City Attorney and Anti-Encampment Law
Santa Monica Acting City Atty. Joseph Lawrence keeps writing wonderful, compassionate justifications for his office’s continuing refusal to enforce the city’s anti-encampment law concerning the homeless (Times, Nov. 1).
Lawrence’s words remind me of those of an eloquent early 20th-Century liberal essayist, Randolph Bourne. In a 1917 essay, Bourne stated, “The true Puritan is at once the most unselfish and the most self-righteous of men. To the true Puritan the beauty of unselfishness lies in his being able to enforce it on others. He loves virtue not so much for its own sake as for its being an instrument of terror.”
For those of us who disagree with Mr. Lawrence, an employee of the people of Santa Monica, the coupling of his moral views and his position as guardian of the city’s laws lends special significance to Randolph Bourne’s observations.
KIP DELLINGER
Santa Monica
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
