This is my museum,” Ms. Badu, 37, said of the rent-controlled one-bedroom in Fort Greene where she has lived on and off since coming to New York, demo tape in hand, 11 years ago from her native Dallas, where she was Erica Wright.
This singer who has sold millions of records has a rent controlled apartment in Brooklyn? What a crock. Who knew that rent control laws were designed to put government imposed price controls in place so that famous entertainers can have a place to live? It's like hearing Sting qualifies for Section 8 Housing.
The rent control laws are perfect examples of what happens when the government rolls out an entitlement program. And rent control is arguably one of the worst entitlement programs because the entire cost of the entitlement is put on the private property owner.
The first thing that happens is that once you put an entitlement in place, you can NEVER get rid of it. Rent control laws became effective in New York after World War II. It was enacted as a solution to a housing shortage that occurred as a result of the soldiers coming home from the war. Every year since 1945, the state assembly & senate get together and say that the same shortage that existed in 1945 exists today, and therefore, they extend the rent control laws. Excuse me, but it's been 65 years, I think all of our boys are back from the war, but they still use that same bogus excuse to keep rent control in place.
But they will never get rid of it, because you can never get rid of any entitlement program in this country.
The next thing that happens is abuse. Widespread abuse. A system designed to help soldiers has morphed into addressing the housing needs of a naked hip hop star who desecrates the place where an American president was killed.
Enough.
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