I applaud the groups fighting for the Comm 83 proposal, to legalize advanced septic systems, and add my voice to the cry: "No Sanitation without Deregulation!" In fact, as a Libertarian I believe in complete separation of sewage and state (especially the worst sewage of all -- politicians� promises).
All light-heartedness aside, Comm 83 would have a major positive impact reaching far beyond waste disposal. It will give property owners the power to use and develop their land as they see fit, without begging for the favor of an arbitrary and obnoxious RPC. Comm 83 is a step toward protecting the inviolable property rights of all private citizens.
We should go further and eliminate all zoning codes, like Houston, and let the free market decide. In Houston the developers try to find out exactly what kind of neighborhood people want, and give it to them. In contrast, our zoning czars impose their stagnant vision on us, with no incentive for sanity.
Critics of Comm 83 warn of what terrible things you and I will do if given more control over our property. Statists have vomited up this bolgna at us far too many times for it to smell convincing any more. You can study the whole of human experience and find over and over the triumph of unfettered private property rights and the depraved poverty of societies that trample them.
Despite this, many Madisonians support statist restrictions on property use. They say: "Sprawl is bad". Well, I agree. Not!
Sprawl is sensible, sprawl is beatiful, sprawl brings opporitunities(especially for the poor), sprawl is good. Go visit third world slums, come back, and tell me acres of pre-fab houses and green lawns isn�t beautiful. Speaking very clearly with our dollars, the average people have told everyone exactly what we want: sprawl. The elitists could care less, because they are thoughtful and intelligent, unlike the consumers who buy the homes like hotcakes. As the saying goes: a developer is someone who wants to build a house in the woods; an urban planner is someone who already has a house in the woods and resents anyone wasting resources to build more.
The opponents of Comm 83 may be well intentioned, but they have a hatred for the future. It is too unpredictable and diverse for them. We need to collectively choose one sensible, sustainable future and stick to it, they say. Statism like this will kill any civilization. We need a dynamicist, Libertarian vision that embraces new technology -- yes, even sewer technology -- and allow progress to run wild. As for me, give me septic or give me death!
John Wiltbank