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Firefighters extinguish day’s fifth blaze caused by incendiary balloon in southern Israel
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
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Page 4: Opinion
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Page 6: Politix
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17 20:37 Bobby [2]
7 21:44 USN, Ret. [3]
-Lurid Crime Tales-
Donald Trump Challenges Media to Bring Cameras and Investigate Caravan
[Breitbart] President Donald Trump challenged the media on Monday to bring their cameras to the caravan of over 7,000 migrants, currently pressing through Mexico towards the United States.
"Go into the middle of the caravan, take your cameras and search," Trump told reporters at the White House.

He claimed that they would find MS-13 gang members as well as Middle Eastern citizens trying to enter the United States.

"Guess what? We are not allowing them in our country," he said. "We want safety."

Trump said he was frustrated by Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador for failing to stop the caravan from continuing their journey north.

"They have not done their job, unfortunately, they have not done their job," he said. "They’re paid a lot of money every year. We give them foreign aid. And they did nothing for us."

Related: PJ - DHS Warns of Cartel Role in Illegal Alien Caravan
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/23/2018 04:04 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:

#1  If the Trojan horse migrant invasion into California is successful, the Washingtonian experiment has ended. As they have in Europe, millions will surely follow.
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/23/2018 4:16 Comments || Top||

#2  Hurricane Willa, a Cat 4 hurricane, is set to make landfall today in Mexico about 1300 miles West North west of where the caravan was yesterday Morning. Willa is going northeast, cutting diagonally across Mexico and said to be threatening Texas.

Knowing the state of 2nd world countries (and that's being generous with regard to mexico), the caravan is going to be walking through still-devastated portions of Mexico, likely slowing them down considerably and making them late for November 6. If they decide to head northeast to get to American territory sooner, they'll be waking through more land struck by the hurricane, while if they head northwest toward California, the distance is longer and the territory they'll be walking through will be more devastated (but narrower).

Hurricane Willa is giving trump Way more leverage over the Mexican Government than he already has.
Posted by: Ptah || 10/23/2018 8:54 Comments || Top||

#3  Forgot to add that the drama the Demoncrats were hoping for prior to November 6 to sway weepy Independents isn't going to happen on time, allowing Trump to take the gloves off after the votes are counted.

Can anyone say "Divine Wind"?
Posted by: Ptah || 10/23/2018 8:58 Comments || Top||

#4  With the hurricane coming don't we need to airlift them here right now?
Posted by: Glenmore || 10/23/2018 10:34 Comments || Top||

#5  They’re paid a lot of money every year. We give them foreign aid. And they did nothing for us.

Use that money to build the wall.
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 10/23/2018 11:43 Comments || Top||

#6  I'm for letting a few thousand in.

House them on selected California, Washington, Colorado and New York properties while their status' are determined, confirmed, then determined again.

Gotta' be a Force Majeure cutout available somewhere!
Posted by: Vast Right Wing Conspiracy || 10/23/2018 13:39 Comments || Top||

#7  Vast Right Wing Conspiracy,

California has enough of them already, thank you very much. If you wanna let some of them in you can damn well put 'em in your own home town.
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 10/23/2018 16:35 Comments || Top||

#8  I came from a south central mexican american country over run by china and foreign interests with rice and beans on my knee oh taquito don't you flare my roids I will be an obdient and complient worker or terror I mean rebel droid! I come from south of the border with rice and beans on my knee!
Posted by: Jack Chaiter7913 || 10/23/2018 18:47 Comments || Top||

#9  ^ Traced to a Beowulf cluster at the London Institute of Pataphysics. Seriously, though, toilers in the bit mines, please tell me a bot can't do that... yet.
Posted by: Pancho Shomomble4212 || 10/23/2018 19:09 Comments || Top||

#10  leaving #8 because #9 disemboweled the bot
Posted by: Frank G || 10/23/2018 21:38 Comments || Top||


Wells Fargo to pay $65M settlement related to faulty sales practices
[Charlotte Bus Journal] Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) agreed to pay a $65 million settlement on Monday for fraudulent statements to investors.

The penalty stems from Wells Fargo's cross-selling business, in which employees sell new products or services to existing customers. New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood says the bank failed to disclose to investors that its strong cross-selling efforts were driven by fraudulent sales practices, such as opening millions of fake deposit and credit card accounts without customers' knowledge.

Employees who met sales requirements were eligible for promotions and bonuses, while those who did not faced potential termination.

"The misconduct at Wells Fargo was widespread across the bank and at every level of management ‐ impacting both customers and investors who were misled," Underwood says. "State securities laws are vital to protecting the hard-earned savings of working families and Main Street investors from financial fraud, and my office will continue to do what’s necessary to protect the public and the integrity of our markets."

Underwood notes Wells Fargo became aware of the fraudulent practices as early as 2011, but did not disclose the information to investors. When news of those practices broke publicly, New York investors lost millions of dollars, she says.

The bank issued the following response: "Wells Fargo did not admit liability, and we believe that putting this matter behind us is in the best interest of all of our stakeholders, including customers. The settlement costs have been previously accrued. We are making strong progress in our work to rebuild trust, and this represents another step forward. Over the past two years, we have made fundamental changes to retail sales practices, and the claims in this settlement relate to past product sales goals that were eliminated in 2016."

The New York Attorney General’s office says this settlement is separate from an ongoing investigation into the fraudulent accounts and services added without customers' consent.
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Wells Fargo seems more like an organized crime operation than a bank.
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 10/23/2018 0:05 Comments || Top||

#2  ...so like the Donks?
Posted by: Procopius2k || 10/23/2018 7:25 Comments || Top||

#3  We lost around 1.5 million wiped out by a Wells fraud scam. Fines? Bullshit, to little and no jail nor arrests.

F-em!
Posted by: Woodrow || 10/23/2018 7:53 Comments || Top||


-Obits-
Joachim Ronneberg, Leader of Raid That Thwarted a Nazi Atomic Bomb, Dies at 99
[NYT] The Norwegian saboteurs skied across the Telemark pine forest in winter whites, phantom apparitions gliding over moonlit snow. They halted at a steep river gorge and gazed down at a humming hydroelectric power plant where Nazi scientists had developed a mysterious, top-secret project.

Lt. Joachim Ronneberg, the 23-year-old resistance fighter in command, and his eight comrades ‐ all carrying cyanide capsules to swallow if captured ‐ had been told by British intelligence only that the plant was distilling something called heavy water, and that it was vital to Hitler’s war effort.

Hours later, in one of the most celebrated commando raids of World War II, Lieutenant Ronneberg and his demolition team sneaked past guards and a barracks full of German troops, stole into the plant, set explosive charges and blew up Hitler’s hopes for a critical ingredient to create the first atomic bomb.

Mr. Ronneberg, the last surviving member of the 1943 raid and one of the most decorated war heroes of a nation renowned for valorous resistance to the 1940-45 German Occupation, died on Sunday in Alesund, Norway, his daughter, Birte Ronneberg, said. He was 99.
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/23/2018 00:19 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Real men of the Norse. Wood, steel and ice. The Heroes of Telemark Trailer
Posted by: Woodrow || 10/23/2018 7:59 Comments || Top||

#2  Tor Heyderdahl was on that expedition as well, its an excellent read!
Posted by: 746 || 10/23/2018 10:59 Comments || Top||

#3  The German bomb never would of worked or was even achievable simply because they had no real grasp of what was required. The US's biggest advantage was being able to divert the resources needed to develop the bomb. Even the Japanese explored developing atomic weapons.
Posted by: Cheaderhead || 10/23/2018 19:20 Comments || Top||


-Short Attention Span Theater-
‘NASA is hiding life on Mars': Here's what's really going on in red planet ‘explosion' IMAGES
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 09:19 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Here’s what closed Sunspot Solar Observatory in September.
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 9:26 Comments || Top||

#2  Hubble Moving Closer to Normal Science Operations
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 9:29 Comments || Top||

#3  Chandra X-ray Observatory Should Return to Action Next Week
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 9:31 Comments || Top||

#4  Curiosity Rover Is Back to Limited Science Operations on Mars
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 9:34 Comments || Top||


#6  The ChiComs have opened a new manufacturing facility for flip-flops?
Posted by: Vast Right Wing Conspiracy || 10/23/2018 10:21 Comments || Top||

#7  It is a Russian bot plant getting ready to pounce on the midterm elections.
Posted by: DarthVader || 10/23/2018 10:31 Comments || Top||

#8  End-of-the-2018-fiscal_year,
NASA struggling to remain relevant.
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 10:57 Comments || Top||

#9  Not a volcano more likely someone's burning leaves in their yard. They do it all the time where I live.
Posted by: jpal || 10/23/2018 11:56 Comments || Top||

#10  It's Marvin!!
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 10/23/2018 12:04 Comments || Top||

#11  Martians test firing their large cannon to invade the Earth! Expect them around the 31st!

----or----

It's water vapor venting through the volcano vent [boring] Let's go with the first one!
Posted by: AlmostAnonymous5839 || 10/23/2018 13:56 Comments || Top||

#12  Where's the Kaboom? I was expecting an Earth Shattering Kaboom!
Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain || 10/23/2018 14:33 Comments || Top||

#13  The source is RT. Moving on.
Posted by: Shart the Low-priced4103 || 10/23/2018 17:43 Comments || Top||


NYPD Sergeant Accused of Stuffing Her Panties In Detective's Mouth
[Daily Caller] A New York Police Department sergeant is under investigation for allegedly shoving her panties into a detective’s mouth earlier this month.

Sgt. Ann Marie Guerra of the 72nd Precinct Detectives Squad lost her cool after Detective Victor Falcon complained to her about her frequently leaving her panties all over the unisex locker room, according to the New York Post.

Guerra allegedly screamed, "They are f‐king clean!" and then shoved her panties into Falcon’s mouth. (RELATED: Former NYPD Employee Says Gun Licensing Division Denies Permits Based On Minor Traffic Violations)

Falcon filed a complaint with NYPD’s Equal Employment Opportunity Office on October 10. The complaint described the incident and also referenced numerous sexually explicit stories that Guerra allegedly shared with Falcon and others.
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  But it's OK because the workplace is integrated.
Falcon obviously introduced some unresolved sexual tension.
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 8:28 Comments || Top||


Lee-Enfield Rifle: The Long Arm of the British Empire and the story of Lachhiman Gurung
[GunsAmerica Digest] Lachhiman Gurung seemed an unremarkable sort. He stood all of four feet eleven inches tall when he left his village to buy cigarettes for his father and ended up enlisting as a Gurkha in the service of the British Empire on a whim. However, on May 12, 1945, deep in a Burmese jungle Lachhiman Gurung proved that sometimes some of the most remarkable stuff comes in compact packages.

Gurung’s fighting position was at the foremost vanguard of his unit’s defensive emplacements standing ready against a pending Japanese attack. When the Japanese came they led with 200 seasoned assault troops. In fairly short order Gurung was alone, the rest of his mates either dead or dying.
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Great story.
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 8:26 Comments || Top||

#2  For those interested in more Lee-Enfield and Lee-Meford* check out the youtube channels Bloke on the Range and BritishMuzzleloaders. As far as the "Mad Miute" goes BritishMuzzleloaders does what he calls historical shooting. Using weapons. Ammunition and uniforms appropriate to the timeframe he explored the tactics and training employed by the British Army from the Napoleonic Era up through the late 1930's. He even makes his own rolled case ammunition for Martini-Henry. In his exploration of his training method there is nothing concerning the Mad Minute of legend.
Bloke on the Range has done comparisons of various bolt actions in a mad minute situation along with the M1. The SMLE is not that much slower than the M1 due to it's ergonomics and it's cocking on closing action. Between these two channels and Forgotten Weapons you pretty much have it covered
Posted by: Cheaderhead || 10/23/2018 19:13 Comments || Top||


-Signs, Portents, and the Weather-
'Potentially catastrophic' Hurricane Willa barrels towards Mexico
[Al Jazeera] A "potentially catastrophic" Category-5 hurricane is moving quickly through the Pacific Ocean and is predicted to pound western Mexico's shores on Tuesday, according to the US-based National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Although Hurricane Willa is expected to lose force by the time it makes landfall, NHC said it will likely remain a major storm of Category-3 intensity and could produce "life-threatening flash flooding and landslides over much of southwestern and west-central Mexico".

The hurricane is expected to pass over or near the Islas Marias - a set of islands about 96km offshore that includes a nature preserve and a federal prison - early on Tuesday, then blow ashore in the afternoon or the evening between the resort town of Mazatlan and San Blas, a distance of about 220km.

The governments of Sinaloa and Nayarit states ordered coastal region schools to close and have begun preparing emergency shelters.
Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1 
Posted by: 3dc || 10/23/2018 0:06 Comments || Top||

#2  There is a tropical storm on the other side also near CanCun. The invading marchers might run into bad weather.
Posted by: 3dc || 10/23/2018 0:08 Comments || Top||

#3  Whats Up With That has images to support 3dc’s warning here.
Posted by: trailing wife || 10/23/2018 8:43 Comments || Top||

#4  Exactly what I thought of, 3dc. Could get interesting.
Posted by: BA || 10/23/2018 9:03 Comments || Top||

#5  Did Pat Robertson pray from this redirection?
Posted by: Airandee || 10/23/2018 13:34 Comments || Top||


NYPD suspends body cameras for cops after device explodes
[RT] The New York Police Department has suspended the use of almost 3,000 body cameras after one went kaboom!, leaving some of the city’s police force unrecorded for the foreseeable future. According to studies, not much will change.

An NYPD officer noticed smoke rising from his camera on Saturday, and took it off before it went kaboom!. Nobody was injured in the incident, but the department instructed all officers equipped with Vievu LE-5 body cameras to return them to their precincts.

"Nothing is more important than the safety of our officers, and equipping the NYPD with the best equipment is a paramount priority," read a statement from the NYPD. The department believes that a battery malfunction caused the device to explode.
Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Nothing is more important than the safety of our officers,

Issue extra magazines.
No batteries.
No uplink encryption required.
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 1:41 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
Trump says US to start cutting aid as migrant caravan rolls on
[Al Ahram] President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
said Monday the US will start cutting aid to Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador as a caravan of thousands of mostly Honduran migrants colonists rolled on regardless toward the US border.

Trump kept up his almost-daily Twitter attacks on the approaching caravan, calling it a national emergency and said he had alerted the US border patrol and military.

"We will now begin cutting off, or substantially reducing, the massive foreign aid" that the United States provides to the three Central American countries, he said.

Mexican authorities had managed to block the "caravan" of migrants colonists on a border bridge between Mexico and Guatemala, but many later crossed the river below in makeshift rafts before marching north.

The caravan of around 3,000 migrants colonists was heading Monday to the town of Huixtla, around 40 kilometers further on from Tapachula in Chiapas State where they slept Sunday night.

"Sadly, it looks like Mexico's Police and Military are unable to stop the Caravan heading to the Southern Border of the United States. Criminals and unknown Middle Easterners are mixed in," Trump said in one tweet.

"I have alerted Border Patrol and Military that this is a National Emergy (sic). Must change laws!"

Activists say the journey through of at least 3,000 kilometers (1,800 miles) through Mexico to the US border could take a month.

"We are well aware that this country (Mexico) didn't receive us as we expected, and they can return us to Honduras, and we also know there are narcos who kidnap and kill migrants colonists," Juan Flores, one of those migrants colonists, told AFP.

"But we live with more fear in our country, so we carry on forward," he added.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also warned that the migrants colonists "may be victimized by human smugglers or others who would exploit them."

Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


China-Japan-Koreas
China seeks framework for November deal with Trump
[AsiaTimes] Beijing may be ready to trade short-term concessions and bide its time until it is far and away the world’s largest economy.

Ahead of a possible meeting next month between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, the White House tempered any optimism that a trade truce with Beijing is imminent when top economic advisor Larry Kudlow accused China on Sunday of doing “nothing” to defuse trade tensions.

But some Chinese officials and government advisers recently emphasized that China will show patience in addressing American trade demands, postponing if necessary some of its plans to become self-sufficient in high-tech industry.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: 3dc || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Commies

#1  Raising per capita income from the present US$9,000 a year to mid-five figures over the next ten years or so is the country’s top priority

Easy enough. Reduce the capita.
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 1:24 Comments || Top||


US warships pass through Taiwan Strait amid China tensions
[Al Ahram] The United States sent two warships through the Taiwan Strait on Monday in the second such operation this year, as the US military increases the frequency of transits through the strategic waterway despite opposition from China.

The voyage risks further heightening tensions with China but will likely be viewed in self-ruled Taiwan as a sign of support by President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
's government, amid growing friction between Taipei and Beijing.

Rooters was first to report US consideration of the sensitive operation on Saturday.

"The ships' transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the US commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific," Commander Nate Christensen, deputy front man for US Pacific Fleet, said in a statement.

"The US Navy will continue to fly, sail and operate anywhere international law allows," he added.

Taiwan's defense ministry said it closely monitored the operation and was able to "maintain the security of the seas and the airspace" as it occurred.

There was no immediate comment from China.

The US Navy conducted a similar mission in the strait's international waters in July, which had been the first such voyage in about a year. The latest operation shows the US Navy is increasing the pace of strait passages.

Washington has no formal ties with Taiwan, but is bound by law to help it defend itself and is the island's main source of arms. The Pentagon says Washington has sold Taiwan more than $15 billion in weaponry since 2010.

Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Commies


Economy
How Ft. Worth Saved on Health Care Costs
[DallasNews] The city of Fort Worth health plan, which serves nearly 14,000 employees, dependents and retirees, is projected to be $4.8 million under budget for fiscal 2018.

From January through June, spending in emergency rooms dropped 34 percent. Visits to the ER declined sharply, in network and out. Much of the credit goes to a new approach that bets heavily on the value of primary care.
Not sure how that related to Affordable Obamacare.
Three health clinics were opened exclusively for city workers and their families, and five other satellite clinics were added to the mix. Members who see a doctor in those facilities ‐ and wait times are less than five minutes, officials said ‐ don’t have to pony up a co-payment or deductible.

That’s right: Office visits are free, as are about 40 of the most common prescriptions.

If the nearby clinics aren’t convenient, members can call a doctor line for a consultation. So-called virtual visits (via smartphone, computer or landline) are also free for those enrolled in the city’s health center plan.
Sounds like O-Care to me. Not.
Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) encourage providers to form networks to better coordinate care. They share electronic records, try to eliminate duplicate tests and work with case managers and others to help patients stick with their regimen.

They resemble HMOs except that members are allowed to go outside the preferred network. They just have to pay more ‐ at least $60 for an office visit in Fort Worth’s plan.
But they can keep their Doctor?
ACOs have grown rapidly, starting with Medicare patients and expanding into the commercial market. But many experts were disappointed with the savings in the early years.

The government said ACOs increased Medicare spending by $344 million from 2013 to 2015.
That'd be the ObamaStudy.
But more recent studies, which use a different analysis, reported significant savings from the program ‐ more than half a billion dollars over the same period.

The city wanted employees to get in the habit of going to the clinics first ‐ and paying nothing for a visit.

By early October, the clinics had received almost 9,500 visits. Next year, Fort Worth expects the health plan's costs to come in almost $4 million below budget ‐ with no changes to employee co-pays, deductibles or premiums.

"It's working out wonderfully," Dickerson said.
Posted by: Bobby || 10/23/2018 10:15 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  That’s right: Office visits are free

No. Someone pays. It's just another monetary slight of hand trick.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 10/23/2018 11:08 Comments || Top||

#2  P2K - I was thinking the same thing. Some of these services may be at "no charge" to the recipient but funding is coming from somewhere, likely tax dollars. The old saying always applies - "there's no such thing as a free lunch".
Posted by: warthogswife || 10/23/2018 11:50 Comments || Top||

#3  At least someone's making an effort at using market type solutions for this sort of thing.
Posted by: Raj || 10/23/2018 13:21 Comments || Top||

#4  It actually makes a lot of sense to get a lot of primary care centers that push the wait times down if it encourages people to get looked at early and catch problems early when they can be cheaply treated. ("A stich in time saves nine", and "Time is money".) if the prescriptions are free, then people won't delay taking them. Also note that they have professional pester-ers (I.e. case managers) that get after people to follow their care plan.

I would NOT be surprised, given the high costs of treating complications of diseases that were allowed to grow unnecessarily large, that avoiding two or three bad cases on the back end would more than pay for primary care level treatment of 10 or more at the front end.

However, to fisk the article: note that the health plan was like the health plan for a business whose members, being responsible enough to hold down a job, would be responsible enough to take care of themselves. Get back to me when Also, the out-of-network visit co-pay is steeper than what I would have to pay, which incentivizes using in-network physicians.

Also, there is no direct comparison between what the plan costs versus what the costs would be if they went network-Obamacare: That's not that high a hurdle to clear to be cheaper than O-care.

It was always known that Obamacare relied heavily on primary care physicians to be gate-keepers to the specialists, but the renumeration structure was such that the specialists were paid more, discouraging participation as primary care physicians. The REJECTEES for Medical doctoral programs are not stupid individuals, so that information got fed back into the system pretty quick (An example of the vital need of socialists and leftists to keep people static and not give them freedom to react in a self-preserving manner, since it wreaks havoc with the predictions of the effects of their programs).
Posted by: Ptah || 10/23/2018 14:40 Comments || Top||

#5  A lady cutting my hair enthused about her European holiday, among other things she gushed about "...and their health care is free!" When I pointed out that "I Isn't 'free' -- someone had to pay for it." the conversation quickly shifted to another topic after a moment of dead silence.
Economic Illiteracy... *SIGH*
Posted by: magpie || 10/23/2018 15:46 Comments || Top||

#6  Of course it isn't "free". Somebody does have to pay for it. Personally this might be a good model for a lot of businesses that offer health careas a benefit or even more local, state or dare we say Medicare. In terms of the future economy of this country health Care is the 500 lb gorilla in the room. It's costs continue to outstrip inflation by a large margin. What's the answer? I don't know. Part of the problem is greed on the part of health care providers. Everybody from hospitals to insurance companies. The other part is the greed on the part of health care users. The "little Johnny has a cold, let's take him to the ER" types. On top of that we have the people without health using the ER as their health care provider causing the the providers to build the cost into everything else
Posted by: Cheaderhead || 10/23/2018 17:41 Comments || Top||

#7  It sounds like the majority of the cost savings comes from incentivizing the employees and their families to go to walk-in clinics with salaried medical staff, which is much cheaper than private doctorw who are paid by the visit... or hospital emergency rooms. But this is not new information — the porblem is getting people to give up their own doctors and settle for the anonymous staff of a clinic instead.

On one hand, treatment is faster and less expensive for both patient and insurance company. On the other hand, there is no continuity of care, no single doctor is keeping an eye on each patient’s progress. It’s fine for the vast majority who are healthy people with simple, common medical needs... and dreadful for those with rare diseases or complicated diagnoses, who need their GP to actively manage their cases and stay in top of new scientific developments.

But given the dire current financial condition of most local and state governments, this is probably the best situation they can provide, and the Fort Worth example does allow individuals who need more than is provided to pay out of pocket for their special needs — the difference between a workable situation and Medicare/Medicaid, which as I understand it do not allow going outside what is covered.
.
Posted by: trailing wife || 10/23/2018 20:36 Comments || Top||


The Trump Administration Wants to Make It Easier to Offer Retirement Benefits
[National Review] Roughly a third of privately employed American workers ‐ and half of those at businesses with fewer than 100 employees ‐ don’t have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan. This means that they have to figure out other options for themselves, and that they can lose out on some of the tax breaks everyone else gets. Unsurprisingly, they also save far less for retirement.

This isn’t merely the free market at work ‐ and not just because special tax incentives are involved. (That’s a completely different article.) Current regulations make it difficult to provide "multiple-employer" plans, under which small employers work together to cut costs and offer retirement benefits as a group. Since small businesses that don’t offer plans often say cost is the reason, loosening these regulations could greatly improve the situation. And a proposed rule from the Trump administration’s Labor Department would do just that.

This is a commonsensical proposal, following suggestions endorsed by business and retirement groups alike, to put big and small businesses on similar footing when it comes to offering retirement benefits. Even in 2018 it is the kind of thing that should receive bipartisan support. The one risk is that it could be challenged in court for pushing the boundaries of the current statutes, which Congress can and should fix.

"Small and medium-sized businesses could come together under an association to offer a 401(k)," a senior Labor Department official told me in a call previewing the rule on Friday. "So instead of the corner grocery store, the dry cleaner, and a restaurant each having a separate plan, they could all come together under one New York Chamber of Commerce 401(k)."

In addition to making it possible for more businesses to offer plans to begin with, this would improve the plans on offer. In general, thanks to economies of scale and negotiating power, bigger 401(k)s tend to pay lower fees. They also diffuse the various hassles associated with maintaining a plan. "If you ask a small-business owner, ’Do you want to hire a lawyer and make all these regulatory filings?’ they’ll typically say no," the Labor Department official said. "But if they can just join an organization they know is reputable and remit whatever money their employees would like to save, they’re much more likely to offer a plan."
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/23/2018 00:38 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Yea and the lawyers are the ones that'll benefit the most from this.
Posted by: Tyranysaurus Clugum5330 || 10/23/2018 3:09 Comments || Top||

#2  Lawyers are people, too. Or are they?
Posted by: DooDahMan || 10/23/2018 3:57 Comments || Top||

#3  DDM, how quaint!
Posted by: AlmostAnonymous5839 || 10/23/2018 6:43 Comments || Top||

#4  It does make more sense as well as being able to buy insurance across state lines.

And it is the CPAs and hedge fund managers that will make the most. Lawyers maybe second.
Posted by: DarthVader || 10/23/2018 9:13 Comments || Top||

#5  Just make sure it is ultimately a private entity that runs it. If run by the gov't it will just become another sink hole.
Posted by: warthogswife || 10/23/2018 11:53 Comments || Top||


Europe
Italians slam ‘filthy’ opinion piece comparing Brexit to Germany’s Nazi regime
[RT] A columnist in a major Italian newspaper has been slammed on Twitter as "filthy" and an "imbecile" for apparently comparing Brexit to the Nazi regime, and those choosing to leave Britannia to Jews fleeing the Holocaust.

An opinion piece in the Corriere della Sera, headlined "The descendants of the Jews who escaped Nazism now escape Brexit," was blasted online for purportedly putting Britannia’s democratic choice to crash out of the EU two years ago on the same level as the Third Reich.

The piece argues that just as people were forced to flee Germany during the Second World War for fear of being persecuted by the Nazis, their descendants are now escaping the UK ahead of it leaving the 28 member state bloc.

It points out that the number of Jewish refugee descendants flocking to Germany shot up to 1,667 in 2017, compared to just 43 in 2015, before the EU referendum took place.

"It’s mainly about finding yourself some insurance: with the terms of Brexit being still uncertain, pocketing a European passport means ensuring the possibility in the future of being able to carry on travelling and working freely within the EU," Luigi Ippolito, the author of the opinion piece, wrote on Saturday.

The controversial comparison sparked outrage on Twitter, with people blasting the article as "filth."

One said there is no such link between Brexit and the totalitarian regime that prompted the Jewish exodus from Germany in World War II, and branded those behind the article as "pitiful."

Another blasted them as "imbeciles."

Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Anyone who upsets the Socialist's rice bowl are Nazis.
Posted by: Sonny Lumumba7455 || 10/23/2018 1:41 Comments || Top||


Islam scholar Tariq Ramadan claims ‘sex was consensual’ in French rape case
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan, charged with raping two women in La Belle France, claimed Monday that he had consensual sex with both of them after previously denying any physical contact.

Ramadan, a well-known TV commentator, has strongly denied
No, no! Certainly not!
accusations that he raped the women in hotel rooms as an attempted smear by his opponents.

His lawyer Emmanuel Marsigny said the Swiss academic had changed his account of what happened on the basis of text messages that have emerged between him and his two accusers.

The messages "show that the plaintiffs lied and that the sexual encounters were wanted, consensual and even sought again afterwards", Marsigny said.

The unearthing of these messages "has allowed him to acknowledge that he had sexual relations" with the women, Marsigny said.

Ramadan, accused of raping the women in 2009 and 2012, has been in jug since February 2.

He previously insisted he had no sexual contact with his two accusers, feminist activist Henda Ayari and a disabled woman known in media reports as "Christelle".

Ramadan was a professor at Oxford University until he was forced to take leave when the rape allegations surfaced at the height of the "Me Too" movement late last year.

The married father of four, whose grandfather founded Egypt’s Moslem Brüderbund, has repeatedly sought bail arguing that being in prison is making it difficult to treat his multiple sclerosis.

The courts have so far rejected his requests, ruling that he can receive adequate treatment in the prison hospital at Fresnes in the southern Gay Paree suburbs.

Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Moslem Colonists

#1  She said "No" but my fists said "Yes".
Posted by: Sonny Lumumba7455 || 10/23/2018 1:39 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
India walking a tightrope with US and Russian defense systems
[AsiaTImes] Compatibility problems could mean the two missile systems might not work seamlessly together

India is aiming to modernize its strategic arsenal with the introduction of advanced US and Russian defense systems. However, some military experts say that while the South Asian giant needs foreign technologies to become a self-sufficient arms manufacturer – and autonomous global geopolitical player – technical problems could limit their coexistence.

The Indian government finalized the acquisition of Russia’s S-400 air defense missile system earlier this month and is said to be considering the purchase of the National Advanced Surface to Air Missile System-II (NASAMS-II) from the United States.

Aside from geopolitical considerations related to Washington’s secondary sanctions against Moscow, the inclusion of these two platforms in India’s developing multi-tiered air defense network could pose problems of compatibility.

Turkey, a US ally in the Northern Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato), is coping with similar challenges while going ahead with the S-400’s procurement. America and other Nato countries argue that the Russian system cannot be integrated with the alliance’s defense framework as it presents problems of interoperability. By this reasoning, the S-400 should also not be compatible with the NASAMS – which is built by the US Raytheon National in cooperation with Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace of Norway.

The crucial question for Delhi, as well as Washington and the Kremlin, is determining whether the two systems can coexist as part India’s prospective air defense framework.
Posted by: 3dc || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Can't imagine commingling technology on the same front. Regional defense: Pakistan, Coastal, China desert, maybe.
Posted by: Skidmark || 10/23/2018 1:23 Comments || Top||

#2  I guess nobody in India has ever heard of the seamless battlespace. I can see a US missile taking down a Russian missile.
Posted by: Shart the Low-priced4103 || 10/23/2018 17:48 Comments || Top||


Case against man for raping child
[DAWN] BAHAWALNAGAR: The Saddar police on Sunday started the paperwork but haven't done much else against a man for allegedly raping a five-year-old boy at Chak 133.

The child was admitted to the Civil Hospital after the incident.

The family told police that they had hired a 30-year-old man to look after animals in their barn. The suspect took the child to the barn where he raped him and his parents found him crying. They said the suspect fled.
Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Karachi rickshaw driver succumbs to wounds after self-immolation attempt against 'police extortion'
[DAWN] A rickshaw driver who had attempted to self-immolate in protest over the alleged extortion by traffic police departed this vale of tears on Monday, police said.

Rickshaw driver Khalid had sprinkled oil on his body and set himself alight near the city police office in Bloody Karachi
...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous...
's Saddar area on Saturday, saying he was "fed up" with the daily challan
... list of charges ...
and alleged "extortion" by the traffic police.

In his statement being shared on social media, Khalid had alleged that Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Mohammed Hanif had been extracting Rs100 from him daily. He gave the policeman Rs50 on Saturday, but the latter insisted on Rs100 and on refusal the ASI handed him a challan.

According to the rickshaw driver, his challan was without any merit and the traffic police had victimised him several times.

The rickshaw driver had been admitted to the Burns Centre of Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital for treatment. Sindh police chief Dr Syed Kaleem Imam had taken notice of the incident and ordered the DIG traffic to conduct an inquiry into the matter and submit a report to him.
Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Forget it Jake, it's Pakistan not Tunisia.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 10/23/2018 7:28 Comments || Top||


Domestic worker torture case: 11-year-old records statement before civil judge
[DAWN] Kinza, an 11-year-old domestic worker in Rawalpindi who has allegedly suffered torture at the hands of her employers, recorded her statement in the presence of a civil judge at the Civil Judicial Complex on Monday.

The girl's case had surfaced on Saturday through a series of videos shared on Twitter in which she could be seen talking about her employers' alleged mistreatment of her.

On Sunday, a medical examination confirmed that the bruises and wounds found on the 11-year-old's body were consistent with her account of the torture. The examination report confirmed that there is evidence of torture carried out 15-20 days ago using "[a] knife, belts and persons standing on her straight with full weight multiple times".

A case was registered at the Airport Police Station against Kinza's employers on the complaint of the Child Protection and Welfare Bureau (CPWB). According to the police, the couple will be tried under the Child Protection Act.

Toady, members of the CPWB took Kinza to the judicial complex under security provided by police, who barred media representatives from entering the courtroom. Civil Judge Sumaira Alamgir recorded the minor's statement.

Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
‘Big operation’ financed by ‘rich American Jews’ brought me down -- Ex-Israeli PM Olmert
[RT] In an explosive interview, former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert claimed that he was investigated and imprisoned for corruption after being targeted by a cabal largely financed by wealthy American Jews.

Olmert told TV channel i24NEWS that his six-year prison sentence for graft and bribery ‐ he was released on parole last year, after serving just 16 months ‐ was the result of trumped up charges.

"The nature of the allegations against me...were really at the end of the day very ridiculous, very insignificant...it was clear to me that those who were after me were ready to do everything, everything in order to get rid of me...," he said.

"It was big operation, largely financed by rich Jews from America."
It’s not the first time the left wing politician has made such claims, as it turns out. If only the left wing were not in decline in Israeli politics, he might have gotten some traction, poor dear.
A source close to Olmert told the Jerusalem Post in 2012 that right-wing American casino magnate Sheldon Adelson played a major role in privately financing an investigation into Olmert’s alleged shady dealings.

Speaking with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in May 2012, Olmert insisted that he had been the victim of a right-wing conspiracy involving powerful American businessmen. However, he declined to name names.

“[Trying to make peace] was a killer for me,” he told Amanpour, adding that “millions and millions of dollars” had been provided by American right-wingers in hopes of toppling him.

Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Horse hockey. American Jews typically support folks like Olmert even if it's suicidal. It would help a lot if Olmert had not been corrupt.
Posted by: gorb || 10/23/2018 2:15 Comments || Top||

#2  What gorb said.
Posted by: Shart the Low-priced4103 || 10/23/2018 17:50 Comments || Top||

#3  American Jews typically support folks like Olmert even if it's suicidal.

Yes, but Sheldon Adelson, the Jewish, multi-billionaire entrepreneur, supports Republican politicians at home and Bibi Netanyahu, Likud, and conservative politics in Israel. It is Mr. Adelson to whom Mr. Olmert objects, not rich American Jews in general.
Posted by: trailing wife || 10/23/2018 19:49 Comments || Top||

#4  TW, is Olmert's complaint that Sheldon Adelson provided the elbow grease to uncover his malfeasance? Or is he asserting that Sheldon Adelson used his money to manufacture crimes of which Olmert is innocent? The latter seems unsupported by the evidence while the former smells of sour grapes.

My usual disregard for anything published by RT applies.
Posted by: Shart the Low-priced4103 || 10/23/2018 20:00 Comments || Top||

#5  TW, is Olmert's complaint that Sheldon Adelson provided the elbow grease to uncover his malfeasance? Or is he asserting that Sheldon Adelson used his money to manufacture crimes of which Olmert is innocent?

Dear Shart the Low-priced4103, those are good questions. I have absolutely no idea, as I don’t pay attention to most Israeli politics, which is a full contact sport with frequently rearranging parties. lord garth and some others here no doubt know the answer, so hopefully they will see this tonight before the midnight rollover, or perhaps they'll post the answer in the O Club later.
Posted by: trailing wife || 10/23/2018 21:22 Comments || Top||


Olde Tyme Religion
Second French Priest Commits Suicide after Abuse Claims
[An Nahar] A priest in central La Belle France accused of sexually assaulting a minor did away with himself in his church, Catholic authorities said Monday, the second French priest to take his life over abuse claims in a month.

Pierre-Yves Fumery, 38, hanged himself in his presbytery in the town of Gien in the Loire valley. His body was found on Saturday.

The public prosecutor for the area, Loic Abrial, told AFP he had been questioned last week by police about allegations of sexual assault involving a child under the age of 15.

Fumery had not been formally charged but was under investigation because of reports from the community about his behavior, prosecutors said.

Orleans bishop Jacques Blaquart, whose diocese includes Gien, called it a "moment of suffering and a tragic ordeal."

Blaquart said some members of Fumery's parish had brought attention to the priest's "inappropriate behavior" towards children aged 13, 14 and 15, including a girl "that he took in his arms and drove home several times."

The bishop said the nature of the claims did not require the diocese to report the priest to the authorities and that he had told Fumery to "take a step back", seek counseling and leave town for a little while.

The priest took his advice and returned to Gien after a short break but had not yet resumed his duties, Blaquart said.

He is the second priest in over a month to commit suicide in similar circumstances.

On September 19, Jean-Baptiste Sebe, also aged 38, hanged himself in his church in the northern city of Rouen after a woman accused him of sexually assaulting her adult daughter.

No formal complaint had been made at the time of his death.
Posted by: Fred || 10/23/2018 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:



Who's in the News
41[untagged]
3Commies
3Govt of Saudi Arabia
2Islamic State
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2Hamas
2Houthis
2Moslem Colonists
2Sublime Porte
2Taliban
1al-Nusra
1Jamaat-e-Ulema Islami
1Jundullah
1Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life,
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1Palestinian Authority
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1Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats
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Two weeks of WOT
Tue 2018-10-23
  Firefighters extinguish day’s fifth blaze caused by incendiary balloon in southern Israel
Mon 2018-10-22
  US brigadier general recovering from at least one gunshot wound in Afghanistan attack
Sun 2018-10-21
  US charges Chicago man with online recruiting for Islamic State
Sat 2018-10-20
  Anjem Choudary Released from Prison
Fri 2018-10-19
  ISIS Returns: Sick terrorists take 700 hostage - Putin issues warning
Thu 2018-10-18
  Afghan guards open fire at Afghan-NATO meeting in Kandahar, injuring 2 Americans - reports
Wed 2018-10-17
  Mastermind behind Ahvaz terrorist attack killed in Iraq’s Diyala, IRGC says
Tue 2018-10-16
  Trump says 'rogue killers' may be behind Khashoggi disappearance
Mon 2018-10-15
  Jihadist rebels reinforce front-lines near Idlib buffer zone, no withdrawal
Sun 2018-10-14
  4 ISIS militants blown up by own explosives in Kunar province
Sat 2018-10-13
  Indian troops kill key Kashmiri fighter in Handwara siege
Fri 2018-10-12
  Easing frayed ties, Turkish court allows US pastor to go free
Thu 2018-10-11
  Afghan officials get 20 years for handing secrets to Pakistan
Wed 2018-10-10
  Turkey to search Saudi Consulate for missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi
Tue 2018-10-09
  Nikki Haley Resigns As US Ambassador To The UN


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