What price care?

What price care? (USA Today 10.21.04)

Americans' extra weight costs as much as $93 billion in annual medical bills, and the government pays about half that amount, a study says.

Research released Wed-nesday reveals that medical bills for obese people accounted for 27% of the growth in overall health care spending from 1987 to 2001. The reasons: There are more obese people, and it's more expensive to treat them, says Ken Thorpe, a professor of health policy at Emory University in Atlanta. His study was published on the Health Affairs Web site.

In 2001, it cost an average of $1,000 more annually to treat an obese person than someone at a normal weight, mostly because of conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and high cholesterol, he says.

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Damn it JC, You would have an extra $93 billion if you didn't have that extra weight... ;)

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Damn Sportscenter...

The all powerfully 5 second clip... After watching the end of the Yankees game last night (midnight)I turned to ESPN Sportscenter, I was hoping to find a post game news conference, some player interviews, etc. Which I got. And I would have loved to watch them for 5 minutes and get some sleep. But no. As the show begins, they show a 5 second clip of the Eagles and the Patriots and tell you there is a forthcoming story on the two undefeated teams and the three teams they think can upset them. Great! Some Eagles info! I'm in, it's right after the commercial, right? That's what they said... But no, I watch pre season NBA highlights more uneventful news, then the next commercial break - coming up "Eagles and Patriots" ok, they got me, I'll hang in there (I really want to go to bed) but I have waited this long... Another meaningless section, another plug for the story, and FINALLY... At 5 minutes of one in the morning... The Eagles story I have waited a fricken hour for.... Here was the gist of the 20 second "big story" they plugged all show - The three teams they felt could knock of the Eagles are... The VIKINGS, GIANTS - HELLO!!! Have you watched the first 5 weeks of the season we beat both of those teams by 10+ points... And the third was the Falcons as a "potential post season match-up" what a Joke, it's brilliant marketing by ESPN to get me to watch the dreaded pre-season NBA highlights. But I still hate it! I'm protesting by not watching Sportscenter today while I'm at work. ;)

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Check out the link in the title of the article, it's not the official Sportscenter website, but It is interesting, someone has collected all the catch phrases from all the anchors, broken them down by sport, and allows you to search them. NICE! ;)

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Churches Installing Cell Phone Jammers

This is great! I want one, although I have no idea what I would do with it - It's still cool!

Churches Installing Cell Phone Jammers
Tue Oct 19, 11:04 AM
By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ, Associated Press Writer

MONTERREY, Mexico - It was the reporters who noticed first. Unable to call their editors while covering the weddings of the rich and famous, they asked the priest why their cell phones never worked at Sacred Heart. His reply: Israeli counterintelligence.

In four Monterrey churches, Israeli-made cell phone jammers the size of paperbacks have been tucked unobtrusively among paintings of the Madonna and statues of the saints.

The jarring polychromatic din of ringing cell phones is increasingly being thwarted _ from religious sanctuaries to India's parliament to Tokyo theaters and commuter trains _ by devices originally developed to help security forces avert eavesdropping and thwart phone-triggered bombings.

In Italy, universities started using the blockers after discovering that cell phone-savvy teenagers were cheating on exams by sending text messages or taking pictures of tests.

The four Roman Catholic Churches in this northern city began using the devices, from Tel Aviv-based Netline Communications Technologies Ltd., after an insurance salesman imported them as a personal favor for a priest.

"There are still many people who don't understand that being at Mass is sharing a moment with God," said the Rev. Juan Jose Martinez, a spokesman for archdiocese. "Sadly, we had no other choice but to use these little gadgets."

Purchased for about $2,000 each, they can be turned on by remote control and emit low-level radio frequencies that thwart cell phone signals within a 100-foot radius.

Users get a "no service" or "signal not available" message on their cell phones.

Although Mexico has no law against the devices, the private use of cell phone blockers is illegal in the United States and most Western countries.

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This is stupid. (Even for Cowboys fans)

Cowboys fans can't wear gear to polls - (USA Today 10/20/04)

Robert Parten, elections administrator for Tarrant County, Texas, said Monday that anybody wearing a Dallas Cowboys logo at an Arlington voting site will be told to cover up his or her allegiance to the team in order to cast a ballot.

Parten ordered the prohibition because of a provision on the Arlington ballot that asks if taxpayers should help pay for a $650 million Cowboys stadium.

State law prohibits voters at the polls with clothing, jewelry or badges that promote or denounce a candidate or proposition on a ballot.

Those in violation will be given smocks to wear while voting.

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Save the chickens...

Wednesday, October 13

(USA Today)

Wednesday, October 13 Barrington, NJ - A truck carrying live chickens was hit from behind by another vehicle as it entered the New Jersey Turnpike, dumping some onto the road, while the others died in a fire, a highway spokesman said. I guess it
turned into a portable Boston Market, said the spokesman, Joseph Orlando. It was unclear how many chickens were killed or escaped, Orlando said.

Save the chickens, we need more chickens in NJ... ;)

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Pre-flight ritual...

It seems to happen every time I fly. My bags are checked, I somehow made it through security in a few minutes, and now I'm at my gate an hour before my flight boards. Which is not necessarily the end of the world, all the stressful stuff is done. Well, I began my normal pre-flight routine of scanning the terminal looking for the odds of getting a person in the seat next to me that I actually want there... The scan goes something like this... Too fat, too old, too young, too fat, too [umm] male, did I mention too fat... Anyhow, on my last flight to New Orleans I scanned the terminal only to figure I was doomed as usual. Without much hope, I board the plane as I slowly walk down the crowded isle, I count ahead the seats to scan my row and what do I see, a beautiful 30ish blonde woman in the isle seat next to me! Quickly I re-count the rows to make sure that is my row, after all - I'm not that lucky. The counts were right, she is in the seat next to me, I throw the laptop in the overhead compartment, quickly take a peek for the dreaded wedding ring and take my seat! ahhh, I finally hit the jackpot... Four minutes later I found out her boyfriend and kids are across the isle... Oh the plight of the single guy. Atleast I was happy for four minutes - which is four minutes more than most flights... Next flight 10/10 I'm keeping the faith. (:

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