Seinfeld on Writing Jokes

Unfortunately, I could not find the video I was looking for – and the version I did find was far too long to post in the blog. However, this video is Seinfeld on writing a joke – not nearly as funny as any of his jokes actually are – but still an interesting look into his life. I think this is really funny as we look at New Year’s Resolutions – every blog I follow and look at has decided to focus on this topic for the past few days. I think what is even funnier is how people 1) focus on telling others what great New Years Resolutions are and 2) that most blog posts focus on how people fail and trying to motivate them. It almost seems that an entire business/industry has been created out of people’s desires to create a little spice in their life. My personal suggestion is not to make a New Years Resolutions – find little tasks that you can do every single month to make something better or different – they do not all have to be related to the same overall idea but they can be. This way, you do not have to anxiously anticipate that 1 time a year you are willing to think of doing something different and told by everyone in the world you will fail and they have the foolproof method to make you succeed. This way, you accomplish a lot and you are consistent. After all, a year is a very long time and life is way too short to delay to New Years. Finally, if all else fails, try the Seinfeld method. Mark an X on your calendar every time you achieve your daily task (start small and grow bigger) and that way you will start feeling awful when you do not mark off the X and you will begin to make sure you accomplish that task (if, for nothing else, the determination to have a calendar full of red X’s). Happy New Year everyone and enjoy the start to another great year – don’t stress!

The West Wing

While West Wing is quite the old show, I recently got addicted. The interplay between intrigue and politics reminds me of an older and less intense version of House of Cards, my new favorite show. This show displays the difficulties of obtaining compromise and sound policy in Washington amidst differing priorities between officials, citizens, and political parties. Two things from the show that play out in real life truly strike me. The first is the polarization of the public and the second the rising power of the political parties – two themes that seem to play out today. It is so striking to me that the issues plaguing the White House of a fictional show set 10 years in the past as well as of our founding fathers and their quests for the White House hundreds of years ago are still here today. Yet, political parties have become even stronger and an individual candidate so much weaker. Could you imagine running today without the full support of the Democratic or Republican party? Impossible. Second – everyone in the show gets their news from one place (either the WSJ or the NYT – let’s not count C-Span). As we enter the Age of Information, something I plan to spend plenty of time on, I hope that everyone spends some time this year mellowing their opinions and balancing their news. As chemists say – the poison is in the dose. Have a Happy New Year and let’s make this year the best one yet.

 

 

My Personal Finance Class

My Personal Finance Class – udemy.com/personalfinance.

Over the past 2 months, I have been extremely busy. It is a word I hate but an apt description for the multitude of events. In the next week, we are launching 2 Indiegogo campaigns, applying for a vaunted student position at Duke, beginning fundraising and teaching efforts in the community, and submitting business venture plans for review. All of this has been the product of months and years of hard work. As I get ready to move on (somewhat) to a new stage in my life, one of the main things that I have done is put together an online class on Personal Finance using Udemy with over 100 lectures and 5+ hours for only $18. This is the culmination of the work that I have done over the past few years in the field of personal finance and a combination of the many activities and programs that have lent themselves to my different classes and seminars. I encourage all of you to take a look through some of the tutorials (that are free) and sample the class. I promise you will not be disappointed. Let me know your thoughts and if your New Years’ resolution was to get your financial house in order, hopefully this is a great way to start. Coming soon will be new sections on Investments, Apps and Technology, and many others. I hope you enjoy and I look forward to hearing back from you! I will now begin posting more regularly about my ventures and projects.

North Carolina Politics Daily Updates – October 29, 2013

SPINNING THE VOTER SUPPRESSION LAW: Governor Pat McCrory and other supporters of the sweeping voter suppression law passed by the General Assembly this summer are working hard to make sure people don’t really understand how regressive and anti-democratic the law is.  They’d rather people not realize that their unmistakable goal is to make it more difficult for people to vote who are not likely to support McCrory and his far-right Republican colleagues.  Many of those voters are African-American. That’s a major reason why the U.S. Department of Justice is challenging the law in court, because the voters affected by the myriad of changes in the law are disproportionately people of color—and not just the requirement that voters show a valid government–issued photo ID at the polls.   McCrory responded to news of the lawsuit by saying that the Justice Department has overreached and that many states already had voter ID laws on the books  -From NCPolicyWatch, http://www.ncpolicywatch.com/2013/10/29/spinning-the-voter-suppression-law/#sthash.JfCuyXXn.dpuf

OBAMACARE TO HAVE MODEST EFFECTS ON STATE HEALTH PLAN: The General Fund cost of operating the State Health Plan is expected to rise about $90 million from fiscal years 2013-14 to 2015-16, but that is a slower growth trend than in past years, and Obamacare will have little effect on it, officials say.  General Fund costs will ratchet up from about $1.9 billion in fiscal year 2013-14 to $1.95 billion in 2014-15, and $1.99 billion by 2015-16, David Vanderweide in the General Assembly’s Fiscal Research Division told Carolina Journal.  And even though members of the State Health Plan have expressed frustrations as they’ve tried to sign up for coverage in 2014 that are not unlike those from people who’ve tried to enroll in Obamacare, a spokesman for state Treasurer Janet Cowell says the two circumstances are unrelated.  Premiums from employees and retirees are not included in those cost increases. Nor is revenue from other sources that fund some government positions, including money from the Highway Fund, receipts, federal funds, or local funds. Including those, total state health plan expenses are expected to be $2.7 billion in 2013-14, $2.9 billion in 2014-15, and about $3 billion in 2015-16.  The pending General Fund increases reflect roughly 2 percent higher costs per year. “That is below the typical increase” of about 5 percent annually, Vanderweide said.  –From CarolinaJournal, http://www.carolinajournal.com/exclusives/display_exclusive.html?id=10591

MCCRORY REJECTS CALL FOR SPECIAL SESSION TO EXPAND MEDICAID: Gov. Pat McCrory rejected a call to convene a special legislative session to add more low-income residents to the state and federal health insurance program.  His comments came in response to a news conference called Monday by expansion supporters who again pushed their reasons for allowing more low-income people to sign up for Medicaid.  –From NewsObserver, http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/28/3320821/supporters-of-medicaid-expansion.html#storylink=cpy

NC DOT SAYS NOT TO WORRY ABOUT THREE YEARS OF BELTINE MISERY: The state Department of Transportation kicked off a three-year project Monday to clog and rebuild Raleigh’s southern Beltline. Phase One was the cheerful marketing blitz.  This is a $130 million job to dig out and replace every crumb of concrete from eight lanes and 11.5 miles of Interstate 40 and Interstate 440. It will take three years. It will not be pleasant.  So why are those DOT folks so blasted happy?  We’re talking about a grim job here. But really, somebody has to do it. A chemical reaction called ASR is crumbling the concrete. DOT engineers have been buying time with occasional toppings of fresh asphalt, but they always said this was only postponing the inevitable.  –From NewsObserver, http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/28/3321731/road-worrier-dont-worry-about.html#storylink=cpy

SIGNS BANNING CONCEALED GUNS COMING DOWN IN RALEIGH PARK, BUT ACTIVISTS FIGHT ON: City officials are taking down park signs this week that explicitly ban concealed weapons, but a gun rights group says the effort doesn’t go far enough.  Grass Roots North Carolina continues to lobby Raleigh’s parks department to update its signs to reflect the state law allowing concealed guns in parks. Grass Roots President Paul Valone says his members are getting ready to send Mayor Nancy McFarlane a gift: rolls of duct tape to cover up the controversial text.  –From NewsObserver, http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/28/3321385/signs-banning-concealed-guns-coming.html#storylink=cpy

PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS THE WRONG FIX FOR MORE JOBS: Gov. Pat McCrory often declares that some part of state government is “broken” and that his task is to fix it. The problem is that, as governmental handymen, McCrory and his crew back at the workshop in the General Assembly use only two tools: a hammer and a hacksaw.  That’s why the state’s “broken” unemployment insurance system had its eligibility standards, length of payment and maximum weekly payments sawed back to a nub. That’s why the election process had to be fixed by cutting off a week of early voting, same-day registration and straight-ticket voting and then to have a voter ID requirement nailed onto it. And, of course, the state’s Medicaid system was so broken that it couldn’t be expanded to cover about 500,000 low-income people who need health insurance.  –From NewsObserver, http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/28/3321456/public-private-partnerships-the.html#storylink=cpy

North Carolina Politics Headlines of the Day: October 28, 2013

NC NEEDS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY THAT INCREASES HOUSEHOLD INCOMES, BENEFITS ALL REGIONS: North Carolina needs a 21st century approach to economic development that is focused on increasing household incomes and ensuring that all regions of the state are able to benefit from economic growth, according to a new report from the Budget & Tax Center, a project of the NC Justice Center.  The fundamental challenge facing North Carolina’s economy is how to replace rapidly vanishing jobs in declining manufacturing industries with jobs in growing industries that pay enough to allow workers and their families to make ends meet and achieve middle class prosperity.  –from NCPolicyWatch, http://www.ncpolicywatch.com/2013/10/28/nc-needs-economic-development-strategy-that-increases-household-incomes-benefits-all-regions/#sthash.8lyw8bds.dpuf

RESEARCH CENTER CRITICAL OF PRIVATIZING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Gov. Pat McCrory and state economic officials remain strongly committed to their goal of privatizing economic development in North Carolina next year.  However, a nonpartisan Washington research center, Good Jobs First, offered a warning last week to North Carolina about the strategy’s viability and effectiveness through stark criticism of public-private efforts in eight states.  –From WinstonSalemJournal, http://www.journalnow.com/business/business_news/local/article_dc28cbec-3eab-11e3-b6b4-0019bb30f31a.html

SEN. BURR DISSAPOINTS N.C. RELIGIOUS LEADERS ON RELEASE OF TORTURE REPORT: A group of more than 190 North Carolina religious leaders and other Christians, Jews, Quakers and a Muslim chaplain wrote in August to Sen. Richard Burr, urging him to support the release of the findings of an investigation into the post-9/11 treatment of terrorism suspects.  This week, the North Carolina Republican finally replied, saying he opposed making the 6,000-page report public.  –From CharlotteObserver, http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/10/25/4415237/sen-burr-disappoints-nc-religious.html#.Um7mhRDORTJ#storylink=cpy

EDITORIAL: VOTER TURNOUT BEGS QUESTIONS: A consistently higher number of citizens taking advantage of early voting for the Nov. 5 municipal election in Pitt County begs an important question: Are the increased numbers due to higher interest in certain races; or is a new voting law, not yet in effect, actually inspiring more citizens to go out and vote?  The answer may include a little of both.  –From Reflector, http://www.reflector.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-voting-turnout-begs-questions-2205137

CURRENT N.C. MEDICAID PROGRAM FAILS TO MEET HEALTH, COST GOALS: Medicaid spending has grown dramatically, while patient health outcomes have declined, as North Carolina has relied on Community Care of North Carolina to serve most Medicaid patients. A new Policy Report from the John Locke Foundation and Florida-based Foundation for Government Accountability highlights five “design flaws” in the CCNC model.  –From CarolinaJournal, http://www.carolinajournal.com/exclusives/display_exclusive.html?id=10577

BELK LOSES LAW LICENSE FOR THREE YEARS: A three-member panel of the state’s Disciplinary Hearing Commission decided at an Oct. 21 hearing to suspend former Mecklenburg County Judge Bill Belk’s law license for three years for violating a rule of conduct. Belk, who insists the violation is nothing more than a misunderstanding he “tried to correct and that had no bearing on my role as a judge,” could have been disbarred for life.  –From CarolinaJournal, http://www.carolinajournal.com/exclusives/display_exclusive.html?id=10582

The Best Thing The Market Heard Was Bad News

Federal Reserve Seal logo

The whole reason I created the idea of financeolicy is the fact that many policies seem foolish and problematic. Today proved another one that should have everyone worried about the stock market and the country – weak unemployment numbers and other economic data created a jump in stock market prices. The lack of economic growth should insinuate that margins will weaken, prices will decrease, and demand will go down as companies are unable to market their higher margin products to the 7.1% unemployed Americans. However, the market has had a drastic increase every time bad data has appeared and a tepid reaction amidst positive news. For this we can thank the Fed. Bernanke – and soon Yellen – have adopted the easy money policies that channel money into the economy and market amidst weakened interest rates that allow companies to leverage themselves. This is great for speculators and short run growth but is not encouraging for the long-term prospects of the market. Beyond a dearth of economic growth once the easy money stops due to our reliance on it for continued growth, it is also important to consider the significant pullback in the market we can expect once it occurs. For this reason, should we be pulling our money out of the market and shorting everything in sight? Not quite. As Keynes said – the market will stay wrong far longer than you will remain liquid. Until we finally start easing these policies, which will not happen anytime soon with weak data and Yellen running the ship, the market will continue to generate an upwards trend. So, if you are an investor, hang in there and keep buying for the moment. Though beware this does not mean it is the correct economic course of action.

North Carolina Political Headlines – October 22, 2013

As school went on break, we slightly fell behind on the political headlines. However, they are back and will continue to be updated daily for the foreseeable future. As always, let us know if you have questions or comments.

CHARTER SCHOOL STAFF STILL WAITING FOR MISSED PAYCHECKS: When a Kinston charter school suddenly shut down in September, it left nearly 200 students and their families scrambling to find new classrooms a few days into the school year.  It also pushed nearly 60 staff members unexpectedly into unemployment and who are now unsure of when, or if, they’ll be paid for the week of school they worked.  “It’s left my family in a mess,” said Michael Joyner, the associate principal for school operations. “We did our jobs, we didn’t do anything wrong.”  -From NCPolicyWatch, http://www.ncpolicywatch.com/2013/10/22/charter-school-staff-still-waiting-for-missed-paychecks/#sthash.2MK5CHV8.dpuf

N.C. GOVERNOR MCCRORY MEETS WITH CONSERVATIVE POLICY GROUP: Less than a week after the government shutdown ended, North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory traveled to the nation’s capital to give a talk to a group that championed the effort to tie government funding to defunding the health care law.  The Heritage Foundation, a conservative policy group, introduced McCrory as the kind of Republican reformer that Washington could emulate.  McCrory never addressed the controversial shutdown and host Becky Norton Dunlop, a Heritage vice president, didn’t bring it up.  –From NewsObserver, http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/21/3301607/nc-gov-mccrory-meets-with-conservative.html#storylink=cpy

STATE WANTS COURT TO TOSS VOTER I.D. SUITS: The state is asking a federal court to dismiss two lawsuits — one filed by the North Carolina NAACP and one filed by the League of Women Voters of N.C. — challenging the new law requiring voters to present government-issued identification when voting and changing other election regulations.  The response by the state to the lawsuits was filed Monday in the U.S. Middle District Court. Responses to other lawsuits, including one filed by the U.S. Department of Justice, are expected later this year.  The state denied many of the allegations appearing in the plaintiffs’ lawsuits. In addition to asking that the lawsuits be dismissed and that a judgment be entered for the state, the state asked to be awarded attorneys’ fees and further relief that the court may deem just and proper.  –From CarolinaJournal, http://www.carolinajournal.com/exclusives/display_exclusive.html?id=10575

STATE DENIES ELECTIONS LAW VIOLATES RIGHTS: State officials responded Monday to two lawsuits filed over sweeping changes to elections laws, denying allegations that the legislation violates voters’ rights.  The North Carolina chapter of the NAACP, the League of Women Voters of North Carolina, Common Cause of North Carolina and several individuals sued Gov. Pat McCrory and the State Board of Elections in August, alleging that regulations requiring voters to present photo identification at the polls, limiting early voting and ending same-day registration were designed to suppress voter turnout.  The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a third lawsuit, alleging that North Carolina’s law is racially motivated. State officials haven’t yet responded to it.  –From WRAL, http://www.wral.com/state-denies-elections-law-violates-rights/13019841/

A JUDGE COMES TO SEE THE UNFAIRNESS OF VOTER ID LAWS: The legal struggle over North Carolina’s changes in its voting laws is just beginning, but a federal judge who helped open the way to new voter ID requirements recently delivered his informal verdict: Voting ID laws are a form of “trickery” intended to suppress the vote.  That was the surprising admission made by U.S. District Judge Richard Posner in his new book and in a follow-up interview.  Posner was the author of a 2007 ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago that defended the constitutionality of Indiana’s voter ID laws. That ruling, upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2008, provided the legal justification for a wave of new state laws requiring voters to provide a photo identification at the polls. It also emboldened states to press the restrictions further.  North Carolina did so this year by adding a narrow photo ID requirement. Student IDs and some other common forms of identification are not accepted. The law also cut back the days for early voting from 17 to 10 and eliminated same-day registration.  –From NewsObserver, http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/21/3301562/a-judge-comes-to-see-the-unfairness.html#storylink=cpy

DHHS HEAD OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH RESIGNS: Layton Long Jr., head of environmental health at the state Department of Health and Human Services, resigned Monday. His resignation is effective in 30 days.  Long has worked at DHHS for a little more than a year. He’s leaving the $113,593-a-year job to become director of the Chatham County Health Department. The environmental heath section is in the Division of Public Health, which has seen high-profile departures this year. The former public health director, Dr. Laura Gerald, resigned in July. The state’s top dentist, chief of the division’s oral health section, was fired shortly after.  DHHS released a statement from Long that said he enjoyed working with the professionals in public health.  –From NewsObserver, http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/21/3301738/dome-dhhs-head-of-environmental.html#storylink=cpy

MCCRORY’S PREDICTION THAT STATE MAY BE FORCED TO EXPAND MEDICAID RAISES EYEBROWS:  Gov. Pat McCrory said Monday that North Carolina may have to expand its Medicaid health insurance program, saying a back door in federal health reforms is forcing his hand.  Reform experts question his logic, though changes in the law give hospitals more power to approve Medicaid eligibility temporarily, potentially putting the state-and-federally-funded program on the hook for more patient bills.  –From WinstonSalemJournal, http://www.journalnow.com/news/state_region/article_f8105ce6-3abc-11e3-ad11-001a4bcf6878.html

MORE FEDERAL MONEY STILL MAY NOT SIGNAL SUCCESS FOR UNION STATION: Raleigh officials got most of the money they wanted for the estimated $73 million Union Station upgrade. In late September, the city secured an extra $15 million in federal funds, bringing to $66.25 million the amount of federal, state, and local funding committed to the proposed transit hub. But the project faces critics who note that, if the proposal really could expand development in the way its backers imagined, Union Station would have generated more money from private developers and less from taxpayers.  –From CarolinaJournal, http://www.carolinajournal.com/exclusives/display_exclusive.html?id=10570

Medicaid Managed Care

publichealth.lacounty.gov

Next year, a large debate will begin in North Carolina regarding using Medicaid Managed Care as the primary care vehicle for the population. It is currently used in some format by 68% of Medicaid recipients. Below, I have attached talking points established during my class on political campaigning and leadership for those in support of the Managed Care system. I view it as a proactive versus reactive system that can greatly benefit our state. Many detractors argue that you shouldn’t “fix a system that ain’t broken” and that costs are lower in NC than many other states. I view that as a silly idea. Just because something is not broken does not insinuate it cannot be much better. Our country was founded upon the ideals that innovation and competition can always make a system better. If we had a system that did not constantly improve upon the status quo, I may still be driving a Model T and the Internet may not exist. It is our duty to take any actions we can to make a system better, regardless of its currently quality. Therefore, I think the Managed Care system is the best “first step” towards this new and better North Carolina. Many more subsequent steps will still need to be taken. I will post more information on this and other beliefs but this is at least some of the facts and a way to stick to talking points, if an interview did ever happen for a candidate.

SHB Position:

• A dollar savings in Medicaid is a dollar invested in our future through education and the environment.
• Managed care is about increased quality, increased efficiency, and decreased costs.
• Managed care is preventative care. It is proactive versus reactive.
• The award winning Community Care of NC proves how effective managed care is and now we can expand their services.

Facts about North Carolina

• Emergency measure to transfer $500 million to cover Medicaid budget shortfalls came from education budget.
• Medicaid consumed 16% of the state budget (14 billion total; 4 billion state)
• In the 1990’s, costs grew 14% annually, far exceeding the 10.9% average nationally. Briefly, from 2007 to 2010, growth rates reached 3.5% per year, but have since grown to 5.4%.
• The vote focuses on raising this rate to 10.8% in 2013-2014 and allowing managed care providers to aid cost-containment.
• Almost 50 million people receive benefits through some sort of managed care (nationwide)
• A study in 24 states by the Lewin Group displayed a reduction in per-beneficiary spending by switching while providing better patient outcomes.
• Actuarial soundness – monthly rates paid are sufficient for a health plan to meet its obligations to its population.
• Medicaid covers 1.6-1.8 million members of the NC population.
• According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, about 27 percent of North Carolina Medicaid recipients were either elderly or disabled in 2009. The cost of services for those two categories of recipients made up about 63 percent of all Medicaid costs that year.
• State auditor Beth Wood released a report earlier this year that found $1.4 billion in Medicaid administrative cost overruns in the past three fiscal years, $375 million of that in state dollars. NC administrative spending is 6.3% higher than other states.
• Roughly 68% of NC Medicaid recipients are currently enrolled in some type of Managed Care plan.
• A study of preventable hospitalizations in California found that rates of preventable hospitalization were 38% lower for people with Managed Care plans.

Let me know your thoughts and what you think of the proposed new system!

How Democrats Beat Dam McConnell

wikipedia.org

Last night marked what politicians are calling a great triumph for the American nation. A (just after) midnight agreement grudgingly accepted by Democrats and Republicans while taxpayers remained glued to CNN and business leaders and treasury officials were left shaking contemplating the consequences of failure? Who wouldn’t call that a victory?

Now, just to show how ironic this whole fiasco is, I want to point out the positions of both sides. Extreme liberals wanted a clean raise of the debt ceiling with no impact on their flawless Obamacare and no mention of deficit reduction because sound fiscal policy cannot be fathomed. Moderate liberals were willing to compromise on the medical device tax and deficit reduction without defunding Obamacare or holding the debt ceiling hostage. Moderate Republicans wanted compromise on a diverse array of Obamacare policies that would not defund the bill but reduce the deficits and yield a committee dedicated to the reduction of debt and a sound economy. Radical (Tea Party) Republicans wanted to completely defund Obamacare and hold other entitlement programs hostage under the guise it was about helping the American people and reducing the deficit. In this scenario, it seems obvious that quick compromise could be reached and politics would not prevail. A committee would be forced to create compromises over a moderate period of time amidst some changes in the tax policies of Obamacare and an easy extension of the debt ceiling to not hold hostage the integrity of American credit. If Republicans were going to give in, at the very least it would include some sort of deficit reduction to mitigate their claims that liberals were funding the country to hell.

Well, a deal was reached last night. What was the biggest provision of the deal? A 3 billion dollar deal. Not in savings from Obamacare nor in deficit reduction. Rather, the Democrats and Republicans that represent our nation passed a bill that set up an epic debate three months from now while providing almost 3 billion in funding for a dam in Mitch McConnell’s home state of Kentucky. The bill passed last night caused the American taxpayers anxiety while actually leading to an increase in the deficit and debt of this nation. My opinion? McConnell, the Democrats, the Republicans, and all of them fooled only the American people.

Politics has become media-driven entertainment that seems paralyzed from making effective decisions that will truly help the American people. At least I will never run out of topics to write about.

Change is the l…

Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future. JFK

I missed a few days of blogging here as I went away for vacation to take a breather from school and work. As I come back, I wanted to start with this quote to embrace change and the future, because it will inevitably come whether you welcome it or not. The best leader/worker/student/person you can be is understand and embrace change and make it work for you. When you let it control you, you have failed. When you control it and see how you can obtain positives, you will be in the 1%. Not necessarily of wealth…but definitely of happiness.