Homeowner's association vs disabled child

[Panacea]

So other than the "It's illegal" argument, how is that different from me, say, putting in my rent contract that the tenants agree to never ever report my building for being below code? Or writing "I reserve the right to refuse anyone from living here, whether it's for marital status, children, race or religion."

First of all, you cannot require someone in a contract to not obey the law of the land. So a clause banning a tenant from reporting code violations would be laughed out of court if you tried to evict . . . and you'd attract the attention of the code enforcement folks.

As for marital status, children, race, or religion; those practices are prohibited by federal law, the Fair Housing Act. You can't even ask the questions.

You CAN refuse to rent to smokers (smoking damages property) and refuse to allow pets (again, because pets can damage property). Those issues aren't seen as being discriminatory to people.

[Difdi]

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." - John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton.

Acton was a bit wrong about that. It's more accurate to state that positions of power are irresistible to the easily corrupted. Someone who isn't corruptible won't be corrupted by having power. Someone who is already corrupt, will continue to be corrupt when given power.

[BeenThereDoneThat]

I live in a neighborhood with an HOA. We wanted to build a new home, didn't have the money to build much more than a cookie cutter place, and liked this area. So yes, we made our own bed and are sleeping in it. Moreover, my husband is on the HOA board of directors and has been for years.

All that being said: I think the parents should have made a request before building/installing the therapy equipment for their child, assuming they didn't. If the HOA denied it, and they built it anyway, there is a good chance they would have been able to keep it, either because of higher laws saying they could, or the HOA not wanting to bother with legal action, or many other reasons. It happens all the time in my neighborhood. Having rules is one thing, enforcing them is another. Making the request would have been the proper route to take but if denied I don't necesssarily think the parents should have had no other recourse.

(How's that for straddling the literal fence? )

[DrFaroohk]

Acton was a bit wrong about that. It's more accurate to state that positions of power are irresistible to the easily corrupted. Someone who isn't corruptible won't be corrupted by having power. Someone who is already corrupt, will continue to be corrupt when given power.

Unfortunately the uncorruptible people seem to be the ones not getting into power

[Kheldarson]

^ That's because the incorruptible people tend to not want seats of power. They have a healthy wariness of being shoved into power and a healthy respect for what that entails in terms of responsibility. Not to say that some don't choose to go after that responsibility.

[senor boogie woogie]

I started a post on HOA's on another board for more responses on the lines of this one.

http://www.freeratio.org/showthread.php?t=309292