[Guillotine.txt] Hang 'em by their bootstraps.

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > C-SPAM > [Guillotine.txt] Hang 'em by their bootstraps.

Just-In-Timeberlake: Aug 18, 2003

Ham Equity posted:

Note that it's a public library, so the "property owner" is the taxpayers.

"homeless people don't pay taxes" will be the argument used, which is utter nonsense because the public library is for all regardless of your taxpaying status.

# ? Jul 24, 2023 17:31

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Jun 9, 2024 22:29

Fat-Lip-Sum-41.mp3: Nov 15, 2003; Can't post for 6 hours!

Brimruk posted:

How the actual gently caress How do you in any way justify this on a personal level and not go home and suck down a shotgun barrel (I realize the answer is the cruelty is the point but holy poo poo just let people be)

"Feed Homeless" is the name they are giving the "event" that is "unauthorized" by the "property owner"

which is, like other have said, the public library. is there a city ordinance is place that specifies that the "property owner" (the city) does not authorize such events unless blah blah blah...

like is the city oppressing them through the cops or are the cops acting on their own

# ? Jul 24, 2023 18:46

tokin opposition: Apr 8, 2021; I don't jailbreak the androids, I set them free.

WATCH MARS EXPRESS (2023)

Fat-Lip-Sum-41.mp3 posted:

"Feed Homeless" is the name they are giving the "event" that is "unauthorized" by the "property owner"

which is, like other have said, the public library. is there a city ordinance is place that specifies that the "property owner" (the city) does not authorize such events unless blah blah blah...

like is the city oppressing them through the cops or are the cops acting on their own

Thus dumbass thinks the cops care about laws lol

# ? Jul 24, 2023 21:03

Centrist Committee: Aug 6, 2019

Tiggum posted:

https://twitter.com/clairezagorski/status/1683141428270997505

this angers me

# ? Jul 24, 2023 21:31

Cup Runneth Over: Aug 8, 2009; She said life's
Too short to worry
Life's too long to wait
It's too short
Not to love everybody
Life's too long to hate

It angers me too friend

# ? Jul 24, 2023 21:38

DR FRASIER KRANG: Feb 4, 2005; "Are you forgetting that just this afternoon I was punched in the face by a turtle now dead?

it's wild how it looks like the thumb cop is smirking in the thumbnail

# ? Jul 25, 2023 01:19

uber_stoat: Jan 21, 2001; Pillbug

DR FRASIER KRANG posted:

it's wild how it looks like the thumb cop is smirking in the thumbnail

looks like, he's totally having a ball.

# ? Jul 25, 2023 02:38

Jokerpilled Drudge: Jan 27, 2010; by Pragmatica

uber_stoat posted:

looks like, he's totally having a ball.

and why wouldn't he be? he is enjoying the unhindered expression of power upon people who can do absolutely nothing about it

# ? Jul 25, 2023 02:50

Unless: Jul 24, 2005; I art

Brimruk posted:

How the actual gently caress How do you in any way justify this on a personal level and not go home and suck down a shotgun barrel (I realize the answer is the cruelty is the point but holy poo poo just let people be)

the homeless are subhuman

by feeding them you�re enabling their poor life choices

knowledge of hell is what drives good (protestant) work ethic

the wealthy understand this, which is why they�re wealthy, and in good grace

# ? Jul 25, 2023 02:50

Biplane: Jul 18, 2005

Unless posted:

the homeless are subhuman

by feeding them you’re enabling their poor life choices

knowledge of hell is what drives good (protestant) work ethic

the wealthy understand this, which is why they’re wealthy, and in good grace

This

# ? Jul 25, 2023 02:58

Bootleg Trunks: Jun 12, 2020

Tiggum posted:

https://twitter.com/clairezagorski/status/1683141428270997505

nobody hates the poor more than american christians

# ? Jul 25, 2023 07:10

Just-In-Timeberlake: Aug 18, 2003

Jesus Christ, famous hater of the poor and idolizer of the rich

# ? Jul 25, 2023 14:29

Ham Equity: Apr 16, 2013; The first thing we do, let's kill all the cars.; Grimey Drawer

Cross-posting from the Seattle thread:

https://twitter.com/jazzyspraxis/status/1697401685013111160?s=20

Saying the quiet part out loud.

# ? Sep 1, 2023 16:18

DR FRASIER KRANG: Feb 4, 2005; "Are you forgetting that just this afternoon I was punched in the face by a turtle now dead?

are these folks who are in jail who learned to fight fires or are we regularly incarcerating firefighters all in one spot?

# ? Sep 1, 2023 17:18

Ham Equity: Apr 16, 2013; The first thing we do, let's kill all the cars.; Grimey Drawer

DR FRASIER KRANG posted:

are these folks who are in jail who learned to fight fires or are we regularly incarcerating firefighters all in one spot?

You would think the former, but at this point I'm not sure we can completely write off the latter.

Sending cops out to arrest firefighters because you think it's gonna be a bad season.

# ? Sep 1, 2023 17:19

A Buttery Pastry: Sep 4, 2011; Delicious and Informative!

Ham Equity posted:

You would think the former, but at this point I'm not sure we can completely write off the latter.

Sending cops out to arrest firefighters because you think it's gonna be a bad season.

cops arrest firefighters because they hate that they're actual heroes

# ? Sep 1, 2023 17:22

studs n chuds: Aug 11, 2023; by Modern Video Games
(and can't post for 58 days!)

Ash Crimson posted:

*Guile voice* CHRONIC GOON

# ? Sep 2, 2023 15:23

SardonicTyrant: Feb 26, 2016; BTICH IM A NEWT
熱くなれ夢みた明日を
必ずいつかつかまえる
走り出せ振り向くことなく
&

Brimruk posted:

How the actual gently caress How do you in any way justify this on a personal level and not go home and suck down a shotgun barrel (I realize the answer is the cruelty is the point but holy poo poo just let people be)

It's easy, you just don't view other people as people. Works well for abusers.

# ? Sep 2, 2023 18:25

chairface: Oct 28, 2007; No matter what you believe, I don't believe in you.

Bootleg Trunks posted:

nobody hates the poor more than american christians

it's amazing too cuz my favorite bible story is jesus and the moneychangers in the temple, not just cuz he flips out and beats rear end but like he sees this poo poo happening and then goes and calmly constructs the weapon he will use to beat those asses before going back in. i have never been so mad at anyone or anything i just calmly started making a weapon to deal with it. calm like a bomb.

# ? Sep 2, 2023 22:00

Danny LaFever: Dec 29, 2008; Grimey Drawer

Just-In-Timeberlake posted:

Jesus Christ, famous hater of the poor and idolizer of the rich

American jesus absolutely

# ? Sep 3, 2023 02:34

RadiRoot: Feb 3, 2007

this dude is eager to jump to the front of the head removal line

https://twitter.com/FinancialReview/status/1701440109948887057

# ? Sep 12, 2023 20:34

The Oldest Man: Jul 28, 2003

RadiRoot posted:

this dude is eager to jump to the front of the head removal line

https://twitter.com/FinancialReview/status/1701440109948887057

Wow head of Landlord Inc is a real piece of poo poo who thinks everyone else owes him a very cushy living, what a shocker

# ? Sep 12, 2023 21:01

100 HOGS AGREE: Oct 13, 2007; Grimey Drawer

Tim Gurner is the if millennials just stop buying lattes and avocado toast they could afford a house guy.

# ? Sep 12, 2023 21:16

Ham Equity: Apr 16, 2013; The first thing we do, let's kill all the cars.; Grimey Drawer

Hi, Guillotine Thread, it's been awhile. I heard many of you may be having a problem with your blood pressure being too low, so I'm here to help:

How Landlord Tech Is Squeezing Renters Who Can't Afford Security Deposits

Headline sounds bad, but it's one of those stories where it sounds bad, and turns out to be so much worse:

quote:

When Desere� Cundiff applied for her apartment complex in Augusta, Georgia, she could afford everything but the security deposit, which was over $900. Her property manager told her about a company called Rhino, which offered an alternative: pay a smaller fee once per month instead. She didn�t know much about it, but she knew it meant she wouldn�t have to pay money that she didn�t have.

�It was great for people like me that couldn't afford to have a whole deposit,� she told Motherboard she thought at the time.

Rhino allows users to pay monthly or annually; Cundiff opted to pay her first year�s cost of $221.82 up front, she said. When she renewed her lease for a second year, she paid monthly at $18.40 a month, which came out to about the same amount. But when her Rhino plan renewed last year, her premium went up to $47.83 a month, which would cost her $573.96 annually. Her payments over the course of three years at the apartment will total over $1,000, more than an upfront security deposit. And unlike a security deposit, she can�t get the money back.

...

Rhino said the changes �more heavily account for each renter�s personal financial inputs, including credit score and total credit history� and �once a quote has been calculated it cannot be manually adjusted or recalculated.�

Cundiff�s story is not unique. In interviews with tenants using Rhino, experts, and a leaked presentation from Rhino executives, the picture emerges of a company that charges the most vulnerable people more money, which they will never get back, in order to �push deposits higher� for landlords, as one former executive put it.

...

However, its offerings bear little resemblance to security deposits�which are refundable�and it in fact advises clients that it is not a security deposit. It also does not insure the renter, only the landlord. An agreement that renters must sign says, in all-caps: �The surety program described in this agreement is for the benefit of your landlord only. It does not cover you. The premium, taxes and fees you pay are not a security deposit and will not be refunded to you [emphasis Motherboard�s].�

Landlords can bill Rhino for damage to the apartment or nonpayment of rent up to the amount they�ve chosen to insure, and the company pays the landlord directly, leaving the tenant on the hook up to the insured amount. The company reserves the right to sue tenants to reimburse it for property damage or unpaid rent, although co-founder Ankur Jain�son of billionaire InfoSpace CEO Naveen Jain�told The Intercept that the company did not intend on doing so.

All of the tenants who spoke with Motherboard initially did not realize that Rhino only insures their landlord. �I feel they're kind of benefiting from the ambiguity,� said Eric Dunn, director of litigation at the National Housing Law Project.

...

The company, along with LeaseLock, has been pushing bills across the country it calls �Renter�s Choice.� While the language varies, these bills require landlords to offer tenants a security deposit alternative, like Rhino, if they are requiring a security deposit. These bills have been passed in two states�Connecticut and Georgia, where Cundiff lives�and garnered support from elected officials in 17 more, according to a lobbying website started by the company.

But renters, attorneys, and advocates who spoke to Motherboard said that Rhino�s presentation of its product as streamlined security deposit insurance for renters is misleading, since the fee is nonrefundable and tenants are never insured. The service also allows landlords to get around stringent rules regulating the size of security deposits and when they are returned.

...

The company uses its own algorithm to set prices for customers based on �risk,� making it costlier for renters with poor credit. Using the algorithm to predict risk may circumvent fair credit reporting laws, which only cover credit reports and not proprietary algorithms, according to Hannah Holloway at Tech Equity Collaborative.

Experts say the product that Rhino offers could more accurately be described as a type of bond, rather than insurance. Rhino reserves the right to hold renters financially responsible for any damage to the apartment, which means renters are billed by the company for damage to the apartment if it exceeds the coverage amount.

�The big selling point for landlords is not having to go through the courts to get this money,� said Peter Matchette, a Baltimore advocate who opposed the company�s lobbying there.

While the company boasts that it costs renters just a few dollars a month, tenants who spoke to Motherboard were paying as much as $57 a month and said they were not given a chance to appeal changes to their premium or learn what specific factors led to increases.

�It's a perverse kind of insurance, almost like a bail bond,� Marika Dias, a housing attorney with the nonprofit Safety Net Project told Motherboard. �Tenants don't really have leverage, aren�t in a position of power to push back on something like this because they need the housing.�

�It's kind of like a subprime mortgage,� said Matchette. �Where it's like, �we'll get you in the door real cheap�.�

...

During the successful campaign to get the �Renter�s Choice� law overturned, activists recorded a Rhino sales webinar for landlords in which the company described how it sets each tenants� monthly premium and said �well-to-do� renters pay the least. In the webinar, which was viewed by Motherboard, former vice president of sales Eric Krauss (who left the company in May, according to his LinkedIn), tells landlords that the end of the eviction moratorium would be �good for you guys.� After repeating Rhino�s claim that $45 billion �sits idly in cash security deposits,� he says that �Rhino is also a great way for you guys to push deposits higher.�

...

The company charged her around $25 a month, she said. But soon after moving in, she got a job in South Carolina and moved out of state. But Rhino kept charging her for the apartment she left behind. In October of 2019, Price filed for bankruptcy. Yet Rhino did not give up; a July email viewed by Motherboard from a Rhino support worker said that Price was liable for nine months of missed payments.

As with other tenants who spoke to Motherboard, it took repeated attempts to reach someone in customer service to explain her situation, and no one was available to speak on the phone. �I just find it crazy that there's literally no way to talk to a person,� Price said.

...

In 2020, Cincinnati passed a �Renter�s Choice� ordinance�one of Rhino�s first lobbying wins�requiring that landlords with more than 25 units who request a security deposit must also offer tenants an alternative, including a payment plan or �rental security insurance.� But the law does not work the other way around: landlords can offer an �alternative� like Rhino without requiring a security deposit, essentially forcing renters into the more costly product.

Whole article is worth reading, but there are the "high" points. Son of a billionaire created a company to leech more security deposit money off of poor people. Just the worst of the worst possible.

Ham Equity has issued a correction as of 06:45 on Oct 24, 2023

# ? Oct 24, 2023 06:42

The Oldest Man: Jul 28, 2003

Ham Equity posted:

Hi, Guillotine Thread, it's been awhile. I heard many of you may be having a problem with your blood pressure being too low, so I'm here to help:

How Landlord Tech Is Squeezing Renters Who Can't Afford Security Deposits

Headline sounds bad, but it's one of those stories where it sounds bad, and turns out to be so much worse:

Whole article is worth reading, but there are the "high" points. Son of a billionaire created a company to leech more security deposit money off of poor people. Just the worst of the worst possible.

quote:

Rhino is one of a growing number of companies selling what it calls a �security deposit alternative.� The companies�which include LeaseLock and Jetty�offer the chance for tenants who can�t afford security deposits to instead pay monthly fees.

i love the framing of every new theft as a chance opportunity or choice

# ? Oct 24, 2023 06:52

cat botherer: Jan 6, 2022; I am interested in most phases of data processing.

The Oldest Man posted:

i love the framing of every new theft as a chance opportunity or choice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsU1AKrlc4U

# ? Oct 24, 2023 13:29

Orange Devil: Oct 1, 2010; Wullie's reign cannae smother the flames o' equality!

The Oldest Man posted:

i love the framing of every new theft as a chance opportunity or choice

It's always been this way. Marx details extensively in Capital vol 1 how the Factory Acts were derided as inpinging on the workers' freedom by restricting how many hours a day they were allowed to sell their labour.

# ? Oct 24, 2023 14:00

The Islamic Shock: Apr 8, 2021

Is it even really possible to get a deposit back anyway unless you take pictures of everything before/after and prove it looks almost loving identical? I'm sitting on an ivory tower of family land here but capitalism has probably trained most of you to not expect getting that back so I think people just figure eh, same result just financed.

The Islamic Shock has issued a correction as of 12:23 on Oct 27, 2023

# ? Oct 27, 2023 12:20

KozmoNaut: Apr 23, 2008; Happiness is a warm
Turbo Plasma Rifle

I got half of my deposit back when I moved out of my old apartment, but only because we took pictures before I moved in, so we could show that I literally left it in a better condition than I got it.

# ? Oct 27, 2023 13:38

cat botherer: Jan 6, 2022; I am interested in most phases of data processing.

move-in inspections used to be standard, weird!

# ? Oct 27, 2023 14:18

Cup Runneth Over: Aug 8, 2009; She said life's
Too short to worry
Life's too long to wait
It's too short
Not to love everybody
Life's too long to hate

I've always gotten my deposit back but I'm probably an exception

# ? Oct 27, 2023 14:31

Mister Speaker: May 8, 2007; WE WILL CONTROL
ALL THAT YOU SEE
AND HEAR

For all the flaws in this rat garbage dickhead province, one of the things Ontario does right is (parts of) the Landlord-Tenant Act, like the part where it says rental deposits are illegal. Instead, LLs tend to charge the last month's rent up-front so you can cut and run in your last month. Of course a lot of people don't know their rights so there are tons of landlords charging actual deposits on top of last month's rent.

# ? Oct 27, 2023 15:17

Just-In-Timeberlake: Aug 18, 2003

Mister Speaker posted:

For all the flaws in this rat garbage dickhead province, one of the things Ontario does right is (parts of) the Landlord-Tenant Act, like the part where it says rental deposits are illegal. Instead, LLs tend to charge the last month's rent up-front so you can cut and run in your last month. Of course a lot of people don't know their rights so there are tons of landlords charging actual deposits on top of last month's rent.

my friend, allow me to introduce you to the concept of coughing up first month's, last month's, and a security deposit equal to a month's rent before you even get the keys.

oh you need a place to live and can afford $1k a month? you'll need $3k just to move in.

# ? Oct 27, 2023 18:12

Maed: Aug 23, 2006

The Islamic Shock posted:

Is it even really possible to get a deposit back anyway unless you take pictures of everything before/after and prove it looks almost loving identical? I'm sitting on an ivory tower of family land here but capitalism has probably trained most of you to not expect getting that back so I think people just figure eh, same result just financed.

I've always gotten mine back in nyc, hasn't mattered if it was a small time landlord or a giant corporation but maybe we just have good laws. I never had to use pics or hassle anyone

# ? Oct 27, 2023 18:27

Ham Equity: Apr 16, 2013; The first thing we do, let's kill all the cars.; Grimey Drawer

Had to sue one landlord to get it back and am in the process of suing another.

In Seattle, once you figure out how to sue your landlord, it's not all that difficult, and you have a good chance of winning, but you do have to worry about getting put on a tenant blacklist (my first suit was before that was a thing, my current one is after I bought a house), and you have to actually be able to figure out the service.

I would make my hobby saying landlords if I could. gently caress those "people."

# ? Oct 27, 2023 18:31

A Buttery Pastry: Sep 4, 2011; Delicious and Informative!

Just-In-Timeberlake posted:

my friend, allow me to introduce you to the concept of coughing up first month's, last month's, and a security deposit equal to a month's rent before you even get the keys.

oh you need a place to live and can afford $1k a month? you'll need $3k just to move in.

let me introduce you to Denmark's 3 months rent paid ahead of time, plus a security deposit equal to another 3 months.

# ? Oct 27, 2023 18:50

Ashcans: Jan 2, 2006; Let's do the space-time warp again!

Just-In-Timeberlake posted:

my friend, allow me to introduce you to the concept of coughing up first month's, last month's, and a security deposit equal to a month's rent before you even get the keys.

oh you need a place to live and can afford $1k a month? you'll need $3k just to move in.

Hereabouts you�ll pay all this, plus a �Brokers Fee� equal to one months rent. The broker does not do anything for you, just provides a degree of separation and deniability for the landlord in screening tenants, but you�ll still have to pay for it.

# ? Oct 27, 2023 18:56