They say homeownership is the American Dream. Funny thing is, most dreams don’t come with recurring fees, mandatory permissions, and legal responsibility for things you don’t actually control. If this is a dream, it’s the kind where you wake up sweating… and still owe property tax.

Why is it that so many of us refuse to call hypocrisy for exactly what it is—utter double standards? Not mild hypocrisy. Not accidental inconsistency. I’m talking about industrial-strength, institutionalized, government-certified double standards.

Take the U.S. government. In the most elementary terms, it operates like it borrowed heavily from a Pimp’s How-To Handbook. Do as I say, not as I do. Pay up on time. Don’t question the arrangement. And remember—this is for your own good.

From the top to the bottom, the standards and expectations have never been the same. Not even remotely close. The rules apply differently depending on who you are, how much you make, and whether your last name comes with a lobbyist. We already know about the obvious double standards of our so-called elected—and occasionally selected—officials. So let’s talk about something that hits many of us right where it hurts: homeownership.

Is it not infuriating to have the company—also known as the government—take a piece of everything we do while giving very little in return, if anything at all? Taxes on income, taxes on purchases, taxes on property, fees stacked on fees, all extracted from the non-wealthy to support lifestyles that look nothing like austerity.

And depending on where you reside, winter doesn’t just arrive—it shows up with intent.

So you bust your butt to pay for and maintain a property that was evaluated down to the square foot or square meter, with the special exception of everything outside your internal living space. You pay off the house, thinking maybe now you’ve crossed some invisible finish line.

Plot twist: you didn’t.

Even when that property is paid in full, you still need the government’s permission to dig an inch into your own land. Dig without approval? Fined. Build without approval? Fined. Improve your own property in a way they don’t like? Also fined.

At this point, “ownership” starts to feel less like possession and more like a very expensive lease—except the landlord doesn’t fix anything and still gets to fine you.

Now enter the sidewalk—arguably the most fascinating legal object known to man.

The government co-owns that sidewalk whenever they want to do something with it. Utilities, signage, cables, pipes—tear it up, patch it poorly, disappear. But let a crack form and someone trips and gets injured? Suddenly it’s not co-ownership. Suddenly it’s your sidewalk.

Snow comes down, someone slips, does the jerk, transitions into a winter breakdance, and gets launched into a lawsuit? Again—no partnership, no shared responsibility. Just the homeowner paying the bills.

And just when you think the hustle can’t get more refined, enter the HOA—the organized crime wing of homeownership. A group that can fine you for the shade of your mailbox, tell you what color you’re allowed to exist in, and foreclose on your house… all while calling it “community standards.” If that’s not a racket, it’s at least racketeering with better landscaping.

So what exactly is this arrangement?

Where is the freedom?
Where is the autonomy?
Where is the partnership?

If the government receives tens of thousands of dollars for each property transaction—while doing absolutely nothing—where is the reciprocity? If I’m responsible for maintenance, liability, compliance, and endless payments, what exactly do I own?

Food for thought.

Yet many of us spend our spare time fighting or arguing over people and parties that couldn’t care less about our well-being. We’re too busy yelling at each other to notice we’re all being charged admission to a system we didn’t design and can’t opt out of.

We don’t need better slogans. We don’t need louder politicians. We need government reform—a total overhaul.

Because at some point, you have to stop calling it governance and start calling it what it feels like:
a long–term contract where we pay, comply, and carry the risk—while someone else collects the profits.

And that’s not freedom.
That’s just getting pimped by the government we enrich.

When you strip it all down, the question remains: with everything you’ve paid into the machine, do you own your life-or does it own you?

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