Quoted: But the notion that most American consumers enjoy anything like a competitive marketplace for health care is flatly false. And a study issued last month by a pro-reform group makes that strikingly clear.

Quoted: The report, released by Health Care for America Now (HCAN), uses data compiled by the American Medical Association to show that 94 percent of the country's insurance markets are defined as "highly concentrated," according to Justice Department guidelines. Predictably, that's led to skyrocketing costs for patients, and monster profits for the big health insurers. Premiums have gone up over the past six years by more than 87 percent, on average, while profits at ten of the largest publicly traded health insurance companies rose 428 percent from 2000 to 2007.

Quoted: Far from healthy market competition, HCAN describes the situation as "a market failure where a small number of large companies use their concentrated power to control premium levels, benefit packages, and provider payments in the markets they dominate."

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I watched this game yesterday. It was ridiculous. Both goals are awesome.

Quoted: Spain vs USA (0 - 2) FIFA Confederations Cup South Africa 2009 SKY SPORTS

I used to think Fox just had incompetent graphics people that were easily overwhelmed during election season, but this is just too obvious to be a mistake. Sanford is one of the Republican's (supposed) prospects for the 2012 presidential nomination. Fucking Fox.

Quoted: On Fox, Mark Sanford "(D)" holds press conference

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Awesome.

Quoted: Quality of sleep is not something to be taken lightly, and yet so many geeks have trouble sleeping at night. Aside from the obvious (going to a doctor), there are a number of things you can try to get a better night's sleep, ranging from sleep-tracking alarm clocks to software that lulls you into a slumber.

Quoted: Think writing a compiler is difficult? It is—unless you use Parrot, a complete compiler construction kit. With Parrot, crafting a new programming language is as easy as authoring a new website.

Quoted: A fun pattern has emerged among the Republican efforts to reach out to voters through the new social-networking online media: They're failing massively, with episodes that just make them look stupid and ham-fisted, and even sometimes force them to apologize for offending people.

Quoted: I am aware of the difficulties of catching history on the run. Some explanation may emerge for Ahmadinejad's upset that does not involve fraud. For instance, it is possible that he has gotten the credit for spreading around a lot of oil money in the form of favors to his constituencies, but somehow managed to escape the blame for the resultant high inflation.

Quoted: But just as a first reaction, this post-election situation looks to me like a crime scene. And here is how I would reconstruct the crime.

Sigh...

Quoted: Fitch expects "home prices will fall an additional 12.5% nationally and 36% in California" from Q1 2009.