[TheForge] Is anyone on-line ? OT:

[Andrew Vida]

On 11/6/2012 1:29 PM, Bruce . wrote:
> Not BAIL out, BUY out.

That IS a bail out.  By definition.  The land will almost always be 
worth more than anyone could justify giving in taxpayer funds.  People 
have short memories and, I am sorry to say, often dumber than posts. 
They insist on living in such places, which is OK by me, but when Mom 
comes and bites them I see no cause for raping the taxpayers to bail 
them out.  They knew the risks, or should have, went ahead and got 
hammered.  Too bad.

> Pay them what the LAND is worth.

Uh huh, and who assesses value?  The only just arbiter is the market. 
There will always be someone who will buy such land at a price I 
probably would not.  That high bidder, therefore, should be able to 
acquire the land over someone such as myself.

Another problem I see is the state forcing sale, which violates the 
principles of private property.  Bad juju.  Very bad.


> What's strip
> of sand worth if you can't build on it (part of the deal)?

The state has no moral authority to prevent someone from building on 
privately owned land.  Such a ban distorts the market and cannot be 
justified on any valid moral basis.


> Yes, it
> will cost money, but it will save money

Save money?  Whose money, precisely?

 > and lives

Not the state's business.  If people want to live in dangerous places, 
it is their right to do so.  By your implied reasoning, the state may 
ban bungee jumping, skiing, hang gliding, ice-hockey, and so on down the 
entire list of potentially dangerous activities.  It is not the state's 
role to save lives under circumstances of voluntary action of this sort. 
  People pays their money and takes their chance.

> -- some of those
> lives being the first responders who won't have to go in there to save
> the damn fools who try to ride out the storms.

Nobody is twisting their arms to do those jobs. You reasoning fails most 
catastrophically.


>  If they ever empty the
> barrier islands of buildings, they can let nature take its course.

Bull.  Because when the barriers are washed away in the normal course of 
time, then the shoreline becomes threatened again and then what?  Buy 
out THOSE properties?  Uh huh... and so on into the mists of infinity. 
Want to live by the sea?  Assume the risks.  Don't like the risks, buy 
insurance.  Don't want to buy insurance, live with the risks or move. 
The choices are pretty simple and to ask others to pay for the failed 
choices of others is immoral.