SW03ES

Is this right? I don't care why they do it...it is still wrong. They have no choice...they have to make a living and the insurance companies are CONSTANTLY out to lower their fees. They have to overbill to keep the % of their fees the insurance companies will pay up. You can't say on the one hand doctors have a right to make a huge living (i.e. "have you seen the pay scale for doctors in other countries?") and then on the other hand decry them for charging too much here. You can't have it both ways. As for Cash for Clunkers...Ford's production was up 18%...is that a Japanese company?

Oh I've had one of those for a long time. Just got a new USB one for the MacBook. No our association is MRIS which is a Tarasoft Matrix based program. Works well except they implemented a stupid SafeMLS login system last year that requires a token-generated code to log in...PITA.

You have to pay for a data plan for your Palm... Blackberrys and iPhones owe licensing costs too... Well why else would they sell them?

And your company has to particpate with COBRA. Small companies don't have to.. Thats also in MD...thats not the case in all states. That comes from the way they bill. They bill at rates like that to keep the average pay per service from the insurance companies up...

They just didn't do a good job balancing them. Lexus cars are very hard to balance and they really show any imperfections in the balance. Have them rebalance them. Michelin tires in general though are usually pretty balanced already...

What did you think of the car in general vs the Prius?

We have an '04. I'd trade it in for a '10 in a heartbeat but my wife loves her Prius...

Primacy MXV4, I wouldn't even think twice.

Yeah if thats your price wait and see what you get...

Yeah seriously about the nav systems... I'm guilty of this, checking the Blackberry when driving. I need to knock it off...

No, if you hold the button down it will shut it off whether its in park or not. New technologies mean people need to learn how they work. My guess is in this case they will find that it was the mat that had slipped and stuck the accelerator down...

One thing also to bear in mind, the aftermarket wheels and lamps actually detract from the value. People, on the whole, want to buy a stock car.

LOL! Seriously though when you think about it. You have a phone that calls people, and you have a phone that provides internet access, sends and receives email, has built in GPS, sends and receives text messages, photos, and video. Should the service for the one phone cost the same as the other? It costs money to provide those services.

Oh yeah...I'm sitting here in bed on the MacBook...better watch out!

I don't specifically want the government to solve the problem, but the problem needs to be solved by somebody. Tort reform...and thats not the government solving the problem? The government enacts the laws, so essentially it always must solve the problem. Thats just plain not true. Without a group plan is it practically impossible for someone with pre-existing conditions to get healthcare for those conditions, at least at any reasonable cost. You know what's funny? That was a integral part of the healthcare plan Obama campaigned on... I agree with you...but it still has to be affordable. Most places I agree, but my business partner who also has BCBS was looking for a doctor in Bethesda last week...had a hard time finding someone. I don't personally have a problem with BCBS, but I have heard some scary things... Fox news has positioned themselves pretty opposed to healthcare reform... To that though I say, non-essential procedures may have a wait...but everyone can have them. MANY families in America can't afford to have Childrens tonsils removed at all. We're not all that apart you and I, its just a question of how to go about it. I'm not saying a public option is the way to go, and the Democrats aren't even saying that...at least not Obama. What we need is a fair and open exchange which we aren't getting...some sort of meaningful reform must be done. I've heard a lot of ideas I like that don't include a public option. Something having to do with required limits for waiting periods for pre-existing conditions, opening up ability to buy plans across state lines, tax incentives for small businesses to provide healthcare, lots of good ideas we just have to be open to them. I feel that Obama is open to hearing all these ideas, its just many of the idealogues on both sides dig their heels in and just toe the party lines instead of doing what we pay them to do...which is find a consensus... This is off topic, but it isn't a Realtor's job to decide for people whether they can afford something or not. In many cases we don't even have any kind of picture of a person's financial strength. We have a pre-approval from a lender that says what they can afford, and we have a financial disclosure that shows they have the cash to put down what they say they are going to put down and pay for their closing costs. Thats it...we're not financial advisors nor do we market ourselves as such. We make sure people have free and fair access to housing and represent them in their purchase or sale of Real Property. We inform them of what their rights are under the law, help them negotiate the terms of any contingencies, and serve as a kind of general contractor overseeing all the facets of the transaction through to closing. The law defines our job as fulfilling the needs and desires of our clients. What they can and cannot afford is up to them to decide, not us. Any decisions they make are their decisions, and its really not our business to poke into their affairs or tell them what to do. If someone asks me what they can afford, I tell them that I and their loan officer can help determine what a bank will approve them for in terms of a loan, but if they want advice as to what is a smart financial decision for them and their specific situation...I refer them to my accountant and my financial advisor. It would be illegal for me to give them advice on those fronts because I am neither qualified nor licensed to do so. You are a little different, because it is your job to interpret your client's insurance needs as pertains to their net worth and income. Thats not my job. My job is to find them the house they want and make sure that their interests are represented in terms of negotiating the deal. Thats it.

A buddy of mine and I were saying that someone should sell these spammers english lessons. With proper english a lot of this stuff would be very convincing...

Its probably Pioneer not Panasonic.

AutoTrader shows what they are asking for the cars...not what they are actually selling for. I just did it on KBB and it comes up private party $14,095. This stuff on AutoTrader is all dealers too, and the private sellers are just pricing it where the dealers are pricing them. You can't price like a dealer because theres one thing the dealer can offer that you can't offer...financing. To buy your car someone would have to come up with $17,000 cash, to buy a dealer car they can get a loan.

Just because there are people living off the system doesn't mean that we can use that as an excuse to avoid the issue. Yes you can afford to have health insurance, but not GOOD health insurance. People still worry about their healthcare and paying for doctors visits, still don't go to the doctor when they really should. No dental coverage of any benefit. Even if a policy has a $5,000 out of pocket maximum $5,000 is still a lot of money to most families. Its not good enough. I have a client who is experiencing some weird nerve issue where he cannot talk or move his arms. They discharged him yesterday before they figured out what the issue was and before he could move his limbs because his HMO, not his doctor, decided that he had been in the hospital long enough. THATS the healthcare we can afford. You may have to pay for your kids and spouses but you buy into your company's plan which is better than any of us can get I would bet, and you buy in at the group rate! I bet your company has more than 5 employees too. if I wanted to offer good insurance to my employees it would cost me $4-5k/mo, and thats with them paying some too. Can't afford that. Don't preach to me about responsibilities. Yes its their responsibility and they all have health coverage, but they coverage still leaves them very vulnerable. Medicare isn't perfect, but its better than nothing. My mother isn't yet Medicare age and my father's Medicare is FAR better than her coverage for herself. Spending so much money? My Mom has a $2,500 deductible and just her coverage is still that high. They are rich, so they have the option of choosing a better plan. Most people are not as fortunate. Most people have to deal with Medicare and maybe they can afford some cheap supplimental, but probably not. If they get sick...they can't afford the out of pocket maximum so they don't go to the doctor. If there were no medicare what do you think these people would do? Thats not really true. My mother owns a medical claims processing business and most doctors still take most plans, unless they live in a very wealthy area and can afford to demand self-pay. In Bethesda for instance...few doctors take Blue Cross...almost everyone takes Medicare because they are actually faster to pay and pay more in general than the private insurers. So I guess the government doesn't do it so bad afterall. According to her, and she would know, Medicare claims are the easiest to get processed and get the doctors paid on...and in many cases they pay the doctors more! Yeah, your employer pays for your healthcare and yopu pay $12,000 per year just for your spouse and children. Thats crazy! Glad you can pay for it....lots of other people aren't so fortunate. Where's your source that Canada's system is running out of money? What about England...France...Canada is not the only system that has a subsidized healthcare plan...in fact like I said we are the only country that doesn't. Yeah I've seen the pay scale for doctors in other countries...its not bad. What you fail to realize is that while you may have to pay out slightly higher in taxes (if you make more than $250,000 per year) but the hope is your overall healthcare costs will go down... TORT reform is neccisary too, but its not the complete problem and you have to start somewhere. Its a totally different thing and you know that. I am selling them a house...not giving them a heart transplant or a mammogram to keep them alive. The real estate and mortgage industries as a whole operate to avoid the very things that happened here because long term its bad for business. The National Association of Realtors is one of the most honorable trade associations I've ever seen. Insurance companies don't operate that way, you've said it yourself. Their lobby is...not one of the most honorable trade associations I've ever seen. People have been pointing fingers for 40 years...its time for something to be DONE. Enough with pointing fingers. Have you read the proposals? They're actually pretty good and the public option isn't even a part of all of them.

Thats all well and good but the market is what the market is, irregardless of how nice it is its a 9 year old car and somebody could buy an '03 for that price... Time will tell, but I would be very surprised if you sell it for that. I know it means a lot to you, but you have to take a business-minded look at it. My guess is its worth $13-$14k.

I'll think about it...

Thats just a totally different situation. People don't suffer because I need to make money in the Real Estate business. Its really easy to say everything you are saying when you have good insurance that you can afford. I'm a small business owner with employees and I make a lot of money, even I can't afford good healthcare for my employees. I can afford okay healthcare for myself, GOOD healthcare doesn't exist for me at any price. I don't have a problem with these companies making profit but they've taken it too far, Business making a profit is a great thing, but you know as well as I do these insurance companies are raping the American consumer....AND American doctors. I'm not saying the Democrats plan is the right plan, but SOMETHING has to be done and anyone saying that nothing has to be done is just horribly naiive. Just because people don't have healthcare doesn't mean that they are deadbeats my friend...it means they aren't fortunate enough to be a part of a group plan. My parents for instance spend nearly $2,000 per month for their healthcare for my father's Medicare supplemental and my mother's healthcare. They are fortunate enough to be able to afford to pay $24,000 per year for healthcare but most people just can't do that. SOMETHING must be done. The government might F-up Medicare but at least all our senior citizens are insured instead of just left to suffer and die. How is he going to pay for it? I think those of us who can afford to might just have to kick in a little more to pay for it. You should run for President then...

The exclusivity arrangement with AT&T runs out soon though, Verizon iPhones are in the works. The data plans have gotten cheaper, and they will get cheaper still. If you think about it though you do use up more resources with a data phone than you do with an ordinary flip phone. I don't have a problem paying more...

Its not really word for word...like I said. I could have googled it also. It doesn't, but it also doesn't say that blacks have the right to vote...or women...it also says that we have the right to organize a militia and people take that to mean they can take semi-automatic weapons to townhalls with the President of the United States. Healthcare was simply not an issue back then like it is today. People doctored themselves, they didnt have to pay for MRIs or Cancer treatment...they just died. You cannot argue that our Healthcare system is broken, it may not effect you because you have healthcare but it effects others. Thats why every other industrialized nation on earth offers government subsidized healthcare...but us. The founding fathers simply could not have concieved the realities of the world we occupy today...

Well I am posting this from my shiny new MacBook! So far so good... I did not buy the AppleCare, can you buy it after the fact?