of my friends ever sued the neighborhood after their own mishaps.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a proponent of kids playing on the Interstate. But childhood is all about being with your friends, and playing outside.
When you click on the link below, pay special attention to the little girl who says, “These people don’t know what freedom is!”
Honey, we all know what freedom WAS. But that was back before the nightmare known as Homeowners Associations.
“One Small Step For A Man, One Giant Leap (still to come)”
Wow! Jan Bergemann, you are somethin’ else! I didn’t think your proposed legislation had a ghost of a chance of even getting out of committee. But Jan, my brother, you have accomplished a miracle. Just remember it’s only a small step, and you’re up against a massive HOA tort industry that will do anything in its power to ruin you, your reputation, your health, your bank account. Remember, you’re threatening the income stream of a very powerful and unscrupulous monster.
But you are among a small handful of pioneers who opened the eyes of many of the rest of us around the country. We all owe you a debt of gratitude. Of course, we know and you know that you’ve got a big red target on your back.
Those of you who’d like to read the progress and the text of Jan’s proposed Florida reform legislation, it’s linked below.
