Letters to the Editor
cestmoi123
Published Letters: 235 Editor's Choice: 8
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We need to ration health care somehow
[Read the article: Don't think of a sick child]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Either we ration it by price, or we ration it by lines/denial of service/waiting lists. Right now, we do something of both. The more you pay, the less of the latter rationing you deal with. Pay nothing, and you have to deal with charity care at the emergency room. Pay some, and you get an HMO. Pay more, and you get a good fee-for-service plan (more doctors, no referrals, etc.), pay the most, and you get whatever you want. Try it sometime - doctors who are totally booked up become incredibly available for a cash patient. Many of the best doctors only take cash patients - they don't need to mess with insurance companies.
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Wrong Term
[Read the article: How much is that subprime-linked CDO in the window?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]They're COLLATERALIZED Debt Obligations (CDOs) and COLLATERALIZED Loan Obligations (CLOs), not collaborative.
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NYT attacks always amuse me
[Read the article: In defense of Krugman]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]So, we're to believe that the NYT is somehow evil because their hired reviewer didn't give a nice review to their COLUMNIST?
The NYT chose Kennedy b/c they thought his review would attract attention and sell (online and paper) ads, just as they run a Krugman column because it sells ads. That's what the NYT, Salon, Wapo, etc, ARE FOR. Their job is to get people to see the ads (or pay the subscription). No more, no less.
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Three options, in the real world
[Read the article: Nuclear war on YouTube ]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]1. More nuclear
2. More greenhouse gases
3. Freeze in the dark
Solar ain't going to hack it (although it'll help), wind ain't going to hack it (although it'll help), conservation ain't going to hack it (although it'll help).
There is no perfect energy source - nuclear's better than most, and the best available option.
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are you sure that's what she said?
[Read the article: White House: "Congress is being run by Code Pink"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I thought she said Congress was being _overrun_ by Code Pink, which would make a lot more sense. Of course, that doesn't mean that's what she said. :)
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It's still true, though
[Read the article: All the news that's fit to print?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]If things really improved in Iraq, it would certainly help the Republicans. A pony would be nice too.
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Reaction here is surprising
[Read the article: White House: "Congress is being run by Code Pink"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]In kindergarten, if you throw a temper tantrum, you get sent out of the room. Same thing happened to this woman.
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Kind of silly
[Read the article: Why James Inhofe tried to sabotage open access]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]1. $13k is noise. It's a tiny number.
2. How do you know R-E didn't give him the money BECAUSE he opposes open access? You assume it's the other way around - usually, it's not. Do you think Teddy Kennedy's a union advocate BECAUSE they give him money?
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Both parties are guilty here
[Read the article: Hypocrite much?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The Dems and Reps both routinely try the "attach thing the opposition hates to something that they can't be seen to vote against" ploy. The Republicans are hypocrites for opposing this when they supported similar maneuvers in the past, and the Democrats are hypocrites for supporting it when they condemned similar maneuvers in the past
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Anonymous, Paul HAS no chance
[Read the article: Are you part of Ron Paul's botnet?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Zip, zero, zilch.
I'll give you 10:1 odds on a $10k bet that Ron Paul is not our next President. Hell, I'll give you 20:1. Paul's the next prez, you get $200k. He's not, I keep your $10k. Interested? I didn't think so.
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Theft of services would be...
[Read the article: Quote of the Day]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Bring her over, tell her you'll pay her $200/guy, she has sex with four guys, and then you kick her out without paying her. If the sex was consensual, and the payment was denied, it's not rape (just as someone who has sex with his fiancee, and then breaks off the engagement, isn't a rapist).
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Fran, that's just not true
[Read the article: Hypocrite much?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]If either party stopped doing this, there's no way the other party would stop. It would be unilateral disarmament, which is a really good way to get shot. The political upside (making the other side vote against funding for blind war veteran orphans burned saving puppies from house fires in order for them to vote against whatever it is you're actually pushing that's much less politically appealing) is just too great to pass up.
So long as non-germane amendments and provisions are allowed, we'll have this kind of bundling.
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Anonymous, a little hint
[Read the article: Are you part of Ron Paul's botnet?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The fact that a casino has Ron Paul at 6:1 (apart from the pari-mutuel commentary above, which is 100% correct), does not mean that they offer a "anybody other than Ron Paul" bet at 1:6. If they did, I'd take it every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
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Some of these numbers are junk, frankly.
[Read the article: Who's winning the broadband sweepstakes?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]It's not clear exactly how they get the "average advertised broadband download speed" numbers, but those in no way, shape, or form, represent the services users are actually getting (with the exception of certain users in some parts of Korea and Japan). In France, for example, the vast majority of customers are getting 10Mbps or less, and even the higher-end ADSL2+ services are at about 24Mbps (for customers who live close to central offices, and can actually get that theoretical max speed).
It would be much more useful to have an weighted average of the current installed base of services, which would show lower numbers across the board.
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Implications are interesting, though
[Read the article: Ask the pilot]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The fact that people so readily believe this commercial says a lot about how little credibility the airlines have with their customers. Passengers have been either lied to (either by commission or omission) so much that they're entirely willing to believe a story premised on an airline misinforming (or lying to) one of its own employees.
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There's a problem, but it's not what you seem to think
[Read the article: Bad stenographers]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The problem that the Post and NYT have is that the content they produce isn't selling enough papers. Glenn, why is this so hard for you to grasp: the purpose of the NYT and Post writers and editors is to sell ads, just as the reason for your column is to get me to see the CNN and MSN Live Search ads on this page. The most valuable news coverage out there today is Fox, since people actually want to watch it, as the ratings clearly show.
Why do you persist in this pretentious delusion that "we're the 4th estate, we're special"? News coverage is just another form to content to drive ad impressions and revenue, no different from Lost or America's Next Top Model.