Having one's priorities straight

[HomeLAN]

You're too black...go the Michael Jackson route
You're a woman...time for that sex change
You're latino...
You look too middle-eastern...

To every banker I've ever spoken to (and that's the business I'm in), everybody's cash green. All they want to see is that the borrower understands business and has collateral so that they have a chance to get repaid. Your personal appearance speaks to the former (hard to get clients when all they can do is stare at your piercings), but I've never seen race or gender enter into the equation.

You're too young...
You're too old...

Same as above, as long as you're old enough to legally contract.

You don't have a co-signer......

Speaks to collateral. You want to hand out excuses based on almost entirely non-existant isssues, be my guest. I'm in the frontlines of this industry, and from my experience this is a load of shit.

 

[MrBishop]

Perhaps, but then, he didn't insure the tree, did he? He insured the outbuilding, and it's contents. Gotta read the fine print, but that's exactly how each and every insurance policy is written. You might remember that we had a tree go through the cottage a dozen years back. That tree was from our neighbour's property. Neither insurance would cover removal of more of the tree than necessary to get it out of the house.

What type of tree? It might have been 4' at the base, but somehow, I don't think that's anywhere near the size of the bits in the shed. And considering that I bucked my way through a 28" trunk two weekends back ..... I don't think it's beyond feasible. If it's really that big, I'll borrow a big two-man saw from one of the neighbours and sharpen it up for ya.

If need be, I'll volunteer my services for beer and gas, if you promise to not talk to me the whole way there.

Hence the holes in most insurance that I was talking about. It's property insurance. Jump the loopholes a bit and it might be called property insurance, but it's now building and some contents insurance. Jump a few more and it's 'not covered' (please read the fine print, sir).

The Shed wasn't that far. I think that it was an oak...but don't quote me on that. Cutting through it is not even half the problem. Cut through it several times so that you get manageable chunks (lifteable) then get it to the truck and figure out how to get rid of it. The sawmills (which I recommended to Maria) wouldn't take the wood unless it was cut in at least 10' lengths...wouldn't pay for the wood and would charge for removing the wood. The guy who sells firewood locally said that he might take the branches and some of the top...but you gotta get it to him. I think that Maria may already have solved the problem of the tree...cost'em dearly (I'd bet).

Although I appreciate the offer. I think that the 4 1/2 hour drive up would be mostly wasted effort (cept for the beer).

 

[Professur]

Don't they have a fireplace themselves, or a neighbour that has one?

Hell, try, just try firing up a chainsaw anywhere in Longueuil, and within minutes you'll have someone over wanting to know if your cutting a tree down, and what's your plans for the wood.

And, think about it. Co-signing is what your bank branch does for you when they give you any kind of loan. If you can't come up with one other person who trusts you as much as you're asking the bank to, why on earth would they give you anything????? Honestly, the bank only knows you as far as your credit history goes. But they're willing to accept that if you can get one reliable person to trust you, you might just be worth the risk. But if every single person who might sign with you is also an unreliable credit risk ....

 

[MrBishop]

If you can't come up with one other person who trusts you as much as you're asking the bank to, why on earth would they give you anything????? Honestly, the bank only knows you as far as your credit history goes. But they're willing to accept that if you can get one reliable person to trust you, you might just be worth the risk. But if every single person who might sign with you is also an unreliable credit risk ....

For personal loans... pretty much anyone can co-sign. for mortgages...that person better have collateral... for small-business it's far tougher. More than just a co-signer with good collateral. Serious paperwork to be done, many of them requiring the advice of a lawyer and accountant. Business plan. Cash flow analysis..the works.

But if every single person who might sign with you is also an unreliable credit risk ...then you're living in a poor neighbourhood. Good luck pulling yourself out by your own bootstraps.

Education and the almighty certificate doesn't help either. It's not what you know, it's who you know.

The whole 'you just aren't working hard enough' excuse doesn't cut it with people who have 3 jobs and still barely make the rent. No money to go back to school. Can't afford to take time off of work to even go to classes.

There's a hole there...but people just don't want to see it. Kinda like telling a bum "Get a job" - when the obvious answer would be "Ok...how?"

 

[SouthernN'Proud]

You're too black...go the Michael Jackson route
You're a woman...time for that sex change
You're latino...
You look too middle-eastern...
You're too young...
You're too old...
You don't have a co-signer...
...

In 1989, I found myself a fulltime college student, recently transferred to a university hundreds of miles from home. I tried dilligently for over a month to find any part time job available...no luck. I was living on a food budget of 35 cents per day.

I should add that I had worked, off the farm, since 1982. At age 15.

Hey, says I to myself. You're a citizen. You have tried everything you can think of to get through this temporary mess. Go check into some assistance...you've paid into it for years now, it is there to help you. Says I.

I get meself down to the proper office, and am greeted by a large sign reading: _____ Students - in order to qualify for food stamps or other assistance, you must meet at least 5 of the following 7 criteria.

I met all 7.

So I fill out my little forms, in triplicate, attach all relevent documentation, and am ushered to a seat. Two hours later, a harried lady with a 1958 hairdo escorts me to a cubicle smelling roughly like a mixture of urine and Pine Sol. It is in this environment that I am informed that I cannot receive any assistance. Period.

Curious, and admittedly naive, I asked the question.

"Ma'am, between you and me, off the record here, if I were to change my skin color, become female, get knocked up by someone whose name I did not know, refuse work, and make no attempt whatsoever to better myself in any way, would I then qualify?"

"Yes."

"But since I am a caucasian male with a seamless wrk history until now, taking steps to make something of my life, you can't do anything to help me through a bump in the road and keep me from being hungry?"

"That's correct."





Now tell me about isms. I ain't heard enough of it yet.

 

[Professur]

For personal loans... pretty much anyone can co-sign. for mortgages...that person better have collateral... for small-business it's far tougher. More than just a co-signer with good collateral. Serious paperwork to be done, many of them requiring the advice of a lawyer and accountant. Business plan. Cash flow analysis..the works.

But if every single person who might sign with you is also an unreliable credit risk ...then you're living in a poor neighbourhood. Good luck pulling yourself out by your own bootstraps.

Education and the almighty certificate doesn't help either. It's not what you know, it's who you know.

The whole 'you just aren't working hard enough' excuse doesn't cut it with people who have 3 jobs and still barely make the rent. No money to go back to school. Can't afford to take time off of work to even go to classes.

There's a hole there...but people just don't want to see it. Kinda like telling a bum "Get a job" - when the obvious answer would be "Ok...how?"

We've had this discussion, and I'm not gonna chew old cud again. But I do find it astounding how Indian and Chinese immigrants can arrive on our shores and in our cities, with little more than the clothes on their backs, and manage to open stores and businesses within years.

Oh, wait. It's not that astounding after all. It's called working together, and not trying to do it all yourself, and making sure everyone around you does their part. A little thing called community. It's how you get crime out of a neighbourhood. It's how Italians manage to give their kids houses as wedding presents. It's how an Indian shopkeeper has a kid who's a doctor.

For some people a sheet of paper is just a sheet of paper. For others, it's artwork (origami). All you need is the vision to see past the obvious.

 

[HomeLAN]

We've had this discussion, and I'm not gonna chew old cud again.

And I'm not gonna start a brand new round. Bish, let's just say I find you as willfully blind and uninformed as you apparently find me and leave it at that eh?

 

[MrBishop]

And I'm not gonna start a brand new round. Bish, let's just say I find you as willfully blind and uninformed as you apparently find me and leave it at that eh?

I missed your counter-post. I wasn't planning on starting an argument over this. We've agreed to disagree before. I don't see how this has to be any different.

 

[MrBishop]

I'm dropping this worthless argument.

Everyone who's poor is obviously lazy and deserve their lot in life.

 

[Gonz]

Everyone? Hardly. A majority? Absolutely.

 

[Professur]

I'm dropping this worthless argument.

Everyone who's poor is obviously lazy and deserve their lot in life.

That would be the reason for the feudal system. Granted, laziness and sloth back then got you the thin edge of the scourge, instead of gov't imposed charity.

Not to mention that getting an apprentiseship back then depended ... on who you knew (or who your relatives knew) more than what you knew.