Freakish Alliance

Nick Welsh’s latest finger wagging regarding Plan Santa Barbara, “Let the Faux Fur Fly,” makes me nostalgic for the days when you could always count on progressives to oppose any development at all costs and vehemently despise and distrust developers. But in our new era of social justice, they have learned that Mother Earth doesn’t vote and the best way to shore up the base is through endless handouts, including handouts of housing, all in the name of fairness.

Now we have the freakish alliance of social justice activists and developers promoting the benefits of living in 600 square-foot cubicles with 60″ flat screen TVs, which sounds to me like a totally dependent, Orwellian existence.Will the TVs be provided? And how soon can we get a government food-delivery service started as there are no markets in the proposed infill areas?

More progressive and sustainable is the new “urban homesteading” movement where people in modest homes capture rainwater for fruit trees, tend high-yield elevated gardens, and have chickens to provide a significant amount of food for themselves and neighbors. Although this could lead to that subversive human behavior known as independence.