As you may recall in a past post, I went to the CVS MinuteClinic to have earwax removed. I was hearing better, but somehow my mind was like, "just for your own safety, don't sleep on the right ear." I've been waking in the middle of the night, so my sleep cycle has been way off.
My 6 week appointment was due at the PCP and I arrived for my appointment early. He was running good this time, and in between talking about my weight (lost 5 pounds!) I mentioned my ear.
Unlike the NP, who used a WaterPik, my PCP used a giant syringe, which he loaded a warm solution and placed it into my ear canal and flushed it. It was actually a little more painful than the WaterPik, but it actually does a better job. There was only temporary hearing loss, but he discovered a huge plug that the NP couldn't get out.
The PCP had a huge curette that looked like tweezers. He told me to hold still, and then, a rush of air went to my ears. The giant plug was finally out. Now my hearing is 100% better.
I will still use the MinuteClinic when the PCP isn't around.
7/08/2009
Cult of Personality - worship at your own risk
The only Michael Jackson I really liked was the MJ between 1979 (when "Off the Wall" came out) and 1983 ("Thriller"). That MJ was cool and had his music tighter than a drum and it sounded good. I couldn't moonwalk like him, but it was good music.
As he got through his 30s and 40s, MJ got more and more eccentric. Whispers of his Peter Pan complex and his prediliction for having young boys in his bed began to leak out. At first, people began to dismiss it as "Michael being Michael," or "aw, that's cute." When young boys came forward and started alluding that MJ was sleeping with these young boys, and much more than REM sleep. Then the whispers became screams, and suddenly the Jheri-curled dancer who made Thriller the best selling album of all time - 47 to 109 times platinum - transformed into an ugly, creepy pervert of a man.
During that time when MJ could do no wrong, and much like a blind parent who denies their child is committing these sins, their legions of hardcore fans still believe MJ is innocent. I myself think that some of the kids who came forward took advantage of MJ's Peter Pan complex, and MJ's fame could never, ever be tarnished, so payoffs were necessary to keep the press away - the same press who would singlehandedly destroy MJ if they were allowed to. The tabloids and the paparazzi do it with a malignant pleasure and accuracy that would make a dedicated sniper take notes.
There is a very dark side to this kind of idolatry, and that is to zealously and fervently protect the idol by any means necessary. The heckler's veto works wonders - mention that MJ was a pedophile and you're immediately branded a racist. The Manson family were experts at keeping up with Charles Manson's warped wishes - Squeaky Fromme could make a master class on how to carry on the Manson Family tradition by attempting to assassinate President Gerald Ford. North Korea has the market cornered on idol worship, as does Cuba, Libya, Zimbabwe, Iran, and many other dictatorships. (Unfortunately, Saddam Hussein is no longer available for comment.)
The press did wall-to-wall coverage of MJ's funeral, and I found it a disgusting display of excess. Even though MJ was the biggest record seller of all time, there are bigger - much bigger - fish to fry than to have a Hollywood-style funeral. If the press pursued other problems in our country and the world as fervently or more so than they did MJ's funeral, can you imagine the real, tangible change that could happen? If Lindsay Lohan breaks a nail, or Britney Spears forgets her underwear again, or we get the sad backstory of an American Idol contestant, or a rapper gets shot, or some kind of kitschy propaganda that we're supposed to practice but the celebrities do not it's immediate news. It's infotainment. The economy, wars, and other things gets shoved aside - which is really too bad.
That's it in a nutshell: the press raises lowlifes, douchebags, murderers, guerillas, floozies, corrupt, and the just plain evil to superhero status. It's a disgusting and disturbing trend done for one thing and one thing only: ratings. Snatch away the above low-hanging fruit and ban access to society's idiots, and the press is left to twist in the wind until another trendy story comes along.
Ironically, the people who deserve to be idolized don't want it. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, Richard Phllips, the Armed Forces, whistleblowers, nurses, EMT's, cops, firefighters, and many others sacrifice fame and glory because they don't want to be seen as spotlight hoggers. They just do their jobs, and they get their due applause when it's warranted, then go home. And they're modest - they don't cock their eyes and faces into some kind of Botox-laden pout and shift their bodies into model poses so the cameraman doesn't see the stains in their shirts or the runs in their nylons.
In our non-celebrity lives, we have our own, far more benign version of idolatry, which if we don't temper with reality we become obsessesive, infatuated, and then zealous, sometimes ending in "if I can't have you, no one else will." Love crushes are those harmless times of worship where we take our unrequited love and elevate them to a god-like status. More often than not, the object of your infatuation knows your designs and is flattered, but often it ends with a little bit of disappointment. When the crush gets blown into bigger-than-life status - just like Michael Jackson - it can be devastating to learn that the crush is not a nice person at all, and is likely using your infatuation as a springboard to someone else, or just for their own shallow entertainment. It shows more insecurity and manipulation than anything else.
Whoever you make your hero, beware the cult of personality. There are no perfect idols in the world; just a lot of false ones. Barry Gibb wasn't kidding when he talked about his baby brother Andy's "first fame," which brought him riches and Victoria Principal to his front door. What destroyed Andy Gibb? Drugs and a heart attack from myocarditis - all because he wanted everyone to love him.
As he got through his 30s and 40s, MJ got more and more eccentric. Whispers of his Peter Pan complex and his prediliction for having young boys in his bed began to leak out. At first, people began to dismiss it as "Michael being Michael," or "aw, that's cute." When young boys came forward and started alluding that MJ was sleeping with these young boys, and much more than REM sleep. Then the whispers became screams, and suddenly the Jheri-curled dancer who made Thriller the best selling album of all time - 47 to 109 times platinum - transformed into an ugly, creepy pervert of a man.
During that time when MJ could do no wrong, and much like a blind parent who denies their child is committing these sins, their legions of hardcore fans still believe MJ is innocent. I myself think that some of the kids who came forward took advantage of MJ's Peter Pan complex, and MJ's fame could never, ever be tarnished, so payoffs were necessary to keep the press away - the same press who would singlehandedly destroy MJ if they were allowed to. The tabloids and the paparazzi do it with a malignant pleasure and accuracy that would make a dedicated sniper take notes.
There is a very dark side to this kind of idolatry, and that is to zealously and fervently protect the idol by any means necessary. The heckler's veto works wonders - mention that MJ was a pedophile and you're immediately branded a racist. The Manson family were experts at keeping up with Charles Manson's warped wishes - Squeaky Fromme could make a master class on how to carry on the Manson Family tradition by attempting to assassinate President Gerald Ford. North Korea has the market cornered on idol worship, as does Cuba, Libya, Zimbabwe, Iran, and many other dictatorships. (Unfortunately, Saddam Hussein is no longer available for comment.)
The press did wall-to-wall coverage of MJ's funeral, and I found it a disgusting display of excess. Even though MJ was the biggest record seller of all time, there are bigger - much bigger - fish to fry than to have a Hollywood-style funeral. If the press pursued other problems in our country and the world as fervently or more so than they did MJ's funeral, can you imagine the real, tangible change that could happen? If Lindsay Lohan breaks a nail, or Britney Spears forgets her underwear again, or we get the sad backstory of an American Idol contestant, or a rapper gets shot, or some kind of kitschy propaganda that we're supposed to practice but the celebrities do not it's immediate news. It's infotainment. The economy, wars, and other things gets shoved aside - which is really too bad.
That's it in a nutshell: the press raises lowlifes, douchebags, murderers, guerillas, floozies, corrupt, and the just plain evil to superhero status. It's a disgusting and disturbing trend done for one thing and one thing only: ratings. Snatch away the above low-hanging fruit and ban access to society's idiots, and the press is left to twist in the wind until another trendy story comes along.
Ironically, the people who deserve to be idolized don't want it. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, Richard Phllips, the Armed Forces, whistleblowers, nurses, EMT's, cops, firefighters, and many others sacrifice fame and glory because they don't want to be seen as spotlight hoggers. They just do their jobs, and they get their due applause when it's warranted, then go home. And they're modest - they don't cock their eyes and faces into some kind of Botox-laden pout and shift their bodies into model poses so the cameraman doesn't see the stains in their shirts or the runs in their nylons.
In our non-celebrity lives, we have our own, far more benign version of idolatry, which if we don't temper with reality we become obsessesive, infatuated, and then zealous, sometimes ending in "if I can't have you, no one else will." Love crushes are those harmless times of worship where we take our unrequited love and elevate them to a god-like status. More often than not, the object of your infatuation knows your designs and is flattered, but often it ends with a little bit of disappointment. When the crush gets blown into bigger-than-life status - just like Michael Jackson - it can be devastating to learn that the crush is not a nice person at all, and is likely using your infatuation as a springboard to someone else, or just for their own shallow entertainment. It shows more insecurity and manipulation than anything else.
Whoever you make your hero, beware the cult of personality. There are no perfect idols in the world; just a lot of false ones. Barry Gibb wasn't kidding when he talked about his baby brother Andy's "first fame," which brought him riches and Victoria Principal to his front door. What destroyed Andy Gibb? Drugs and a heart attack from myocarditis - all because he wanted everyone to love him.
7/04/2009
Good food vs. social Puritanism
I've never been to the South Street Diner - at any hour - but as far as I know, it's open 24 hours a day.
It may be no longer - either in hours or existence - if the city of Boston decides to close it down after 2am.
Why? Well, the bars close at 2am, and those sober enough to walk down and get a greasy repast to absorb their booze are "too noisy," according to some wealthy residents who live two doors down from the diner.
I will side with those residents on that case because I've seen my share of obnoxious drunks in my time - ones who can't assemble a single coherent sentence thanks to liquor tongue and engage in numerous Dutch courage fights to assert their temporary bravado, and wonder why they're in handcuffs at the end of the night.
Where I will not side with these yuppies is the sheer amount of arrogance and entitlement they think they possess - that it will take only two people to rid themselves of what they think is a "nuisance." Maybe they shouldn't have bought their ultra-expensive apartments if they knew they'd be next to a diner that does an excellent business. Since downtown apartments are very hard to come by, the cachet of having one puts you in an enviable position. It doesn't give you the right or power to control the activities of everything and everyone else around you (see: The North End Italian festivals, the South End, Central Square, etc.).
If the diner were much more upscale (or trendy, as in "slow food" or "organic") and it were open 24 hours a day, there would be no problem. In fact, the people would be in the restaurant feasting on exclusive foods and expensive beverages that the ordinary person at South St Diner could never afford, regardless of the degree of obnoxiousness and intoxication. The place would be celebrated by upscale foodies across the area, yet a minimum wage worker couldn't even afford the appetizer or even the side dish.
So it goes with all food - the cheaper the food item, the more disdain it generates from those who think they know better. Control food, and you control the masses - or even better, "If I can't have it, neither will you." Only a selfish, myopic, sociopathic asshole possesses those beliefs - and I can bet that they were denied those treats when they were younger. The movement to tax sodas, foods and the like is not to reduce obesity or improve health, but an effort by the insecure to hustle those who are not like Abercrombie & Fitch models out of society - Stepford people writ large. (You notice there isn't as big a movement for anorexia and binge-purging? God forbid we should tell young girls who constantly starve themselves to less than 70 pounds that it's equally dangerous?)
I'm hoping the South St Diner situation works out in the diner's favor. Otherwise, the blame for putting people out of business won't lie with economics - it will lie with people who are more scared for their property values than for making a living.
UPDATE 7/8 - The diner stays open 24/7 - because the complainants never bother to show up.
It may be no longer - either in hours or existence - if the city of Boston decides to close it down after 2am.
Why? Well, the bars close at 2am, and those sober enough to walk down and get a greasy repast to absorb their booze are "too noisy," according to some wealthy residents who live two doors down from the diner.
I will side with those residents on that case because I've seen my share of obnoxious drunks in my time - ones who can't assemble a single coherent sentence thanks to liquor tongue and engage in numerous Dutch courage fights to assert their temporary bravado, and wonder why they're in handcuffs at the end of the night.
Where I will not side with these yuppies is the sheer amount of arrogance and entitlement they think they possess - that it will take only two people to rid themselves of what they think is a "nuisance." Maybe they shouldn't have bought their ultra-expensive apartments if they knew they'd be next to a diner that does an excellent business. Since downtown apartments are very hard to come by, the cachet of having one puts you in an enviable position. It doesn't give you the right or power to control the activities of everything and everyone else around you (see: The North End Italian festivals, the South End, Central Square, etc.).
If the diner were much more upscale (or trendy, as in "slow food" or "organic") and it were open 24 hours a day, there would be no problem. In fact, the people would be in the restaurant feasting on exclusive foods and expensive beverages that the ordinary person at South St Diner could never afford, regardless of the degree of obnoxiousness and intoxication. The place would be celebrated by upscale foodies across the area, yet a minimum wage worker couldn't even afford the appetizer or even the side dish.
So it goes with all food - the cheaper the food item, the more disdain it generates from those who think they know better. Control food, and you control the masses - or even better, "If I can't have it, neither will you." Only a selfish, myopic, sociopathic asshole possesses those beliefs - and I can bet that they were denied those treats when they were younger. The movement to tax sodas, foods and the like is not to reduce obesity or improve health, but an effort by the insecure to hustle those who are not like Abercrombie & Fitch models out of society - Stepford people writ large. (You notice there isn't as big a movement for anorexia and binge-purging? God forbid we should tell young girls who constantly starve themselves to less than 70 pounds that it's equally dangerous?)
I'm hoping the South St Diner situation works out in the diner's favor. Otherwise, the blame for putting people out of business won't lie with economics - it will lie with people who are more scared for their property values than for making a living.
UPDATE 7/8 - The diner stays open 24/7 - because the complainants never bother to show up.
6/20/2009
In praise of CVS MinuteClinic, or your wax out in a jiffy
This might seem like the grossest thing in the world, but it's also the least harmful healthwise.
Over the past two decades, my love for music has given me occasions of earwax impaction, thanks to headphones and the like. The first time I had it in 1992, my right ear was plugged solid, and when ExpressCare in Hyde Park was still open, I got my ears cleaned out and all I could see was this brownish-yellow plug of hard wax. A thing of beauty - if you're into cerumenical exorcism.
Over the past week, my right ear has been full of wax. I would wake up at 4:30 in the morning, one ear plugged. Today, rather than shelling out $100 to go to the ER, I went to the MinuteClinic over at Porter Square in Cambridge. I actually went there yesterday to check out the joint (not before seeing a bum nearly get run over on Somerville Avenue and enter the CVS on a mission only he understood) but as the Minute Clinic closed at 7, I decided to return today.
I got there around 3:30. I signed in my information at the kiosk, and as there was no one waiting to be served, the very nice Nurse Practitioner took me not 5 seconds later. (If only this could happen at my PCP, who takes me one hour later than scheduled!)
After filling in my health details (and took my pulse and BP) she performed the procedure. She had a device like a WaterPik for the ears and sounded like a Crest SpinBrush. Both ears were plugged pretty good, but the right one was giving me the most trouble.
The left ear went first. After a few seconds of blasting through the thick goo that was my earwax, my left ear was clean. I was, to paraphrase the mighty Kate Jackson, "in the land of CFH (cerumen free hearing)."
The right ear, on the other hand, was more difficult. First, it was irrigated with the WaterPik, then some of the wax was extracted with a curette. Once the curette hit the sensitive part of my ear (to the point where I said "Ouch!") she stopped and gave it another hit with the WaterPik. Then she stopped and said, "there is still a little bit wax is right near the membrane - I don't want to go any further because I might rupture, but you can continue using the ear drops or salie solution to soften it some more. It will likely come out on its own, but come back here if it doesn't." (She laughed when I said, "How come I know a lot more about my ears versus my blood pressure and weight?")
I still feel a little bit of fullness in that ear (about 80% CFH), but with the Similisan Ear Wax relief (which made my earwax removal much more pleasant), I believe she will be correct. Once I lay my ear on the pillow, maybe the fluid/wax will roll right out and I'll get that great rush of air to my ears - that 100% CFH.
The CVS MinuteClinic is a godsend and a convenience that can't be beat. Even if you don't have health insurance (I paid my copayment), the prices for certain situations are far more reasonable than you would have to pay at an ER, although not all situations can be covered at the MinuteClinic. (Have a snakebite? Have a gash? Have H1N1? Not recommended.) It is also much faster to be seen at a MinuteClinic for a minor health situation versus the inconvenience of scheduling an appointment with your PCP to be told, "It'll clear up in a couple of days." And PCP's can't be seen on weekends, after hours, or other inconvenient times unless you're in a life-threatening situation.
It could be why MinuteClinics haven't shown up in Boston - the mayor doesn't want "retail infirmaries" treating people with minor illnesses. This is because MinuteClinics would compete directly with "world class" hospitals and doctors for patients at a much lower cost and would diminish the role of the PCP as the gatekeeper of all health issues. It doesn't make sense for people with minor injuries have to wait for care from their PCP, especially on the weekends, or have to shell out a much higher copay at the ER. The "continuum of care" will still be there; it just took the urgency of the situation and the ambition of the patient to take action.
That is why I made the choice to have my earwax situation taken care of now, rather than waiting two weeks for my PCP to do the same thing and have my ears plug up worse. This is why I had to go to Cambridge to do it, and I'd do it again above Mayor Menino's (and my PCP's) objections. In some cases, the People's Republic of Cambridge does the right thing for its people, even if they're not full time residents.
Over the past two decades, my love for music has given me occasions of earwax impaction, thanks to headphones and the like. The first time I had it in 1992, my right ear was plugged solid, and when ExpressCare in Hyde Park was still open, I got my ears cleaned out and all I could see was this brownish-yellow plug of hard wax. A thing of beauty - if you're into cerumenical exorcism.
Over the past week, my right ear has been full of wax. I would wake up at 4:30 in the morning, one ear plugged. Today, rather than shelling out $100 to go to the ER, I went to the MinuteClinic over at Porter Square in Cambridge. I actually went there yesterday to check out the joint (not before seeing a bum nearly get run over on Somerville Avenue and enter the CVS on a mission only he understood) but as the Minute Clinic closed at 7, I decided to return today.
I got there around 3:30. I signed in my information at the kiosk, and as there was no one waiting to be served, the very nice Nurse Practitioner took me not 5 seconds later. (If only this could happen at my PCP, who takes me one hour later than scheduled!)
After filling in my health details (and took my pulse and BP) she performed the procedure. She had a device like a WaterPik for the ears and sounded like a Crest SpinBrush. Both ears were plugged pretty good, but the right one was giving me the most trouble.
The left ear went first. After a few seconds of blasting through the thick goo that was my earwax, my left ear was clean. I was, to paraphrase the mighty Kate Jackson, "in the land of CFH (cerumen free hearing)."
The right ear, on the other hand, was more difficult. First, it was irrigated with the WaterPik, then some of the wax was extracted with a curette. Once the curette hit the sensitive part of my ear (to the point where I said "Ouch!") she stopped and gave it another hit with the WaterPik. Then she stopped and said, "there is still a little bit wax is right near the membrane - I don't want to go any further because I might rupture, but you can continue using the ear drops or salie solution to soften it some more. It will likely come out on its own, but come back here if it doesn't." (She laughed when I said, "How come I know a lot more about my ears versus my blood pressure and weight?")
I still feel a little bit of fullness in that ear (about 80% CFH), but with the Similisan Ear Wax relief (which made my earwax removal much more pleasant), I believe she will be correct. Once I lay my ear on the pillow, maybe the fluid/wax will roll right out and I'll get that great rush of air to my ears - that 100% CFH.
The CVS MinuteClinic is a godsend and a convenience that can't be beat. Even if you don't have health insurance (I paid my copayment), the prices for certain situations are far more reasonable than you would have to pay at an ER, although not all situations can be covered at the MinuteClinic. (Have a snakebite? Have a gash? Have H1N1? Not recommended.) It is also much faster to be seen at a MinuteClinic for a minor health situation versus the inconvenience of scheduling an appointment with your PCP to be told, "It'll clear up in a couple of days." And PCP's can't be seen on weekends, after hours, or other inconvenient times unless you're in a life-threatening situation.
It could be why MinuteClinics haven't shown up in Boston - the mayor doesn't want "retail infirmaries" treating people with minor illnesses. This is because MinuteClinics would compete directly with "world class" hospitals and doctors for patients at a much lower cost and would diminish the role of the PCP as the gatekeeper of all health issues. It doesn't make sense for people with minor injuries have to wait for care from their PCP, especially on the weekends, or have to shell out a much higher copay at the ER. The "continuum of care" will still be there; it just took the urgency of the situation and the ambition of the patient to take action.
That is why I made the choice to have my earwax situation taken care of now, rather than waiting two weeks for my PCP to do the same thing and have my ears plug up worse. This is why I had to go to Cambridge to do it, and I'd do it again above Mayor Menino's (and my PCP's) objections. In some cases, the People's Republic of Cambridge does the right thing for its people, even if they're not full time residents.
4/24/2009
The tax of least resistance, Part II
Now the House is batting about a 7% state sales tax, according to the Globe.
In my last entry, I stated that the sales tax is a tax of least resistance. Here is a more in depth reason why it is, and why I prefer it over all other taxes.
You can avoid paying gas taxes by taking public transportation. Having ridden the T for over 25 years, I can tell you that taking the T can be pretty convenient. If you work in Downtown Boston, the trip from Hyde Park to South Station is about 14 minutes. The travel time via car is 35 minutes. If I-95 had been built through Hyde Park, the trip to Downtown Boston would take about 7 minutes total - a 50% reduction in time.
I commute to Watertown, which from Hyde Park is a 15 mile journey. I now have to factor in a commuter rail ride, a Red Line ride, and a trackless trolley ride. The best time I have commuted from Hyde Park to Watertown is 42 minutes. With MBTA delays, crowded buses, traffic and the like, my commute ranges from 1 hour to 1-1/2 hours, all for that 15 miles.
By car, the distance is about 10 miles, and the travel time is about 25-30 minutes. On a 20 mile per gallon gas tank and gas at $2.00 per gallon, my one-way cost is $1.00. If the gas tax is hiked 20 cents, my cost goes up to $1.10. If I paid everything with cash - no CharlieCard discount - my cost would be $7.75 one way, based on a $4.25 commuter rail fare, $2.00 subway fare, and a $1.50 bus ride. So to avoid a 19-25 cent per gallon gas tax, instead of paying $2-2.20 a day, I would now be forking over at least $10 a day just to make that 15 mile journey, up to $15.50.
The per-day costs do go down considerably if you do buy a monthly pass. For example, a $59 LinkPass would cost you $2.95 for each of the 20 days you use it, or $2 a day if you use it all 30 days - a savings of $3 a day. A $135 Zone 1 pass would cost $6.75 a day per 20 days or $4.50 for 30 days. For the most expensive pass - Zone 8 at $250 - 20 days would be $12.50 a day and 30 days would be $8.33 a day.
The basic point is this: for all that effort to "get cars off the road" due to a hike in the gas tax, people will now pay much more to ride the T to avoid the gas tax if they pay cash and don't have a monthly pass. That means people who can't afford a monthly pass - read: the poor - will end up paying more to ride the T - sending them to their cars for a cheaper, quicker ride. For all that effort to get cars off the road due to a higher gas tax, more people will avoid taking the T because it is prohibitively expensive because they can't afford the passes, and end up driving anyway. Pretty much a zero sum game.
The sales tax, however, cannot be avoided. Everyone - rich, poor, middle class - cannot wriggle out of paying a sales tax at the cash register, and only under certain circumstances, such as food and clothing. A person paying $200 for an iPod pays $10 in sales tax now. If the 7% sales tax goes through, they will now pay $14 in tax - an extra $4 or 40%. If you buy a laptop for $1,000, you would pay $50 now, but $70 if the tax passes. You can still head to New Hampshire and buy your goodies tax-free, but if you're planning to eat at the food court, New Hampshire has an 8% "prepared meals" tax, which carries a 60% premium over our current meals tax of 5%.
A higher sales tax also takes money from people who pay very little in income taxes - either those who don't earn enough and get tax credits, or those who participate in dubious activities and have their monies set up to avoid a huge tax bite - like offshore bank accounts, money paid "under the table" and the like. If you can buy a $60,000 Corvette on your gains - illicit or not - you can fork over $4,200 in sales tax to the state. If you can buy a $3 million home in a gated community, there's no reason to shell out $21,000 to the Commonwealth.
There are a lot of people who think they are entitled to everything without paying a single penny, or that the state can vacuum all the money out of our pockets through nuisance taxes. If the state is absolutely serious about getting money into our coffers to remain solvent and to avoid cuts in service, it has to take that risk of angering the public. The public must participate one way or another - either by begrudgingly paying more in sales tax, or flipping the switch for the opponent of those who voted for the sales tax, gas tax, or any type of tax.
The passive-aggressive approach hasn't and won't work.
In my last entry, I stated that the sales tax is a tax of least resistance. Here is a more in depth reason why it is, and why I prefer it over all other taxes.
You can avoid paying gas taxes by taking public transportation. Having ridden the T for over 25 years, I can tell you that taking the T can be pretty convenient. If you work in Downtown Boston, the trip from Hyde Park to South Station is about 14 minutes. The travel time via car is 35 minutes. If I-95 had been built through Hyde Park, the trip to Downtown Boston would take about 7 minutes total - a 50% reduction in time.
I commute to Watertown, which from Hyde Park is a 15 mile journey. I now have to factor in a commuter rail ride, a Red Line ride, and a trackless trolley ride. The best time I have commuted from Hyde Park to Watertown is 42 minutes. With MBTA delays, crowded buses, traffic and the like, my commute ranges from 1 hour to 1-1/2 hours, all for that 15 miles.
By car, the distance is about 10 miles, and the travel time is about 25-30 minutes. On a 20 mile per gallon gas tank and gas at $2.00 per gallon, my one-way cost is $1.00. If the gas tax is hiked 20 cents, my cost goes up to $1.10. If I paid everything with cash - no CharlieCard discount - my cost would be $7.75 one way, based on a $4.25 commuter rail fare, $2.00 subway fare, and a $1.50 bus ride. So to avoid a 19-25 cent per gallon gas tax, instead of paying $2-2.20 a day, I would now be forking over at least $10 a day just to make that 15 mile journey, up to $15.50.
The per-day costs do go down considerably if you do buy a monthly pass. For example, a $59 LinkPass would cost you $2.95 for each of the 20 days you use it, or $2 a day if you use it all 30 days - a savings of $3 a day. A $135 Zone 1 pass would cost $6.75 a day per 20 days or $4.50 for 30 days. For the most expensive pass - Zone 8 at $250 - 20 days would be $12.50 a day and 30 days would be $8.33 a day.
The basic point is this: for all that effort to "get cars off the road" due to a hike in the gas tax, people will now pay much more to ride the T to avoid the gas tax if they pay cash and don't have a monthly pass. That means people who can't afford a monthly pass - read: the poor - will end up paying more to ride the T - sending them to their cars for a cheaper, quicker ride. For all that effort to get cars off the road due to a higher gas tax, more people will avoid taking the T because it is prohibitively expensive because they can't afford the passes, and end up driving anyway. Pretty much a zero sum game.
The sales tax, however, cannot be avoided. Everyone - rich, poor, middle class - cannot wriggle out of paying a sales tax at the cash register, and only under certain circumstances, such as food and clothing. A person paying $200 for an iPod pays $10 in sales tax now. If the 7% sales tax goes through, they will now pay $14 in tax - an extra $4 or 40%. If you buy a laptop for $1,000, you would pay $50 now, but $70 if the tax passes. You can still head to New Hampshire and buy your goodies tax-free, but if you're planning to eat at the food court, New Hampshire has an 8% "prepared meals" tax, which carries a 60% premium over our current meals tax of 5%.
A higher sales tax also takes money from people who pay very little in income taxes - either those who don't earn enough and get tax credits, or those who participate in dubious activities and have their monies set up to avoid a huge tax bite - like offshore bank accounts, money paid "under the table" and the like. If you can buy a $60,000 Corvette on your gains - illicit or not - you can fork over $4,200 in sales tax to the state. If you can buy a $3 million home in a gated community, there's no reason to shell out $21,000 to the Commonwealth.
There are a lot of people who think they are entitled to everything without paying a single penny, or that the state can vacuum all the money out of our pockets through nuisance taxes. If the state is absolutely serious about getting money into our coffers to remain solvent and to avoid cuts in service, it has to take that risk of angering the public. The public must participate one way or another - either by begrudgingly paying more in sales tax, or flipping the switch for the opponent of those who voted for the sales tax, gas tax, or any type of tax.
The passive-aggressive approach hasn't and won't work.
4/18/2009
The tax of least resistance
The Boston Herald proffers the 1 cent hike in the sales tax, which is gaining a much closer by look by the Legislature than all the seizure and social engineering taxes that are being bandied about, will kill the economy, "hit the poor where they can least afford it" (when people say that, it reminds me of those noisemakers little kids wing around their heads, and it sounds just as obnoxious), and send our Commonwealth into a death spiral.
This is one instance where I strongly disagree with the Herald from its editorial point of view.
Of all the taxes we pay, a sales tax is the tax of least resistance. You don't need to fill out forms and send them in by April 15. It shows up on your receipt when you pay for things. With the exception of New Hampshire, our sales tax at 5% is lower than Rhode Island's 7%, Connecticut and Vermont's 6%, and is at par with Maine's at 5%.
I believe, though, that a 6% tax the Commonwealth is proposing is not enough. If you really want to bring in the big money - even at hue and cry of critics - the sales tax and the income tax should be combined into a state sales tax of 12.5% - our current 5% sales tax, plus current income tax of 5.3%, plus an extra 2.2%. We will succeed California in having the have the highest sales tax in the nation, but we will also join the ranks of states with no income tax - like New Hampshire. The state income tax would then be eliminated - so in effect, it'll be a victory - if late and backdoor - for Question 1 if the 12.5% sales tax ever came to effect.
Critics, like the Boston Herald and community groups, will complain that the state sales tax hike will hurt the poor the most, as it's a regressive tax, and that this sales tax hike will kill business, introduce layoffs, and accelerate middle class flight. It will also prove a goldmine to New Hampshire, who has no state sales tax or income tax.
With the new sales tax of 12.5% and the subsequent elimination of the income tax, the monies taken out on every paycheck in MA income tax weekly or biweekly will actually give people extra money to spend or invest. People can take that money and put it into their 401(k)'s if they like, but the tradeoff is that when they buy something, they will pay those taxes at the cash register, daily and automatically. Massachusetts will become more attractive to business and production and attract more workers as there is no income tax to consider. There will still be exemptions for food and clothing - including snacks and beverages.
The amount of money brought in If a 6% sales tax brings in an extra $750 million a year, a 12.5% sales tax will bring in $5.625 billion - a healthy amount of money. The 12.5% tax can help retire the MBTA's long-standing debt and breathe new life into the system, bringing it out of its urban decay and into the 21st century.
Everyone praises New Hampshire for having no sales and income tax, but they are not completely tax-free. New Hampshire has an 8% prepared foods and meals tax. Consider that when you save $10 on a $200 iPod, buying a $10 meal at the food court will cost you 80 cents in tax in New Hampshire versus 50 cents here - a 60% difference! Property taxes in New Hampshire are also high, second only to New Jersey as the highest in the nation. So while people would high-tail it to get their sales tax free goods, eating and living there is just as cost-prohibitive.
Massachusetts has proven itself to be an innovator in many things, so why not put this consumption tax to the test? Like same-sex marriage and mandatory health care, Massachusetts has become a place where "what ifs" that were never thought about came true, even though they are imperfect. Again, the 12.5% sales tax will be high and there will be a lot of complaints from many people. This new, all-inclusive sales tax can be an experiment for other states to see if a consumption tax really works, and if it does, set aside their income taxes. If it doesn't bring in the money it's intended to bring in, then the income tax can return at its old rate.
I admit I hate paying taxes, especially high ones. Personally, I can deal with a 6% sales tax. It is a hike of 100 basis points (a basis point is 1 hundredth of one percent), or (as the Herald correctly puts it) 20% more than the 5% sales tax we pay now, doing so at the cash register will be much easier than shoving down severe cuts in MBTA service and the 19 cent gas tax down people's throats.
A side note: Since the Lottery is a voluntary tax, what should also happen is that the Commonwealth should drop Lottery payouts from 69-85% - the most generous return to players in the nation - to a uniform 50-55% payout on all tickets. (This can easily be done by reducing the money pool to pay high-tier winning tickets without changing the money pool of low tier tickets. A better explanation of what I'm taking about is that is here.) Lottery players will cry, "they took out all the big winners!" but it will save the state a lot of money that can be used for other programs. Also, cutting down the grand prizes will also help - it's nice to pay $10 for the privilege of winning $2.5-$5 million, but many other states have prizes for $100,000-$250,000 for the same privilege - and it's paid out all at once.
This is one instance where I strongly disagree with the Herald from its editorial point of view.
Of all the taxes we pay, a sales tax is the tax of least resistance. You don't need to fill out forms and send them in by April 15. It shows up on your receipt when you pay for things. With the exception of New Hampshire, our sales tax at 5% is lower than Rhode Island's 7%, Connecticut and Vermont's 6%, and is at par with Maine's at 5%.
I believe, though, that a 6% tax the Commonwealth is proposing is not enough. If you really want to bring in the big money - even at hue and cry of critics - the sales tax and the income tax should be combined into a state sales tax of 12.5% - our current 5% sales tax, plus current income tax of 5.3%, plus an extra 2.2%. We will succeed California in having the have the highest sales tax in the nation, but we will also join the ranks of states with no income tax - like New Hampshire. The state income tax would then be eliminated - so in effect, it'll be a victory - if late and backdoor - for Question 1 if the 12.5% sales tax ever came to effect.
Critics, like the Boston Herald and community groups, will complain that the state sales tax hike will hurt the poor the most, as it's a regressive tax, and that this sales tax hike will kill business, introduce layoffs, and accelerate middle class flight. It will also prove a goldmine to New Hampshire, who has no state sales tax or income tax.
With the new sales tax of 12.5% and the subsequent elimination of the income tax, the monies taken out on every paycheck in MA income tax weekly or biweekly will actually give people extra money to spend or invest. People can take that money and put it into their 401(k)'s if they like, but the tradeoff is that when they buy something, they will pay those taxes at the cash register, daily and automatically. Massachusetts will become more attractive to business and production and attract more workers as there is no income tax to consider. There will still be exemptions for food and clothing - including snacks and beverages.
The amount of money brought in If a 6% sales tax brings in an extra $750 million a year, a 12.5% sales tax will bring in $5.625 billion - a healthy amount of money. The 12.5% tax can help retire the MBTA's long-standing debt and breathe new life into the system, bringing it out of its urban decay and into the 21st century.
Everyone praises New Hampshire for having no sales and income tax, but they are not completely tax-free. New Hampshire has an 8% prepared foods and meals tax. Consider that when you save $10 on a $200 iPod, buying a $10 meal at the food court will cost you 80 cents in tax in New Hampshire versus 50 cents here - a 60% difference! Property taxes in New Hampshire are also high, second only to New Jersey as the highest in the nation. So while people would high-tail it to get their sales tax free goods, eating and living there is just as cost-prohibitive.
Massachusetts has proven itself to be an innovator in many things, so why not put this consumption tax to the test? Like same-sex marriage and mandatory health care, Massachusetts has become a place where "what ifs" that were never thought about came true, even though they are imperfect. Again, the 12.5% sales tax will be high and there will be a lot of complaints from many people. This new, all-inclusive sales tax can be an experiment for other states to see if a consumption tax really works, and if it does, set aside their income taxes. If it doesn't bring in the money it's intended to bring in, then the income tax can return at its old rate.
I admit I hate paying taxes, especially high ones. Personally, I can deal with a 6% sales tax. It is a hike of 100 basis points (a basis point is 1 hundredth of one percent), or (as the Herald correctly puts it) 20% more than the 5% sales tax we pay now, doing so at the cash register will be much easier than shoving down severe cuts in MBTA service and the 19 cent gas tax down people's throats.
A side note: Since the Lottery is a voluntary tax, what should also happen is that the Commonwealth should drop Lottery payouts from 69-85% - the most generous return to players in the nation - to a uniform 50-55% payout on all tickets. (This can easily be done by reducing the money pool to pay high-tier winning tickets without changing the money pool of low tier tickets. A better explanation of what I'm taking about is that is here.) Lottery players will cry, "they took out all the big winners!" but it will save the state a lot of money that can be used for other programs. Also, cutting down the grand prizes will also help - it's nice to pay $10 for the privilege of winning $2.5-$5 million, but many other states have prizes for $100,000-$250,000 for the same privilege - and it's paid out all at once.
4/15/2009
For Kate Jackson (no waaahmbulance required)
Kate Jackson, late of the Pointy Universe, is going through a little bit of trouble in her next phase of cancer treatment.
Namely, the blues have come to the Pointy Universe. Those days where you finally chuck your clogs and yell out a nice, hearty, cleansing FUCK to the air and the people around you, and then collapse to the ground in sobs.
You sometimes don't know what to say to a cancer patient, even if they're a cancer survivor. My father didn't survive, yet he managed to live every single moment until his final days. He never said, "give up your time to take care of me. I'm terminal, so feel sorry for me." He joked and looked at his coming passing as a gift, a relief, a normal process in life. Even though it had to come at 63 years of age, he went through it like a trouper.
The great thing to experience is talking to a long-term cancer survivor - or one who had stage I or II cancers (even stage III) and haven't had a problem for years. I know of one woman who is on my team at work who went through that hell of chemo and radiation and finally returned to work, albeit on a reduced 32 hours per week schedule. Another woman on another team came in with blonde hair one day and brunette hair the next. Still another wore a bandanna. And they come in with the energy of teenagers.
It's also OK to feel guilty, anxious, scared - biting your lip and having someone say, "I like your lip color" and then showing up at the ER for stitches. It's a normal process to shut the door and have "chemo blues" (replete with shaking sobs and tears running down your face) versus "chemo brain" (where you wear two different colors of knee highs AND shoes and somehow Glamour magazine puts the black bar of shame over your face, forever branding you a fashion Don't.)
When it's over and your hair has grown back to flowing hair, you'll look back and say, "Man, those blues were so yesterday" and redeem yourself as a fashion "do" with a killer dress and killer heels.
(Aside: Be kind to your hubby and your kids. They're rooting for you.)
Namely, the blues have come to the Pointy Universe. Those days where you finally chuck your clogs and yell out a nice, hearty, cleansing FUCK to the air and the people around you, and then collapse to the ground in sobs.
You sometimes don't know what to say to a cancer patient, even if they're a cancer survivor. My father didn't survive, yet he managed to live every single moment until his final days. He never said, "give up your time to take care of me. I'm terminal, so feel sorry for me." He joked and looked at his coming passing as a gift, a relief, a normal process in life. Even though it had to come at 63 years of age, he went through it like a trouper.
The great thing to experience is talking to a long-term cancer survivor - or one who had stage I or II cancers (even stage III) and haven't had a problem for years. I know of one woman who is on my team at work who went through that hell of chemo and radiation and finally returned to work, albeit on a reduced 32 hours per week schedule. Another woman on another team came in with blonde hair one day and brunette hair the next. Still another wore a bandanna. And they come in with the energy of teenagers.
It's also OK to feel guilty, anxious, scared - biting your lip and having someone say, "I like your lip color" and then showing up at the ER for stitches. It's a normal process to shut the door and have "chemo blues" (replete with shaking sobs and tears running down your face) versus "chemo brain" (where you wear two different colors of knee highs AND shoes and somehow Glamour magazine puts the black bar of shame over your face, forever branding you a fashion Don't.)
When it's over and your hair has grown back to flowing hair, you'll look back and say, "Man, those blues were so yesterday" and redeem yourself as a fashion "do" with a killer dress and killer heels.
(Aside: Be kind to your hubby and your kids. They're rooting for you.)
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