It's The Person, Not The Payment Method
A Former Renter Speaks Out
Daniel at LoboWalk has had a bug put up his ass by the "mobile people" infesting his condominiums.
While he's careful to mention that not all renters are scumbags, I think he's putting too much emphasis on the method of paying for housing versus the actual problem, which is the ignorant slack-jawed yokels that our society seems to have in endless supply. Plenty of people rent for reasons other than poor credit or lack of cash. I chose renting over ownership for flexibility. I never knew where my job might go to, and it's a lot easier to break a 6 month lease than try to sell a house from 1000 miles away.
To be sure, there's a certain amount of pride that ownership brings. Most folks take good care of the most expensive item they'll purchase in their lifetimes. Not always, though.
Some owned homes decline through benign neglect, in the case of the poor & elderly, who are unable to do proper maintenance. Some homes are just fucked from the get-go. I was shown a subdivision in Arkansas that consisted of extremely low-cost homes designed to get the poor out of Section 8 housing and into a proper home. To keep costs low, these houses were sold partially finished, with the understanding that the homeowner would complete the work themselves. The poor and shiftless being what they are, 10 years later, a good number of these homes still have plain concrete for floors, the sheetrock is still bare and unsanded, and lights dangle from unfinished sockets. How do I know this? Mainly because their windows and doors are all wide open, 'cause none of 'em pay their utility bills and they need the light and fresh air.
I've also known homeowners that do the most ridiculous shit imaginable, and piss off their neighbors through their ignorant actions. There's a guy down the road that decided to build a carport big enough to cover his 32' RV, and put it out in front of his house. That whistling sound you hear when walking by is the plummeting of local property values, unless it's hurricane season, in which case it's likely that 32' aluminum roof swooping through the neighborhood.
Another homeowner/neighbor insists on rebuilding hot rods in his garage. I can't tell you the joys of hearing him tune a 351 c.i. unmuffled engine early on Saturday morning.
No, the kind of behavior Daniel hates is not "renter", it's "white trash asshole".
I have a friend that got all bent out of shape when I used the term "white trash". She was just mortified that I'd "label people according to their income level". I took pains to explain that the term was not "poor white trash", although that term is certainly used. You can be a multi-millionaire, and still be white trash. White trash is, by my definition, stupid assholes that don't care about the present or plan for the future, and ruin things through abuse and/or neglect. The kind of people Daniel abhors certainly fit in the white trash category. I know for a fact there are other terms used for that type of person in different ethnic groups, but propriety demands that I restrict my labeling to my own ethnicity.
While all men may be created equal, they certainly don't remain that way. Through upbringing, (or lack thereof) people learn habits they'll carry with them for life. One of these is proper treatment of items of value. If you've learned, either through patient parenting or through repeated ass-whoopings, not to draw on the walls or carve your initials in the doors, chances are you'll grow up to be a person that respects property. If you can't grasp that concept, then more than likely you're gonna end up the kind of shitheel that degreases transmissions in the bathtubs and rips out all the copper fixtures the night before you're evicted.
I think you'll find that by & large, most renters put no more wear & tear on property than owners. For one, there's always that sizable property damage deposit at stake.
So, let's put blame where it's due, and direct our ire at the person, not the payment.
Daniel at LoboWalk has had a bug put up his ass by the "mobile people" infesting his condominiums.
While he's careful to mention that not all renters are scumbags, I think he's putting too much emphasis on the method of paying for housing versus the actual problem, which is the ignorant slack-jawed yokels that our society seems to have in endless supply. Plenty of people rent for reasons other than poor credit or lack of cash. I chose renting over ownership for flexibility. I never knew where my job might go to, and it's a lot easier to break a 6 month lease than try to sell a house from 1000 miles away.
To be sure, there's a certain amount of pride that ownership brings. Most folks take good care of the most expensive item they'll purchase in their lifetimes. Not always, though.
Some owned homes decline through benign neglect, in the case of the poor & elderly, who are unable to do proper maintenance. Some homes are just fucked from the get-go. I was shown a subdivision in Arkansas that consisted of extremely low-cost homes designed to get the poor out of Section 8 housing and into a proper home. To keep costs low, these houses were sold partially finished, with the understanding that the homeowner would complete the work themselves. The poor and shiftless being what they are, 10 years later, a good number of these homes still have plain concrete for floors, the sheetrock is still bare and unsanded, and lights dangle from unfinished sockets. How do I know this? Mainly because their windows and doors are all wide open, 'cause none of 'em pay their utility bills and they need the light and fresh air.
I've also known homeowners that do the most ridiculous shit imaginable, and piss off their neighbors through their ignorant actions. There's a guy down the road that decided to build a carport big enough to cover his 32' RV, and put it out in front of his house. That whistling sound you hear when walking by is the plummeting of local property values, unless it's hurricane season, in which case it's likely that 32' aluminum roof swooping through the neighborhood.
Another homeowner/neighbor insists on rebuilding hot rods in his garage. I can't tell you the joys of hearing him tune a 351 c.i. unmuffled engine early on Saturday morning.
No, the kind of behavior Daniel hates is not "renter", it's "white trash asshole".
I have a friend that got all bent out of shape when I used the term "white trash". She was just mortified that I'd "label people according to their income level". I took pains to explain that the term was not "poor white trash", although that term is certainly used. You can be a multi-millionaire, and still be white trash. White trash is, by my definition, stupid assholes that don't care about the present or plan for the future, and ruin things through abuse and/or neglect. The kind of people Daniel abhors certainly fit in the white trash category. I know for a fact there are other terms used for that type of person in different ethnic groups, but propriety demands that I restrict my labeling to my own ethnicity.
While all men may be created equal, they certainly don't remain that way. Through upbringing, (or lack thereof) people learn habits they'll carry with them for life. One of these is proper treatment of items of value. If you've learned, either through patient parenting or through repeated ass-whoopings, not to draw on the walls or carve your initials in the doors, chances are you'll grow up to be a person that respects property. If you can't grasp that concept, then more than likely you're gonna end up the kind of shitheel that degreases transmissions in the bathtubs and rips out all the copper fixtures the night before you're evicted.
I think you'll find that by & large, most renters put no more wear & tear on property than owners. For one, there's always that sizable property damage deposit at stake.
So, let's put blame where it's due, and direct our ire at the person, not the payment.
posted by El Capitan | 3:47 PM
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