Cohousing-L Mailing List: firearm policy and chickens

Winslow cohousing has a "no guns" policy,  but we did bump into some 

issues with airsoft guns, which, it turns out,  can look just like 

regular guns.

(the issue was brought up when a visiting teen left one laying in the 

common house, where children then reported its presence).    I think we 

then made a rule that dangerous items left in the public areas could be 

removed by anyone finding them, and dispose of them as they thought 

best.  I'd have to look up the actual wording.   Creating that policy 

kept the debate down as to trying to determine if airsoft or paintball 

guns were banned as "guns" or not.

We also do have chickens (I think about 8 right now).  They do not 

smell.  They are down in the garden, and have plenty of space.  We don't 

have any roosters to keep the noise down for ourselves and our 

neighbors.  Our worm bin was much odiferous (it would occasionally go 

anaerobic),  and we subsequently swapped to a different food composting 

method.  (we use a Clivus).

--audrey watson
winslow cohousing
bainbridge island washington

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Today's Topics:

   1. Re: Firearms Policy (Robert Heinich)
   2. Documents [was: Re:  builder contracts] (Catya Belfer-Shevett)
   3. Re: Firearms Policy (Diana Kardia)
   4. Re: Firearms Policy (balaji [at] ouraynet.com)
   5. Re: Firearms Policy (mrbouchez06 [at] aol.com)
   6. Cats wearing pink booties: the rule of law (Rob Sandelin)
   7. Re: Firearms Policy (Sharon Villines)

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Message: 1
Date: Tue, 08 Jul 2008 09:13:47 -0400
From: Robert Heinich <robert [at] enocommons.org>
Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Firearms Policy
To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
Message-ID: <20080708091347.ktfm1csbq8ccw40o [at] vps.fitfam.com>
Content-Type: text/plain;       charset=ISO-8859-1;     DelSp="Yes";
        format="flowed"

Per,

This can be a contentious issue.

Eno Commons has a policy (actually it is in the covenants/bylaws)
which bans operative firearms.  Nine years ago, the process of
re-examining the policy was started by some prospective members who
owned guns and wanted to see whether we would change our policy to
allow them to join.

The issue was dropped because the prospective members who raised it

decided not to participate (they didn't feel welcomed) and a member  

had expressed her intent to block consensus.

It was brought up again last year as we have new neighbors who do
revolutionary war reenactments and have weapons from that period.  As
they had a musket but did not have the have powder for it, the musket
is not operable and cannot be fired, it was in compliance with our
policy.

Quoting Rob Sandelin, if you make a "house rule that says all cats
must wear pink booties, this house rule has the same legal standing as
any law passed by a government."  So your community could create a
policy regarding firearms the Supreme Court recent ruling
notwithstanding.

However, issues like this are what one member coined 'community
crack'.  There is no right answer, bridging differences is next to
impossible and has the community focusing on what separates us rather
than what can bring us together.

Avoid the issue if you can.

-Robert Heinich
   Eno Commons Cohousing Neighborhood
   http://www.enocommons.org
   Durham, NC
   where this Saturday we are celebrating 10 years of living together.

Quoting Per Eisenman <per [at] arteverywhere.org>:

What have different communities done about  a firearms policy?  Can
anyone offer any advice or examples.
Thanks.
-Per Eisenman
Champlain Valley Cohousing

----- End forwarded message -----

------------------------------

Message: 2
Date: Tue, 08 Jul 2008 10:10:44 -0400
From: Catya Belfer-Shevett <catya [at] homeport.org>
Subject: [C-L]_ Documents [was: Re:  builder contracts]
To: Cohousing-L <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Message-ID: <48737564.9020002 [at] homeport.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Cohousing US could really assist the forming and construction processes by
collecting a library of such documents and then spending some time looking
for the patterns they share. Differences among states are to be expected but
that, in itself, is useful information.

OK.  How about whenever folks send a document in response to a query on 

this list, either post it at 

http://www.cohousing.org/ma/forums/documents or cc it to 

webmaster [at] cohousing.org and i'll post it?   It's hardly an organized 

attempt to collect a comprehensive document library, but it's a start :)

I will also start a set of links from there to the other document 

repositories that Craig mentioned in his email, unless someone else 

would like to volunteer to do so?

        - catya

firearm policy and chickens	<– Date –> <– Thread –>
From: Audrey Watson (audreygalisteo.com)
Date: Tue, 8 Jul 2008 19:27:18 -0700 (PDT)