In the days of increasing state budget shortfalls, some states have decided to seize assets in people's safe deposit boxes. Like this story:
Carla Ruff's Safe Deposit Box
Somebody got a good deal, because the government figured that her box was unclaimed and the owner was unknown... even though she still had an account with the bank and the safe deposit box was paid for. They decided to sell off her great-grandmother's pearls for $1800, even though they were worth more than $82,000. Good deal for whoever bought them at auction.
Perhaps the best place for your precious valuables is in your mattress nowadays. The government feels free to take anything from you whenever it feels that it wants to.
No wonder living "off the grid" is becoming more popular.
Showing posts with label government. Show all posts
Showing posts with label government. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Local Governments Running Out Of Money...
Arizona has a law where they are supposed to keep their budget balanced. Right now, there is a $1.3 billion budget deficit, which has prompted governor Janet Napolitano to initiate a state hiring freeze.
This is not really a great surprise to me. My husband was hired by the state early last year, and before he got past his probationary period where they can't fire you without an act of legislation, they started letting go of people left and right in the office he was working in (a lot of the employees were hired under a rule that allowed them to be let go). Every day there was somebody else going, and my husband started looking for a job before they gave him his two weeks notice. To hear that they are not going to hire any new people (except in some critical areas like health care) is not a surprise.
The amount of children enrolling in Arizona schools is less than expected however, which people believe is due to the new law that punishes businesses for knowingly hiring illegal aliens, so that should help, as there is not as great a need for teachers, and they may even have to cut staff.
Another local government running out of money is the city of Vallejo, California. Reuters is reporting that they are considering filing for bankruptcy. I suppose I can see how a Southern California town could be headed for financial problems right about now. Housing prices have been through the roof for years, and I'm sure that Vallejo received a lot of money in property taxes especially, because it is a very nice town with some very nice houses (I used to live in nearby San Diego). Vallejo could have easily gotten used to receiving a certain amount of revenues in property taxes, and as property values fall, revenues fall. Also, with people spending less, there would be less money in sales taxes coming in.
I wonder how many other local governments are having trouble balancing their budgets right about now? Vallejo is not the only city in the country that has seen astronomical housing values plummet. Just recently, interest rates for bonds have gone up, which will cause more strain to some of these locations.
When your local government runs low on money, the effect can trickle down to everybody in the area. Will they have to make pay cuts? Raise taxes? Delay replacing items that wear out like fire trucks? Cut back the library hours?
I don't live in Vallejo, and as far as I know, Arizona is not making any other cutbacks that might affect me, but this could be a sign of things to come. I hope not. Hopefully the city, state, and county governments in this country will take a close look at their budget and make the proactive cutbacks needed so they can balance their budget.
After Katrina, many people were left with the feeling that you can't depend on the government for help at all times, and you need to try to be prepared. That is still a good goal, especially when the resources of government are tapped.
This is not really a great surprise to me. My husband was hired by the state early last year, and before he got past his probationary period where they can't fire you without an act of legislation, they started letting go of people left and right in the office he was working in (a lot of the employees were hired under a rule that allowed them to be let go). Every day there was somebody else going, and my husband started looking for a job before they gave him his two weeks notice. To hear that they are not going to hire any new people (except in some critical areas like health care) is not a surprise.
The amount of children enrolling in Arizona schools is less than expected however, which people believe is due to the new law that punishes businesses for knowingly hiring illegal aliens, so that should help, as there is not as great a need for teachers, and they may even have to cut staff.
Another local government running out of money is the city of Vallejo, California. Reuters is reporting that they are considering filing for bankruptcy. I suppose I can see how a Southern California town could be headed for financial problems right about now. Housing prices have been through the roof for years, and I'm sure that Vallejo received a lot of money in property taxes especially, because it is a very nice town with some very nice houses (I used to live in nearby San Diego). Vallejo could have easily gotten used to receiving a certain amount of revenues in property taxes, and as property values fall, revenues fall. Also, with people spending less, there would be less money in sales taxes coming in.
I wonder how many other local governments are having trouble balancing their budgets right about now? Vallejo is not the only city in the country that has seen astronomical housing values plummet. Just recently, interest rates for bonds have gone up, which will cause more strain to some of these locations.
When your local government runs low on money, the effect can trickle down to everybody in the area. Will they have to make pay cuts? Raise taxes? Delay replacing items that wear out like fire trucks? Cut back the library hours?
I don't live in Vallejo, and as far as I know, Arizona is not making any other cutbacks that might affect me, but this could be a sign of things to come. I hope not. Hopefully the city, state, and county governments in this country will take a close look at their budget and make the proactive cutbacks needed so they can balance their budget.
After Katrina, many people were left with the feeling that you can't depend on the government for help at all times, and you need to try to be prepared. That is still a good goal, especially when the resources of government are tapped.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Hope In Troubled Times?
When I think about the major news stories of the day, it makes me want to pull my hair out. The world situation with Iran, North Korea, China, and Russia showing their muscle could be a potential headache waiting to happen. There's the whole situation with Mexico (maybe we should add them to the above list), where not only do we have their citizens demanding to use our schools and health care, armed military officials cross our border on occasion and we do nothing about it. Then there's the economy, which who knows whether it will get better or it will get worse, but the "econonomic stimulus" package is going to weaken our dollar even further... and right now even a lot of people with jobs are having trouble trying to make ends meet. Aaaack!
Oh yeah, and there's that little thing about the Constitution... sometimes it seems like it isn't worth the paper it's written on any more. Maybe it's more like a cool artifact rather than a document that our country actually lives by.
It seems like the Lord should be coming down at any minute to come and rapture us all out at any second. But can we really know the date and time? Gregory of Tours wrote in his The History of the Franks in the 500's that he thought that the signs of biblical prophecy were being fulfilled and they were in the last days even then.
But a history book that I'm currently reading is bringing me hope. I'm currently reading The Forgotten Man which discusses the Great Depression. It seems like they were going through a lot of what we are going through right now.
Well, not the Mexicans on the border thing, but they did have immigration. They had Hitler coming to power in Germany. Mussolini was doing his thing in Italy. Stalin was remaking Russia in the model of communism. Of course we all know what the result was of that... World War II.
Economically, things were dismal. People were losing their houses right and left because they couldn't afford to make house payments. Jobs were laying off workers. People were finding it hard to make ends meet. Much more so than is happening now. Times were rough for a lot of people.
This is the stuff that most people learn in their classes in school, if they go to a decent school and actually pay attention. But by reading this book, I'm seeing that there are a lot more similarities than I had ever known.
Government was taking away freedoms, and people were wondering if Roosevelt was going to be a dictator and the Constitution was turning out to be a meaningless historical document. Andrew Mellon, a very wealthy guy who now has all sorts of things named after him, was being taken to court by the government for not paying his taxes... even though at the time he had taken certain tax deductions, they were perfectly legal. The government was pushing power companies out of business with their Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The government even passed a law saying that customers who went to a butcher could not even choose the chicken that they ate for dinner that night. I've never gone to a butcher and told them to kill a live chicken... that's a little foreign to me... but not having the choice as to what product I purchased at the store seems quite un-American to me as well.
Things seemed pretty bleak at the time. And I'm sure things were rough. The people that lived through the depression went right from economic hardship to the hardship of a world war. But after all that... people seemed to do okay in the 1950s.
I don't have a magic crystal ball that can tell me if the economy is going to get worse or better, if any of the threatening countries will rear their ugly head and the world erupts into a full-blown World War III, and I can't tell you if Islam will try to impose Sharia law in places that were once thought of as Westernized or even Christian. But I do believe that we can learn from history... and what I think can be learned from this portion of history is that even when things seem to be at their worst, and all hope is gone... things can miraculously emerge better than ever.
Oh yeah, and there's that little thing about the Constitution... sometimes it seems like it isn't worth the paper it's written on any more. Maybe it's more like a cool artifact rather than a document that our country actually lives by.
It seems like the Lord should be coming down at any minute to come and rapture us all out at any second. But can we really know the date and time? Gregory of Tours wrote in his The History of the Franks in the 500's that he thought that the signs of biblical prophecy were being fulfilled and they were in the last days even then.
But a history book that I'm currently reading is bringing me hope. I'm currently reading The Forgotten Man which discusses the Great Depression. It seems like they were going through a lot of what we are going through right now.
Well, not the Mexicans on the border thing, but they did have immigration. They had Hitler coming to power in Germany. Mussolini was doing his thing in Italy. Stalin was remaking Russia in the model of communism. Of course we all know what the result was of that... World War II.
Economically, things were dismal. People were losing their houses right and left because they couldn't afford to make house payments. Jobs were laying off workers. People were finding it hard to make ends meet. Much more so than is happening now. Times were rough for a lot of people.
This is the stuff that most people learn in their classes in school, if they go to a decent school and actually pay attention. But by reading this book, I'm seeing that there are a lot more similarities than I had ever known.
Government was taking away freedoms, and people were wondering if Roosevelt was going to be a dictator and the Constitution was turning out to be a meaningless historical document. Andrew Mellon, a very wealthy guy who now has all sorts of things named after him, was being taken to court by the government for not paying his taxes... even though at the time he had taken certain tax deductions, they were perfectly legal. The government was pushing power companies out of business with their Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The government even passed a law saying that customers who went to a butcher could not even choose the chicken that they ate for dinner that night. I've never gone to a butcher and told them to kill a live chicken... that's a little foreign to me... but not having the choice as to what product I purchased at the store seems quite un-American to me as well.
Things seemed pretty bleak at the time. And I'm sure things were rough. The people that lived through the depression went right from economic hardship to the hardship of a world war. But after all that... people seemed to do okay in the 1950s.
I don't have a magic crystal ball that can tell me if the economy is going to get worse or better, if any of the threatening countries will rear their ugly head and the world erupts into a full-blown World War III, and I can't tell you if Islam will try to impose Sharia law in places that were once thought of as Westernized or even Christian. But I do believe that we can learn from history... and what I think can be learned from this portion of history is that even when things seem to be at their worst, and all hope is gone... things can miraculously emerge better than ever.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Why Does Our Government Encourage Stupidity?
My Excite News today said that our lovely president wants to give everybody tax rebates. The hope is that we'll take the $800-$1600 that they want to give us and go hit the mall.
As much as I'd really like to have a wii and some new clothes, that's the last thing I'm going to be doing with my money right now.
My husband lost his job 3 times last year. Not because he was goofing off or anything, but he just happened to get hired into jobs that didn't have their contracts removed or had to make cutbacks. With all indications of America's economic bubble bursting at some point, we don't expect things to get better soon. If we get the money, we're saving it. Maybe we'll invest it in gold or some other precious metal.
A couple of days ago, my husband suggested to me something that I never would have imagined that he'd say "let's live like misers." He loves to spend. However, he wants to be prepared in case he loses his job. So our goal is to save up $5000 in case he loses his job again.
It seems as if America has lost all touch with common sense. If you get into debt or spend money that you don't have, eventually you're going to have to pay it back. Visiting my family over Christmas really showed me the effect of being smart with money, and living within one's means, or being stupid. The people that got into debt when I was younger sure had fun then, but they're not exactly that well off any more.
Dave Ramsey is a pretty smart guy when it comes to money. He has a lot of common sense. He has a few baby steps that he suggests that people use when they are trying to work their way to financial independence:
Step 1: save up a baby emergency fund
He suggests that you save up $1000 as a baby emergency fund, in case the car breaks down, the refrigerator stops working, or something unexpected like that comes up. $1000 isn't going to help a whole lot, however, if you lose your job. We're trying to save up $5000 right now... actually we're trying to save up $6000, $5000 in case of a job loss, $1000 in case the car breaks down.
Step 2: pay off all debts except the house
We have a student loan and a car loan that we need to pay off. Oh, and some medical bills when we had to go to the ER last summer (3 times) when dh didn't have a job. So that's what we have to pay off after we save up our emergency/job loss fund. You pay interest on all of your debts, so it's a good idea to get them paid off. Once you have no debt, you have more free money every month. Yay!
Step 4: save up 3-6 months of expenses
This is where Dave suggests that you save up in case of a job loss. We're doing more of step 4 in step 1, primarily because the threat of a job loss seems a little more looming than even the refrigerator breaking down. But we'll probably add to our savings here.
I think that step 5 is pay off the house, but it could be save up for retirement or save for your kid's college funds. If I ever get to these steps I'd be all over it ;).
I don't see anywhere in here the instruction to "go out and waste money at the mall." That might postpone the inevitable downturn in the economy, but it's going to happen. You can borrow and live beyond your means forever, even if you are a government. We can try to put our head in the sand and pretend that when our economy grows enough, we will pay off the national debt, but that's just like somebody who goes out and charges up their credit cards saying to themselves "I'll pay it off when I get a raise." When that raise comes, they just want to spend more money on other things.
If we get these tax rebates, I'm saving mine. I'm going to need it whenever the bubble finally bursts. And if everybody else rushing off to the mall or going on vacation ends up prolonging the inevitable, then I guess that gives me a little bit longer to prepare.
As much as I'd really like to have a wii and some new clothes, that's the last thing I'm going to be doing with my money right now.
My husband lost his job 3 times last year. Not because he was goofing off or anything, but he just happened to get hired into jobs that didn't have their contracts removed or had to make cutbacks. With all indications of America's economic bubble bursting at some point, we don't expect things to get better soon. If we get the money, we're saving it. Maybe we'll invest it in gold or some other precious metal.
A couple of days ago, my husband suggested to me something that I never would have imagined that he'd say "let's live like misers." He loves to spend. However, he wants to be prepared in case he loses his job. So our goal is to save up $5000 in case he loses his job again.
It seems as if America has lost all touch with common sense. If you get into debt or spend money that you don't have, eventually you're going to have to pay it back. Visiting my family over Christmas really showed me the effect of being smart with money, and living within one's means, or being stupid. The people that got into debt when I was younger sure had fun then, but they're not exactly that well off any more.
Dave Ramsey is a pretty smart guy when it comes to money. He has a lot of common sense. He has a few baby steps that he suggests that people use when they are trying to work their way to financial independence:
Step 1: save up a baby emergency fund
He suggests that you save up $1000 as a baby emergency fund, in case the car breaks down, the refrigerator stops working, or something unexpected like that comes up. $1000 isn't going to help a whole lot, however, if you lose your job. We're trying to save up $5000 right now... actually we're trying to save up $6000, $5000 in case of a job loss, $1000 in case the car breaks down.
Step 2: pay off all debts except the house
We have a student loan and a car loan that we need to pay off. Oh, and some medical bills when we had to go to the ER last summer (3 times) when dh didn't have a job. So that's what we have to pay off after we save up our emergency/job loss fund. You pay interest on all of your debts, so it's a good idea to get them paid off. Once you have no debt, you have more free money every month. Yay!
Step 4: save up 3-6 months of expenses
This is where Dave suggests that you save up in case of a job loss. We're doing more of step 4 in step 1, primarily because the threat of a job loss seems a little more looming than even the refrigerator breaking down. But we'll probably add to our savings here.
I think that step 5 is pay off the house, but it could be save up for retirement or save for your kid's college funds. If I ever get to these steps I'd be all over it ;).
I don't see anywhere in here the instruction to "go out and waste money at the mall." That might postpone the inevitable downturn in the economy, but it's going to happen. You can borrow and live beyond your means forever, even if you are a government. We can try to put our head in the sand and pretend that when our economy grows enough, we will pay off the national debt, but that's just like somebody who goes out and charges up their credit cards saying to themselves "I'll pay it off when I get a raise." When that raise comes, they just want to spend more money on other things.
If we get these tax rebates, I'm saving mine. I'm going to need it whenever the bubble finally bursts. And if everybody else rushing off to the mall or going on vacation ends up prolonging the inevitable, then I guess that gives me a little bit longer to prepare.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Jury Duty For Life?
We recently took a last minute trip to go visit my family in Washington. My mom has recently been called to jury duty, and as a result, she has to call in every evening to see if she has to go in to serve the next day.
I was laughing with her about the time that the state of Washington called me to jury duty when I was living in Italy... at the time I hadn't lived, voted, or held a driver's license in the state for over 10 years.
She mentioned that they once again called me to jury duty... at this point I haven't lived, voted, or held a driver's license in this state for 15 years.
Whenever they call me to jury duty, she has to call the jury duty people and tell them that I haven't lived in this state in over a decade, that I live in Arizona now, and can not serve on a jury here.
Which is fine... except what happens when she's not around any more to call up the jury duty guys to tell them I'm not around?
It seems as if the powers that be in Washington State never cull their jury duty rolls, and if you lived in this state once upon a time, they can call you up for jury duty indefinitely, even if you haven't lived in this state for decades.
Skipping out on jury duty is a serious offense... or so I've been led to believe. Even though I don't live here, and don't intend to live here again, I still do visit every once in a while. My brother lives here. My niece lives here. Of course, my parents live here as well. Right now, my mom takes care of my jury duty excuses, but it's not likely that she'll be around 50 years from now to handle them for me. I can just imagine this scenario... 40 years from now, I'm visiting my brother and family in Washington State. I'm driving a car and get pulled over for speeding...
Police officer: Let me see your license
Me: here you go (hand him my license)
(Police officer goes back to check his database. Comes back.)
Police officer: Did you know that there is a warrant out for your arrest? It seems that you skipped out on jury duty 5 years ago.
Me: But I haven't even lived in this state in 55 years!
Police officer: That's not my concern. I'm going to have to take you in.
Perhaps that is a ridiculous scenario... is it? I haven't lived in this state in over 15 years and I'm still getting jury duty notices, should I have any expectation that it will ever end? Since I left this country, I have held driver's licenses and voted in two different states, and I have lived in 5 states and 2 different countries. Does this state expect you to be a juror for life if you live here for any amount of time?
My mom takes care of my jury duty summons right now, but I have to wonder about all the other people who have lived in this state once upon a time, that don't have any relatives left that can take care of any jury duty notices. There have to be thousands of people that once lived and voted here, that have moved away and don't have relatives at their former address to care for things. What happens to them when they get jury summons and don't show up? They may return for a vacation or to visit friends... what happens when one of them gets caught for skipping a jury summons that they have no knowledge of because they lived out of state at the time?
The jury people told my mom that I have to write to them personally to get taken off the jury rolls. Who to write to, I don't know... and how was I supposed to know anyway that I was supposed to write to someone to get taken off the jury rolls? It's not like they tell you these things when you register to vote or get a driver's license... is there any fine print that says "should you ever decide to move, please write to xxxxx to be removed from the jury rolls, or we may call you up to serve for all eternity." I never saw anything like that.
I bet that they are still calling up dead people to serve on juries here. My grandma died in 1990... perhaps she is still getting jury summons. That was only 17 years ago... probably.
Makes me wonder if they are sending jury summons to me in my old addresses in California. I was registered to vote in two different counties there. I could be getting called up for trials in Los Angeles County and San Diego County all the time and not even know about it. I last lived there about 8 years ago, so anything is possible.
So anyway... my thought for the day is... if you are someone in charge of calling up people for a jury... if they haven't lived in the state in say... 5 years or so... and are living and voting somewhere else... perhaps you should stop trying to get them to serve on juries? And maybe double check to see if the people that died 5 years or more are taken off as well. If you are in Washington state, there is a death index that is updated regularly that can help you take the dead people off your rolls. And please stop calling me to jury duty when I haven't lived in your state in 15 years! Not unless you're willing to spring for plane tickets.
I was laughing with her about the time that the state of Washington called me to jury duty when I was living in Italy... at the time I hadn't lived, voted, or held a driver's license in the state for over 10 years.
She mentioned that they once again called me to jury duty... at this point I haven't lived, voted, or held a driver's license in this state for 15 years.
Whenever they call me to jury duty, she has to call the jury duty people and tell them that I haven't lived in this state in over a decade, that I live in Arizona now, and can not serve on a jury here.
Which is fine... except what happens when she's not around any more to call up the jury duty guys to tell them I'm not around?
It seems as if the powers that be in Washington State never cull their jury duty rolls, and if you lived in this state once upon a time, they can call you up for jury duty indefinitely, even if you haven't lived in this state for decades.
Skipping out on jury duty is a serious offense... or so I've been led to believe. Even though I don't live here, and don't intend to live here again, I still do visit every once in a while. My brother lives here. My niece lives here. Of course, my parents live here as well. Right now, my mom takes care of my jury duty excuses, but it's not likely that she'll be around 50 years from now to handle them for me. I can just imagine this scenario... 40 years from now, I'm visiting my brother and family in Washington State. I'm driving a car and get pulled over for speeding...
Police officer: Let me see your license
Me: here you go (hand him my license)
(Police officer goes back to check his database. Comes back.)
Police officer: Did you know that there is a warrant out for your arrest? It seems that you skipped out on jury duty 5 years ago.
Me: But I haven't even lived in this state in 55 years!
Police officer: That's not my concern. I'm going to have to take you in.
Perhaps that is a ridiculous scenario... is it? I haven't lived in this state in over 15 years and I'm still getting jury duty notices, should I have any expectation that it will ever end? Since I left this country, I have held driver's licenses and voted in two different states, and I have lived in 5 states and 2 different countries. Does this state expect you to be a juror for life if you live here for any amount of time?
My mom takes care of my jury duty summons right now, but I have to wonder about all the other people who have lived in this state once upon a time, that don't have any relatives left that can take care of any jury duty notices. There have to be thousands of people that once lived and voted here, that have moved away and don't have relatives at their former address to care for things. What happens to them when they get jury summons and don't show up? They may return for a vacation or to visit friends... what happens when one of them gets caught for skipping a jury summons that they have no knowledge of because they lived out of state at the time?
The jury people told my mom that I have to write to them personally to get taken off the jury rolls. Who to write to, I don't know... and how was I supposed to know anyway that I was supposed to write to someone to get taken off the jury rolls? It's not like they tell you these things when you register to vote or get a driver's license... is there any fine print that says "should you ever decide to move, please write to xxxxx to be removed from the jury rolls, or we may call you up to serve for all eternity." I never saw anything like that.
I bet that they are still calling up dead people to serve on juries here. My grandma died in 1990... perhaps she is still getting jury summons. That was only 17 years ago... probably.
Makes me wonder if they are sending jury summons to me in my old addresses in California. I was registered to vote in two different counties there. I could be getting called up for trials in Los Angeles County and San Diego County all the time and not even know about it. I last lived there about 8 years ago, so anything is possible.
So anyway... my thought for the day is... if you are someone in charge of calling up people for a jury... if they haven't lived in the state in say... 5 years or so... and are living and voting somewhere else... perhaps you should stop trying to get them to serve on juries? And maybe double check to see if the people that died 5 years or more are taken off as well. If you are in Washington state, there is a death index that is updated regularly that can help you take the dead people off your rolls. And please stop calling me to jury duty when I haven't lived in your state in 15 years! Not unless you're willing to spring for plane tickets.
Friday, September 14, 2007
20/20 Takes On Health Insurance
I really like John Stossel's reports on 20/20. They're always pretty interesting, and he usually makes a lot of sense. Earlier this year, he did a report on education, stating how when there's competition, services are better... for example, in other countries when schools compete for children to attend, whether public or private. I know for a fact that the private sector can educate children more effectively, because for the same cost that the public school educates a child, Kindercare provides full-day Kindergartens at most of their centers, and will throw in breakfast, lunch, and snacks.
For his health care segment, I was not surprised that he did a good job as well. He first pointed out that it's not good to be without health care. He brought out a lady that left her job, was on temporary insurance, and then found out that she had cancer. After her temporary insurance ran out, she was left with paying for everything out of pocket. While nobody in our family has cancer, thank God, we did deal with losing our health insurance when my husband lost his job earlier this year. Just our luck, we ended up with two fevers at 103 or greater and one case of severe dehydration in an underweight infant, and ended up with 3 emergency room trips. We now have health insurance so all is taken care of again.
For several years now, I've found most private health insurance offered by employers to be way overpriced. I turned down health insurance while working at Kindercare because it would have cost half my paycheck. Health insurance at my husband's last job would have cost $700 a month out of our pockets, and that was after his job kicked in enough money to fully cover my husband.
Why is that? I can shop around and find high deductible policies that cover my entire family for around $200-$300 a month. Why do employers offer the low-deductible policies and charge their employees an arm and a leg for it? During most years I wouldn't even use $8400 in services, which is what the insurance policy offered by my husband's prior employer would have cost him every year. I don't even think that we'll reach a total of $8400 in health insurance costs this year, and that includes 3 emergency room visits and several well-baby checkups.
Health insurance costs a lot because people use it for everything. He brought up a good point... what if there was grocery insurance? People would be buying steaks instead of hamburger. The same thing is true with any time someone else is paying for services... I receive WIC, and although I always buy the cheapest milk and eggs that are at the grocery store, I buy my preferred brand of tuna fish and don't really look at the price. If someone else is paying for it, you are less likely to shop around.
Why do we include the smallest things in our health insurance coverage? If everyone paid for their own well visits and checkups, it would lower health insurance costs. Similarly, people should pay out of pocket for things like birth control and viagra. These are things that a lot of people will buy, but if you have to pay for them out of pocket you're going to shop around. You're also going to think twice about whether you really need something or not. When we were without health insurance this summer, for example, we really thought long and hard about whether we were going to take our kids in. I waited each time until I thought that there was nothing that I could do at home, and they really needed to be seen or they might die. While I don't think that people should wait until they think that they are on the verge of death before they see a doctor, sometimes if you just have the sniffles, you really don't need to be seen.
Britain, France, Canada and Cuba are looked at by Michael Moore and others as examples because they have free health care, but because it is free to all, it is substandard. People have to wait for months to see a specialist, even for life-threatening conditions. Emergency room waits are longer than ours here, if you can believe it. The wealthy and well-connected might be able to get better care, as Michael Moore was able to in his movie, but ordinary people are going to hospitals where they try to save money by washing the sheets every other day... one suggestion to save money was to flip the sheets over and reuse them. Gross!
At the end of his report, John Stossel talked about clinics popping up in grocery stores and pharmacies, where you pay cash and see a nurse practitioner. I wish I would have known about those months ago. My daughter wouldn't have had to suffer temporary hearing loss and spend over a month with an ear infection because we couldn't afford a doctor. We could have saved 2 emergency room trips, I'm sure, because we could have taken in my children when they had fevers and gotten a prescription for antibiotics. Probably not when my son was dehydrated because he needed an IV, but the other two trips could have been saved. Since we live in a major metropolitan area, I'm sure there must be one of those within driving distance of us.
I think that clinics are a great idea. Just as it would be preferable if routine doctor's visits were something ordinarily paid for out of pocket. Competition would reduce prices. It would save doctors offices money as well, because they wouldn't have to pay so many staffers to haggle with insurance companies. Of course, you're always going to have people with medicaid, but wouldn't it be better if instead of having a $700 a month health insurance premium, you had a $300 a month health insurance premium and covered routine doctor's visits, viagra, birth control, and other small items out of pocket? Do you really spend $400 a month on all those things? Maybe some people would have to because they get sick a lot, but if everybody did it, doctors would lower prices to try to draw customers.
HSAs are a good idea, in theory. My husband's job last year had a really nice HSA program where you were given a debit card and could pay for health costs with that. It allowed you to roll over money that you had if you didn't use it all in one year. When my husband worked for the state, however, their HSA program really bit. You would lose all your money at the end of the year if you didn't use it, and you had to fill out a form and mail it in if you had a health expenditure, and they would reimburse you. We decided to opt out of that one because in most years we don't really get sick that much, and having to go through the whole headache of reimbursement wasn't worth it.
This is just my opinion, but why couldn't we have a hybrid type health care system? Allow for private insurance (private clinics are illegal in Canada). The government could offer coverage for major medical expenses to every family making... say... under $100K a year, or those that lose health insurance because of a preexisting condition... with a catch. The government's health plan would only cover major, life-threatening medical expenses, like cancer. Of course, we know that in countries with government health care, the line to be seen is long, so anybody with enough means to afford private insurance would probably want to pay for that, because they wouldn't have to wait as long to be seen.
It would be preferable if more companies would offer higher deductible plans that cost the employers less per month. Then people would have to spend the first couple of thousand dollars out of pocket, but they would make better choices and shop around. They would save a lot of money in the long run, because $700 per month after your employer's contribution for health insurance is ridiculous.
For his health care segment, I was not surprised that he did a good job as well. He first pointed out that it's not good to be without health care. He brought out a lady that left her job, was on temporary insurance, and then found out that she had cancer. After her temporary insurance ran out, she was left with paying for everything out of pocket. While nobody in our family has cancer, thank God, we did deal with losing our health insurance when my husband lost his job earlier this year. Just our luck, we ended up with two fevers at 103 or greater and one case of severe dehydration in an underweight infant, and ended up with 3 emergency room trips. We now have health insurance so all is taken care of again.
For several years now, I've found most private health insurance offered by employers to be way overpriced. I turned down health insurance while working at Kindercare because it would have cost half my paycheck. Health insurance at my husband's last job would have cost $700 a month out of our pockets, and that was after his job kicked in enough money to fully cover my husband.
Why is that? I can shop around and find high deductible policies that cover my entire family for around $200-$300 a month. Why do employers offer the low-deductible policies and charge their employees an arm and a leg for it? During most years I wouldn't even use $8400 in services, which is what the insurance policy offered by my husband's prior employer would have cost him every year. I don't even think that we'll reach a total of $8400 in health insurance costs this year, and that includes 3 emergency room visits and several well-baby checkups.
Health insurance costs a lot because people use it for everything. He brought up a good point... what if there was grocery insurance? People would be buying steaks instead of hamburger. The same thing is true with any time someone else is paying for services... I receive WIC, and although I always buy the cheapest milk and eggs that are at the grocery store, I buy my preferred brand of tuna fish and don't really look at the price. If someone else is paying for it, you are less likely to shop around.
Why do we include the smallest things in our health insurance coverage? If everyone paid for their own well visits and checkups, it would lower health insurance costs. Similarly, people should pay out of pocket for things like birth control and viagra. These are things that a lot of people will buy, but if you have to pay for them out of pocket you're going to shop around. You're also going to think twice about whether you really need something or not. When we were without health insurance this summer, for example, we really thought long and hard about whether we were going to take our kids in. I waited each time until I thought that there was nothing that I could do at home, and they really needed to be seen or they might die. While I don't think that people should wait until they think that they are on the verge of death before they see a doctor, sometimes if you just have the sniffles, you really don't need to be seen.
Britain, France, Canada and Cuba are looked at by Michael Moore and others as examples because they have free health care, but because it is free to all, it is substandard. People have to wait for months to see a specialist, even for life-threatening conditions. Emergency room waits are longer than ours here, if you can believe it. The wealthy and well-connected might be able to get better care, as Michael Moore was able to in his movie, but ordinary people are going to hospitals where they try to save money by washing the sheets every other day... one suggestion to save money was to flip the sheets over and reuse them. Gross!
At the end of his report, John Stossel talked about clinics popping up in grocery stores and pharmacies, where you pay cash and see a nurse practitioner. I wish I would have known about those months ago. My daughter wouldn't have had to suffer temporary hearing loss and spend over a month with an ear infection because we couldn't afford a doctor. We could have saved 2 emergency room trips, I'm sure, because we could have taken in my children when they had fevers and gotten a prescription for antibiotics. Probably not when my son was dehydrated because he needed an IV, but the other two trips could have been saved. Since we live in a major metropolitan area, I'm sure there must be one of those within driving distance of us.
I think that clinics are a great idea. Just as it would be preferable if routine doctor's visits were something ordinarily paid for out of pocket. Competition would reduce prices. It would save doctors offices money as well, because they wouldn't have to pay so many staffers to haggle with insurance companies. Of course, you're always going to have people with medicaid, but wouldn't it be better if instead of having a $700 a month health insurance premium, you had a $300 a month health insurance premium and covered routine doctor's visits, viagra, birth control, and other small items out of pocket? Do you really spend $400 a month on all those things? Maybe some people would have to because they get sick a lot, but if everybody did it, doctors would lower prices to try to draw customers.
HSAs are a good idea, in theory. My husband's job last year had a really nice HSA program where you were given a debit card and could pay for health costs with that. It allowed you to roll over money that you had if you didn't use it all in one year. When my husband worked for the state, however, their HSA program really bit. You would lose all your money at the end of the year if you didn't use it, and you had to fill out a form and mail it in if you had a health expenditure, and they would reimburse you. We decided to opt out of that one because in most years we don't really get sick that much, and having to go through the whole headache of reimbursement wasn't worth it.
This is just my opinion, but why couldn't we have a hybrid type health care system? Allow for private insurance (private clinics are illegal in Canada). The government could offer coverage for major medical expenses to every family making... say... under $100K a year, or those that lose health insurance because of a preexisting condition... with a catch. The government's health plan would only cover major, life-threatening medical expenses, like cancer. Of course, we know that in countries with government health care, the line to be seen is long, so anybody with enough means to afford private insurance would probably want to pay for that, because they wouldn't have to wait as long to be seen.
It would be preferable if more companies would offer higher deductible plans that cost the employers less per month. Then people would have to spend the first couple of thousand dollars out of pocket, but they would make better choices and shop around. They would save a lot of money in the long run, because $700 per month after your employer's contribution for health insurance is ridiculous.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Putin Dissolves Parliament... Get Ready To Rapture?
Vladmir Putin dissolved the Russian parliament (story here)! My husband called me this afternoon to ask me if I knew anything about Russia, but I hadn't had the TV on anything but PBS Kids and Tivo'd O'Reilly Factor from yesterday, so I had no clue. Then I discovered that the Russian parliament had dissolved and a new Prime Minister was in power.
Ever since Putin was installed as President, I always thought that he would be there for the end times. He just seemed to have the background for it. Now I'm even more sure that I'm probably right. Especially considering that Russia has planted their flag and claimed the North Pole as their own, and they seem to be getting a little imperialistic.
For those of you that do not know what Russia has to do with the end times, a little info. Russia is supposed to invade Israel in the future, but they will get their butts kicked supernaturally. That's how I understand it supernaturally. If you've ever heard of Gog/Magog... that's Russia. We know that Russia is Gog for several reasons. Moscow is north of Israel, for one. Rosh is also mentioned by name, and Tubal is also a place in Russia. I'm just going off the top of my head on this one, if you want more info on why Russia is Gog, you can google it.
Anyway, for prophecy watchers, this is a MAJOR development. Things are moving quickly! Or at least they seem to. There is nothing that stands in the way between history and the rapture... it could happen at any time. Gog/Magog is something that is to happen in the tribulation, so that means if things really are moving in that direction, the Christians will be out of here soon. Very soon.
Are you saved? Are you sure? Jesus Christ died on the cross to forgive you of your sins. If you haven't realized that you are a sinner, repented of your sins and asked Jesus to save you and forgive you of your sins, you probably are not saved. Please do so! The rapture could happen at any time and you don't want to be left behind!
Think you're a good person? Take the good person test here! If you pass the good person test and have never sinned, you have nothing to fear. Unfortunately, the Bible says that there is none righteous, so you probably won't pass.
Ever since Putin was installed as President, I always thought that he would be there for the end times. He just seemed to have the background for it. Now I'm even more sure that I'm probably right. Especially considering that Russia has planted their flag and claimed the North Pole as their own, and they seem to be getting a little imperialistic.
For those of you that do not know what Russia has to do with the end times, a little info. Russia is supposed to invade Israel in the future, but they will get their butts kicked supernaturally. That's how I understand it supernaturally. If you've ever heard of Gog/Magog... that's Russia. We know that Russia is Gog for several reasons. Moscow is north of Israel, for one. Rosh is also mentioned by name, and Tubal is also a place in Russia. I'm just going off the top of my head on this one, if you want more info on why Russia is Gog, you can google it.
Anyway, for prophecy watchers, this is a MAJOR development. Things are moving quickly! Or at least they seem to. There is nothing that stands in the way between history and the rapture... it could happen at any time. Gog/Magog is something that is to happen in the tribulation, so that means if things really are moving in that direction, the Christians will be out of here soon. Very soon.
Are you saved? Are you sure? Jesus Christ died on the cross to forgive you of your sins. If you haven't realized that you are a sinner, repented of your sins and asked Jesus to save you and forgive you of your sins, you probably are not saved. Please do so! The rapture could happen at any time and you don't want to be left behind!
Think you're a good person? Take the good person test here! If you pass the good person test and have never sinned, you have nothing to fear. Unfortunately, the Bible says that there is none righteous, so you probably won't pass.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Who Says The Terrorists Haven't Already Won? 8 Year Old "Terrorist" On The No-Fly List
Since the 1970s, on average, more people have died in bathtub drownings than by terrorists. Perhaps it's due to the vigilance of the TSA. In their latest move of genius, they caught 8 year old terror suspect Brian Moore, finding him at the airport before he could cause any damage. Thank God for the no-fly list!
He looks a little similar to my brother, who everybody that knew him as a kid would describe him as a "holy terror":
Who knew that the "holy terror" had a more sinister meaning!
They did eventually discover that this boy wasn't really a terrorist, but that he had the same name as a terrorist on the no fly list. Oh really? Nice that they finally figured that one out. Unfortunately, it took them so long to figure out that this 8 year old wasn't a terrorist that he missed his flight, and had to wait another whole day until he could get on a plane to get back to his mommy.
When 8 year old boys are being detained from flying planes because their name matches the name of a terrorist, we've got problems. Or if your name is Robert Johnson... there are several Robert Johnsons in this country, at least one of which fights honorably for our military, and ALL of them are harassed whenever they try to get on planes. And poor Brian Moore will be harassed for his entire life, or for as long as they insist on using their flawed no-fly list.
I had trouble finding out who the real Brian Moore terrorist is, or why he is on the no-fly list. A quick Wikipedia/google search brought up a deceased novelist who was born in Ireland and wrote some novels about terrorism, a rugby player, and a former Reform Party candidate for president that had criticized the Patriot Act.
Who knows? Maybe they should make the no-fly list a little more intelligent. Like putting pictures of the terror suspects in... or if you can't find a picture, perhaps add pictures of who is NOT on the no-fly list. Like 8 year olds named Brian Moore who perhaps might be holy terrors at home (we don't know if he is or not), but they are certainly not terrorists.
He looks a little similar to my brother, who everybody that knew him as a kid would describe him as a "holy terror":
Who knew that the "holy terror" had a more sinister meaning!
They did eventually discover that this boy wasn't really a terrorist, but that he had the same name as a terrorist on the no fly list. Oh really? Nice that they finally figured that one out. Unfortunately, it took them so long to figure out that this 8 year old wasn't a terrorist that he missed his flight, and had to wait another whole day until he could get on a plane to get back to his mommy.
When 8 year old boys are being detained from flying planes because their name matches the name of a terrorist, we've got problems. Or if your name is Robert Johnson... there are several Robert Johnsons in this country, at least one of which fights honorably for our military, and ALL of them are harassed whenever they try to get on planes. And poor Brian Moore will be harassed for his entire life, or for as long as they insist on using their flawed no-fly list.
I had trouble finding out who the real Brian Moore terrorist is, or why he is on the no-fly list. A quick Wikipedia/google search brought up a deceased novelist who was born in Ireland and wrote some novels about terrorism, a rugby player, and a former Reform Party candidate for president that had criticized the Patriot Act.
Who knows? Maybe they should make the no-fly list a little more intelligent. Like putting pictures of the terror suspects in... or if you can't find a picture, perhaps add pictures of who is NOT on the no-fly list. Like 8 year olds named Brian Moore who perhaps might be holy terrors at home (we don't know if he is or not), but they are certainly not terrorists.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Modern Day Idolatry
You shall have no other Gods before me.
Many people in America have heard this verse, along with the following verses that tell people not to make any graven images and bow to them. Don't these commandments bring to mind images of people carving statues and bowing to them? We don't do that in America, right? Well, maybe those pagans do...
Oh really? Do Americans practice idolatry today?
I think so.
One example of modern day idolatry in America: celebrities. Who really cares that Paris Hilton went to jail and got cell phone privileges there? I know that I made a couple of posts on it myself, but in the grand scheme of things, is it important? Yes, she is an individual with a soul just like everyone else, and for that she is important, but no more important than that starving child in Zimbabwe that might never even own a television, much less be on it. What exactly has she done to deserve recognition anyway?
But it doesn't stop at Paris Hilton. What about that girl on American Idol earlier this year crying during Sanjaya's miserable rendition of "You Really Got Me"? True, it was horrid enough to make me want to cry, but she wasn't crying because he was butchering the song. She was crying because she adored him so much.
And on and on it goes. We allow all these celebrities to have special perks like getting to go to the front of the line (like the Hilton parents were when they visited daughter Paris in jail), special tables, and even giving them not guilty verdicts when most likely, they are. They get away with scandalous behavior that many of us ordinary people would have problems getting away with (Britney anyone?). It's downright shameful what we pay these people, as well as the power all their adoring fans give them.
Our worship of these gods and goddesses leads to unsafe situations for them. Princess Diana? It leads to the erosion of their privacy. Nobody can tell them no, even when it would be for their own good.
Which leads me to another idol that many Americans have: the government. Now don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the US government. I do happen to be a big fan of Australia as well, but I think that the US government is one of the best in the world today. As Christians, we are supposed to follow the laws of the land, as long as the laws do not conflict with God's laws. We are to render unto Caesar (Matthew 22:21) our tax money. Romans 3:1-3 state that we are to be subject to authority.
However...
Daniel didn't obey the government when the king decreed that nobody was allowed to pray. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow to an idol and were thrown into the fiery furnace. If you're looking for New Testament sources, the Apostles were told by governments many times to stop preaching about Jesus, but they did not, even though doing so got them thrown into prison and most of them were martyred. Paul caused a riot at Ephesus. Throughout history, many Christians have been martyred because they would not compromise their faith in favor of what the government told them to do.
What does this have to do with American idolatry of their governments? Recall last week, when the Hindu gave his prayer on the floor of the US Senate? I can see, of course, how non Christians might find the Christians up in the gallery interrupting the prayer to be quite disrespectful. I can see how it might be upsetting to see, if you didn't believe that Jesus was the son of God and that he came to save us all. However, the Christian reaction was mixed. Some were in favor of what the Christians did, others were opposed... saying that it was disrespectful, we are a country with many religions, everybody should get a chance to be represented in the Senate, etc. Doesn't this view demonstrate people placing government above God? Why should we defend someone practicing idolatry on the Senate floor? I know the Senate is not a church, but it is a very important place in our government.
Elijah didn't stand for it in his day. You may recall the story of Ahab and Jezebel. They were Baal worshipers. Elijah told them it wasn't going to rain and the rains stopped for three years. Then he challenged the Baal worshipers to a spiritual dual ~ you pray to your god for fire to rain down, and I'll do the same with my God, and we'll see who sends the fire. Elijah's God delivered, Baal did not (then all of the priests of Baal were killed). One could have argued that Baal was the accepted god of the government... how dare Elijah talk to the king the way he did! Imagine how he ruined the economy by stopping the rains for three years (there was a big famine during the drought, BTW)! He probably wouldn't have been very popular among many Christians today either. But thankfully, he did speak up.
Thank you to my husband who brought up the Hindu prayer/idolatry connection to my attention.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
China Returns US Meat
In a previous post, I mentioned that China has been importing shoddy and/or dangerous products into our country. Some pets have died from poisons in Chinese pet food, poison has been found in Chinese toothpaste, even diapers imported from China have been found with mold in them. Clearly, the quality of Chinese imports seems to have gone downhill.
Now, there's a second part to the story. China is now refusing some of the US's meat imports. While you might say... uh... who cares?... this could lead to more serious consequences.
I've been saying for years that China is clearly not our friend. I made several trips to Panama in 1999. If you recall, at the end of that year, the US gave back the canal to Chin... er... Panama. Even though the canal is technically Panama's... China has control of a lot of the property down there.
Nobody can know for sure whether this import fight will lead to anything more, hopefully it will not. However, China is big, they want to be a player on the world's stage, and they have a lot of people. The Bible also says that the Kings of the East will be supplying a large supply of people for the big Middle East fight in the tribulation. The China story is definitely one to watch.
read more | digg story
Now, there's a second part to the story. China is now refusing some of the US's meat imports. While you might say... uh... who cares?... this could lead to more serious consequences.
I've been saying for years that China is clearly not our friend. I made several trips to Panama in 1999. If you recall, at the end of that year, the US gave back the canal to Chin... er... Panama. Even though the canal is technically Panama's... China has control of a lot of the property down there.
Nobody can know for sure whether this import fight will lead to anything more, hopefully it will not. However, China is big, they want to be a player on the world's stage, and they have a lot of people. The Bible also says that the Kings of the East will be supplying a large supply of people for the big Middle East fight in the tribulation. The China story is definitely one to watch.
read more | digg story
Thursday, July 12, 2007
The Hindu Prayer Video
I mentioned that they had this on video earlier, here it is:
If you go to the actual YouTube site, there's a lot of religious bickering and some foul language (you are warned).
If you go to the actual YouTube site, there's a lot of religious bickering and some foul language (you are warned).
You Go! Hindu Senate Prayer Disrupted
The Hindu prayer in the Senate has been news lately. It has been something that I haven't been thrilled about, but what are you going to do? I should have written my senators to complain... maybe I should have.
Well, today I heard the rest of the story. During this guy's "prayer", some Christians up in the gallery started praying. One asked God to forgive our country of their sins by having a heathen pray or something along those lines (I'm paraphrasing). A news story talks about it here. They removed him, and someone else started praying. I guess there's a video floating around of this, I just haven't had the chance to see it. I heard the audio of it on hour 2 of The Way of The Master Radio's podcast.
Well, you go guys! I don't know who they are, what happened to them, whether they were carted off to jail or not... but good job! I hadn't even thought about doing something like that... not that it would have been feasible for me to fly to Washington DC, but I hadn't even thought about it.
Well, today I heard the rest of the story. During this guy's "prayer", some Christians up in the gallery started praying. One asked God to forgive our country of their sins by having a heathen pray or something along those lines (I'm paraphrasing). A news story talks about it here. They removed him, and someone else started praying. I guess there's a video floating around of this, I just haven't had the chance to see it. I heard the audio of it on hour 2 of The Way of The Master Radio's podcast.
Well, you go guys! I don't know who they are, what happened to them, whether they were carted off to jail or not... but good job! I hadn't even thought about doing something like that... not that it would have been feasible for me to fly to Washington DC, but I hadn't even thought about it.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Home Ownership = The Right To Be Billed And Taxed To Death?
Something has gone dreadfully wrong in this country, supposedly "the land of the free". So what are the freedoms that we are supposed to have, anyway? And where have they gone?
Take, for example, the airlines. Once upon a time, when I was an Airman Apprentice in the US Navy, I took a trip to visit my aunt and uncle. I had a layover at the Cincinnati airport, and it was delayed for several hours. I had a briefcase with some papers in it, and I left it at the terminal because I didn't want to carry it around. Couldn't do that today!
There was a period for several years where you couldn't do cross-stitch or other forms of needlework while on board a plane. Like you could take over a plane, post 9/11, with a 1 inch needle. If you let someone with a 1 inch sewing needle hijack a plane because you're afraid, you've got some big cowardice problems.
Now the big problem is liquids. If you're a breastfeeding mom who pumps milk and you go on a business trip, you can't take your milk back with you. I have a friend who was facing this dilemma. Thank you, TSA, for making this world a better place by starving nursing babies! At least they don't make you drink your own breast milk any more. That was the policy right after the liquid scare began. Blech!
But the problem of our lost freedoms extends farther than just inconveniences and hungry children during air travel. The problem extends much farther... to the very place where we lay our heads at night.
150 years or so ago, and even more recently than that, people could go out and stake a claim and build a homestead. Farm the land, build a house out of logs, and people'd stay off your backs. Since most people built their own homes, they didn't need to take out huge mortgages to pay for it. Sure, there were some scuffles with the Indians, but there's a tradeoff that must be made between true freedom and a false sense of security.
I don't really know when it happened, but the government thought it would be a good idea if they started taxing people's homes. Have to pay for the schools, roads, and police departments, right? Back then, at least the public schools were worth sending your kids to, and average folks weren't flocking to private schools and homeschools if they could afford it. But nice as it sounds, it was just a start... of taxes and mandatory bills that nickel and dime your average homeowner to a slow death.
Like when we moved onto our property. No, you can't use the septic tank that's already ON the property, you have to tap into the public sewer. And you also have to pay to have a pipe laid across the street so it will go to your property. The costs associated with all this sewer mess forced us to downgrade from a very large house to one that was 600 square feet smaller. Thanks sewer company. Of course, if you fail to pay your sewer bill they will condemn your house and force you off your property.
Don't forget the water bill, which is an entirely separate bill. Oh, and if you happen to live in Orem, Utah, you better make sure that you have enough money to water your lawn and keep the grass green. Or else the police will come and have you arrested like what happened to this lady. Oh, and evidently you're expected to identify yourself to any random police officer that shows up on your doorstep too. Never mind that there are people out there that go around posing as police officers that can hurt you. Sheesh, I don't even identify myself to people that call me on the telephone! Identity theft reasons, you know? Can't be too careful.
Then there's the whole HOA thing. If you live there, you have to pay rent to the HOA for the rest of your life... even if your home is paid off, you're still paying rent. You pay rent to the government in the form of taxes, you pay rent to the HOA in the form of dues or whatever they call them, and then the HOA people tell you what color to paint your house, what you can put in the driveway, whether you can put up Christmas lights, etc.
HOAs are getting harder and harder to avoid as well. They seem to have the new housing market cornered around here. If you want to build a new house, you either have to 1) go HOA, 2) buy a dilapidated old home, tear it down and build a new house, 3) build out in the middle of nowhere and deal with an incredibly long commute, or 4) build a nice stick built house in a manufactured home community. Which on the surface wouldn't make sense, because your house transplanted somewhere else would be worth more than twice any of the other homes on the block... but there really aren't too many choices left other than that.
I suppose that I do have some freedoms. I can write whatever I want in this blog (as long as it is not hateful and nobody turns me in for a hate crime). I can stand on the street corner and hold a sign and peaceably protest (as long as I'm not causing a disturbance and large numbers of people don't want me to leave), I can own a gun (as long as I submit to background checks and register), I can own a pet (as long as I'm willing to have it registered and get it microchipped and pay the microchip company... yup... another "rental" fee every year).
I know that there are many countries that are worse, really. In Germany they would arrest me and take away my kids for homeschooling. Here, they only arrest you and take away your kids if someone calls CPS on you because they think you spank your kids (oh, but if you molest your kid that's okay... a friend of mine in Tennessee has been fighting to get her grandchild away from his sexually abusive father, and 2 years later they're still working on it, even though they have proof that it happened many times).
Well, at least we have the delusion of being free.
Take, for example, the airlines. Once upon a time, when I was an Airman Apprentice in the US Navy, I took a trip to visit my aunt and uncle. I had a layover at the Cincinnati airport, and it was delayed for several hours. I had a briefcase with some papers in it, and I left it at the terminal because I didn't want to carry it around. Couldn't do that today!
There was a period for several years where you couldn't do cross-stitch or other forms of needlework while on board a plane. Like you could take over a plane, post 9/11, with a 1 inch needle. If you let someone with a 1 inch sewing needle hijack a plane because you're afraid, you've got some big cowardice problems.
Now the big problem is liquids. If you're a breastfeeding mom who pumps milk and you go on a business trip, you can't take your milk back with you. I have a friend who was facing this dilemma. Thank you, TSA, for making this world a better place by starving nursing babies! At least they don't make you drink your own breast milk any more. That was the policy right after the liquid scare began. Blech!
But the problem of our lost freedoms extends farther than just inconveniences and hungry children during air travel. The problem extends much farther... to the very place where we lay our heads at night.
150 years or so ago, and even more recently than that, people could go out and stake a claim and build a homestead. Farm the land, build a house out of logs, and people'd stay off your backs. Since most people built their own homes, they didn't need to take out huge mortgages to pay for it. Sure, there were some scuffles with the Indians, but there's a tradeoff that must be made between true freedom and a false sense of security.
I don't really know when it happened, but the government thought it would be a good idea if they started taxing people's homes. Have to pay for the schools, roads, and police departments, right? Back then, at least the public schools were worth sending your kids to, and average folks weren't flocking to private schools and homeschools if they could afford it. But nice as it sounds, it was just a start... of taxes and mandatory bills that nickel and dime your average homeowner to a slow death.
Like when we moved onto our property. No, you can't use the septic tank that's already ON the property, you have to tap into the public sewer. And you also have to pay to have a pipe laid across the street so it will go to your property. The costs associated with all this sewer mess forced us to downgrade from a very large house to one that was 600 square feet smaller. Thanks sewer company. Of course, if you fail to pay your sewer bill they will condemn your house and force you off your property.
Don't forget the water bill, which is an entirely separate bill. Oh, and if you happen to live in Orem, Utah, you better make sure that you have enough money to water your lawn and keep the grass green. Or else the police will come and have you arrested like what happened to this lady. Oh, and evidently you're expected to identify yourself to any random police officer that shows up on your doorstep too. Never mind that there are people out there that go around posing as police officers that can hurt you. Sheesh, I don't even identify myself to people that call me on the telephone! Identity theft reasons, you know? Can't be too careful.
Then there's the whole HOA thing. If you live there, you have to pay rent to the HOA for the rest of your life... even if your home is paid off, you're still paying rent. You pay rent to the government in the form of taxes, you pay rent to the HOA in the form of dues or whatever they call them, and then the HOA people tell you what color to paint your house, what you can put in the driveway, whether you can put up Christmas lights, etc.
HOAs are getting harder and harder to avoid as well. They seem to have the new housing market cornered around here. If you want to build a new house, you either have to 1) go HOA, 2) buy a dilapidated old home, tear it down and build a new house, 3) build out in the middle of nowhere and deal with an incredibly long commute, or 4) build a nice stick built house in a manufactured home community. Which on the surface wouldn't make sense, because your house transplanted somewhere else would be worth more than twice any of the other homes on the block... but there really aren't too many choices left other than that.
I suppose that I do have some freedoms. I can write whatever I want in this blog (as long as it is not hateful and nobody turns me in for a hate crime). I can stand on the street corner and hold a sign and peaceably protest (as long as I'm not causing a disturbance and large numbers of people don't want me to leave), I can own a gun (as long as I submit to background checks and register), I can own a pet (as long as I'm willing to have it registered and get it microchipped and pay the microchip company... yup... another "rental" fee every year).
I know that there are many countries that are worse, really. In Germany they would arrest me and take away my kids for homeschooling. Here, they only arrest you and take away your kids if someone calls CPS on you because they think you spank your kids (oh, but if you molest your kid that's okay... a friend of mine in Tennessee has been fighting to get her grandchild away from his sexually abusive father, and 2 years later they're still working on it, even though they have proof that it happened many times).
Well, at least we have the delusion of being free.
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