In the meantime, Bryce and Dane Thompson just spent their first Christmas without their father.

It’s remarkable to me that this sentence is intended to be the emotional gut punch at the end of the same article containing this prior text:

Other insurers are for-profit companies, like UnitedHealthcare.

…

UnitedHealthcare surely makes some horrifying decisions and outright mistakes, and even when it rules out coverage based on a defensible calculus of costs and benefits, that can be a devastating thing for patients and their loved ones to hear.

In other words, UHC is responsible for a great many “first Christmas” moments, but those are OK in aggregate, because they are for profit.

The entire article is predicated on the idea that someone needs to profit from rationing healthcare, so it may as well be these guys. NO, there is not a reason for someone to profit from acting as the middleman to deny care my doctor already determined I needed.

No one can plausibly argue that the murder of Thompson will do a single thing to fix the problems in America’s health-care system.

It already has. Countless articles dissecting the issue, some in agreement with this article, some not. A true conversation about it unlike any in recent years. Someone in DC has to have noticed that the left and right have unified on this one, and I’m not sure what they’ll do with that info, but something, I hope. And everyone else who is grossly profiting from the death and suffering of others has been and continues to be forced to consciously examine that reality. They can’t turn away from the externalities of their decisions any more. I’m not sure what that’s going to change, but an inflection point like that on an entire industry is going to have some kind of impact for sure.

Almost certainly.

Azarath Metrion Zinthos!!

So we’ve got a President, a billionaire, and now a closely allied nation that are all out of control loose cannons, who are all willing to ignore any law, moral code, or ethical detail, and to destroy any person or entity who stands in their way, and the entire world seems powerless to do anything meaningful about any of them.

Cool cool cool…

I converted the png to a smaller filesize jpg and posted it. Here’s a screenshot, but if my other pic didn’t come through for you, I am thinking this one won’t either.

Edit: Direct link to screenshot: https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/36422048-1969-4c7c-aba5-ed1a934194c2.png

For whatever reason that’s not coming through for me without clicking.

For others who might have the same issue:

Surprised it’s so short. Probably because Israel has killed so many of them.

https://www.democracynow.org/2024/10/16/gaza_doctor

https://visualizingpalestine.org/

Not only do I agree, but also it has been my feeling that the Starbucks footage and visit was a performance of some kind, and the water and phone they found were a distraction. Dude seems to have otherwise thought this through pretty well.

I admit that’s nothing more than a hunch though, and I can’t really defend it against anyone who disagrees.

2 or so years ago I’d have agreed with you.

But it’s become clear that the wealthy and powerful are beyond the reach of our justice system. coughdementedfeloninthewhitehousecough

So fuck 'em.

I understand why they will prosecute him if they catch him, but I wish for him to never get caught, and I feel really confident (given the other signs of planning) that the phone, water bottle, and very public appearance at Starbucks in recognizable clothing are nothing but a red herring.

Reminds me of this little snippet of dystopia from a copilot ad about a year ago:

My recollection is that what you describe became pervasive roughly concurrently with the rise of the original Xbox. I’m not pinning it to that device specifically, but it was during the time of the original xbox where I felt that voice chat in games transitioned from helpful collaboration to 99% toxic crap.

I rarely used it from that point forward, so maybe there was a later golden age I’m unaware of.

I can see how that makes sense. I’m not anti-psychedelics in general (if presented with a binary choice of being anti or not), but I’m also not of the experience level nor comfort level to be offering them to my son. If they would become something available to him clinically I’d support it if recommended by his doctor of course. (not that he needs our permission at his age)

Nonetheless I appreciate that you took the time to make that detailed write up. Thanks!

1.) I grew up in this line of thinking (but also deeply religious, so it’s a little different) and it dissipated due to two main things: psychedelics and losing weight/becoming more confident and in-shape. In my case, I hated myself because I was unattractive and very overweight. I saw other people getting girls and resented how easy it seemed, while I felt invisible.

My GenZ son is in his early twenties and lockdown and covid impacts on his health and school have really thrown him for a loop. He has not been overcome by fascist ideologies, but we seem unable to inspire him with any motivation. He’s the same sweet person he’s always been, but I think he is content to just play video games in his room and do D&D with his friends a couple times a week forever. (I understand that, but we won’t always be here to put a roof over his head, and we are not wealthy people. He’s going to need to support himself when we go.)

He is also very overweight (the entire family is, but he’s really accelerating it) and although he doesn’t seem very very bothered by it, I know he’s aware of it.

I understand the need for exercise and I understand calories. Those things don’t need explaining. But I’d love to know how you got over that hurdle to start doing something about your body. I feel like some successes there could easily translate to greater confidence and motivation in other areas.

We spend lots of time together, we enjoy him just like we always have, he just seems rudderless and we’re trying to help him without controlling him, but with limited success.

Anything you might be able to share about your turnaround could be helpful. Though I’m not offering him psychadelics. 🙂

also peeing standing up is not that good for you anyway

First time I’ve heard this.

Second time I’ve seen this commented, but I must have missed a headline - can someone point me to what this is referencing?

I wonder if in other countries it’s enshrined outside of military law, and that’s the distinction? I have no clue.

It could be, I don’t know either.

It’s generally called a “duty to disobey,” and is empowered by the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The UCMJ is more concerned about the need to obey orders, but specifies the conditions when military personnel may feel justified in not following them:

If the order is “contrary to the constitution” or “the laws of the United States.”

If the order is “patently illegal, … such as one that directs the commission of a crime.”

https://www.findlaw.com/legalblogs/law-and-life/what-is-a-military-duty-to-disobey/

It’s generally called a “duty to disobey,” and is empowered by the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The UCMJ is more concerned about the need to obey orders, but specifies the conditions when military personnel may feel justified in not following them:

If the order is “contrary to the constitution” or “the laws of the United States.”

If the order is “patently illegal, … such as one that directs the commission of a crime.”

https://www.findlaw.com/legalblogs/law-and-life/what-is-a-military-duty-to-disobey/

How often does this happen?

Dunno, but an awful lot has been written about it. We don’t elect dictators very often, so I’d say we’re in uncharted waters here.

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=soliders+who+have+disobeyed+unlawful+orders&ia=web