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The Tragedy of the “Commons,” Part 1
In 1968, Garrett Hardin wrote a highly influential article titled “The Tragedy of the Commons,” in which he examined the problems that inherently arise when property is owned “in common.” Hardin tells the story of a pasture shared by a number of herdsmen: As a rational being, each herdsman seeks to maximize his gain. Explicitly…
Censorship and Social Media
A lot of noise is being made about censorship on social media platforms such as Facebook, You Tube, and Twitter. Many are claiming that these companies are engaging in censorship when they remove or limit certain content. The truth is, no private company can engage in censorship. Censorship is a legal prohibition on the expression…
Compromise is Surrender
In late March, the Montclair (New Jersey) Property Owners Association reached a compromise with city officials over a rent control ordinance the city passed in 2020. Landlords had petitioned for a referendum on the ordinance. As a part of the compromise, landlords agreed to withdraw their petition. Landlords may think that the compromise serves their…
Discrimination is a Property Right (and a Necessity)
A Washington state court recently struck down a Seattle ordinance that forced landlords to rent to the next tenant in line if that individual met the landlord’s minimum standards. In short, once the landlord set minimum standards, he could not discriminate on the basis of anything else. The Washington court ruled that this constituted a…
The Fundamental Nature of Zoning
A graphic at the beginning of a recent article about short-term rentals (STRs) in the Dallas area illustrates the fundamental nature of zoning. In the graphic, it is stated that the zoning ordinance adopted by Grapevine in 1982 did not permit STRs. It is implied that if a particular use is not explicitly permitted, then…