spyguy Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 1 hour ago, reddog said: I think the homeless literally setting up tents thing, stems from a court ruling that the police aren't allowed to move them on. I can see an exodus from many cities coming in both US and UK, and the reversal of gentrification. Probably in a decades time a Rudy Guliani type figure will appear promoting zero tolerance policing, but it might not be as relevant as it was in the late 80s and 90s, as people may never need to return to the city! US law enforcement is v different from the UK. US cities - which can be tiny - run and fund their own emergency services. This is the reason why loads are going but as the pensions and health benefits ruin them. https://www.lovemoney.com/gallerylist/91578/us-cities-that-went-bankrupt This is something I'd like to see happen with UK councils, taking on millions of debt to 'invest'in shopping centres - all LA employees laud off, pensions halted. In the US left leaning cities think of reason not to deal with homeless. The more they leave it, tye worse it gets. In the UK homeless charities are stuff full of doogooders, who make the problem worse. Most 'homeless'begging in the street are housed. UK has cpvagrancy laws. They need to be used. Some sort if basic accomidation, provided with workfare would sort most out. Ditto heavy fines for people giving money to beggars. Never give a beggar money ffs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattyboy1973 Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 Rising inequality is the single biggest problem of our age (climate changed excepted). We're not as bad as the US yet, but we are moving fast in that direction. What is the end game here? Something like South Africa, with ghettos for the poor and secure compounds for the wealthy? An awful quality of life for all. Surely the rich can see this? I don't see much that is going to stop it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shlomo Posted September 13, 2020 Author Share Posted September 13, 2020 2 minutes ago, mattyboy1973 said: Rising inequality is the single biggest problem of our age (climate changed excepted). We're not as bad as the US yet, but we are moving fast in that direction. What is the end game here? Something like South Africa, with ghettos for the poor and secure compounds for the wealthy? An awful quality of life for all. Surely the rich can see this? I don't see much that is going to stop it. This is the end game, when the 1% see South Africa they want that level of inequality without the violence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayward Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 6 hours ago, zugzwang said: Also, the Trump coloured sky. Isn't that HK? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zugzwang Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 1 hour ago, Wayward said: Isn't that HK? San Francisco. The waterfront has been aggressivly castellated with skyscrapers in recent years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dances with sheeple Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 21 hours ago, hotblack42 said: Through work & socially I've had dozens of conversations about LA over 35 years. People who've worked there short & long term, people who've visited on vacation. Americans, Brits, South Africans, Australians, friends, relatives. People who live in Sanfranciso & San Diego. ALL of them had mixed feelings or didn't like LA at all. NONE wanted to settle there. Well 1 friend did in 1981 to be accurate - for big money. Emperors new clothes. Its weird that Angelonos seem to find it the hardest to see what a dump a lot of LA is. Cognitive bias? Actor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy2x3 Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 (edited) Ive allways thought the solution to homelessness was japanese style pods. our restrictive housing laws is what stops it. ironic that the very thing set up to organise housing is the very thing responsible for homelesness. You could build 1000s even millions of these pods in london and not touch a blade of greenbelt. instead they keep people on the streets as a means of keeping rents high and others scrambling all their lives most without success to achieve a home of their owm. This is the position that suits many, homelesness suits the people that make the rules a bit like crime suits a million people that work in the crime industry. I noticed they made a lot of new laws ie crimes when the crime fingures started to drastically drop a few years ago. we cant have they citizens all compliant can we what will the judges and social workers do. not only did they create more crimes they expanded how a simple crime would go through the system. before the miscreant would be in the dock at 9am giving a 50 quid fine and away he would go. now he will first be giving bail, then a hearing date set then his case called and even then social work reports needed and all manner of fluffing out the case happening. all of which creates work for those involved in crime and increases the anxiety and the worry of the crime doer. 3/4 of the people in government jobs are really just there causing trouble for everyone and would be far better laid off Edited September 13, 2020 by jimmy2x3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hotblack42 Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 4 hours ago, dances with sheeple said: Actor? IT contactor riding the early 80s super boom. I'm not in touch any more but I know he left LA a while ago. Much of California remains lovely. The persistent attraction of congested, polluted, and now homeless ridden, LA is most puzzling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
captainb Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 8 hours ago, spyguy said: This is something I'd like to see happen with UK councils, taking on millions of debt to 'invest'in shopping centres - all LA employees laud off, pensions halted. You would like to see all employees laid off and pensions halted? Nice. Councils have budgets, over the last decade they have lots of people go.. Wishing for more pain for people as some sort of aim implys more about the person suggesting it than the workers it effects Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Orange Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 10 hours ago, shlomo said: This is the end game, when the 1% see South Africa they want that level of inequality without the violence. They wish - that form of inequality is incredibly dangerous and inevitably violent (a South African is a matter of "when", all the current civil wars in part due to inequality, and America is a nuclear power that's armed to the teeth door to door). Britain will be a highly violent place soon enough and violence will become the best recorse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dean Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 4 hours ago, hotblack42 said: IT contactor riding the early 80s super boom. I'm not in touch any more but I know he left LA a while ago. Much of California remains lovely. The persistent attraction of congested, polluted, and now homeless ridden, LA is most puzzling. I have spent some time in California. For Los Angeles specifically in all honesty for film industry work it’s the only place worth being where making a living is semi viable, the deals will be made on very short notice and you need to be local to get to the meetings to book the work. Even if nothing actually shoots there anymore. I think I heard once the anecdotal number that New York has about 40 good film jobs a month vs Los Angeles having 40 a day. I know a few people who live there permanently and every single one would leave instantly if not for the above. From my admittedly brief experiences there, I actually think the city has a lot of good amenities and if you drive south some of the nearby towns are quite lovely, plus the weather is good almost to a fault, not too hot, not too cold and lots of sun, would probably live near it if I could in all honesty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spyguy Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 7 hours ago, captainb said: You would like to see all employees laid off and pensions halted? Nice. Councils have budgets, over the last decade they have lots of people go.. Wishing for more pain for people as some sort of aim implys more about the person suggesting it than the workers it effects Id not like to see this happen. Id prefer a well run efficient councils, sticking to itheir statutory duties. What response do you think this sort of lunacy deserves? https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2018-12-04/councils-borrow-billions-to-buy-real-estate It certainly doesnt deserve all the parties being bailed out by peoples council tax. In the case of a coucnil going bust, id epect most people to reapply for their jobs. And most of the services provided by councils tend to be outsourced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debtlessmanc Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 2 hours ago, spyguy said: Id not like to see this happen. Id prefer a well run efficient councils, sticking to itheir statutory duties. What response do you think this sort of lunacy deserves? https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2018-12-04/councils-borrow-billions-to-buy-real-estate It certainly doesnt deserve all the parties being bailed out by peoples council tax. In the case of a coucnil going bust, id epect most people to reapply for their jobs. And most of the services provided by councils tend to be outsourced. i am amazed that central govt does nothing to stop this, it has a long history https://www.theguardian.com/business/2012/may/17/bcci-scandal-long-legal-wranglings http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/9/newsid_2498000/2498975.stm The govt knew the bcci was doomed in 82 and yet idiot councillors were borrowing money from other banks to deposit with them at high interest rates for year afterwards As sir humphrey observed "if you allowed town halls to raise tax for defense you would have a civil war in weeks" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spyguy Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 Well, take the BCCI case. There are, ~340 LAs. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/local-government-structure-and-elections#:~:text=In total there are 343,district councils Each will have its finance department,. Youd hope that, before an LA parks several millon of short term cash in a an overseas bank that theyd at least write a letter to the BoE or one of its local agents.. BoE officials travel around the UK, chatting to big firms and what was then the local building societies, just to get afeel for whats happening. But,. no, LA council officers- its not the councillors- have this idiot-in-a-hurry about them. You have a to have a system where a LA ffing up results in the LA employees and pensioner taking the pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MancTom Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 On 13/09/2020 at 09:12, debtlessmanc said: The museums are good, the natural history especially. Also the tourist stuff can be surprisingly good, eg my kids loved the universal studios tour and I learnt a lot about movie making. But yes it's mostly a dump and not the kind of place you would stop and ask directions, you might be alright, you might not. I spent a few days in Venice Beach last year. Lots of hipster cafes have set up. Also heard people shooting at each other in the night! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MancTom Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 19 hours ago, mattyboy1973 said: Rising inequality is the single biggest problem of our age (climate changed excepted). We're not as bad as the US yet, but we are moving fast in that direction. What is the end game here? Something like South Africa, with ghettos for the poor and secure compounds for the wealthy? An awful quality of life for all. Surely the rich can see this? I don't see much that is going to stop it. I think the ultrarich don't care? Middle classes (who some might argue are "rich") just leave because of how awful it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debtlessmanc Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 (edited) 34 minutes ago, MancTom said: I spent a few days in Venice Beach last year. Lots of hipster cafes have set up. Also heard people shooting at each other in the night! not necessarily shooting at each other. Shooting upwards or in your own your own yard no-one will bat an eyelid at. I met a german vet in Cancun, working in texas, told me that often when he gave a dog/cat owner the bad news that the animal needed putting to sleep, the owner would say "don't worry it will make good target practice" Edited September 14, 2020 by debtlessmanc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sour Mash Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 On 13/09/2020 at 11:02, zugzwang said: Also, the Trump coloured sky. https://babylonbee.com/news/oh-no-the-president-visited-san-francisco-and-now-no-one-can-find-him Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Social Justice League Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 13 hours ago, hotblack42 said: IT contactor riding the early 80s super boom. I'm not in touch any more but I know he left LA a while ago. Much of California remains lovely. The persistent attraction of congested, polluted, and now homeless ridden, LA is most puzzling. Yeah I've been to LA and the only interesting places (if you can call them that) were the Sunset Strip and Hollywood Boulevard. The rest I wouldn't give $10 for tbh. These days it's looks even more dodgy than when I was there in the late 90's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattyboy1973 Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 1 hour ago, MancTom said: I think the ultrarich don't care? Middle classes (who some might argue are "rich") just leave because of how awful it is. They don't care, but they should. The quality of life for everyone goes down when inequality is extreme. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A17 Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 2 hours ago, mattyboy1973 said: They don't care, but they should. The quality of life for everyone goes down when inequality is extreme. Agreed. Owning a large luxurious house but with bars at the windows, CCTV, electronic security gates and alarms is closer to being in prison than being in a mansion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freki Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 42 minutes ago, A17 said: Agreed. Owning a large luxurious house but with bars at the windows, CCTV, electronic security gates and alarms is closer to being in prison than being in a mansion. for me true luxury is being able to not have to lock your door with a key. I think 3 years in Afghanistan made me realise that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markyh Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 50 minutes ago, A17 said: Agreed. Owning a large luxurious house but with bars at the windows, CCTV, electronic security gates and alarms is closer to being in prison than being in a mansion. Look on the bright side, you get to shoot dead any undesirables anywhere near you property. (Just make sure you CCTV is off and you drag then body onto your property boundry before the police turn up. That way it's nice an legal. My wife has 1st hand knowledge of this happening in Cape Town in the 80's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zugzwang Posted September 14, 2020 Share Posted September 14, 2020 7 hours ago, Sour Mash said: https://babylonbee.com/news/oh-no-the-president-visited-san-francisco-and-now-no-one-can-find-him It could happen! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shlomo Posted September 14, 2020 Author Share Posted September 14, 2020 2 hours ago, markyh said: Look on the bright side, you get to shoot dead any undesirables anywhere near you property. (Just make sure you CCTV is off and you drag then body onto your property boundry before the police turn up. That way it's nice an legal. My wife has 1st hand knowledge of this happening in Cape Town in the 80's. Crime has gone down in South Africa because of the Lockdown Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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