echoradio

This is incorrect. The passage of the ACA required insurance companies to lift the limits on visits for mental health.

As someone who has dealt with the mental health system in the U.S. for 20+ years, I remember the time before the ACA and after — a big difference.

But even with insurance, it’s not a guarantee to find someone who will treat you. I’ve had the experience of calling a long list of providers who accepted my insurance, but weren’t taking new patients.

According to the film, the last paper published with hot type was July 2 — my grandfather’s birthday. He was an avid reader of the New York Times and loved doing the Sunday crosswords — in ink!

In sharing the fun coincidence about the date of the last typeset paper with my mom, I learned one of my grandfather’s uncles worked at the New York Times doing the exact typesetting seen in the documentary. He retired in 1968, though, so never saw the transition shown in the film. It gives pause to think of the front-page headlines he may have been involved in preparing (i.e. Pearl Harbor, JFK, etc.).

I’ve worked on the web for 25 years. I wonder what my (great-great) uncle would think of digital publishing. :)

I don’t have a formal CS/CE background and only work with computers on a high level. I know how computers work, but wanted to _really_ understand. The author’s approach is very accommodating of beginners (like myself) and it inspired me to learn more. :)

What a waste. I’d go to the bookstore, buy a stack of books — because I wanted to read and relax — only to fall asleep because I was so exhausted for running around. I’m kind of ashamed to even admit I lived a life like that.

But one positive about stockpiling those books over the years: the pandemic have me ample time to read some of them!

Eastern European comfort food. :)

Same here.

Several years ago I went through a period of bringing in 1/8 of my previous income over a stretch of two years. I had to tap into deep savings to stay afloat. In that stretch, I realized how much money was wasted on things that had absolutely no positive impact in my living situation.

When the pandemic came around, I was blessed in keeping a stable job and continued to earn a comfortable wage, yet I found myself going back to a simpler mindset.

And you know, I’ve been a lot happier. For example, I used to eat out all the time because I never had time to cook. Once that changed, what became one of my favorite meals was (apparently) a depression-era staple. Go figure.

We’re so conditioned that in order to be good Americans, we have to be good consumers. The problem is, it’s gotten to an extreme level, and now we’re seeing how our out-of-balance lifestyles are actually problematic. Sure, there’s been ample profit, but these habits exact other costs we don’t see until it’s too late.

It’s easy to show a photo or X-ray of a diseased lung and see damaged caused by smoking. It’s not as easy to convey the emotional damage caused by depression, until it’s unfortunately too late.

They’re coming because there is no state income tax and the most significant taxation hits tourists (hotel, rental cars, property tax on vacation homes, etc.). The winter weather isn’t bad, either. ;)

Property tax is probably the highest tax for a resident who owns a home, and even so, it tends to be much less than many other places.

There’s a misconception Florida is an inexpensive place to live. I hear it all the time from newcomers.

It is becoming increasingly expensive for general cost of living, housing and insurance. Home prices now exceed where they were 15 years ago during the real estate bubble.

Also, the state doesn’t invest in nearly the amount of infrastructure it should for the number people here.

For instance, hurricanes are a threat to the entire state, yet there are numerous counties in the panhandle which have no hurricane shelter, and those which do often have one only rated for a Cat 2 storm. Hurricane Michael hit the region in 2018 as a Cat 5.

Unfortunately, it will probably take a massive environmental disaster (hurricane, red tide, climate change) to convince the all but the most hardened individuals Florida wasn’t a good place to move to.

When the pandemic hit, these were the same items people hoarded (in addition to toilet paper). Why? The pandemic wasn’t going to shut off a fridge/freezer. It wasn’t going to disable the water system. People reacted in the only way they knew for a crisis they experience often — not what the actual situation was.

It served as a reminder that when a major, acute crisis hits, most people are not going to be thinking rationally. They’re going to rely on whatever instincts have been developed.

I can’t even imagine what extremes would result from a fast-moving crisis like a nuclear explosion.

Worth noting: PBS’ “American Experience” did a documentary (part docudrama?) on the accident which was okay, but not as nearly as outstanding as the book.

I read the book is the result of seven years of research. The text itself is 500 pages with ~110 of notes and references.

Schlosser’s book (at times) reads like fiction. I enjoyed how he weaved the story of the Damascus accident and history of America’s nuclear program seamlessly to a climax. It is one of my favorite books of on both subject matter and writing style.

When she mentioned air support being pulled back, I wondered if the U.S. could have still kept some order through that alone. It made me think of how the Americans maintained no-fly zones over Iraq for a dozen years after the Gulf War.

You should consider reaching out to the Raspberry Pi Foundation and explaining the situation. It is a registered charity and may have a program for distributing kits (and covering the associated costs) to areas or individuals who do not have easy access to hardware.

https://newrepublic.com/article/159662/libertarian-walks-int...

Does anyone know of an ‘awesome’ list-type collection of these types of tutorials?

(In case the content is behind the Miami Herald’s paywall.)

With private insurers, all it takes is one small claim to cancel a policy. Many property owners have no choice but sign up with Citizens when private entities refuse to issue a contract or set the price so high it is simply unaffordable.

But Citizens will also try to offload contracts to small private insurers (that most have never heard of). Then the concern becomes, “will my insurer survive the financial onslaught of claims or go bankrupt before I get my check?”

[1] https://www.citizensfla.com/who-we-are

Before Hurricane Andrew hit in 1992, the region had not been impacted by a significant storm in years and there was a very lax attitude toward building codes. Many places built in the 1980s we’re not always constructed with the most sound practices [1], builders were taking shortcuts and local government turned a blind eye to the issue.

Andrew changed everyone’s thinking after the “new” neighborhood of CountryWalk was flattened [2]. Some of the strictest building codes in the nation were implemented — and enforced — after Andrew.

But the lax attitude has returned. For instance, in the past decade, I’ve seen new multi-level residential buildings constructed with wood (instead of concrete) above the second floor, wondering how such construction even receives approval given the building code.

But it is happening, and the majority non-native, transient population has no clue the overpriced real estate they’ve purchased may not be suited to handle a major storm. They will face a reckoning if this day ever comes.

I would advise anyone looking to buy down here to do your due diligence. Hire a good inspector and engineer to examine your potential purchase, as well as a lawyer to make sure all repairs or improvements were all done above board.

[1] https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/...

[2] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_Walk,_Florida#Histor...

States with smaller populations were still hit by COVID, just later than metropolitan areas (which makes sense).

The problem with sparsely populated regions getting hit is the resources aren’t there to support major outbreaks. Last year, there were situations where patients in rural areas had to be transported to other hospitals — sometimes across state lines — to receive treatment.

War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength?