This is the case everywhere. COVID and the idiot politics that came with it put a few more nails in the healthcare coffin and then set it on fire. Believe it or not, I have an easier time getting neurology care at UVM than I did back in Michigan. I think this is the exception and not the norm.

Big part of the problem is housing. Doctors and nurses can't find places to live, so they don't put down roots. Other big part is that doctors and nurses get low-ball pay here. UVMMC is fascinated with being "competitive for the region". Fuck that. Want to fix it? Set the bar for the region. They could give all their nurses $5-$10/hr raises and would still pay significantly less than they do now for travelers/contract workers.

Easy one could be below Moss Glen falls. Maybe a little more complicated would be out on the cross country trails around Von Trapp Lodge. Get a giant pretzel, some beer, and schnitzel afterwards. Really beautiful vistas up there too. Most complicated, but possibly legendary, would be to summit Mansfield.

Oh yeah, that could be it. Looks like Tim the Tool Man ran the lines outside.

Our connection speeds are literally 50% of what they were just a couple weeks ago. Connected and wifi. Going to track speeds for a while to see if I can find a pattern in the throttling.

Does Xfinity throttle usage? Sure seems like it this month.

They are very sparse compared to other states. Truly a minority in Vermont.

Phalluses are often a simple, but elegant option for protesting

Did you know a phallus drawn on a standard white poster board with a thick Sharpie can be seen clearly from 100 yards away? Do what you will with that knowledge.

Come on now. The rec path and Smuggler's Notch are great.

They are the best

Tribalism will make things better...

I'm sitting in front of a CAD tube right now. It's what I do for a living ;)

Anyway, more details that explain how it is "maybe one day of CAD work" would definitely be beneficial.

"Probably a day of CAD at most..."

Famous last words. People who don't do CAD tend to greatly underestimate how much time a CAD project will take.

That being said, is AutoCAD the best option? What are your goals? If you want to layout renovations or landscaping, programs like Chief Architect might be a better fit. Base model program is like $100 and is super easy to use.

4. drone strike?

Then you aren't paying attention

I've seen love of private sector and it's failed. Why would more work better?

Deez nutz?

Never said that. Is it really that binary for you? Solutions need to be collaborative in Vermont's case. Neither the free market alone or the government alone can solve this puzzle.

I never said I put my faith in the government. I just said don't trust the free market and the people/companies who dominate it. Especially not in this late stage of capitalism we are in. It is not an either/or situation.

I don't know enough about Gainesville to determine if you are actually making a point or not. Low cost of living and available housing could point to the area being undesirable as much as being better run. That's why I was asking about wages and cost of living. Detroit has a low cost of living and available housing too.

"It's a university town with a huge hospital system supplying many good paying jobs"

So? "Good paying" is relative to the region.

We will not hit a McMansion saturation point in Vermont before a large portion of the population is crushed and forced out of the state. Even then, it may never happen. You place too much faith in the free market.

Yeah, most HOAs are run by the residents and don't fall into that generalization.

Sorry you had a bad experience. Like I said, they are good for multi-unit housing. Dues go towards fixing shared exterior structures like roofs, siding, garage doors, gutters, etc. Dues also cover maintenance of shared yards, parking lots, car ports, trash removal, etc.

That's the thing though. Some people can afford the McMansions, they want the McMansions, and they will buy the McMansions. Can't build enough of them in Vermont to saturate the market for them. Turning the free market lose will do nothing for the people who need the most help in this situation.

We haven't reached that saturation point. Not even close. Nobody learned anything from the 2008 meltdown. Adjustable rate mortgages are even making a comeback.

How does the average income in Gainesville compare to the price of that "affordable" housing? Might not be affordable to the locals.

OK, but that is just part of the problem. I come from a part of the country without Act 250. All developers built there were McMansions because they generate large profit margins and people will buy them (often at their own financial peril). Removing Act 250 will just result in more sprawling overpriced McMansion developments because that is all developers will build. The free market doesn't want to build affordable housing.