"Workers' wages buy less and less. In fact, workers have lost purchasing
power during the past half-century. Comparing prices to wages, the
Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose more than six times from 1965 to
2011---while the minimum wage rose less than five times."
'Measured In Gold, The Story Of American Wages Is An Ugly One'
Forbes:
http://www.forbes.com/realspin/gold
<http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/10/09/measured-in-gold-the-story-of-american-wages-is-an-ugly-one/>
On 10/11/2013 11:28 AM, Bhairitu wrote:
Okay, I have a Google Nexus phone, but it wasn't free but I didn't
pay what the telcos say it costs when they offered it as a contract
phone. I bought it direct from Google Play and they update the phone
OS when the latest OS comes out (eat your heart out Alex).
But I don't chatter much on phones. I mainly communicate via email.
BTW, I owned my first cellphone back in the early 1990s. I paid $20 a
month for 60 minutes of talk. Today I pay $30 a month for 100 minutes
of talk, unlimited texting (which I rarely do) and 5 GB of 4G data
which I use though only around 1/2 GB a month. Go figure. The plan
is a prepay too (no contract).
The Nexus is GSM so if I want to move to another GSM carrier I just
get their SIM card and install it. And the phone acts as a "remote"
for the Chromecast.
I have Medicare Part A only. I won't pay for the B part nor for
supplemental. If I have a medical emergency I figure I'll negotiate a
lower fee from the provider (you can do that BTW).
Look into what Uninted Health Care pays their CEO BTW. His salary is
too damn high! We not only need a minimum wage but a maximum wage too.
On 10/11/2013 07:11 AM, Richard J. Williams wrote:
There's an old guy I know who lives up in Austin - he has a Virgin
Mobile 'pay as you go' cell phone. It's a Samsung flip phone - simple
operation and it was free. Now that's better!
When he needs to talk he can buy some minutes at the store - he can
buy a $10 or $20 top-up card. The old guy is only spending a few
dollars every three months on his phone! Now this is really funny -
the guy doesn't have anyone to talk to much, but he can pay for his
phone as he goes. LoL!
The big problem is that the rent's too damn high!
The old guy is on Medicare, Part A and Part B, and he's got
UnitedHealth Care as a supplement.
'Thousands of doctors fired by United HealthCare'
News8:
http://www.wtnh.com/news/health/thousands-of-doctors-fired-by-united-healthcare
On 10/10/2013 10:14 AM, Richard J. Williams wrote:
The rent is just too damn high! The rent bill is up; the electric
bill is up; the water bill is up; the cable TV bill is up. These
days it costs forty bucks just to take a date out for a drink and
dinner at Sam's Burger Joint! Go figure.
Now, the medical insurance bill is going up?
Not to mention fixing the price - so that younger people pay more to
keep the premiums down for the older folks.
If we had a single payer system for medical care, the federal
government would pay all medical expenses for everyone. So, how much
would the rent go up with a government paid health care system?
Go figure.
If I am elected, I promise a job for everyone so they can make a
decent living wage and pay their own medical insurance bills. That's
my ticket - to create jobs to make money and lower medical care
expenses.
"The trouble is that loss aversion also militates against buying
insurance. Especially if you don't make a lot of money--and many
young people don't--writing that premium check is painful if not
prohibitive."
'The Young and the Clueless'
Wall Street Journal:
http://online.wsj.com/article
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303796404579097192784900688.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_MIDDLETopOpinion>
On 10/10/2013 7:41 AM, Richard J. Williams wrote:
It looks like New York and New Jersey have some of the highest
taxes in the U.S.
And, the rent is too damn high!
"...six of the top 10 states with the best business climate are
western states, bolstered at least in part by new revenues from
energy production that allows them to reduce other types of taxes."
'Western U.S. best for business, Tax Foundation says'
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2013/10/09/western-u-s-best-for-business-tax-foundation-says/>
On 10/4/2013 9:27 AM, Richard J. Williams wrote:
So, when I returned the two cable boxes to Time-Warner and to
terminate the HD and DVR service, I asked them how much would it
cost just to have basic cable. The guy said they would have to
send out a technician to put a 'trap' on the line to filter out
the other channels, so I told them to close the account. It's
Friday and the cable is still active, but I have powered antennas
from the Shack anyway. Go figure.
The rent is too damn high!
This week I took my daughter's PT Cruiser in to the dealership
because she said the front was 'wobbling' at 35-40 mph. The
service manager called back and said one of the front tires had a
'ball' on it. He recommended getting four new Goodyear Eagles,
balanced and a front end alignment - $950. What!?
Now, why would anyone want to pay close to $1000 to put Goodyear
Eagles back on the same car that already had a Goodyear tire with
a ball on it at 30,000 miles? So, I had the tires rotated, front
to back, for $15 on the south side, sweet!. Maybe I'll buy two new
Falken tires at Discount Tires. Go figure.
The rent is too damn high!
