Will George Monbiot invite people to use his two spare rooms?
Posted on January 1, 2011George Monbiot has plunged fully into the deep end today by calling on the Government to seize control of people’s homes in order to force those with spare rooms to take in strangers. It’s a barmy proposal – and an evil one – but I suppose it’s the logical conclusion of his view that he knows better than everyone else what they should do with their lives, liberty and property.
Perhaps he will now have the intellectual honesty to change his Guardian bio to “totalitarian evangelist”.
Guido has already suggested we all go to Monbiot’s house to see if he will be good to his word by putting strangers up in any space he may have – but how big is his pad?
According to various letters (doc file) of his that are online, he lives at Y Goeden Eirin, Newtown Road, Machynlleth, Powys SY20 8EY. The local house price registers show the property as being bought for £278,200 in January 2007.
A couple of months earlier he gave a preening interview to the Times discussing the move. That interview describes the Machynlleth property as “four-bedroom” – the same size as his old house in oxford.
Seeing as George moved to Wales with his wife and young daughter, that means he should have at least two bedrooms going spare. First come, first served!
Tags: Communism, Environmentalism, Freedom, George Monbiot, Guardian, Hypocrisy, opinion, Politics, Socialism
As it seems he has split with his wife, maybe he now has three bedrooms spare…
04.01.2011 12:31
How dare he split with his wife – that means she now needs a house pf her own and thus makes life more difficult for the homeless.
Does he subscribe to the big issue?
05.01.2011 13:06
I don’t want to ruin the right-wing bloggers mouth-foaming reaction to Monbiot’s article today, but at no point does he suggest government should ‘seize’ control of people’s homes. What he does suggest is removing a tax-break for those that chose to live alone in property with more space, and expanding an opt-in scheme whereby people can utilise spare room to according to their need. Sorry, but had to be pointed out.
04.01.2011 12:41
Two points, Thom – how do you think he plans to “expand” the scheme without compulsion? Also, he advises “massive” tax punishment for those living alone, ie mostly pensioners, to force them out of their homes.
04.01.2011 13:27
… yes, but then he gives an idea as to how this could be combated. There are a few older and disabled people in my local area who advertise something similar – if you help me do such a thing, you can live in my house rent free. Enlarging a charity that could help older and disabled people maintain a modicum of independence, while at the same time allowing single poorer people the means to live in comfortable housing is a laudable goal.
13.12.2011 11:24
All totalitarianism starts with a single step, Thom-Thom.
05.01.2011 07:23
“it’s up to us to give them no choice, by turning under-occupation into an issue they can’t avoid. It cannot be left to the market, as the market works for the rich.”
That sounds like seizure to me.
08.01.2011 15:22
Reminds me of that scene where Zhivago returns home to find his house has become a commune run by committee!
04.01.2011 13:02
My exact thought when I heard about this. There should probably be a political officer at every property too, to help with the transition. The political officer will need a salary too, the rich property owner should cover this.
04.01.2011 14:26
Right, I’m volunteering for the job of First Housing Commissar in charge of administering George Monbiot’s Welsh farmhouse. It should house at least 30 vagrants.
04.01.2011 19:11
Well, on google maps they all look like fairly capacious properties – and only about half a mile from the Aga Shop on the corner too. Couldn’t be better.
04.01.2011 13:46
@mark you can expand schemes without rendering them comnpulsary, i.e. fund it more, publicise, remove any bureaucratic or legislative obstacles…you know the score. Secondly, whilst I don’t agree with (almost) everything Monbiot has to say, your charactirisation of him advocating the ‘seizure’ of people’s homes was just plain misleading.
04.01.2011 13:58
Thom.
Did you read this line from the article “While most houses are privately owned, the total housing stock is a common resource” ? When private property is considered a common resource it is but a small step to compulsory enforcement.
05.01.2011 23:04
I wonder how Monbiot can justify travelling around the Country to spout his eco-theory? Surely that is simply Bad for the Environment? Although living in the middle of Nowhere in deepest Wales only add’s to the miles he clocks up, surly Manbiot should live in the Capital where he can spout the greatest amount of nonsense to the largest Audience at the smallest impact to the Environment? Ow, I forgot he made a lifestyle choice, how he see’s no irony in my spare room is an interesting one.
04.01.2011 14:47
@Thom I am getting really sick of you people claiming that single people get tax break for living in alone. They don’t. When it comes to council tax, a single person pays 25% more of the bill per person than a couple. It costs the same to heat and maintain a house even if you live alone. It costs the same to rent or the same mortgage payments. I would love know how you think single people have it so easy.
04.01.2011 14:52
@Thom -George’s prattlings are clearly a statement of re-distributionist intent.
When the kulaks won’t cough up the grain, what can you do eh?
He must be worth it for the pageviews he generates….
The fellow is a poisonous k**bend – I do wonder sometimes if he puts out stuff simply to provoke for the sake of it – all other explanations don’t seem to hold up.
04.01.2011 15:10
Desperately searching for a half sane reason for Moonbat, might I suggest he’s simply modelling his career on that of Polly Toynbee? She has held down a safe, well paying job writing pantomime invective for years. Not a bad little earner if you can get it.
Alternatively, a less sane interpretation might be in order. I remember when the climategate story first broke feeling quite sorry for the Moonbat. He was very upset, and seemed on the verge of a damascene conversion for about a week, before falling back into line with the green agenda. I thought at the time he seemed somewhat unstable.
04.01.2011 15:29
Polly has lots of houses, can I move in with her
04.01.2011 16:36
But could you really stand it for more than five minutes?
05.01.2011 07:06
@Bruce: I call dibs on the house in Tuscany!!!
04.01.2011 16:41
The Moonbat should invite some pikeys to stay, that will soon change his tune.
04.01.2011 17:00
Being fair to Monbiot (I am not sure why as I disagree with him totally) he does state in the replies that he has two lodgers so has no spare rooms. This article seems to be I live this way, so should you. Wrong but not in this case hypocritical.
04.01.2011 19:11
I was a young child during WW2 and we had people billeted on us with no chance of refusal. It was not very pleasant coming home from school to find complete strangers sharing the house.I look forward to reading that Mr Moonbat has called the Police to help clear the squatters from his property.
04.01.2011 19:58
“he has two lodgers so has no spare rooms” ?
I think the local akkomdation kommissar should be dispatched forthwith to determine the extent of the members compliance, you can’t trust kulaks, reload the pistol for me komrade.
04.01.2011 21:03
Hi – Actually Monbiot doesn’t share the house at all as far as I know, as he got divorced shortly after moving there: http://hauntingthelibrary.wordpress.com/2011/01/04/hypocrite-george-monbiot-condemns-large-expensive-homes-except-his-own/
04.01.2011 21:24
At least Moonbat has blown any chance of a K. HM the Q will not be happy – just think of the size of her “housing footprint”, Buck House, Windsor, Sandringham and Balmoral.
04.01.2011 21:25
So my comment on Guido’s Blog is the way to get a point into the blogosphere?
I will have to remember that …!
05.01.2011 10:00
What about the awful language he uses?
http://idlepenpusher.blogspot.com/2011/01/george-monbiots-housing-footprint.html
08.01.2011 15:24