California Politics: Madame Senator, this is a morgue

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Foxfire_: Nov 8, 2010

Smythe posted:

homelessness is intentional. it is very carefully curated by capital as a cudgel to keep the working class in line. it is an overt threat.

No it isn't. There is no shadowy cabal of rich people going "How will we maintain an optimal level of homelessness this quarter?".

It's just indifference where you don't care if someone is out on the streets if it makes you $10, or want to not see them camping on the street without caring if they have anywhere else to go after the cops hassle them away.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 00:31

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# ? May 26, 2024 05:44

Fill Baptismal: Dec 15, 2008

Foxfire_ posted:

No it isn't. There is no shadowy cabal of rich people going "How will we maintain an optimal level of homelessness this quarter?".

It's just indifference where you don't care if someone is out on the streets if it makes you $10, or want to not see them camping on the street without caring if they have anywhere else to go after the cops hassle them away.

yeah people who think there's some financier cabal responsible for this poo poo have lost the plot. It's the conflux of a bunch of petty little evils rather than some council of Wall Street interests.

Major problem with stuff like this is the million little petty fiefdoms that federalism gives us. you can't solve homelessness at the city council level for the people on the streets, but you can maybe get your cops to brutalize them enough that they move on and no longer bother the homeowners who vote in elections for these things.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 00:45

Smythe: Oct 12, 2003

Foxfire_ posted:

No it isn't. There is no shadowy cabal of rich people going "How will we maintain an optimal level of homelessness this quarter?".

It's just indifference where you don't care if someone is out on the streets if it makes you $10, or want to not see them camping on the street without caring if they have anywhere else to go after the cops hassle them away.

i consider this a very naive reading of the stochastic harmony of discrete aligned forces. the interests of a diffuse and nebulous capital class are certainly working in unison to achieve agreed upon goals. it doesn't need to be the men in robes, instead it works just as the rivers flow from the mountain to sea - one droplet at a time.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 01:09

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

it's the basics of Marxist socioeconomics, that people as an overall class can be predicted and understood based upon the economic interests of the class they're in. weak workers allow more economic freedom for the capitalist class, and therefore when described as a whole unit they tend to do things like intentionally sabotage public housing as much as possible, because it's a direct competitor to rental profits and real estate investment. this doesn't mean that all capitalists are members of a conspiracy, but it does mean that an overall goal is achieved through the actions of many individual actors over time.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 01:26

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

but like, in California specifically, who do you think keeps lobbying against rent control and public housing lol? it's not the proverbial little old lady renting her basement raising these millions to stop plebiscites

# ? Sep 12, 2022 01:27

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Larry Parrish posted:

but like, in California specifically, who do you think keeps lobbying against rent control and public housing lol? it's not the proverbial little old lady renting her basement raising these millions to stop plebiscites

Really? Because it seems like it's all the people on Nextdoor.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 01:31

Smythe: Oct 12, 2003

FogHelmut posted:

Really? Because it seems like it's all the people on Nextdoor.

few notes:

1) there are vast reams of data indicating the likelihood of policy positions being supported by legislators as a donor vs a non-contributing constituent.

2) these old ladies on nextdoor aren't fabricating these opinions on their own. they are victims of masterfully crafted propaganda inundating all channels of new and legacy media.

3) as owners of property they are equally incentivized to keep their asset scarce, and the united states has structured property in such a way that it is one of the few remaining avenues to build generational wealth. this is not a personal "evilness" in the old lady heart, it is a system of control

# ? Sep 12, 2022 01:39

El Mero Mero: Oct 13, 2001

I think the continuous worsening of the situation is functionally coming from two large factors:

most people everywhere are getting poorer. each successive generation since the boomers have been worse off. This means there's a rising tide of vulnerability. Until that tide changes directions our existing housing and homelessness support will stay underwater.
The majority of funding and support strategies are primarily supply side solutions. Build more , faster or recruit landlords hard into accepting vouchers. They're important but insufficient . These will never outrace the tide in their current forms and because of 1 there's also a big disconnect between what gets built and who can live in it.

If you want to address 1, that means raising wages, increasing worker protections, addressing healthcare costs, doing mincome and more.

If you wanted to stem the influx of newly houseless folks, then we should be doing demand-side solutions. Basically, decommodifying housing or making it less attractive to bully-buyers who drive up prices and hoarders. Options here include but are not limited to:

local cities, counties, states, feds, purchasing up large portions of the existing market and then controlling who gets to buy or occupy it
making housing choice voucher holders get mandatory selection priority for any place they apply to
banning air-bnbs
requiring landlords to register/report occupancies and leases
rent control
raising property transfer taxes to discourage continual selling
imposing mandatory delays on sales to slow down frenzies
not allowing contingencies to be waived

Any combo of the above would be an instant policy improvement for vulnerable people today, without adding a single unit into the supply. Each one of the above also has a massive set of lobbyist aligned against it because implementing it would deny profits or power

# ? Sep 12, 2022 01:41

Tuxedo Gin: May 21, 2003; Classy.

El Mero Mero posted:

local cities, counties, states, feds, purchasing up large portions of the existing market and then controlling who gets to buy or occupy it

making housing choice voucher holders get mandatory selection priority for any place they apply to

banning air-bnbs

requiring landlords to register/report occupancies and leases

rent control

raising property transfer taxes to discourage continual selling

imposing mandatory delays on sales to slow down frenzies

not allowing contingencies to be waived

A simple brain dead solution is a nice hefty tax on unoccupied units. If we were feeling especially feisty then a sizable tax on any property that is not the primary home of the owner.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 01:48

Qtotonibudinibudet: Nov 7, 2011; Omich poluyobok, skazhi ty narkoman? ya prosto tozhe gde to tam zhivu, mogli by vmeste uyobyvat' narkotiki

Smythe posted:

the stochastic harmony of discrete aligned forces

new thread title material

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:00

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

Tuxedo Gin posted:

A simple brain dead solution is a nice hefty tax on unoccupied units. If we were feeling especially feisty then a sizable tax on any property that is not the primary home of the owner.

straight up seized by the county housing agency imo, no exceptions if vacant for 6 months or more. leases with a period of less than a year don't count either. this would collapse the real estate market overnight and probably the entire countries real estate market but it would be worth it.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:04

Foxfire_: Nov 8, 2010

Smythe posted:

i consider this a very naive reading of the stochastic harmony of discrete aligned forces. the interests of a diffuse and nebulous capital class are certainly working in unison to achieve agreed upon goals. it doesn't need to be the men in robes, instead it works just as the rivers flow from the mountain to sea - one droplet at a time.

I don't think calling an emergent property a bunch of independently acting people, none of whom care very much about homelessness in particular, is accurately described as "intentional" and "very carefully curated". It's like calling WW1 intentional because it was the consequence of all the European nations wanting alliances to protect their interests.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:10

jetz0r: May 10, 2003; Tomorrow, our nation will sit on the throne of the world. This is not a figment of the imagination, but a fact. Tomorrow we will lead the world, Allah willing.

Tuxedo Gin posted:

A simple brain dead solution is a nice hefty tax on unoccupied units. If we were feeling especially feisty then a sizable tax on any property that is not the primary home of the owner.

it's always cheaper to buy politicians or flood the media with propaganda than pay any of these potential penalties.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:11

Smythe: Oct 12, 2003

unrelated but i was just reading about the crazy racetrack resort in thermal and its really insane

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:27

El Mero Mero: Oct 13, 2001

Tuxedo Gin posted:

A simple brain dead solution is a nice hefty tax on unoccupied units. If we were feeling especially feisty then a sizable tax on any property that is not the primary home of the owner.

vacant occupancy is pretty low in California, but yeah why not. It would also be an appropriate backstop to "landlord strikes" (lmao) which would definitely surge if some of the other stuff (like mandatory priority for voucher holders) happened.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:29

Smythe: Oct 12, 2003

it would be cool to put a 100% vacancy tax on additional dwellings of all stripes

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:29

Smythe: Oct 12, 2003

also nobody is allowed to make fun of me or my dire prose. its against the law and frankly abusive. my mother will attest to this. thank you

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:45

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

El Mero Mero posted:

vacant occupancy is pretty low in California, but yeah why not. It would also be an appropriate backstop to "landlord strikes" (lmao) which would definitely surge if some of the other stuff (like mandatory priority for voucher holders) happened.

i can think of some solutions to landlord strikes lol. and most of them involve a pickup truck and 6-7 good old boys

# ? Sep 12, 2022 02:51

WAR CRIME GIGOLO: Oct 3, 2012; The Hague
tryna get me
for these glutes

Smythe posted:

drat natural gas generators. that some enterprise grade level poo poo

I have to run 1200 amps 24 hours a day. An outage for a few days could cause a massive crop failure and basically put me out of business. NG isnt that big anymore tho. You can throw a quick disconnect on your gas meter and hook a small genny up. Add a transfer switch and you have lights and outlets available inside the house.

Since we're on this topic, a reliance transfer switch is not hard to install correctly at all and could give you up to 10 circuit options for your house. Bedroom plugs, house lights, kitchen plugs, etc. Which is way better for actually living than just running extension cords throughout the house. I'd recommend having an electrician do this but some people are savvy enough to figure out how to wirenut and drill a few holes.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 04:28

withak: Jan 15, 2003; Fun Shoe

Seems like a lot of trouble for weed.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 04:30

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

yeah my grandpa decided to just shell out and redo the electrical lol. now about half the plugs in my grandparents place are hooked into a second circuit that he can hook the generator to.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 04:42

WAR CRIME GIGOLO: Oct 3, 2012; The Hague
tryna get me
for these glutes

Larry Parrish posted:

yeah my grandpa decided to just shell out and redo the electrical lol. now about half the plugs in my grandparents place are hooked into a second circuit that he can hook the generator to.

That's awesome. It makes a lot of sense as a home owner to have this option. Esp older folk who may be CPAP or oxygen etc. A setup that gives you decent power is at most a grand if you DIY it. You can go higher and get way more power output for two or 3 Gs. You can get your furnace's air handler running to filter the air even if it's a power outage. Which is great when your stuck inside the entire loving day with horrific smoke conditions.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 05:16

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

WAR CRIME GIGOLO posted:

That's awesome. It makes a lot of sense as a home owner to have this option. Esp older folk who may be CPAP or oxygen etc. A setup that gives you decent power is at most a grand if you DIY it. You can go higher and get way more power output for two or 3 Gs. You can get your furnace's air handler running to filter the air even if it's a power outage. Which is great when your stuck inside the entire loving day with horrific smoke conditions.

they aren't that old lol. it's purely because he got sick of running an extension cable to his big rear end tv. besides us filthy mountain rednecks are adapted to breathe smoke. it's only the city slickers and flat landers that can't handle it. must be the smog inhalation or something idk

# ? Sep 12, 2022 05:26

FlapYoJacks: Feb 12, 2009

Highbrow Slick posted:

They probably should have just done that from the beginning because practically nobody believes homelessness is solvable at this point.

You give people houses that are not fancy, safe, cool in the summer and warm in the winter. For free. That�s it. That�s how you solve homelessness.

Lmao it will never ever EVER happen in any state in this awful country. Never.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 12:59

forkboy84: Jun 13, 2012; Corgis love bread. And Puro

FlapYoJacks posted:

You give people houses that are not fancy, safe, cool in the summer and warm in the winter. For free. That�s it. That�s how you solve homelessness.

Lmao it will never ever EVER happen in any state in this awful country. Never.

Didn't it sort of happen in Utah?

# ? Sep 12, 2022 13:01

Fozzy The Bear: Dec 11, 1999; Nothing much, watching the game, drinking a bud

I just grow weed in my backyard using the sun, takes zero electricity or natural gas :shrug:

# ? Sep 12, 2022 16:52

Tayter Swift: Nov 18, 2002; Pillbug

Fall is the best season because I can't even enjoy a nice day without feeling hella guilty about it
https://twitter.com/NWSSacramento/status/1569361172738248704?s=20&t=vUdwMIfLZP313IfIaXIHpA

# ? Sep 12, 2022 17:43

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

making the :sickos:

face imagining all the smoke blowing up and ruining Tahoe.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 17:47

Keyser_Soze: May 5, 2009; Pillbug

Mokelumne Trekka posted:

I got insanely lucky on Saturday because I was in Truckee and got some outdoor activity in 9am-3pm, before the smoke blew in and the "moderate" level went to unhealthy. as I drove out in the heavy smoke there was a bride and groom walking around with a photographer :/

Yeah, it got over 700 in Truckee yesterday so cancelled and moved it to October.

# ? Sep 12, 2022 19:25

Henrik Zetterberg: Dec 7, 2007

Larry Parrish posted:

making the face imagining all the smoke blowing up and ruining Tahoe.

That doesn�t sound like a good outcome at all. What is wrong with you?

# ? Sep 13, 2022 05:18

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

Henrik Zetterberg posted:

That doesn’t sound like a good outcome at all. What is wrong with you?

Flatlanders have it coming op. There's about 3 people left in all of Tahoe that aren't filthy bay area transplants anyway.

# ? Sep 13, 2022 05:24

DeadlyMuffin: Jul 3, 2007

Larry Parrish posted:

Flatlanders have it coming op. There's about 3 people left in all of Tahoe that aren't filthy bay area transplants anyway.

Can we not cheerlead ecological destruction because it hurts people you don't like?

# ? Sep 13, 2022 06:31

Larry Parrish: Jul 9, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

DeadlyMuffin posted:

Can we not cheerlead ecological destruction because it hurts people you don't like?

What's my other option? Take my fire pick to power plant transmission lines so they stop lighting fires? Go back in time like Red Alert and assassinate Edison or Ford or something? If my home town is gonna burn down I might as well be slightly amused by where the smoke blows

# ? Sep 13, 2022 06:34

sb hermit: Dec 13, 2016

did someone mention that the Salton Sea is finally getting water due to the recent rains?

# ? Sep 13, 2022 06:35

Smythe: Oct 12, 2003

Smythe posted:

unrelated but i was just reading about the crazy racetrack resort in thermal and its really insane

it was this: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/postcard-from-thermal-surviving-the-climate-gap-in-eastern-coachella-valley

# ? Sep 13, 2022 06:40

sb hermit: Dec 13, 2016

Looks like all I found was this accuweather video

https://www.yahoo.com/video/floodwaters-tropical-storm-kay-course-030250395.html

Hopefully we'll see some follow-up on if it still remains an ecological disaster or if we just got some breathing room.

# ? Sep 13, 2022 06:44