Pharma Bro got seven years. If loving this tweet is wrong, I don’t know what right is anymore:
Update:Another good one, via LAO in the comments:
by $8 blue check mistermix| 122 Comments
This post is in: Show Us on the Doll Where the Invisible Hand Touched You
Pharma Bro got seven years. If loving this tweet is wrong, I don’t know what right is anymore:
Update:Another good one, via LAO in the comments:
by Betty Cracker| 206 Comments
This post is in: Domestic Politics, Open Threads
So, I got some new specs this week:
Dope or nope? This is my first pair with transition lenses. I appreciate the automatic shades for short forays into the sun that aren’t worth locating sunglasses for, but it does take a while for the lenses to revert back to clear after I come back indoors.
Got any big plans this weekend? We’re doing a fencing project (i.e., rebuilding a fence, not the en garde or distributing stolen goods types of fencing), and I’m in charge of staining completed and seasoned sections, so I’ve got that going for me. You?
Open thread!
by $8 blue check mistermix| 164 Comments
This post is in: Open Threads
I’ll let Adam and Cheryl comment more substantively, but if there really is a Trump/Kim meeting, this is probably how North Korea will feel about it:
Donald Trump humbles himself by seeking talks with Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un.
Request under consideration. pic.twitter.com/2qARhfUKI8
— DPRK News Service (@DPRK_News) March 9, 2018
That’s a parody account, btw. Open thread.
by David Anderson| 44 Comments
This post is in: Anderson On Health Insurance
Covered California released an actuarial study on the premium changes for the ACA individual insurance market due to policy changes over the past six months.Ā It is ugly.Ā The premiums will vary greatly by state over the next three years according to this study.Ā I just want to look at the worst states.
Senator Cassidy (R-LA) repeatedly brought up the story of one of his constituents last year.Ā They were a family of four with total earnings in the the six figures.Ā They did not qualify for premium tax credits even as they were spending $40,000 a year in total medical costs.Ā One family member has a chronic, high cost medical condition.Ā This person could never pass underwriting.
This family will face a choice of paying over half their income for premiums by 2021 under the current policy regime or aggressively finding ways to lose enough income to get under 400% FPL to qualify for a premium tax credit that caps their Silver premium expense at less than 10% of their income.Ā Given the much higher premiums, the opportunity cost of financial engineering to qualify for a premium tax credit will go down.Ā Having a family member with an expensive chronic condition under the currentĀ policy regime places a huge notch on earnings between 400% and 600% FPL where almost every additional dollar earned would go to either taxes or individual market premiums.
The critical question in any health financing system is how are the people with consistent and known high cost needs treated.Ā Are they left on their own?Ā Are they shunted aside?Ā Are they consigned to a life of poverty?Ā Or is there a system that counter-acts the bad luck that they have so the opportunity space is as broad and deep for them as it is for anyone else.
Right now the health policy proposals floating around Washington for the past year narrows opportunity space for many people
by Alain Chamot (1971-2020)| 20 Comments
This post is in: On The Road, Open Threads, Readership Capture
Good Morning All,
This weekday feature is for Juicers who are are on the road, traveling, or just want to share a little bit of their world via stories and pictures. So many of us rise each morning, eager for something beautiful, inspiring, amazing, subtle, of note, and our community delivers – a view into their world, whether they’re far away or close to home – pictures with a story, with context, with meaning, sometimes just beauty. ByĀ concentrating travel updates and tips here, it’s easier for all of us to keep up or find them later.
So please, speak up and share some of your adventures and travel news here, and submit your pictures using our speedy, secure form. You can submit up to 7 pictures at a time, with an overall description and one for each picture.
You can, of course, send an email with pictures if the form gives you trouble, or if you are trying to submit something special, like a zipped archive or a movie. If your pictures are already hosted online, then please email the links with your descriptions.
For each picture, it’s best to provide your commenter screenname, description, where it was taken, and date. It’s tough to keep everyone’s email address and screenname straight, so don’t assume that I remember it “from last time”. More and more, the first photo before the fold will be from a commenter, so making it easy to locate the screenname when I’ve found a compelling photo is crucial.
Have a great weekend, everyone –Ā enjoy the pictures!
Today, the last from this set of pictures from valued commenter Jerzy Russian.
I took a trip through Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, and The Netherlands last summer. In this contribution I wish to share some pictures of my visit to the famous Neuschwanstein castle, near the village of Fussen. I visited three main attractions: The Neuschwanstein castle, Schloss Hohenschwangau, and the Museum of Bavarian Kings. These attractions are among the most visited places in Europe, so I suggest getting tickets ahead of time. I am not that organized, so I stood in line for a few hours.
Construction of structures on the site of Schloss Hohenschwangau started in the 1400s. The lqnd changed hands several times, and castle we see there today dates back to the 1850s. It was the childhood home of the Bavarian King Ludwig II. Members of his family lived there until the early 1900s. Although the outside is relatively modest (as castles go), the interior is quite spectacular. I could not take pictures while inside.
King Ludwig had a lot of castles built, and the construction of Newschwanstein started in 1868, and was completed some 20 years later. Although it sort looks midevil, it is a relatively modern structure with steel framing, plumbing, etc. The interior is lavish, and I did not take pictures from the inside. The views from the top of the castle were amazing.
This is a shot of Neuschwanstein Castle taken from the hotel in Fussen. The castle is probably around two miles away.
Here is the exterior of Schloss Hohenschwangau. It sits on a hill overlooking Lake Alpsee.
We can see Schloss Hohenschwangau in the foreground, and Neuschwanstein Castle in the background. The guide told us that King Ludwig would monitor the progress of the construction of Neuschwanstein using a telescope while sitting in his room in Schloss Hohenschwangau.
Here is a view of Neuschwanstein Castle as seen from the road leading up the mountain. It is nearly impossible to get a good view of the castle from the road leading up there. There is apparently a trail that goes up the mountain where one can get better views, but I did not have time (nor the energy) to do that.
Here is a picture taken from the top of Neuschwanstein. The Village of Fussen is to the left. The views were amazing, and my primitive photographic skills could not do justice to them.
Here is a model of the castle inside the castle near the end of the tour.
Here is a view of Lake Alpsee taken from the entrance of the Museum of Bavarian Kings.
Thank you so much Jerzy Russian, do send us more when you can.
Travel safely everybody, and do share some stories in the comments, even if you’re joining the conversation late. Many folks confide that they go back and read old threads, one reason these are available on the Quick Links menu.
One again, to submit pictures:Ā Use the FormĀ orĀ Send an Email
This post is in: Open Threads, Popular Culture, Readership Capture, Television
EXCLUSIVE: Former President Obama is in talks with Netflix to produce shows for the streaming service that would give him a massive, post-presidential platform. With @ktbenner https://t.co/3YxnV4lKXb
— Michael D. Shear (@shearm) March 9, 2018
… Mr. Obama does not intend to use his Netflix shows to directly respond to President Trump or conservative critics, according to people familiar with discussions about the programming. They said the Obamas had talked about producing shows that highlight inspirational stories.
But the Netflix deal, while not a direct answer to Fox News or Breitbart.com, would give Mr. Obama an unfiltered method of communication with the public similar to the audiences he already reaches through social media, with 101 million Twitter followers and 55 million people who have liked his Facebook page.
āPresident and Mrs. Obama have always believed in the power of storytelling to inspire,ā Eric Schultz, a senior adviser to the former president, said Thursday. āThroughout their lives, they have lifted up stories of people whose efforts to make a difference are quietly changing the world for the better. As they consider their future personal plans, they continue to explore new ways to help others tell and share their stories.ā
n one possible show idea, Mr. Obama could moderate conversations on topics that dominated his presidency ā health care, voting rights, immigration, foreign policy, climate change ā and that have continued to divide a polarized American electorate during President Trumpās time in office.
Another program could feature Mrs. Obama on topics, like nutrition, that she championed in the White House. The former president and first lady could also lend their brand ā and their endorsement ā to documentaries or fictional programming on Netflix that align with their beliefs and values…
Think that WH “cybersecurity” permits streaming content? (Oh, c’mon, the hate-watch tweets would be incandescent. Twitter could probably charge for premium content!)
After considering its widespread and meaningful evidence of use, we've put 'dumpster fire' in the dictionary. Feel free to GIF it as you like. https://t.co/XImxk6c0EY
— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) March 5, 2018
Friday Morning Open Thread: Readership CapturePost + Comments (131)
This post is in: Goddamned Traitors, Open Threads, Republican Venality, Russiagate, All Too Normal
The Daily Caller just published an op-ed on "The Ever-Changing āRussia Narrativeā" written by Oleg Deripaska, the Putin ally and Russia billionaire who paid Paul Manafort millions to lobby for Putin-friendly oligarchs in Ukrainehttps://t.co/QY8wqMT1eC
— Astead (@AsteadWesley) March 8, 2018
I know ‘can you imagine… ‘ is an overworked trope, but if — for instance — Think Progress had published an op-ed like this, the Daily Caller would be screaming for Trump to send Seal Team Six through their office window.
This includes no disclosure of Deripaska's ties to Putin or Manafort, either. https://t.co/GsLIPyPTvR
— Aaron Blake (@AaronBlake) March 8, 2018
Newsworthy? Sure. But given his ties to a propagandist and adversarial foreign power, perhaps a Q&A in which you could have actually challenged him.
Also, not sure how there is zero disclosure of his Putin or Manafort ties. Stunning, really.
— Aaron Blake (@AaronBlake) March 8, 2018
BTW, Iām being only a little cheeky about this. Remember that Manafortās bail terms got squeezed tighter when he was caught writing an op-ed for some oligarch (iirc it wasnāt Deripaska) https://t.co/25F1QAt27k
— Dana Houle (@DanaHoule) March 8, 2018
Like, you'd really think that one benefit of being a Russian oligarch is that whoever you pay to write your Daily Caller op-ed is a better writer than this (the kicker!!) pic.twitter.com/iD9yxannAl
— Tom Gara (@tomgara) March 8, 2018
I doubt if the Daily Caller staff have health care, let alone life insurance!
— Lindsay Beyerstein (@Beyerstein) March 9, 2018
Would like to know which PR/lobbying firm helped place this. They may need to register under FARA.
— Tommy Vietor (@TVietor08) March 8, 2018
Bring out the puke funnel, boys…
Drudge has linked to Russian propaganda hundreds of times in recent years. He's already linking to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska's Daily Caller op-ed. pic.twitter.com/S7EzIBl8Fo
— Media Matters (@mmfa) March 8, 2018