My wife and I own a piece of property in a community in another state. We bought it with plans to one day build a house on it and live there probably for the rest of our lives, but our situation at present makes that a poor choice, so we're waiting. The community has an HOA, and even though we're not yet "residents" I've been keeping up on the antics of the HOA and my future neighbors to get a feel for 1) how the HOA behaves, and 2) what kind of people I'll be living next to if we decide at some point to go through with our plan. To that end, I signed up for the community group on Yahoo, and I receive emails from time to time from the HOA and other members of the community. Needless to say, the issues confronting the residents, along with the HOA's responses thereto, provide endless hours of entertainment, even while some of them are truly cause for concern.
The latest episode in the neighborhood is that some residents are having plants and planters stolen from outside there homes. Everything from small potted plants to heavy concrete planters are being taken in the wee hours of the night from walkways, porches, and patios all over the community. It's been ongoing for several weeks now, and the items stolen are always those that are attractive and in good condition, so it's unlikely that it's a prank being perpetrated by local teenagers. Rather, it's been presumed that contractors, landscapers, or some other group is stealing the items and selling them to local contractors. Understandably, this situation has prompted a variety of responses from the residents affected, as well as those who could be affected.
The encouraging thing is that most residents are simply asking others to be more vigilant around the neighborhood, and some have even offered to take turns patrolling the community at night to prevent further thefts and possibly catch someone in the act. Others have suggested spending HOA dues to hire a private security force to serve the same purpose, which has met with mixed responses (some residents display an irrational bias against private security, saying they believe "rent-a-cops" were more likely to be found sleeping that patrolling, and suggesting instead that they attempt to hire off-duty "commissioned officers" as if that's supposed to ensure better service...but I digress).
What's not so encouraging, though, is that anyone who's dared to suggest that people be more careful about securing their own planters or otherwise safeguarding their own property has been lambasted as "selfish" and lacking "all form of social conscience." The outrage is levied particularly heavily against those who express a desire to NOT have HOA dues spent on additional security for the community as a whole. It's one thing to presume that we all have a responsibility to watch out for each other, and on a social level I sort of agree. It's good for us to look out for one another, but it's immoral to force people to look out for each other. It's quite another thing, however, to presume that we are selfish for wanting to protect our own property first. I can't quite wrap my head around the root of this viewpoint. I believe that many socialist views are rooted in envy, but what's the root of this particular viewpoint? I'll have to think about it some more. In the meantime, any feedback others may want to provide would be welcomed.