Glibertarians.com 2018 Archive

Category: Licensing

  • Disney and Marvel king and queen pimp of copyright kingdom.

    This article is inspired by the many mentions on this site of Star Wars, Marvel, Disney and how their SJW leanings  may be hurting their business. I have a theory that centers on trademark and copyright law about how in the cases of Marvel many of these crazy SJW stunts are actually evidence of Disney playing the long game and in the case of other properties such as Star Wars and The Muppets show that the company is largely being propelled by a few divisions while the rest coasts or bumbles around aimlessly.

    I will start with a basic and not at all legally sound explanation of trademarks and copyrights. Trademarks are basically legal claims towards branding, brand names and mascots can be trademarked in perpetuity as long as they remain active. This can be confusing because characters can have works that exist in the public domain such as certain books or films but still be trademarked characters. This is possible because the copyright of the work which features that character can expire without the characters trademark expiring allowing that particular book or film to be reproduced for free while other uses of that character would still be protected by trademark or copyright.

    Copyright is the other half of the equation and the concept is pretty clear from the term, it is the right to copy something. Copyright protects specific works rather than brands the way  trademarks do. The original post colonial copyright in the United States was 14 years with the option to renew for another 14 years; by the early 20th century this had expanded to 28 years with an option for a renewal of another 28 years. In 1976, this was expanded to 75 years for corporate owned works or the life of the author plus 50 years, and in 1998–with a major push from Disney–it was expanded to 120 years after creation or 95 years after publication for corporate works or the life of the author plus 70 years.

    The impact copyright can have on media franchises can get very complicated. A great example of this is the Wizard of Oz franchise. Wizard of Oz started out as a media franchise in the early 20th century with books, plays and silent films but it is the 1939 film that has become the definitive version in the minds of the general public. The original wave of books, plays and silent films are all in the public domain which means free of copyright but the 1939 film is still under copyright.

    There are distinct elements to the 1939 film such as songs, plot points and design elements such as the ruby slippers that are not public domain. The shoes were originally silver but were changed to red to showcase the then still novel format of technicolor film. The books status as public domain allows anyone to create a sequel or new interpretation of Wizard of Oz but the copyright protecting the distinctive elements of the definitive version along with the lack of a young Judy Garlands has prevented any of these from becoming seen as legitimate entries of the franchise, including two attempts by Disney. The extension of copyrights benefits almost every media company but  I would argue that this is a major element of Disney’s business strategy and is used to add value to their merchandising and theme park divisions. The affect of this is most notable in the Disney Princess franchise which earns Disney millions from trademarked versions of public domain characters. It is also used recently in their live action film division through the remakes of their animated films.

    The deeper use of the ins and outs of copyright laws hasn’t really expanded to companies they have purchased, such as Pixar and Lucasfilms which is responsible for Star Wars and allegedly more Indiana Jones. The exception to that I would say is Marvel. I think the difference is because of the age of Marvel places much more of the companies value closer to entering public domain. Marvel started in the late ’30s with characters such as Captain America, Sub-Mariner and other members of The All Winners Squad with the majority of Marvels most famous characters from the ’60s or ’70s. Marvel began their version of using the ruby slipper like leverage before they were bought by Disney and it has accelerated since then. I think that a major reason Marvel even still publishes comics is to strengthen their copyrights covering more and more situations making it harder and harder to write a story using their characters without infringing on a copyright. Evidence of this is how their publishing strategy changed after the success of the X-men and Spider-man films.

    Marvel’s top property for decades was X-men to the point where often any book with an X on it would sell better than most of The Avengers solo books. Marvel began to shift the focus of their comics away from the X-men with events such as House of M removing power from many mutants and towards the Avengers adding Spider-man and Wolverine to the line up. This was done without any certainty that the sales of the comics would be maintained. Before this the Avengers were a team of former A-listers who had been surpassed in popularity by Spiderman and the X-men who previously were too valuable to be in The Avengers. This shift took place because the film rights to many of their characters were no longer owned by Marvel, because they were sold off during a bankruptcy. The Avengers film rights were the ones that didn’t sell and adding their star characters to the franchise helped move the focus to the avengers.

    Another example is the comics recent focus on The Inhumans. Marvel intended to replace the mutants with the inhumans because of their loss of the film rights. They did things like making some of the recently depowered mutants inhumans, retconning characters who were assumed-but-not-certain-mutants as mutants, and even in a few cases retconning characters who had previously been retconned to be mutants to cash in on the xmen’s popularity. The Inhumans before this were supporting characters in Fantastic Four who had never sustained an ongoing series more than a couple years. They also had major event series around this time which connected them with all the other ongoing comics. Marvel’s emphasis was no longer on selling comics but using the comics to lay down more copyright, and retrain and test what people think of the characters to prep for future movies and tv shows. They do something similar in the cartoons which feature upcoming characters such as Nova and Amadeus Cho.

    I also believe that much of their SJW recasting of their characters is Marvel woke-proofing their franchises. Peter Parker’s adventures will eventually become public domain even if eventually is a long time from now (especially if it counts as 70 years after Stan Lee’s death) but Marvel can keep the trademark of Spider-Man in perpetuity and they just have to change who the public thinks of as Spider-man. They have tried this with several characters but the only major character they have made significant progress with is Spider-man and the upcoming animated film starring Miles Morales (a half black half Hispanic alternate universe character) Into the Spiderverse will reinforce this.

     

  • Contaminants of “Emerging Concern”

     

    I’ve been thinking about writing an article on this for some time as an example of the runaway regulatory state, since it is within my field of expertise. And because it is also a fine example of a regulatory agency finding excuses to regulate more things just because they can, regardless of whether there is an actual quantifiable threat to human health and the environment. So what the hell, I’m giving it a shot, and if the admins choose to post it, feel free to have at me.

    I have been in the environmental consulting and remediation field in New Jersey for approximately 30 years. New Jersey is a fine place for such work, since it has been industrialized since the early 1800s; in fact, Paterson was one of the very first industrial cities in the nation. Until about the 1970s, there were few rules regarding handling of hazardous materials and wastes, so there is ample work here for someone in the business of environmental remediation.

    The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, (NJDEP) has recently developed policies and requirements regarding chemicals known as Contaminants of Emerging Concern. These contaminants are chemicals that have been used in various manufacturing and production processes, but were previously not identified as contaminants of concern, and could not be easily identified via laboratory analytical techniques and detection limits. In other words, these contaminants were previously not a concern because available laboratory methodologies were not sensitive enough to detect them at the levels they are typically present. These chemicals can be found in drugs, fragrances, detergents, pesticides and disinfectants, among other common products.

    Due to the new analytical abilities of laboratories, it has allowed detection of the exceedingly low levels at which these chemicals typically occur in ground water. Although the understanding of the toxicity and health effects of these chemicals is still developing, the NJDEP has issued guidelines under authority from the Technical Requirements for Site Remediation, N.J.A.C. 7:26E which requires all contamination, including all discharged substances, hazardous waste, and pollutants, must be remediated. In other words, even though there is no data which demonstrates human toxicity at these low levels, the State is regulating it anyway, by claiming authority under a broad general statute.

    Therefore, responsible parties at a site under environmental investigation must ensure that the potential presence of these chemicals must be investigated if there is any (any!) potential that they could have been used or stored on site or were contained in any of the products and materials used on site prior to closing the case.

    A little more background: In New Jersey, there is a program under the Site Remediation Reform Act which licenses environmental professionals with specified education, training, and experience to become Licensed Site Remediation Professionals, or LSRPs. If any site in New Jersey requires any environmental remediation, it must be performed by an LSRP, and only the LSRP can eventually close the case by issuing a letter known as a Response Action Outcome, or RAO.

    Since these contaminants include chemicals such as Per- and Polyfluoroakyl Substances (PFAS) that are not included in the standard Target Analyte List, analysis for these chemicals must be specified to the lab if the LSRP suspects that they may have been present on the site. Although the science regarding health effects is still emerging (currently no data showing human toxicity), the NJDEP typically uses advisory limits recommended by the New Jersey Drinking Water Quality Institute (DWQI), which are overly conservative. The recommended limits for different PFAS range from 10 nanograms per liter (10ng/L) or 10 parts per trillion (ppt) to 70 ng/L, or 70ppt. Therefore the laboratory must be prepared to achieve the required detection limits for analyses in order to properly investigate the ground water at the site.

    Since these Contaminants of Emerging Concern can be found in a wide variety of products and materials at extremely low levels, there are recommendations for precautions to be taken when conducting sampling, in order to avoid cross-contamination and potential false positives. Among the recommendations are: don’t wear coated Tyvek protective coveralls; don’t use Teflon sampling equipment, even though Teflon sampling equipment is required for all other ground water sampling; don’t wear clothing that has been washed using fabric softener or certain detergents; and avoid fast food containers and wrappers, as they may contain PFAS. That’s right, something that is safe enough to be used to wrap and contain food for human consumption may cause an exceedance of the regulatory standard in your ground water sample if it cross-contaminates it.

    So, even though people are constantly exposed to these very low levels of PFAS in clothes treated with fabric softener, fragrances, and even fast food containers and wrappers, which are deemed safe for those purposes, and there is currently no data showing human toxicity from low-level exposure, the State has decided that since modern laboratory equipment can now detect these very low-levels (parts per trillion!) of these substances, it will now regulate them, and require full investigation and remediation, at considerable expense, because they can.

    After all, the regulatory state isn’t just going to grow organically, it needs a little help now and then.

  • Credentialism and Bureaucracy: 2018 Edition

    Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away. No, wait. Wrong story.

    Let me start again.

    In a former life, I was the owner of a hard-won and extensive set of healthcare credentials issued by the State of New York, and some other granting agencies and organizations. After I left NYS, I decided not to continue in that line of work and consequently did not transfer my credentials elsewhere to keep them active. This turns out to have been a huge miscalculation.

    For reasons too mundane and numerous to list, I’ve now decided that perhaps I want to get back into a very narrow segment of the field. The very specific skills and knowledge needed are ones for which I was universally lauded, and were a tiny portion of my previous scope of practice.

    Looking around at various job openings, I see that I am very well-qualified…except I don’t have the standalone piece of paper now needed for this.

    OK. So, how can I obtain the piece of paper? Take a certification exam. Excellent. I kick ass on certification exams, and my skills and knowledge are more than compatible with the current standards. I can do the work and can pass the exam, I should be able to get the gig.

    Nope. Can’t sit for the exam unless I have a different piece of paper from an “approved” program, attesting to my successful completion of a certain number of hours of training under the accredited program, the curriculum of which I could actually teach…and, in fact, used to teach in NYS.

    But, OK. I get it. This isn’t too different from the first time around. I’ll find a program at a college and enroll.

    Within a day of applying to the closest institution of higher education offering the required program this autumn, I was accepted. Awesome, no?

    No.

    I received a packet of information via email with the requirements that must be met before I can even register for the specific courses needed for the credentialing program.

    WTF? I can’t register for the courses even though I was accepted?

    No.

    First, I must attend an orientation session for the program. Well, that seems OK.

    There is only one offered this entire summer for a program beginning at the end of August. Still, I’m thinking, good thing I found out about it in time! I’ll sign up for it.

    Nope. No reservations or sign-ups taken, even though there is limited seating. But if you don’t get a spot in the room, you are out of luck until…next summer!


    [REDACTED EXPLETIVES]

    OK, so I’ll add it to my calendar, make some arrangements that are disruptive to the entire household, and will make sure I am there a couple hours early.

    In the meantime, let’s take another look at the list of requirements and see what else I can check off.

    *double take*

    They want…my ACT and SAT scores and high school transcripts? I graduated from high school in the early 1980s (and they know this), and I took those exams my junior year of high school. Why in the world would they want those?!

    To prove “English proficiency” and “Algebra readiness.”

    Now, I am a regularly published writer and professional editor with tear sheets, books, and lists of credits. I took higher math (unavoidable with a math professor dad!), but there is absolutely no math, and indeed, very little arithmetic, needed in this field. WTF?

    You guessed it, my Glib friends! Turns out those are some kind of government mandate. Being a published writer in English language magazines is not considered “proof” of English language literacy. Why? Because that isn’t on the list from the government.

    (Digression. High school guidance secretary, after several email exchanges: What was your name when you were here again?
    Me: Same as it is now.
    Secretary: Um…ok, I was…um, just checking. I’ll have to get back to you.
    Me: *head desk*)

    Ever dealt with the SAT and ACT folks trying to get nearly-40-year-old records? Gee, I have now. I don’t recommend it. Expensive. And takes weeks longer than I have to obtain the results.

    Because, remember, I can’t register for the courses before I get this info. Oh, and, hey, there is only one section of this program being offered at a time I can take it. And, “don’t delay on sending in your requirements as courses tend to fill quickly.”

    (I hear you wondering, “Why can’t she just use her college transcripts?” Because in the honors program I was in, we could design our own curriculum and neither English comp nor math had any place in what I was studying so aren’t on those transcripts.)

    Well, this is silly. I’ll research in what other ways I can “prove” these things.

    Turns out I can take placement tests. Seriously. Well, OK, if I have to, I can do that sooner than the other stuff will arrive.

    Except. That costs money. And the tests can only be done supervised, on-site. During limited hours which are, again, household disruptive. With an appointment that is weeks out, really pushing my registration window.

    Hmm. Before I spend any more cash, I better call the program chair and find out if there are even any openings in the course sections for which I need to register.

    “We don’t really know.”

    “Isn’t it shown right there in the computer roster?”

    “Well, things change a lot over the summer, so we can’t really know right now. I would advise you to keep going through the process and then try to register.”

    [MORE REDACTED EXPLETIVES]

    Back to the damn list.

    Proof of Residency. Check!
    Proof of Citizenship. Two for two!

    New student orientation. Crap. “NSO will teach you how to succeed in a college environment!” At least as a “non-traditional” student, I will be able to complete this as a series of webinars. With tests for each section and a final exam which must be passed with over 70% correct answers. Truth. Could I make that up?

    Meeting in person with academic advisor in counseling center. Really? For a certificate program? Yes! Mandatory, because it additionally grants college credit. Daytime hours, limited for summer, no appointments.

    Required tests and/or immunizations for healthcare programs, which must be done at the institution’s health center (yes, limited, daytime hours):

    TB 2-Step (9-day process) $9 ea
    OR T-Spot (1-2 Business day) $54 ea
    Hepatitis A Titre $22 ea
    Hepatitis B (series of 3) $46 ea
    Hepatitis B Titre (quantitative antibody) $35
    Hepatitis C Antibody $22
    Measles (proof of two) $78
    Measles Titre $35
    Mumps (proof of two) $78
    Mumps Titre $52
    Rubella (proof of two) $78
    Rubella Titre $17
    Varicella Titre $46
    Tdap $46
    Flu Shot $35

    Notice something about many of those? If the titre doesn’t provide a satisfactory result, the shots are needed. They are mostly series. Which must be spaced out by several weeks. Which takes me out of the registration window completely. (Did I ever have rubella? Doubtful. Can’t ask Mom, she rudely died a few years ago, not anticipating the inconvenience to me now.)

    Physical Exam (price varies)
    Eye Exam (price varies)

    Drug Screening – 10 panel, $50. Must be paid first at college cashier’s office after standing in line (daytime only hours, “limited for summer” !, then paperwork and receipt delivered to program secretary’s office, who will then issue the paperwork (“within 3 or 4 business days, but not Fridays during the summer”) to take to an off-site, non-local provider, with…yes, you know it, limited daytime hours, walk-ins only, no appointments.

    Sheesh. This is starting to add up. Oh, yeah, and I have to pay for all this stuff before knowing if I’ll get a spot in the program.

    Back to the list.

    Fingerprinting $28 – outside vendor, not local, limited daytime hours, walk-in, no appointments. *sigh*
    Background check $45 (Did I remember to list every address I’ve ever had?)

    Healthcare Provider CPR/AED – off-site through AHA. This one, at least, will be easy to meet as the classes are routinely scheduled for evenings and Saturdays at loads of local venues.

    Oh, look! Here’s another little wrinkle. This program is only offered with an August starting date. All the above requirements have to be met within 12 months of beginning the program in August. If I go ahead and pay for everything, get all the documents and tests completed during July to increase the chances of being able to register before the program is filled, and ultimately there is no space in the program this autumn…I have to do it all again to try to get in next year, because July is not within 12 months of next August.

    But, hey, that’s the end of the list!

    There is a cheery little message at the bottom:

    Notification will be sent to your email account when you have been granted permission to register for the program courses. If you have met all other program requirements, you will be able to register for any section that has availability, as long as the registration window is still open. Remember: enrolling in one course does not mean you will be able to enroll in the other courses required for the program. You may have to register for those courses during a later program year.

    TL:DR – I’m beginning to see why there is a shortage of healthcare workers, yo.

  • Creosote Achilles and the Perils of Potrepreneurship

    In the fall of 2017, the outdoor cannabis harvest was a bumper crop for growers throughout the state of Oregon. This epic weed haul was the result of two factors; weather, and bureaucracy. The weather was spectacular for growing cannabis, particularly outdoors. A wet fall, winter, and spring (nearly 220 straight days of rain) meant there was plenty of water available. And the summer was warm and dry. Conditions that are favorable for growing trees with plenty of flower on them. The sunshine helped to ensure that flower would be potent. The other cause was bureaucracy. Normally inimical to the production of any good or service of value, on occasion bureaucrats manage to step on their dicks in such a way as to help the actual productive class. Such was the case in 2017 with the OLCC (the Oregon Liquor Control Commission).

    The OLCC is the regulatory pseudo agency (much like the fed it is a non-government organization with a government mandate) responsible for enforcing Oregon’s pot laws. In 2017, the OLCC declared open season for anyone with a license to grow marijuana when it announced that “due to a lack of allocated funds, enforcement efforts will primarily be focused on those growing cannabis without legal license to do so and on those with a recreational license. However, next year will see increased enforcement for medical growers.” In plain English and practical reality, this meant that as long as you had a medical license you could grow as much pot as you wanted. The statutory limits on the number of plants one could grow was out the window. Worst case, if you were caught, they’d cut down plants of your choosing until you were down to the legally allowed number. Every grower was growing as much pot as he could get in the ground that summer as cuttings are cheap.

    Fields of Green

    The resulting harvest was huge. And while the left may not understand or believe it, the laws of supply and demand are iron. If supply is greater than demand, the price falls until an equilibrium is reached. And the result was The Glut. A situation where outdoor weed wholesale prices fell as low as $300 per pound. If you could find a buyer and had good enough quality weed. There were rumors of weed going as low as $100/lb but that had to have been either exaggeration or for some really ditch weed bullshit. Either way, that was the first bump in the road.

    Once the harvest was in, properly dried and cured, and finally trimmed and packaged up, we had enough product that once The Glut ended we’d be able to fund our next phase. Right where we need to be to build our indoor facility and go through the process of getting the rec license that would allow us to expand. That’s where the next bump in the road occurred. We just need to wait for The Glut to recede and the price to come back up to our floor of $800 to $1000/lb. While it would put a crimp in our timeline, waiting even six months wouldn’t be catastrophic.

    An aside; indoor and outdoor pot flower are of differing quality. Indoor is higher quality and fetches a relatively higher price. But outdoor is far cheaper to produce and the aforementioned conditions were conducive to outdoor pot production. In 2017 we had both indoor and outdoor operations.

    End Product

    My business partner was impatient to take the next steps however, so was looking to expand beyond our established channel of buyers to sell all that outdoor product. The short version is that the buyer was a scammer that my partner thought he knew but didn’t. My partner took his stepson with him to the transaction, verified the guy had a med card, and gave the stepson the cash to count, made the transaction “selling” 80% of our harvest, and the best quality at that, and they left. Only to get home and discover the money was, as he texted me, “counterfeit.” I didn’t hear from him for 3 days and when I finally got the full story I have never been closer to murder than I was at that moment.

    Turns out the money wasn’t counterfeit. It was movie money that looked just this side of monopoly money for verisimilitude. I wasn’t even mad at the scammer (whom my partner didn’t even take a picture of the guy’s med card or his license plate and only had a phone number that of course turned out to be a burner). I mean, the balls to try that and get away with it? But my partner and his idiot stepson? Yeah. Them I was furious at.

    Does that look like legal tender to you?

    Anyway.

    As of February, we had only 20% of our harvest, The Glut was finally receding, and we were at a crossroads. We came up with a last-ditch plan of selling that final amount to finance continued expansion of existing indoor med operations of high THC plants, and to get legal for growing outdoor hemp as we did have a legit buyer for hemp flower by that point for processing for CBD products. Those funds from a large hemp harvest could then be leveraged to do the build out for a rec license grow. As described in my previous article, a rec license allows a much larger size grow operation than a med license.

    Another digression: Marijuana and hemp are the same plant, save that hemp has been bred primarily for its fibers in the stalk and has only trace amounts of THC but plenty of CBDs, even in the flower. Marijuana flower contains both, and various strains have various proportions. THC is what gets you high and CBDs are the actual medicinal chemicals, especially for seizures, muscle & joint problems, pain, and anxiety. CBDs also don’t get you high and won’t, generally, show up on a piss test. Getting licensed for hemp is far less expensive than getting a rec marijuana license and you can grow as much as you like. There’s a fee for a 2-year license and you must have proof that the plants are hemp and not marijuana, and that’s it. Far easier compliance and we have enough acreage on the farm it could be quite lucrative. THC flower is usually more valuable, esp. indoor grown. But there’s potential in CBDs, especially with hemp as the input costs are way lower, the regulatory burden is lower, and the labor costs are lower offsetting the lower sales price one can get per pound.

    Unfortunately, due to the remainder being lower quality and The Glut being so epic, it took a long time to move that product. The revenue hasn’t come in fast enough to buy the hemp plants needed to get the hemp license or get them in the ground for a spring or summer crop. The flow has been a trickle; just enough to keep the lights on and pay the basic bills while expanding the amount of indoor plants we can grow up to the legal limit for the number of med cards we have. There’s an outside shot that by next spring there’ll be money for hemp. But I don’t see it.

    The result is that two months ago I washed my hands of it and told my partner that as long as he kept things legal and he paid the lease payments on time for the farm, he could keep going, but that I was done being actively involved. I started looking for a job and found one. I started that the last week of June and I’m enjoying it.

    The saving grace, from a financial perspective, is related to the legal technicalities on having a rec license and the land we purchased for the business. The land use regulations related to marijuana are somewhat convoluted. There are both county regulations and state regulations. The state regulates the maximum square footage of flower canopy one can have per rec license. It also insists that no individual or entity may have multiple licenses on the same tax lot. The county regulates the zoning for tax lots, which determines whether you can grow indoor, outdoor or both. It also sets a minimum size for a rec license. Usually 2-5 acres. Further, to obtain a rec license, one must prove water rights. If they aren’t already registered on the deed, this isn’t as simple as digging a well. One must obtain those rights through a process that takes 1-2 years.

    To give an example. If one purchases 40 acres in a county where the minimum size for a rec license is 4 acres you may not, then obtain 10 licenses from the OLCC. You can obtain one and lease out the other nine to other folks with a license. But if you want a second license you must buy another tax lot somewhere. Many of the larger operations are buying 5-10-acre plots with proper zoning building a minimum size rec grow, and then offering the rest as turnkey, then buying another parcel and repeating. That was part of our plan. But the number of parcels that are properly zoned in counties with relatively simple regulations is small. More importantly, the piece of land we bought has county water and therefore automatically has water rights.

    The land is valuable in and of itself. And the land is in my wife’s name and my name. It’s appreciated about 20% in value since we purchased it. And the company is leasing it from my wife and me. So worst case we have a valuable piece of property that has a current market value that is keeping pace with the rest of the money we invested and then some. Also, it’s a good place to go shooting whenever I want. We may even just keep it and build a country house as a retreat there.

    I learned my lesson. My next startup will be a side-hustle that I build until it replaces a significant portion of my income. I’ll have no partners, only employees, or minority ownership stakes if I need someone with special skills, but not a partner. And while I’m probably out $20-$40k counting lost income, it was worth the gamble as it was money I could afford to lose. I don’t regret taking the chance, though, and I learned a great deal about myself and managing people, and just how tough it is to start a business. I’ve always admired folks who run their own enterprise, but I do so even more now that I’ve taken a shot at it.

    End Note: I appreciate all the interest and encouragement as well as kind words. It’s helped immensely. This place really is a community.

  • The Hyperbole’s Homebuilding Houseparty – The Penultimate Part

    Previously on H3

    Part 1: Introduction, Caveat, and Stakeout

    Part B: Permits and Foundations

    Part III: Do’h, Stumps, Rodan!!!, and Framing

    Part The Fourth: Rough-in, Decks, and Inspection

     

     

    Insulation, Drywall, Paint, Siding

    Carbonara

    First off my apologies for the delay in getting this part out, but I’ve been busy what with building homes and whatnot1. Assuming we passed the rough-in/framing inspection we now get to cover everything up and get to finishing. First comes the insulation. We have always subbed out the insulation, in the early days we did so because installing insulation is a nasty, scratchy job and more importantly the big companies could do the job for little more than what the cost of the insulation alone would be to us, economies of scale, FTW. I hear the insulation isn’t as itchy these days and sometimes they use the sprayed in fibrous and/or foamy stuff. Today it’s still cheaper to let the pros do it, plus we now have stricter standards on just how much insulation we need and we have to “prove” that we meet those standards. One “proves” this by submitting forms filled with calculations that I’d wager no one even checks2, but it’s in the file, so it’s all good. The insulation companies have people who fill out these forms, so we let them, it costs more but at least the homeowners know that their homes are nice and tight.

    Speaking of which, with the house wrapping, caulking every crack, and the better insulation, some areas started seeing “Sick Home Syndrome,” a situation where people would get sick simply from being in certain buildings too long. Turns out all these energy efficiency regulations were making homes too tight. The answer – require a pressure test and add air exchangers so the houses can breathe3. Government – breaking your legs so it can supply you with crutches.

    After the pink stuff comes the grey stuff.4 Drywall is another trade that we have always subbed out, apart from very small jobs it’s just not worth the hassle. In ’88 we used a couple of brothers who hung and finished the jobs themselves, they used hammers and nails but the screw guns were only a few years away. Most drywallers today seem to specialize in either finishing or hanging, the guy we use today doesn’t even employ hangers; he hires a crew that works for two or three other finishers. There are not many codes concerning drywall, we have to hang fire-rated boards on any walls between living spaces and garages but that’s about it.

    After the grey stuff comes the stuff that’s whatever color you want it to be5. In the early days I spread a lot of paint6 but as my skill/value in other areas increased it became wiser to sub out the painting and staining. Which isn’t to say that painting is easy and that any hillbilly can do it. In fact, one of the most conscientious tradesmen I have worked alongside of was our long-time painter and wood finisher. Outside of the exemption in footnote #57 there aren’t any codes regarding paint…yet, you can still paint your farmhouse kitchen some shade that’s almost blue or your imperial bedroom an off yellow. I don’t know much about the technological advances in paints; what I do know is that over thirty years the cost has skyrocketed. It could be market driven, but since most things seem to come down in price over time-unless artificially manipulated- my money is on government intervention. Admittedly, this is a personal bias; I’ll gladly defer to anyone with actual knowledge of the ins and outs of the paint game.

    Outside it’s time for siding, these days that means vinyl siding and cultured stone. For the first few houses, we used T-111 sheathing and later cedar. T-111 is cheap8 and the cedar expensive, both require maintenance, so vinyl and stone it is. Other than styles, not much has changed in siding; vertical is popular right now and they have some halfway decent looking fake shakes and stone products. The tools might have improved but the application is still the same, likewise with the stone; we’ve used the same masons for 25 years and they’ve always done things the same way.9

     

    The Big Finish

    From here on out it’s mostly cosmetics; technically all you need for the final/occupancy permit is a WC, hot water, and a kitchen sink. This is also about the time the owners start to get happy feet, the exterior is done and all the ‘big’ steps have been taken, but there is still plenty to do. I imagine if you had a big enough crew-or separate crews-installing cabinets, hanging doors, and trim, putting in the various floor coverings and such you could finish up quickly but we10 do all that stuff ourselves, so it’s going to take some time. Back when I did our electric, I would start with the lights and outlets, as it makes finishing easier when you don’t have to drag lights and extension cords everywhere.

    Other than carpeting, which one likes to install dead last, I like to get the hardwoods, laminates, and ceramic down next; saves having to undercut doors and work around cabinets. Styles and products have changed over the years, laminates are the most popular now, and they have improved a lot. People still like hardwood and ceramics, but the cost difference is substantial. After flooring I like to set the cabinets; they, too, have improved mostly in the hardware, soft close hinges, full extension drawers and such. Countertops are mostly granite or quartz, and those farmhouse apron sinks are all the rage. I use a laser to level the cabinets, and the countertops are digitized and cut on CNC machines.

    After the countertops are installed, the plumber can return and finish up, while I move on to hanging doors and trim. All these little things seem to go on forever, installing latch sets, door stops, towel bars, closet shelving, and the inevitable “favors” we do for the homeowners- hanging the wall mount TV brackets they bought or that big mirror and heavy pictures or the swinging porch chair… But then one day it’s done, the inspector can come by and stick his tester in a few outlets11, flush all the toilets and make sure the water at the sink is hot, but not too hot. We gather up any tools and materials still around and move on to the next job.

    I know this section comes across as sparse, but other than styles and aforementioned improvements in tools and products finishing, a house hasn’t changed all that much during my 30-year career. To make up for that here’s some argument-starting clickbait type opinion stated as fact.

    Every Tom Waits Album12 Ranked Worst to First.

    test
    Proof I’m not selling wolf tickets

    The Black Riders
    Blood Money
    Real Gone
    Foreign Affair
    Alice
    Closing Time
    The Heart of Saturday Night
    Franks Wild Years
    Bad As Me
    Small Change
    Bone Machine
    Nighthawks at the Diner
    Swordfishtrombones
    Raindogs
    Heartattack and Vine
    Mule Variations
    Blue Valentine

     

    That’s it for the penultimate part. Next time will be the last time. I’m going to attempt to wrap all this up with some observations about what all this has to do with libertarianism, or perhaps better said, how it has influenced my particular take on libertarianism. If you have any questions or would like more details about some particular area hit me up in the comments and I’ll endeavor to address those issues as well.

     

    1. Mainly trying to drink all the beer Riven sent me.
    2. Not one time have I seen an inspector refer to any of the various forms we must submit while he’s doing the inspecting
    3. Just like they used to.
    4. That might be a euphemism…I’m just not sure for what
    5. Except for outside, but I’ll get to that next time
    6. [waggles eyebrows]
    7. see footnote 5
    8. But not inexpensive.
    9. Recently retired, maybe the new masons will have new tricks.
    10. With Dad pushing 80 that really should be “I”
    11. Now, there’s a euphemism!
    12. Yes, Nighthawks is technically a live album, but since it’s all original songs (aside from the Red Sovine cover) that aren’t on any other studio albums I include it here.

  • A Follow Up on The Evil That Regulation Can Do

    A Follow Up on The Evil That Regulation Can Do

    Back in September, I posted about an act of actual evil. Where an anonymous vote of a State body stopped a hospital expansion, including addition of services that did not exist in the area. Despite the efforts of a local reporter and yours truly, we never were able to pin down who torpedoed the approval.

    I wanted to update everyone on the situation. It got better. And the best part of the story is that the scum who opposed this have now come out in the open:

    A representative for state Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, who also serves as a Mercyhealth board member, spoke against Swedes’ expansion plan on Tuesday. So did other representatives of Mercyhealth, including its CEO Javon Bea.

    So the dirtbag politician with the conflict of interest (he serves on the board of a local competitor health group) that had been opposing this from behind the scenes, has now stepped into the light, to show his true asshat colors. And the CEO of the same competitor came in to throw around some slander and BS in an attempt to avoid competition:

    Bea said he is “against unnecessary duplication” of SwedishAmerican’s 10-bed Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. “They have higher death and disability rates because for 10 beds they cannot employ the entire range of pediatric subspecialties on-site,” he said after testifying before the Review Board.

    Bea said SwedishAmerican will send its sickest babies to Wisconsin, forcing parents and families to travel. SwedishAmerican is a division of UW Health.

    “Families will have to figure out how to take care of babies for months at a time,” Bea said.

    Mercyhealth has 52 NICU beds that are part of its $505 million new hospital campus at Interstate 90 and Riverside Boulevard, which is expected to open in January.

    Born said the claims that SwedishAmerican would operate a substandard Level III NICU are “insulting and absurd.”

    “It’s insulting because of SwedishAmerican and UW Health’s long-term commitment to quality and safety,” Born said. “It’s absurd because a Level III NICU at SwedishAmerican would be held to the same standards of any other Level III NICU in the state.” [emphasis added]

    Allow me translate Mr. Bea’s complaint…

    “Hey, competition?! Dammit. I guess having a State Senator in our pocket wasn’t enough to stop it….so here, let me throw out a defamatory smoke screen and run away.”

    So justice was delayed, but denied, in this matter. I have to give credit to the Rockford Register Star reporter – Georgette Braun – for shining some light on the dirtbags in this story. (This was the reporter I had contacted and found out we had both been stymied in our attempts to find out who had voted which way last year).

    And an extended middle finger to both of you, Dave Syverson and Javon Bea.

    This is a bittersweet result – while this individual injustice has been rectified, the intrusion of the State into this field is still there, ripe for continued abuse by preventing of medical care being expanded.