Not always. It's only pre-tax if your employer pays for it, or if you're self-employed. If you're paid on W-2 and not offered insurance, you can't take the deduction if you buy your own insurance.
Also, I wasn't arguing pre-tax and post-tax status. I was saying that let's compare apples to apples. If most tax rates in Europe include health insurance coverage with low to no deductible, then let's add insurance premiums and deductibles to US tax rates to make the comparison 1:1. It's not only about the tax, but what you get back for it.
As far as disparagement of the President and the state and its symbols, I disagree with the law, but it's seldom prosecuted if ever. Also, keep in mind that children in the US have been arrested (or kicked out of public school) for refusing to pledge allegiance to the flag, so de-facto, US freedom of speech is limited even if the law officially guarantees it.
I actually agree with hate speech/banned political parties considering Germany's history. Porn? It seems like the laws (in practice) are similar to the US for hardcore porn -- age verification and separate sections in stores. Soft porn/nudity isn't terrible restricted -- nipples aren't exactly rare on TV there.
Public assembly seems to be subject to notification requirements, but permits aren't actually required. Contrast this to the US where every shitty little protest march tends to need a permit, or the cops go to full pig mode and start arresting people for obstructing sidewalks or similar "crimes."
Out of the OECD-22 the US has: -- the highest change of dying by age 60 -- the third highest functional illiteracy rate -- the highest % of population in functional poverty (below 50% of median income)
Long-term unemployment is lowest, but if you're forced to work in a McJob, that's not actually great.
More American misconceptions:
(1) Free speech -- oh my God! You can't spew Nazi or racist propaganda in public! The horror!
(2) Weapons -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
Gun ownership rates aren't exactly zero in Europe.
(3) Paycheck -- think of US health insurance premiums as a tax, then add them to the "official" tax rate in the US.
The US pisses away a lot of money upholding petty, terrorist-sponsoring dictatorships and apartheid states in the Middle East -- this has nothing to do with the security of Europe. If the US wanted to, they could slash defense spending by 50% and still be safe.
Riddle me this... the places in the US that pride themselves on "light regulations" also tend to have the highest incarceration rates. Whereas incarceration rates in Europe tend to be 1/3 to 1/4 of the US average with similar or lower violent crime rates. If the US puts so many people in prison (proportional to population), is it really so lightly regulated?
The difference is that Europe is somewhat more economically regulated than the US, but those regulations generally affect larger corporations, not the average citizen. The US is home of Draconian social regulations that put people in prison, ruin their lives with arrest records, etc and so forth.
The Yellow Vests are rather socialist in their outlook -- part of their beef with banker Macron's neocon government is the withdrawal of services from rural areas. At least they have the balls to shut down the country in protest rather than taking what the neocons dish out with barely a whimper.
You're clearly lucky to live in a state that gives a fuck about public higher education -- many states are more concerned about football than academics.
Yeah, the US can blow up any country in the world while leaving its own citizens in the lurch (or in prison, or addicted to opiates, or dying of cancer from breathing the fumes from military burn pits). YAY AMERICA!
The French have fast trains. The US does not. The French have access to health insurance regardless of means -- if you lose your job and get sick, you won't end up deep in medical debt. French universities are covered by the government, no need to save $200,000 in school funds starting when your kid is born.
What does the US have? Endless war, mass incarceration -- the money is used to do violence instead of helping fellow Americans.
Would the police be willing to do anything about it? Most cops aren't the most tech-savvy people -- they'd probably take a report and round-file the thing, not knowing how to proceed. Or "kids will be kids, just ignore it."
Not everyone wants a gig economy McJob -- why should a secure job and reasonable working conditions be incompatible? They're not in most of the developed world, you know.
If he's in the US, maybe there's something wrong with 50-hour-per-week, no-vacation, all-work-no-play American "culture." And I use the last word loosely and with great sarcasm.
Treat workers like crap, and you'll get treated like crap in return. A lot of US employers:
(1) Don't want to give time off, even if it's written into the contract. No vacation time and discouraged sick leave are a fucking disgrace.
(2) Lobby against things like public insurance, because they want workers tied to their jobs for life,
(3) Treat employees like children -- drug-test and thus penalize recreational activity outside the office.
(4) Fire employees before their vested to keep them from vesting.
Is it any wonder that a few rolls of tape or whatever go missing? I'm surprised more employees don't steal more things, frankly.
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Not always. It's only pre-tax if your employer pays for it, or if you're self-employed. If you're paid on W-2 and not offered insurance, you can't take the deduction if you buy your own insurance.
Also, I wasn't arguing pre-tax and post-tax status. I was saying that let's compare apples to apples. If most tax rates in Europe include health insurance coverage with low to no deductible, then let's add insurance premiums and deductibles to US tax rates to make the comparison 1:1. It's not only about the tax, but what you get back for it.
As far as disparagement of the President and the state and its symbols, I disagree with the law, but it's seldom prosecuted if ever. Also, keep in mind that children in the US have been arrested (or kicked out of public school) for refusing to pledge allegiance to the flag, so de-facto, US freedom of speech is limited even if the law officially guarantees it. I actually agree with hate speech/banned political parties considering Germany's history. Porn? It seems like the laws (in practice) are similar to the US for hardcore porn -- age verification and separate sections in stores. Soft porn/nudity isn't terrible restricted -- nipples aren't exactly rare on TV there. Public assembly seems to be subject to notification requirements, but permits aren't actually required. Contrast this to the US where every shitty little protest march tends to need a permit, or the cops go to full pig mode and start arresting people for obstructing sidewalks or similar "crimes."
Out of the OECD-22 the US has:
-- the highest change of dying by age 60
-- the third highest functional illiteracy rate
-- the highest % of population in functional poverty (below 50% of median income)
Long-term unemployment is lowest, but if you're forced to work in a McJob, that's not actually great.
More American misconceptions: (1) Free speech -- oh my God! You can't spew Nazi or racist propaganda in public! The horror! (2) Weapons -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... Gun ownership rates aren't exactly zero in Europe. (3) Paycheck -- think of US health insurance premiums as a tax, then add them to the "official" tax rate in the US.
Only because the current US system is pathetically underfunded.
The US pisses away a lot of money upholding petty, terrorist-sponsoring dictatorships and apartheid states in the Middle East -- this has nothing to do with the security of Europe. If the US wanted to, they could slash defense spending by 50% and still be safe.
Riddle me this... the places in the US that pride themselves on "light regulations" also tend to have the highest incarceration rates. Whereas incarceration rates in Europe tend to be 1/3 to 1/4 of the US average with similar or lower violent crime rates. If the US puts so many people in prison (proportional to population), is it really so lightly regulated?
The difference is that Europe is somewhat more economically regulated than the US, but those regulations generally affect larger corporations, not the average citizen. The US is home of Draconian social regulations that put people in prison, ruin their lives with arrest records, etc and so forth.
France is a nuclear weapons state of its own right -- I doubt it will have a problem defending itself against external attack.
The Yellow Vests are rather socialist in their outlook -- part of their beef with banker Macron's neocon government is the withdrawal of services from rural areas. At least they have the balls to shut down the country in protest rather than taking what the neocons dish out with barely a whimper.
OMG! Brown people! Scary! Duck and cover!
You're clearly lucky to live in a state that gives a fuck about public higher education -- many states are more concerned about football than academics.
That all you got, boy? "My country can beat up yours, and if you don't like it, move out?"
Yeah, the US can blow up any country in the world while leaving its own citizens in the lurch (or in prison, or addicted to opiates, or dying of cancer from breathing the fumes from military burn pits). YAY AMERICA!
The French have fast trains. The US does not.
The French have access to health insurance regardless of means -- if you lose your job and get sick, you won't end up deep in medical debt.
French universities are covered by the government, no need to save $200,000 in school funds starting when your kid is born.
What does the US have? Endless war, mass incarceration -- the money is used to do violence instead of helping fellow Americans.
Would the police be willing to do anything about it? Most cops aren't the most tech-savvy people -- they'd probably take a report and round-file the thing, not knowing how to proceed. Or "kids will be kids, just ignore it."
Not everyone wants a gig economy McJob -- why should a secure job and reasonable working conditions be incompatible? They're not in most of the developed world, you know.
So you're a moralizing cunt?
If he's in the US, maybe there's something wrong with 50-hour-per-week, no-vacation, all-work-no-play American "culture." And I use the last word loosely and with great sarcasm.
Treat workers like crap, and you'll get treated like crap in return. A lot of US employers: (1) Don't want to give time off, even if it's written into the contract. No vacation time and discouraged sick leave are a fucking disgrace. (2) Lobby against things like public insurance, because they want workers tied to their jobs for life, (3) Treat employees like children -- drug-test and thus penalize recreational activity outside the office. (4) Fire employees before their vested to keep them from vesting. Is it any wonder that a few rolls of tape or whatever go missing? I'm surprised more employees don't steal more things, frankly.
Why would you check a laptop where some TSA smurf or ramp rat could easily steal it?
You can still go pretty fast and stop for 1-2 minutes every 30 miles/80km or so. Bit more difficult to do with a plane.
Do you have any recommendations for T-mobile/MetroPCS bands?
Not for most aircraft -- they typically use devices like spoilers to increase drag to bleed off speed when descending from altitude.
Except that you're only spending 15 minutes at cruising altitude (if you even get there) on a 300km flight.
Are they common as compared to non-removable battery devices? Statistics, please, not anecdotes.