Health Insurers Diversify Into Racketeering

Americans are already accustomed to the extortion (aka, “premiums”) practiced by the health insurance industry. Well, the insurers are taking it a step further and are now offering good, old-fashioned “protection.” The New York Times reports:

For these economically uncertain times, the UnitedHealth Group has a “first of its kind” product: the right to buy an individual health policy at some point in the future even if you become sick.

Called UnitedHealth Continuity, the product is not actual medical insurance, but is aimed at people who may have insurance now but are worried they may lose it — and may not be able to obtain replacement insurance on their own. They may expect to retire early, for example, before they qualify for Medicare. Or they are worried about the possibility of losing their job and their health coverage.

People who are already sick will generally not be eligible for the new product. Those who do pass a medical review, will pay 20 percent each month of the current premium on an individual policy to reserve the right to be insured under the plan at some point in the future.

Amazing that we now have to pay for the right to buy health insurance. Some ambitious DA needs to throw the RICO Act at these guys.

Source:
UnitedHealth to Insure the Right to Insurance
Reed Abelson
The New York Times
December 2, 2008

Why Sex Doesn’t Sell Anymore (Hint: Maybe ‘Cause It’s Free)

I recently wrote about how the recession is even hurting the world’s oldest profession. Well, in its latest issue, Newsweek sheds a bit more light on the subject:

Jenna Jameson now has a 9-to-5 job. Fully one quarter of employees who use the Internet visit porn sites during the workday, according to October figures from Nielsen Online; that’s up from 23 percent a year ago. And hits are highest during office hours than at any other time of day, reports M. J. McMahon, publisher of AVN Online magazine, which tracks the adult video industry.

What’s driving workers to get their kicks on company time? It’s one more thing we can pin on the slow economy. “People are looking for an escape,” says Steve Hirsch, CEO of Vivid Entertainment Group, an adult online-video provider. And rightly or wrongly, they think their bosses are too busy to notice, says Dawn Adams, CEO of Wisconsin consulting firm HResults. “Managers are dealing with so many issues right now,” she says, “that sometimes people are able to hide out and no one knows what they’re doing.” AVN’s McMahon attributes the rise in workplace porn to the proliferation of free Web sites, such as xtube.com, that allow users to quickly log on and off. But a larger factor is the evolving sense—not universally shared—that porn is no big deal. “You’re looking at a younger consumer who has grown up with pornography being out there in the pop culture,” McMahon says.

Some can’t seem to stay away from it. Earlier this year, nine Washington, D.C., city employees—including at least one from Child and Family Services—were fired for viewing porn sites thousands of times while on the job. The worst offender reportedly logged an average of one hit every 2.5 minutes.

Porn! It’s cheaper than “dating.”

Source:
The Tangled Web of Porn In the Office
Anna Kuchment and Karen Springen
NEWSWEEK
Nov 29, 2008

My Movember Mandate

Alright, the votes are in and the winner is?

FRANK ZAPPA in a landslide.

My mandate is clear: for the next month I’ll be doing my best follicular impression of the guitar god.

And considering the fact he died of Prostate Cancer I don’t think you could have made a more appropriate choice.

Remember, you can donate to my mo; all the funds go to the Prostate Cancer Foundation via Movember.com.

Poll: My Mo is in Your Hands

Last November I joined a group of bold men with ample testosterone and goal to raising awareness of Prostate Cancer. I joined Movember and wore a mustache for the month of November for the cause. (The photo to the left is the manly result.)

Saturday will mark the beginning of this year’s furry fund-raising foray and I need some help deciding what style mo to grow. So I’ve put up a poll on the left side of the blog.

I’ve narrowed the choices down a bit and I have to say that right now I’m leaning towards the Zappa:

The Walrus is also a decent choice:

As is the horseshoe:

And the Chevron is a classic:

But I’ll let the results of the poll decide; my mo is in your hands. Oh, and if you want to donate to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, follow this link: http://us.movember.com/mospace/1339521

From Market Maker to Monk

The Telegraph reports:

Hristo Mishkov had a successful career as a broker on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York until he decided to give it all up to return to his native Bulgaria. His radical change of circumstances may start to look appealing to the tens of thousands of finance sector employees who face the bleak prospect of losing their jobs.

Exchanging tailored suits and expensive shoes for a cassock and sandals, Brother Nikanor, as he is now known, believes Wall Street and the City deserve all they get as the credit crunch bites deeper and the global financial system goes into meltdown.

“It is right to see people who consume more than they deserve shattered by a financial crisis from time to time, to suffer so that they can become more reasonable,” he said.

With the massive job losses in the world of finance over the past few months I wouldn’t be surprised to see this trend take off.

Source:
Wall Street trader becomes a monk
Nick Squires
The Telegraph
October 2, 2008

"It Can Happen to Anybody"

(Click for video)

For more information see DividedWeFail.org

Blogging = :-)

(image: bloggers = smiley face in Comic font)

Scientific American reports today on the tangible benefits of blogging:

Self-medication may be the reason the blogosphere has taken off. Scientists (and writers) have long known about the therapeutic benefits of writing about personal experiences, thoughts and feelings. But besides serving as a stress-coping mechanism, expressive writing produces many physiological benefits. Research shows that it improves memory and sleep, boosts immune cell activity and reduces viral load in AIDS patients, and even speeds healing after surgery. A study in the February issue of the Oncologist reports that cancer patients who engaged in expressive writing just before treatment felt markedly better, mentally and physically, as compared with patients who did not.

Scientists now hope to explore the neurological underpinnings at play, especially considering the explosion of blogs. According to Alice Flaherty, a neuroscientist at Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital, the placebo theory of suffering is one window through which to view blogging. As social creatures, humans have a range of pain-related behaviors, such as complaining, which acts as a “placebo for getting satisfied,” Flaherty says. Blogging about stressful experiences might work similarly.

(image: non-bloggers = smiley face in Basketcase font)

Source:
Blogging–It’s Good for You
Jessica Wapner
Scientific American

Portland Pizza Joints See Record Profits

The Oregonian reports today:

A group of marchers are winding their way through downtown Portland today as part of the ninth annual Million Marijuana March.

Participants were expected to gather in Pioneer Courthouse Square around noon for the march. Other events run until 5 p.m. and include a performance by Los Marijuanos, a cannabis activist hip-hop group. Vendors and nonprofits will also provide products and services that support the hemp and cannabis community.

The event is sponsored by the Oregon chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, Cures-Not-Wars, The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation and Urbage Designs.

An 8 p.m. concert at Mt. Tabor Legacy Theater, 4811 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd., will feature Los Marijuanos, Chief Greenbud, The Martyrs and Marquee. A donation of $10 is requested for the show.

Boy, would I love to own a pizza joint (pun intended) in the Rose Quarter today.

Source:
Marijuana marchers rally in downtown Portland
Yuxing Zheng
The Oregonian

Portland Pizza Joints See Record Profits

The Oregonian reports today:

A group of marchers are winding their way through downtown Portland today as part of the ninth annual Million Marijuana March.

Participants were expected to gather in Pioneer Courthouse Square around noon for the march. Other events run until 5 p.m. and include a performance by Los Marijuanos, a cannabis activist hip-hop group. Vendors and nonprofits will also provide products and services that support the hemp and cannabis community.

The event is sponsored by the Oregon chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, Cures-Not-Wars, The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation and Urbage Designs.

An 8 p.m. concert at Mt. Tabor Legacy Theater, 4811 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd., will feature Los Marijuanos, Chief Greenbud, The Martyrs and Marquee. A donation of $10 is requested for the show.

Boy, would I love to own a pizza joint (pun intended) in the Rose Quarter today.

Source:
Marijuana marchers rally in downtown Portland
Yuxing Zheng
The Oregonian

Earth Day Book Recommendation: Ishmael

Daniel Quinn raises many intriguing questions in this unique read that I wholeheartedly recommend to you on Earth Day.
LIV