May 10
bgix commented on The Fight Against Small Apartments.
So, Chuck, are we "anti-affordable housing", or is it that you are "pro-developer money whores"? Or "anti-greenspace douchebags"? Or "anti-neighborhood hipsters"?
You can make anyone sound like a douche bag, when you get to apply the label used to describe them.
There is a difference between "affordable housing" that will be someplace people will want to live for an extended period of time, and hipster warehouses that will be shit holes in 5-10 years.
You can make anyone sound like a douche bag, when you get to apply the label used to describe them.
There is a difference between "affordable housing" that will be someplace people will want to live for an extended period of time, and hipster warehouses that will be shit holes in 5-10 years.
May 10
bgix commented on The Fight Against Small Apartments.
"Some complaints about microhousing are, indeed, reasonable—and others are hysterical." -- Says Dominic Holden.... "So I'll just focus on the hysterical."
There are certainly aspects of the microhousing opposition which seem NIMBY, but there is a definite short-sightedness about the developer led proponents.
Hopefully no one is actually taken in by the myth that this is providing affordable housing in city that would otherwise not exist. Rent for these pods exceed the rents that could be paid "in city" elsewhere with considerably more space... enough for actual families even.
These pods are being built specifically in "hipster neighborhoods" by non-resident developers, because they generate the largest short-term return on investment for them. And while the majority of initial tenants will certainly be freshly college educated youths who don't need much space, they will not intend to "spend their lives" there... they will eventually pair up and move elsewhere.
And when Capitol Hill ceases to be the "it" destination (perhaps because everything that made CH desirable in the first place has been torn down and converted to "density") the crowds will move on, and those who have lived here for 20, 30, 40 years will be left with half empty eye sores built right to the edge of all 4 property lines, and because they are in now undesirable neighborhoods, the developers will disappear, and there they will stay.
The real reason developers build pods are not altruistic. It is greed. Dollars per square ft built on lots to maximize that sq footage. And because they don't have to go through the review processes that would be required if they included more kitchens.
More...
There are certainly aspects of the microhousing opposition which seem NIMBY, but there is a definite short-sightedness about the developer led proponents.
Hopefully no one is actually taken in by the myth that this is providing affordable housing in city that would otherwise not exist. Rent for these pods exceed the rents that could be paid "in city" elsewhere with considerably more space... enough for actual families even.
These pods are being built specifically in "hipster neighborhoods" by non-resident developers, because they generate the largest short-term return on investment for them. And while the majority of initial tenants will certainly be freshly college educated youths who don't need much space, they will not intend to "spend their lives" there... they will eventually pair up and move elsewhere.
And when Capitol Hill ceases to be the "it" destination (perhaps because everything that made CH desirable in the first place has been torn down and converted to "density") the crowds will move on, and those who have lived here for 20, 30, 40 years will be left with half empty eye sores built right to the edge of all 4 property lines, and because they are in now undesirable neighborhoods, the developers will disappear, and there they will stay.
The real reason developers build pods are not altruistic. It is greed. Dollars per square ft built on lots to maximize that sq footage. And because they don't have to go through the review processes that would be required if they included more kitchens.
Mar 16
bgix commented on Addedum to SL Letter of the Day.
We all have our prejudices that we should fight. The measure of a good person is how well we recognize our own failings, and work to correct them.
Feb 11
bgix commented on "Science Enthusiast" Introduces Bill to Teach the Science of Destiny in Missouri Schools.
I love when non-scientists come up with new definitions of "science". If your pet belief doesn't pass muster, just redefine the words until you can shoe-horn it all in.
Some 100 odd years ago, a bill was introduced in the Indiana legislature to define pi as an "easier number to handle" because a few dim legislators couldn't quite grasp the idea of irrational numbers. It died a quiet death.
Some 100 odd years ago, a bill was introduced in the Indiana legislature to define pi as an "easier number to handle" because a few dim legislators couldn't quite grasp the idea of irrational numbers. It died a quiet death.
Feb 11
bgix commented on Anti-Gay Bigots at High School In Indiana Can't Ban Gay Kids From Prom....
I feel bad for the Children of the Adult Bigots. We all know that the Younger Generation is more progressive than their parents, so I would guess that there will be some number of Straight kids who will be pressured by their parents to go to the Bigot Prom instead of the Real Prom.
As for the Bigot Prom itself, I bet that it is a lame bust.
As for the Bigot Prom itself, I bet that it is a lame bust.
Jan 28
bgix commented on A Faggot Attends the Wedding Expo.
I'm 20 years on from my wedding now, and also think many wedding price tags are obscene. We got 10 grand from both our families to do the wedding, with the understanding that whatever was left over could be spent on whatever we wanted. We spent about 1K, got married in our home, and used the rest for some nice home furnishings that we have to this day.
I am pleased that same sex marriages can happen now, and pleased that the economic impact is positive. But I hate to see new couple start life together in the hole. Hopefully, most of economic boon is due to the happy new couples who have been together for a while, and already financially stable.
I am pleased that same sex marriages can happen now, and pleased that the economic impact is positive. But I hate to see new couple start life together in the hole. Hopefully, most of economic boon is due to the happy new couples who have been together for a while, and already financially stable.
Nov 29, 2012
bgix commented on Savage Love.
I am in agreement with @24, that it shouldn't matter whether something is biological or a choice, when making the determination of whether rights should be extended.
That said, I think homosexuality is *not* a choice. I also happen to think things like pedophilia is probably not a choice, nor is being a sociopath. The difference in how society treats such people is the real question.
Relationships and interpersonal interactions between consenting adults should be acceptable to society whether a choice was made to be that way or not.
And of course the flip side is that it doesn't matter why a pedophile victimizes children. It doesn't matter why a sociopath or psychopath decides to kill or rape someone. You can perhaps be sympathetic to whatever made them that way, be it biological or environmental, but you are still going to lock them up, and keep society safe from them...... And at the end of the day, nobody is going to case whether they were born that way or chose it as a lifestyle.
The only question that needs to be answered is whether everyone involved in a particular relationship or activity is a willing participant.
More...
That said, I think homosexuality is *not* a choice. I also happen to think things like pedophilia is probably not a choice, nor is being a sociopath. The difference in how society treats such people is the real question.
Relationships and interpersonal interactions between consenting adults should be acceptable to society whether a choice was made to be that way or not.
And of course the flip side is that it doesn't matter why a pedophile victimizes children. It doesn't matter why a sociopath or psychopath decides to kill or rape someone. You can perhaps be sympathetic to whatever made them that way, be it biological or environmental, but you are still going to lock them up, and keep society safe from them...... And at the end of the day, nobody is going to case whether they were born that way or chose it as a lifestyle.
The only question that needs to be answered is whether everyone involved in a particular relationship or activity is a willing participant.
Nov 9, 2012
bgix commented on President Obama Just Hit Congress with the Mandate Stick.
@19 I'll believe it in Texas when more Democrats start winning actual policy making state-wide races. It doesn't matter if it is full of our allies. Unless they are voting for us, they are part of the problem.
Nov 9, 2012
bgix commented on President Obama Just Hit Congress with the Mandate Stick.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/08…
Contrary to GOP talking points, if majority Americans supported ANY directional moves by Congress it was in the Democrats direction. Even though the GOP holds more seats, it is due to gerrymandering. Democrats got most the votes.
Contrary to GOP talking points, if majority Americans supported ANY directional moves by Congress it was in the Democrats direction. Even though the GOP holds more seats, it is due to gerrymandering. Democrats got most the votes.
The Stranger
RSSSeattle Art & Performance Quarterly
A complete guide to Seattle's current art, film, dance, and theater season.
Facebook
Twitter
As a *long* time resident of the Hill, I moved here long before it was "million dollar bungalows", and half of my neighbors are long term renters. I welcome "affordable housing" where people of meager means can (and will) move in and put down roots.
A-pod-ments are not affordable housing, and to call them that is an extremely bad joke. Their cost per square foot is two to three times the average for Seattle... which is the real reason that they are becoming an attractive option for *Millionaire/Billionaire* *Developers* who don't have to live next to them.
So the rights to "affordable housing" is not what you are defending, regardless of what you are intending. It is the right to exploit Zero-Review loopholes, and the right to Maximum-Return-On-Investment for a very small number of very rich developers.