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Participant[quote=ocrenter]I don’t know if OP has ever been to Standard Pacific’s Ballasario development in Stonebridge. It may not be right for OP’s commutes and needs, but they should see for themselves what $1.2 million should get them. And they’ll realize how overpriced Marston truly is.[/quote]I totally agree about Stonebridge. After seeing a few models and driving through the development, I feel that Stonebridge is more luxurious than either Del Sur or 4S. Del Sur feels very very overpriced to me. I’ve been to most Del Sur models and I know a few people who live there. Del Sur just feel too packed together for my taste. I love those extra wide (100’+ wide) lots in Stonebridge. It just makes the house seem more luxurious.
Participant[quote=all]My experience with ACA so far. The company decided to terminate the small group plan last Fall. Instead everyone signed up for insurance through Covered CA. The company is paying for it. I picked Blue Shield Platinum PPO plan (the only one among the gold/platinum plans accepted at Scripps as far as I could tell) and the mandatory dental for the kids. Covered CA is still showing both when I log in.
It took about a month to receive anything from the insurer, but I eventually received my account #. I log in and the kids dental is not listed. After spending almost 5 hour on hold I get to talk to a rep who tells me Covered CA did not pass along the dental info, I have to talk to them. After another couple of hours on hold I got to talk to a Covered CA rep who tells me they have no idea why that happened, but they will send the info again. It will take few weeks.
I received nothing, so after few weeks I log into the BSC portal to find out that the payment portal is no longer working (for me). I fill out the form and receive a call from a rep after less than an hour. The rep tells it is a technical issue and she can’t help me with it, but she can take the payment. She says I owe February and March. I tell her the corporate account has been charged for February and March. She checks another report and that report is showing no payment whatsoever, not even the initial payment the other report is showing. She has to check something with someone and she will call me back.[/quote]That sounds splendid.ParticipantI don’t regret it one bit. I have it for about 1.5 years now and the number is what I thought it would be. My electricity bill now range between $5-90, while the year before that, it was ranging between $150-450. So, at this rate, I’m looking to break even in about 4.5 years and after that, it’ll be all gravy.
Participant[quote=ocrenter][quote=AN]I never understand the mindset of people like CAR. They’re so willing to give disadvantaged teens a leg up at the university level, yet they vehemently oppose giving the same disadvantaged kids a leg up at the elementary/middle/high school level. If they’re so inclined to have quotas at the University level, why not do the same for the elementary/middle/high school level?[/quote]
Because now it interferes with the unions, which has a lock on secondary schools.
It is ok to push the Asians aside at the college level to satisfy that guilt about disadvantaged minorities (no union members were hurt in the process). But it is not ok to make actual reform that makes a difference because union toes would be step upon.[/quote]I guess my question was more rhetorical, but I totally agree with you. It amazes me when I see these kind of hypocrisis.
Participant[quote=ocrenter][quote=livinincali]
I really don’t get this mindset that somehow giving people that are already at a significant disadvantage an opportunity is worthwhile. They already have a system in place that allows these students to prove themselves in Community Colleges and earn their way in UC or Cal State schools. Why are we allowing disadvantaged groups to run up a bunch of debt in a 4 year college that they’re likely to fail at? Get a part time job, and go to a community college. If you figure out you can hack it then transfer.[/quote]
Because it makes people like CAR “feel better.” 40 years of treating liberal bleeding hearts and we are nowhere better at fixing the chronic disadvantage of Hispanics and Blacks.[/quote]I never understand the mindset of people like CAR. They’re so willing to give disadvantaged teens a leg up at the university level, yet they vehemently oppose giving the same disadvantaged kids a leg up at the elementary/middle/high school level. If they’re so inclined to have quotas at the University level, why not do the same for the elementary/middle/high school level?
Participant[quote=temeculaguy]As far as other investments, I missed at least 50k when I checked a few years ago on those stocks I mised out on, I don’t really want to know today’s number because I’m sure it’s worse.[/quote]Why would anyone every put stock (no pun intended) on anonymous stranger stock pick? If any of us is any good, we’d be sitting on our own island enjoying the sun instead of posting on here.
Participant[quote=CA renter]Best post, yet! 🙂 I’m working on it. It would be great if all the Piggs with STEM degrees get to work on it, as well. After all, they’re the ones who claim that they will change the world. Heck, I’d be happy to help fund and run the business if someone (or a group of people) here comes up with something interesting.[/quote]
You’re the one who said all this social stuff are just fluff, not STEM Piggs. I think I’m changing the world here doing all these social “fluff” stuff, especially when I was successful in preventing someone to buy a house in 2005 or right now bringing attention to the overt discrimination against Asian American students in CA. So, why are you participating in this fluff?Participant[quote=CA renter]IMO, most of the “exceptional” students will succeed anyway. The quota system is there to give others a fighting chance.[/quote]Who’s the “others” you’re referring to? The Asian students who live in low income area and parents working hard in their blue collar jobs or the middle/upper-middle class Hispanics/Black students?
[quote=CA renter]And note that the black student population has also gone down since they eliminated AA at the universities. Asians, OTOH, seem to have fared about the same before and after Prop 209. But we also have to look at the population increases of various groups, and Hispanics have grown in number far faster than any of the other groups which might explain their increasing numbers. Whites, as a percentage of the population, have been decreasing (as have blacks, IIRC). Asians have been increasing, so the fact that their percentages at the universities are the same might mean there’s a slight decline as a percentage of the population. Not sure about any of that, though.[/quote]Black students population went down because their academic does not match the rest of student body. Asians did not fare the same before and after Prop 209. Your OTOH is misinformed. Before Prop 209, Asian account for ~20-30% of UC, and after Prop 209, Asian accounts for 40-55% of UC student body. So, yes, when you actually remove the quotas and treat all students equal, you get to see where they stand against the rest of the student body.
Participant[quote=ocrenter]SCA5 is actually a Hispanic initiated Bill. Essentially the majority will always try to use their raw number to suppress the minority, as Hispanics become California’s majority, they will also do their very best to suppress other minorities. I actually fear the new Hispanic majority more than I fear the old white majority as the Hispanic is going in with the idea that they are disadvantaged and need all of these extra rights.
As you mentioned, Asians benefiting from prop 209 was an unintended consequence the majority whites did not expect. I see the same with SCA5, whites and men will end up benefitting as they are now the under-represented group, something I’m sure the new Hispanic majority did not foresee.
I disagree Asians actually ever truly benefited from affirmative action, if so it was extremely short lived and limited. Remember, California history is filled with one racist law after another, all aimed right at Asian Americans, any potential benefit (real or perceived) will be quickly remedied.[/quote]Totally agree. At least with the white majority, they don’t feel they’re disadvantaged and need to create laws to make themselves less “disadvantaged” even when they become the majority, which they will be sooner rather than later.
I also disagree that Asians actually benefited from affirmative action. I don’t have data to back this up, but something tells me that it has always hurt the Asians. I know many first generation Asian immigrants who themselves work in blue collar jobs. However, they know full well that education is the way out and they pushed their kids to excel in education. So, just because 1st gen Asian immigrants were poor and uneducated doesn’t mean their kids were.
Participant[quote=sjglaze3]Umm, what about MRI, PET and CT scanners? Huge changes in the last 10 years.[/quote]From the link I provided:
1. Human Genome Discoveries Reach the Bedside
2. Doctors and Patients Harness Information Technology
3. Heart Disease Deaths Drop by 40 Percent
4. Stem Cell Research
5. Targeted Therapies for Cancer Expand With New Drugs
6. Combination Drug Therapy Extends HIV Survival
7. Minimally Invasive Techniques Revolutionize Surgery
8. Study Finds Heart, Cancer Risk With Hormone Replacement Therapy
9. Scientists Peer Into Mind With Functional MRIThen there are stuff I think is pretty revolutionary, like: nano tech, robotic limb replacement, lasik, cure for HIV in infants, laparoscopic surgery, cloning, etc.
Participant[quote=CA renter]AN, you could do most of those things 15 years ago with a computer. The on-the-go usefulness is what I mean by navigation (relating your location to local activities and establishments, etc.), and I admit that it’s easier to find the nearest restaurant, etc. when you’re out and about. That IS an improvement. But being able to watch movies, spend time on Facebook, and play games (and we had handheld devices for that years ago, too) on your phone is “fluff” as far as I’m concerned.
In our glory days, we built rocket ships that could take us to the moon, satellites that could beam back pictures of outer space, we eradicated polio, we learned how to mass-produce penicillin, we built highways and more reliable cars/trucks that could carry people and goods across the states and into other countries. We (and others) built the first computers.
Nothing that you’ve mentioned comes anywhere close, IMO. We need to stop focusing on “social media” and phones and start creating things that will result in life-altering improvements and discoveries.[/quote]Mars rover > rocket ships to the moon. Technology to beam back video from mars > satellites to beam back pictures from space. Medicine advancement now is > medical advancement then. Tesla/FCEV, autonomous cars, interconnected car > highway. We have more reliable cars today than before. We have safer cars today than before.
Here’s the top 10 medical advancement in the last decade: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Decade/genome-hormones-top-10-medical-advances-decade/story?id=9356853
Nothing you’ve mentioned comes close to what I’ve mentioned. I haven’t even mentioned about the ability for relatives to be able to send video message across the globe for very little cost. I haven’t even mention about Skype/Google Hangout that let relatives to communicate across the globe for free. These tech might not life altering to you, but it’s life altering to many. There is a reason why there are 1B+ people using Facebook, hundred of millions using Snapchat/Skype/Googlehangout/etc. It allow people to connect in ways that they haven’t been able to before. Before, all you got is pen and paper. There are SOOOO MUCH more innovation we’ve made in the last 10 years that I haven’t even mentioned. These innovation might not be life altering to you because you don’t use it, but it’s life altering to many, which is why these companies are making money hand over feet. I would hate to go back to 1995 and have to pay $1000 for a color scanner.
Participant[quote=carlsbadworker]I actually think the post is not that ridiculous. Technology is slowing down on subjective level. Planes are flying to more places but we are not travelling any faster than the decade ago. Some NASA exploration is still on-going, but we felt that we have seen all that is to see and traveling outside the solar system is still not a reachable goal. In 1970, Congress promised victory over cancer in six years’ time; four decades later, we are still here. The nuclear industry and its 1954 promise of “electrical energy too cheap to meter” sounds like yesterday’s dream after Fukushima. Energy and batter are holding the progress for new technologies.
But on the other end, people forgot that technology progress is never linear and these “incremental changes” might amount to something in the future. We are closer ever to AI thanks to the steady Moore’s law. That’s making machines equal to human, which stands back on millions years of evolution. And then there is bio-science, we are creating new DNA and organism, a domain that used to belong to God.
It is after all impossible to predict the future progress of the technology. But Internet does unleash a great amount of creativity and collaboration, with time, I think it will eventually amount to something.[/quote]Yes, it is ridiculous to say:
[quote=CA renter]
As for those innovations, while I respect the fact that many people are in love with their iPhones, the main innovation was getting a mobile phone into a person’s hand. That was done well before this past decade. Navigation is cool, but the rest is just “fluff” as far as I’m concerned.[/quote] and[quote=CA renter]Sorry, but I’m just not seeing the life-altering innovations that you seem to be seeing. Of course, I’ll admit that you are more tech-focused than I am, so you’re more likely to notice the incremental changes that might be a big deal to you (and others like you), but not nearly as impressive to me (and others like myself).[/quote] and lastly but most importantly
[quote=CA renter]I also think you greatly underestimate the extent to which our economy IS zero-sum.[/quote]
Specifically, she thinks
[quote=CA renter]If we compare the “innovations” of the past few years with the innovations from our “glory days” in the 1940s-1960s, we’re not doing so well. If Facebook is what we consider to be innovation and progress, then we’re in serious trouble, IMHO.[/quote]
I can state many more life changing technology today than one can state from the “glory days”.As to your most, what do you mean technology is slowing down on subjective level? I see technology is rapidly increasing on both subjective and objective level. Just 15 years ago, we were ecstatic that we have 466MHz computer with 128B of RAM and 1GB if hard disk space. Today, even your low end smart phone is have 1GHz+ processor, 512MB of RAM and 16GB if storage, all in a package that’s smaller than the size of a hard drive.
Then there’s the 24/7 connectivity and abundant information at your finger tip today. 15 years ago, if you’re out and you don’t know something, you’re SOL. Today, you can pull out your smart phone, get on Google/Bing and find the answer immediately. 15 years ago, when you go to a restaurant, you’re at the mercy of your luck or your friends’ recommendation. Today, you can hop on Yelp and you can see whether you should go to a particular restaurant or not, and if you should, you can make reservation right then and there on Opentable. 15 years ago, if you’re out and you decide on a whim to go see a particular movie, you’d have to drive to the movie theater, see when the show time is and wait at the movie theater until the show. Today, you can pull out your smart phone, search for the movie you want to see, you’ll get show time for the theaters near you, so you don’t have to go to the theater until it’s closer to the show time. You can also buy tickets on your phone through Fandango. I can go on and on about the drastic improvement to regular people’s daily life due to innovation and technology in the last 15 years, but I’m sure you get the point.
What you’re describing about NASA and cure for Cancer. That basically prove my point. No one can predict which technology will take off. The more engineers we have, the higher likelihood of new sectors get created or speed up of cure for cancer. This is why it’s ridiculous to say it’s a 0 sum game. New innovation create new sectors.
Participant[quote=flu]Well, at least one politician is opposed to this….
XXXXX,
I oppose SCA 5 as it is currently written. I do not support discrimination of any kind and believe that college admissions should be based upon academic and extracurricular factors.
Assemblymember Brian Maienschein
He gets my vote election time…[/quote]
He gets mine too. This is what his office has written back to me:Thank you for taking the time to write in regarding SCA 5.
Assemblymember Maienschein shares your concerns and is currently opposed to this legislation as it is currently written.
Should you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.
Thank you,
Lance Witmondt
Office of Assemblymember Brian Maienschein, 77th District
P-(858)675-0077Participant[quote=flu][quote=AN][quote=flu][quote=paramount]To be honest flu, thanks to you I’ve done very well with phot. Thanks.[/quote]
Did you not listen to me and decide to short it ? Lol[/quote]
I too benefit greatly from PHOT. Thanks flu[/quote]So you shorted it too? :)[/quote]Thank goodness I didn’t :-D.
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