Prep Lessons from Puerto Rico

[Certaindeaf]

Not me.......that would not even occur to me.....no one is finished until we are. You need another toke dude.....

Yeabut again, "they are finished", toke boy. lolz. You have zero credentials here and now.

 

[The Heretic]

Flattened, but not finished.

 

[Argonaut]

Not finished at all but a new beginning...........

 

[Argonaut]

Yeabut again, "they are finished", toke boy. lolz. You have zero credentials here and now.

Another well structured sentence.......not sure what you mean but the conversation is open for all to evaluate for them selves.

 

[dangerranger60]

Just a note - Puerto Rico is part of the USA, so saying "the Americans will do it for them" is kind of nonsensical - i.e., they are Americans.

That said, I don't think being an "American" (US citizen) means that a person deserves help when a bad thing happens to them. OTOH - it seemed the feds were quicker to help Texas and Florida, but on the other other hand D), as I explained to my daughter, the US got hit by three hurricanes in a row, FEMA, the military, etc., was already spread thin, so it is not surprising that it takes longer to shift resources to help PR, especially since those resources are still helping in Texas and Florida.

If you ask a Puerto Rican if they are American or Puerto Rican, What do you think they would answer?

As far as our response to the Island goes, We are sending as much help as can reasonably get to them. If we sent ten more ships they could not get into the harbor because no one will clean up the debris. The Airports are the same way! If no one will clear the runways, They are unusable.

Having worked a few disasters, I'm going to make a prediction. in two years time you will have a hard time finding the scars of this event in Houston. Houses will be rebuilt, Store fronts will be up and running, and the people will be working.
Compare that to New Orleans.

Now which one is more like PR?

 

[CamoDeafie]

Didn't the PR people continually vote time and again to not become a State when they reached the minimal population threshold?? Makes me wonder why

 

[etrain16]

Didn't the PR people continually vote time and again to not become a State when they reached the minimal population threshold?? Makes me wonder why

Actually, they voted for statehood back in 2012 (first time the majority voted for statehood - prior votes were NO), again in June of this year - but only 23% of the population bothered to vote. At this point, based on their huge indebtedness, their extremely high poverty and unemployment rates, honestly, I think they're looking for a handout - come save us from ourselves. I have little doubt that at least some are eager to become full-time recipients of the federal government's 'generosity' with those of little means.

Personally, I don't think any territory should be allowed to become a state unless they are in order and solvent, period. Can't manage what you already have? Why should the rest of the country get saddled with your debt? Territory or not, they've hardly proven they can take care of themselves - and we've got enough states in that situation already.

 

[ATCclears]

Reflections on Puerto Rico

 

[Who The F R U]

we added a roll of quarters for vending machines, etc.

All you need is a hammer not quarters

 

[Argonaut]

Reflections on Puerto Rico

I agree with a lot of what he said. I have been buying/selling and operating commercial generators for 40 years. I have several here at the ranch, my wired in prime is a 60KW Diesel unit. I have delt with a lot of natural gas and propane machines too. I like the machines in general, the fuel takes no real maintenance (like gas and diesel) but the engines are simply modified spark ignited gas units that tend to be less robust than a commercial diesel and they are very thirsty. An engine operated on Propane vs gas looses 20-50% efficiency. Natural gas is very similar and you need to trust your (usually piped in) fuel supply. Some other points, a generator won't do you a lot of good without a well (to produce water) and a septic system to get rid of it. People live pretty easy without lights or other luxuries we are accustomed to. Another point the author promently blamed for the problems was nepotism........as I age, I am coming to the conclusion that is not nessisary a bad thing. My dad was the toughest boss I ever had. Humans have survived for millennia largely on the foundations of nepotism. If someone is incompetent or a crook, it isn't because they are related to someone.

 

[HB of CJ]

Personal Observation. Subjective. Opinion Only ...

Back on the topic. I find it strange right now the people of RR would cling to US Federal Currency. It is just paper. It has no value other than what a non informed populations deems at that time.

A twenty worth so much. A Ben Franklin worth much more. WTF?

Do the PR people expect future bail outs from the rest of us in the USA? Do they expect free bees rebuilding their island? I can not figure out why NOW in PR the dollar is NOT dead and barter goods rule?

Are they falsely clinging to the notion that a $value$ has no value? Why? Have they been on the dole for so long the memory of Uncle Sam always being there blinds them to the reality of worthless cash?

Again, cash only works if others accept it as having real value. When they stop thinking that then the wheels come off. PR may be a good case study on the stupidity of mankind in difficult conditions? Just me.
..............................................
"Your Republican Credits Are No Good Here!. What do you think you are ... some sort of Jedi? ... It might be cheaper just to buy a new starship". ... "The problem is we have nothing of value". Now what?

Respectfully.

 

[Argonaut]

I like your points........to me, these people have been given great advantages (for over 100 years) that they have been unwilling or in capeable of taking advantage of. Wonderful geography, climate, the US rule of law and monetary system. They still can't support themselves. They should be one of the prime tourist destinations on the planet with jobs and income. Instead, the place looks and operates like Tijuana. I think that is what frustrated Trump. He will help but you have to do your part.......something they seem to be unwilling to do. To me they are more like New Orleans than a place like Texas. My mother used to talk about the difference between people from the tropics and northern climates. The northern people had to be ambitious and work to survive the winters (sort of a Darwin effect), not so much if you live in a tropical climate. There may be something to that.

 

[Gaucho Gringo]

There must be something to that considering that mankind evolved in the tropical region and by 1900 those that were still in the regions were still living basically the same as 10,000 years ago. However away from the tropics it was a totally different story, what is the difference? They had a much longer time to do something and did not.

 

[Camelfilter]

Personal Observation. Subjective. Opinion Only ...

Back on the topic. I find it strange right now the people of RR would cling to US Federal Currency. It is just paper. It has no value other than what a non informed populations deems at that time.

A twenty worth so much. A Ben Franklin worth much more. WTF?

Do the PR people expect future bail outs from the rest of us in the USA? Do they expect free bees rebuilding their island? I can not figure out why NOW in PR the dollar is NOT dead and barter goods rule?

Are they falsely clinging to the notion that a $value$ has no value? Why? Have they been on the dole for so long the memory of Uncle Sam always being there blinds them to the reality of worthless cash?

Again, cash only works if others accept it as having real value. When they stop thinking that then the wheels come off. PR may be a good case study on the stupidity of mankind in difficult conditions? Just me.
..............................................
"Your Republican Credits Are No Good Here!. What do you think you are ... some sort of Jedi? ... It might be cheaper just to buy a new starship". ... "The problem is we have nothing of value". Now what?

Respectfully.

Same reason the dollar would used if we had some type of calamity here (ie cascadia type earthquake event). In essence we would be "cut off" from normal supply lines etc. An island until supply lines would be fixed, trucks & trains running again etc, if you will.

However we would also know that the dollar still held value, as the rest of the country was "normal/not affected" by our calamity.

I'd wager quite a bit of barter is going on in PR, same as it would be here if we had some situation.

It goes on everyday everywhere, just not to the point where most folk use it, because most use money instead.

If you don't have money, but have something else or time to do labor, and need or want something, well you barter for it.

 

[Argonaut]

Barter is the same as money......it has been confirmed by both the courts and IRS. Same as inventory is cash. If your store inventory increases, you pay tax on it the same as cash. If you are paid for your labor by trade or barter, you still have to declair the income and pay the tax. Most barter systems are phony designed to make a profit for the organizers. A trade is no more than that, but by the law, if someone gets an advantage, he is supposed to declair the profit and pay the tax.

 

[ATCclears]

A study conducted Dec. 11 by a group of local engineers estimated roughly 50 percent of the island's 3.3 million people remained without power. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has said it likely won't be until May that all of Puerto Rico is electrified.

Dark, desperate life without power in Puerto Rico

 

[ArgentineSteel]

A study conducted Dec. 11 by a group of local engineers estimated roughly 50 percent of the island's 3.3 million people remained without power. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has said it likely won't be until May that all of Puerto Rico is electrified.

Dark, desperate life without power in Puerto Rico

Adjust your 72 hour emergency kits accordingly

 

[albin25]

"A study conducted Dec. 11 by a group of local. engineers estimated roughly 50 percent of the island's 3.3 million people remained without power. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has said it likely won't be until May that all of Puerto Rico is electrified."

Given the crappy state of their electrical grid....
....It's entirely possible that 10% more people have power now than prior to the hurricane. Notice how the local engineers provide no estimate of how much dependable power was available beforehand.

 

[Dungannon]

My take away from Puerto Rico is that if you live in the backwater of a third-world region, expect to be rebuilding largely on your own. If your survival plan in a major disaster relies on electricity and city water, you better come up with a better plan - which may just be to take what you can and relocate to a place that has better prospects.

 

[The Heretic]

My take away from Puerto Rico is that if you live in the backwater of a third-world region, expect to be rebuilding largely on your own. If your survival plan in a major disaster relies on electricity and city water, you better come up with a better plan - which may just be to take what you can and relocate to a place that has better prospects.

PR and the Caribbean are not exactly a third world backwater region. PR has bio-tech plants there. It is relatively close to the continental US.

But it doesn't help when we pass a tax reform bill that treats them like a foreign country - i.e., paying extra taxes for doing business with them or buying products produced there. They are part of the USA after all.