The Consequences of Centrally Planned Compassion

By Edward Ring
02/10/2021
Sixty years ago, when California was governed by people who were sane pragmatists, homes were affordable and very few people were homeless. To support new housing, government funds were focused on building enabling infrastructure. California’s freeways and expressways connected new suburbs to urban cores, and the California Water Project delivered abundant water to the growing...

TAGS: California housing crisis, Venice Beach

The Regulatory Taking of Venice Beach

By Edward Ring
05/01/2020
With great crisis comes great opportunity… On April 18 LA City Councilmember Mike Bonin held a telephone town hall to discuss public health issues. His district includes Venice Beach, which has a high number of homeless still living on the streets and it was brought up that this is a major health concern. Towards the...

TAGS: Edward Ring, homelessness, Venice Beach

Venice Beach shut down except for homeless encampments

By Edward Ring
04/01/2020
California’s 40 million residents have now been under house arrest for over a week. But in the homeless haven known as Venice Beach, the party hasn’t skipped a beat. Law abiding residents have deserted the Los Angeles coast after a crackdown by Mayor Eric Garcetti, who condemned people getting “too close together, too often” the previous weekend....

TAGS: coronavirus, Edward Ring, Homeless Industrial Complex, homelessness, Venice Beach

Gathered for the feast at the Hotel California

By Edward Ring
03/12/2020
Welcome to the Hotel California, such a lovely place… Plenty of room at the Hotel California, any time of year, you can find it here… – “Hotel California,” by the Eagles, 1977 For decades California’s aristocracy has engaged in unsustainable feasting, as they consume the leviathan carcasses of what were for a time the world’s the...

TAGS: affordable housing, Edward Ring, homelessness, LA County, Venice Beach

The Manger vs The Monster – Housing California’s Homeless

By Edward Ring
12/18/2019
“And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.” – Luke 2:7 Advocates for the homeless frequently invoke biblical passages in order to appeal to the Christian compassion that still guides the hearts of most Americans, whether...

TAGS: City of Los Angeles, Edward Ring, Homeless Industrial Complex, homelessness, Housing, Mayor Eric Garcetti, Prop 47, San Francisco, Venice Beach

The Boondoggle Archipelago

By Edward Ring
11/20/2019
Across California, there is a growing string of islands, exquisite gems in the urban ocean. Dredged from the pockets of taxpayers, and constructed by elite artisans, these pristine islands have been created at stupefying expense. But their beauty is seductive. Each time an island is completed, or even proposed, glowing reports are logged across the...

TAGS: California Environmental Quality Act, San Francisco, Venice Beach