07-06-2009, 12:10 PM
Unions have nothing to do with it. Corruption does. There are corrupt unions for sure, and some less so. At this point, I'm pretty incapable of believing that there's any honest governance, as I'd actually need to witness it to be convinced. I'm a reasonable guy, I'd just need to see someone somewhere out there without conflicts of interest let alone hands in the cookie jar.
I agree safety has something to do with it, but as far as I'm concerned if someone wants to build a house that falls down, that's their business too. The permitted spec houses often seen are hardly safe. Good god. Hurricane ties--nice idea, of course--tied to a tinfoil roof--unsheathed--with piddly #12's holding down 3000 square feet of steel roof on 40 inch centers or some such? If we suck a real hurricane this county will look like it was run through a blender.
The lesson of history is regulation is a anti-competitive practice until it becomes so greedy and repressive that it finally creates a robust underground economy. Then all hell breaks loose. We're right there. The right thing to do is to boycott the whole practice.
I agree safety has something to do with it, but as far as I'm concerned if someone wants to build a house that falls down, that's their business too. The permitted spec houses often seen are hardly safe. Good god. Hurricane ties--nice idea, of course--tied to a tinfoil roof--unsheathed--with piddly #12's holding down 3000 square feet of steel roof on 40 inch centers or some such? If we suck a real hurricane this county will look like it was run through a blender.
The lesson of history is regulation is a anti-competitive practice until it becomes so greedy and repressive that it finally creates a robust underground economy. Then all hell breaks loose. We're right there. The right thing to do is to boycott the whole practice.