What’s an eruv? Ask your realtor!

The Revealer has things to say about a developing situation on the west coast, where some Jews have run afoul of the the local government, a few birds, and breathtaking scenery… Now, I have just the barest inkling of why an eruv makes sense in the first place… I tend to be a little put off by this kind of stuff… the Jewish inclination to make incredibly restrictive laws, and then provide “outs”. I figure, if it’s really important not to carry your keys on Saturday, then building a huge fence that will allow you to carry your keys is silly. Like asking someone else to turn on a light, when you aren’t supposed to turn on the light yourself. I HATE the "shabbas goy" model. I think it’s nuts, and offensive! (Incidentally, I also think vegetarian bacon is ridiculous) Though of course, I respect the rights of people to do crazy shit, especially in the name of God… who tends to inspire crazy shit. BUT This all seems odd to me… that folks are using environmental (bird-friendly) concerns as an excuse to avoid constructing the eruv. Seems a pretty easy fix. So what’s really going on out there? Aesthetics, fear for property values, or anti-Semitism? Imean, it could be a mixture of the three, right? Since black hats really don’t go with bikinis…