I didn’t really want to wade into the contraception versus Catholic hierarchy debate because, as a person who was raised Catholic and well aware that the vast majority of Catholics used birth control (only a couple of my friends came from families even half as large as my grandmother’s 10-kid brood), I knew that it… Continue reading Healthcare Agonistes
Author: Nathan Hunstad
The Mortgage Deal
The $26 billion mortgage settlement announced recently has several shortcomings. It doesn’t throw any banksters in jail, although apparently that’s still a possibility down the road. It won’t put people illegally foreclosed back in their homes, and the roughly $2,000 such people may get is not going to be enough for a down payment for… Continue reading The Mortgage Deal
Tax rate update
A short update to the post I had about tax rates a couple days ago: when calculating our tax rate compared to Romney’s, I was unsure if the 13.9% rate was based on Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), or on total income. Turns out it was AGI; if you use gross income, it would be… Continue reading Tax rate update
Of Tax Rates and Mittens
So Julia and I did our 2011 taxes last night. We came out pretty well all things considered. Not nearly as well as some presidential candidates, but well enough to have no real complaints. Speaking of presidential candidates, however, despite our miniscule income compared to Mitt Romney, we still paid a higher percentage of our… Continue reading Of Tax Rates and Mittens
Passwords, Authentication, and Privilege
Gizmodo has decreed that today, February 1st, is “Change Your Password” day. I wholeheartedly agree, especially if you re-used passwords (which you shouldn’t!). In fact, I’d go further: change your password, and start using a password manager. Did I changed my passwords today? I did not, because I used said password manager. I don’t reuse… Continue reading Passwords, Authentication, and Privilege
Google and Privacy
Google unveiled its new privacy policy a week ago, and it has raised quite the commotion on the intertubes. Some people say that Google has gone too far. Members of Congress have sent letters to Google demanding answers. Some wonder if the FTC will get involved. Me? I’m worried in general about privacy, and I… Continue reading Google and Privacy
Amendments A-plenty
I get the feeling that Republicans in the Minnesota Legislature know that their majority will not last very long. Why else would they put forward amendment after amendment to the state constitution, trying to ensconce their beliefs into permanence while at the same time avoiding the veto pen of Governor Dayton? Their creativity when it… Continue reading Amendments A-plenty
Class Bubbles
Charles Murray, one of the authors of the infamous book The Bell Curve, has come out with a new book, this one about classism and “White America”. Given his history, it’s no surprise that people are lining up to trash the thing, and with good reason: his quiz for how thick your “upper-class bubble” is… Continue reading Class Bubbles
Windows 7 UTC Time Issue
I’ve had a problem with my computer lately with the clock being consistently slow, even though it is set to sync to an internet time server every day. Whenever I would manually sync it to an internet time server, the time would be correct for an hour or so, then suddenly lose time. Before, it… Continue reading Windows 7 UTC Time Issue
Get A Job
A few days ago, the New York Times had a story about who really makes up the 1%. It’s a wide variety of people, making a wide variety of incomes depending on where exactly they live (unsurprisingly, the top 1% in Connecticut looks a bit different than the top 1% in Alabama). Of course, not… Continue reading Get A Job