Year: 2013
The sticker shock of Obamacare only begins when you pick your plan.
The sticker shock of Obamacare only begins when you pick your plan.
As a key enrollment deadline hits Monday, many people without health insurance have been sizing up policies on the new government health care marketplace and making what seems like a logical choice: They’re picking the cheapest one.
Increasingly, experts in health insurance are becoming concerned that many of these first-time buyers will be in for a shock when they get medical care next year and discover they’re on the hook for most of the initial cost.
In other words, the high premiums don’t cover most initial bills. You will have to pay the cost of most of your medical bills yourself.
Iraqi government declares Christmas a ‘national holiday’
Good news: The Iraqi government has declared Christmas a ‘national holiday’.
This news report, confirmed by no other source, claims that the spacewalk this week was cut short because of water in the astronauts’ spacesuits.
This news report, confirmed by no other source, claims that the spacewalk this week was cut short because of water in the astronauts’ spacesuits.
I report this story but am very puzzled. If a water leak was the cause of the shortened spacewalks, I would have expected others to report that fact as well. No one has, however. (See this nasaspaceflight.com article, for example, which outlines the entire engineering situation quite thoroughly but says “both suits performed well during the EVA.”) Moreover, the ABC particular story above is written by someone who is not a space reporter, and contains some incongruities that reflect that, making me even more skeptical.
“An apparent double standard in President Barack Obama’s unprecedented crackdown on unauthorized leaks.”
Disclosures by lower-level officials have been vigorously pursued. For example, seven Navy SEALs were reprimanded for disclosing classified material to the makers of a military video game. Moreover, the administration has prosecuted a record number of intelligence community personnel for leaking.
Rarely, however, has the administration taken criminal action against senior officials for leaking.
Yesterday’s spacewalk on ISS, though successful, was cut short because of spacesuit discomfort issues unrelated to the earlier water leak problems.
Yesterday’s spacewalk on ISS, though successful, was cut short because of spacesuit discomfort issues unrelated to the earlier water leak problems.
No story on the spacewalk is entirely clear on the issues. Astronaut Rick Mastracchio was cold, but it seems he also had other problems that have not been outlined clearly. Interestingly he was not using the spacesuit that flooded in July. Michael Hopkins was using that suit and apparently had no problems.
In order to resize the spare suit on the station for Mastracchio they have delayed the next spacesuit for one day.
Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery comes to life!
Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery comes to life!
Read it and weep.
Another way for the young to avoid the absurdly expensive Obamacare insurance plans.
Another way for the young to avoid the absurdly expensive Obamacare insurance plans.
Today’s spacewalk on ISS to replace a coolant pump is ahead of schedule.
Today’s spacewalk on ISS to replace a coolant pump is ahead of schedule.
The link gives live updates.
Update: the spacewalk is over and a complete success, with no problems.
Another court today ruled against the Obamacare contraceptive mandate.
The law is such an inconvenient thing: Another court today ruled against the Obamacare contraceptive mandate.
The top ten states for job growth.
The top ten states for job growth.
There isn’t a clear common political thread here, but it is worth noting that all of the top five and seven of the ten have all-Republican governments.
It isn’t the party that matters, it is the philosophy of the members of that party that matters. And you are more likely to find politicians who support freedom, competition, and capitalism in the Republican Party.