At Least Social Security Will Go Bankrupt With Good Customer Service

 I've been following the news and quite a few Youtube videos that talk about the solvency of Social Security. The title of the article is a bit misleading.  What the article calls "bankrupt" is referring to is the amount held in the Trust Fund.  And for sure that amount is predicted to run out in the mid-2030s.  And from that point on, whatever is collected from payrolls will be collected and immediately disburse to retirees.  The amout will be some fraction of what you would normally collect. So, if you're in your 80s, there's a more than even chance you'll croak before you are confonted with having to decide what life changes you'd have to make.

When the US first launched the Department of Government Efficiency—DOGE—I thought this should be a critical piece of the reform.

Yes, of course, slash fraud, waste, and abuse. But even more urgently, reset the entire culture of how the US government does business with its citizens.

I recently found a glimmer of hope that this may be happening.

Late last week, Social Security marked its 90th birthday since being signed it into law in 1935 at the height of the Great Depression.

Ever since, generations of Americans have accumulated stories of painfully navigating this massive institution— too often about waiting rooms, endless forms, and mind-numbing incompetence.

But something unusual has happened in the last few months. Frank Bisignano, the new commissioner, took over. He comes from a CEO position in the private sector, and seems to be running Social Security like a business.

He’s pushed a digital-first strategy, incorporated AI tools, and focused on simple things that most people in the private sector would take for granted.

Processing backlogs are coming down. Efficiency is up.

Barely a year ago, you had to spend nearly 30 minutes on hold when you called Social Security. Today, the agency says the wait is under five minutes—while serving nearly twice as many people.

You can also now schedule appointments before going into an office— imagine that. And the average wait time at a Social Security office has also been slashed down to just six minutes.

The Social Security website has been overhauled as well, so taxpayers are able to obtain much more information and handle their service needs online. Crazy that it took until 2025 to make this happen.

Oh, and it turns out that the Social Security website— until very recently— used to be offline nearly 30 hours per WEEK for scheduled downtime. They’ve now eliminated this and MySocialSecurity is now available 24/7.

Good news all around!  But then, the article gets dark.  Very dark.

Unfortunately, there’s one thing the Commissioner can’t control: Social Security’s looming insolvency. 

Social Security’s finances are up to Congress, and that picture is bleak.

Social Security is almost out of money. Everyone in Washington knows it. At best, there’s less than eight years until Social Security’s major trust fund runs out of money. And it will probably take place sooner than that.

Just like fixing bad government service, fixing Social Security’s solvency is not complicated. At this point there are only a few levers to pull: either raise taxes, or roll back retirement age.

The trustees and Social Security’s own actuaries have spelled out these solutions for years, practically begging Congress to act.

They’ve also been clear— the sooner that Congress works to solve the problem, the less painful the solution will be.

If they raise payroll taxes now, the tax hike will be minor. If they wait until 2032, the increase will be brutal.

Similarly, if they pass a law today to phase in an increase to the retirement age, the change will be minor. If they wait a decade, the increase will be much more dramatic.

Yet Congress is—predictably—the least capable group on the planet when it comes to handling obvious problems.

Sure, most likely they won’t let Social Security fail. But the longer they wait, the more likely the eventual fix will simply be a multi-trillion-dollar bailout funded by “printing” money.

For sure, if SSI is your only source of income, its a good time to start talking to your kids about getting things ready for you to move in with them.  It appears trying to convince your comgressman or Senators to do something about this is like Dust In The Wind.

Shasta County residents face fines for improper waste sorting under new law. "Smart Truck Technology".

 While I was living in Germany we had to separate our trash. Now, I've lived there twice but it wasn't until the 2nd time I learned that the city would CHECK to make sure you were in compliance. I don't recall if we would get fined or penalized somehow.  Since I never received so much as a notice or warning, I'm assuming we always passed the "inspection" (what a job.  How do you put that on your resume - "trash checker"? Sanitation inspector? Homeless impersonator?) or our trash was never chosen to be rummaged through.

When we lived in Italy, while relaxing at a park, my wife watched a city worker empty the separated trash - paper, waste and bottles - all into the SAME container. It was clear that it wasn't about "saving the planet".  It's all about control. OR....laziness.  Certainly...both.

Here is the article:

Beginning September 15th, Shasta County Waste Management users will receive a new 96-gallon green organics cart, accompanied by instructions on how to properly sort waste. The new organics service will commence on October 6, with weekly collections scheduled on the same day as trash pickup. Recycling services will shift to a bi-weekly schedule starting the same day.

To ensure compliance, Waste Management will implement smart truck technology, featuring mounted cameras that capture video of containers during collection. A team will review these videos to verify correct sorting and check for overflowing bins.

While Waste Management assures that this initiative will help the community stay environmentally friendly, some residents express dissatisfaction. Greg Ulrich, a Shasta County resident, said, "It's a waste of time. I think it's a government overreach I really do." Kathy Ulrich added, "I don't really think it's a problem to start with. I don't believe in this CO2 excess that they think that all this is creating. I just think it's part of nature so it's not really a problem to start with."

"Smart Truck Technology".  What a joke. 

My experience with nuclear energy in the 1970s

 I never worked in a nuclear power plant.  But during my last years in college I did have a "brush" with nuclear power. This is my story. I am not knowledgeable of nuclear power plants, but I do have a general understanding of them. 

I do recall a 1973(?) highschool general assembly where someone who was supposedly knowledgeable of nuclear power mentioned something that disturbed me: how do you shut down and decommission a nuclear power plant? He put this doubt in our young teenage minds that it could be devastating and impossible. 

But since then, 38 NPP (nuclear power plants) have been shut down and not a peep about any issues or anything. 

In 1978 in college, I was taking the required thermodynamics class which was being taught by a mechanical engineer from the power industry. Near the end of the semester he told the class that if anyone wanted a tour of the new nuclear power plant that was maybe 80% complete he'd be happy to take us (I'm not sure which one). As far as I know, I was the only student who accepted his invitation.

As we walked through the plant he would point to things of interest. He contrasted the reactor structure and how heavy the structure was compared to outside the reactor area. Several times he complained of interference from the Energy Department as they kept changing the rules that required them to redo a lot of construction and the delays and escalating costs it caused. This was all during rising inflation which was pretty bad.

In 1979, I was in my next-to-last year in college for my BS degree in Chemical Engineering. I had just seen the movie China Syndrome. I was concerned by this movie and called one of my professors. Several of the professors had spent time in the nuclear industry at this point so I knew I would get a knowledgeable answer. This particular professor said "I personally wouldn't lose any sleep over it".

Shortly thereafter, the 3-mile Island incident occcured. Looking back no doubt it was poorly designed and poorly instrumented from the getgo. Todays chemical and nuclear/non -nuclear power plants go through a HAZOP (Hazardous Operations) analysis. These are EXTREMELY detailed pipe-by-pipe analyses to make sure all consequences are covered and mitigated, if it's required by the analysis.

In 1980, in my last semester in college, I was interviewing for a job in the chemical industry - on campus. A rep from a power company (I think) was there. He looked at me and said "the nuclear industry is dead. We won't be building anymore in the USA. My advice to you is to look elsewhere for employment." I was shocked. Why the hell was he even here??

One of the most fascinating interviews I had was at the Savannah River Plant nuclear facillity. They actually had several nuclear power plants there for various purposes. I got to enter the control room of one of the ones still running. Even though I wasn't totally familiar with computer instrument control systems, it was clear what they had been using had remained unchanged for probably 25 years. I commented on this and was told they were implementing a complete computer/instrument control system.

The control room had the lights dimmed so, it was pretty dark and completely silent. There was a large window that let you see the top of the reactor that was flush with the floor. All you could really see were some pipes going into the top and coming out of the reactor - and really not much of the reator was visible. We were just feet away from this.

And then I spoke. "Hey you guys, ever see the original King Kong movie? There's the scene of the captured King Kong chained up on a stage. Reporters running up and carelessly flashing cameras at him just feet away - agitating him to react violently. That's what this feels like." A week later I got - not one - but was offered two positions at that plant.

This is what it felt like to be so close to an operating nuclear reactor core. Click on the photo below.

CALIFORNIA WOMAN/MAN SUES....

 Yes, it's that time again to track news articles where Califonia women/men sue hospitals, grocery stores, you name it due to some direct or indirect injustice she/he feels was committed against her/him and perhaps others! some are funny.  Some...well, not so funny.

Animal magnetism? Or simply a scent? California woman sues over 'pheromone' body spray 

Yet Winslow says that the products cannot influence humans because "humans do not have a functional VNO, and thus humans are incapable of detecting the products' pheromones..."

I guess it didn't work for her. I wonder what other odor her male date smelled....

Costco shopper sues for $14 million after display cabinet allegedly falls, causing brain injury

A woman in California is suing Costco for more than $14 million after a heavy liquor cabinet display allegedly fell on her, causing severe injuries.

The shopper, Sadie Novotny, filed the lawsuit against Costco Wholesale Corporation following the March 22 incident at the company's Santa Rosa store in northern California.

According to court documents, Novotny was walking down an aisle when she alleges a large, heavy cabinet used to display liquor suddenly toppled onto her.

 In the article, it's pretty clear she was sober at the time (if the article is correct, Costco didn't fulfill their safety obligations). But I'm sure if it happened to me while drunk, I would claim it didn't just fall on me, but it LEAPED at me! And I'm sure no one would believe me.

California Woman Sues Carnival Cruise Line After Slipping on Wet Deck While Walking to Pool on Carnival Celebration

According to the complaint, Shapiro was a fare-paying passenger on the Carnival Celebration when she walked onto an exterior deck near the pool and encountered an unreasonably wet and slippery surface. 

She's asking for a "whopping" $75,000 which is probably the most reasonable amount of money I've ever seen online of a California woman demanding. 

'My whole brain, mama': Woman gets $1M settlement after K-9 cop dog ripped off her scalp

Bates and two others were suspected of shoplifting approximately $10,000 in merchandise from a local Ulta Beauty store in February 2020. When the group allegedly fled the scene in a getaway vehicle, they collided with a Brentwood Police car and then fled again on foot.

If they had just obeyed the cops when they were first confronted...:they'd be $1M poorer....

Man awarded $50 million after Starbucks hot tea causes permanent disfigurement

A California delivery driver was awarded $50 million in damages after a jury agreed a Starbucks location was negligent in its handling of a scalding hot tea.

Michael Garcia sued the cafe chain after a tea spilled in his lap at a drive-thru and caused permanent disfigurement to his penis. His attorney Nick Rowley said in a press release that Garcia’s “life has been forever changed” by the accident.

I wonder if he had before/after photos confirming his disfigurement.  

Man sues 50 women for $2.6 million after they called him a bad date in viral Facebook group

A California man is suing more than 50 women for $2.6 million after they shared negative stories about him on a “Are We Dating The Same Guy” Facebook page, claiming their reviews were false and defamatory.

The women say Stewart Lucas Murrey is using the legal action to intimidate them, and they’re asking the courts to slap him down.

On Monday, a judge in Los Angeles civil court ruled that one of the women — Vanessa Valdez — did nothing wrong by sharing her opinion of Murrey with the popular online group.

I think we call this a self-fulfilling prophecy. So, to all women regardless of the outcome of this lawsuit....raise your hand if you would EVER date this guy now.

California man sued police after he was beaten and tased while suffering a seizure

Jack Bruce was driving to his Hercules, California home last April when he experienced his first seizure. The seizure was so unexpected and intense, it caused Bruce to crash his car. A good Samaritan called in the crash, reporting that Bruce seized while driving.

“I just remember going to visit my grandmother, and when I left that house, my memory cut off,” Bruce told NBC Bay Area.

When police arrived, despite being warned that he’d suffered a seizure, three officers began to pressure Bruce to get out of the car. One officer’s body camera showed him from the backseat, pushing a taser against Bruce’s slumped back.

“You’re going to get tased, dude, get out of the car!” yelled the officer. Within seconds, he deployed the taser, sending Bruce to the ground. Another officer tased him and began pulling his hair, arms, and legs to get him to comply.

As is typical with many horrendous police encounters - even when caught on camera - the cases are dismissed or the officers successfully claim immunity.  And so it was in this case, too.  The police reaction is absolutely egregious!

Compton man sues In-N-Out for alleged discrimination over hairstyle

A California man is suing In-N-Out Burger for more than $3 million over alleged workplace discrimination and wrongful termination based on his race and hairstyle.

On June 11, Elijah Obeng filed a civil complaint in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles citing discrimination based on race (hairstyle or hair texture), race discrimination in violation of the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, harassment based on race, wrongful termination, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Obeng is seeking $1 million in damages, $2 million in non-economic damages for emotional distress and $200,000 in back pay, according to the lawsuit.

Just cut the damn hair!  Ultimately, in the lawsuit he pulls out the "cultural identity" card to try to exempt himself from the company standards.  

Skeptics Win, Endangerment Finding Axed – Truth Finally Prevails in The Climate Wars

All I can say...it's about time!!

The Carbon Dioxide Endangerment Finding, first enacted in 2009, rested on claims that rising levels of CO2 posed a dire threat to public health and welfare. These claims, trumpeted by alarmist voices in the media and bureaucracy, relied heavily on computer models that have since proven to be chronically inaccurate, consistently forecasting more warming than actually observed. In the years since, we’ve witnessed a remarkable gap between dire projections and reality: global temperatures have not followed the “runaway” path predicted, and extreme weather events—despite breathless coverage—remain well within the range of historical variability.

Yet while the U.S. was tying itself in regulatory knots, China and other major emitters continued to expand their coal-fired power generation, wiping out any hypothetical benefit of America’s self-imposed restrictions. According to multiple independent sources, China has increased its annual CO2 emissions by over 70% since 2005 and now burns more coal than the rest of the world combined. The idea that the U.S. could “lead by example” and coax the rest of the world into similar sacrifices has been thoroughly debunked by the facts on the ground.