Daniel

pbnj, I believe you misunderstood my reference to people not being denied coverage PRE-government involvement 30 years ago. RP, was describing how things WERE, not how they are now. Plenty of people are being denied health care and getting screwed today. I don't want things to stay the same, but I don't want socialized medicine, either. I think the issue here is that we all assume that the massive costs in health care we're seeing today (see CRM's post, GK's post, pbnj's post) are a result of there NOT being a government entity around to set prices of health procedures, provide access to health services, distribute the expense of an individual over everyone, etc. That's a fallacy. You're telling me that the same government which continues to trash the US dollar by printing money from thin air can now somehow afford to provide every American with health care? How much will that cost? Where will that money come from? Shall we levvy more taxes on the "rich"? Or better yet, we'll just print it like all the Keynesians keep telling us to do! This is the same government which has SINGLE HANDEDLY caused the current economic crisis by its poor fiscal and monetary policies...is that whom we're to entrust with managing the costs of health care for 300 million Americans? This is the same government which has acted un-Constitutionally in its foreign relations (pre-emptive wars, entangling agreements/treaties, American troops in 135 countries), is that a government now fit to make decisions on behalf of everyone regarding their health and their money? Do you all really believe that government is magically able to provide solutions to everything? I'm afraid it's not. There's no money, there's no brains, and there's no Constitutionality. GK-- my comments on socialized medicine in other countries are based primarily on the experiences of two of my family members, one who lives in Germany, the other in Canada. I quoted RP since I'm not as eloquent. It would be truly splendid if we could all receive health care coverage-- we have two options: 1) we can accept the high costs and allow the government to step in and pay for it by placing the load of the financial burden on those rich devils and ALSO by printing the money we don't have AND hope that they do a solid job handling another trillion bucks, OR 2) we can force costs to go down by allowing the markets to finally act unrestrained (Zara-- truly free markets can provide lower costs across the board) AND reduce our tax burden so that we can pay the suddenly more affordable expenses of medical care. Biopsies would NOT cost $20k were it not for the current government health care monopolies. Knee surgeries would NOT cost $12k if it were not for the same meddling. Does anyone recall what any of these services cost 30 years ago? True, not all the same technologies were available... but you know what? Technology makes things CHEAPER, not more expensive. Yet everything is absurdly expensive today. Again, why are things more expensive? Its because of the government's fiscal games, its health care monopolies (see previous post), and its incompetence in almost everything it does (oh, except for fooling us... its plenty good at that!). But more important than anything else, are the Constitutional ramifications of this bill and other government actions as of late. Quite simply, the difference between this country and all those in Europe and elsewhere SHOULD be our Constitution. Our Constitution was a short, humble document and specified exactly what our government should look like: SMALL, nimble, and FEARFUL of the people. None of that is true today. Since the Federal Reserve came around ~90 years ago, our government has been growing and growing... and getting more and more irresponsible, unaccountable, and overbearingly incompetent. And guess what's happening to average people... we are getting more and more screwed. Those of you who are working lose how much of your salary each day to government taxes? Each month? Over your lifetime? We've been paying an arm and a leg for a long time now and what do we have to show for it? A clumsy war-mongering government? A bulky and truly incompetent federal reserve? And yet, this is the government you all seem to embrace and are willing to entrust with the health of every American? Zara-- here's one of two issues with your argument: the Constitution does not describe "humanitarianism", not even if you make a stretch. Nonetheless, it does give all powers not explicitly mentioned TO THE PEOPLE. Humanitarianism, requires HUMANS. It requires PEOPLE. It requires organizations like CRM mentioned. Private organizations-- churches, charities, etc are created by motivated people (again, see CRM's post) NOT by the government. Organizations that actually get things done are NEVER entities of the government. It's the private markets, the private ambitions of individuals and groups, which provide the humanitarianism we see glimmers of today. As for the second issue, the government which I have already described above is the same that you claim can offer us the "most efficient" means of allocating health care. Really? Our dollar diminishes daily-- if they can't protect our currency, how can they serve the far more complicated matter of health care? Look, judging by the posts above, we've all either personally experienced or know someone who has experienced the faults of this current system. The costs are high, the waste is high, the pain is high... we all want something new. Again, I am not in favor of our current system, nor am I in favor of the current socialized direction which many of you support-- a government-induced problem simply cannot be resolved by a government-manufactured solution when government is the problem. I suspect many of you have formed your arguments from only being aware of what the situation has been for the last 30 years-- I encourage you all to look more than 30 years back. How much did a doctor's visit cost you? How was care? Was it poor? Did you suffer in excess? True, life expectancy may have been lower during that time period, but that was due to lesser technology. The gains we do see in our life expectancy and other things today are despite those setbacks caused by government. More government in our lives makes us all poorer, both in the wallet and in our bones, that much is certain.

My fight here isn't with whether the current system has flaws-- it has a whole lot of them. But I know that the idea of socialized medicine is going to make things worse. We’ve had corporate medicine now for about 30 years (which in reality has just been "managed medicine" by the government), and it has been a total disaster. Its only credit has been to push the costs up. Medicine should be delivered in the marketplace like other goods and services. I don't see why we can't do this. No one ever seems to talk about why the costs of medicine are so high. Part of it is due to the government-induced inflation, either by its involvement in various areas of the economy or by its bogus fiat money. Wherever the government is involved in an industry or service, you see prices go up. One big issue I see is how we all view the purpose of insurance. Insurance should ONLY serve to protect you in the event of heart attacks, cancer, and other expensive, unexpected events in our lives. Unfortunately, our concept of insurance today is that it is just a prepaid service. Insurers are supposed to measure risk. They're supposed to cover you for those major events, but now when you talk about health insurance that means "pay for everything." Market factors are needed, some self-control by the patient is needed, and an incentive not to waste services is needed. Years ago, before there was medicare, medicaid, or the socialized medicine they are now discussing, people were NOT on the streets begging for medical care, like you often see happening now. People had medical insurance to cover them in the event of anything serious or expensive and they paid for the other services out of pocket. Those who did not have medical insurance STILL RECEIVED COVERAGE. According to Ron Paul, "In the days before Medicare and Medicaid, the poor and elderly were admitted to hospitals at the same rate they are now, and received good care. Before those programs came into existence, every physician understood that he or she had a responsibility towards the less fortunate and free medical care was the norm. Hardly anyone is aware of this today, since it doesn’t fit into the typical, by the script story of government rescuing us from a predatory private sector." With the managed care we've had for the last 30 years, and now with socialized medicine coming, trust me, quality will go down, costs will go up, there will be shortages, there will be lines and nobody will be happy. What do you see in countries around the world with socialized medicine? You don't honestly believe its all roses over there, do you? Socialized medicine in European countries has resulted in longer waiting periods, severe lack of choice, deterioration of health care quality, prohibition of alternative health treatments, higher taxes, and for some, permanent illness or death because they could not get the care that they needed. Are doctors partially to blame? Sure. The current medical monopoly corrupts many doctors by rewarding practices that are not in the patients’ best interest. Pharmaceutical companies have a vested interest in not curing people, but getting them permanently addicted to expensive drugs that have many side effects, thereby requiring additional drugs to suppress those side effects. Many doctors are afraid to speak up and question the system for fear of being ostracized by their peers or even losing their license. Furthermore, costs costs also go up because doctors fear litigation. They order unnecessary tests, perform extra services, and waste our resources just to avoid getting sued. Also, a nationalized system isn't “free”-- someone has to pay for it. To quote Ron Paul, "...and why should anyone be forced to pay for someone else’s medical care? Very few decent people would personally assault their neighbors at gunpoint and steal thousands of dollars to pay for their own medical needs. How could any freedom loving person agree to delegate such criminal acts to the government by supporting a nationalized health care system?" The only solution we need is one that will make health care more affordable. A system that allows true free-market competition puts pressure on the health providers to lower costs to remain in business. A change in the tax code to allow a person to fully deduct the cost of health care from their taxes would also be appropriate. The tax benefit would also give the added means to afford the smaller expenses which should not be covered by insurance (eg: a doctor's visit). These two steps, plus the elimination of government-supported health care monopolies, would make access to health care more affordable. The government’s original role, as set forth by the Constitution, is to protect our freedoms and restrain itself from causing too much harm. I don't want to see us as a nation of slaves-- pleading to the government for our every need. The rugged individualism which made this country great is being choked out.

This is tough. Always a shame to see or hear of innocent people being killed. My thoughts and prayers to the friends and families of the victims.

Honestly, this health care bill, among other actions taken by our government over the current (and previous) presidency have been giving me the willies. Our rights have been violated, our money has been bashed/destroyed, I feel like it's time I sought out Galt's Gulch. Anyone else feel this way... Feeling like your voice has been trampled on? I thought the US was a republic... so much for that! The minority's opinion has so little value with irresponsible politicians (both democrats and republicans) destroying us, our labor, our lives, and the Constitution our country was founded upon. Yes, I was born in this country and have had a great childhood, but I know that the time may come when I have to emigrate and seek out a place where the government is not stampeding into everyone's business and dictating us with so many un-Constitutional threats. I lost my girlfriend to brain cancer four months ago this past Tuesday. I am happy that she does not have to witness the debauchery of our Constitution any longer. The true patriots of this country are being silenced by the begging hands of the masses. Edit: I don't want anyone to misunderstand what I am saying. I appreciate the work of many people in this country. I am defending them here. I am also defending the voices of those who work hard, earn all that they have, and pursue only that which is within their means. My attack, if there is an attack above, is directed towards those who seek to gain by pillaging the success of others-- those who live only to drain the productive energies of those who work. Those who understand that our Constitution must be defended, not defaced and ruined as it is being done by our ever-growing government, should understand where I am coming from...

Any dry good purchases above $30 ship for just $5.79 TOTAL (excludes frozen food, live fish and coral, live rock, live plants, & items delivered direct from manufacturer)-- this promotion includes salt and other bulk items. Take a look at their website: That Pet Place Not sure if I'll be ordering from them, but I just wanted to mention this for those of you who might be interested. Daniel

Looking for either of these corals: Pipe Organ Spaghetti Leather

PM sent.

Pressure after pre-filters and booster pump are ~70psi, temp, I'm not sure...but I'm basing my flow numbers on one of the warm days a few weeks ago. I'm going to disassemble and reassemble everything. This is ridiculous.

In other words, it's not very useful (or practical) for the average hobbyist.

Wow, no kidding? I have the exact same setup as you (I upgraded my original BRS kit) + booster pump, and I am not getting anything close to that. I am getting about 5 gallons every 75 minutes, or roughly 4 gallons an hour. What am I doing wrong? I have two new 75 gpd RO membranes (both are under two months) and new pre-filters.

Gosh, with all the acans and scollys he has, he must have spent a fortune on that tank.

I acans.

Would a relay be unnecessary if you just splice the float in a series circuit?

I don't think a canopy will be a problem. If the canopy is tall enough and the lights aren't unreasonably close to the water, one 120mm fan as an intake and one to exhaust on opposite ends should be sufficient. I would put those fans on a simple timer to turn on/off with the T5s. I use the Cooler Master 120mm fans on my canopy because they're quiet and are rated for a decent amount of airflow. You might also want to consider enclosing a portion of the backside of the canopy as this will better accommodate airflow across the water. A chiller may not be necessary, but an auto-topoff would be a good idea.

Generally, as it was found out later, the pressure in a very tall skimmer diminishes the effectiveness of typical venturi-driven pumps. Assuming a strong enough pump, you can make the skimmer as tall as you want. What's important is 1) giving the bubble sufficient "contact time" with the water and 2) diminishing turbulence.

I like it. Is the taller island designed to cover most of the overflow?

I have a single mandarin in my 90g and he's quite fat, for a mandarin. I have had it for ~10 months, so I know it's eating. I have probably 80+lbs of LR, with a relatively open rockscape. However, the rock I have is very porous. I would wait for the copepods to establish themselves before attempting a mandarin. Also, the more you feed your other fish, the less likely they are to develop a taste for the copepods. I can see copepods on the glass all the time, so I know their population is stable.

How much were you planning to scale back the flow? I have about 400gph (roughly 4-5x) through my sump with good results. I have a tee on my return line which redirects at least half of the water from my return pump back into the first chamber of my sump. I would recommend this strategy for lowering the flow rate of your return versus throttling back your pump.

Personally, I would let the pumps run, but I'd add a filter sock on your overflow pipe so that all that junk doesn't settle in the sump. If you leave the circulation pumps off, won't you disturb the sand when they do turn on? I think it'd be better to let the silt settle on its own and just collect and remove what ends up going through the overflow.

Email sent.

I have a Deltec PF509 Ca Rx. It's definitely one of the more expensive items on my equipment list. I like it a lot and it works well. My only gripe is that it isn't a dual chamber Ca Rx. The dual chamber design allows the CO2 you pump into the media to have even more time to be used up. The dual chamber design limits the effect of the unused CO2 on the pH of your aquarium.

I have a small 50w shatter-proof, water-proof heater that probably won't do much, but I doubt it'll need to do much in my 90g.

I'm glad you're not seriously hurt, but I think you should definitely consider installing a GFCI. They're simple to install (just make sure you kill the power before you install !) They don't cost more than about $10-20, but they'll keep you from getting shocked! Also, as a bonus, a GFCI also provides protection for any outlets "downstream." -- My stupidest aquarium moment was when I had my first SW aquarium... 12 years ago. I had a non submersible water heater that fell into the tank. It killed my fish... after it overheated my tank ~100 degrees. Daniel

The color is somewhat accurate, except under actinics the mouth "pops" orange. Just to clarify my previous description, the color underlying the polyps is a pink/purple, the polyps are an orange/yellow. The outside of the mouth is orange and the inside of the mouth is yellow. There are some scattered green hues. It's definitely *not* a $100 ric, so please PM suitable trades.