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What Dreams May Come

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Re: What Dreams May Come

#61

Post by chii »

eXpl0it3r wrote: post #43

Yet another example why I try not to make any debts, especially when it comes to such large numbers, because you never know what tomorrow holds. Either you have the money or you don't. It really saddens me that it's normal nowadays to live on debts. I rather live my life less luxurious but debts free. After all, I wish them all the best!

but if you're smart about what kind of debt you take on, and take measures to not burden your loved ones with your debt, it can be a wise thing to have some debt. Not debt for a vacation or luxury, but debt for investment or growth of money. If the only reason to not have debt is because you fear the risk of dying and burdening your family/loved ones, then you are not making the most of the opportunities available.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#62

Post by adventured »

stefantalpalaru wrote: post #30

So the house you purchased and the van you upgraded to are not yours, disposing of your body costs more than a car, visiting family means you have to stay in a hotel, the basic survival needs of your wife and four children are not guaranteed and you want to visit Disneyland and meet celebrities before you die? Capitalism is beautiful.

What Capitalism? America is the largest welfare state in history. Total government expenditures are nearly the size of China's GDP. What we have is corporatism, plunder by a combination of bureaucrats + government protected corporations (see: Verizon, AT&T, Comcast, Exxon, Pfizer, etc).

I wish we had Capitalism. All we have is an extraordinarily misdirected, poorly run welfare state.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#63

Post by eloisant »

jaggederest wrote: post #9
perlgeek wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It's sad that when we find out something this devastating (you're dying), that we have to spend our last weeks/months/years worrying about, of all things, money. I thought nearly the same. But my thought went more along the lines of "it's sad that this person's highest priorities are all about money". If it's not in the face of death that you set your priorities on your own accord, then when is it? That said, I can…

Debts are generally not something you can leave to your family. They're generally expunged, barring joint debts and things like that. So run it all onto credit cards, by all means.

I don't think any country works that way. Either you take the inheritance and that's the whole package with debts, or you get nothing.

Also, that's different for married couples. Of course that depends on countries and whether you have a prenup or not, but married couple usually share their assets and their depts. Which means that if one of the spouse take a debts, the other is responsible for it too.

Either way it's very likely his mortgage was a joint debt. In France you're forced to take a life insurance for a mortgage, so it's unlikely someone will get in his situation. Even when it's not mandatory everyone should take one, because even if dying young sucks, it can happen.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#64

Post by adventured »

chii wrote: post #59
boothead wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is the most fucked up thing I've read for a long time. For a "health" system to be designed to suck everything out of a person of someone who's already dying is vile.

that's what it means to have a "free market" capitalist system. The demand for health is essentially infinite - the person dying of thirst in a desert will pay their entire fortune for just one cup of water.

America hasn't had anything even remotely resembling a free market Capitalist health system in over 40 years. Starting in the mid 1960s, the US Government + states, with Medicare and Medicaid, began to take over a massive portion of the healthcare system, and directly began dictating regulation and costs, while conspiring with insurance companies, big pharma and lobbyists to restrict competition and raise costs. The US healthcare system became a giant political toy, played for votes and milked for crony cash by politicians, lobbyists and corporations in tandem.

Although I'm open to a demonstration as to how I'm wrong about that. Last time I checked, health insurance typically can't even cross state borders due to hyper regulation. I don't think you can get further away from Capitalism than the US health system.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#65

Post by mcv »

chii wrote: post #53
mcv wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Netherland, you can choose to refuse an inheritance. If you accept it, you get everything, including the debts; if you refuse it, you get nothing, not even small trinkets with sentimental value. Though in the case of a mortgage, losing the debt also means losing the house. I totally understand wanting your family to be able to keep the house. Losing your dad/husband and also having to leave the house with all the…

> you can choose to refuse an inheritance...accept [...] and get everything, including the debts...refuse [...] and get nothing, not even small trinkets why couldn't you (as the inheritee?) "throw away" all assets prior to dying, then let your benifactors refuse the debts (which is all that's left)? Who actually enforces that you can't dispose of your assets (in a way that benefits your son/daughter/spouse), then ref…

I believe there's a limit to how much you can give away to your heirs while still alive. Probably if you give more, you have to pay extra tax. And I can imagine that if you gave away a lot just before your death and ended up with a lot of debt, debt collectors may still be able to get the gifts back, but I'm not entirely sure about that; I'm no expert on this.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#66

Post by epsylon »

huhtenberg wrote: post #49

While this is up at the top - http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/melanoma

Unfortunately, your comment isn't at the top.

There are very simple guidelines that can help prevent melanoma, especially for people at risk: - Avoid exposing your skin to the sun, especially when it's high. Use high SPF (30+) sun screen (water resistant if you'll be swimming); wear longsleeves, hats and sunglasses. (Good sunglasses are important, as you can have ocular melanoma) - Obviously, don't use tanning booths. - Plan a visit with a dermatologist at least once per year. This is very important. Just like you'd get your tooth, eyes, etc... checked every year, take the habit to see a dermatologist. - If you're especially at risk, regulary check your skin for signs of changes. Nowadays it's easy to take pictures with a digital camera (or phone) so that you can see how the spots and moles evolve.

How do you know if you're in the population at risk? If you have moles, OR are fair-skinned / haired, OR have freckles (all of these are usuall signs of an overall general sensitivity to sun exposure), you are at risk. Obviously, if there are family antecedants of skin cancer, you are at risk. Also, if your work or hobbies expose your skin regularly and for prolonged periods of time to the Sun, you are at risk.

Personal story: I have a friend who has had a mole removed in the knee, and which proved to be ultimately (after testing) malignant. Fortunately this was caught early. And I've had personnally a mole removed in the back, though it was found to be benign. Skin cancer risk can be greatly reduced by these simple precautions, so please people, try to follow these.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#67

Post by ryandetzel »

As a father in my thirties this hits home but I can't help but wonder WHY DON'T YOU HAVE LIFE INSURANCE? This is what it's for! For the cost of a few dinners out a year you could have 500k of coverage and right now you'd be spending time with your loved ones instead of worrying about money.

Please, if you have dependents (people that need your income) buy life insurance. It's cheap (if you're young and healthy) and death can happen to anyone of us at anytime for any reason.

/ end rant.

I feel for you though, this is super sad and I can't imagine not seeing my kids grow up. I wish you the best.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#68

Post by BasDirks »

theknown99 wrote: post #34
Blahah wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Earth is not full, it is just badly managed. And overcrowding is only happening for poor people in parts of the world historically exploited by people who are now rich. Even if we accepted that Earth is full, surely we don't just let all the poorest people die? And extending that reasoning, why treat any diseases at all? The fact is that we could feed everyone and cure some of the biggest killers in the world today.…

IMHO we should focus on quality of life. Not quantity.

Yeah, dying from cancer sounds like a great life. You're just babbling.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#69

Post by blencdr »

noonespecial wrote: post #13
girvo wrote: post #3

I feel nothing but sympathy for Jonathan. I can barely imagine the pain he and his family would be going through :( What are the medical costs for someone with terminal cancer in the USA? I assume they're pretty astronomical, so I can understand why he'd ask for help (I'm donating myself). In terms of his house and the like, I was always led to believe that life insurance was specifically for cases like his? Is life…

What are the medical costs for someone with terminal cancer in the USA? From the limited sample size I've gathered with sadness thus far: For serious cancer, terminal or not, the system seems designed for the cost to be "everything you have" whatever that happens to be.

Among a few things, that's why I'm happy to live in France where with a medium wage (35,000$ / year) I'm sure that my wife will get the house ( the loan insurance will pay that) and the hospitalization would be nearly free...

Be in a welfare state is somewhat a good thing even if you pay more taxes.

Re: What Dreams May Come

#70

Post by chongli »

adventured wrote: post #62
stefantalpalaru wrote: post #30

So the house you purchased and the van you upgraded to are not yours, disposing of your body costs more than a car, visiting family means you have to stay in a hotel, the basic survival needs of your wife and four children are not guaranteed and you want to visit Disneyland and meet celebrities before you die? Capitalism is beautiful.

What Capitalism? America is the largest welfare state in history. Total government expenditures are nearly the size of China's GDP. What we have is corporatism, plunder by a combination of bureaucrats + government protected corporations (see: Verizon, AT&T, Comcast, Exxon, Pfizer, etc). I wish we had Capitalism. All we have is an extraordinarily misdirected, poorly run welfare state.

You can't separate the state out like that and pretend it's not a player. Capitalism is what gives rise to corporatism.

Oh, and welfare state is not a bad word. Some of the most prosperous and equitable countries in the world are welfare states[0].

[0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic_model

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