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Thread: What would you do here?

  1. #61
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    gold is probably ok for a small amount if money if you have investments as it doesn't tend to be correlated with other investments (which is good for diversifying) but it also doens't give much return on investment. So I'd sell and put that money in cash if I feared I might need it soon (a good online bank account where you can at least earn some interest - this is very easily accessible, well takes a few days to transfer but ..) or stocks and bond funds if I didn't see any need for it anytime soon.
    Trees don't grow on money

  2. #62
    Senior Member gimmethesimplelife's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alan View Post
    You know you could do that wherever you live and everyone would be better off for it. Be the change you want to see.
    You want my best? Fine. The price tag is socialized medicine, something that I could easily obtain simply by the virtue of citizenship in any other developed country. I've known you to be an intelligent poster, Alan....I mean this sincerely. Why the expectation that I (and you yourself that matter) hold life so cheap and sell yourself so short as to consider citizenship acceptable without guaranteed access to healthcare being one of the perks? Your stance, given that I consider you intelligent (which is obviously from your well thought out posts) makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever and never has. Sorry, I didn't indoctrinate - I see things in cold blood as they are. At this late date that's not going to change.

    How this pertains here: No socialized medicine, no real respect. Basic everyday decency, yes, because I have to live with myself, but no real respect. To give respect under these conditions of human life not being worth access to socialized medicine is to not only be disrespectful to myself but to be part of the problem by being complicit with accepting this lack as something acceptable, which it is not. Want respect? Ramp up the social welfare to at least include Medicare for all and ditch the military industrial complex to pay for it. Otherwise, basic human decency, yes - respect - I'm not seeing any respect for my life via the lack of socialized medicine, how could a fairly intelligent person EVER give out respect under these conditions? To me this is so basic it seems like it's not needed to state but by Golly, how many Americans don't grasp this basic common sense baffles the mind. At least I am not nor will I ever be among their number. For that I respect myself. Rob

  3. #63
    Senior Member gimmethesimplelife's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ApatheticNoMore View Post
    gold is probably ok for a small amount if money if you have investments as it doesn't tend to be correlated with other investments (which is good for diversifying) but it also doens't give much return on investment. So I'd sell and put that money in cash if I feared I might need it soon (a good online bank account where you can at least earn some interest - this is very easily accessible, well takes a few days to transfer but ..) or stocks and bond funds if I didn't see any need for it anytime soon.
    I'm not saying this is bad advice, ANM. I'm just in a place where I see that something like a small gold coin or two that is easily transportable and fairly readily liquid is not a bad idea, given my personal take on both the economy and the future of this country. I wouldn't put all my money - what little there is of said money I can invest - in gold, but when you get right down to it, stocks are basically only wealth on paper, too, until they are sold. I like the idea of something tangible that is not on paper and in this vague gray zone of being worth money in the abstract. Rob

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    Rob, I don't see things the way you do with respect to Respect,and I love my country and would be heartbroken to have to leave. The things you describe as proper behavior in Austria are how I was raised in America and how I still act towards others and my country's symbols, like her flag. But I get that others do not feel that way.
    With respect to the gold, I would sell it and take the money and put it in small bill denominations that you can pay out if you decide to "run" as you call it, as you aren't going to get change from the gold piece, and you need to be in a position of buying things like water and gas. I guess. So I would convert it to ones or fives.
    I had a Polish friend who believed her diamond ring would serve this purpose. I don't see that happening because of the change factor, but if you go with that theory, then keep them as rings and you can wear them if you "run."

  5. #65
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    Quote Originally Posted by gimmethesimplelife View Post
    You want my best? Fine. The price tag is socialized medicine, something that I could easily obtain simply by the virtue of citizenship in any other developed country.
    We have socialized medicine of a sort, you've told us of how you benefited from it just this past year. This tells me that we have a system that works for people in need and you are the perfect example, although to be fair I'd question your need as you seem more than capable of taking care of yourself.
    I guess my other disagreement is that no country or person or any entity at all can buy my respect. I'm surprised that anyone would hold that as an item of barter.
    "Things should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler." ~ Albert Einstein

  6. #66
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alan View Post
    We have socialized medicine of a sort, you've told us of how you benefited from it just this past year. This tells me that we have a system that works for people in need and you are the perfect example, although to be fair I'd question your need as you seem more than capable of taking care of yourself.
    I guess my other disagreement is that no country or person or any entity at all can buy my respect. I'm surprised that anyone would hold that as an item of barter.
    This discussion reminds of that story about Churchill that ends something like “Madam we have already established what you are. It only remains to haggle over a price”.

  7. #67
    Senior Member herbgeek's Avatar
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    guaranteed access to healthcare
    You keep using this phrase. You HAVE and have always had, access to healthcare. What you mean is that you want healthcare for free. Even though doctors, nurses, orderlies all want to be paid. You want to be paid for your work too.

    Most people in this country get their healthcare through their employer (last I checked it was in the 70-80%) range. Not saying that is good/bad just that it is. You have always had the opportunity to find a job that supplies low cost insurance as a benefit. You have a college degree that you aren't using, you have additional skills in web design I believe, that you aren't using. You choose to work in an industry that a lot of people would call entry level, as it doesn't require any specialized skills. Instead you just go on and on how you should get insurance and your healthcare for free, and how "America" is mean for not providing it for you (even though it has through Medicaid). You've just told us you are basically living for free (your share of the rent proceeds almosts covers your mortgage cost), and your family unit has 2 incomes. Why do you keep insisting on getting this for free when you have the means to get it yourself?

  8. #68
    Senior Member gimmethesimplelife's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by LDAHL View Post
    This discussion reminds of that story about Churchill that ends something like “Madam we have already established what you are. It only remains to haggle over a price”.
    Are you implying that the many millions of citizens of better countries whose lives are worth socialized medicine of this caliber? And you did not address my question regarding how to jusfity the lack of socialized medicine in this country.....how can one judge anyone for disrespecting a country with this lack when any comparable country indeed has socialized medicine as one of the perks of citizenship? It's great to throw around platitudes but they mean nothing. I'm all about asking the hard, uncomfortable questions and have no qualms about holding a given society/country accountable for this lack......do you have answers to offer or high sounding platitudes? I seek answers and accountability - and America has much to answer for. Rob

  9. #69
    Senior Member gimmethesimplelife's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by herbgeek View Post
    You keep using this phrase. You HAVE and have always had, access to healthcare. What you mean is that you want healthcare for free. Even though doctors, nurses, orderlies all want to be paid. You want to be paid for your work too.

    Most people in this country get their healthcare through their employer (last I checked it was in the 70-80%) range. Not saying that is good/bad just that it is. You have always had the opportunity to find a job that supplies low cost insurance as a benefit. You have a college degree that you aren't using, you have additional skills in web design I believe, that you aren't using. You choose to work in an industry that a lot of people would call entry level, as it doesn't require any specialized skills. Instead you just go on and on how you should get insurance and your healthcare for free, and how "America" is mean for not providing it for you (even though it has through Medicaid). You've just told us you are basically living for free (your share of the rent proceeds almosts covers your mortgage cost), and your family unit has 2 incomes. Why do you keep insisting on getting this for free when you have the means to get it yourself?
    I am a big believer, a huge believer, that for anything to change in this area health care has to be uncoupled from employment as it is in the rest of the developed world. There are too many people using their degrees who can only find gig economy and/or contract work with no benefits and this trend is only growing, much to the opposite of what the Trump Administration would like you to believe about the US economy.

    One of the chief problems with life in America as I see it - at least in the top five - is this damnable coupling of health care with employment. What an abusive concept when you get right down to it. Uggggggghhhhhhhhh….I'd love to say I was 8 or 10 or 12 or 14 when I realized this but this one I did not grasp until I was 19 and I listened to a guest lecturer at NAU discussing this back in 1986 and I was like - WOW! Dead on! Maybe I shouldn't add this but being me I will - I was much younger then and found this man very attractive. Not physically, but from a common sense perspective. I went up to him to speak to him after his speech and saw the wedding ring and checked myself there and then. Common sense to me has always been the most attractive quality a human being can have, trumping all else. Rob (word play sort of intended)

  10. #70
    Senior Member gimmethesimplelife's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Alan View Post
    We have socialized medicine of a sort, you've told us of how you benefited from it just this past year. This tells me that we have a system that works for people in need and you are the perfect example, although to be fair I'd question your need as you seem more than capable of taking care of yourself.
    I guess my other disagreement is that no country or person or any entity at all can buy my respect. I'm surprised that anyone would hold that as an item of barter.
    I'm talking of socialized medicine for all, something with EVERY OTHER DEVELOPED COUNTRY IN THE WORLD provides it's citizens. All caps because it just seems so basic that this lack in America is completely unacceptable, especially with the growing economic inequality and lack of social mobility those in the bottom 80 percent experience these days. I'm a very lucky exception to this, true, but that does not mean my story repeats itself often. And how many banquet servers did not get promoted? Their only recourse is to work only pt to keep their hours under a certain level to qualify for Medicaid in Arizona, which many banquet servers do - these banquet servers have it down to a science how much they can work to remain on Medicaid. Sad to stifle the productivity of these people but that is exactly what you seem to approve of and it is exactly what America has done in this case, only so that the wealthy can grow more wealthy. At least I'm not guilty of supporting this, nor have I ever been. My conscience is clear on this one. Rob

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