Ego Pingere Ergo Sum Coffee is God's way of showing that he loves us and wants us to pay attention.
Joined February 2022
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Dean S retweeted
To the Americans:
I've travelled all over the world. I've familiarized myself with many places, and met many people. And I'm a Canadian, although I’m privileged to reside once again in the States.
And here's something I've noticed, and it’s a key element of America's continuing greatness:
You bloody Americans value success, and you believe in its existence.
This is something that doesn't really happen anywhere else in the world. Even in other free democracies—the United Kingdom; Finland, Sweden, and Norway; Australia, New Zealand and Canada; Germany, France, and the Netherlands (great countries all)—a counterproductive cynicism too often reigns.
Success is equated with exploitation.
Ambition is looked upon with contempt.
This happens sometimes in the United States too—particularly among the miserable progressives, who confuse their resentment, ingratitude and unearned skepticism with wisdom.
But in your great country, by and large, striving is admired and success celebrated.
This means that more people strive and succeed in the US than anywhere else. And it's increasingly obvious. You remain stunningly more innovative and productive than any people anywhere else on the planet.
And so I say, as all should who are fortunate enough to live in the western world, let alone America:
Thank God for the United States.
Thank God for the wisdom of its founders.
Thank God for its faith in the free market and in the natural rights of man.
Happy birthday, you damn Yankees and Southerners.
Long may your admirable country dominate the world.
Long may your freedom and hope provide an example to those suffering everywhere at the hands of their malevolent states.
May your two and a half centuries of unparallelled success be just the beginning.
Your country is the light of the world, and the city on the hill.
Thank God for the USA.
Happy 250th.
Dr. Jordan B. Peterson
Dean S retweeted
Recorded back in the 1960s, John Cleese (of Monty Python fame) made an excellent satirical commentary exposing the friend-enemy distinction as being at the heart of both far-left and rar-right extremism, inter alia, including its psychological appeal.
I was raised Lutheran and have belonged to many Lutheran churches over the years; ELCA, Missouri Synod, etc. I've stopped going and trying to find a sensible Lutheran church now as they all seemed to have become "woke". I have nothing against gays or trans, but I don't like it shoved in my face every Sunday at church. Rainbow flags everywhere and "hate has no home here" sanctimony.
Now I find that it was Lutheran ministries that brought in and sponsored most of the Somalis in Minnesota. Perfect example of suicidal empathy as there have been little to no converts from Islam to Christianity, as one should expect from a religion that promises death to apostates. After 10 years, 83% of these immigrants are still on some kind of welfare. These so-called Christians may be patting themselves on the back for this phony sanctimony but they have saddled a lot of innocent people with the bill.
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Dean S retweeted
Two-thirds of people are broke because they buy stuff they don’t need. Sneakers, shirts, gadgets... none of it makes you wealthy. What does? Saving 15% of your income, killing debt, and investing consistently.
It’s boring. That’s why almost no one does it. But the people who do are the ones who aren’t 65 and still in debt. Discipline builds freedom.
Dean S retweeted
Health Insurance is a scam and is failing everyone while the insurance companies make huge profits.
They get paid directly from the government, on the front end, for every person.
Democrats created this problem in 2010, made it worse in 2021, and Republicans have never fixed it.
I’m really sick of hearing this - the government is not subsidizing people. They’re subsidizing insurance companies.
The American people are paying thousands upon thousands of dollars for a product that is - for all intents and purposes - useless.
United Healthcare, whose revenue is about ~50% dependent upon government subsidies, denies ~33% of claims (2023 data).
Aetna denies ~29% of claims (2023 data).
Blue Cross Blue Shield (aggregate across states) denies ~18% of claims (2023 data).
Elevance, Cigna, and Centene denies ~16-17% of claims (2023 data).
Humana, which when you consider their military benefits administration, is basically a government payer denies ~12% (2023 data).
And of all denied insurance claims, in the entire United States, only ~1% of them are appealed. And of those appealed only ~46% of that 1% are overturned.
Health insurance is a scam. It’s a farce.
The subsidy isn’t for the patient. And the physicians don’t get paid - at all - ~20% of the time.
And when they do get paid, there’s always some kind of adjustment lowering the reimbursement; and it takes - on average - 71 days to get paid!
This is insanity!
@SecKennedy @CMSGov @HHS_Jim @HHSGov @DOGE_HHS @DOGE @RapidResponse47 @realDonaldTrump @JDVance @mcuban @RayDalio @elonmusk @NicoleShanahan
So the government is going to build an "Alligator Alcaraz" in Florida at the cost of 450 million a year and will have 5000 beds. Does no one in charge do math? That's $90,000 a year to house an inmate. Pure insanity!
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36 trillion dollars divided by 130 million American families = $276,923 per household.
Pretty scary when you see it in real numbers.
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Dean S retweeted
I don’t want to connect my coffee machine to the wifi network. I don’t want to share the file with OneDrive. I don’t want to download an app to check my car’s fluid levels. I don’t want to scan a QR code to view the restaurant menu. I don’t want to let Google know my location before showing me the search results. I don’t want to include a Teams link on the calendar invite. I don’t want to pay 50 different monthly subscription fees for all my software. I don’t want to upgrade to TurboTax platinum plus audit protection. I don’t want to install the Webex plugin to join the meeting. I don’t want to share my car’s braking data with the actuaries at State Farm. I don’t want to text with your AI chatbot. I don’t want to download the Instagram app to look at your picture. I don’t want to type in my email address to view the content on your company’s website. I don’t want text messages with promo codes. I don’t want to leave your company a five-star Google review in exchange for the chance to win a $20 Starbucks gift card. I don’t want to join your exclusive community in the metaverse. I don’t want AI to help me write my comments on LinkedIn. I don’t even want to be on LinkedIn in the first place.
I just want to pay for a product one time (and only one time), know that it’s going to work flawlessly, press 0 to speak to an operator if I need help, and otherwise be left alone and treated with some small measure of human dignity, if that’s not too much to ask anymore.
Dean S retweeted
We had a European NGO open shop in a African country where I worked.
The office had to be set up, secretaries, laptops the usual. Then the expat Program Country Manager arrived and insisted on being issued G-Wagon - required for its supposed '4x4 capabilities'. It cost 4x the price of Toyota Hiluxes that everyone drove.
Every year, we have to go through the drama of raising the debt limit, or the Federal Government will stop working. I am of the persuasion that most people will not notice the difference, and THAT is what freaks politicians out. Cut Federal programs in half besides paid-into entitlements like Social Security and Medicare, and most American's lives will just go on without noticing. More power to Elon and his crew!
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Replicating a Fabric Pattern by Dean Sickler youtu.be/UzwHwUAe8RA?feature… via @YouTube
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Decorative Painting: A Simple Guide to Understanding Faux Finishes wconline.com/articles/95892-…
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