Windows 10 will not save Microsoft

If you are eagerly awaiting the release of Windows 10, it looks like you are in the minority.

A recent report in ComputerWorld shows that the hottest OS for Microsoft is still Windows 7.

With numbers pointing away from the tried-and-true Windows OS, why doesn’t Microsoft simply listen to its customers and come out with a updated version of Windows 7?

The answer is probably complicated, but from a consumer’s point of view, it looks like the tech giant is going to keep trying to shove a bitter pill down the throat of the public while uttering the words, “Take it...it’s good for you because we said so.”

While that marketing strategy does not seem to be working, Microsoft appears determined to stick with it anyway.

Apple anyone?

What problem are 'religious freedom' laws supposed to fix?

Opinion

Indiana Republican Gov. Mike Pence must have believed that religious persecution was rampant in his state. The problem must have been considered so bad, it called for Senate Bill 568, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which states:

"Religious freedom restoration act. Provides that a state or local government action may not substantially burden a person's right to the exercise of religion unless it is demonstrated that applying the burden to the person's exercise of religion is: (1) essential to further a compelling governmental interest; and (2) the least restrictive means of furthering the compelling governmental interest. Provides that a person whose exercise of religion has been substantially burdened, or is likely to be substantially burdened, by a state or local government action may assert the burden as a claim or defense in a judicial proceeding, regardless of whether the state or a political subdivision of the state is a party to the judicial proceeding. Allows a person who asserts a burden as a claim or defense to obtain appropriate relief, including: (1) injunctive relief; (2) declaratory relief; (3) compensatory damages; and (4) recovery of court costs and reasonable attorney's fees."

Some, including a good chunk of corporate America, instead saw SB568 as a license to discriminate against LGBT customers.

Despite claims from defenders of the new law, the message of legalized discrimination was not lost on Crystal O'Connor, co-owner of Memories Pizza in Walkerton, Ind.

Ms. O'Connor wasted no time in getting in front of a camera to announce,  “If a gay couple came in and wanted us to provide pizzas for their wedding, we would have to say no.”

The Internet backlash against Memories Pizza was so strong, the business has had to closed its doors.

Gov. Pence and the Republican-controlled Indiana state legislature may have thought SB658 would solve a problem, but it missed the target. The problem is not religious persecution; it's bigotry among a group of radical religious fanatics who tricked voters into thinking that they were real Americans.

In less than a week, Gov. Pence and his Bible-thumping cohorts have turned Indiana into the greatest embarrassment in America, perhaps the world.

There's a lesson in this for all Americans. Be careful who you vote for, stupidity can cost you more than your job at a Pizza place.

Sorry, Science Deniers, the earth is not flat

The current trend among some conservatives to ignore science or change established facts to suit a religion-based political agenda is a threat to more than just the intelligence of the human species. Extolling false claims puts the entire economic and social structure of the planet at risk of catastrophic failure.

America is suffering from fundamental socioeconomic flaws that are getting worse, and reducing the role of government is part of the problem. Governments by their very nature are charged with the role of stabilizing society, protecting the public and promoting self-improvement and creativity among the general population. In a truly advanced society, basic humans needs such as food and medicine have been met, so individuals can focus on intellectual growth.

However, the exact reverse has taken hold in America. Programs that help the hungry are being cut, while government assistance for the economically sufficient is expanded. More than 50 million Americans suffer from food insecurity in a country that has an abundance of food. Another 44,000 die each year because they have no health insurance and medical care. Allowing so many people to struggle without basic needs being met is not the path to an advanced society.

Full story....

Why Sea World needs to stop keeping Orca's captive

Killer whales in captivity: Sea World tragedy tells us something is not right here (via http://crooksandliars.com)

By David Neiwert February 26, 2010 4:00 pm [media id=11990] Marine parks like Sea World can be great places to take your kids and introduce them, in a safe way, to the wonders of marine life. Marine parks like Sea World can be great places to take your…

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Study: US hopsitals are over charging

Data shows Hernando hospitals are price gouging.

A study released on Jan. 6, 2014, by National Nurses United, shows that half of all US hospitals on the top 10 list for price gouging are in Florida, and two of those are in Hernando County.

Details reveal that Brooksville Regional has been price gouging their patients at a rate of 1083 percent. Oak Hill inflates their charges by 1052 percent. 

Top 10 Most Expensive Hospitals in the U.S.
(by total charges as a percent of total costs)

1-      Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center, Secaucus, NJ – 1192%
2-      Paul B. Hall Regional Medical Center, Painsville, KY – 1186%
3-      Orange Park Medical Center, Orange Park, FL – 1139%
4-      North Okaloosa Medical Center, Crestview, FL – 1137%
5-      Gadsden Regional Medical Center, Gadsden, AL – 1128%
6-      Bayonne Medical Center, Bayonne, NJ – 1084%
7-      Brooksville Regional Hospital, Brooksville, FL – 1083%
8-      Heart of Florida Regional Medical Center, Davenport, FL – 1058%
9-      Chestnut Hill Hospital, Philadelphia, PA – 1058%
10-    Oak Hill Hospital, Spring Hill, FL – 1052%

So, what makes Brooksville Regional and Oak Hill hospitals among the most over-priced in the country? 

The study was based on official Medicare Cost Reports, and according to Census data, Hernando County has a higher percentage of seniors at 26.8 percent, than the state average of only 18.2 percent. 

Since millions of Florida seniors have Medicare to cover their primary health insurance costs, could there be a connection between the type of health insurance plan a patient has and hospital price gouging?  

With health care costs skyrocketing and taking an ever-larger chunk out of the federal budget, waste, fraud and abuse on the part of for-profit hospitals appears to be a significant part of problem.

No other industrialized country earth allows private, profit-based companies so much power over their health care networks. Perhaps that is also why America has the most expensive system in the world.

Sources and more info:

FACT SHEETS BY STATE:

• Top 100 most expensive hospitals by state
• Most expensive hospitals in alphabetical order by state
• Average charge-to-cost ratio by state

http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/press/entry/new-data-some-hospitals-set-charges-at-10-times-their-costs/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ralph-nader/medical-price-gouging_b_4589748.html

http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/12/12053.html

Author’s note: The opinions and commentary included in this report are based on the author’s original reporting and independent analysis of official documents and public information.

Is Congress deliberately creating poverty in America?

What happens in Washington can change lives thousands of miles away, whether people realize it or not. Ideally, elected representatives work on laws intended to make the lives of their constituents better. However, that has not been the case of late. 

Budget cuts to food stamps and unemployment benefits are having a real effect on American families; they are sending more of them from the middle-class into poverty.

The Republican leadership leading the charge on stark austerity measures claim they will eventually lead to prosperity for more Americans. Precisely how and when remains vague. In the meantime, while millions find themselves unable to find work and with government assistance cut off, the lofty idealism of smaller government is actually creating more poverty in a nation with more millionaires than any other on earth.

Read the full article here.

Image: Poverty in America during the Great Depression/wikipedia

Why are Republicans so afraid of Obamacare?

As the October deadline to opening the Obamacare health insurance marketplace draws near, you can almost smell the sweat on the brows of Republicans.

The mere thought of easy access to affordable health insurance terrifies them so much, Republicans are planning a government shutdown to try to stop it.

What is so horrible about Obamacare that Republicans are willing to punish millions of Americans with a government shutdown?

Find out here

Image: Barackobama.com

Gabrielle Giffords blasts senate Republicans for filibuster of gun safety bill

Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords wrote a scathing op-ed in the New York Times on Thursday, after Republicans in the senate successfully filibustered new gun safety legislation.

Giffords wrote: “I’m furious. I will not rest until we have righted the wrong these senators have done, and until we have changed our laws so we can look parents in the face and say: We are trying to keep your children safe. We cannot allow the status quo — desperately protected by the gun lobby so that they can make more money by spreading fear and misinformation — to go on.”

Just days ago, it looked as though senate Democrats had the votes to overcome the GOP filibuster on gun buyer background checks. But hopes for action died on Wednesday when there were only 54 votes in favor of the bill, 6 votes shy of the 60 needed to break the filibuster.

Click here to read the full story

Recommended links:

GOP lawmakers defend NRA after massacre of 20 children

Wayne LaPierre: Guns are for Armageddon and 'fun'

Gun control wars: Is the Sandy Hook massacre enough to fight the NRA?

How Bible-thumping works for the Republican propaganda machine