Badger's Den

Healthcare Thoughts
10:24 a.m. - 2009-09-16

While most people (who don't listen to Ruch anyway) agree that our current healthcare system is unsustainable, the fear generators and misleaders are running amok. I don't have the answers, but I do have some thoughts. it seems to me that a group of rational, well intentioned people, armed with the concerns of all parties, without outside influences, could sit down an hammer out a plan that would satisfy most requirements with acceptable impact.

It seems the likelyhood of that happening are nil. So here are some of my thoughts at the moment.

Health care decisions are not being made by the doctor and patient. Corporate bureaucrats are making the decisions. People fear government bureaucrats, but isn't it better to have your fate in the hands of people who ultimately work for the people vs. people who work for stockholders focused only on maximizing profit?

Mandated health insurance without government managed low cost provision is like telling everyone they have to go out and buy a Chevy.

Yes, that is exactly what people are clamoring for - someone forcing them to buy something that they can't afford.

The logic is that if everyone is in then the cost is shared over a larger base and cost to the individual goes down. Does that happen before or after every buys? And without true insurance competition or regulation, how do we know we aren't just getting ripped off?

Somehow I don't see that happening which is why I feel the dank wetness of corporate drool, salivating over more profits.

I have good insurance compared to others today. It's pathetic compared to what I had 10 years ago. I am relatively healthy and yet it still costs me $3,000 - $5,000 annually for premiums and co-pays. Would a single payer system be costing me that much?

Has anyone done a root cause analysis for why costs are rising so quickly? Some are quick to blame malpractice insurance. How many doctors are really getting sued and losing? How do settlements compare to insurance premiums?

Republicans like to talk about tort reform, which mainly means limiting payouts (though some have claimed it is a way to hamstring Democratic fundraising).

I'm not in favor of restrictive settlement limits. If a doctor cuts off your leg instead of removing your appendix, you deserve a ton of reparations.

The type of tort reform I would like to see is that if you sue someone and lose, you pay their court and legal costs. The idea is scary that someone could sue me for anything at anytime with impunity.

What really drives costs? Doctors who get paid on a per-service basis? Pharma advertising? Equipment and technology costs?

Traying to cover expensive research investment?

People living longer?

Corporations want free trade (read completely unregulated) - except pharmaceuticals and health insurance. Is the FDA really working for us or protecting pharma profits?

If a drug is being taken safely in Europe, I trust it to work as safely here. Perhaps not Myanmar drugs...

Can I get cheaper health care in Arkansas?

Where is the Geico gekko for health insurance?

Preventative health care is cheaper but less covered by health insurance.

Some Books
9:39 a.m. - 2009-09-04

Wow another post!

I went through a few weeks of depression in July and August. It has gradually gone mostly away, but it was a struggle to do anything. I just want to stay home and watch TV and surf the web.

The last pieces of it are that I still have to drag myself to the office every morning. Especially on a morning when the weather is particularly nice.

But I'm looking forward to some more time off and some extended time with Eugene.

Last night was productive as I hit two libraries, mowed the lawn, cleaned up leaves and acorns and sticks from the patio, ran to Kmart for cat food, talked to JB and then at least 40 minutes with Tim, and picked up prescription refills at the pharmacy.

Whew.

LOL

Books I have read recently...

Harry and the Pirates - SF about Harry Keogh who can converse with dead folks. Unique concepts and I will read more of the Necroscope books.

The Virginity Myth - excellent expose on how the abstinence only movement and the push for virginity drives a virgin/whore either/or concept in young women. The same fundamentalist, turn back the clock to 1950 crowd that is behind it is also the source of much of the pain for GLBTs. They are against anything that threatens "traditional" gender roles - man in change, women barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen.

Of course they have some twisted contradictory concepts that I'll dwell on later.

Right now it's off to a meeting.

Resume: A Week with Eugene
3:01 p.m. - 2009-09-01

I am embarassed that I have neglected the Den so much of late. I'm preparing for a vacation week with Eugene starting Saturday. His roommate asked if I could put up with him for 9 days in a row.

Ironically, I have wondered the same thing. But we will be active. We plan on geocaching in 5 states, a cookout for Labor Day with some of my friends, the first pride festival in town, and of course some football games.

Mainly I want to have some romatic time with him, some quiet hikes in the woods, evenings by a fire and dining in quaint restaurants. After my trip to the Canadian Rockies, I am tired of travelling alone for awhile.

Where my Mind Is
1:42 p.m. - 2009-07-08

I keep thinking work is going to wind down to something more normal, more manageable and les stressful. Many around me are getting these week long rolling layoffs. I'm not slated for one though I sure could use the down time.

I had hoped that with the completion of our project that there would be some slack time, but no, we are right into the next project and under the gun.

My new boss defnitely thinks I'm getting hammered by the team as I seem to be the guy with all the answers. The next two weeks should be good. The week of the 13th most of the team will be on semi-mandatory vacation time. Somebody has to mind the shop so that means me. But demand should be light.

Then for the week of the 20th I'll be heading to Canada again, this time flying to Calgary and spending time in Alberta and British Columbia. I've got 5 days in Calgary / Banff / Jasper, a day in Vancouver and a day in Victoria with 2 days of driving through BC.

I've never been to the Canadian Rockies so I'm definitely looking forward to it.

Meanwhile I need to spend more time on home organization. I am barely keeping things under control. The place is hardly presentable for guests.

This weekend is one of my few free weekends at home. Last weekend Eugene was here for the 4th and we had a good time geocaching, cooking out, watching movies and generally hanging out.

Friday we joined up with Andy for a day trip into Chicago. It was Eugene's first subway ride and first time to boystown. I showed him Millenium Park with the 'bean' and we spent a few minutes at the taste of Chicago which I found expensively disappointing and extremely overcrowded. We also saw the new glass balconies at the Sears Tower (safely from the street). Andy went to a Cubs game so we met him at a bar outside Wrigley then strolled down Northalsted headed for the train.

After Giordanos Chicago style pizza (YUM) we decided to avoid the crowds headed to the lakefront fireworks and explored Hyde Park area, home to the 1896 Worlds Fair, the impressive Chicago University and former residence of Pres. Obama (though we weren't sure where his house was).

In between all of that was enough snatches for me of Michael Jackson tributes. I was sorry to hear of his passing and thought he was a major force in music in his youth. I also thought he was so dang hot in his Thriller days before the numerous plastic surgeries (or just aging as he claims) took an unpleasant toll on his face.

I always felt a bit sorry for him as a tormented (internally and externally) person. Our impossibly puritan standards has no room for anyone who violates its miopic sexual concepts. Not that there is any room for child abuse, but as a judgmental society we are quick to throw the person under the bus for expressing any ideas we surpress.

Virtually no one meets the puritanical tyranny if our thoughts are examined. No one who dares act upon them escapes condemnation. Because as a society we love to mock and judge and condemn but refuse to hold out a hand to help our fellow humans up. Instead of helping all of us channel our thoughts in productive and healthy paths, we condemn and punish. We feed those we claim to love to the lions of the colliseum.

So I feel sad for Michael and hope he can rest in peace. He seemed a surprisingly shy person for someone whose life relied on being in the public eye. He truly was Peter Pan who refused to accept life outside of his emotional Neverland.

Weekend and Prop 8
3:38 p.m. - 2009-05-26

Had a great weekend with Eugene, enjoying the log holiday weekend with some time in Fond du Lac. We hung out with several sets of friends and did a lot of geocaching. The weather was perfect. Monday before I headed for home, we hiked in the woods for two hours. I was so sore when I got home and this morning when I got up - and oddly enough I was most sore in my abdomen. Go figure.

I was disappointed to hear that the California Supreme Court upheld Prop 8, but not really surprised. It seems that inequality is easy to spot, but hard to overcome. Tradition has a lot of inertia, as does fear.

After a Long Absence...
12:08 p.m. - 2009-05-19

Hi - I'm still here and feeling guilty about not updating. Can't believe it's been almost 2 months - well, yes I can.

I do have excuses, mainly that work the past 6 weeks has been intense. The project I have worked on for the past 3 years went into production the first of April and I have been instrumental in coordinating all the fixes and there have been tons. For most of the last 6 weeks I have essentially been working or sleeping or in an awake but essentially vegetative state :)

I did make a visit to Wisconsin the weekend of May 9th to visit Eugene. We did some geocaching, partying and relaxing just hainging out and enjoying each other's company.

He does have a job now. He's been working for several weeks. It is temporary but he has to work 6 days a week. Working every Saturday sucks a bit and makes our get together's more challenging. But he's had a lot of days off this past year. At least he gets off at noon. And he likes the work and co-workers.

Andy graduated from grad-school Saturday with a Masters in Public Administration. He's hoping to finalize his permanent job within the month.

He and I are planning a trip to Quebec the first week of June. I am really ready for a vacation. This will be the first chance to get away from work since my Alaska trip in September.

Observations
8:24 a.m. - 2009-03-24

Some Observations...

1) Where the hell did March go???
2) I bet Bobby Jindal would find it ironic if a volcano erupted in Louisiana.
3) Having been there, a volcano would definitely be a plus
4) Work is extremely busy which is why I'm still working.
5) Eugene has still not found a job after a year now.
6) Favortie Quote for the Month: A loving person lives in a loving world. A hostile person lives in a hostile world. - Ken Keyes, Jr.
7) I am amazed that people still think AIDS is God's punishment for the sin of sex and that treating AIDS is interfering with God's divine retribution.
8) I am amazed that people seem to think that preganancy is a punishment for the sin of sex and that abortions and birth control are interfering with God's divine retribution.
9) If you pay someone a retention bonus after they leave the company, isn't that a contract violation?
10) I liked the author who wrote that while he was no longer religious, he still claimed to be a Christian because Jesus was a awesome guy.
11) Thanks to the Obama administration for siding with most of the west in condemning punishment including imprisonment and death of gay people.
12) In response to comments that gay sex is unnatural because the parts don't fit, John Corvino told an audience that "yes they do" and if they don't, then "you're doing it wrong."
13) I kinda like GOP chair Michael Steele, but wish he would stick to his guns and quit appologizing to the extremists
14) I am glad that science appears to carry more wieght than politics or religion in Obama's administration
15) What do the Pope's admission of a mistake say about his cannonical powers?
16)Those California gay business students have a problem with bigots like Meg Whitman being hailed as great leaders
17) I really enjoyed John Stewart's interview with Mad Money's Jim Cramer
18)I think that news networks have more of a responsibility to their viewers than their owners.
19) I think Congress has more of a responsibility to the country than to their party.
20) While I appreciate my insurance paying for the Service Type MEDCX, I wish the Explanation of Benefits letter would actually explain the benefits.
21) I'm sure that God made us in his image because we made him on our image.
22) I think it is sad that people spend so much of their lives waiting to meet God in the hereafter that they fail to enjoy God's presence in the here and now.
23) Isn't it convenient that God hates the same people his followers (e.g. ancient Hebrews) hate?

It's the Economy...
11:51 a.m. - 2009-02-27

Seems like I've heard the phrase "It's the Economy, Stupid" before. Yes, at the end of the first Bush's presidency. How appropriate that the second Bush's reign ended on the same note.

Apparently the recent Republican leadership doesn't understand what this means. They seem to think that the economy refers only to the rich getting richer, the schemers having new ways to fleece the populace, and tayloring a system that rewards not people working hard but people working the system.

It seems like Republican economics is like one giant Ponzi scheme with everybody grabbing money ala musical chairs before the music stops.

There was no smaller government with the Republicans. There was never any trickle down. They started and sustain two wars. Entitlements were redefined as subsidies to the wealthy. There was nothing conservative about their economics.

Then there are times with the Democrats seem to be totaly iresponsible with their economics. I don't know about the current stimulus package - it's a lot of money yet some say not enough. I do know that $750B only accounts for the lost revenues of about 40 large corporations like the one I work for. When compared to the losses among the Fortune 500, $E750B seems pretty small.

Now I'm all for better managed government spending and lower taxes. Obama's tax relief for me barely shows up on the radar compared with what I pay.

I read an article where all the commentors were bitterly decrying the burden we are dumping on our grandchildren. Yet I bet few of those irate people voted for that last school referendum. I bet that few supported a property tax increase to improve police protection. Most of them will complain long and hard about utility rates and gas taxes.

Well, everytime they don't pay the costs to maintain or upgrade our deteriorating infrastructure, our schools, our cities, our transportation system, they are living off the investments of our grandparents and defering the costs to our grandchildren.

Its the consistent message of our times that it's all about me. It's all about me getting my share and most of yours while the gettin' is good.

Well we can only pick each other's pockets for so long before the whole system comes crashing down. And as painful as times are now, this is really only a small setback. The schemers are already looking for ways to take advantage of this situation to line their pocketbooks.

We are all serfs yet convince uourselves we are masters. We gladly put presure on those below us on the economic ladder to work cheaper just as we are pressured by those above us.

Our progressive society has little changed from an age of barbarism. The strong take advantage of the weak. The strong try to grow stronger, richer, more powerful.

OK so what is my solution? First we need to quit thinking of other people as something we can use to our advantage. Anytime we mis-use others to make ourselves superior, society as a whole suffers. We need to focus on what is really important which will vary from person to person.

Additionally we should all examine out motives for doing things. Why do we need the bigger house? I feel like a fairly conspicuous consumer occupying a 70 year old 2,000 square foot home al by myself. Unheard of luxiury in a good part of the world while much too small for today's average young American professionals.

Why do some of us need a Lexus. Does it really have 2 to 4 times the functionality of a Kia? Even as a gay man I don't own much jewelry. I don't spend hours managing my portfolio. Why do you have the friends you do - is it because of the quality of interaction or becasue of what they can do your you?

Too many people in the world seem to believe the only way to feel good about themselves is to put other people down, financially, politically, socially or spiritually.

When America can quit thinking of 'me' and start thinking of 'us' and even that in a worldy sense, maybe we can actually start making this society a decent one for everyone.

Still Here; Still Political
11:32 a.m. - 2009-02-27

Yes I am still here. Between work being intense lately and my SAD dragging me down, I haven't actually put fingers to keyboard here for awhile. But I'm surviving. Ready for Spring of course.

Ready to take some time off work and see what lies beyond, so will be glad when May rolls around and our 8 month vacation moratorium will be lifted. It's not the economy, just all hands on deck to get our project done on time and on budget.

Eugene is coming down tonight for the weekend. Haven't seen him in nearly 4 weeks. His roommate wondered if I was getting tired of Eugene since we haven't been together much. Well that's typical for winter and will change soon.

Our rehearsal for the Spring performance of Beethoven's 9th is progressing. It will be good when we can combine the 3 choruses so that there'll be a few more 1st tenors.

And a word on poltics...

Collaboration:

Person A) We should try option 1 to fix things
Person B) I think option 2 would work better
Person A) Well how about we try some of both
Person B) Sure and as we see results we can refine our options.

Partisanship:

Person A) We should try option 1 to fix things
Person B) That's just like you always wanting to push option 1 down our throat.
Person A) Well I guess we could add some option 2 that you are always pushing for.
Person B) Hey everybody, Person A has this really crappy plan. There's all kinds of stupid details I can itemize for you.

Or as a co-worker of mine once proudly told our boss "I've been harpooning projects like this for years."

Hint: Unless you are in demolition or the military, pride comes from building things not tearing things apart.

Saving the Economy
1:36 p.m. - 2009-01-30

I want to congratulate Obama on reaching out to Republicans on the stimulus bill and trying to incorporate some of their ideas into the plan.

Pity the Congressional Republicans can't do the same.

Obama's a bigger man than I, which is one reason I voted for him. Why listen at all to Republican ideas that have helped foster the mess we are in. They had 6 years to run things their way and essentially opened the doors to the bank for their supporters.

Now I'm not an economist and I don't know the details of the stimulus plan. What I've heard is that both liberal and conservative economists have the same goal - increase jobs. Good.

The challenge is of course how to do that. I do no that giving me and people in my economic situation right now a wad of cash, probably won't change my spending habits. I'll likely save it in a bank which typically won't loan it out (though mine is local and happens to have been financially prudent and is still lending).

So a payrole tax reduction, while very welcome personally and a suitable long term goal for the country, doesn't seem like a way to actually create jobs. With my income cut for the next two years, it would take a substantial amount of money to get me to spend it beyond my typical spending patterns.

Seems like the quickest way to create jobs is to hire people. The second best way would be to send money to private people who then have to hire.

Tax credits seem useless at this point. A small business person who can't afford to increase their payroll isn't likely to do it to save money on their tax bill. Giving me free gas doesn't help is I can't afford a car.

And a tax cut to a person who just lost their job... Losing their job already gave them a huge tax cut. Whoopie! 10% of zero is... well zero.

What I fear most is that nothing anyone can do will fix the recession anytime soon.

What I fear second is that the Democrats will be no more inclined to really fix an economy skewed to vastly favor large corporations.

One thing that a commentator stated that hit home. The CEO's that are spending millions on office remodels, corporate jets and bonuses while their companies are surviving due to corporate socialism just don't have any concept of how the majority of the country lives or feels toward them.

As a friend once said - to a man of wealth, us peons aren't even visible let alone capable of entering their thoughts.

I've started reading the book "Deer Hunting with Jesus." So far it is an amazing eye-opener. Just as corporate bigwigs can't imagine my life or hardships, I cannot imagine those on the lower rungs of society.

We all focus upward and concentrate on climbing that economic ladder when the reality is there is no ladder and we are climbing up a greased inverted funnel with room for less and less at the top. Add to this that we are actually all sliding gradually down.

And our current economic system while tantalizing us with visions of prosperity is really just continually constricting the top of the funnel.

The idea of pulling ourselves up by the bootstraps is fine except there aren't any bootstraps. We're lucky to have boots.

The author says there really is no middle class. It's a myth and everyone who has a job, even if it doesn't pay the bills, thinks thay are part of the middle class. In reality most of this country is a handful of paychecks away from destitution. Right where the elitists want us.

They are the medival kings and we are the serfs. Some serfs had nicer houses, but serfs they were at the mercy of the whims of their employer.

I don't expect miracles, but maybe this government can slow down the slide a bit.

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