Tag: linkedin

HOA Justice and Reconciliation Commissions

The overall mission of the HOA Enlightenment Movement is simply to get the word out about the reality of living in an HOA.[i]  The continuing wounds inflicted on homeowners must be accounted for. Wounds that have been inflicted by rogue[ii] HOA boards supported by the indifference or pro-HOA bias of state legislators, by the “not my problem” attitude of the “good” HOAs who stand by and allow evil in their industry, and by the failure of the national educational trade group, CAI,  to help clean up the industry.

In the interest of justice and reconciliation, a vehicle such as a Truth and Reconciliation Commission[iii] is needed to heal the wounds so our communities and society can return to the principles and basic values of America. A simple “let’s start over again” or “let us be friends” kumbaya approach will not work, nor will the continued failure to hold the offenders accountable for their actions.  Homeowners have suffered financially, legally and emotionally, and closure and justice is warranted. 

The Commission would grant amnesty to offenders and violators of the governing documents and laws who caused such harms, if the offenders could show that they were acting under orders.  As occurred in the 2008 Florida HOA hearings held by Julio Robaina,[iv] the homeowner witnesses’ would confront the offenders.  The offenders would include directors, officers, managers, and HOA attorneys. 

This type of commission with powers to file suit against offenders, who cannot show that they were just following orders, can only be established through state legislation. Advocates can enlighten the media, the state legislators, homeowners, and the public in general to demand the rapid creation of such committees within their respective states.

  

References

[i] By “HOA” I am referring to that category of subdivision with a purpose to create an “an adult community” (retirement) or a resort community where owners happen to live similarly to a vacation home resort. I am speaking of those subdivisions that would be classified as a home with some or no amenities, or not even any common properties. In the former instance rules are expected and in the latter the rules are intrusive.

[ii] By “rogue” I mean those boards that have been repeatedly and intentionally grossly negligent of or have ignored their duties and obligations under state laws and the governing documents.  They do so with the knowledge that there are no meaningful penalties for such egregious conduct.

[iii]  The HOA version of this commission is based on the “Welcome to the official Truth and Reconciliation Commission Website,” http://www.justice.gov.za/trc/, August 21, 2013.

Elysium: the new ‘1984’ of the future

The new Matt Damon movie, Elysium, is an exciting sci-fi look into the future society of 2154.  Social and political commentary is skillfully woven into this action thriller with unsuspecting twists in the plot.  Such words, with ‘native’ dialogue being Spanish, as “undocumented persons,” “illegals,” “citizens,” and even “Homeland Security” are part of the plot, but do not intrude or detract from the entertainment aspect of this well-done movie.

Elysium is a space station orbiting earth built by a mega-corporation and inhabited only by those qualified to be a citizen: having sufficient wealth. Meanwhile the war destroyed, overpopulated earth is inhabited by the “have-nots” living in poverty.  Central to the theme is the lack of medical care for the have-nots. Only citizens on Elysium are entitled to life saving medical treatment.

“Elysium” is the Greek Valhalla where those related to the Gods and the good and heroic go in their after-life.  It was mentioned in the opening battle scene in the movie Gladiator by Maximus’ reference to the Elysium Fields.

Elysium is the modern 1984 view of our future society.

NC CAI attorney joins Enlightenment Movement

North Carolina CAI attorney Michael Hunter joins the Enlightenment Movement in his Aug. 8 column on CharlotteObserver.com, The buck stops with HOA boards, not management companies.

It is necessary to obtain the affiliations of attorneys writing media columns as we know that CAI attorneys are biased toward the objectives of the national business lobbying organization, CAI. Just as people want to know if a person is a Republican or Democrat, or a liberal or conservative, it’s important to know the affiliation of HOA columnists so the message can be properly interpreted.

That is why this article is so surprising. A CAI member attorney dealing with reality rather than in promoting the CAI “party line”! If those homeowners would only follow the rules all would be OK. In his column, Michael Hunter says it’s the boards stupid, not the management companies and not the members, who have the responsibilities, duties and liabilities. He has become part of the Enlightenment Movement, along with several California CAI member attorneys if you read their websites and newsletters.

Advocates like Jim Lane in NC are the causes of this conversion, this acceptance of reality by CAI members. He has provoked, challenged, and confronted the opposition forcing a response or continued silence. The silence tactic is not working any longer, because there are too many outlets siding with Homeowner Rights Advocates for the advocate to be portrayed as a troublemaker or a malcontent as in the past.  The public and the media are realizing that advocates have legitimate grievances that have not been adequately addressed by state legislatures.

But, stand watch advocates, CAI Central is still spewing forth it propaganda, this time to Congress, CAI now seeks to lobby Congress on HOAs. CAI Central realizes it no longer controls the playing field and must extend its propaganda in defense of the growing Enlightenment Movement in the media.

CAI now seeks to lobby Congress on HOAs

Last month  in CAI Reacts[i] I warned about CAI’s long lobbying reach to sway the opinions of state legislators, but now CAI is seeking to sway Congressmen.  CAI is now in a campaign[ii] to influence Congress with its propaganda that HOAs provide an overwhelming public service, are highly supported by HOA members, and are preferred by the public. “Community associations are governed by neighbors and are often misunderstood.”[iii]  If there are no opposing voices, so will Congress be swayed and with join state legislatures in supporting pro-HOA legislation.

In CAI Reacts I wrote about the effects on state legislatures, which is applicable to Congress:

This tactic by CAI has ominous consequences for HOA reforms in every state! It becomes extremely important that advocates and homeowners in every state seeking redress of HOA problems form an advocacy group to inform the public, the media and their legislators of their views. As I have long argued, advocates must, even more so now, confront, challenge and expose CAI propaganda. They must also advance quality reform legislation.

The latest attempt to influence elected officials comes in the form of urging its members to write their Congressmen to support CAI’s FEMA position, which contains a wealth of pro-HOA propaganda from its biased surveys.[iv]  Here are some of the points provided to guide members in their meeting with a Congressman:

Associations ensure that the collective rights and interests of homeowners are respected and preserved. Association leaders seek an effective balance between the preferences of individual residents and the collective rights of all homeowners.  [Do you think that your Congressman would catch the distinction between “collective rights” as in socialism and “individual rights” as in a true democracy?]

 Association homeowners choose where to live and accept a contractual and ethical responsibility to abide by established policies and to meet their financial obligations to the association. [Nothing is said about “free choice” or an adhesion contract with implied and absent waivers of constitutional protections].

Association homeowners have the right to elect their community leaders and to use the democratic process to determine the policies that will protect their investments. [Nothing is said about the appearance and illusion of democratic election procedures and the absence of clean elections protections.]

 Without an organized and strident national voice in opposition, be prepared for a rewrite of “This is America: The New America of HOA-Land.”  Many of my Commentaries can be used to refute CAI’s propaganda. Use them!  For example, earlier this year I wrote here and as a comment on Privatopia Papers,[v]

 

It’s time to bring unity to this country and end subdivision governance by HOAs that create independent principalities. The planned community development can remain under a democratic form of government subject to the Constitution. And that must come from Washington. It can start with hearings to air those constitutional issues that have been avoided by every state and court for far too many years.[vi]

 

References

 

HOAs & state legislatures: rule by the Prince or by the Constitution?

“Where ethical restraint is lacking, there can be no hope of overcoming problems.”[1]

With the banishment of God from government, our “unalienable” rights, which were held by the Founding Fathers to be superior to any rights granted by any government, have been declared null and void by the US Supreme Court. With no substitute standard being announced by the Supremes to guide the people, they are left to flounder. And we have floundered.[2]

In his commentary on Machiavelli’s The Prince,[3] William B. Allen provides Machiavelli’s view of politicians,

Once the obligation to act according to natural or devine standards is removed, the question that remains . . . is how to participate in the management of political appearances to secure their [the politicians’] own interests.[4]

For Machiavelli “the role of morals in politics is mainly to cultivate illusions . . . politics is merely appearance and morality is merely pretense.”[5] 

Understandably, it is not surprising that the Supremes have held that all legislation is presumed to be constitutional, placing the burden on the people to prove the unconstitutionality of a law.  With this legal doctrine, the Supremes, the 9 Men In Black, have declared that “the sovereign can do no wrong.”  But, that is not the fundamental basis of our system of government with its separation of powers, checks and balances, and Bill of Rights.  The Supremes just abdicated their function under the Constitution.  In its place, it has assigned the role of the Protector of the Constitution to the people, the average person. 

Consistent with this doctrine, the Arizona Legislature also presumes all statutes to be constitutional, perhaps because the Legislature provides checks on the constitutionality of a bill before it can be sent to the Governor for signing. (The Arizona Constitution also provides a check on statute constitutionality before signing by the Governor).

However, in spite of statements to the contrary found in the Arizona State Legislature guides for the public, the legislature and individual legislators have failed to protect the people against the violations of the Arizona Constitution as in the case of the unconstitutional SB1454. They have ignored their duties, obligations and rules for the proper functioning of the Legislative Council and the Rules Committee. (See HOA reforms, SB 1454 and the inner workings of the legislature).

In contrast to Machiavelli’s principles of government, Hadley Arkes reminds us that

The founders understood that the principal mission of government was to secure people in their natural rights — to protect them against the lawless private thugs as well as of ill-intentioned legislators (emphasis added).[6]

He quotes US Justice Wilson’s (1798) warning that

The people in sovereign office might well perform unjustified and therefore lawless acts . . . such acts, though vested with ‘legal’ authority could not fully claim nor elicit from the people an obligation to obey.[7]

 

In regard to the HOA amendments surreptitiously placed into SB 1454, Arizona has dropped the ball.  Arizona has fallen off the pedestal.

 

References

[1] Ethics for the New Millennium, His Holiness The Dalai Lama, p. 26, Riverhead Books, 1999.

[2]God is dead, and so, too, are our unalienable rights, HOA Constitutional Government, February 5, 2008

[3] The Prince, Niccolo Machiavelli, Yale University, 1997.

[4] Id., Machiavelli and Modernity, W. B. Allen, p. 108.

[5] Id., p. 104.

[6] Supra n 3, Machiavelli and America, Hadley Arkes, p. 145.

[7] Id., p. 128.