What Does The Insurance Industry Think?

[Minimalist]

Drumpf and his republicunt buddies are facing forces they do not understand and cannot hope to resolve.

https://theconversation.com/as-republica...bolt-70317

There’s a joke among insurers that there are two things that health insurance companies hate to do – take risks and pay claims. But, of course, these are the essence of their business!
Yet, if they do too much of either, they will go broke, and if they do too little, their customers will find a better policy. This balancing act isn’t too hard if they have a pool sufficient to average out the highs and lows. I speak with some experience as the former CEO of one of these firms.
Employee-sponsored insurance has fit this model fairly well, providing good stability and reasonable predictability. Unfortunately, the market for individuals has never worked well.

[AFTT47]

Thanks for this, Min. Economics isn't my thing (I'm a tech/science guy) but this article and the accompanying links explains the situation well for people like me who are generally board to tears with economics. Kudos also for a non-cryptic thread title.

[Minimalist]

Maybe its the new year but here is another good piece that we had best all wake up to..... except McConnell and Ryan don't give a flying fuck about it.

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/01/why-is-u...nadequate/

Why is US public transportation woefully inadequate?

Officials in Washington, D.C. were forced to close portions of the Metro subway system for months because its piecemeal approach to maintenance was no longer sufficient.

A system that opened to such fanfare in 1976 is now crumbling. It is a depressingly familiar story that is not limited to urban public transport. The U.S. has a major and growing infrastructure gap—though chasm is a more appropriate metaphor.

In international comparisons, the U.S. is falling further behind. To fly from either Seoul or Shanghai into Los Angeles airport is to make the journey from a First World to a Third World airport. To fly into New York’s JFK from Zurich or most European capitals is to fly from the future into the past.

Now the author gives 4 reasons for this and they all have some validity as to why it happened but they are a tad weak on why we can't seem to fix it or even start fixing it.  I submit the reason that the roads and bridges are not repaired is because the rich motherfuckers who own this country don't care about them.  They have private jets and helicopters and it doesn't matter to them if the bridges collapse into the rivers.  Bridges are for poor people and FUCK THEM.

But it isn't only roads and bridges.  Water systems, dams, the electric grid, sanitation systems, toxic waste containment facilities, etc are also wheezing.  Alabama has over 2,000 earthen dams and no inspection system at all. 

The cause for this national disgrace is the billionaire bastards, like Drumpf, and the shitwit politicians they own.