Tampa Bay days away from getting largest hurricane in city’s history

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

"And actually you have to apply for it. Using power that you don’t have. Again, tone deaf."

FEMA has set up emergency centers in towns and people can use computers there to apply for the $750. FEMA workers there actually hand out the payment upon completion of the forms. It'll take many days for everyone to get to the centers, but the response is must quicker than Katrina and Maria. Many stores are open but don't have the electricity/internet to accept credit cards. I'm wondering what you, Emergency Services expert, would do differently?

They need to put many more "foot soldiers" on the ground to take basic items to people in remote areas. They cannot expect people to get to centers to use computers.

Yes, if Republican Congresspeople were willing to show up during a NATIONAL EMERGENCY and do what we pay them to do -- like pass additional funds for FEMA -- it would be nice. Oh, well, I'm sure they have their list of grievances why not.

Or are you suggesting FEMA, a federal agency, illegally appropriate money from a fund allocated elsewhere? Is that what you are saying?

They did show up. At least two of them did. But two does not a voting majority make.

This is a failure of Congress, not one party, as far as we know.

No. Funding originates in the House. That’s the Constitution. Even if every single Democrat in the House shows up, they can’t even turn on the lights, because Republicans control the House. Unless Mike Johnson, a Republican, calls the House into session and Republicans show up to vote, there is no finding. This is a Republican failure. Not BoTh SiDeS.

Now, if the House asses funding and the Senate doesn’t go into session to vote on the House Bill or Biden doesn’t sign it, those are Dem failures. But for the moment, everyone is waiting on Mike Johnson to quit campaigning and tell his Republican members to get their a##es back to DC. Even if no Dems from the House showed up, they could technically pass supplemental funding. But Dems would look terrible in that case, and I expect my Dem member to show up if Johnson calls a special session.

So what isn’t he. Oh yeah— his members want to campaign on FEMA failures.

And they don’t care who gets hurt or killed in the process. This is the party that wants to pretend they care about “life.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article about everyone trying to sell their homes in Florida. They supply is significantly out paced the demand. Condos aren't selling and they have a glut of homes on the market.

We tried to tell people.

This. Climate change is a hoax!

And it’ll be the same if Trump gets in. He’ll destroy the economy and our country and everyone will be surprised.

[Anonymous]

Will it hit anything on the east coast? Anywhere that starts with Mar and ends with Lago?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article about everyone trying to sell their homes in Florida. They supply is significantly out paced the demand. Condos aren't selling and they have a glut of homes on the market.

We tried to tell people.

Yep. Best thing my spouse every said is that we won't be buying property in Florida--and that was decades ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm in Florida. Hurricanes in Florida are something we all live with during hurricane season. I don't think anyone in Tampa is thinking "omg, I didn't know a hurricane would come here!!!" It's always possible.

+1 I am also in Florida - in Tampa Bay actually. The Tampa area is blue, by the way - and we have mayors who are working on climate resilience. But it's not easy or fast. It's unreal, that said, that we are getting another one while we are nowhere near even starting to recover from the last one.

At least this guy isn't in charge.

Yes, but that's who Florida wants to be in charge, so...

Not all of Florida. Trust me, we're trying.

Omg. Do not have trump in charge of hurricane disasters. Do not!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

"And actually you have to apply for it. Using power that you don’t have. Again, tone deaf."

FEMA has set up emergency centers in towns and people can use computers there to apply for the $750. FEMA workers there actually hand out the payment upon completion of the forms. It'll take many days for everyone to get to the centers, but the response is must quicker than Katrina and Maria. Many stores are open but don't have the electricity/internet to accept credit cards. I'm wondering what you, Emergency Services expert, would do differently?

They need to put many more "foot soldiers" on the ground to take basic items to people in remote areas. They cannot expect people to get to centers to use computers.

Yes, if Republican Congresspeople were willing to show up during a NATIONAL EMERGENCY and do what we pay them to do -- like pass additional funds for FEMA -- it would be nice. Oh, well, I'm sure they have their list of grievances why not.

Or are you suggesting FEMA, a federal agency, illegally appropriate money from a fund allocated elsewhere? Is that what you are saying?

They did show up. At least two of them did. But two does not a voting majority make.

This is a failure of Congress, not one party, as far as we know.

No. Funding originates in the House. That’s the Constitution. Even if every single Democrat in the House shows up, they can’t even turn on the lights, because Republicans control the House. Unless Mike Johnson, a Republican, calls the House into session and Republicans show up to vote, there is no finding. This is a Republican failure. Not BoTh SiDeS.

Now, if the House asses funding and the Senate doesn’t go into session to vote on the House Bill or Biden doesn’t sign it, those are Dem failures. But for the moment, everyone is waiting on Mike Johnson to quit campaigning and tell his Republican members to get their a##es back to DC. Even if no Dems from the House showed up, they could technically pass supplemental funding. But Dems would look terrible in that case, and I expect my Dem member to show up if Johnson calls a special session.

So what isn’t he. Oh yeah— his members want to campaign on FEMA failures.

At this point, if Trump is elected with GOP congressional majorities, the people who voted for it are going to deserve all the destruction and misery he rains down on them.

If there were any justice, they should receive the treatment they want others to experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article about everyone trying to sell their homes in Florida. They supply is significantly out paced the demand. Condos aren't selling and they have a glut of homes on the market.

We tried to tell people.

+1. As if the hurricanes were bad enough, a second problem. After the collapse of the condo in Florida a couple years ago that killed so many people, there are now actual regulations in FL about the amounts of reserve funds and special assessments and independent evaluations of the structural upkeep needs and required maintenance of condo buildings more than 30 years old. And the numbers are huge. Because Florida being so deregulated means there is 30+ years of deferred maintenance in many of the buildings. And some are in hurricane zones and getting hit with harsh weather that degrades the structural integrity more than one would normally expect. So, on top of skyrocketing insurance rates, owners of these condos are also getting hit with hundreds or thousands of dollars a month in special assessments (if they finance the special assessments that can top top $100k— one very ordinary, non-luxury building was $224k a unit— and the assessments may be for more than the actual value of their condo) by condo boards. I’m actually surprised the Republican, anti-regulatory FL legislature passed these Regs and Death Satan signed them. But I guess collapsed buildings killing dozens of people is also bad for Florida’s insurance market.

So enormous special assessments plus enormous cost to insure makes these condos impossible to offload

And now they also have the same condos becoming uninsurable or also paying 3, 5 or 10x what they used to for home owners insurance. And DeSantis admitting that the state insurance fund, which serves as insurer of last resort, is insolvent. Before Helene and Milton. And if the condo is actually uninsurable, the owner can’t sell it to anyone who needs a mortgage. If my home in Florida was damaged in this round, and I was lucky enough to still have decent insurance, I’d take the money, sell the house as is to a developer or someone who wants the land underneath— for $1 if that’s what it took to get out of being responsible for it— and consider myself very lucky. Living in the hurricane zones of Florida is officially economically untenable, unless you are amazingly wealthy. Which most retirees on set incomes of Social Security, annuities, and pensions are not.


More info about the condo special assessments that is making the economics of owning property in FL so much harder than *just* impossible to find or pay for home owners insurance.


https://www.wesh.com/article/florida-condo-crisis/61917535

And wait until the claims for Helene and Milton flood in to the state backed insurer that De Santis has admitted is insolvent. I wi either ha o desultory, or Florida wi have to— OMG— raise taxes.

I do wonder if the colossal mismanagement by the State of FL that got us here isn’t the October surprise that loses Scott his Senate seat, ends DeSantis’s national ambitions, and maybe even puts FL in play for the EC. Hard to blame Biden-Harris for HOA assessments due to decades of deferred maintenance, unbelievably high insurance rates due to lack of regulation in building codes in hurricane prone areas, and insolvency in the insurance fund controlled by the state of FL. Although I’m sure they will try. But thus far, the best they have is MTG’s conspiracy theories on Biden Administration using secret weather control weapons to target red areas (as if a Tampaand Asheville aren’t pretty blue).

[Anonymous]

Just do not be stupid and put trump in charge. Climate change is in fact reality. Put in an administration that will begin to take some very long overdue action on that and is competent to try to help the people getting pounded by monster storm after monster storm. With plenty more to come.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article about everyone trying to sell their homes in Florida. They supply is significantly out paced the demand. Condos aren't selling and they have a glut of homes on the market.

We tried to tell people.

+1. As if the hurricanes were bad enough, a second problem. After the collapse of the condo in Florida a couple years ago that killed so many people, there are now actual regulations in FL about the amounts of reserve funds and special assessments and independent evaluations of the structural upkeep needs and required maintenance of condo buildings more than 30 years old. And the numbers are huge. Because Florida being so deregulated means there is 30+ years of deferred maintenance in many of the buildings. And some are in hurricane zones and getting hit with harsh weather that degrades the structural integrity more than one would normally expect. So, on top of skyrocketing insurance rates, owners of these condos are also getting hit with hundreds or thousands of dollars a month in special assessments (if they finance the special assessments that can top top $100k— one very ordinary, non-luxury building was $224k a unit— and the assessments may be for more than the actual value of their condo) by condo boards. I’m actually surprised the Republican, anti-regulatory FL legislature passed these Regs and Death Satan signed them. But I guess collapsed buildings killing dozens of people is also bad for Florida’s insurance market.

So enormous special assessments plus enormous cost to insure makes these condos impossible to offload

And now they also have the same condos becoming uninsurable or also paying 3, 5 or 10x what they used to for home owners insurance. And DeSantis admitting that the state insurance fund, which serves as insurer of last resort, is insolvent. Before Helene and Milton. And if the condo is actually uninsurable, the owner can’t sell it to anyone who needs a mortgage. If my home in Florida was damaged in this round, and I was lucky enough to still have decent insurance, I’d take the money, sell the house as is to a developer or someone who wants the land underneath— for $1 if that’s what it took to get out of being responsible for it— and consider myself very lucky. Living in the hurricane zones of Florida is officially economically untenable, unless you are amazingly wealthy. Which most retirees on set incomes of Social Security, annuities, and pensions are not.


More info about the condo special assessments that is making the economics of owning property in FL so much harder than *just* impossible to find or pay for home owners insurance.


https://www.wesh.com/article/florida-condo-crisis/61917535

And wait until the claims for Helene and Milton flood in to the state backed insurer that De Santis has admitted is insolvent. I wi either ha o desultory, or Florida wi have to— OMG— raise taxes.

I do wonder if the colossal mismanagement by the State of FL that got us here isn’t the October surprise that loses Scott his Senate seat, ends DeSantis’s national ambitions, and maybe even puts FL in play for the EC. Hard to blame Biden-Harris for HOA assessments due to decades of deferred maintenance, unbelievably high insurance rates due to lack of regulation in building codes in hurricane prone areas, and insolvency in the insurance fund controlled by the state of FL. Although I’m sure they will try. But thus far, the best they have is MTG’s conspiracy theories on Biden Administration using secret weather control weapons to target red areas (as if a Tampaand Asheville aren’t pretty blue).

Wow. What a mess. Thank you for sharing all of this. I had no idea. Knew the state insurance program was challenged but not that it was insolvent.

And Florida is MAGA paradise! No taxes, no regulations and no wokeness!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel for the people. But I also hope it’s a wake up call in the land of climate change denialism. They need to rethink housing in the hurricane belt. Make it more reliant and build in different locations— that assume a hundred year storm every few years. Because I tired of FEMA bailing out people the 4th and 5th time they have massive hurricane distraction. The definition of insanity and all that. And expensive insanity.

No it is just time to increase taxes to the blue states to pay for the red states climate change problems.

Suspect you were being tongue in cheek - but anyway just in case not …

2017 (GOP lies about taxes being funneled from red to blue states paved the way for Trump tax cuts for the wealthy)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican leaders have spent months promoting the myth that red low-tax states are subsidizing blue high-tax states because of the deduction for state and local taxes. An Associated Press Fact Check finds it’s actually the other way around. High-tax, traditionally Democratic states (blue), subsidize low-tax, traditionally Republican states (red) — in a big way.

https://apnews.com/article/north-america-business-local-taxes-ap-top-news-politics-2f83c72de1bd440d92cdbc0d3b6bc08c


Do blue-state taxes really subsidize red-state benefits?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/07/07/states-federal-benefits/

The states sending the largest share of tax dollars are mostly blue (apart from Wyoming #7) and Florida (#12)

The states receiving the most money back in federal aid from tax solars are mostly red.

The states who receive the greatest share of federal aid money are evenly split (Virginia and Maryland are up there). However the blue states provide much more tax dollars overall so their return on investment is lower than red states that send fewer tax dollars.

Nothing predicts a state’s receipts from the federal government better than its share of working-age adults with disabilities. Lower rates of education, higher rates of poverty, fewer patent filings and more employment in the industry that includes dollar stores also tend to be related to receiving more money from the feds. Red states have lower educational levels, income levels and have more people who depend on federal programs to get by.

[Anonymous]

911 MBs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just do not be stupid and put trump in charge. Climate change is in fact reality. Put in an administration that will begin to take some very long overdue action on that and is competent to try to help the people getting pounded by monster storm after monster storm. With plenty more to come.

Also someone who doesn’t ask who you voted for before deciding whether to activate FEMA and sign bills giving additional resources to areas with natural disasters, terrorism attacks, etc. pay attention. Biden is doing all he can for red areas. No Republican official says otherwise. And in the run up to an election if he was actually withholding resources, they would have every incentive to make that known— especially in swing states if VA and GA. If Trump is in office and lets a blue state rot after a major disaster, like he tried to do with CA wildfires and promises to do if elected in 2024, even I a Fed who is proud of my work, thinks it’s important, and serves overwhelmingly red states, and is happy to do so, because the people I serve really need help, and I’m making a difference, one person at a time) will think it’s time to have states manage disasters themselves and stop federal funding for disaster relief. Because either we are in this together when there are disasters. Or it’s every state for themselves. But, it can’t be blue states subsidizing red states under Dem POTUSes/ Congresses and Blue states being hung out to dry under Repuguly POTUSEs/Congresses.

In all seriousness— if the federal government is going to ask who you voted for before providing disaster relief, the best and fairest thing to do is get the federal government out of disaster relief and leave it up to the states, like abortion is now. Every state for themselves. And given that many state constitutions require a balanced budget, a Helene or Milton or Katrina could be economically painful for everyone in a smaller, poorer state. To the point employers leave.

But, it’s time to decide— is disaster relief federalized and provided equally to everyone who needs it? Or is it awarded in a spoils system/ based on political affiliation? Either on works for me. But it must be consistent across administrations. If that means taking it out of the hands of the federal government, or the federal government having experts at FEMA that states can access, but for which they must reimburse the federal government, so be it. It’s not blue states that are likely to feel the most pain in this case. But Republicans are very good at voting for face eating leaopards and against their own interests.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just do not be stupid and put trump in charge. Climate change is in fact reality. Put in an administration that will begin to take some very long overdue action on that and is competent to try to help the people getting pounded by monster storm after monster storm. With plenty more to come.

Hurricanes are down in frequency and intensity on average since the 1950s.

Due to global cooling.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

This is Harris’ big chance to prove she can work as hard as Trump and fix everything in 30 days