Water shutoff in Detriot.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Are you referring to the post in the other thread in which you stated that an ounce of prevention saves a pound of cure, but no politician is interested in prevention because they want to look "tough on crime"?

How is any of that racist?

[nando]

I just wanted to post this in here - our local water district sucks. I pay $100 a month for the district dues plus another $100 to the city. they charge you twice because they assume 100% of what comes out of the tap goes into the sewer. so if I drink a gallon of water and pee in the bushes, they charge me for a gallon of sewer processing.

The billing system is terrible. You can check your account online, but it doesn't really tell you what your balance is or if you're going to be shut off. So you log in, check your account, it says you're in good standing and owe $0. Then they shut off your water and you have to pay a $50 restart fee. it's a friggn' racket.

anyway, I asked them about the billing system and they said they hire it out to a private contractor. Apparently they shut of hundreds of meters every week. 300x50 = 15k a week in restart fees. Unless you have a paper bill (easy to lose, especially these days) you have no idea of knowing if you're late or not.

worse is the water quality is terrible. it's like 200x the limit on iron/mineral content, but it's still safe to drink so they don't have to do shit with it. But it destroys waterheaters and stains everything. the inside of my toilets and tubs are brown and my dishwasher is black. I miss my 50 ft hand dug well - free, way better water quality, even if the ridiculous county said it wasn't a good well it was 100x better than what I have now.

I don't know what Detroit's is like but I don't think having your water shut off is uncommon.

[smooth]

Are you referring to the post in the other thread in which you stated that an ounce of prevention saves a pound of cure, but no politician is interested in prevention because they want to look "tough on crime"?

How is any of that racist?

No, I'm referring to post #28 in this thread.

Here are some links going into further detail of the situation and another substantiating nando's experience. In fact, not sure how anyone here who pays water and sewage can honestly believe its inexpensive (and that'll become worse within the coming decades).

Have a few people here trying to talk shit about west coast posters but aren't most of you posting from rural locations where you draw water from a well? If you think private corporations aren't going to shit down your throats you've got another think coming...read up on what tracking and industrial waste is doing to our waster stretching from the plains through texas all the way up to water rich PNW.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/true-north/2014/jun/25/detroits-water-war-a-tap-shut-off-that-could-impact-300000-people

http://www.wnd.com/2014/06/u-n-to-in...ater-shutoffs/

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-detroit-water-20140629-story.html#page=1

I don't know what Detroit's is like but I don't think having your water shut off is uncommon.

Becoming more common as water becomes more scarce and it's disproportionally hitting the poor the hardest. In fact, the first article I linked points out the millions of dollars corporations owe but haven't paid and still have running water.

[anabolice30]

White devils, up to their no good tom foolery once more.

[ParsedOut]

So what's the standard for "debate" in here if nobody should be expected to back up their arguments with a shred of evidence? just keep throwing poop? endless fallacious arguments?

just because the standard of discourse around here is pretty low doesn't mean it can't be improved.

We didn't even get to the stage of dismissing anyone's source.

Oh I'm not saying it's right, but that has been the way of things around here lately. Even if someone backs up their arguments the other side (not saying just "your" side) will either ignore it and go on flinging poop or they'll pick it apart and twist it to back up their point of view. It's hard to have rational discussion between two groups of people who are obviously set in their ways.

I'm just as much to blame, I have a perspective that I've come to gain from life experiences (right or wrong) and have a pretty strong distrust of our gov't and the media who's pockets are lined with gov't agenda. There are few sources I'll take hook line and sinker, on both sides of the debate. It seems most of us here are the same in many ways and unfortunately other than an entertaining exchange of perspectives, we're not really ever going to change any points of view.

Oh yeah, I had a good laugh at smooth being a "knowledge producer". Thanks for that, lightened my shitty day.

[Farbin Kaiber]

Have a few people here trying to talk shit about west coast posters but aren't most of you posting from rural locations where you draw water from a well? If you think private corporations aren't going to shit down your throats you've got another think coming...read up on what tracking and industrial waste is doing to our waster stretching from the plains through texas all the way up to water rich PNW.

One of the many reasons I packed up and moved from being a water drinking customer of Metropolitan Water District of Southern California to where I did was to gain access to water in situations when the infrastructure went down, so yeah, I'm posting from a rural location where I draw water from my well that is approximately 17ft. below ground level. The water comes out of the tap at about 56*F or so. My water table comes from a river that is ~750ft away, and our self imposed annual testing of our well shows our water is looking wonderfully clean, and I think you meant fracking, and not tracking, right?

[ajhostetter]

I've read a lot on fracking...besides being a rather thirsty process, can smooth shed some more light on what it's doing to the water table?

[smooth]

I've read a lot on fracking...besides being a rather thirsty process, can smooth shed some more light on what it's doing to the water table?

Sorry, I'm on my phone out and about in town trying to find some product for my sports seats but here's a link that might shed some more light on the topic:

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/safety-first-fracking-second/

Farbin,
I always considered retiring in Oregon for much the same reason but what's going on with Columbia river leads me to reconsider long term. I think southern Washington is going to have to rethink some things given the nuclear toxicity that currently seeping down through the soil.

Our country is going to have to make some tough choices about water rights and access unless we want to keep going on this modern trend of every person for his or herself...in which case I guess it's going to boil down to the larger arsenal wins and I'm not sure if personally place my eggs in idahos basket in that scenario.

Southern California has to fight for it's water but cut it off and most of the country loses their fruits and veggies.

[The Dark Side of Will]

No, I'm referring to post #28 in this thread.

Which doesn't address why you think it's either racist or wrong to shut off someone's water when they don't pay.

AND doesn't cite your source claiming that water was shut off without warning.

Yes, water is getting more expensive. I think that's the result of water producers having geographic monopolies... Private or public, they're not accountable to anyone because when they screw you, your only option is BOHICA.

My electric company jerks me around too, but because of regulation in VA, I'm not in the area that's allowed to be serviced by the competing company, so I'm screwed for electricity too.

[smooth]

Which doesn't address why you think it's either racist or wrong to shut off someone's water when they don't pay.

I think this?

Oh and quit asking me where my source is for people having their water turned off without warning...it's in the article you quoted! Do you guys even read the stuff you post and opine about for informational purposes or do you simply scan headlines for tidbits you think support the position you already hold before you even open the page? You basically did the same thing with my posts.... (Where'd you post this, where'd you state that, which post, post 28 in some other thread?....READ instead of begging to be spoon-fed every single little detail. That thing you keep blaming others of doing...)

[Thizzelle]

So your solution is 600,000 people should walk to the nearest lake and shit in it and bring buckets back to their apartments so they can shower and cook?

r u serious? it says turning off water for people who are not paying their bills. Last I checked it's a service you pay for, if not then you don't get it.

[smooth]

r u serious? it says turning off water for people who are not paying their bills. Last I checked it's a service you pay for, if not then you don't get it.

Oh, you're just trolling...

it was your suggestion that there's water everywhere...

there's water all over just not as easy as turning a faucet, so get over it. I guess they'll have to start watching more dual survival.

Just wondering how you think that would work out...you know, in reality. But of course asking you to explain your ridiculous assertion gets turned around like I'm making the nonsensical point. Par for the course, I suppose....

[The Dark Side of Will]

I think this?

It sounds like it, since you brought up historical racist laws and policies in response to the discussion about people having their water turned off.

Oh and quit asking me where my source is for people having their water turned off without warning...it's in the article you quoted!

I don't think that article is a good source for anything factual more detailed than "there's something going on with water in Detroit". The author wasn't worried about presenting a factually complete account, but rather with presenting an account that matched his ideology. Farbin said some of the customers had more than a year of notice (and I'm also curious about where he saw that).

Do you guys even read the stuff you post and opine about for informational purposes or do you simply scan headlines for tidbits you think support the position you already hold before you even open the page? You basically did the same thing with my posts.... (Where'd you post this, where'd you state that, which post, post 28 in some other thread?....READ instead of begging to be spoon-fed every single little detail. That thing you keep blaming others of doing...)

Lol. If you want your references to be clear, link them or just state the post number like you did when pressed. A mention of "post about racist policies" could mean a lot of things, as you and I both post in mutiple threads here.

Sooo... how many of the racist laws you cite did Detroit implement?

[marshallnoise]

Fair enough...here's a choice quote of marshallnoise demonstrating his inability to think for himself:

Because having respect for the law and how it functions, regardless of personal feelings toaward the law, you definitely "can't think for yourself." Obeying the law and disagreeing with it can happen simultaneously you know.

You are a special kind of stupid, aren't you?

[ParsedOut]

Oh and quit asking me where my source is for people having their water turned off without warning...it's in the article you quoted! Do you guys even read the stuff you post and opine about for informational purposes or do you simply scan headlines for tidbits you think support the position you already hold before you even open the page? You basically did the same thing with my posts.... (Where'd you post this, where'd you state that, which post, post 28 in some other thread?....READ instead of begging to be spoon-fed every single little detail. That thing you keep blaming others of doing...)

Ever have the feeling that you're the only one ever making any sense? Yeah, so does everyone else. Damn P&R...