Octopus Overlords

Madmarcus wrote: ↑Sun Nov 11, 2018 9:05 pm

GreenGoo wrote: ↑Sun Nov 11, 2018 7:11 pm
It's really just a fluff piece about how she's making more now than she ever has, but until she gets paid, things are going to be tight because of cost of living in the area, etc.

Still, if you get your answer share it with the rest of us.

The idea of such a fluff piece is the heart of the matter; any request for why is really just a rhetorical question on my part. I suspect she's in an uncomfortable situation just like practically anyone else moving to take a new job. But it's not that this was unexpected, outside of her control, permanent, or unusual.

To me the piece sets her up as a victim. It would be much more powerful to say "I'm successful by most measures but I still have to find a roommate/have a long commute/find a horrible temporary place until I save up. Is that what we really want for people?"

You're reading a lot into an article by the BBC about an article by the NYT and some twitter exchanges.

Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said the transition period will be “very unusual, because I can’t really take a salary. I have three months without a salary before I’m a member of Congress. So, how do I get an apartment? Those little things are very real.” She said she saved money before leaving her job at the restaurant, and planned accordingly with her partner. “We’re kind of just dealing with the logistics of it day by day, but I’ve really been just kind of squirreling away and then hoping that gets me to January.”

In context, she's just talking about the challenges of transitioning into her new role, not making a grand statement about social issues.

Zarathud wrote: ↑Sun Nov 11, 2018 10:36 pm She (and the writer) is comparing herself to the typical member of Congress with a median net worth over $1 million.

Who let the prole into the club?

And now there's this, mail-in ballots in GA being returned as "undeliverable" from the Post Office. Not that it's a close race there or anything.



Unbelievably frustrating that not a single person will ever be held to account for any of the election bullshit going on there.

It's cool. The President says that the election should be called based on election night results only because they keep finding ballots and many are missing or forged, so the whole thing's screwed up and broken, so just put the GOP guys in office.

A Very Stable Genius wrote:The Florida Election should be called in favor of Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis in that large numbers of new ballots showed up out of nowhere, and many ballots are missing or forged. An honest vote count is no longer possible-ballots massively infected. Must go with Election Night!

I'm still trying to parse how to parse that, since he says that many ballots are missing, and also that ballots showed up out of nowhere, and that means the election's rigged. It's just super bonkers, and he's absolutely planting the idea that elections are illegitimate so that he can potentially make that claim again in 2020. This is crazy, and also a preview, and that's absolutely petrifying.

Chaz wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 9:25 am

A Very Stable Genius wrote:The Florida Election should be called in favor of Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis in that large numbers of new ballots showed up out of nowhere, and many ballots are missing or forged. An honest vote count is no longer possible-ballots massively infected. Must go with Election Night!

Wrong thread. I think you want the Infectious Diseases Thread.

Hang on, Illinois isn't a done deal yet:

From: Chicago Board of Elections <noreply@chicagoelections.net>
Date: Sun, Nov 11, 2018, 12:26 AM
Subject: Your Ballot is Being Accepted
To: <Lawbeefaroni>


Dear [LawBeefaroni],



The Board of Election Commissioners has received your Vote By Mail ballot, and it will be processed.

Thank you for the opportunity to be of assistance. Questions? Call 312-269-7967 or email VoteByMail@chicagoelections.net



Sincerely,

Chicago Board of Election Commissioners

Oh, wait. Nevermind.

I empathize with Osasio-Cortez struggling to find an apartment in DC. It’s brutal here. Fortunately we’re in the suburbs near where my wife works, but it would suck if her job was in the heart.

Introduction aside, I came across an interesting article while looking at other articles in relation to this situation. According to Nicholas Cranes, only 4% of all legislators in the US come from a working class job. Four percent! I never thought about it before. This includes state legislatures btw, not just the federal one which I’d suspect might be worse.

I don’t remotely have a solution. I suspect it starts with ending the difficulties in voting for the working class, just as a start. But how do you deal with the time issue brought up by the article? How can a working class person, paid hourly, with little to no savings, take the time to campaign or even to find the time to do the job if elected?

That doesn't surprise me at all. Being a legislator is a full-time job that's not always paid accordingly, and can also come with a bunch of extra expenses associated with it. Like, a US Representative has a bunch of travel expenses and public appearances they have to make as part of their job. That's a bunch of money they have to spend out of their own pocket. National legislators are paid pretty damn well, but I'm sure a good chunk of that is taken up with expenses they're only incurring as part of their job.* People who are independently wealthy will have a much easier time running for and holding office.

It's even worse at the state level. Those salaries range wildly from a high of California paying a hundred thousand a year, down to basically nothing. New Mexico pays nothing, but does give a $160/day per diem. New Hapshire pays $200 for a two year term, with no per diem, and has four hundred freaking people in the legislature. Even if I wanted to run for office, I'd have to be able to do that while either not needing to work, or with a job that allowed me to do my legislating. All of that's almost impossible to do unless you're wealthy enough to not need to work full time, have a home arrangement that allows one partner to work and the other to legislate, or to be retired.

*Note that I'm super not saying "oh, those poor congresscritters are paupers on their hundred and seventy-four thousand a year salary. I'm just saying that it's not as clear cut that their salary scales in the same way it would if I suddenly made that much.

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 10:22 am Hang on, Illinois isn't a done deal yet:

From: Chicago Board of Elections <noreply@chicagoelections.net>
Date: Sun, Nov 11, 2018, 12:26 AM
Subject: Your Ballot is Being Accepted
To: <Lawbeefaroni>


Dear [LawBeefaroni],



The Board of Election Commissioners has received your Vote By Mail ballot, and it will be processed.

Thank you for the opportunity to be of assistance. Questions? Call 312-269-7967 or email VoteByMail@chicagoelections.net



Sincerely,

Chicago Board of Election Commissioners

Oh, wait. Nevermind.

Let's be honest though, your write in vote for Elmer J. Fudd was never going to get him elected.

hepcat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 12:09 pm

Let's be honest though, your write in vote for Elmer J. Fudd was never going to get him elected.

There are two D's in "Fudd"? Dammit.

You threw your vote away!

I'm not even sure if I know what that means really.

Mississippi senator, whose runoff opponent is black, jokes about 'public hanging'

"If he invited me to a public hanging, I'd be on the front row," Hyde-Smith said during a campaign stop in Tupelo, Mississippi. The man she was referring to was identified as a local rancher.

Mississippi has a difficult racial history that includes 581 lynchings from 1882 to 1968, the most of any state in that period, according to the NAACP.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politi ... ng-n935006

OK, got it. It's her "Will no one rid me of this meddlesome runoff opponent?"

and/or her own honed in version of MAGA!

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 12:16 pm

hepcat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 12:09 pm

Let's be honest though, your write in vote for Elmer J. Fudd was never going to get him elected.

There are two D's in "Fudd"? Dammit.

I'll be honest. I have no idea what your email text means, except at face value, at which point I don't know why it is noteworthy enough to post.

elucidate please.

GreenGoo wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 3:10 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 12:16 pm

hepcat wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 12:09 pm

Let's be honest though, your write in vote for Elmer J. Fudd was never going to get him elected.

There are two D's in "Fudd"? Dammit.

I'll be honest. I have no idea what your email text means, except at face value, at which point I don't know why it is noteworthy enough to post.

elucidate please.

Part A: It ain't over until the last vote is counted!

Part B: Pfffttt, hahahaha.

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:08 pm Part A: It ain't over until the last vote is counted!

Part B: Pfffttt, hahahaha.

I'm an idiot, I still don't see it. What part of your quote was the "Pffft. Hahaha" part?

If I'm wasting your time don't worry about answering. It's my problem at this point.

GreenGoo wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:21 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:08 pm Part A: It ain't over until the last vote is counted!

Part B: Pfffttt, hahahaha.

I'm an idiot, I still don't see it. What part of your quote was the "Pffft. Hahaha" part?

If I'm wasting your time don't worry about answering. It's my problem at this point.

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 10:22 am Oh, wait. Nevermind.

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:34 pm

GreenGoo wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:21 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:08 pm Part A: It ain't over until the last vote is counted!

Part B: Pfffttt, hahahaha.

I'm an idiot, I still don't see it. What part of your quote was the "Pffft. Hahaha" part?

If I'm wasting your time don't worry about answering. It's my problem at this point.

LawBeefaroni wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 10:22 am Oh, wait. Nevermind.

I..don't...



I'm clearly missing something simple.

It's ok. Thanks for trying.

Lawbeef is joking that Illinois might, like Florida or Georgia, still be in play because votes are still being counted.

The funny is that Illinois is a blowout, so no.

Holman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:54 pm Lawbeef is joking that Illinois might, like Florida or Georgia, still be in play because votes are still being counted.

The funny is that Illinois is a blowout, so no.

Oh thank god.

Thanks.

Sinema finally takes the Arizona Senate seat over McSally!

Democrat Kyrsten Sinema won Arizona's open U.S. Senate seat Monday in a race that was among the most closely watched in the nation, beating Republican Rep. Martha McSally in the battle to replace GOP Sen. Jeff Flake.

The three-term congresswoman won after a slow vote count that dragged on for nearly a week after voters went to the polls on Nov. 6. She becomes Arizona's first Democratic U.S. senator since 1994. Her win cemented Arizona as a swing state after years of Republican dominance.

Trump retired Flake to own the cons.

Cue twit in chief raging about duplicitous dems.

And now it looks like Ben McAdams/Mia Love race might be headed for a recount.

Ugh.

News in AZ:

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Martha McSally has just conceded the Arizona race to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema.

Fake News in AZ!

Mississippi is it's own kind of stupid.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Martha McSally has just conceded the Arizona race to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema.

Now if only GA would follow their example but it will never happen in GA.

I thought GA was on the short list of red states that are drifting blue, because Atlanta. Wrong?

Kraken wrote: ↑Mon Nov 12, 2018 11:28 pm I thought GA was on the short list of red states that are drifting blue, because Atlanta. Wrong?

Sort of. It's kind of like Texas in that it's been on the fringes of being competitive for a few elections, without ever really coming into play. Also has some of the worst voter suppression in the country, which is likely at least part of the reason for it not coming into play.

Meanwhile, our governor elect is off to a great start:

The same week he was elected governor of Illinois, J.B. Pritzker paid $12.1 million for an equestrian estate in Florida, according to a report.

Pritzker and his wife, MK, bought the 6.44-acre estate in Wellington, near Palm Beach, through a legal entity called 3 Flamingos managed by JB PRitzker's brother-in-law, the South Florida Business Journal reported Nov. 9. According to real estate site Redfin, the sale closed Nov. 8. If correct, that would mean the Pritzkers closed their purchase two days after he was elected.

...

The Pritzkers also have a 230-acre horse farm on the Illiniois-Wisconsin border in Kenosha County that he bought her as a 10th-anniversary gift in 1998.

...

In Chicago, the couple live on Astor Street, where they paid a combined $18.17 million for a pair of neighboring houses. They bought a 13,000-square-foot mansion for $14.5 million in May 2006, and the house next door, 6,300 square feet, in December 2007, for $3.67 million.

The smaller of those houses was the subject of disclosures in 2017 that the toilets were ripped out, resulting in the Pritzkers saving more than $330,000 in property taxes.

..

The couple also own a Lake Geneva estate called Casa del Sueno that they bought for $9.7 million in 2004, and reportedly built a home in the Bahamas, whose value could not be determined.

A true man of the people.

Exceptionally rich man viewed as a worthy leader by voters. News at 11.

I personally don't begrudge anyone their wealth, assuming it was at least halfway ethically gained, including inheritance. I don't consider it a positive trait either. Some people have more money. Some people have less. We already knew that most successful politicians have at least above average wealth. Spending that wealth is not inherently wrong, although I realize it might be perceived that way when representing those that have less.

I do understand that he unethically scammed the city out of the property taxes mentioned, and it makes for a hilarious talking point, but I doubt I would have thought that was disqualifying before drumpf. Post drumpf? Please, he's practically a paragon.

Obviously I'm not Chicagoan and am not privy to the local politics and details as was so helpfully pointed out to me today. That said, I see nothing on the surface particularly objectionable. As usual though, reality is in the details.

So this is just "exceptionally rich man bought expensive properties"?

El Guapo wrote: ↑Tue Nov 13, 2018 10:36 am So this is just "exceptionally rich man bought expensive properties"?

I'm open to other interpretations.

GreenGoo wrote: ↑Tue Nov 13, 2018 10:45 am

El Guapo wrote: ↑Tue Nov 13, 2018 10:36 am So this is just "exceptionally rich man bought expensive properties"?

I'm open to other interpretations.

It's his way of becoming neighbors with ALL of his constituents.

Archinerd wrote: ↑Tue Nov 13, 2018 10:50 am It's his way of becoming neighbors with ALL of his constituents.

I still fail to see the problem. Rich people own real estate. And multiple homes. Is he only allowed to own property in Illinois? What's innately wrong with buying property in Florida?

Or maybe the problem is that he plans to actually live out of state while governing it?

That can't be true.

Can it?

That's a huge PR problem in my eyes (and potentially logistically too), so maybe that's the part I was missing? Is his real name Mayor Quimby?

GreenGoo wrote: ↑Tue Nov 13, 2018 10:45 am

El Guapo wrote: ↑Tue Nov 13, 2018 10:36 am So this is just "exceptionally rich man bought expensive properties"?

I'm open to other interpretations.

That's how I am inclined to read the article. I assume that Illinois voters knew that he was extremely rich when they voted for him, so this doesn't seem like news to me.

What's the story here? The guy is a billionaire and hasn't been exactly hiding it.

Edit: Read the article. Talk about burying the lede. The attempt to evade property taxes seems pretty important compared to the wealth bashing.