The United HOAs of Arizona

I am happy to see a new crop of political scientists take on the battle against private HOA governments as has Mr. Peirce in his Commentary, “Privatized Neighborhoods – The Future We Want?” (Arizona Capitol Times, July 29, 2005). Having read other exchanges on this topic between Mr. Peirce and Mr. Nelson elsewhere, I feel my comments are in order.

First, as referenced in the Commentary, HOAs are a socialist form of governance, if not a communal form. Socialistic because it is governed by the concern for the “the most good for the most people”, an accepted doctrine by Jeremy Bentham and Vilfredo Pareto, both concerned with the efficiency and productivity of government, and not with democratic principles. When this motto becomes the overriding justification for decisions, with the relegation of the fundamental American principles of freedom and individual rights to lesser importance, we have socialism.

To answer the question posed in Peirce’s Commentary title, it’s a resounding NO! The future cannot continue the trend to more and more private communities spreading across the state or the country. If the trend were allowed to continue, then Arizona must undergo a change of name to, The United HOAs of Arizona.

For the complete Commentary, see
AZ Capitol Times, or
United HOAS