Archive for July, 2007
Health Care or Retirement?
I heard a chilling statement from a conservative guest on Joy Cardin’s radio program last week. (The guest was Dan Cunningham, vice president of government relations, Forward Janesville.) Listen below:
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Mr. Cunningham’s thesis is that we can’t offer universal health care to Wisconsin citizens or else they’ll have no incentive to work. To put it another way, the exorbitant cost of health care and the American system of employer-subsidised insurance is forcing people to continue full-time employment, and he thinks that’s great.
How morally corrupt have we become if we restrict access to a basic human need–health care–in order to force people to work? I would hope that enough of us gain some satisfaction in our jobs that we would continue to work in some capacity even if health care was removed from the equation.
Think for a moment about the other side of Mr. Cunningham’s position: denying access to health care is an appropriate punishment disincentive for those of us who are unable (or unwilling) to find adequate employment.
Such a position is truly chilling and it runs contrary to the themes that were established in 1776 and are under such forceful attack today.
Filed under Healthcare, culture, politics, work : Comments (0) : Jul 29th, 2007
Threat Level Doctorow
When I saw this t-shirt on shirt.woot.com, I couldn’t resist.
Filed under culture, politics, war : Comments (0) : Jul 29th, 2007
tadfad quiz!
What is distinctive about this region of the U.S. ?
Submit your answers in the comments. Winner gets a prize!
[Answer will be revealed in one week]
Filed under culture, education : Comments (7) : Jul 27th, 2007
Walk Score
If you’re looking for a new apartment or moving to a new city, be sure to check out www.walkscore.com. This site uses Google Maps to approximate the relative “walk score” of your neighborhood. It takes into account the distance to essentials like grocery stores, restaurants, bars, schools, etc.
My block scored a 92!
Something to keep in mind especially if you’re considering buying a place. When gas hits $8 a gallon, walking is going to become very fashionable indeed.
Filed under culture, energy, environment, suburbs : Comments (6) : Jul 26th, 2007
Belt hack
This morning at work, my belt broke. It’s one of those lame reversible belts that people like me love, and evidently I’d reversed it one to many times. The buckle severed itself from the rest of the belt, making it pretty worthless.
In this situation, I could have made a quick dash to the mall to buy a replacement. But I was busy. And I’m resoucreful. So I hacked it:
Now you’re probably thinking “that looks terrible” and you’re right. But there are a few important considerations. First, this belt hack required all of one rubber band and about 60 seconds. Second, when I put the belt back on you could hardly tell it was broken. Check it out:
Not bad, I say.
[Epilogue: Don't worry, I'm not a total bum--I purchased a new belt after work today.]
Filed under hack, work : Comments (1) : Jul 23rd, 2007
