I lived in a country which had a similar, government built, co-operatively operated housing. With no profit to be made, therefore no incentive, government being the "builder", the waiting list for an apartment reached 40 years by the time we escaped. People would sign their newborns up hoping by the time their children are 40 years old they would their own apartment to rent-to-own, unless of course you had the right connections, then you could bribe the appropriate people and get one earlier.
So, perhaps those who are proposing all those great new utopian solutions should do some research on the real world implementation of communism. It sounds great on paper, but it has never worked for anyone in practice as it is incompatible with human nature. People really should stop fighting human nature, such as greed, and instead embrace it, like capitalism did. There is a reason why communist countries build borders not to keep people from coming in, but to keep people from leaving.
What is it with you foreign conservatives who like to shit on progressive policies by likening the Democrats to your commie leaders back in your "country" without ever specifying what that country is. You guys just love your unverifiable anecdotal horseshit, don't you? I've seen this happen so many goddamn times on slashdot and elsewhere. Are you afraid that we'll call you out on your bullshit if you name the country and we fact check you?
Name the fucking country with this 40-year waiting list. I bet you
I don't know if you really believe what you're saying or are just a troll, but calling absolutely every idea that tries to curtail economic rent (which is bad for free market) communism doesn't help anyone.
Free markets are defined by the rules that govern them, not their absence. That requires a government that is... yes... *in control* of business and private wealth, and setting boundaries.
Arguing that this can be done corruptly or badly isn't a blanket argument against all efforts to address the problem, any more than you can argue that we should get rid of all police because some of them over there acted badly.
Property is a prime candidate for overhauling the rules of buying and selling. Government putting restrictions on private wealth and rent-seeking behavior IS NOT COMMUNISM.
If you have to wait decades to reach the top of a bureaucrat's list, or you have to wait decades because there's no way in hell you can afford a house, you're still waiting.
No, that's wrong, under a capitalist system you can still choose a house and purchase it by getting a bank loan.
What part of "no way in hell you can afford a house" do you not understand? See, when there's no way you can afford a house, that includes options like getting a mortgage.
Under a communist system you cannot get any house for money. Under a capitalist system you only cannot get a house that you cannot afford, which sometimes means you have to either rent or move somewhere where you can afford to make a purchase (even if the money is borrowed)
The thing you're failing to understand is for millions of people, there is no "somewhere else where you can afford".
It doesn't matter if there's a house you can buy for $1M when you can't afford the mortgage on it. It is exactly the same as cannot get a house for money.
"calling absolutely every idea that tries...." perhaps you were replying to someone else, since I commented only on the idea in the original post, which proposed government funded co-op housing in which everyone owns shares, enabling people to move from place to place while retaining their shares of the (I presume) country wide non-profit co-op (if not country wide, how are you going to move from L.A. to N.Y.C. and retain your ownership). While my personal experience was with a government funded coop where
While this idea shares many ideas with failed ghettos, I think it or an idea like it will be the future of renting. As Renter rights laws get passed again and again, the situation has become completely untenable. I think it has already reached the point where renting just does not work, their is just too much of a power imbalance, but it will take a few decades for the market to realize this.
This is the way forward. Remove their renter protections, give them liability. Done right it can be way safer and mor
Many people write memos to tell you they have nothing to say.
Communism (Score:-1, Troll)
I lived in a country which had a similar, government built, co-operatively operated housing. With no profit to be made, therefore no incentive, government being the "builder", the waiting list for an apartment reached 40 years by the time we escaped. People would sign their newborns up hoping by the time their children are 40 years old they would their own apartment to rent-to-own, unless of course you had the right connections, then you could bribe the appropriate people and get one earlier.
So, perhaps those who are proposing all those great new utopian solutions should do some research on the real world implementation of communism. It sounds great on paper, but it has never worked for anyone in practice as it is incompatible with human nature. People really should stop fighting human nature, such as greed, and instead embrace it, like capitalism did. There is a reason why communist countries build borders not to keep people from coming in, but to keep people from leaving.
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I lived in a country....BLAH, BLAH
What is it with you foreign conservatives who like to shit on progressive policies by likening the Democrats to your commie leaders back in your "country" without ever specifying what that country is. You guys just love your unverifiable anecdotal horseshit, don't you? I've seen this happen so many goddamn times on slashdot and elsewhere. Are you afraid that we'll call you out on your bullshit if you name the country and we fact check you? Name the fucking country with this 40-year waiting list. I bet you
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Are you afraid that we'll call you out on your bullshit if you
Said an anonymous coward...
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Re:Communism (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Communism (Score:5, Insightful)
Free markets are defined by the rules that govern them, not their absence. That requires a government that is... yes... *in control* of business and private wealth, and setting boundaries.
Arguing that this can be done corruptly or badly isn't a blanket argument against all efforts to address the problem, any more than you can argue that we should get rid of all police because some of them over there acted badly.
Property is a prime candidate for overhauling the rules of buying and selling. Government putting restrictions on private wealth and rent-seeking behavior IS NOT COMMUNISM.
Re: (Score:2)
If you have to wait decades to reach the top of a bureaucrat's list, or you have to wait decades because there's no way in hell you can afford a house, you're still waiting.
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No, that's wrong, under a capitalist system you can still choose a house and purchase it by getting a bank loan.
What part of "no way in hell you can afford a house" do you not understand? See, when there's no way you can afford a house, that includes options like getting a mortgage.
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Under a communist system you cannot get any house for money. Under a capitalist system you only cannot get a house that you cannot afford, which sometimes means you have to either rent or move somewhere where you can afford to make a purchase (even if the money is borrowed)
The thing you're failing to understand is for millions of people, there is no "somewhere else where you can afford".
It doesn't matter if there's a house you can buy for $1M when you can't afford the mortgage on it. It is exactly the same as cannot get a house for money.
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"calling absolutely every idea that tries...." perhaps you were replying to someone else, since I commented only on the idea in the original post, which proposed government funded co-op housing in which everyone owns shares, enabling people to move from place to place while retaining their shares of the (I presume) country wide non-profit co-op (if not country wide, how are you going to move from L.A. to N.Y.C. and retain your ownership). While my personal experience was with a government funded coop where
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This is absolutely wrong, but I agree with you.
Renting is not capitalistic, fundamentally. And particularly with all the laws and regulations that the govermetn has imposed on it.
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While this idea shares many ideas with failed ghettos, I think it or an idea like it will be the future of renting. As Renter rights laws get passed again and again, the situation has become completely untenable. I think it has already reached the point where renting just does not work, their is just too much of a power imbalance, but it will take a few decades for the market to realize this.
This is the way forward. Remove their renter protections, give them liability. Done right it can be way safer and mor