Dear Patient, Who can we sue? Love, Humana (w/ poll)

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday April 20, 2009 · 4:12 PM PDT

2009/04/20 · 16:12

At least I have health insurance, with Humana, through my spouse's employer. I can receive health care as long as I pay my share, deal with their endless requests for information they already have, and fend off accusations that I've already paid the bill with other insurance (and am trying to enrich myself at Humana's expense).

I got a letter from Humana wanting to know about a fall I had in October 2008. It's an obvious attempt to squeeze information out of me about who they might be able to sue to recover what they've paid in benefits. It's not the first time our insurance companies have done this.

The purpose of this diary is to garner comments and suggestions that I can use the next time Humana questions me. Snark is requested as well as non-snark. It's also to garner suggestions as to how I could put together a stockholder proposal to end the practice of grilling patients.

Please jump over the fold, but don't hurt yourself!

Poll

62 votes Show Results

I love health insurance because...

62 votes Vote Now!

I love health insurance because...

I enjoy paying lots of money and getting little back.

6 votes

I support unfettered profits-before-people capitalism.

2 votes

I enjoy seeing uninsured and underinsured people suffer.

3 votes

I'm a large shareholder and I love my dividends.

0 votes

I enjoy being harassed by strangers.

4 votes

Some or all of the above.

25 votes

I enjoy pie.

16 votes

Other.

6 votes

Just for Fun - Non-political advertising Jingles (w/poll)

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday April 06, 2009 · 10:29 AM PDT

2009/04/06 · 10:29

I miss good ads. Once upon a time, there were good ads - lots of good ads. Ads that stuck in your brain. Jingles that became earworms and wouldn't leave your brain until something even stickier came along. Advertising slogans that became part of the language. Advertising characters who became part of Americana (Mr. Whipple, the Lonely Maytag Repairman, the Crying Indian). There were even movies with nothing in them but award-winning ads. Decades before television, there were radio ads, both good and dull, and print ads. Lots of those ads (both radio and television) are available for the aficionado - free of charge.

Sure, there were plain old boring ads, designed to sell you a product even if they put you to sleep while doing so. There were a lot of those, and there still are - not to mention product placements in everything from movies and television programs to video games. However, it's been a long time since I've seen any really awesome ads (except for the HSUS ads, which make animal lovers cry). How's your memory?

Poll

40 votes Show Results

In general, non-political ads:

40 votes Vote Now!

In general, non-political ads:

Are more fun than they used to be.

3 votes

Are less fun than they used to be.

12 votes

Are still ads and should be ignored.

7 votes

Are better than the shows they're on.

9 votes

Suck.

4 votes

Suck PIE.

4 votes

Other.

1 vote

No Santa? No problem. (w/poll)

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday November 19, 2008 · 4:15 PM PST

2008/11/19 · 16:15

Many folks will not be able to afford the usual Christmas this year. Splurging on stuff just plain won't be an option. This may turn out to be the best thing that's ever happened to families who find themselves competing with their own purchases from previous years just to make the kids happy.

This is as good a time as any to teach children that Santa Claus doesn't exist. Jewish kids, Muslim kids, Buddhist kids, and Hindu kids already know this, and to the best of my knowledge, none have ever committed suicide over it. Only young Christian kids think there's a Santa. They eventually find out that it's not so - and they don't commit suicide over it when they find out. Why not tell even the youngest ones about it now?

You'll need to teach kids what you think the holiday season is really about. I'd bet my bottom dollar that there's not a single person out there who truly thinks Christmas is about buying stuff. Tell your kids that Santa is US. And sometimes, family and friends need other things first. Teach kids the difference between wants and needs, and make whatever funds you have count for something meaningful.

Poll

76 votes Show Results

What's up for YOUR Christmas?

76 votes Vote Now!

What's up for YOUR Christmas?

American Traditional - lots of crap under the tree.

4 votes

Something less expensive, but still American Traditional.

14 votes

Something completely different and a whole lot cheaper.

5 votes

Old-fashioned Christmas, small gifts or no gifts, plenty of love.

16 votes

Animal Shelter Christmas - money/toys/food donated to animal shelter.

1 vote

Human Shelter Christmas - money/toys/food donated to human shelter/nursing home.

2 votes

Give livestock to an African family instead of toys to the kids.

0 votes

Never do Christmas anyway (not Christian or not Christmas-celebrating Christian).

9 votes

Never do Christmas anyway (grinch, grinch).

2 votes

Is it that time of the year ALREADY?

6 votes

Combination of (some of) the above.

13 votes

Other (please explain - someone might want to try it!).

4 votes

Early Report from the "Real America" (w/poll)

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday November 04, 2008 · 5:33 AM PST

2008/11/04 · 05:33

Finally! Election Day!

I voted a bit after 6 AM this morning. Early voting wasn't an option, since Kentucky severely restricts early voting (one must sign a statement that one will be disabled or out of town on Election Day in order to vote early). I vote in a place that's right out of a Charlie Daniels song - in the Pinchem district (pinching whom?) in rural Kentucky. I vote in the Antioch Baptist Church ("and I ain't even got a garage - you can call home and ask my wife!").

This is what Palin called the "Real America." Right here, between the tobacco barn and the cattle pasture. We're alive, and we vote, too.

Poll

74 votes Show Results

Rural America:

74 votes Vote Now!

Rural America:

votes, too!

20 votes

is why elections like this one are contested.

0 votes

needs education so that we'll stop screwing ourselves over.

12 votes

All of the above.

37 votes

should be ignored - to hell with 'em.

2 votes

Other.

3 votes

How to say thanks for the bailout, Reps! (with poll) (Link added)

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday October 03, 2008 · 1:54 PM PDT

2008/10/03 · 13:54

I'm sure this has been diaried by now, but once again, I'm angry. I want to say a little something to the folks who passed that bill. I hope I'm coherent.

The House of Representatives passed the bailout bill (oops, 'scuse me, now it's a rescue plan). I knew this from watching CSPAN, but also from my e-mail. I got a triumphant e-mail from the Wellstone folks, gushing about how the Wellstone Bill was finally passed. (Huh?)

Well... I scanned the bailout bill. And I want to say thanks, scumbags, for passing it.

Poll

37 votes Show Results

Are you willing to send a small check to your Representative?

37 votes Vote Now!

Are you willing to send a small check to your Representative?

Yes, s/he voted against the bailout bill.

7 votes

No, my Representative voted against it, but otherwise sucks.

5 votes

No, but I'll send a check to his/her opponent.

3 votes

No, but I'll send a check to a potential Representative in another location.

0 votes

No, I can't afford to send anything to anybody right now.

18 votes

There was other stuff in the bill?

1 vote

Other.

3 votes

Obama = Muslim = anti-Christ? C'mon! THINK! (with poll)

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday September 29, 2008 · 4:28 PM PDT

2008/09/29 · 16:28

OK, now I'm upset. Again. I need to vent; hence this diary.

I got an e-mail from a conservative friend that cited Revelations 13 and claimed that Revelations said that the anti-Christ was a Muslim man in his 40s. And that Obama was, of course, that man.

Yep. It's the smear of all smears, the ridiculous pandering to Christians who know no history, and fear-mongering the likes of which I haven't seen since the aftermath of 9/11. At least then, it could be shown that the people who made the planes fly into the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and a field were Muslims. This time, the accusations are pulled from thin air - and the worst part is the biblical citation... that doesn't exist.

Poll

110 votes Show Results

What do you do when receiveing crap like this FROM A FRIEND?

110 votes Vote Now!

What do you do when receiveing crap like this FROM A FRIEND?

Ignore it.

10 votes

Gently try to correct the misinterpretations, revisions, distortions, and lies.

36 votes

Scream, yell, rant, and rave.

5 votes

Cry.

1 vote

Drink.

9 votes

All or several of the above.

42 votes

Other.

7 votes

Questions for Palin That I Would Not Ask A Man (with Poll)

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday September 17, 2008 · 4:19 PM PDT

2008/09/17 · 16:19

This is a serious article about breastfeeding, children, especially those with Down syndrome, the health care cost savings associated with breastfeeding, and the risk of potential death from pregnancy for older women.

If you’re looking for a trash-Palin article, hoping to find titillating questions about women and sex, or hoot at pictures of naked breasts, you might as well quit reading right now.

Poll

61 votes Show Results

A full year of breastfeeding is important mostly because:

61 votes Vote Now!

A full year of breastfeeding is important mostly because:

Babies, especially those with with Down syndrome, will be healthier.

8 votes

Mothers will be healthier.

0 votes

The environment will be healthier.

0 votes

Skin-to-skin contact results in a better maternal bond.

1 vote

It costs the family less money.

0 votes

It costs the taxpayers less money.

0 votes

That's what pediatricians say to do.

0 votes

All of the above.

41 votes

Who cares? Feed 'em Bud from a can.

9 votes

Other.

2 votes

BenGoshi's diary - Two Good "Companion" Ads

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday September 12, 2008 · 5:30 AM PDT

2008/09/12 · 05:30

Please note: This is NOT SciMathGuy's diary. It's BenGoshi's diary. BenGoshi had a terrible time getting this thing to publish. I was able to play with it a little and make the thing work. (I also think it's a nice addition to his most recent diary.)

Two "companion ads".

Each one 1 minute.

They run throughout the United States.

One of them features Montana Governor Schweitzer, Montana Senator Jon Tester, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.

The other features Regular Folks, which could be, say --

Stay with me below the fold.

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday September 10, 2008 · 5:02 PM PDT

2008/09/10 · 17:02

I'm not an ad guy. I am, however, a typical American couch tater. I've seen ads that seemed stupid, ads that seemed wonderful, a few ads that I never forgot, and a lot of ads that I forgot immediately.

From what I can tell, the ads that people remember are the ones that are outrageous in one way or another. They might have really cute video, or really cute words, or simply a pitch done in a manner that is markedly different and therefore noticeable. The ads that people remember are also repeated over and over and over. Does anybody know what Enzyte is? They only had 3 varieties of commercial, but they had cute video and cute stories, and they played at least once an hour on some stations (like Spike). How about HeadOn? They were short and to the point, and they were so annoying that you had to notice them.

Poll

27 votes Show Results

Which of those ads would you like to see?

27 votes Vote Now!

Which of those ads would you like to see?

1. Enough lies.

9 votes

2. Change underwear.

3 votes

3. American enough.

1 vote

4. Choose life.

2 votes

5. Taxes pie chart.

3 votes

6. Loss of Morning in America.

0 votes

7. Updated Morning in America.

1 vote

8. The Birds - ENOUGH!

2 votes

9. Boxes of Obama.

0 votes

10. Other, described in Comments.

3 votes

11. Other.

3 votes

The Slippery Slope of the Death Penalty

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday September 05, 2008 · 5:42 AM PDT

2008/09/05 · 05:42

Crime and punishment aren’t fashionable issues this year. Crime and incarceration rates have changed over the years (up or down, depending on the crime, the location, and the statistics chosen for use). The views of the four major Presidential candidates about the death penalty are not easy to find, and their campaigns don’t want to touch the issue with a ten-foot noose. Nonetheless, there are still many executions and inmates on Death Rows in the United States. Millions of words have been written about capital punishment, and there are no simple answers to the questions surrounding the death penalty. Every answer to questions about the death penalty raises more questions.

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday September 01, 2008 · 4:49 PM PDT

2008/09/01 · 16:49

Who would oppose a law allowing union organizing? Kentucky’s forever Senator, Mitch McConnell, would. McConnell is running a misleading series of anti-union ads designed to help us forget the value of unions. Imagine that! McConnell - whose wife is the Head of the U.S. Department of Labor – is anti-union. (Of course, Secretary Chao is a nightmare for labor, too, but that’s another story.) We must insist that the Employee Free Choice Act become law. We must vote against Senate candidates like McConnell who oppose it. We must vote against Representatives who voted against it. Even Lieberman was a co-sponsor of this legislation. If you’re in Kentucky, you can vote for Bruce Lunsford, against McConnell. If you’re not in Kentucky, you can help remove one of the most anti-middle-class Senators still serving by sending the Lunsford campaign a check.

Poll

156 votes Show Results

Do you or did you belong to a union?

156 votes Vote Now!

Do you or did you belong to a union?

Yes, because I wanted to join.

66 votes

Yes, because I had to join in order to work.

13 votes

No, because there aren't unions in my field.

54 votes

No, because I hate unions.

20 votes

Other (please explain below).

3 votes

Murder or sports - which is more important? (with poll)

SciMathGuy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Sunday August 24, 2008 · 9:45 AM PDT

2008/08/24 · 09:45

Once upon a time, in a faraway land called China, a major sports event was hosted. This event was called the Olympics. During this event, an American was murdered and his wife was seriously injured, as was their Chinese guide. The man was related to an Olympic coach. The media covered the murder, of course, but they failed to delve deeply into it. Why not?

The murder occurred the day after the opening ceremony, and in light of the fact that the Chinese were trying to show the world that they are now a modern society, it's understandable that they preferred the world's focus to be on the city of Beijing rather than on the murder. However, it's unlike the American media to let a murder story go uninvestigated. There are still few details available as to what really happened and why the murder occurred.

Poll

16 votes Show Results

Which is more important?

16 votes Vote Now!

Which is more important?

Murder.

8 votes

Sports.

4 votes

Murder and sports are equally important.

1 vote

Huh?

3 votes

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RSS

Dear Patient, Who can we sue? Love, Humana (w/ poll)

Just for Fun - Non-political advertising Jingles (w/poll)

No Santa? No problem. (w/poll)

Early Report from the "Real America" (w/poll)

How to say thanks for the bailout, Reps! (with poll) (Link added)

Obama = Muslim = anti-Christ? C'mon! THINK! (with poll)

Questions for Palin That I Would Not Ask A Man (with Poll)

BenGoshi's diary - Two Good "Companion" Ads

Suggested Ads for Obama to use, with poll

The Slippery Slope of the Death Penalty

Labor Day Thoughts: Ditch Mitch to Support Unions (with poll)

Murder or sports - which is more important? (with poll)