 The Mayor
and the Small Landowner
A Parable about Inclusionary housing in Pasadena...
[Wayne
Lusvardi] 3/20/06
Original Version: The Lord sent Nathan to
David. When he came to him he said, “There were two
men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. The rich
man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, but the
poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought.
He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It
shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his
arms. It was like a daughter to him.
Guest
Contributor
Wayne Lusvardi
Wayne
Lusvardi worked for 20 years for the Metro Water District
of So. Cal. and lives in Pasadena. The views expressed
are his own. . Wayne receives e-mail at waynelbox-blogger@yahoo.com |
“Now
a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained
from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal
for the traveler, who had come to him. Instead he took the
ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for
the one who had come to him.”
David burned
with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely
as the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die! He
must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such
and thing and had no pity.”
Then Nathan
said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord,
the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king over Israel… gave
your master’s house to you... I gave you the house of
Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little I would
have given you even more. Why did you despise the word of the
Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes?” II Samuel 12,
Hebrew Bible
Modern Version: God sent his prophet Nate to the powerful Mayor of the City
of Pasadena named Bill and told him the following story: There were two
men in a certain town, one rich and politically powerful and the other
a relatively powerless and not rich Small Landowner. The rich and powerful
mayor had the authority vested in his position to tax or take the property
of others. But the Small Landowner had nothing much but one little parcel
of land he had bought and paid taxes on for decades smack dab in the middle
of the rich city. He rescued the 100-year old house on the land and wanted
to pass ownership to his children. So his property became like one of his
children.
Now a migrant
traveler named Jose came to the powerful mayor of the city
whose group the mayor and his City Councilman Gordy wanted
to court political favor from. And the traveler and his group
squatted on land belonging to other politically-favored groups
who demanded it be replaced. But the mayor refrained from replacing
it; neither did he assess a tax on all the citizens to provide
housing to the traveler. Instead the mayor took half the land
that belonged to the Small Landowner and prepared it for the
traveler who had come to him as a form of political patronage.
Then Mayor
Bill burned with anger upon hearing the story and said to Nate "As
surely as God lives, the man who did this deserves to pay!
He must pay for that property four times over because he did
such a thing and has no pity. Who did this?"
Then Nate
replied to Mayor Bill, "Why, you are the man!" And
then God said: "I anointed you mayor over Pasadena. I
gave your master's house to you and I gave the house of Izzy
and Jud. Why did you despise the word of God by doing what
is evil in his eyes by stealing half of the Small Landowner's
property to give to a traveler for political patronage and
then cover it up by calling it "inclusionary housing"?
(see Pasadena
Star News.com). And then why did you go to the City-sponsored "affordable
housing summit" at the Pasadena Nazarene Church and seek
religious sanction for your actions by hypocritically saying
that what you were doing was helping the poor and the homeless? CRO
Also see: Inclusionary
Housing is a Pea-Shell Game
copyright
2006 Wayne Lusvardi
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