The Cost of Doing Nothing on Health Care - NYTimes.com

How expensive is it for our government to fail repeatedly to reform healthcare? From today's NYT: 

"The Commonwealth Fund estimates that the nation would be spending hundreds of billions of dollars less than it does today if any of the health care legislation proposed by previous administrations had been enacted, assuming that they reduced costs by about 1.5 percentage points. If President Nixon’s plan had passed, the United States might be spending a trillion dollars a year less than it does now, and President Clinton’s plan would have reduced spending by some $500 billion a year.

“It makes a huge difference over a long period of time,” said Ms. Davis of the Commonwealth Fund.

 

via http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html

How Holland Uses Private Insurance to Deliver Healthcare More Affordably than We do

This video clip from the BBC discusses how Holland uses private insurance coupled with taxpayer subsidies to provide universal healthcare at the lower cost than American care that leaves 40 million uninsured. Every major country except the United States and Communist China provides universal healthcare, using many different approaches.

How Goldman Sachs Sabotaged Greece - NYTimes.com

News item in NYT on how Goldman Sachs helped Greece deceive European financiers, while at the same time making bets that Greece would default on the debt deals Goldman set up; Goldman bet that deals it was paid to set up would fail. Excerpt:

Nice to See U.S. Open Linesperson Tsurubuchi Back at Work

It was a pleasant surprise to see linesperson Shino Tsurubuchi at work when I attended the Roddick-Verdasco final at the SAP Open on Valentine's day. 

Tsurubuchi was the official that was repeatedly threatened with assault by Serena Williams during the U.S. Open. It's great to see that tennis officials haven't punished here for doing her job correctly. 

How Goldman and JP Morgan Sabotaged Greece - NYT.com

Report on NYT.com shows how Goldman Sachs, while working with Greece to hide its debts, created derivatives to gamble on and profit from Greece's financial failure, damaging all of Europe. Excerpts:

"Bets by some of the same banks that helped Greece shroud its mounting debts may actually now be pushing the nation closer to the brink of financial ruin.

Toyota Recall: Scandal, Media Circus, and Stupid Drivers - Editorial - Car and Driver

Car and Driver has a rational and delightfully politically-incorrect take on the media circus about Toyota. One highlight: Even if the pedal were somehow stuck, floored, a Toyota Camry stops in a shorter distance than a Ford Taurus. 

Excerpt:

How Big is This Problem?

Predicting Men's Tennis in 2010

Having done a decent job of forecasting the last two grand slams (I picked Roger Federer to beat Juan Martin del Potro in both the U.S. Open and Australian Open finals, so I had three of the four finalists right and one winner), I'm getting cocky. 

Herewith, I'll stick my neck out even further, predicting the top ten rankings at year's end, the winners of the next three Grand Slam tournaments, then rank and take a closer look at some of the top contenders.

Andy Murray: Contender for Tennis Crown

If Andy Murray was from anywhere other than Great Britain, his ascension to world number two and his appearance in two Grand Slam finals would be treated reverentially, not foolishly portrayed as falling short. 

Juan Martin del Potro: Fastest Trajectory in Tennis

Watching the tall Argentine over the last two years has been a joy. I've never seen anyone improve seemingly with every tournament he played the way Juan Martin del Potro has. 

Andy Roddick: Another Grand Slam Left?

I admit that I underestimated Andy Roddick. I thought he was no longer a prime candidate to win another Grand Slam when he entered Wimbledon last year. But he not only made the finals, but basically outplayed Roger Federer over that tremendous five-hour five-set marathon, winner 37 consecutive service games before yielding one, solitary break in the entire match -- and losing a heartbreaker.