Fireworks!

Obviously part of the problem!

OMG the Dutch spent €70 million on fireworks! Apparently, some people see that, along with burned fingers and injured eyeballs, as a problem. They want to ban private fireworks.

So let's do the math:

• Suppose every gemeente in NL produced one 30-minute fireworks show (a big step down from the hours-long communal display we enjoyed last night).
• There are 418 gemeente in NL. Source
• A non-professional show easily runs £100 per minute. Source
• Incorporating music, computer coordination and larger shells can increase the cost to around $2000 per minute. Source
• The city of Melbourne spent $2 million on its fireworks show. Source

So let's assume the gemeente gets a good deal on music, and call it  €1500 per minute, or €45000 for a single half-hour show. This is an extremely conservative estimate, but it still works out to nearly €19 million out of the government's pocket.

Last night's festivities cost insurance companies €11 euros.

These calculations don't even take into account the fact that for every gemeente-produced, centralized show, every single resident required to travel more than walking distance to see it increases the likelihood of driving-under-the-influence accidents at the cost of many, priceless lives.

And how's it working, where there are centralized shows and bans on fireworks?

Amsterdam:

• Burglars took advantage of the outdoor festivities with at least 50 reported break-ins in Amsterdam alone. Source
• In Amsterdam, 123 people were picked up, mainly for vandalism and public drunkenness. Source

Rotterdam:

• Turned people away from its fireworks display due to over-crowding. Source

Assen still has citizen fireworks. I observed lots of drunkenness, lots of noise, lots of fun... within one block of the house. Neighborhood bonds were reinforced; there was laughter and gossip and visiting each other until 3am. We did have to sweep up this morning. This is me on a firework high:

Don't trade some property damage for increased criminalization, increased driving-under-the-influence, and decreased enjoyment of the neighborhood.

This link will let you see a few seconds of our neighborhood festivities. 

Happy New Year. Gelukkig Nieuwjaar. Keep your paws off my party. :)

Really Though?

Someone I love described a quote from dear old Abe as "everything" that the "greater man believed in." Of course not being able to let that go, I posted another of Abe's quotes, which didn't contradict the first, but certainly undercut the way it was being used. Vague? Maybe. Because neither quote is the point.

The point, rather, is that this person I love responded by posting the following:

You run to another country and still feel you have the right to say what happens in your homeland. Sooner or later those of us who are actually contributing can sit on their keesters will say enough is enough.

So why did I "run to another country"? Well let's examine that.

I worked well over a decade in social services. My employer paid for my health insurance, to the tune of over $600 a month out of the employer's pocket. When speculative real estate crashed the economy, counties cut services to abused children. The non-profit company I worked for, which provided services to abused children, was forced to cut their programs.

I have a wide variety of skills, so I became self-employed. That turned out to be a great choice for me, as over a decade of trauma had left its mark. That mark, however, in addition to health problems I've had since infancy, require that I have routine health care. As an ordinary responsible person, I applied for health insurance to cover that health care. I was turned down on the basis of "pre-existing conditions." No, "OK well we can insure you but it will cost xxx." Nope. Just, "You're not eligible for coverage."

So what are my choices?

• I could pay for my routine care out of pocket. Except that I couldn't do that without earning at least $200,000 a year. 
• I could use emergency room care as basic care. A lot of people do this. Even if you can't pay, they can't actually turn you away, leaving myself and other taxpayers with the extravagently high bill.
• I could just slowly (or quickly in the "right" circumstance) die.
• I could explore my other options.

My other options, because I have a very dear friend in NL, included moving to Holland. I was able to enroll in and begin paying for health insurance even before I had my residence permit. My health insurance costs less than 100E a month. I get excellent, full care, with a strong emphasis on preventative care. Because everyone in the country has insurance, because the general health (and exercise) conditions in the country surpass those in the US, and because the emphasis is strongly on preventative care, the numbers work out and the company is able to make a profit even with my pre-existing conditions and potentially (not actual but potential) high care costs at such a low premium.

So I moved here for completely selfish reasons. Plus there are a zillion things I love about the society, but all that aside....

The US Government still considers me a part of the country. I have the right to vote, and the duty to pay EXACTLY the same taxes I did when I lived in the US. OK not exactly, I escape state taxes, but I could have done that by moving to Nevada, for heaven's sake. So anyway....

If the US government says that I have the same fiscal duty now that I had when I lived in the US...

When did I lose my right to comment on US society?

Sneeuw :)

Perfect snow.

Lots of work.

*smiles happily*