SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
October 30, 2015
Sullivan’s
Salvos 11/3/15
In this edition:
*VOTE!
*Happy Birthday Rachel!
*Human Rights Awards
*The Rich Get Incentives. The Poor Get Rules.
*The Price We Pay
*Did You Know?
*VOTE!
Most
of you will be getting this just before Election Day. It is not enough that you
vote. You need to convince a couple additional people to vote. The fate of your
city hangs in the balance!
In
all seriousness, this is the most important election in my memory. Please urge
everyone you know to vote!
*Happy Birthday Rachel!
My oldest daughter Rachel turns 24 on November 6th.
Rachel has always been fun to be around; her smile can light up a room. I am
proud of the fact that she is maturing and really starting to figure things
out.
Happy
Birthday, Honey! I love you!
*Human Rights Awards
Iowa
City has a long tradition of recognizing achievements in human rights. The
annual Human Rights Awards were given earlier this week to:
Raquishia
Harrington, Charlie Eastham, Sally Scott, Stephanie Van Housen, Eli Shepherd,
and posthumously to Heather Shank.
I
know all of these people. They are all great, and all deserving. (Heck, 3 have
been honored with Salvos Salutes!) Congratulations, all!
*The Rich Get Incentives. The Poor Get Sanctions.
Federal,
state, and local governments spend a great deal of time attempting to influence
individual behavior. My Libertarian friends think that is a terrible thing. While
I agree with them in some cases, I think it makes sense in many others.
Government
exists to allow us to do collectively what we cannot do alone. To accomplish
these collective actions, we need the public to buy in to certain behaviors.
Locally,
there is a huge need for affordable housing, especially for our poorer residents.
The affected players in this scenario include wealthy landlords and poor
renters. The difference in the way we try to influence the behaviors of these
two groups is striking.
When
talking about wealthy landlords, we always hear, “They will not do anything
different without incentives.” OK… then why don’t we apply incentives when it
comes to poor people? If incentives are the only things that work for the rich,
shouldn’t they work for the poor?
When
policymakers address the poor, the line is always, “We need sanctions for
noncompliance.” OK… then why don’t we apply sanctions when it comes to rich
people? If sanctions are the only things that work for the poor, shouldn’t they
work for the rich?
Carrots
and sticks. Inclusionary zoning has been discussed in Iowa City since the early
90s, if not before. The City Council is STILL waiting, 25 years later, for the
private sector to improve things without resorting to a stick. And things have
gotten progressively worse. Council after council has failed to improve things,
because they refuse to use sticks.
Compare
this to a couple fights between young African Americans. Seven weeks after
these fights, Iowa City has a curfew in place. No carrots were ever discussed.
Straight to sticks, in just 7 weeks. By my calculations, developers were given
175 TIMES as much time (and counting) as the young African Americans in our
community. The rich get incentives. The poor get rules.
It
is all pretty simple… rich people and poor people play by different rules. And
that is not just at the federal level – I mean locally!
*The Price We Pay
In
a great meeting of the minds, I recently found myself in a conversation with
Iowa City Councilor Rick Dobyns and Iowa City gadfly Yale Cohn. (Yes, the three
of us are an interesting group.)
We
spoke about a lot of things, but the most interesting part of the discussion
was when the topic turned to the price we pay to live in the city we love.
You
can “pay the price” in many, many ways. Some people like the fact that Iowa
City is beautiful. How do we “pay the price” for this? Well, the City employs
some folks who clean and maintain public areas. So we pay through our taxes.
There are hundreds of people who volunteer and contribute to Project Green. So
we pay through volunteering our time and talents. There are community norms, in
some cases enforced by code, but in some cases enforced simply by the pressure
to “fit in” to the neighborhood. So we pay through our own sweat equity.
The
common theme is that a beautiful Iowa City does not just happen. If you want a
beautiful city, you have to pay a price. You may pay it in different ways. You
may complain about the cost. And yes, there will always be a group of people
who do not pay their fair share. But this is the price we pay.
If we choose not to pay this price – and many cities do – the city
will NOT be beautiful. Because it doesn’t just happen. There are no free
lunches.
Another
example we got into was new and used bookstores. Iowa City has a bounty of
excellent new and used bookstores. We all felt this was one of the things that
make Iowa City great.
But
new and used bookstores do not come free. There is a price we must pay if we
want these places to exist. I know you can probably find a used book online
cheaper than at a local retailer. I know you can get that new book delivered
right to your house. You want to do that, fine. But understand – you are NOT
paying the price required to keep local bookstores in business. If you like
local bookstores, you must be prepared to pay the price. (I for one, feel the
little bit extra I might expend is a very small price to pay for these
amenities.)
What
kind of city… what kind of world – do you want to live in? It can be yours – if
you are willing to pay the price!
*DID YOU KNOW?
In 1933, Johnson County voters went to the polls to weigh in on the Ratification of 21st Amendment to United States
Constitution. (Otherwise known as the repeal of 18th Amendment – Prohibition.)
The Yes votes carried the day, 5918 (70.5%) to 2475 No votes (29.5%).
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
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As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 5:11 PM
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