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bearishgurl
ParticipantI understand now.
http://piggington.com/so_i_bought_in_dc
Having been to Union Stn a time or two, I will concede that the fact that you will be able to walk and bike everywhere in this region makes up for a LOT of “downside.”
Sorry I can’t be of much assistance on this type of project. But good luck, nevertheless, patb!
Participantpatb, am I mistaken or are you contemplating buying out in the “stix of rural VA” or worse yet, a “Type-A flood plain?” Which is it??
October 26, 2011 at 12:19 AM in reply to: End Collective Bargaining with Public Unions in CA #731320Participant[quote=CA renter] . . . All of the things that I don’t want to pay for are far more egregious than paying a bit toward the pension benefits for teachers, firefighters, cops, etc. (which taxpayers do NOT pay for, BTW — the VAST majority of the benefits — around 75% –comes from investment returns, and the rest is shared between employee and employer contributions).
That’s the price of democracy. We ALL have to pay for things we don’t want to pay for. Oftentimes, we are forced to pay for things that we absolutely despise. But if you can think of a better system, feel free to share your ideas.[/quote]
CAR, I’m now thinking that the “masses” don’t really choose to understand how much actually comes from an “entitled” government workers’s paycheck in the form of “mandatory retirement contributions.” It seems like they really “don’t want to know” because a “coveted” (lol) “defined benefit plan” has not been offered to them thru their “private” employer.
To the “masses” in “private employment:”
I urge you to SERVE your 6 to 24 mos of PROBATION in PUBLIC employment (and then AGAIN EVERY TIME you are “promoted” [even for 50 cents per hr] lol). While you are doing so, YOU HAVE (literally and figurately) NO RIGHTS! So BEND OVER!! And GET USED TO IT! Nevermind your “supervisor” who is in charge of your “eval” is grossly incompetent and possesses half your education :={
Remember, it is the HIGHEST one to three YEARS (avg) SALARY that is used for “retirement” calculations so you will need to APPLY FOR THOSE “INTERNAL” PROMOTIONS constantly. Don’t be complacent and complain on internet forums about your “meager” retirement funds! Get going on those lengthy applications for each and every position, Piggs! And all the “releases” you will sign for your “background check” where your “immediate neighbors” will be interviewed. Your future awaits!!!
GOOD LUCK, PIGGS!! (And be sure to make time to post on internet forums during the business day, as your every move is being “tracked,” lol :-]
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Good L@rd, I think EVERYBODY should have a chance at a FERS, PERS, CALPERS, SDCERA, SDCERS and related gov’t pensions… let’s open up the “floodgates” and see how many “viable” applicants we get, lol, lol . . . let it roll . . .
October 25, 2011 at 11:43 PM in reply to: End Collective Bargaining with Public Unions in CA #731318Participant[quote=paramount][quote=bearishgurl]
Again, this is another “little understood” practice by “the masses.”[/quote]Regardless – and many of the points made by CAR are really academic as well. The bottom line is that gov’t workers by and large have gold plated salaries and benefits – and those of who produce are tired of paying for them when we’re doing all we can to barely stay afloat.
*City Manager of Temecula making as much if not more than the President of the United States
*Lifeguards making making nearly a quarter of a million dollars/year
*Gov’t workers retiring in the their 50’s as millionaires
and on and on….WE’VE HAD ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!![/quote]
paramount, I’m a “retired” (lol) “government worker” “well into my 50’s” who is NOT a “millionaire” (lol) and there are THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS MORE LIKE ME!!! HELLO-O-O-O!!!!
Oh, and let me jog your memory that I live and own in CHULA VISTA!!!!, (aargh) the bastion of “undereducated lowlifes” (lol) and full of “substandard schools” (lol again) acc to the “North County majority” on this board.
paramount, why don’t you ask yourself why I’m up at this hour tonite with Piggington lurking in the corner of my screen??
Ans: I have a “Change of Venue” response I’m trying to get out of my face and served in the next 24 hours, lol!
edit: my semi-addiction to Piggington is secondary, of course :={
October 25, 2011 at 11:26 PM in reply to: End Collective Bargaining with Public Unions in CA #731319Participant[quote=jstoesz] . . . BTW, to all who doubt moving away. MN is winning the day in my family! WIth a few more long drives to Southern California (the last one did not go well), We will never live there again! But I will miss the sailing.[/quote]
Gee, jstoesz, I’m sorry to hear your “north/south” road trips haven’t been “going well.” (I make several “south/north” road trips per year and look forward to them …always!) I sincerely hope you were able to take advantage of the recently heavily discounted “season tix” at Lake Tahoe for the 11/12 skiing season (to take your mind off things). Of course, using that pass would allow you to mingle with all those “wayward, loser young people” snowboarding “bump experts” in “baggy pants up to their nipples” that you would have to contend with on the “slopes,” lol.
see: http://piggington.com/rats
If you haven’t gotten your discounted season ticket yet, I believe it may be past time (check on this).
jstoesz, can you please explain to us “stationary Piggs” here what it was you were complaining about, again? I need a “refresher.” :=)
October 25, 2011 at 10:44 PM in reply to: End Collective Bargaining with Public Unions in CA #731316Participant[quote=ucodegen]@bearishgurl
With respect to foreign paralegals, etc.
India’s second language is English, 3rd language for Filipinos (after Tagalog and Spanish).
It is already happening:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_38/b4001061.htm
Whether this is for better or worse.. dunno.[/quote]Your link refers to ONE CASE, ucodegen. A huge case with a lot of details in which each plaintiff’s claims are culled over and spelled out by a Filipino “paralegal,” lol (of course they are located in the Phillipines). It doesn’t require them to know the local rules, it doesn’t require them to know the particular judge’s “nuances,” it doesn’t require them to be able to determine if particular “US case law” is applicable to the problem at hand.
Do these “Filipino workers” have US paralegal certificates? I think not!
If each claim spells out the facts claimed by each Plaintiff, then WHO CARES if these “writings” are the “King’s English” or not! Who is reading this stuff? I’ll tell you who it is. It is actually lawyers in the US who will decide if each plaintiff, on their own merits, has a case against DuPont. NOT JUDGES!!
Do you think these US lawyers allow their “offshore contract workers” to draft their pleadings, motions and any other work that sees the “light of day?” Think again. LOL . . .!
Thank you for you post, ucodegen. In there, you have your answer.
Detailed clerical work . . . offshore workers can do . . . the “front office work” has to be done by the “local” pros. It is what it is . . . :=]
Participant[quote=CA renter]No, public employees with these pension plans do not participate in Social Security. Even if they had private sector jobs and made SS contributions for the required quarters, their SS benefits are reduced if they get a govt pension.
“If you worked in a job not covered under Social Security; e.g., some federal, state, or local government employment, the pension you get based on that work may reduce your Social Security benefits. Your benefit can be reduced based on one of two provisions.
The first provision, called the Government Pension Offset (GPO), applies only if you receive a government pension and are eligible for Social Security benefits as a spouse or widow(er).
The second provision, called the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP), affects how we calculate your Social Security retirement or disability benefits if you receive a pension from work not covered by Social Security. We modify the formula used to calculate your benefit amount, giving you a lower Social Security benefit.”
[/quote]
CAR, thank you for “outing” this “offset” here of between 4% and 20% (I believe) of Social Security benefits. This amount is taken from the govm’t worker’s pension every month to prevent “double-dipping.”
see: http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/gpo-calc.htm
It applies to State, County and City workers, as well.
Again, this is another “little understood” practice by “the masses.”
Participantnla:
Yes, trustee’s sale pending…
Current assessment is $454K (w/HOEX and adj pursuant to Prop 8)
Total MR = $2974.46
Total tax on $454K assessment is $8137.52.
A “cursory review” of public records revealed the following:
Owner has extremely common name, but public records for this name show one or more defaults filed for every single year owned (purch new in 2003). It appears it was refinanced at the 11th hour (to avoid trustees’ sale) on at least two occasions. There appears to be more than one outstanding encumbrance.
In addition there is a City of CV fine lien and also appears to be a lis pendens on title (which could have been withdrawn), 2 County of Riverside liens for “support,” one County of SD lien and at least one FTB lien filed in this name.
Taxes appear to be current and I did not see any HOA liens against the property.
ParticipantWell, shades of Alameda County, where I am also from! I was just back in that area about 3 weeks ago and love it. That’s fantastic, bubba99, and hope your new “leafy” lot is surrounded by plenty of beautiful open space. Besides the Oakland Hills, I also love the Rheem Valley area (nka “Moraga”) 1-2 hills east of you.
Congratulations are in order as there is a dearth of single-family listings in multiple zip codes in your immediate area.
Sounds like you were able to land a “keeper” property in a coveted close-in area. Do you happen to have a view?
Participant[quote=CA renter]…If we get rid of the pension obligations for existing public employees (who usually pay more into their pension plans than SS beneficiaries pay into theirs), we’d need to get rid of the Social Security obligations for private sector employees, too. I’m sure all you “taxpayer advocates” would be on board with that. After all, fair is fair, right?[/quote]
Lol, CAR, I’m sure private and public employers alike would LOVE to get rid of their “funds-matching” FICA contributions for each employee! How much do you think this would raise their “profit margins?”
This is a poorly-understood concept for all those members of the “general public” who do not have a state, Federal and/or law-enforcement defined benefit plan. The vast majority are unaware that MANY classes of public employees do NOT have a choice. They MUST feed a large percentage of their salaries into their own defined benefit plans after a certain age and DO NOT have the right to collect Social Security.
Participant[quote=flu]BG, with all due respect, most Americans do not have “superior” English skills relative to a some of the foreigners…For one thing, grammar is seldomly taught rigorously in U.S. schools these days, and second the reason why the entire legal system exists is because the majority of Americans lack the comprehension and English skills that are necessary to understand those pesky legal documents an attorney drafts up. Heavens forbid, if they actually wrote things in simple terms that average J6P could understand, they wouldn’t need to be charging $350+/hr for their words or $150/hr for a paralegal to photocopy a document. On the other hand, you have a foreign body of relatively well college educated foreigners that has taken English, gone through training,etc, I wouldn’t doubt their comprehension and ability to write to be better than J6p….
And let’s face it, while there are some good paralegals, most of them are not lawyer “like” in any way….. I was dealing with my attorney for a few months, and I have to say her paralegal was a complete moron….I ended up correcting her English and sending the documents back to her for her to “fix” on the final document…Of course, her screwups meant my attorney charged me $150/hr to fix. Nice huh? And no, I guarantee that paralegal was not “foreign” in any way..[/quote]
I’m sorry your attorney did not have a good paralegal, flu. LOTS of paralegals do virtually everything a lawyer does . . . except sign legal documents, take depositions and appear in court. A good one will just prepare and then give an attorney all the legal filings to sign, the attorney will sign it, the paralegal will file/serve it and the attorney will argue it and win! However, there is MUCH more to the job than that.
flu, if I might ask, what would you say the “age group” was of your attorney’s paralegal? Time and time again, I have found that the publicly-educated younger age group (under age 45 or so) has NOT received a very good education in English, spelling, sentence structure and composition, even if a “native” speaker. However, most attorneys, if given the choice, will hire a younger candidate over an older, more experienced one, due to the cost disparity of health insurance premiums. It doesn’t seem to faze them that a younger candidate typically wastes more time during the business day (w/cell phone & gadgets), does not know the “ins and outs” of the local system, and takes more leave of every kind.
Believe it or not, the vast majority of public schools were VERY good prior to about 1978.
I still don’t buy that an Indian in India can do this job. They couldn’t possibly understand all the local nuances of the job within each jurisdiction they are “performing” legal tasks nor could they understand how to determine whether a particular case is useful to a particular application. There is just too much English here to understand for a non-Native, ESPECIALLY one who has never even been to the US.
As you said, legal documents are not even easy for J6P, a USA native, to understand.
Participant[quote=equalizer] . . . So I call them morons and you mock their language skills. Yeah, that is really going to stop the outsourcing. . . [/quote]
Working in the law in the United States requires *superior* English skills. Superior skills when transcribing from tape (from different American dialects and from people who may be in distress while speaking), superior skills when interviewing clients, superior skills when studying (and “shepardizing”) relevant case law to a given problem, superior skills when preparing moving papers, interrogatories, responses, memoranda, correspondence, etc and SUPERIOR ADVANCED knowledge of word-processing programs (“cold” and not have to look up functions as there is no time for that). As a paralegal, you are preparing documents which will be read by a US judge (or panel of judges).
Sorry, but Indian paralegals (located in India) not only is logistically impossible, but whatever “English” they may have learned to be nice and helpful in an Indian “call-center” used by US companies won’t fly in this area.
Yes, there are MANY Indian attorneys in the US. HOWEVER, they were educated here and live and work here. And even most of THEM have language deficiencies. That’s why they native English-speaking paralegals.
Having cleaned up a LOT of legal work originally prepared by non-native English speakers, I know what I am talking about here.
Participant[quote=CONCHO][quote=bearishgurl]
How would deregulation address this or prevent it from happening in many more places all over the U.S.? . . . [/quote]Deregulation won’t. But protection of private property will. If your business dumps poison on my property and causes me damage, I should be able to at a minimum sue you. If you do enough damage your corporate charter should be revoked with all assets liquidated and paid out to the victims and/or for cleanup, and potentially your managers or board members imprisoned. Strong courts, no limits on damages (see the recent documentary “Hot Coffee” for more on this topic), prison terms for offenders, a corporate “death penalty” to dissolve and distribute the capital of egregious offenders, and a good education system (to ensure competent juries) would all help towards this.
No system can totally protect you (including ours), but if you have a system that ensures offenders of property rights are punished, you can at least reduce the number of times things like this occur….[/quote]
CONCHO, the above was DomoArigato’s statement (not mine). Filing a lawsuit WAS mentioned in the video. HOWEVER, the +/- dozen affected neighbors would have to come up with a large retainer for a law firm to take on a case with a deep-pocketed defendant who no doubt has a *fleet* of attorneys already on retainer, who could bombard them with filings and other paperwork and delay it into oblivion and thus drive the plaintiffs into dropping it (when they ran out of $$, probably sooner and later). I think the video was made to bring attention to the problem to see if these owners could get sponsored by environmentally-minded agencies/individuals and/or law firms who could contribute to a legal fund and/or take the case on a contingency basis.
Participant[quote=hugo]…I think you’re safe, but those 1.3kk 2bed townhouses may finally drop a bit. http://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/1252-31st-St-NW-20007/home/9925300…
[/quote]hugo, I just looked at your active-listing link. I was last through Georgetown (leisurely tour) in August 2010 and noticed that NOT EVERY “largish” +/- 130 year-old “row house” there is “tricked out” like this one. They are in varying stages of improvement. You are looking here at a property that one or more previous owners obtained permits to bring up to code and also rehabbed the entire interior to its “period magnificence.”
I haven’t checked any active listings there, but am curious as to what they would cost if purchased as a “heavy fixer?” Most have no “land” to speak of so we are talking here about an (extremely conveniently-located) “condo” (but sans the HOA).
edit: the listing’s basement appears to NOT be included in the total sq footage. Not sure how that space is calculated there (whether in finished or unfinished state).
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