Virtual Speechwriter
(If I was O'Bama ... )
I realize the insurance companies gave me a lot of money, but that doesn't make them saints. Not even in my book. They contribute nothing to the health of the people. Nothing. All they do is take.
We have a lot of problems to solve here. For one, most of the money spent in health care is for heroic efforts to prolong the agony of people in their last six months of life. We need to put money into improving health at the beginning of life, and in the middle. Infant mortality is not a pretty picture for a Maternal mortality is up. Obesity is rampant.
Do we want health insurance, health care, or health? Health is what we want. Health care, though it's not perfect, is a way to facilitate health. Health insurance is a way to squander huge amounts of money on people in offices, hoping that some of it makes it out the back door to the health care providers. It's like pushing a rope.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Make the Pie Higher!!
This time it's The Health Pie.
This morning one of my coworkers came in fuming about the "health" thing. For good reason, of course; it's a complete travesty. But you knew that. Trouble was, he was spouting F*x Noose and calling it "Socialist". And insisting that F*x tells it straight. Gak!! Why would anyone think this is butter? Anyway, it seems the F*x likes to call things they don't like "Socialist", having already decided that the word means something worse than death. Gimme a break!! You drive on public roads? That's socialism. You have or had kids in public school? That's socialism. You want help from the government when your unwisely-placed house washes away? Let's not get into that one.
This health plan is not socialism. It's Fascism, pure and simple. Of course F*x doesn't know what that word means either.
This time it's The Health Pie.
This morning one of my coworkers came in fuming about the "health" thing. For good reason, of course; it's a complete travesty. But you knew that. Trouble was, he was spouting F*x Noose and calling it "Socialist". And insisting that F*x tells it straight. Gak!! Why would anyone think this is butter? Anyway, it seems the F*x likes to call things they don't like "Socialist", having already decided that the word means something worse than death. Gimme a break!! You drive on public roads? That's socialism. You have or had kids in public school? That's socialism. You want help from the government when your unwisely-placed house washes away? Let's not get into that one.
This health plan is not socialism. It's Fascism, pure and simple. Of course F*x doesn't know what that word means either.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Friday, March 12, 2010
September 2009 St. Petersburg
(and to and fro)
[more of the Better Blog than Never department]
So we went to Umeå and caught the ferry across to Vaasa. Nice little ferry. Got on the train at Vaasa and changed at Jyväskylä (did I spell that right?) for Pieksämäki. It was a little arduous finding the little B&B-hotel but when we did, with the help of a young fellow who saw us wandering twice, we were rewarded with a nice sauna. And the next morning, when we had to leave a bit early, our hosts set up breakfast early. I can recommend Hotel Sweet Home to you without reservation (pun intended, sorry).
I like the breads they have in the north, especially Finland. We're talking serious bread here.
The train took us to Kuovola where we changed for St. Petersburg. We were on a Finnish train, and the food was way excellent.
Food in St. Petersburg was interesting. We ate at the same restaurant three nights in a row. It was run by people from one or more of the southern republics. Other meals were random and some pretty good, except for the occasional nearby smoker. There did seem to be a lot of smoking, both there and Finland.
Internet access seemed to be easiest at any of many branches of a bookstore called "Bukvoed" (pronounced kinda like bukvoyed). My guess is the name comes from vocational-educational, but that might be erroneous.
Museums are a subject big enough for a separate post.
After the visit to the Hermitage, we had the opportunity to confound a gaggle of pickpockets. A small group of punks was blocking the sidewalk behind a bus stop shelter, and since I had my passport and stuff inside my clothing, I went right ahead into the squeeze; a young lady was dipping a finger into my right hip pocket and was about to abscond with my handkerchief when I grabbed her arm. She spun away and the gang vanished. That was kinda fun.
(and to and fro)
[more of the Better Blog than Never department]
So we went to Umeå and caught the ferry across to Vaasa. Nice little ferry. Got on the train at Vaasa and changed at Jyväskylä (did I spell that right?) for Pieksämäki. It was a little arduous finding the little B&B-hotel but when we did, with the help of a young fellow who saw us wandering twice, we were rewarded with a nice sauna. And the next morning, when we had to leave a bit early, our hosts set up breakfast early. I can recommend Hotel Sweet Home to you without reservation (pun intended, sorry).
I like the breads they have in the north, especially Finland. We're talking serious bread here.
The train took us to Kuovola where we changed for St. Petersburg. We were on a Finnish train, and the food was way excellent.
Food in St. Petersburg was interesting. We ate at the same restaurant three nights in a row. It was run by people from one or more of the southern republics. Other meals were random and some pretty good, except for the occasional nearby smoker. There did seem to be a lot of smoking, both there and Finland.
Internet access seemed to be easiest at any of many branches of a bookstore called "Bukvoed" (pronounced kinda like bukvoyed). My guess is the name comes from vocational-educational, but that might be erroneous.
Museums are a subject big enough for a separate post.
After the visit to the Hermitage, we had the opportunity to confound a gaggle of pickpockets. A small group of punks was blocking the sidewalk behind a bus stop shelter, and since I had my passport and stuff inside my clothing, I went right ahead into the squeeze; a young lady was dipping a finger into my right hip pocket and was about to abscond with my handkerchief when I grabbed her arm. She spun away and the gang vanished. That was kinda fun.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
2009-09-06
The Kingdom of Cheese
Sunday — Went with Christer by way of the Kingdom of Cheese (Burträsk) to his summer cabin, halfway to Umeå, where we met Hans and his mother and had a nice time, and afterwards picked lingon and blueberries in the woods and put them into a jar which we took with us to Russia; still had some when we got into our hostel room in St. Petersburg. Great munch, along with the Västerbotten cheese we got in Burträsk. That stuff is GOOD.
In the evening Christer took us to Umeå, dinner at McDonald's, for our overnight stay before catching the ferry to Vaasa, Finland. Taxi in Umeå to the ferry was horribly expensive, and the taxi in Vaasa from the ferry to the train station was very reasonable.
The Kingdom of Cheese
Sunday — Went with Christer by way of the Kingdom of Cheese (Burträsk) to his summer cabin, halfway to Umeå, where we met Hans and his mother and had a nice time, and afterwards picked lingon and blueberries in the woods and put them into a jar which we took with us to Russia; still had some when we got into our hostel room in St. Petersburg. Great munch, along with the Västerbotten cheese we got in Burträsk. That stuff is GOOD.
In the evening Christer took us to Umeå, dinner at McDonald's, for our overnight stay before catching the ferry to Vaasa, Finland. Taxi in Umeå to the ferry was horribly expensive, and the taxi in Vaasa from the ferry to the train station was very reasonable.
Better blog than never department
2009-09-02 Bastuträsk and Skellefteå
Picked up at the train station in Bastuträsk by cousin Christer. He has been staying in touch with my mother for a very long time and stays at her house in Florida when he goes there to buy cars and parts. He and his wife Eva are waaay into American cars and he is apparently the local guru in Skellefteå.
We stayed there for several days including a trip with cousin Eskil (who taught Eva to drive long ago) up to the family stomping grounds somewhere around Ersmark. There we met a bunch more cousins, half of whom were out of work. Before that gathering we had lunch with Eskil and his wife Vera at their lovely place in Kåge.
2009-09-02 Bastuträsk and Skellefteå
Picked up at the train station in Bastuträsk by cousin Christer. He has been staying in touch with my mother for a very long time and stays at her house in Florida when he goes there to buy cars and parts. He and his wife Eva are waaay into American cars and he is apparently the local guru in Skellefteå.
We stayed there for several days including a trip with cousin Eskil (who taught Eva to drive long ago) up to the family stomping grounds somewhere around Ersmark. There we met a bunch more cousins, half of whom were out of work. Before that gathering we had lunch with Eskil and his wife Vera at their lovely place in Kåge.
Better Blog than Never department
2009-09-01 Tuesday
Arrival in Stockholm, seriously jetlagged, on the day that 100-watt incandescent bulbs became illegal.
Mamacita lost her grip on a sweatshirt she had just bought in Chicago (a closeout super deal) while getting off the plane. It did eventually turn up in "hittegods" (lost & found) and they shipped it to her in Denmark, eventually, for more than it cost.
I bought Telia SIM cards for our cell phones; selected that carrier on my cousin's good advice that their coverage was much better than the two others in the north where he lives. We put them into the Motorola W490s that were sold to us at a T-Mobile kiosk as being unlocked. Just plain unlocked. Ha. More on this later. (The difference between a cell phone salesman and a used car salesman? The used car salesman knows when he's lying.)
We were pretty jetlagged. Did I say this already? On the bus from Årlanda airport into Stockholm, due to putting on the seatbelt in the bus, my 490 came off my belt -- hey, no more belt clips, only loops -- hold me to this -- so we were down to just one nonworking phone, except for -- voila!! The Palm Treo 650 that friend Howard had given me. It is a great PDA, rather schizo as a camera (sometimes it tells me there is no camera) and reluctant as a phone. It does work, but after about 8 minutes it overheats or something and just goes bonkers. And it does other things in fits when the phone part of it is turned on. But it was truly an unlocked quad mode phone. But it was such a pain in the zad that I eventually bought a dumb Nokia for the journey.
(Later: The phone did eventually turn up in hittegods at the central station, and that hittegods office won't ship out of the country. I think I'd better call my sister's friend Tony. Later yet, did that, and he retrieved it and shipped is to me. Phew.)
2009-09-01 Tuesday
Arrival in Stockholm, seriously jetlagged, on the day that 100-watt incandescent bulbs became illegal.
Mamacita lost her grip on a sweatshirt she had just bought in Chicago (a closeout super deal) while getting off the plane. It did eventually turn up in "hittegods" (lost & found) and they shipped it to her in Denmark, eventually, for more than it cost.
I bought Telia SIM cards for our cell phones; selected that carrier on my cousin's good advice that their coverage was much better than the two others in the north where he lives. We put them into the Motorola W490s that were sold to us at a T-Mobile kiosk as being unlocked. Just plain unlocked. Ha. More on this later. (The difference between a cell phone salesman and a used car salesman? The used car salesman knows when he's lying.)
We were pretty jetlagged. Did I say this already? On the bus from Årlanda airport into Stockholm, due to putting on the seatbelt in the bus, my 490 came off my belt -- hey, no more belt clips, only loops -- hold me to this -- so we were down to just one nonworking phone, except for -- voila!! The Palm Treo 650 that friend Howard had given me. It is a great PDA, rather schizo as a camera (sometimes it tells me there is no camera) and reluctant as a phone. It does work, but after about 8 minutes it overheats or something and just goes bonkers. And it does other things in fits when the phone part of it is turned on. But it was truly an unlocked quad mode phone. But it was such a pain in the zad that I eventually bought a dumb Nokia for the journey.
(Later: The phone did eventually turn up in hittegods at the central station, and that hittegods office won't ship out of the country. I think I'd better call my sister's friend Tony. Later yet, did that, and he retrieved it and shipped is to me. Phew.)
Free Yuri
I find it totally absurd that Yuri Kondratyuk has been omitted from the International Space Hall of Fame at the Space Museum in Alamogordo. You could complain about this via their Contact Us page.
I find it totally absurd that Yuri Kondratyuk has been omitted from the International Space Hall of Fame at the Space Museum in Alamogordo. You could complain about this via their Contact Us page.
Sunday, March 07, 2010
What boggled your mind today?
Mine was the Wikipedia article on The Woodlands, Texas
The Woodlands is a hoity-toity master-planned city near Houston. The boggling was due to this aspect of the article: while many Wikipedia articles have versions in scads of other languages, this one had just four. But which four? Take a wild guess. Give up? They are (in reverse order): Volapük, Portuguese, Dutch, and Haitian Creole.
Mine was the Wikipedia article on The Woodlands, Texas
The Woodlands is a hoity-toity master-planned city near Houston. The boggling was due to this aspect of the article: while many Wikipedia articles have versions in scads of other languages, this one had just four. But which four? Take a wild guess. Give up? They are (in reverse order): Volapük, Portuguese, Dutch, and Haitian Creole.
Saturday, March 06, 2010
Revoking Corporate Charters
A talk by Richard Grossman
This was on Alternative Radio just a little while ago. Recorded in 1997, though host David Barsamian didn't mention that at the end of the program (and I didn't hear the very beginning).
You can go to alternativeradio.org to get lots of stuff, five bux for an hour MP3 program, if you can't get it on public radio where you are. Check it out.
A talk by Richard Grossman
This was on Alternative Radio just a little while ago. Recorded in 1997, though host David Barsamian didn't mention that at the end of the program (and I didn't hear the very beginning).
You can go to alternativeradio.org to get lots of stuff, five bux for an hour MP3 program, if you can't get it on public radio where you are. Check it out.
Cooking Vegiburgers
They go on chard usually, with caramelized* and/or carbonized** onions on top. I do the onions with safflower oil and a dash of allspice, and I don't have a rational explanation for the latter. It's about vibration cooking. (I once had a cookbook by that name, written by an outrageous lady named Verta Mae. "If you don't make a mess in the kitchen, you ain't makin' nothin' fit to eat!")
* my preference. ** wife's preference
Along with the whole thing we use mayonesa. That's the Mexican version of mayonnaise, made with lime juice instead of lemon. Waaay outshines the regular stuff. Best Foods / Hellman's has an orange top (and is made in Canada!); McCormick's has a red top. Check it out. Yum.
They go on chard usually, with caramelized* and/or carbonized** onions on top. I do the onions with safflower oil and a dash of allspice, and I don't have a rational explanation for the latter. It's about vibration cooking. (I once had a cookbook by that name, written by an outrageous lady named Verta Mae. "If you don't make a mess in the kitchen, you ain't makin' nothin' fit to eat!")
* my preference. ** wife's preference
Along with the whole thing we use mayonesa. That's the Mexican version of mayonnaise, made with lime juice instead of lemon. Waaay outshines the regular stuff. Best Foods / Hellman's has an orange top (and is made in Canada!); McCormick's has a red top. Check it out. Yum.
My wood stove does not have an IP address.
Nor does my well.
I have to wonder whether this technology stuff will be useful in the glorious future when all the dilithium crystals are used up, or whatever it is we're using to live beyond our means, energy-wise. Of course we are not energy wise.
Anyway, my BBC Headlines are supposed to be updating themselves automatically and they don't. I googled the problem and found the advice "right click" ... huh. For a Mac , make that control-click, and you get a menu including "Reload Live Bookmark". It doesn't work.
The stove works.
The well works when we have electricity and a solar pump might be a Good Thing. I also have a good-old-fashioned hand pump. Haven't installed it yet, but Real Soon Now ...
Nor does my well.
I have to wonder whether this technology stuff will be useful in the glorious future when all the dilithium crystals are used up, or whatever it is we're using to live beyond our means, energy-wise. Of course we are not energy wise.
Anyway, my BBC Headlines are supposed to be updating themselves automatically and they don't. I googled the problem and found the advice "right click" ... huh. For a Mac , make that control-click, and you get a menu including "Reload Live Bookmark". It doesn't work.
The stove works.
The well works when we have electricity and a solar pump might be a Good Thing. I also have a good-old-fashioned hand pump. Haven't installed it yet, but Real Soon Now ...
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