There's a hole in the bucket, Dear Liza, a hole....

 

In a little over a year, my co-op has gone from a place where I'd be glad to own an apartment to one where I wish I could sell the place and be done with it.  Being on the board of directors, I am not able to talk about any of the details why I feel this way.  But I can say that I (and other shareholders) have received letters from one outraged shareholder complaining about how things have been managed.

Why is this an issue?

Being on the board puts me at financial risk if we were held liable for the problems the co-op is facing.  Right now, I think we'd win our case if ever brought to court.  But I'm very concerned about my financial future, given that I'd have an extremely hard time recovering (if possible) from any judgements.  Luckily, our lawyer is on the case, and we are taking proactive steps to resolve our issues.

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Our problem is one that I can see us finding a way to resolve.  But there are many other condos and co-ops in this country which have problems worse than ours.  For example, the collapse of an apartment tower in Florida caused the state to enact legislation to deal with Home Owner Associations (HOAs) who have kicked the can down the road, deferring essential maintenance that would keep their buildings safe for residency.  Due to this law, many condos in Florida are effectively worthless, given the rise of HOA fees and assessments needed to bring their properties up to snuff.  (My co-op has continually maintained our property, and was in excellent shape until the beginning of 2024.)

Right now, I am very concerned that things will keep getting worse all over.  Last night (as I write this), one of the ladies in our zoom meeting mentioned that her firm just laid off a significant number of employees.  Given her skill set, she feels safe.  But in her shoes, I'd still keep my resume updated and my fingers tightly crossed.

We're starting to see the effects of the Orange Snowflake's trade war.  He's pissed off our friends, only to get an occasional "win" he can brag about in his propaganda.  Canada has sworn off US goods, and largely avoided the US for its "Snowbird" vacations.  I'm not sure that there's anything that can be done to win back Canadian business until the Snowflake is long gone from office - and that will take years, at best.

So what does this all mean?

I feel that on a macro level, America is heading towards a depression.  Both our short-term and long-term policies have been geared to dealing with today's issues instead of heading off those that will happen tomorrow.  In Florida, inadequate regulation has destroyed the value of a large sector of its real estate market.  In the US, ballooning federal debt will destroy the value of the US Dollar as well as our economy.  Hopefully, we will be able to ride out the troubles I expect to see and come out relatively whole 4 years from now.

 

One month down, Forty Seven more to go.

 

As I write this, we have seen serious damage done to our democratic institutions.  We now have a government which no longer wants to check and balance the power of the chief executive.  

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We have already seen incompetent yes-men confirmed to the Orange Snowflake's cabinet.  We have already seen threats against our most important trading partners that resulted in making us a pariah among nations.  (Did we really need to threaten a trade war to stroke the Orange Grifter's ego?) We are seeing a government in the act of destroying itself from within.  In the guise of "America First", we are destroying the "soft power" we had to influence nations.  In the guise of making government more efficient, we now have incompetent cronies running their areas of the government, making the government less efficient.

Let's look at the Department of Education.  It's targeted for elimination by this regime.  What will happen to its functions?  Will the handicapped be able to get the assistance needed to get an appropriate education?  (I doubt it.)  Will the poor students still get the breakfasts and lunches needed, so that they can function in school?  (I doubt it.)  Will we have anyone responsible for holding the states accountable to see that students' rights are respected?  (Absolutely not!)

The best example of the nonsensical appointments being made by the Orange Snowflake is RFK Jr.  Here's a man who rallied against vaccinations, a tool which helped eliminate diseases such as polio in the United States.  He claims that he will respect science, but his track record proves he will not.  Having met the man once, all I can say about him is that he is a Kennedy male.  (Read into that what you will.)  But I think that the worm he says ate part of his brain affected his common sense.

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As Margo Channing said: "Fasten your seat belts, this is going to be a bumpy ride."

Miscellaneous Thoughts

 

Right now, many things have been going thru my head.  Here's a list of some of the things that are giving me a little angst:

1. Trump's Cabinet Choices. 
   
   All of our future president's cabinet choices so far seem to have escaped from a clown car.  People such as RFK Jr. should be nowhere near any positions of power in any agency related to public health.  While watching the news, I was reminded about RFK's visit to Samoa, and the misinformation he likes to spread regarding vaccines.
   
   
2. Trump's Political Revenge.
   
   DJT has vowed to take revenge on people who opposed him.  Can we afford for the Justice Department to be weaponized?  I doubt it.
   
   
3. A possible upcoming trade war.
   
   We get cheap goods from the world over.  We can no longer produce low-cost goods, as they depend on low-cost labor.  Who can afford to live in the US if paid Mexican wages?  Making threats against Canada and Mexico will be counter productive, as the economies of the 3 nations are tightly integrated.  Do we want to dismantle NAFTA (or, whatever it is called now)?  I don't.  Most US goods are produced with other goods sourced from around the world.  We can not untangle this profitable web of trade connections without becoming North Korea.
   
   
4. The Christian Nationalist war against the LGBT community.
   
   When blowhards are trying to deny Sarah McBride her right to relieve herself in one of the Capitol's lavatories, it shows how deep seated hatreds based on religious bias can cause us harm. We're seeing states like Texas, Louisiana, and Florida making moves to teach the bible in their public school classrooms.  Do we want to become like Iran, where only one religion and one standard of behaviors is acceptable?  I don't think so.
   
   
5. Health Care.
   
   Recently, my partner, RQS had a medical issue that caused her to go to the emergency room, and then be admitted to the hospital.  However, once admitted, the hospital's bureaucracy got in the way of her being released due to non-medical reasons, causing he to miss having a fancy holiday dinner at a local restaurant.  Something has to be done to monitor both the progress of medical care, as well as the administrative process that could result in a person being kept in the hospital longer than medically needed.
   
   No one likes feeling like a product on an assembly line, and that is how RQS felt during her stay in the hospital.  Somehow, patients' emotional well being has become the least important item in a hospital's priority list.  No wonder why people fear going to the doctor.  Once a person has no control over any part of what is being done to him/her, they avoid losing any control at any cost.  The emotional trade off isn't worth having good health.
   
   
6. Family.
   
   My brother and sister in law do not have the best of marriages.  One day, when my brother was out, I called the house and we got into a conversation.  Without going into details here, she still loves my brother, but feels like she is being neglected by him.  On his side, he resents how her illness has affected his life - as if it was a moral failure.  It is a recipe for disaster, as neither of them are able to communicate well with each other, and long standing resentments get in the way of breaking down the walls between them.
   
   
7. Friends.
   
   The divisive political climate we have in the USA reminds many of a dysfunctional marital relationship, where two spouses constantly bicker all the time.  Sadly, my country at a macro level reflects what many people are experiencing at a micro level.  For example, the friend who was the best man at my wedding has changed in a very different way than I have.  He has effectively consumed the Kool-Aid, while I have learned to detect it and avoid it.  His attitude towards transgender people would be acceptable in the backwoods of Texas or in the deep reaches of Louisiana's Bayou country, but not around here.  I believe in live and let live, not imposing yourself on others.  I can only imagine his reaction if he knew I was Trans.
   
   Other friends are more accepting.  The host and hostess of game night have a Trans child, and have no problems with me.  Yes, their child has to live in both worlds and make their way through life.  Yet, the parents are preparing their child for their life ahead.  It's amazing that when people are continually exposed to different people how accepting of differences they become.
   
   
8. Planned and Unplanned Expenses.
   
   I bought my car knowing that I'd be spending a prince's ransom to keep it in running order. This is not a bad thing.  If one has a well designed car, one can keep it on the road for a long time with proper maintenance.  I was willing to trade money for a safer car than I was driving for the past 10 years.
   
   However, cell phones are designed to be disposable commodities.  I hate spending money on a new phone when the old one works perfectly well, but should need only minor maintenance.  In my case, my current cell phone has a dying battery that needs immediate replacement.  (It shouldn't even be used until the battery is replaced.)  Sadly, my phone wasn't designed in a way that I could replace the battery (as I could with my first cell phone).  Instead, I have to buy a new phone, or order a replacement battery and have a specialist install it for me.  Something is very wrong here.
   
   Now that I am retired, I am much more sensitive to money that leaves my wallet.  Yes, I'm in the age bracket where one should expect to drain one's lifetime savings.  And yet, the weight of all these expenses will always bother me a bit.