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Perhaps the most underestimated force for “not good” are the local politicians and the unelected officials on various local committees. Just think of the power local zoning boards have over your life. In my neighborhood, I need to get the “permission” of a bunch of do-gooders if I am to put up a storage shed in my yard. If certain home renovations are in order, I must first announce this to my neighbors so that they have time to comment. And if tomorrow night the zoning commission has a bad night’s sleep, they can make all kinds of arbitrary decisions that in effect render me propertyless on my own property. A full-book is in order to discuss this.

In this week’s edition you can see two things. First, you can see just how wild free-market capitalism in the U.S. really works. Just look at the hubris of the two sides. Proponents argue, “the town needs a car wash.” Like anyone knows what the towns need. Did Brighton need internet lines back in 1993? Of course not, nobody had the internet or modems, so what use would those silly, ugly lines be? In a world where thousands of people have varying tastes and information, and where people were tolerably free, the way to test out what a town “needs” is to simply allow people to make their own decisions about how to best use their property. But god forbid supporters of the idea ever resort to such base ideas to defend their arguments. Look at how the proponents need to convince people that opening a particular business is a good idea:

The proposed development will increase tax revenues, create jobs and improve the property …

So that’s it. If you can raise revenues for the looters, then the project is a good idea! As an aside, note that these statements are made without any analysis whatever. OK, so what is the second lesson from this car wash issue? It is far worse. The town planning board was proposing to extort the car wash owner in exchange for granting him the right to do with his property what he wishes to do with his property.

If the board approves the car wash — which would be the first in Brighton — Daniele would have to pay the town $50,000 as part of a package of incentives. Daniele also must aggressively seek approval from the state Department of Transportation to maintain a median on Monroe Avenue near the site, and provide car-wash service for town-owned vehicles.

If people are wondering why New York State is an economic graveyard, and all we see are the red lights on moving trucks, this episode is but one illustration. Who in their right mind would even try to become an entrepreneur here? Who has the resources to fight just to have a simple car-wash built? Imagine what one would have to go through if they had grander ideas? Incidentally, the family who is proposing to build this car wash is one of the most successful entrepreneurial families in the area. Maybe the board is upset because they do not send their kids to the government schools, and envision future battles against un-indoctrinated thinking beings?If anyone wonders why I am not a good neighbor, the above story is why. These looters run every thing about where we live (and where you live too). While all of us are swept up with Hope and Change and Stupidity in DC, the real looters are doing just fine right underfoot, with no media spotlight, no think-tank researching what they are doing, no citizen groups making them accountable, nothing. It must come to an end.

After another Brighton Town Board meeting without a decision on a proposed car wash at the corner of Monroe Avenue and Clover Street developer Anthony Daniele has had enough.

Daniele said he put the property up for sale Thursday morning, a day after the board postponed taking action. He feels the board is likely to vote down the project despite the Daniele family, who own the nearby Mario’s restaurant, having invested about $150,000 in the project already.

“We’re exhausted mentally, physically and financially from having to deal with the town of Brighton,” Daniele said.

3 Responses to “All Tyranny is Local – Brighton, NY Edition”

  1. jin says:

    You are still talking, talking and talking; just bragging. What can you do to fix your stranded-failing economy? What can you do to take back your lost jobs? I guess Nothing, because you are determined to ‘just talk.” While you are attacking Communists and poor, we, poor-Communist Chinese, are doing much better than those rich Americans. What are rich Americans doing? Easy to see what they do: “Imam Husein Obama. He is the best anti-American president we have ever had.”
    Well, we are eating you breakfast and half of your lunch, and we’ll eat the other half of your lunch and dinner soon. Aren’t we playing the fair game with only two choices; WIN or LOOSE?
    Look around! How many Chinese are studying at the US universities? Do you know why are poor Chinese ( or Vietnamese or Indian) kids doing far better than “rich” American kids?
    I am sure you don’t have a right answer for these.

    Oh by the way, you mentioned about our neighbor Mongolia. Are they really simply lack the clout or the favor of interest groups to have their views aired and studied? Are they dull enough?
    Your study or finding is completely unrealistic. You know what?- We have long been trying to take over that small country; however, no success, even the “magic” of Globalization or the free-trade doesn’t help.
    I am not a scholar neither do I have any training in economics, but as a future scientist I have attended many conferences throughout the U.S and European countries. I have met many brilliant nuclear physicists, neuroscientists, and others from Mongolia. Oh, two of the physicists were excellent and the U.S is using their innovation. I met another guy, who was developing the DNA computing system, in January . His research finding was extra-ordinary and now its use is underway in bio-tech. I am a prominent Chinese, but I was admired and felt a bit jealous at them because all they had got their bachelor and masters degrees from their own local universities plus their English were perfect, and the top of that they all were from poor families who live in tents.

    In a nut shell, you know what: Taking over Mongolia is harder than taking over the USA, but for now. After we get number one, then fishing for smalls will be easier, since “bigs” won’t halt us.

  2. wintercow20 says:

    Yup … what that guy says!

  3. Harry says:

    Whew! Sorry your story of municipal stupidity got JB worked up over maltreatment of yurt-dwelling Mongolian molecular physicists.

    One thing we all know: you have to get approval from the local government to put up a yurt in your back yard, and doing so may involve a bribe.

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