Well aren't you a tzaddik.
Thank you for the compliment, but I still have a long long way to go.
If, God forbid, a fire spreads in your camp, would you turn the fire department away? If robbers come to steal all of your belongings, would you turn the policy department away? Even if you do not take cash from the government, you still benefit from taxpayer money.
For everyone's safety, I would call the existing government monopolies and cooperate with them. I don't impose my views on others.
I carefully said that I avoid taxpayer money
"whenever it can be avoided". There's a big moral difference between using the roads / fire protection / police / etc monopoly and accepting a free apartment at taxpayer expense. (And I've paid my share of taxes in my life, and I still do - it's pretty hard to buy anything without a large fraction of its price going to the government.)
I will spare you a lecture on
theoretical free market alternatives to such monopolies - which are the least bad of the government monopolies to have. You do not make an effective argument against libertarian philosophy (does slaves eating their master's food justify slavery?), but that's not what this thread is about.
This thread is about Tent City, under the circumstances, being a good thing. Tent City picks up where government has failed. The government hates Tent City, spreads lies about it, and sabotages it precisely because Tent City is exposing how corrupt, inefficient, and unnecessary the Welfare State truly is!
Alex, you may not agree with the laws in this country. But if you disobey the laws, accept that there might be consequences to your actions. Now, you may believe that the laws are unjust (or "unconstitutional." Take that up with the Supreme Court) . You may believe that the laws are not in society's best interests. But there are ways to make your voices heard that do not involve breaking the law.
Being homeless is now a crime. The government fails to provide for the homeless, in spite of stealing ("taxing")
huge amounts of money in the name of the poor. It steals vast amounts of land from the marketplace, supposedly in the name of the "public". Rich people can afford their own country clubs, etc - they don't benefit from this - it is all excused in the name of the poor. This, combined with other regulations (ex. zoning) that contribute to artificial scarcity, and of course property taxes, multiplies the cost of basic housing for the poor. The government hurts the poor in the name of helping the poor! The Welfare State is a racket - and you're paying for it!
Of course I expect there to be consequences to going up against such government power. I am more concerned in whether I am right. Bad laws need to be confronted and challenged. Civil disobedience is crucial to bringing about positive change.
you do realize that this land is owned by taxpayers and is a prime real estate location. It could be sold for many millions that would reduce my tax bill. You are asking for my tax money??
Everyone is a taxpayer. "Public property" is an oxymoron. Tragedy of the commons. Etc.
You should read up on the philosophy of Property Rights, and a little something called the
Homestead Principle.
Our claim to this land is that we "mixed our labor" with it for 7+ years and built Tent City, helped hundreds of people, reduced the impact of poverty on the surrounding community, and saved the taxpayers a whole lot of money. The Township's claim to it is that they stole it fair and square from someone who didn't pay them enough taxes, in the name of the "public", and then left it unused for many decades...
The land could be sold only once. In the meantime, Tent City is
saving the taxpayers about $2,000,000 a year - with its current population (and only counting housing costs, and not all the other things and overhead). If they give us the land under contract, it could save as much as $6,000,000 a year. (While keeping the land wooded - or do you want to rename the municipality to just Lake Township?)
Do you ever shower?
Yes, Tent City has a shower, via a groundwater well with a pump that is powered by the electrical generator. There's a proper shower and a sink in a tiled wooden structure, with hot water via a propane heater, and the whole structure is also heated with a stove in the winter. We really have a very impressive setup, when you consider how little it costs.
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