US health care tab hits $3.2T; fastest growth in 8 years

The nation’s health care tab grew at the fastest rate in eight years in 2015, driven by the coverage expansion in President Barack Obama’s law and by costly prescription drugs, the government said Friday. The growth of 5.8 percent in 2015 boosted total health care spending to $3.2 trillion. That’s an average of $9,990 per person, although the vast share …

Daniel Schultz – Can the Religious Left Be Effective Again? Short Answer: No

Every four years, when the presidential election cycle comes around, news junkies are treated to some iteration of the following stories: Is This The End Of The Religious Right? Can Evangelicals Be Liberals? Can Democrats Win People of Faith? Do The Democrats Have A Religion Problem? Can The Religious Left Be Effective Again? You could set your watch to the …

Expat Files – 10.30.15

-Today we discuss a very special place called the Lake Atitlan district in Guatemala. No one who stays there more than a few days is unaffected by it. Now I’m certainly no romantic sentimentalist, but I have to admit it really does leave an indelible memory.

-Some more talk about how illegals send “remisas” ($) back to their Latin countries of origin in a variety of ways. Because these guys are illegals, under the radar, and don’t want to get caught and deported, they do try to use anonymous ways of sending cash home as much as possible. That said, expats and gringos who might (and should) want to keep a low profile can use many of these same (quite legal) methods to move small amounts of $ around themselves. People are always finding new ways and the possibilities seem to be endless.

-Some tips on different cellphone service providers and the general use of cell phones in Latin America

-Hi tech drones (not those hobby toys) have arrived in Latin America

-The state of consumer product recalls in Latin America and the true meaning of, ”Buyer Beware”.

-A thoughtful Canadian reveals the truth about living with “Big Brother” up in the Great White North. He tells us how Canada is slowly becoming unbearable and how he and his wife hope to make their escape to Latin America soon.

David Anderson – An End To American – And Global Oligarchy

A worldwide revolution is about to begin. It is too early to tell whether it will be sudden and painfully crushing or gradual and peaceful, but it will come. It will be a battle between the dispossessed and the very rich. We saw one of the early signs in the US with the Wall Street protests. Since then the societal …

The Myth of Global ‘Free’ Trade – Pepe Escobar

The key to TTIP is the so-called Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanism that essentially gives corporations free reign to sue governments using a “failure to implement” provision, if state policies or legislation interfere with profits. But is this all about trade? There was a direct, crucial “secret” agenda linking the G7 meeting in Germany and theBilderberg meeting in Austria last week; the advancement of the …

America’s Cities Mirror Baltimore’s Woes – Joel Kotkin

The rioting that swept Baltimore the past few days, sadly, was no exception, but part of a bigger trend in some of our core cities towards social and economic collapse. Rather than enjoying the much ballyhooed urban “renaissance,” many of these cities are actually in terrible shape, with miserable schools, struggling economies and a large segmented of alienated, mostly minority …