Building Codes Life-Issue Hypocrits

Everyday our ex-building inspector, John Gulland, climbs the stairs of the Duluth City Hall to his Building Codes Administration job he ignores the same "life-safety" issues he strongly endorses.  The railings are too low and there are no guard rails.  These are "life-safety" items pursuant to the building codes, argued by Mr. Gulland, to those building new homes or renovating.  True "life-safety" items are ignored in existing structures while required of those seeking building permits.  Are we to believe that there is some "magical" safety net for "grandfathered" buildings, well remaining true life-safety issues for new or renovation projects?  The argument lacks common sense and logic.  Is there some "mystical" reason that a life-safety issue is not the same life-safety issue under similar circumstances? 

For the record, when Mr. Gulland inspected our building he didn't use either the guard rail or railing when walking up and down the stairs.  Isn't this a life-saving requirement?  Was he risking his life and our liability by acting so recklessly?

While we're talking about ridiculous codes, and ridiculous acts of building inspectors, lets address hand rails some more.  Hand rails have to run continuously without breaks from beginning to end.  If there was a break, a person would have to find the next section that might be as far away as two feet.  They would perish for sure before they figured that out.  This too is a life-safety issue.

Doors likewise must open outward with panic door handles.  Why?  When there is a panic of people in a fire they may run into each other and all perish because they can't turn a regular handle.  With our apartment complex, we might have as many as six or eight people wanting to get out a single door and they wouldn't know what to do.

Then there are the door closers...in a fire it is assumed that everyone will panic and forget to close the doors on the way out allowing the fire to spread.  The theme throughout these requirements is that people are "too stupid" to keep their head in emergency situations.  The dozens of fire drills and emergency procedures we have programmed into our heads must be compensated for by these "wise" building inspectors that know so much more than us.

Building codes, much like most government regulations, have spun out of control and overly oppressing to anyone wanting to do work requiring a building permit.  If there is a single incident, someone wants to enact another building code requirement to cover it.  If the same rules were applied to driving, all of us would be driving about 5 mph, with surround air bags, there would be guard rails, our cars would have to have government checks every 5,000 miles, and we would be restricted from traveling on any day the weather was bad.  Look around you...how many of the existing buildings and homes were built before there were thousands of pages of building codes that are still standing strong.  The answer is...nearly every one.  The only ones benefitting from over-regulation are building inspectors, plan reviewers, architects, designers, and government.  It's difficult to earn equity when you start with a loss of several thousands of dollars lost to ridiculous building codes and unreasonable enforcement.