« The Garden State Gays Are Coming! | Main | But We Are Being Sent To Iraq »

October 27, 2006

Prineville Crybabies Don't Represent Measure 37 Supporters

Cheers to the City of Prineville for deciding its scenic rimrock views are worth paying for. And jeers to Grover and Edith Palin, who won't accept the money. The Palins want to build a home on their land on the protected rimrock (they could have done so when they purchased the property but subsequent regulations prevented it). They filed a Measure 37 claim, apparently fully expecting the regulations to be waived. Surprise. Prineville likes its scenic view so much it opted to pay to protect it rather than lose it. See, Measure 37 leaves that choice up to the government, not the property owner. So the Palins – nearly 80-year-old children that they are - have resorted to kicking and screaming on the floor and demanding they have their way. It means nothing more than the annoying child in the supermarket screaming because his mommy won't buy him a candy bar. Let's move on.

The only legitimate point of contention I can see here is whether the amount of compensation is just (though the Palins apparently don't want any amount of money). The Palins say the land is worth $200,000, while Prineville says it is worth just $60,000. This is not a novel matter; just compensation disputes occur all the time and they always get worked out. Nothing to see here.

Torrid Joe, whom I have never met but feel I would like and read daily, has taken a decidedly different view of this situation than I have. In fact, I was more than a bit surprised by his comments on this issue over at Loaded Orygun when I read them yesterday - where I'm rather phlegmatic about it all, he seems to have completely lost his composure. Now, I fully expected all the usual grumbling about whether people really understood what they were getting with Measure 37 and whether, when "educated" about its effects, people would still support it – and I wasn't disappointed. But Torrid took it further.

To all those supporters who said it's not about developing previously controlled land, it's about fairness: fuck you. If it were about being fair, the Palins would take their money and shut up.

I almost physically felt the slap and I will admit I am offended. I don't agree with the Palins' position on this, but none of it really matters anyway. So what if the only outcome they will deem as acceptable is that they be allowed to do whatever they want on that land, and so what if they simply will not take the money. It doesn't mean diddly squat. The law doesn't work that way now, it was never meant to work that way and it won't work that way in the future, and if the Palins don't like it, well, too bad for them. They can cry and scream all day and the rest of us should just move on without them. To say their attitude has any meaning whatsoever or is reflective of all supporters of Measure 37 is ridiculous. They represent no one but themselves. Torrid is simply making a straw man out of a crybaby.

And insulting potential friends.

Posted by Becky at October 27, 2006 11:17 AM