6 ms·

Doesn't this boost GDP and keep people employed? Build a big house, weather knocks it down, build a bigger house, weather knocks it down...

WarOnPrivacy 3y ago
> Doesn't this boost GDP and keep people employed? Build a big house, weather knocks it down, build a bigger house, weather knocks it down... No because the people who most need the wages can't afford to live where the work is.
- JimtheCoder 3y ago
  But if the mansions are getting built, which they appear to be, the workers must be getting there somehow...
  - WarOnPrivacy 3y ago
    > But if the mansions are getting built, which they appear to be, the workers must be getting there somehow... I did geothermal for mansions a long while back and it's mostly specialized contractors bringing in a small crew. It's not a ton of employed people and not locals. Where I've seen high numbers of local employees making good wages are in areas constructing a lot of dense housing, particularly townhomes.
    - brucethemoose2 3y ago
      There is a ton of both around here (south of Tampa)
      - WarOnPrivacy 3y ago
        North of Tampa, there is some dense housing construction but most housing starts are supersized, detached offerings. That cheers up the NIMBYs (a robust homeless community testifies to NIMBY successes). There was heavy apartment building along SR54 until the county commission's moratorium. It was just for that corridor but apartment building died instead of moving north.
  - brucethemoose2 3y ago
    It is comical to see construction crews, yard guys and such cram into the tiny key roads to build and keep up the mansions.
  - Spooky23 3y ago
    In Hilton Head, SC, the hotel housekeeping and security workers mostly get bussed in from 2 hours or more away. Florida is similar. It gets pretty poor and gritty within 30 minutes of most fancy places.
brucethemoose2 3y ago
After Ian, many workers' homes got trashed, and there was a massive worker vacuum. Contractors poured in from all over the country to fix stuff at inflated prices, with priority pretty much dictated by wealth. For instance, we had tree choppers and stump grinders from Georgia. They drove heavy equipment all the way down here. Honestly I dunno what happened to mega mansions that really got hit. I don't go down to Port Charlotte much.
TheCoelacanth 3y ago
No, that's the broken window fallacy.
- floydnoel 3y ago
  Indeed. I think it is one of the biggest issues in society. Prevention is seen as wastefulness and often de-prioritized. Meanwhile heroics after a disaster capture media attention and praise. This has been observed in fields as diverse as business & management, construction & maintenance, government, and of course economics. It is a fallacy so common, we can even find it here on HN! Wish I knew of a solution, any ideas?

WarOnPrivacy 3y ago

> Doesn't this boost GDP and keep people employed? Build a big house, weather knocks it down, build a bigger house, weather knocks it down... No because the people who most need the wages can't afford to live where the work is.

JimtheCoder 3y ago
But if the mansions are getting built, which they appear to be, the workers must be getting there somehow...
- WarOnPrivacy 3y ago
  > But if the mansions are getting built, which they appear to be, the workers must be getting there somehow... I did geothermal for mansions a long while back and it's mostly specialized contractors bringing in a small crew. It's not a ton of employed people and not locals. Where I've seen high numbers of local employees making good wages are in areas constructing a lot of dense housing, particularly townhomes.
  - brucethemoose2 3y ago
    There is a ton of both around here (south of Tampa)
    - WarOnPrivacy 3y ago
      North of Tampa, there is some dense housing construction but most housing starts are supersized, detached offerings. That cheers up the NIMBYs (a robust homeless community testifies to NIMBY successes). There was heavy apartment building along SR54 until the county commission's moratorium. It was just for that corridor but apartment building died instead of moving north.
- brucethemoose2 3y ago
  It is comical to see construction crews, yard guys and such cram into the tiny key roads to build and keep up the mansions.
- Spooky23 3y ago
  In Hilton Head, SC, the hotel housekeeping and security workers mostly get bussed in from 2 hours or more away. Florida is similar. It gets pretty poor and gritty within 30 minutes of most fancy places.

brucethemoose2 3y ago

After Ian, many workers' homes got trashed, and there was a massive worker vacuum. Contractors poured in from all over the country to fix stuff at inflated prices, with priority pretty much dictated by wealth. For instance, we had tree choppers and stump grinders from Georgia. They drove heavy equipment all the way down here. Honestly I dunno what happened to mega mansions that really got hit. I don't go down to Port Charlotte much.

TheCoelacanth 3y ago

No, that's the broken window fallacy.

floydnoel 3y ago
Indeed. I think it is one of the biggest issues in society. Prevention is seen as wastefulness and often de-prioritized. Meanwhile heroics after a disaster capture media attention and praise. This has been observed in fields as diverse as business & management, construction & maintenance, government, and of course economics. It is a fallacy so common, we can even find it here on HN! Wish I knew of a solution, any ideas?