Crimea and Putinishment (politics)

by **TenuredVulture** » Tue Apr 22, 2014 23:02:40

Do you care about the Alaska Senate race? My childhood friend and neighbor who happens to be a Republican political scientist (JH is there a secret handshake?) tells you why the Democrats might win there and thus hold the Senate.

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/ ... 1csn1d4A5g

by **The Dude** » Tue Apr 22, 2014 23:04:17

TenuredVulture wrote:Do you care about the Alaska Senate race? My childhood friend and nabor

by **Bucky** » Tue Apr 22, 2014 23:28:39

wait, is he a childhood friend and childhood neighbor, or childhood friend and current neighbor? can't opine on who will win alaska until i know this.

by **TenuredVulture** » Tue Apr 22, 2014 23:35:33

Bucky wrote:wait, is he a childhood friend and childhood neighbor, or childhood friend and current neighbor? can't opine on who will win alaska until i know this.

We grew up on the same street in NJ. He now lives in Alaska.

by **Phan In Phlorida** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 03:39:27

TenuredVulture wrote:... He now lives in Alaska.

Did he lose a bet?

by **SK790** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 05:58:37

alaska is beautiful.

(i'm assuming he lives in anchorage, which is one of the most beautiful places in the world)

by **pacino** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 06:44:48

drsmooth wrote:
jerseyhoya wrote:Supreme Court upholds Michigan’s ban on racial preferences in university admissions - Yay

haven't you heard - you should never want to belong to any club that would have you as a member

oh boy, now i feel safe and equal

by **Werthless** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 08:35:58

jerseyhoya wrote:Supreme Court upholds Michigan’s ban on racial preferences in university admissions - Yay

Would have been tragic if they ruled otherwise... "I'm sorry states, but you must consider race until we tell you it's no longer necessary."

by **pacino** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 10:20:48

69% of Americans are for it:

Overall, 69% of respondents supported mandated coverage of birth control medications in health plans, with significantly higher odds of support among women, black, and Hispanic respondents. Support for mandated coverage of birth control medication was lower than for other benefits, including services that have prompted public debate (eg, vaccination and mental health services). The small group who supported coverage for services except birth control medication included a higher proportion of persons unlikely to use such coverage.

by **Werthless** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 10:40:12

pacino wrote:69% of Americans are for it:
Overall, 69% of respondents supported mandated coverage of birth control medications in health plans, with significantly higher odds of support among women, black, and Hispanic respondents. Support for mandated coverage of birth control medication was lower than for other benefits, including services that have prompted public debate (eg, vaccination and mental health services). The small group who supported coverage for services except birth control medication included a higher proportion of persons unlikely to use such coverage.

I read your link, and I'm intrigued by the survey. the birth control was lower than all of the other options, including ones that I would have thought people would prefer to have choice about, like dental and mental health. I'm guessing that responses would change drastically if it was rewritten from:

Do you think that all health plans in the United States should be required to include coverage for the following services: ...

to

Do you think insured people in the US should be required to pay higher premiums for mandatory inclusion of the following services: ...

Maybe I'm not taking an overly pessimistic view of the American public, if that is possible.

by **dajafi** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 10:42:36

Tom Edsall has some fun with Republican scandal porn

by **pacino** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 10:56:29

the second is a leading push-poll question. it is not a fact that premiums would or did go up as a result, and there's really no way to strip out all hte factors and figure that out and then relay that information in a succinct manner to the person on the other end. the former is a much better, fairer question because the person answering can make their own determination without being pushed to an expected answer of yes or no.

by **td11** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 11:08:35

dajafi wrote:Tom Edsall has some fun with Republican scandal porn

good read but he didn't type "both sides do it" at the very end so this is not a valid argument

by **The Crimson Cyclone** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 11:16:18

anyone else find that the SCOTUS questions on the Aereo case to be rather amusing at just how clueless they are to technology?

by **TenuredVulture** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 12:18:49

My understanding is offering birth control generally lowers overall costs to insurers.

http://business.time.com/2012/02/14/why ... insurance/

So, really, the question you'd want to ask is, "would you like to pay more for health insurance that does not provide contraceptive benefits?"

by **drsmooth** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 12:42:43

TenuredVulture wrote:My understanding is offering birth control generally lowers overall costs to insurers.

http://business.time.com/2012/02/14/why ... insurance/

So, really, the question you'd want to ask is, "would you like to pay more for health insurance that does not provide contraceptive benefits?"

"Yeah, well, I'm a guy and can't a have a baby so I shouldn't have to pay for baby coverage, so there, huh"

by **RichmondPhilsFan** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 12:59:35

The Crimson Cyclone wrote:anyone else find that the SCOTUS questions on the Aereo case to be rather amusing at just how clueless they are to technology?

Oh no doubt... it was simultaneously hilarious and horrifying. From SCOTUSblog:

But, in the context of the argument Tuesday, that was a fine legal point. Most of the energy, at least from the bench, was about the risk that the Court might rule in this case in a way that would smother the infant of digital innovation in its electronic crib.

After Justice Breyer first got such a worry on the table with his antique reference to wax recordings of music that are played with a needle, of all things, Justice Sonia Sotomayor did a bit of updating, and asked about the impact on “the Dropbox and the iCloud.” She confessed her concern, saying “this is really hard for me.” She was, of course, looking for reassurance.

by **drsmooth** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 13:05:05

i see the state of GA's explicitly stamped itself a cracker shithole

by **TenuredVulture** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 15:14:10

You can dismiss one poll, you can dismiss two polls, even three polls. But when four polls come in, all tending in the same direction, you can come to the conclusion that Arkies aren't exactly crazy about the introverted Harvard grad who left Arkansas as soon as it was practicable to do so and only returned when Club For Growth bought him a house seat.

by **SK790** » Wed Apr 23, 2014 15:18:00

td11 wrote:
dajafi wrote:Tom Edsall has some fun with Republican scandal porn

good read but he didn't type "both sides do it" at the very end so this is not a valid argument