“When any white man in the world picks up a gun and says: ‘give me liberty or give me death’ the entire white world applauds. But when a black man says the same thing, word for word, he’s judged as a criminal (by whites) and treated as one. And everything possible is done to make an example of him, to ensure there wouldn’t be anymore like him.” ~ James Baldwin
Rocio Fuentes weighed up the cost of getting some new sofas for her new apartment in Pasadena, Texas, and decided the family budget could just about stretch to it. Just one month after moving in, Hurricane Harvey swept through and the Fuenteses were left not only with the ruined furniture but also an ongoing rental demand for a dwelling they had to flee.
“At first we didn’t think it would be that bad, but then the water came through the wall and up through the carpet,” Fuentes said. “Once we saw the water wasn’t going to stop, we left.”
Fuentes, her husband Jaime and their five children, ages ranging from seven months to 14 years, were plucked from the floodwaters by her mother, who arrived in a truck. They are now crammed into her sister’s apartment and with no insurance have little idea where they will live next. Jaime is unable to earn money because his construction job has been paused due to the flooding.
But while everything has changed for this family, they are still expected to pay for their abandoned home.
“Our landlords say we have to pay rent and late fees and every day it is going up,” Fuentes said. “We are paying rent for somewhere we can’t live in. They said ‘you aren’t the only ones in this situation’, but what are we supposed to do? We don’t have any money. We don’t have anything.”
Capitalism is evil.
Like some of the other comments in this are saying, legally a lot of landlords can’t actually charge rent in a situation like this, so if you find yourself in this situation, you do have legal recourse.
In Texas, the tenant law dictates that you have a right to demand that the landlord repair any condition that materially affects your health and safety. Under Texas law, by renting you the property, the landlord guarantees that the unit will be a fit place to live.
So if it’s dangerously flooded and unhygienic THEY have to fix it, not you, and you can break your lease with no penalty or have the landlord court ordered to repair it. Most states have laws like this, so actually the landlords here are risking lawsuits and people legally nailing them to the wall by trying to charge on units that are unfit for habitation.
These landlords are really stupid because apartments that are flooded out and growing black mold are going to be impossible to prove as healthy and safe. They’re just trying to take advantage of people not knowing their tenants’ rights to eke rent out of them for as long as they can before the tenants realize they actually can’t do that.
They’re probably just counting on the tenants being too poor to afford lawyers.
Even more on the ignorance, tbh. This kind of shit is VERY common amongst predatory landlords, because tbh (while it is always BEST to get legal advice if you can) this is often the kind of thing that doesn’t even need council. It’s really fucking straightforward and simple.
What they count on is people not even knowing this: they count on people thinking “well this isn’t right but even if I can fight it it’s going to cost me SO MUCH and I can’t afford it and -” and not even trying.
Since I’ve just been through Harvey, for all my Florida followers – here are some tips.
– NO HALTERS. I don’t care if it’s a breakaway, just leave them off.
– NO STALLS. Your horses are safer out. They may get some cuts and scrapes, but that’s easier to fix than a drowned horse.
– Cattle tags can be braided into the mane and tail, and can hold a lot of info, including a phone number and your name. They’re also waterproof if you write in permanent marker. Livestock paint and numbers on the hooves WILL wash off. Luggage tags will get wet. Your best bet is either cattle tags or dog tags braided into manes AND tails, and if you’re having trouble, you can use rubber bands to secure them.
– If you have to evacuate quickly, you can fit more horses in a trailer if you pack them nose to tail and take out the dividers of your trailer. A stock type trailer will fit more. It’s not ideal, but emergencies call for desperate measures.
– If you don’t need to evacuate, remember not to blanket your horses. They’re going to be shivering. They will be wet. Let them be. A blanket, even a waterproof one, will not hold up in this kind of storm and will ultimately make them colder. By the time they’re shivering they will be too wet to dry off. Plus, it will most likely be around 60-70 degrees which is too warm to blanket. If you cover them they will sweat and make themselves sick.
-HAY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN FEED. Make sure your horses are well stocked on forage before the storm, because it might be too dangerous for you to get out and feed them. A few days without feed will not hurt them – a few days without forage will.
-Make sure your troughs are full or close to full before the storm. Waterlines may break and you want to be sure your animals will have water for a few days.
That’s all I can think of right now, but please stay safe. Also feel free to add to this list.
Yes!!! This!!!
We also had back up stockpiles of dehydrated hay, forage cubes and beet pulp which was an absolute savior when we were flooded in without road access for two days with 30 horses
OH ALSO
– Minis can be put in a vehicle. Don’t put a mini in the trailer unless you know they can’t get under the other horses. You’ll have better luck shoving them in the cab of your pickup or the back of your SUV if you have to evacuate. -If there’s a possibility your trailer could be hard to get out, have it sitting hooked up and ready to go at the front of your driveway. It’s easier to get horses to a trailer than a trailer to horses.
This is Snopes-confirmed. Also be aware this is very common in sugar free food of many kinds. The retriever puppy who I know of who died of xylitol poisoning got hold of a pack of sugar-free gum.
More info, including on what to do of your dog does eat something with xylitol in it.
We had a scare a few years back, when our Staffie got hold of a pack of sugar-free mints made with sorbitol and maltitol. But:
*If your dog does get into something sugar-free, always check the ingredient list. Note that other sound-a-likes like sorbitol, maltitol, and erythritol are not poisonous to dogs. Likewise, other sugar-free products such as stevia, saccharin, sucralose, aspartame, etc. are also not poisonous to dogs. If your dog gets into one of these other sound-a-likes, it’s not poisonous. No need to worry, as long as you’re positive there’s no xylitol!
(Just like if a human eats too much indigestible sugar alcohols, they may get some stomach upset and diarrhea from sorbitol, etc. But, it’s not actively dangerous to them like xylitol.)
Urocyon's Jaunts 2.0 
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