Land redistribution - Dave and Tony again

[Ecovillage Network UK]

Dear Dave,

Its not as difficult to redistribute land as you make out.

How about a points system much like the housing registers work on now - but 
with families having priority?

There are plenty of ridiculously big landowners who could have their land 
taxed directly. I mean they have to give up a proportion of their 
landholding over 1000 acres every year. All this land would be rural to 
begin with

Not everyone, by any means, wants to run a market garden. So demand for 
land won't be too high. And with strict controls on the types of homes 
people can build we can make sure there are no legoland style eyesores.

The main thing stopping redistribution is the vested interests of those 
who've put their lives in hock for a roof over their heads. Ie those who 
stand to loose if housing land prices stop rising or, God forbid, fall to a 
more realistic level.


Tony



At 12:02 PM 8/30/04 +0000, you wrote:
>Tony
>I love your principles but in practice how will you decide who farms 100
>acres and who only gets ten?
>Personally, I'd take ten acres in Central London and dispense with work
>while others created wealth and food for me.
>
>Dave
>
>Dave Wetzel
>Vice-chair, Transport for London
>Windsor House, 42-50 Victoria Street.
>London. SW1H 0TL. UK.
>Tel 020 7941 4200
>Intl Tel: +44 207 941 4200
>
>Close to New Scotland Yard.
>Buses 11, 24, 148 & 211 pass the door. (507 passes close by).
>Nearest Underground - St James's Park tube station.
>A walk or short bus ride from from Victoria and Waterloo mainline
>stations. Public cycle parking available outside Windsor House.
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Tony Gosling [mailto:tony at resourceforge.net]
>Sent: 29 August 2004 18:41
>To: diggers350 at yahoogroups.com
>Subject: [diggers350] Hurrah! No more LVT on the Diggers list
>
>
>
>Dear Diggers,
>
>The idea that subsistence farmers should be taxed for the land they hold
>is anathama to many on this list. As is the idea that a landowner should
>have to force land into production which he'd rather leave fallow.
>
>That we should be taxed for the earth we need to play on, build our homes
>on, get fuel and raw materials from and grow our food on is abhorrent to
>many. And can be seen the thin end of the wedge of the most vile economic
>slavery.
>
>So it'll come as a great relief to many of us Diggers that those who
>believe land tax is in any way related to the sort of land reform
>envisioned by Gerrard Winstanley, William Everard and the other Diggers
>back in 1649 have found somewhere else to discuss their 'economic miracle'
>
>Winstanley called for nothing of the sort. He believed that land was the
>source of our economic wealth and dignity and that by ensuring every
>family, every individual in the country had access to land we, in this
>nation and beyond, could begin an unstoppable wave of true security (not
>the sort that locks and guns bring) which would sweep the land and the
>world.
>
>He also believed that the buying and selling of anything should bring the
>death penalty. Which may sound extreme... but he called buying and selling
>the 'horrible cheating' which, of course, it is, with the monopolists of
>oil, housebuilding and supermarkets eroding small busineses and exploiting
>us for our basic human needs.
>
>Gerrard Winstanley's vision was a simple one. A world without money and
>with us all sharing the land which was and is a free gift to mankind which
>ever way you look at it.
>
>Taxing land in Britain today would be an unmitigated disaster. We already
>have a farming crisis and as marginal land became a financial burden
>farmers would be forced to sell to the wealthy, bringing about even more
>yuppification of the countryside. But maybe I should be discussing this on
>the new list for those turned on by LVT.
>
>SEE BELOW
>
>
>From: <davewetzel at tfl.gov.uk>
>
>I'm emailing to inform you about the new Land Café where a lively discussion
>about land related issues takes place and hopefully helps those of us
>interested in land reform (especially land value taxation) to take better
>informed and more appropriate action.
>
>If you are interested in these issues - you are warmly invited to join us.
>
>If you wish to join the Landcafé go direct to:
><http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LandCafe>
>
>If you are already a member pls let me know as I should not have included
>you in this mailing.
>
>Dave
>Dave Wetzel
>
>
>
>

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