“Resist the registry”

Carmel Pine Cone –March 1, 2024

It is good to see that the mandatory rental registry in the city of Monterey is getting less than just a lukewarm response. With about 3 percent response so far, I would say that Monterey’s citizens are following the wise words of Henry David Thoreau, who believed it was the duty of citizens to resist injustice with civil disobedience.

For instance, the half-dozen city hall meetings were filled with almost unanimous rejection of a rental registry, where 30 to 40 citizens protested government intrusion and more money grabbing. Just one or two citizens supported this crazy mandatory rental registry, which would impose annual fees and loads of paperwork. The worst part is that most of the Monterey City Council members failed to explain why we required more bureaucracy and information-gathering at $500,000 to one million annually.

Since government is more harmful than helpful, it behooves us to resist a system that denies individual liberty and self-ownership. Thoreau understood this threat and refused to back down from those who wanted to control every aspect of a person’s life and property. He displayed his courage by refusing to pay a poll tax even though it led to spending time in jail.

Lawrence Samuels, Carmel