December 22, 2015

Interesting data point for my 2016 health insurance

This is not a rant about my personal situation, as I know I have it a lot better than some people. This is a rant about the system in general. Please keep that in mind. Also note, all numbers are for the "in network prices". Out of network prices are roughly 2x.

For the last couple years I have had great health insurance mainly paid for by my company. They have low or no co-pays, an HSA credit card that my company puts $6750 into for free every year (I can put money into it before taxes, but never needed to), they pay for my wife's birth control even though she opts for a more expensive alternative to "the pill", and the list goes on.

This amazing health care plan just got its rates increased to the point where they company can no long afford to offer it in 2016. At this point I want to stress the fact that my company is small (~50 employees), treats us all incredibly well, is very profitable, and wanted to keep the old plan by any means possible. In fact our amazing dental plan is staying as is, and actually got cheaper by $20/month. The new plans being offered are a bronze, silver, gold type plan. No more HSA, the gold plan has $5 co-pays, silver has $10, bronze $15-$25 depending on situations. For a large amount procedure's they also require a "co-insurance" of 20-35%... something I have never even heard of before. Deductibles in the ~$7,000-$13,000 range, which is higher than it used to be, a cost that goes up with age and with number of family members covered over 2 (ok, that makes sense).

And after all those co-pays, co-insurance %s, a healthy 33 year old ends up paying $150-$200 per month. That's not bad. What is bad is I got a look at how much the company is subsidizing me. If you add that number that into the total, a healthy 33 year old costs $700-$1000 PER MONTH for a plan that includes out of pocket fees at every damn turn of the road.

And my dental insurance went down........... what the fuck

December 11, 2015

Tokyo cops are using drones to police other drones

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/12045733/Tokyo-police-are-using-drones-with-nets-to-catch-other-drones.html

Imagining this is making me laugh... I can't wait for the first high speed police drone chase

December 2, 2015

I was invited to look into this group

I wont pretend to be working poor, I am one generation removed from it. But I saw it first hand in my family as I grew up and went through high school. I am a lucky one, due to my dad's tours in vietnam and California's amazing college benefits to sons and daughters of disabled veterans. I am in the ever shrinking middle class.

But the reason I wanted to post here is because I can never forget what it was like to visit my grandparents and uncles who were working poor. The constant struggles with things most people wouldn't realize. I have a vivid memory of my grandma explaining to me how I can get extra tooth paste out of the tube when it seems to be out. Use a razor and cut lengthwise and you can get another 1 week of tooth paste. I didn't quite get it back as a 14 year old, but I get it now. The bottom line is that its fucking rough, and it has only been getting worse. Real change is needed, trickle down at this point is PROVEN not to work, and I believe trickle up should be given a shot. $15 min wage is a start.

November 20, 2015

I'm a dog lover, and dogs love me. Except one just now

This crazy fuck of an old man had a pitbull mix walking it down the sidewalk. The dog was between knee and belt high while on all fours (I'm 6'1 for reference). As soon as I was within leash distance it went into full on vicious mode, lunging and barely being kept away from me by its owner, who I'm shocked could actually hold it back (maybe one of those choker collars with sharp ends?). As I said I am a dog lover. I have been barked at by plenty of dogs, and keep my cool, stand still, look back at them, open my hand, and scratch their necks, to their owners shock. This one wasn't fucking around, my fingers would have been his dinner...

I'm not sure of an overall point here, but it was pretty shocking, and I just wanted to share some place other than facebook... I'm still a bit on edge

November 16, 2015

Does anyone else think the word "folks" is getting over used?

I swear every time something happens, it happens to "folks". Why has the word "people" been replaced?

October 29, 2015

Should A Self-Driving Car Kill Its Passengers In A “Greater Good” Scenario?

I hadn't thought of this before...


Picture the scene: You’re in a self-driving car and, after turning a corner, find that you are on course for an unavoidable collision with a group of 10 people in the road with walls on either side. Should the car swerve to the side into the wall, likely seriously injuring or killing you, its sole occupant, and saving the group?

http://www.iflscience.com/technology/should-self-driving-car-be-programmed-kill-its-passengers-greater-good-scenario


edit: People seem to get hung up on the scenario in the article, so I am going to give another one, which I have encountered:

In my own experience, driving down PCH on friday/saturday night (45-55 mph speed limit), drunken groups of 20-somethings like to just cross the street any moment they want, instead of walking a bit further to the nearest stop light. So I think the scenario is legit... would my self driving car hit them or crash me?

October 28, 2015

Northrop Grumman wins $80B defense contract. Someone in the airforce is tickled to death right now

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/northrop-grumman-wins-80-billion-contract-to-build-long-range-bomber-2015-10-27

I imagine which ever general has been pushing for this is as giddy as a 7 year old on christmas eve. He probably couldn't sleep last night he was so anxious to unwrap his new present.

October 28, 2015

Would this make you throw up in your mouth, or was it just me?

Posted by my sister who I love, but is a RWer... "I usually judge the success of my day by how much I get done. While I've been sick, it's been nice remember that all that I accomplish each day is an act of love and service to my family, but what gives me real worth is who I am as a child of God."

I usually gloss over her posts and don't care. That one just made me gag though. Am I alone?

October 23, 2015

Unemployment is low, stocks are high, Obama wins

There are several points to be made, so lets start in order...

Thanks to low unemployment, there are more fast food workers on the job 24 hours per day. Last night when I was walking home intoxicated I had the option of getting a late night meal from ANY fast food place I wanted. Back 10 years ago, under Bush, I literally only had 2 choices (taco bell or Carls Jr.).

Second point, Obama paved the way for google and amazon's big day today, and my 401K shot up massively! That never happened under Bush. Now, Obama haters are gonna hate, but things are looking damn good from my penthouse at the moment!

Third point, I have been told that during his last 2 months in office he really wont give any more fucks. He will push back against the republicans who have been constantly in his way, and then we will get REAL universal health coverage, lower tuition, and better social security services all at once. He just has to delay until the final 2 months in order to wait for the election to be done with. My last 2 votes are paying dividends (literally)