By Tommy Acosta —
Sedona, AZ — The recent killing of 11 legislative efforts to regulate short-term rentals proves one thing for sure: you can’t mess with the concept that “A man’s home is his castle.”
Plain and simple, it’s unconstitutional for the state, feds, or local municipalities to tell homeowners what they can or can’t do with their homes.
A tremendous amount of time and money has been spent to figure out how government can govern or curtail the operation of STRs… all for naught.
Government can try as it might to control STRs. Telling a homeowner they can’t rent their home for whatever legal purpose they desire, is wrong. It’s un-American. It’s distasteful.
Even if it appears to be morally right to protect communities negatively affected by STRs, government has no right to regulate them. A mans’ home is his castle. Get over it.
The proponents for STR regulations now walk away with their tails between their legs as they finally realize the hard reality that the Arizona Legislature has no stomach for messing with that fundamental understanding.
The effort could be seen as noble but failed from Jump Street.
Now, teetering on the brink of utter failure as well, is the effort to ban or regulate ATVs on Sedona streets.
That effort as well is bound to fail, and the legislature will bury it along with regulating STRs.
Even a bill designed to force operators to teach the renters respect for others on the streets and the environment, is not going to gain any traction.
People, especially Republicans that detest governmental overreach, don’t like Big Brother telling them what to do.
Again, tremendous resources and time were expended in the effort to regulate or ban ATVs in Sedona.
Wasted effort. Wasted money.
The city should encourage, strongly, that operators and private owners respect the environment by not driving irresponsibly on the road or backcountry.
It’s admirable that the city wants to protect the public and operators by making the ATVs safer, equipment wise.
But to make them incur hefty and additional expenses to meet safety regulations proposed by the city, ain’t gonna fly. And if it tries. The city will be decimated in court.
Live and learn.
While we are talking about fundamental rights and government staying out of our lives, a word of caution to Republicans.
If you want the government to stay out of your business when it comes to the STRs and ATVs and your lives, don’t be hypocritical by taking away or diminishing women’s rights when it comes to abortion.
If you try to ban abortions across the country, your most favored representatives will be elected out of office by the tidal wave of women who will fight to keep their rights over their bodies.
Just sayin’.
This is an advertisement
21 Comments
Regarding short term rentals, I don’t think the issue is ones right to do whatever with their home(s). The issue I see and hear is the lack of oversight by said homeowners who rent homes here but reside out of state and their renters have a propensity to violate city noise ordinances, have multiple tenants staying in multiple parts of the home but are separate renters with numerous vehicles blocking thoroughfares and neighbors drives or in short are just nuisance tenants.
Never heard anyone complain about a person renting a room in their home or spare home in town where the owners are pretty much omnipresent and aware of what goes on in their rentals.
“But to make them incur hefty and additional expenses to meet safety regulations proposed by the city, ain’t gonna fly. And if it tries. The city will be decimated in court.“
Just as the City can and I hope does decimate the ATV rental companies in court for any and all injuries and deaths caused by their non street legal rentals on City roadways and they can send those companies bills for any and all emergency response required for incidents involving their vehicles.
So that’s the other side of the reality coin!
Tommy, are you aware that the city has zoning laws? Homes is neighborhoods are zoned “Single Family Redidential”. STRs that rent to 12 girlriends for a girls weekend or 8 guys for a golf weekend violates this zoning and can be enforced under Arizona Revised Statutes. Rolling out of bed in the morning and thoughtlessly tapping away on your keyboard doesn’t help your credibility.
Oh really, Tommy? I have searched the U.S. Constitution high and low, and find nothing that says “Our home is our Castle “. It made a nice literary flourish, but has nothing to do with law. How you can build it, maintain it, require sprinklers installed within it, and how the property is utilized is NOT a Constitutional Issue and certainly an appropriate subject of governmental regulation. Think of the alternative…”I can do whatever the h… I want with my property/home”. I, for one, would not want to live there!
It is “Plain and simple”, after reading this and other posts that you’ve offered that you know as little about the ‘Constitution’’ as you do about the topics, such as ‘the service’ /military, medical and/or legal issues you hold forth on…
Easy solution, you can rent out as many rooms in your home as you like, but you have to live there. By living there you are in residence, your primary residence, every night you home is rented. Period.
That would eliminate people buying multiple homes and destroying our neighborhoods. WE live there. WE did not buy in a commercially zoned neighborhood.
I’ve got no problem with someone getting a little extra income. I do have a problem with many little hotels without a manager onsite popping up in my neighborhood.
Tommy,
It appears you have written a column simply to stir a hornet’s nest. Firstly, you can’t talk about a “Man’s Home is his Castle” in one misogynistic scribble and bring up womens’ rights to control their own bodies in a following feeble attempt to conflate reproductive rights with ATVs and STRs. Rather insulting! Some simply wanted a runling that a “homeowner” be present during these cash invasions. Nope – no rules stopping hedge fund land barons and corporations from overpaying the asking price, which not only allows the tourist invasion, but raises the taxes on those “homeowners” surrounding them while possibly making it more difficult to sell their home due to the newly created bubble. And, actually government has always been allowed to regulate what a person can or can’t do with their “home” ie no fires, no fireworks, no shooting guns, no loud noises, no alcohol served to minors, no drug selling from property, some even have dark sky laws, height ordinances, distance from yard boundaries, restrictions of plant and animal life, etc. So, it would seem you cherry picked an issue where YOU feel some landlords should be able to disrupt the peace and quiet and security of actual residents because they have the backing of a few politicians. You’ve historically done much better in your open-minded coverage, but someone should have taken away your crayons before letting you try to draw this picture.
Dear Thom:
You are so right. Somebody has to take away Tommy’s crayons. If it was his whim, he would color the red rocks black just for the fun of it. I just can’t tell if he is serious or just creating chaos for the sake of chaos. He even pulled you out of the woodwork and got you to post a righteously indignant comment. How in the name of poor literature can he tie in abortions with ATVs and ATRs? It makes no sense. The best I could figure is he is trying to bring attention to the hypocrisy of some Republicans that don’t want the authorities telling them what to do while at the same time they are telling women what to do when it comes to abortion. Maybe it’s because of his proximity to death and a major operation he is supposed to have (in his recent article “Death) that he has been unhinged, lost his marbles, and wants to leave as much wreckage and carnage behind before he pops off this mortal plane. Maybe something was implanted in him by aliens when he was a paralyzed child that’s hatching right now, as noted in his recent article “Believe.” Regardless of all the above, I still enjoy everything he writes. He would have been a perfect fit for the Excentric.
He would have been welcomed with open arms, hearts and minds!
Justin Case,
Care to counter Tommy’s arguments with some valid points?
Carefully reading what the author wrote, I totally agree with him.
He was not taking sides on the ATV or STR issue. He was clearly pointing out the futility of trying to regulate both when you have a Republican majority in the legislature, who believe a man’s home is his castle.
And he is right about hypocrite Republicans demanding the government leave them alone while snuffing women’s rights.
Great fair and balanced conclusion. Unfortunately we have M’ericans who only believe the absolute lies and bullshit of the MAGGOT party! There no longer exists a GOP/Republican Party because they’ve sold their souls to the Orange Criminal Draft Dodger Insurrectionist, Russia China North Korea Iran and the Destruction of our Democracy out of racial and misogynistic animus for people actually being created equally as M’erica proclaims and liberty and democracy for all which M’erica also proclaims but has never ever practised because they want the Nation to revert to its pre civil rights era simply because they could not and cannot compete fairly with women and minorities and quickly realized they have become a minority in and of themselves due to their colonialism, racism, fascism and sheer hypocrisy regarding our Constitution and Bill of Rights and they hate it! Simply put, they are pee pants cry baby sore losers bent on vengeance, retribution and the destruction of those values and our Democracy because they have lost their stronghold over their oppression of women and minorities of color through the Civil Rights Act.
Now they have a MAGGOT leaning stacked Corrupt Criminal Supreme Court that is controlled by dark money and deep pocket donors to do their bidding. They’ve reversed ROE to the chagrin of many in their own 4th Reich. They burn and ban books for being contrary to NOTsee standards, they threaten Politicians and Judges for doing their jobs in speaking out against a Criminal Treasonous Insurrectionist Draft Dodger who has been Twice Impeached by Bi Partisan votes. They use Russian News outlets such as FOX, NewsMax, RT, OAN and Brain (Queef) Wars to brainwash American seniors and the feeble minded. They praise the almighty Q who is a foreign national from the Philippines and Putin over our own Intelligence Community.
Had these morons been attempting any of this during WWII and subsequent Cold War they would all have been labeled Communist Traitors and then tried and executed like the Rosenberg’s.
They should be held 100% responsible for the demise of our Democracy by gifting it to the Orange Manchurian Candidate and his daddy Putanna Putin!
JB,
Check out your TDS ( Trump Derangement Syndrome ) meds.
It may also be time for the latest Covid Booster.
Cheers
Yes Trump is Deranged and it is a syndrome but you have it not I. I don’t support Draft Dodging Misogynist, Racist, Treasonous, Insurrectionist, Commie Loving Jackasses nor do I believe in the Deep State, Migrant Histrionic Bullshit such as Chinese Military Units being here in the US which I asked you to provide a link for and all you can do is use Dumpy Tropes on me because you got Nothin and that includes the lack of brain cells as you are unable to think for yourself!
So go back to your Russian TV and cheer Putin and his Orange Puppet on!
“Our Democracy” Only if we get to be in charge.
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/two-thirds-liberals-would-dispute-election-if-trump-wins-new-poll-finds
Sounds democratic doesn’t it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero_Hedge
Typical MAGGOT using an Alt Right Bulgarian/Russian Commie source to justify their Commie Loving Draft Dodger Treasonous Insurrectionist Racist Misogynist Asshole Agenda!
That’s not evidence of anything it’s Communist Propaganda you un M’erican brainwashed moron!
24 minutes of Democrats denying election results
https://rumble.com/v4gzlzx-24-minutes-of-the-democrats-denial-of-election-results..html
More Rusher Propaganda there Mary- you really out to go for M’erican accredited journalism sources if you wish to be believed. Using Russian propaganda doesn’t bolster your argument that Commie Loving Dump should be the Draft Dodging Insurrectionist POTUS King for life.
Our veterans who were killed in action fighting communism and fascism are rolling frantically in their graves because of Commie puppets!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumble_(company)
Jb, maybe you believe Dikipaedia, it’s left wing enough for you .
Quote from General Smedley Butler,
You probably shared chow with him. You did with every one else.
“War is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives. A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of the people. Only a small ‘inside’ group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few, at the expense of the very many. Out of war a few people make huge fortunes.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Is_a_Racket
How is Wikipedia Left Wing ya dumbass? It documents information on anyone and everyone based upon search query algorithms.
So war is a racket? No shit I’ve fought them. What’s your point? That we should elect a Draft Dodging Treasonous Insurrectionist Commie Loving Criminal so he can destroy our democracy because war is a racket?
The ill Douchebag and his crime family have sold billions in military equipment to Saudi Arabia and offered to sell them TS/SCI information on our nuclear power and weapons programs , he gave National and International Security Intelligence pertaining to Israel to Labrov (a former friggin KGB Agent like Putin)in the Oval Office of the WhiteHouse, disclosed live National Security Information on Afghanistan with Xi at Mar A Largo KFC over a “beautiful chocolate cake”, he consorted with known Russian Agents in 2016 despite not being charged by a mentally infirmed Mueller and Crooked in Pocket Bill Barr, he disclosed the forward deployed location of SEAL Team III during an International press briefing during his first and only trip to visit deployed troops, he sent SEAL VI into Yemen where they leveled an elementary school for reasons still unknown and they were ambushed and suffered casualties in a botched raid, he said our troops in Iraq and Syria whose bases were struck by Iranian (Putine’s buddies) proxies with drone and missile strikes just had headache’s rather than the actual TBI’s and other casualties they incurred.
If you think that’s better than a dumbass getting a blow job from an intern and lying about it or a POTUS who was Satan to the GOP/TEA Party now MAGGOT party because he is black and the Orange Moron wrongfully accused him of not being an American citizen despite the FACT that he is. If that is what you think then you definitely lack the ability to determine morality.
Republicans have committed actual high crimes and misdemeanors since before Watergate and War Criminal Tricky DICK Nixon, Ronnie Iran Contra Raygun, George CIA/Iran Contra/Iran Iraq War Criminal Bush, George Draft Dodger WMD Liar Bush who unlike the Orange Draft Dodger actually served just kinda dodged the Vietnam War magically and now we have the Orange ill Douchebag Draft Dodger Insurrectionist Dump MAGGOT King who talks shit about all of our Nations True War Heroes captured, wounded, dead and alive while ABSOLUTELY NOBODY in the DUMP Family ever fought for this country nor served in our military or any other form of National Public Service because he’s a scumbag! And you want him to be king because he says an old fart stutterer is guilty of exactly what he and he alone is guilty of- Insurrection and Treason Against our Democracy and Country!
Priveledged daddy big bucks draft dodging is a racket just as the military industrial complex is!
That doesn’t mean we should surrender to Rusher and Putin’s coalition of N Korea, China and Iran as King Pumkin Head NOTHING would have us do beginning with gifting Putanna Ukraine then the rest of Europe followed by the grand prize- These DisUnited States!
And before you run your suck about Democratic Criminals like Dirty Criminal Manendez my point of view is none of them should have ever been elected and every last one of them should see the inside of a real prison cell like Rikers and not some white collar tennis and golf prison camp set up by and for political criminals. Having stated that, Dump needs to go to prison and he’s lucky that is all!
Also I’m about 100 years too young to have had chow with Smedley Butler and or Eisenhower.
And they don’t call it chow or a mess hall anymore because single barracks dwelling soldiers voted against those titles in the mid 90’s. They changed Chow to Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner in a place called a Dining Facility that serves healthy meals rather than CHOW fit for an animal! Oh my the wokeness! Call Draft Dodging Traitor Dump, Call Tucker Commie Loving Draft Dodger Carlson, CIA/USSS Wannabe Draft Dodger Sean Insanity who btw is featured on your leftist Dikileaks as you refer to it for telling the truth about people it features.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sean_Hannity_2020.jpg
Note his lapel pins! This would have been a violation of the Stolen Valor Act had it survived draft dodging wannabe law suits to allow draft dodgers to claim they served in our military when they did not because of the 1st Amendment allowing them to lie according to the 11th Supreme Court.
Wokeness is not a problem in M’erica cause it just means people have awoken to the truth rather than Draft Dodger Insurrectionist racism destruction of our democracy, propaganda and lies!