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Starship launch, Big Brother, YouTube, something Scifi...

NHRA Northwest nationals Q2 on FS1, Finals on Fox, AUSL championships game 2 and Big Brother this evening…

Watch Big Brother, dvr The Traitors, check on football game and watch if it draws me in...

MLB wild card games…

Will be avoiding the networks tonight for obvious reasons... might watch some classic NCIS to fill the gap.

Such a scam. Healthcare.gov shows me cheaper individual plans available for 2027 from ambetter that ambetter doesn't show on their website. Looked it up. I've spent $68,000 in premiums the last 5 years and got nothing out of it except a few doctors visits and labs.

osu1991 said:

Such a scam. Healthcare.gov shows me cheaper individual plans available for 2027 from ambetter that ambetter doesn't show on their website. Looked it up. I've spent $68,000 in premiums the last 5 years and got nothing out of it except a few doctors visits and labs.

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have you even been abroad. talk about the cost of health care the whole cost of living in merica is a scam. were taxed to death so bad everyone's a slave to the govt. explore the cost of living in other countries it might blow your mind!!!

I've had CTs etc within MINUTES of entering an ER (A&E).

In Canada, they publish wait times (months) for CTs. And track the number of deaths of such people while waiting.

slow_poke_pete said:

have you even been abroad. talk about the cost of health care the whole cost of living in merica is a scam. were taxed to death so bad everyone's a slave to the govt. explore the cost of living in other countries it might blow your mind!!!

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OK

Examples of Tax Rates in Universal Healthcare Countries

• • Denmark
    • Tax Wedge / Top Rate: Has some of the highest income tax rates in the world, with top marginal personal income tax rates reaching around 55.9% to 60.5%.
    • Tax-to-GDP Ratio: Around 45.2% (one of the highest in the OECD).
    • Healthcare Funding:
  • France
    • Tax Wedge: The average single worker's tax wedge is approximately 47.0% to 47.2% of labor costs.
    • Tax-to-GDP Ratio: Around 43.5%.
    • Healthcare Funding: Funded via Statutory Health Insurance (SHI) payroll contributions, income taxes, and specific levies on alcohol and tobacco. Patients typically pay 20% to 30% out-of-pocket or use complementary insurance
  • Germany
    • Tax Wedge: The average single worker's tax wedge is approximately 47.9% to 48.3%.
    • Healthcare Funding: Dual statutory and private health insurance model funded by joint employer-employee payroll contributions (calculated as a percentage of gross wages up to a ceiling) plus general federal subsidies
  • United Kingdom
    • Tax Wedge / Rates: Progressive income tax rates range from 20% to 45% for individuals, plus a 20% Value Added Tax (VAT) on goods and services.
    • Healthcare Funding: The National Health Service (NHS) is funded primarily out of general national taxation rather than a dedicated social insurance contribution.
  • Canada
    • Tax Wedge / Rates: Progressive federal and provincial income tax brackets vary by province, with top marginal rates generally scaling from 40% to 53% combined.
    • Healthcare Funding: Canada's public medicare system is tax-funded through federal and provincial revenues, though prescription drugs outside hospitals, dental, and vision care often require private insurance or out-of-pocket payment.
  OECD Average Reference
  • Across OECD countries with universal coverage, the average single-worker tax wedge sits at 35.1% of labor costs, showing that rates range drastically from lower-tax systems (like parts of Latin America or Asia) to high-tax European welfare states.

Well done

Just got our renewal and its going up to over 1900 a month. Deductible is going up too.

Im probably dropping myself off of it and just keeping it on my wife and daughter. This is utterly ridiculous and pisses me off on a yearly basis.

navychop said:

I've had CTs etc within MINUTES of entering an ER (A&E).

In Canada, they publish wait times (months) for CTs. And track the number of deaths of such people while waiting.

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Must be nice. My mother waited hours in the ER for that when she fell over the summer and hit her head.

Heaven forbid they think you have a swallowing issue. They'll just let you die unless you void a DNR order and agree to be intubated with a feeding tube. Hospitalist refused any other option and told me to prepare for the end. I had to call a doctor friend that recommended that I move my mother to hospice care which would take over care from hospital staff and approve giving her something. She didn't pass their swallowing test but had no problem actually swallowing. 2 days after hospice took over and she actually had some nutrition she was back to normal. After that I refused any more $2100 ER transports from long term care. They did the same to my dad 6 years ago when he was in the hospital and couldn't pass their swallowing test even though he had been fine eating and drinking for a week while there under the care of the cancer hospital before being moved to the main hospital. It led to his health decline after showing improvements towards being released.

I know more now and will push back if ever in those situations again. Also ticks me off the hospitalist doctor has final say over any of the specialists actually caring for the patient. In my opinion all of these hospitals and clinics being bought by two or three large national groups has led to poorer care.

In 1993 they were trying to address healthcare, now the problem is a damn monster!.....We need more drs, and nurses to start. Rural hospitals are closing down left and right. It looks like my closest hospital(26 miles away) doesnt think they will make it through next year. The whole thing is a mess! And by the first of the year it will be on steroids!

hold on tight

Oooo, quite the show now. All three vents have doming and overflows. The cone that built up around the North vent lost its upper quarter at 02:50 Oct 17 and is now spewing lava at a healthy rate. Don't know if I would say it's a fountain, but it's close.

edit: The USGS has called the official start of Episode 55 as starting at 03:19 HST Oct 17, 2026:

---

Alert Level: WATCH, Color Code: ORANGE 2026-10-17 13:43:56 UTC
HVO/USGS Volcanic Activity Notice

Volcano: Kilauea (VNUM #332010)

Current Volcano Alert Level: WATCH
Current Aviation Color Code: ORANGE

Issued: Saturday, October 17, 2026, 3:43 AM HST
Source: Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
Notice Number: 2026/H488
Location: N 19 deg 25 min W 155 deg 17 min
Elevation: 4091 ft (1247 m)
Area: Hawaii

Summary: Episode 55 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption began at 3:19 AM HST on October 17, 2026.

Volcanic Activity:
Episode 55 of lava fountaining in Halemaʻumaʻu began at the summit of Kīlauea began at 3:19 AM HST on October 17, 2026.

Fountain heights are relatively low at about 100-150 feet (30-45 m), and it is not clear whether this episode will evolve to the same heights as previous episodes. Continuous overflows from the vents began yesterday, October 16, just before 6 a.m. HST and transitioned into episode 55 fountains at 3:19 a.m. HST this morning. The current forecast is for winds are blowing from the north-northeast direction, which suggests that volcanic gas emissions and volcanic material may be distributed to the south-southwest direction from Halemaʻumaʻu.

• All eruptive vents and lava flows are confined to Halemaʻumaʻu crater within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Tephra fall from volcanic ash clouds is greatest within 3 miles (5 km) of the vents, lighter ash and Pele's Hair may stay suspended for large distances from the vents.

Kīlauea seems to be returning to the "normal" eruption script, impressive fountaining from the North Vent. For once, the V2 Cam has the best overall shot:
The lava flows have covered a good portion of the Halemaʻumaʻu crater floor.

Looks like Episode 55 is over at 09:00 HST, just under six hours. The USGS said the fountains reached 720' or 220 meters.

The USGS Kīlaeua Webcam #1 has been showing overflows and doming from the North vent overnight. Maybe the volcanic plumbing has settled back into its two-three week cycle of fountaining?

But I do miss the little cinder cone that broke up in the last episode.

Since it was already "paid" for, I spent the two hours of my time watching the John Cena action movie on Apple TV, "Matchbox The Movie" even though the reviews were brutal. It was better than I expected, so I didn't feel like I had wasted an afternoon watching it. But it felt like another "Reacher"/"Neghley"/"Mission: Impossible"/"Fast & Furious" crash and blow stuff up with lots of automatic gunfire mixed in movie featuring covert CIA operatives.

I don't think we'll get a follow-up movie from this. I expect Mattel will have other toy lines to exploit.

View: https://youtu.be/0-p9SIKs1K8?is=CXuDXVPi5oT6t_b0


Barbara Hershey

osu1991 said:

View: https://youtu.be/0-p9SIKs1K8?is=CXuDXVPi5oT6t_b0


Barbara Hershey

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Last of the Dogmen is my favorite of hers.

Washington Post

SpaceX has held talks with Boost's parent company EchoStar in recent months about launching its own signature wireless service through a deal with the company, according to two people familiar with the negotiations.
Musk, the SpaceX CEO, has discussed the deal personally, meeting with EchoStar chairman Charlie Ergen last month, according to the people. The potential deal may result in SpaceX acquiring Boost Mobile or SpaceX gaining access to its network, which it leases from AT&T and T-Mobile US, the people said.
Access to those lease agreements would be a coup for SpaceX. The back door would allow Musk to make a play for a U.S. wireless market that equity research firm MoffettNathanson estimates is worth $235 billion. But the proposed service may need consent from those carriers for the service to actually launch, the people said.

nelson61 said:

Washington Post

SpaceX has held talks with Boost's parent company EchoStar in recent months about launching its own signature wireless service through a deal with the company, according to two people familiar with the negotiations.
Musk, the SpaceX CEO, has discussed the deal personally, meeting with EchoStar chairman Charlie Ergen last month, according to the people. The potential deal may result in SpaceX acquiring Boost Mobile or SpaceX gaining access to its network, which it leases from AT&T and T-Mobile US, the people said.
Access to those lease agreements would be a coup for SpaceX. The back door would allow Musk to make a play for a U.S. wireless market that equity research firm MoffettNathanson estimates is worth $235 billion. But the proposed service may need consent from those carriers for the service to actually launch, the people said.

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Can't remember where or who I saw predict this.

It wouldn't surprise me to see Elon soon own all of DISH / Echostar in the future.

Scott Greczkowski said:

Can't remember where or who I saw predict this.

It wouldn't surprise me to see Elon soon own all of DISH / Echostar in the future.

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So Charlie is going to sell out and give it all the Elon?

MikeD-C05 said:

So Charlie is going to sell out and give it all the Elon?

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My opinion: Charlie is getting old and his business is dying, so yes, he'll sell out. His situation is akin to a lone holdout who owns property that a big developer wants.....after a while they give in to the inevitable.

Scott Greczkowski said:

It wouldn't surprise me to see Elon soon own all of DISH / Echostar in the future.

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Again, why would Musk want a TV Service, specially one that is losing over a million subscribers a year.

Phone service…maybe, but not TV.

MikeD-C05 said:

So Charlie is going to sell out and give it all the Elon?

Click to expand...

I would say yes, but he will stay on board with Elon somehow.

Bruce said:

Again, why would Musk want a TV Service, specially one that is losing over a million subscribers a year.

Phone service…maybe, but not TV.

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I know he wants TV. He wants to deliver EVERYTHING to EVERYWHERE.

Already Gone - The Eagles

Where Have You GONE-Alan Jackson

Gone At Last - Paul Simon And Phoebe Snow

Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol

Night Patrol - Michael Martin Murphey