Feature Article from Hemmings Motor News

September, 2005 - Richard Lentinello

I apologize to those readers who have read this column in the latest issue of Hemmings Classic Car magazine, but because it's such an important topic, one that affects collector car enthusiasts everywhere, I want as many people to read it as possible. Here is the slightly condensed version.

Well, it has finally happened. A few disingenuous local politicians recently drafted an ordinance that will soon force the residents in my little Vermont town to remove any old car on their property. Being the type of person who firmly believes in fighting for my rights and personal freedom, I'm now on a mission to not only get this unjust law overturned but also to get those politicians responsible for it voted out of office.

They are calling their mindless little law the "junk law," which is solely aimed at getting rid of any and all old cars parked on private property that are within sight of the road, or from another neighbor's property.

Of course these unscrupulous individuals didn't truly define the word "junk," saying only that if a car is unregistered, they consider it junk, and thus, it must be removed. Imagine, they drive around in SUVs and they are calling my Ventura bubbletop junk, just because it's parked outside.

But beyond all the old cars at stake, the biggest problem I have with this junk law is the fact that it was signed into law without the knowledge or consent of all of the town's residents. It was reported in my local newspaper that the town's Select Board voted in the junk law at a town meeting last March, and that they had a petition with 200 signatures from residents calling for it. But how convenient is it that the law's supporters didn't come to my house to get my signature, or that the board sneaked the junk law onto their agenda right smack in the middle of winter, when the town residents don't go out much at night due to Vermont's subzero temperatures.

The last time I looked, I lived in America, not Communist China. If they wanted such a law, why didn't they put it on the ballot in November and have the town's residents vote on it the same way everything else gets voted on? Obviously, they knew the majority of the town's residents wouldn't vote for it; so, being the sneaky fake, phony, frauds that they are, they did it their way. This is wrong, and I for one will not stand for it.

So, to alert everyone in my town that their civil liberties are being violated, I wrote a letter to our local newspaper.

Here's what I wrote:

"Attention, citizens of Arlington: You are under attack. Your rights are being violated by a few select individuals who are bent on dictating to you what you can and cannot do with your property. I'm talking about the proposed 'junk law.'

"Now, I'm all for everyone keeping their property well maintained and aesthetically presentable, but when someone instigates a frivolous ordinance such as this, then it's time for the town's citizens to stand up and fight for their rights before these same individuals decide to impose additional self-centered laws that will threaten to rule your very existence and way of life.

"The main issue I have with this junk law is its goal to rid the town of junk cars.

"But what is a so-called junk car? And who has given the selectmen of Arlington the legal right to label a car 'junk' just because it's old, needs work and is unregistered?

"All too often, the main targets for such junk laws are old cars, and that's because old cars are easy prey for those who don't like them. Many feel that because old cars can be quickly and easily moved, they should be moved for the betterment of the neighborhood. But what is it about seeing an old car parked alongside someone's garage that makes people voice out against them? Why is it that these same individuals don't have a problem with other eyesores that are a mainstay of the rural landscape?

If these same neighborhood Nazis continue to have their way, they may soon ask you to remove your propane tanks, tractors, boats, snowmobile trailers, toys on the lawn, satellite dishes, woodpiles, lawn care equipment and even artistic sculptures. And they won't end there. They may even draft other ordinances that will prevent you from having decrepit barns, unkempt lawns and dead trees on your property. They may even go so far as to order you to repaint your house if it needs to be repainted. That they can dictate what you can or cannot have on your property is absolutely astonishing.

"Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? Well, it isn't. This proposed junk law is proof positive that all of the above can come true. And don't think that because you don't live in Arlington, you're safe; you are not. This can happen to you, too.

"According to www.sema.org, the website of a consumer watchdog group in Washington D.C., a proposed Vermont Junk Vehicle Bill was defeated in 2000, followed by the defeat of the Vermont Anti-Hobby Inoperable Vehicle Bill in 2002. And that means that old-car owners who have old cars parked on their property are allowed to do so. But don't tell that to the hypocritical selectmen behind Arlington's junk law, one of whom has not one, but two disheveled-looking RVs parked on his property, along with numerous ladders and other building material in clear view of the road. For him, it's 'do as I say, not as I do.' He knows who he is, and he should be ashamed of himself for imposing his own self-centered, dysfunctional views on his fellow citizens.

"Yes, I am a proud old-car enthusiast and owner. I have two old cars parked on my property, and only because I don't have additional room inside my garage to house them. I restore old cars as a hobby, and these two old cars are parked where they are waiting to be restored. And I'll be dammed if someone is going to tell me these old cars are an eyesore and have to be removed because they don't like the sight of them.

"If you would like to protect your property rights and not have certain selectmen dictate what you can and cannot do on your land, kindly send me an e-mail at rlentinello@hemmings.com. Together we can defeat junk laws and vote these individuals out of office."

Hopefully, a junk law won't come to your town. But if it does, you must fight for your rights, as well as the rights of every other old-car enthusiast. Because so few shouldn't be allowed to dictate their views to so many."

This article originally appeared in the September, 2005 issue of Hemmings Motor News.

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