Clarence

well yall i,ll be going back and fourth between san diego and vegas.
I,ll be playing with a olde but goodie group BIG LUIE AND THE CHECKMATES
at the sands hotel.
bright lights city gonna set my soul..gonna set my soul on fire!
Viva.viva...... las vegas............................................. .......
thank ya..thank ya very much!

Siegtrmpt

[/quote]According to the latest study, Camden, NJ is the most dangerous city in the US. Following that of course are the other cespools of Detroit, St. Louis and Flint, MI. NYC is actually the 4th safest among cities of over 500,000.

[/quote]Which part of NYC are you talking about and what time? Those eggheads doing the "study" sure didn't visit the tougher sections after hours.

Tootsall

Not quite correct, "Free" health care in Canada is a misunderstanding. Canadians pay for health care through payroll deductions that go directly to the Federal Government. Last time I checked I was paying a couple of thousand dollars a year (I can get the exact amount later this evening when I get home and open my Income Tax software). My wife was also paying for that. Then there are the "company health insurance plans". Those require another couple of thousand a year in direct, payroll directions. Same for Pensions... we pay directly to the Federal government for "Canada Pension", we pay again to the Company Pension plan, and we pay yet again (if we don't trust the other two to support us) for private "RRSP" plans... Registered Retirement Savings Plans.. probably equivalent to your 401K.

I think you'll find that we probably pay MORE than you do in the US with your private medical plans: the difference is that the National plans (medical and pension) provide a "base" support level for those who might not otherwise be able (or willing!... a rant for another time) to contribute in sufficient volume of resource for their own plans.

Edit: OK, I'm home now. The above numbers are approximately correct. Part of the payment for company pension and the basic health plan is paid by the company as a "taxable benefit". In other words, if they weren't paying it for me (at a suitably reduced basic salary), then I'd have to be paying it for myself. Roughly 5% of my base salary goes into health insurance... the number would be similar for my wife. Approximately 10% goes into my personal, combined pension plans. That does NOT include any "intergovernmental tax transfers" which take money from income tax, fuel tax, provincial tax, business tax, etc. that might be used to "prop up" the Government-regulated pension and health care (basic) plans. Nope... it ain't "free" by any stretch of the imagination.

Always remember Robert Heinlein's quote: TANSTAAFL.

There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.