Political Discussion

[RenegadeMonster]

Planned on getting a new back deck last year. Still waiting for this reason. Lumber is/was so expensive.

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Lumber used to be the cheaper option. My mother always wanted to redo her deck with a composite board, but it was too expensive compared to lumber. I have to wonder if these other options now may be cheaper. And there are a lot of really nice options out there now if you are interesting in a non traditional look. I really like some of the outdoor flooring options listed above.

 

[nolalady]

I would bite your arm off for a starter house at 160. My price range is 250-300 but it'll likely be more than that

This is about what our starter house--AKA the house we are living in right now--cost us. I really haven't seen prices go up much yet. What I have seen is rents going through the roof. I think we have the problem that normal people can't really get approved for mortgages due to their income vs. the price of houses, along with people who inherited houses or have lots of rental houses. On my street alone (which is full of small starter homes or retirement cottages), there are approximately 100 houses and 20 of them are owned by one person. Rents around here for a house are around $1400-$1600; less than 10 years ago, my stepson's mom rented a house for around $900/mo.

The answer is entirely that they don’t, they rent but with a lack of political will for new social housing and a lack of any security of tenure in the private rental market it really isn’t a good place to be. I can see our major cities rapidly moving towards the ghettoisation of the poor, if they’re not already there.

Well, what else do we do with all the abandoned offices?
It would be nice if we could actually turn these spaces into livable, low cost housing. But that would require capital investment that is only being used for the betterment of society. There is no way our corporate overlords would ever let us do that. Just look at how well corporations are sharing the vaccine formula with the rest of the world so that the third world can start vaccinating people without competing with richer countries.

View attachment 93075

Yep, we went to get lumber for our garden bed this weekend and I was amazed at how prices have jumped.

 

[Joe Mac]

This is about what our starter house--AKA the house we are living in right now--cost us. I really haven't seen prices go up much yet. What I have seen is rents going through the roof. I think we have the problem that normal people can't really get approved for mortgages due to their income vs. the price of houses, along with people who inherited houses or have lots of rental houses. On my street alone (which is full of small starter homes or retirement cottages), there are approximately 100 houses and 20 of them are owned by one person. Rents around here for a house are around $1400-$1600; less than 10 years ago, my stepson's mom rented a house for around $900/mo.

Well, what else do we do with all the abandoned offices?
It would be nice if we could actually turn these spaces into livable, low cost housing. But that would require capital investment that is only being used for the betterment of society. There is no way our corporate overlords would ever let us do that. Just look at how well corporations are sharing the vaccine formula with the rest of the world so that the third world can start vaccinating people without competing with richer countries.

Yep, we went to get lumber for our garden bed this weekend and I was amazed at how prices have jumped.

About that got me my apartment which is why a house will never happen. Unless I meet someone on a similar wage and we pool together to take out a frightening mortgage.

Also on the other point we have weird and conservative council that is against all logic dead set against high rise or city centre living so the corporate overlords can rest easy knowing that planning would never be granted regardless. Let Dublin sprawl!

 

[Djxfactor511]

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Lumber used to be the cheaper option. My mother always wanted to redo her deck with a composite board, but it was too expensive compared to lumber. I have to wonder if these other options now may be cheaper. And there are a lot of really nice options out there now if you are interesting in a non traditional look. I really like some of the outdoor flooring options listed above.

Yeah, from what we've been told the treated lumber and composite are both up. We're on a pretty fixed budget for this project given other life happenings, but we've told our contractor we're open to other options. Our deck is raised too, so some options like tile, ceramic are not options for us.

 

[debianlinux]

I got a quote to replace some windows in 2018. I was told at the time the quote was good indefinitely. We did a couple windows then and they were ready within 3 weeks of order. Fast forward to stimulus checks and I call them up. They need to requote. At least 50% increase across the board. We're going ahead with one big window that amounts to 3 windows (although we had hoped to do 5 windows). 6 month lead time.

Supply and demand, baby.

 

[debianlinux]

I would bite your arm off for a starter house at 160. My price range is 250-300 but it'll likely be more than that

I’d bite your hand off for a starter home at $300,000, they start at €500,000 to €600,000 around my way for a 3 bed semi...

Remind me to never offer you guys starter homes.

 

[nolalady]

Remind me to never offer you guys starter homes.

Or just make sure they've eaten first.

 

[RenegadeMonster]

About that got me my apartment which is why a house will never happen. Unless I meet someone on a similar wage and we pool together to take out a frightening mortgage.

Also on the other point we have weird and conservative council that is against all logic dead set against high rise or city centre living so the corporate overlords can rest easy knowing that planning would never be granted regardless. Let Dublin sprawl!

In MA a super majority is required to approve any housing development. And the result is time after time and time again any proposal for affordable or working class housing gets blocked. Only high end luxury developments get approved. The majority of people in the community and on the zoning board do approve of affordable housing, but the very vocal minority who opposes it is able to successfully block it nearly 100% of the time. They are concerned affordable housing dropping the average price in rent or property values and changes in "community dynamics" should affordable housing be built.

The apartment conples I live in now in Salem is about 20 years old. It was built just as the the shift to only building high end luxury housing started. It was considered high end / luxury 20 years ago with the inclusion of a washer and dryer in each unit and a dishwasher. But other than that, would not be considered luxury by todays standards. For that reason, my place now has some of the cheapest rental rates in Salem. $600 to $1000 cheaper than new developments for a one bedroom, but rent still starts out at about $1800 here. Over the last 6 years I have seen my apartment complex shift from mostly elderly people and college students living here to now mostly minorities and young families.

The property management company that owns my place are aggressively remodeling units as they become available now to make them "luxury" and "competitive". All I see is they are trying to get top dollar / higher profits. They are going to town with marble this and granite that. New flooring. Alexa smart connected appliances. They are turning the bathrooms and kitchens into something you would see on HGTV watching Christina on the Coast. Their goal is to complete these renovations within the next 3 years. And yes, they will refuse to renew your lease and ask you to relocate to a renovated unit once they run out of available units to renovate.


There have also been wars on affordable housing in many affluent communities in Massachusetts. Many of these communities having zoning laws that do not allow trailer parks, trailers or modular homes because they are deemed an eyesore and reduce surrounding property values. Also back in the 80's many of these zoning laws were passed to prevent that "rift raft" from moving into the Boston Suburbs.

 

[sahomerrocks]

Elaborate on this? Because it's a skill everyone should know, or because everyone should have a basic understanding of how the thing we're going to argue about functions? What's the benefit?

Just that a loaded gun is probably closely to us at any given moment than most of us realize and everyone should know how to safely handle one.

I don't believe it's necessary to know anything about guns to argue for gun control as long as you're comfortable with guns rights advocates trying to "...well technically" your positions to death but none of that really matters in the bigger picture of the debate.

 

[Max Sterling]

Elaborate on this? Because it's a skill everyone should know, or because everyone should have a basic understanding of how the thing we're going to argue about functions? What's the benefit?

Just that a loaded gun is probably closely to us at any given moment than most of us realize and everyone should know how to safely handle one.

I don't believe it's necessary to know anything about guns to argue for gun control as long as you're comfortable with guns rights advocates trying to "...well technically" your positions to death but none of that really matters in the bigger picture of the debate.

As someone who grew up around guns, lived in the country most their life, owns a rifle, enjoys shooting it, and believes we do need much stricter gun regulations, I would argue it does make sense for someone to have a better understanding of the physical thing they're arguing about.

Not only is education always the answer to "how will we find common ground on this?" but you'd be surprised how often the rules that are made are misinformed and based solely on perceptions. Like the definition of an "assault weapon." Half the time, simply calling a something a "firearm" is enough to get around most of the sillier restrictions. Just because something looks scary doesn't mean it's more or less dangerous than that old wood stock rifle your granpappy has in the shed.

These are the same gun, and do the exact same thing one's just edgier:

 

[TenderLovingKiller®]

Wow, that's all pretty eye opening. How does someone making 15 to 20 bucks an hour afford that? I guess the answer is, they don't. Not much of a 'starter home.'

I paid 172 for mine in 2001. It was the cheapest house in the neighborhood and in a somewhat highly coveted area. I've done two renovations, both major, and it's tripled in value. (on paper anyway.) We aren't leaving anytime soon, so I guess that part doesn't matter. But the less desirable areas, closer to the fair city of Detroit are so high now, it feels like it has to burst at some point.

They don’t, they have to move an hour away and spend a good chunk of their time and money commuting into work everyday.

 

[sahomerrocks]

As someone who grew up around guns, lived in the country most their life, owns a rifle, enjoys shooting it, and believes we do need much stricter gun regulations, I would argue it does make sense for someone to have a better understanding of the physical thing they're arguing about.

Not only is education always the answer to "how will we find common ground on this?" but you'd be surprised how often the rules that are made are misinformed and based solely on perceptions. Like the definition of an "assault weapon." Half the time, simply calling a something a "firearm" is enough to get around most of the sillier restrictions. Just because something looks scary doesn't mean it's more or less dangerous than that old wood stock rifle your granpappy has in the shed.

These are the same gun, and do the exact same thing one's just edgier:

Yes this is the type of thing that frequently comes up, but I will argue that just because an operating group functions the same way does not mean the two guns are the same. The cushioned and adjustable buttstock, the pistol grip, the rail for accessories, and the flash hider all contribute to increased lethality.

But to my overall point I don't necessarily think legislating those items away will make a large difference in the public health crisis that is guns in america and they have only been targeted because they are one of the few actual options for gun control legislators have right now until a larger public debate takes hold. But I'm not confident that larger debate will happen any time soon.

 

[RenegadeMonster]

They don’t they have to move an hour away and spend a good chunk of their time and money commuting into work everyday.

Make that 90 minutes to 2 hours away for the Boston Area.

It may only be an hour drive from the New Hampshire state line to Boston itself. But expect an extra half hour to hour to commute within the city.

Salem is only 15 miles away from Boston, but if you go by highway it's much longer of a roundabout way and you still deal with stop and go traffic. Route 1 can be taken directly to Boston, but rush hour traffic still can take you 90 minutes to go that 15 miles.

 

[debianlinux]

The one thing I wish gun control advocates would actually learn about guns is how the people who are committing atrocities with them rarely to never follow the rules that the rest of the huge population of responsible gun owners are following. Like, legislation isn't stopping any of the outcomes. I would argue you can't legislate what amounts to a public mental health crisis away. Gun control is a serious diversion from the actual issues at hand. I will concede that the obsession with guns is part and parcel to the underlying issue, though. Murder fantasy and enactment is a thing whether guns exist or not. On the other hand, guns serve as a pretty solid equalizer when it comes to meeting force with force.

My personal position is the "shall not be abridged" portion of the 2nd Amendment is clear enough. I empathize with those who would try to argue that down, though.

 

[ranbalam]

They don’t, they have to move an hour away and spend a good chunk of their time and money commuting into work everyday.

I guess my point about starter homes was that the ones I'm referring to around here are areas not near a big city or expensive area and still have become unaffordable. It pushes people to apartments I guess, or renting houses from people that own 20.

 

[RenegadeMonster]

I guess my point about starter homes was that the ones I'm referring to around here are areas not near a big city or expensive area and still have become unaffordable. It pushes people to apartments I guess, or renting houses from people that own 20.

Since the great recession a growing trend has been for banks to buy up cheap homes / keep foreclosed houses. They have learned they can make more revenue this way and have more security as its much easier and quicker to evict a tenant than it is to foreclose on a house.

 

[TenderLovingKiller®]

I guess my point about starter homes was that the ones I'm referring to around here are areas not near a big city or expensive area and still have become unaffordable. It pushes people to apartments I guess, or renting houses from people that own 20.

Yeah, it’s a growing problem for sure. Seattle is a very expensive city to own a home in so what happens is a domino effect where the surrounding communities feel a similar pinch as people who live in the city start moving further and further out. I couldn’t afford to by my very modest home in my very modest neighborhood had I not purchased it 5 years ago. You end up seeing lots of lifetime renters or people renting out part of their homes, stuff like that just to get by.

I think this meme kinda relates to the current state of our housing crisis in the US during the Pandemic for many young people...

 

[Dtknuckles]

Elaborate on this? Because it's a skill everyone should know, or because everyone should have a basic understanding of how the thing we're going to argue about functions? What's the benefit?

I first stared down this route thinking what modern masculinity should look like. What are the traits that we want to foster in our culture when it comes to men? Don’t worry this isn’t some men’s rights rant. Yes men should be nurturing, empathetic, and vulnerable. But there are some good things about the old style definition of masculinity. One of them being capable an a variety of situations. This did come to mind when struggling with new homeownership. If I’m ever in a situation where I have to pick up a gun, I want to know how to use it.

 

[Chucktshoes]

I first stared down this route thinking what modern masculinity should look like. What are the traits that we want to foster in our culture when it comes to men? Don’t worry this isn’t some men’s rights rant. Yes men should be nurturing, empathetic, and vulnerable. But there are some good things about the old style definition of masculinity. One of them being capable an a variety of situations. This did come to mind when struggling with new homeownership. If I’m ever in a situation where I have to pick up a gun, I want to know how to use it.

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.”
Robert A. Heinlein.

 

[Dtknuckles]

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.”
Robert A. Heinlein.

Ive broken more bones (my own) than set bones.