Desipio Message Board

Quote from: Gil Gunderson on August 10, 2009, 05:29:34 PM

Quote from: ChuckD on August 10, 2009, 05:21:39 PM

Quote from: CBStew on August 10, 2009, 05:17:14 PM

Quote from: ChuckD on August 10, 2009, 04:39:49 PM

Quote from: CBStew on August 10, 2009, 04:30:15 PM
Although there is no evidence that it occurred to the Founding Fathers, The Supreme Court had no difficulty in deciding that the right to an attorney as a criminal defendant was protected by due process, even at the expense of the state.  Is it such a stretch to say that the constitution protects one's health and life?

Wouldn't that fall under the 10th Amendment to the responsibility of state/local governments who hold the police powers (health, safety, and public welfare)?

The right to the assistance of counsel appears in the 6th amendment, but the Gideon case said that the 14th amendment made it applicable to the states at public expense.

Sorry, I should have clarified. I was talking about health care.

Quote from: Gil Gunderson on August 10, 2009, 05:19:38 PM
You haven't heard of incorporation, have you?

Is that a rhetorical question?

It's a legal concept.  I should have been clearer.  First year law school fun.

Ah, I thought you were talking about "municipal incorporation." I just skimmed the article, but "incorporation" in the sense you're referring seems to be a devolutionary mechanism. If the state/local is tasked (as I was suggesting above) with providing for "health, safety, and general welfare," wouldn't elevating health care to a constitutional right require a change in law that's completely infeasible? Maybe I'm misinterpreting.

Quote from: CBStew on August 10, 2009, 05:17:14 PM

Quote from: ChuckD on August 10, 2009, 04:39:49 PM

Quote from: CBStew on August 10, 2009, 04:30:15 PM
Although there is no evidence that it occurred to the Founding Fathers, The Supreme Court had no difficulty in deciding that the right to an attorney as a criminal defendant was protected by due process, even at the expense of the state.  Is it such a stretch to say that the constitution protects one's health and life?

Wouldn't that fall under the 10th Amendment to the responsibility of state/local governments who hold the police powers (health, safety, and public welfare)?

The right to the assistance of counsel appears in the 6th amendment, but the Gideon case said that the 14th amendment made it applicable to the states at public expense.

Sorry, I should have clarified. I was talking about health care.

Quote from: Gil Gunderson on August 10, 2009, 05:19:38 PM
You haven't heard of incorporation, have you?

Is that a rhetorical question?

Quote from: CBStew on August 10, 2009, 04:30:15 PM
Although there is no evidence that it occurred to the Founding Fathers, The Supreme Court had no difficulty in deciding that the right to an attorney as a criminal defendant was protected by due process, even at the expense of the state.  Is it such a stretch to say that the constitution protects one's health and life?

Wouldn't that fall under the 10th Amendment to the responsibility of state/local governments who hold the police powers (health, safety, and public welfare)?

Quote from: Brownie on August 10, 2009, 02:44:52 PM
- Yes, it's a bad thing, especially if 89% of the people are on the public system, which is woefully inadequate next to the private system.

Evidence?

Quote
Something like 11% of K-12 students are in private schools, the majority of them faith-based. About 20% of private schools are non-sectarian (and they, on average, cost more than twice what the religious schools do). So, of the 2-point-some-odd percent that go to elite private schools, or the 11 percent that go to private schools, we can assume there's nothing wrong with American public schools, right?

I don't really see your point here. It's simply economics. If a family is well-off and they consider the marginal value of a private education (secular or non-) to be >= the price of tuition, they're free to make that decision. The public education system, at least as I understand it, is intended as a baseline/safety net. If you want a better education, you're free to pursue that--as is the case with private health insurance in the UK.

Quote
- C'mon, ChuckD. Life insurance is a totally different instrument than simply "placing a price tag on human life." It protects one's family and loved ones in the case of an untimely death. While it's not unheard of that someone will murder/commit suicide because one is worth more dead than alive, that's generally, you know, illegal.

My issue was with the loaded language which seeks to demonize a practice (valuing the productive potential of a given life) that is extremely common. In any event, I don't really see what you're arguing here. Health insurance protects your family and loved ones in the case of an untimely illness. And life insurance claims can be denied due to trivial mistakes on an application.

QuoteIt's not illegal to deny claims because it's not cost-effective to treat the patient.

Are you for this? Against it? I can't figure out what you're arguing. I will say that I do agree with one point: health care is not a right. But, from my (admittedly limited) understanding of the issue, the health insurance market has failed.

Quote from: Brownie on August 10, 2009, 01:59:33 PM

Quote from: Chuck to Chuck on August 10, 2009, 01:52:15 PM

Quote from: Gil Gunderson on August 10, 2009, 11:52:08 AM
A man who doesn't have health insurance because he was laid off from a job is protesting a plan that would give tax others to give him health insurance.

Here's where you go for this kind of stuff http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=333933006516877 :

QuotePeople such as scientist Stephen Hawking wouldn't have a chance in the U.K., where the National Health Service would say the life of this brilliant man, because of his physical handicaps, is essentially worthless.

Mr. Hawking has lived in the UK his whole life.

The editorial didn't mention that the UK has a "two-tier" plan. The well-to-do buy private insurance (as I'm sure Mr. Hawking does), and the great unwashed get the National Health Service.

And that's a bad thing (loaded language aside)?

Also, this made me laugh.

QuoteThe British have succeeded in putting a price tag on human life, as we are about to.

THE HORROR!

Quote from: flannj on August 08, 2009, 11:48:53 AM

Quote from: BC on August 07, 2009, 10:48:43 PM
The media was responsible for starting the "She's a dumbass" storyline out of nowhere, however she has played right into it ever since.

She didn't play into anything BC. She is a dumbass.

The media Desipio was responsible for starting the "She's a dumbass BC is unsuccessful with women" storyline out of nowhere, however she has played right into it ever since.

Roughly equivalent'd

Quote from: Tank on April 24, 2009, 02:47:13 PM

Quote from: ChuckD on April 24, 2009, 11:18:28 AM
Maybe MikeC can get behind this.
http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=8a25059520b3d89e0120b49221340025

MikeC would probably prefer seeing the GI Joe team shooting a missile at the UN building and nuking Moscow.

What the hell? They shoot down the missile that's heading for Moscow?!?
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090807/REVIEWS/908079997

QuoteThe America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama's "death panel" so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their "level of productivity in society," whether they are worthy of health care. Such a system is downright evil.

We get it. Your baby has Down Syndrome.

Quote from: Gil Gunderson on August 07, 2009, 12:05:55 PM
I have really no idea what to make of these town hall protests that are going on around the country.  I can see several points.  First off, I really fucking hate most protesters, be they on the right or the left.  However, I have to reconcile this fact with my opinion that civil discourse is one of the best traits of our democracy. 

Nevertheless, the way that the right is orchestrating these things, and the attendant people they have brought out, is truly scary.  While I am sure some people are at these things to express what are probably true concerns about the health insurance reform legislation in Congress, others are clearly reacting to more base emotions, be it the "otherness" of Obama, the loss of the White House, and demographic changes in the country at large (probably some latent religious fear, as well). 

So, in short, let's see how this plays out...

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/08/grassroots-protester-actually-gop-official.php?ref=fpa

QuoteHere's a fun example of astroturfing in its purest form: A woman attending a town hall event for Rep. Steve Kagen (D-WI), and--while loudly raising objections to the Democrats' health care reform proposal--insisting she's just a regular concerned citizen. Except, she's actually a GOP official.

Heather Blish was vice-chairman of the Kewaunee County GOP until 2008. She actually worked for Kagen's opponent, and, according to her own resume, is affiliated with the Republican National Committee.

Astroturf is fun.

http://washingtonindependent.com/54104/punkin-the-birthers-priceless

QuoteIt's looking more and more like the forged "Kenyan birth certificate" released by Orly Taitz on Sunday was a prank by a supporter of President Obama. Politijab points to an anonymous blogger at FearlessBlogging, who has uploaded four photos of the original forgery and a mocking declaration:

Quote

• Fine cotton business paper: $11
• Inkjet printer: $35
• 1940 Royal Model KMM manual typewriter: $10
• 2 Shilling coin: $1
• Pilot Varsity fountain pen: $3
• Punkin' the Birthers: Priceless

Quote from: Gil Gunderson on August 05, 2009, 12:05:55 PM

Quote from: Oleg on August 05, 2009, 09:24:15 AM

Quote from: Eli on August 04, 2009, 01:08:10 PM

Quote from: Oleg on August 04, 2009, 01:00:35 PM
If we're discussing wins and RBI as criteria for the award, can we just dismiss the award as a sham and move on?

I'd like to think at least Eli is with me.

I'm with you, fresh off a discussion with a Sox fan who believes Mark Buehrle has had a better decade than Johan Santana because he has more wins.

I was having a discussion with a buddy last night.  He really likes Chris Getz.  I mentioned to him that Getz makes an out roughly 67.5% of the time he comes to the plate, and that's not good.  So, my buddy kept insisting that his .270 BA is good.  I said, "Sure, but it still doesn't change the fact he makes outs at a rate that would make Juan Pierre proud."

I just don't understand why these concepts are so hard to grasp.  I even got him to agree that you can't score a run unless you get on base.

Finally, he asked me what I thought was an acceptable batting average.  At that point I just said .240, mentioned Adam Dunn, and walked away.

I'd stipulate that this is an acceptable average; it's not great, but it's not terrible either.  If a .270 average is coupled with like a .390 OBP, then I'd say that player is pretty decent.

.270 BA is slightly above average (~.260), but pretty meaningless in terms of gauging player performance. A .390 OBA is really good--not pretty decent.

Call me crazy, but I'm withholding splooge until he pitches this well against a Major League offense.

Quote from: IrishYeti on August 04, 2009, 09:26:43 PM
I'm just going to bitch about my Spanish class. I took 3 years of it, and I am unable to recall about 90% of it. The thing that I think my teacher failed was the fact that in our class, we/she spoke english 75% of the time and Spanish 25% of the time. From what I hear about people who learn English, they speak English in 75% of the class and their native language 25% of the time. Is this correct? And did anyone else have that problem?

From my experience, what you speak in class is not as relevant as what you speak outside of the class. It doesn't really matter if you're speaking Spanish for 15 minutes of an hour versus 45 minutes. If you're speaking English for the other 23 hours in the day, you're not going to retain very much. Spanish-speakers who learn English here are able to learn it because they're immersed in it.

Quote from: Eli on August 03, 2009, 07:37:26 PM

Quote from: Canadouche on August 03, 2009, 07:18:06 PM

Quote from: Slak on August 03, 2009, 07:13:56 PM
And now Kurt's enormo-signature has added a new level to my baffledom that I didn't know existed.

I didn't know it was going to be so effin' big, but....

I don't get this KurtEvans mondo-gigantic signature at all.

Kurt loves image leeching.

Quote from: Kermit, B. on July 31, 2009, 11:32:45 AM

Quote from: MAD on July 31, 2009, 11:28:15 AM
While her face admittedly looks a little funny there, I'd like to know how JL Dreyfuss generally has gotten more attractive as she's gotten older. 

It's all about the hair.  Her beautiful, Pantene hair. Nobody takes better care of their hair than Elaine. You can serve dinner on her head.

Seriously, though, the only reason she wasn't smoking hot as Elaine was because she had ridiculous 90s hair.

Come ON'd