RANT: Had to settle but argh!

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

My, now in a nursing home, aunt got services from Visiting Nurse Service of Central Jersey. Under advice from my lawyer, it was cheaper to settle than to fight.

Argh!

Here’s the rest of the story.

My aunt needed home health aide services for four hours per day. This was arranged between her and Saint Peter’s hospital. I was involved as my aunt’s health care proxy. So everything was OK. Then, my aunt became lax about paying bills so as her HCP/POA and “favorite relative”, I started running her finances. We gave VNANJ her credit card and they started charging it for time billed. The aide was not the best, and that is another whole story, but there was not much I could do. I didn’t care for the arrangement especially since I wasn’t in the paperwork circle except as it pertained to the checking account. I asked verbally for them to cc me on the stuff but they cited “privacy”. Now I should have smelled a rat and raised a fuss then but I had a lot going on at that time.

Fast forward a few months and my aunt falls, breaks a bone, and goes from hospital to nursing home. First thing after the fall I (personally) call and stop the service.

But they keep billing. So I politely, at first, gripped.

Then, after a few MONTHS, they start dunning me for the accumulated balance. WT … … what kind of “barbara streisand” is this?

It appears that they “underbilled” my aunt for hours provided and “accrued” her payments.

I told them that wasn’t my problem.

Long story short, my lawyer can’t prove my side based on what I have and urged me to settle.

Against my better judgment, I did.

But I am definitely off the charts on this one.

Lessons Learned:

  • All agreements must be in writing.
  • All elder arrangements must be carefully supervised.
  • All elder finances must be carefully documents.
  • VNA Central Jersey is not to be trusted. They may have to be used but plan to watch them as you would a convicted felon counting money!

I just paid 5k$ of my aunt’s money for a very expensive lesson.

I heard that the aide sued VNACJ for a pay dispute. I wonder if I just got a certain end of the stick from that?

Please learn from my “mistake”. You don’t have to pay tuition at every school to learn.

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Posted by reinkefj

FUN: never betting on anything that can talk?

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

http://www.nypost.com/seven/08212007/postopinion/letters/putting_refs_through_hoops.htm

*** begin quote ***

August 21, 2007 — Holy cow! NBA games have been crooked (“Ref Blowing the Whistle,” Aug. 19)?

No kidding!

Bob Aaron
Hicksville

*** end quote ***

Isn’t there some famous advice about never betting on anything that can talk?

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Posted by reinkefj

RANT: Government policies have crippled American health care

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

http://action.downsizedc.org/wyc.php?cid=78

Join our campaigns to Downsize DC . . .
Health Care: No Monopoly – No Fascism

“Government cripples you, then hands you a crutch and says, ‘See, if it wasn’t for us, you couldn’t walk.’” — Harry Browne

The above quote hits the nail on the head — especially with regard to health care. Government policies have crippled American health care. This crippling has then been used as a justification for creating government crutches. And these crutches have caused our health care system to atrophy still further. The trend is not good.

*** begin quote ***

I strongly oppose any additional funding for personal health care expenses at the federal level.

My personal comment to you:

As a matter of fact, I want you to begin the process of unwinding the Federal Government’s intrusion into the heathcare and drug marketplace. You can start by:

(1) changing the non-deductibility of health care premiums for ALL taxpayers (this would end the ww2 wage and price controls tax preference for employer sponsored benefits which are tied to a job).

(2) free the drug manufacturers from the FDA regulatory processes (Compensate by CLOSING the federal courts to damage claims for adverse results when a drug is used without an FDA seal of approval. Thus making the FDA more like Underwriters Laboratory).

AND

(3) End the phony “War on Drugs” and return drug regulation to the various States and the free market.

ASAP!

signed,
Ferdinand Reinke

*** end quote ***

What a mess! And, the gooferment’s gonna save us from … … the mess they made?

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GUNS: Armed for first day of school

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article1948234.ece

Armed for first day of school

***Begin Quote***

Hundreds of thousands of students had their first day of school on Monday. Some of them had to learn to carry guns and be prepared to shoot — polar bears.

Students on the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard aren’t allowed to leave their village without a shotgun and ammunition. That’s because hungry polar bears can be behind every swing on the island.

***End Quote***

Now that’s common sense. Don’t we here have two legged varmints that need a suitable discouragement device?

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Posted by reinkefj

TECH HARDWARE: Vista and Tripplite “perfect together”?

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

http://www.tripplite.com/vista

***Begin Quote***

Any Windows Vista user connecting their computer to any of the following UPS systems MUST download this patch BEFORE they connect their Tripp Lite UPS System to the computer.

***End Quote***

Anyone not just slightly concerned that Vista needs special help connecting a UPS?

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Posted by reinkefj

TECHNOLOGY: made it into Risks

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/24.80.html#subj14

I made it into Risks again. (Boy is PGN getting easy in his old age!)

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TECH SERVICE: GRANDCENTRAL aka GOOGLE screws its users! Hence NOT RECOMMENDED

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/146118898/

***Begin Quote***

Troy Schneider received such a notice, advising him that in 8 days his Grand Central number would be canceled and that he would be required to immediately start using a new number allocated to him. Judi Sohn received the same message: with no prior warning she had 8 days left on her existing phone number then it would cease to operate. Sohn was fortunate to some extent: Google has offered to pay for the reprinting of her business cards, but that would appear to be a one off, and a token gesture at that.

***End Quote***

Glad I only dipped my toe in that pot!

Of course, a curse upon their house and never use it.

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Posted by reinkefj

RANT: REALID — what duty do we have to this fraud

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/08/us_government_t_2.html

Schneier on Security
A blog covering security and security technology.

August 20, 2007
U.S. Government Threatens Retaliation Against States who Reject REAL ID

*** begin quote ***

REAL ID is the U.S. government plan to impose uniform regulations on state driver’s licenses. It’s a national ID card, in all but cosmetic form.

*** end quote ***

Not that New Jersey would grow a set and stand up to the Federal Gooferment like NH and others, but if they did then the poor taxpayer might show a “profit”. Last time I looked it was estimated that we get back a supposed 86 cents in “federal benefits” for every 136 cents we sent to the Rat Hole on the Potomac. So if we rejected Real Id, do we have to pay Federal Taxes? That begs the question if the definition of citizen is allegiance for protection AND if the Federal Courts have rule the gooferment has no specific duty to protect you (as if they could), THEN what duty do we have to this fraud? Now where is my torch and pitchfork? Time to ride the crooks out on a rail. BTW in case someone couldn’t guess I’m a Ron Paul contributor and will vote for him if I get a chance. Not that it will make much difference in the Pepuls Republik of Nu Jerzee!

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Posted by reinkefj

MONEY: You, the Fed, and Inflation

Monday, August 20, 2007

http://www.jbs.org/node/1064

You, the Fed, and Inflation
By Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr.
Published: 1998-11-23 06:00 Economics

***Begin Quote***

Wall Street remains constantly worried about two forces in American economic life: inflation and deflation. It seems Wall Street worries about inflation on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, it worries about deflation. Or perhaps it worries about both at the same time.

Of course, inflation is one of the most destructive forces in all of human history. In order for an economy to function properly, money must be sound and its value must be honestly gained. For most of human history, soundness and honesty were guaranteed because money was just another name for the most valuable commodity: gold. Gold was ideal as money because it was portable, durable, divisible, fungible, and scarce.

Gold has been money throughout most of our nation’s history, and until well into the 20th century government had little control over its supply and value. But with the establishment of the Federal Reserve in 1913, the foundation of money in gold began to be eroded. Over the decades, the link became progressively less secure, until in 1971 President Nixon did away with the last remnants of the gold standard. If you hid a dollar in a mattress in 1970, today it would be worth less than a quarter of its former value.

***End Quote***

Stunning simple observation of why we as a country are so royally weenied!

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Posted by reinkefj

INTERESTING: Following “publik skoolz” to its logical conclusion

Monday, August 20, 2007

http://www.lewrockwell.com/bylund/bylund21.html

The Terrible Effects of Public Schooling
by Per Bylund

***Begin Quote***

There are many stories of Sweden being a Utopia: a high-tax, massively regulated and politicized, anti-capitalism, egalitarian socialist society that not only works – it thrives. Each and every one of them is nothing but a lie, even though there are many Swedes who will tell you how wonderful it is – they refuse to see the truth even though they live it everyday.

Recently yet another myth of the Swedish socialist supremacy was revealed to be completely untrue: the exquisite quality of Swedish public education. “Preliminary” statistics of the current state of Swedish public schooling made available by the Swedish National Agency for Education show the continuing degeneration of the so-called Swedish Model – and that it is ever increasing. After having spent nine mandatory years in school, 11.4% of Swedish children don’t meet the requirements to go to high school.

Of course, in other countries this might not be such a big deal. But it is in Sweden – a country where an education and a university degree is a human right. Also, the requirements to go to high school are set on such an absurdly low level that no one should be able to not make it.

***End Quote***

Interesting in the new Amerika that it’s politicians don’t send their kids to publik skoolz.

Why is that?

Could it be that the politicians know, in the deep dark recesses of their conscience that they can never expose to the public, that the publik skoolz are huge success?

They are!

The Prussians originally designed “publik skoolz” to create willing cannon fodder and compliant factory workers. The socialists and communists of the 1920’s brought the idea to America to allow them to reformulate America into a country where the proletariat could be led by the elite.

So while the sheep bask in American Idol and ever increasing amounts of “funny money” (i.e., dollars that have lost 95% of the purchasing power in 30 years), the elite send their kid to private schools.

What’s wrong with this picture?

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Posted by reinkefj

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