A survey of doctors says that many are planning to give it up due to case load and paperwork. I remember when doctors made house calls but then that was back when you saw a doctor only when death might have been near. There was the trip to the doctor's office when Billy got the marble stuck in his ear but for the most part nobody went for flu or sniffles.
What's up Doc?
What happened between then and now? Insurance companies that used to be not for profit were given free reign. With hospitals it was the same. The focus is now not on patient care but the bottom line. How many more bodies can we move through the clinic with less overhead. We all know what happens when people are rushed. Mistakes are made. So my advice is to check closely the medications you get before taking them. They can be the wrong drug or the wrong dose. People do make mistakes.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Almost back to normal
After all the overload of politics and bad economic news of late Britney is back in the news. I'm guessing getting into trouble because I don't read that nonsense. Makes you wonder how her kids will land up but then again I really don't care.
Obama plans to put all of his speeches on the internet. I'm sure he won't get as many hits as the kitty diving into the box but I think it's good thing in terms of access now if we could just make it interactive democracy would take on new meaning. Speaking of the virtual world that's getting weirder by the day:
For those who can't handle First Life: A London woman has filed for divorce because she caught her husband's online "Second Life" avatar -- a computer-generated character -- cavorting on a sofa with another, sexier avatar. He's getting off easy. Word is his estranged wife has found a new love in the cyber- universe of "World of Warcraft," a Death Knight with a low opinion of cheating husbands.
I have an idea where this is all going in the future. With the right brain implants entire lives might be lived in some virtual world. I think that that would be just another step toward the extinction of the human race. Any more I think we're becoming virtual people. Our interactions are becoming a sum of text messages, ims, emails and posts. Our kids are overweight and have arteries of adults in their forties. I used to be a photographer many years back. Now you'd think I would have tons of photos of all the places I've been but after 8 or 9 hours of looking through a viewfinder I wanted to experience life first hand. It's a different experience that's for sure. This is what I was trying to get to in an earlier post about information and how we process it. You can read an article or post or even see a video but it's not the same as being in the same room. We miss the body language and subtle aspects that make up a person's personality. And people are never themselves when they know they are being filmed.
Obama plans to put all of his speeches on the internet. I'm sure he won't get as many hits as the kitty diving into the box but I think it's good thing in terms of access now if we could just make it interactive democracy would take on new meaning. Speaking of the virtual world that's getting weirder by the day:
For those who can't handle First Life: A London woman has filed for divorce because she caught her husband's online "Second Life" avatar -- a computer-generated character -- cavorting on a sofa with another, sexier avatar. He's getting off easy. Word is his estranged wife has found a new love in the cyber- universe of "World of Warcraft," a Death Knight with a low opinion of cheating husbands.
I have an idea where this is all going in the future. With the right brain implants entire lives might be lived in some virtual world. I think that that would be just another step toward the extinction of the human race. Any more I think we're becoming virtual people. Our interactions are becoming a sum of text messages, ims, emails and posts. Our kids are overweight and have arteries of adults in their forties. I used to be a photographer many years back. Now you'd think I would have tons of photos of all the places I've been but after 8 or 9 hours of looking through a viewfinder I wanted to experience life first hand. It's a different experience that's for sure. This is what I was trying to get to in an earlier post about information and how we process it. You can read an article or post or even see a video but it's not the same as being in the same room. We miss the body language and subtle aspects that make up a person's personality. And people are never themselves when they know they are being filmed.
Friday, November 14, 2008
I just like to rub it in
The red areas on the map is what's left of the republican vote.
So the republicans are trying to figure out how to regain power. I've got an idea for you boys. Why don't you go out and get a real job? You could start at the bottom just like so many of the people you put out of work. You too could get low pay with no benefits. Oh you say you couldn't pay the mortgage on your house on that salary. Too bad tough luck boys suck it up and pull yourselves up by the bootstraps. You too can join Joe the homeless like so many others in this land because you sure don't deserve to be in a position of leadership. Oh and when you see Joe down at the burn barrel watch out because he'd like to beat the crap out of you for what you did to him.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
If this doesn't tick you off
Consumer advocacy groups sent a request to the treasury to have bank customers get a 40% reduction in their credit card debt in order to help clear up tight credit. The treasury department said no you can't do it.
Merry christmas fools
As you may recall prior to Bush and his band of thugs taking office (and I mean that literaly) if you got in trouble like having a medical emergency or job loss you could call the credit card company and get some kind of help. If you filed bankruptcy you could have your entire debt restructured or erased called debt forgiveness. Not any more. Not since Bush climed in bed with the credit card companies and changed that law. Just wonder how much Shrub sucked out of them to get that law passed.
Let me add that it's estimated that a lot of pepople are resorting to credit cards to make ends meet. I can only hope that Obama undoes everything this ass wipe did in the last eight years and I hope he does it all by executive order with no input from the rethuglicans.
Update: The credit card companies can change the rate and terms on your card even if you haven't missed a payment and have a good credit rating. Geez and I recall as a kid there were loan sharks. They would loan money at - shock! - 25%. That now sounds like a starting point for some of these blood suckers. Tony Saprano would be proud of these guys.
I recall when I was starting out having to use short term credit and cards to fill a few gaps with a rate of 19%. So what's going on now. Well since Shrub changed the rules you now have to pay all the credit card debt even if you go bankrupt with no money you still have to pay all the money back. Doesn't matter if you're on your death bed. So what are people doing? They're paying their credit cards first because they know that the house payment is expendable. They can walk away from the house but not the credit card.
What people don't seem to realize is how easy it is to get upside down in a loan. Unlike 30 or so years ago when credit rates were stable you could buy a car keep it for two years making payments then trade it for a new one and not lose on the deal.
Then there's housing. If you bought a home with a variable rate let's say because you didn't plan on living in an area for more than a few years you're screwed. And it doesn't matter if you bought too much house or not. With the home values dropping and the soft market you won't be able to stay when the rate changes and you won't be able to sell it when you owe way more than it's worth.
Merry christmas fools
As you may recall prior to Bush and his band of thugs taking office (and I mean that literaly) if you got in trouble like having a medical emergency or job loss you could call the credit card company and get some kind of help. If you filed bankruptcy you could have your entire debt restructured or erased called debt forgiveness. Not any more. Not since Bush climed in bed with the credit card companies and changed that law. Just wonder how much Shrub sucked out of them to get that law passed.
Let me add that it's estimated that a lot of pepople are resorting to credit cards to make ends meet. I can only hope that Obama undoes everything this ass wipe did in the last eight years and I hope he does it all by executive order with no input from the rethuglicans.
Update: The credit card companies can change the rate and terms on your card even if you haven't missed a payment and have a good credit rating. Geez and I recall as a kid there were loan sharks. They would loan money at - shock! - 25%. That now sounds like a starting point for some of these blood suckers. Tony Saprano would be proud of these guys.
I recall when I was starting out having to use short term credit and cards to fill a few gaps with a rate of 19%. So what's going on now. Well since Shrub changed the rules you now have to pay all the credit card debt even if you go bankrupt with no money you still have to pay all the money back. Doesn't matter if you're on your death bed. So what are people doing? They're paying their credit cards first because they know that the house payment is expendable. They can walk away from the house but not the credit card.
What people don't seem to realize is how easy it is to get upside down in a loan. Unlike 30 or so years ago when credit rates were stable you could buy a car keep it for two years making payments then trade it for a new one and not lose on the deal.
Then there's housing. If you bought a home with a variable rate let's say because you didn't plan on living in an area for more than a few years you're screwed. And it doesn't matter if you bought too much house or not. With the home values dropping and the soft market you won't be able to stay when the rate changes and you won't be able to sell it when you owe way more than it's worth.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Odd thoughts
I was thinking about some odd things. I do that from time to time. I really love to ask questions that nobody seems to know the answer to. Like stumping the instructors in my recert classes. Things like why can you overwater your lawn in the summer but it can rain all winter long with no ill effects?
With that in mind I came to Einstien's E=MC2 which is to say energy equals matter times the speed of light squared. If that is true and we know it is then mathematically M=E divided by C 2 or matter equals energy divided the speed of light squared. So somewhere in the universe energy is being converted into matter. Sorry I never took physics in college so this is all just speculations and random thoughts.
Here's another more practical whiz bang idea and I later find out that a scientist in China is working on the idea. I was wondering if it would be possible to recycle energy. We have at any given time electromagnetic energy coursing through our homes in the form of radio and TV waves. I wondered if it would be possible to capture this energy to use for lighting and powering small appliances. The Chinese scientist is working on using this energy for micro circuits and switches. I believe his ultimate goal is to get enough power to recharge cell phones without a power source. What got me to thinking about this is the old crystal radios that had no power source. The only problem is that to get any large amount of energy requires a very large collector wire. We saw that when NASA used a two mile cable as an experiment to produce electricity in space except the cable broke.
With that in mind I came to Einstien's E=MC2 which is to say energy equals matter times the speed of light squared. If that is true and we know it is then mathematically M=E divided by C 2 or matter equals energy divided the speed of light squared. So somewhere in the universe energy is being converted into matter. Sorry I never took physics in college so this is all just speculations and random thoughts.
Here's another more practical whiz bang idea and I later find out that a scientist in China is working on the idea. I was wondering if it would be possible to recycle energy. We have at any given time electromagnetic energy coursing through our homes in the form of radio and TV waves. I wondered if it would be possible to capture this energy to use for lighting and powering small appliances. The Chinese scientist is working on using this energy for micro circuits and switches. I believe his ultimate goal is to get enough power to recharge cell phones without a power source. What got me to thinking about this is the old crystal radios that had no power source. The only problem is that to get any large amount of energy requires a very large collector wire. We saw that when NASA used a two mile cable as an experiment to produce electricity in space except the cable broke.
Typical. They get the elevator and we get the shaft
Remember when the urgent rush to bailout the banks and investment houses had to be done in days or the end times would result. When it was finalized the object was to get the subprime loans off the books so that banks could continue to function and a quick infusion of cash to keep the markets moving. Well forget it. Ain't gona happen. Rather than do the right think the rethuglicans and Bushco are going to steal the rest of the money meant for main street. Rather than try and clear the underwater loans from the books and there by help the average working person Paulson and the rest of the Sapranos are going to buy bank shares. Why wouldn't that work you might ask? What would a drunkin sailor on leave do if somebody handed him a wallet full of money? You got it. He'd go out and spend it on more booze and women. Hmmm AIG comes to mind when I think about that. Nothing like a oh what should we call it? Retreat? Victory party? Blow out? Oh that's right it's a genuine business meeting complete with bubbly and spa.
Another major theft
So what do you think the banks will do with the latest cash infusion? My money's on them going out and buying other banks. Any other guesses?
Another major theft
So what do you think the banks will do with the latest cash infusion? My money's on them going out and buying other banks. Any other guesses?
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Depression
Depression - Economics. a period during which business, employment, and stock-market values decline severely or remain at a very low level of activity.
Oil is down to $59 a barrel that would be good news but it's not. It's an indication that demand is gone. Same holds true with commodities, retail and manufacturing. The only things I see going up today at least are railroads and shorts (not the ones you wear). GM reported that they have $2 billion left to burn through and at that rate will be finished by January.
Watching the financial channel it looks like the pom poms are all worn out leaving a trail of streamers on the floor.
Then there's the mortgage bailout. Sounds like a good starting point until you consider the pending layoffs in just about every sector. As we remember 70% of GDP is from consumer spending. The latest "plan" is to lower the interest rate on mortgages by nearly half and possibly extending the mortgage from 30 years to 40. So in essence what they are asking is to let a home buyer be in debt the rest of their life and there's no guarantee once these people get this bailout they won't get laid off and default anyway. If there's no stimulus to create jobs then this may be all for nought.
Oil is down to $59 a barrel that would be good news but it's not. It's an indication that demand is gone. Same holds true with commodities, retail and manufacturing. The only things I see going up today at least are railroads and shorts (not the ones you wear). GM reported that they have $2 billion left to burn through and at that rate will be finished by January.
Watching the financial channel it looks like the pom poms are all worn out leaving a trail of streamers on the floor.
Then there's the mortgage bailout. Sounds like a good starting point until you consider the pending layoffs in just about every sector. As we remember 70% of GDP is from consumer spending. The latest "plan" is to lower the interest rate on mortgages by nearly half and possibly extending the mortgage from 30 years to 40. So in essence what they are asking is to let a home buyer be in debt the rest of their life and there's no guarantee once these people get this bailout they won't get laid off and default anyway. If there's no stimulus to create jobs then this may be all for nought.
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