Another case...of HUD abuse...

HUD, some regional housing authorities, and some private concerns seem to be complicit in a scam built on the backs of some of America's neediest families.

In many American communities, you'll notice that public housing seems to be disappearing faster than the Republicans' election chances. Media accounts invariably laud these efforts. Rarely are the residents even asked for their opinions.

I'm sure the residents wouldn't oppose it if the housing was replaced by better dwellings in the same general area and if the community isn't broken up - and if they were able to move into the new residences. But in my area, that doesn't seem to happen. You hear of new low-income housing being built once in a great while, but it's scattered and often substandard.

Public housing residents are unfairly viewed by governments and the media as objects to be moved around, not as people trying to build a stable community.

When public housing is razed, new housing is supposed to go up somewhere in the community to accommodate all the residents. Clearly though this does not always happen.

With much of it flung into distant areas, it's inefficient - and it's much harder for residents to get to work. (Most residents are employed: If you drive through any public housing development, you'll see people in work uniforms heading off to work or arriving home.)

New housing built with funds from HUD and regional housing agencies that is reasonably close to the old housing is often a sham. While they claim that these are supposed to accommodate everyone who lived in the old housing that was torn down, there's often a wait of several years between the loss of the old housing and the opening of the new residences. Further, the new housing often isn't even open to all the residents of the old buildings.

Often there is in effect a minimum income requirement. The very poor thus cannot get housing to replace that which they lost.

Another issue is that HUD or public housing agencies are enforcing policies that would be illegal if a private landlord had them. For instance, it's illegal for building owners to discriminate against prospective tenants on the basis of disability. In some locales, there are specific regulations that say that a person who collects disability benefits can't be denied an apartment if someone who earns the same amount from gainful employment would not be denied.

Some of the new developments, however, run afoul of these regulations - despite receiving HUD money.

On and on this descent continues, as the press - which always takes a booster's view - turns a blind eye to the community's needs.