Christie is enjoying being in the news...... these types need the hype, positive or negative, the worst thing for a public person's mindset is not being relevant.
Wow. Huge kudos to The Star-Ledger for getting those aerial photographs of Christie on the beach.
Assuming this hullabaloo is as cut-and-dry as it seems, New Jerseyans are right to be totally outraged. What a joke. So crazy it almost seems implausible - that Christie, as governor, wants to just take money from a non-governmental organization? Or am I oversimplifying? I'd love to hear an intelligent defense of Christie's stance. I can't find one anywhere on the web, but I only spent 3 minutes looking. :)
Ego + power can get really toxic. Obviously it's the norm, but it's still pathetic and annoying to watch.
Unrelated: I had to look up the word "anathema." Great usage!
I'd love to hear an intelligent defense of Christie's stance.
I'm not sure that's even possible. You'd get a lot of "think of the children"-type nonsense justifying the action because the money would go to a "good cause." Plus the healthcare industry is so heavily regulated that I'm sure there's some clause in their convoluted agreements with the state that make it legal. I love how this line is just thrown out there with no follow-up or explanation:
The bill passed by the State Senate would make several changes to state law on the operation of health service corporations. (Horizon is the only such entity operating in New Jersey.)
So Horizon is acting as a literal monopoly in some sense? What distinguishes them from other health insurance providers that operate in New Jersey? Everything about this bill, not the least of which Christie himself, is just disgusting and depressing.
"In the end, [Christie] accepted a drastically different bill twice watered down by Democrats — first in the Senate and then the Assembly — that prevents the state from taking any of Horizon’s funds, adds two directors to its 15-member board, caps its reserves at theoretical levels Horizon has not seen in years, and forces the company to post some executive compensation data online."
"It was a glass half full for Christie, who acknowledged he didn’t get quite what he wanted from Horizon — but enough to call it a victory. The budget deal allowed Christie to extract himself from a spiraling situation, coming hours after an international firestorm over pictures showing him and his family on a state-owned beach that was closed to the public during the shutdown."
(ego + power) x (decades of humiliating press) --> that's what really seems to create these modern monsters
Given how nasty the press can be, especially in the internet age, it makes sense that people like Christie & Trump dgaf about bad press. It's a mechanism to cope with all the trauma. Otherwise they'd be up all night with terrors and sweats. Or dead of crippling anxiety.
Christie is enjoying being in the news...... these types need the hype, positive or negative, the worst thing for a public person's mindset is not being relevant.
Wow. Huge kudos to The Star-Ledger for getting those aerial photographs of Christie on the beach.
Assuming this hullabaloo is as cut-and-dry as it seems, New Jerseyans are right to be totally outraged. What a joke. So crazy it almost seems implausible - that Christie, as governor, wants to just take money from a non-governmental organization? Or am I oversimplifying? I'd love to hear an intelligent defense of Christie's stance. I can't find one anywhere on the web, but I only spent 3 minutes looking. :)
Ego + power can get really toxic. Obviously it's the norm, but it's still pathetic and annoying to watch.
Unrelated: I had to look up the word "anathema." Great usage!
I'm not sure that's even possible. You'd get a lot of "think of the children"-type nonsense justifying the action because the money would go to a "good cause." Plus the healthcare industry is so heavily regulated that I'm sure there's some clause in their convoluted agreements with the state that make it legal. I love how this line is just thrown out there with no follow-up or explanation:
So Horizon is acting as a literal monopoly in some sense? What distinguishes them from other health insurance providers that operate in New Jersey? Everything about this bill, not the least of which Christie himself, is just disgusting and depressing.
UPDATE (from The Observer, yesterday):
"In the end, [Christie] accepted a drastically different bill twice watered down by Democrats — first in the Senate and then the Assembly — that prevents the state from taking any of Horizon’s funds, adds two directors to its 15-member board, caps its reserves at theoretical levels Horizon has not seen in years, and forces the company to post some executive compensation data online."
"It was a glass half full for Christie, who acknowledged he didn’t get quite what he wanted from Horizon — but enough to call it a victory. The budget deal allowed Christie to extract himself from a spiraling situation, coming hours after an international firestorm over pictures showing him and his family on a state-owned beach that was closed to the public during the shutdown."
Drone pics ftw!
(ego + power) x (decades of humiliating press) --> that's what really seems to create these modern monsters
Given how nasty the press can be, especially in the internet age, it makes sense that people like Christie & Trump dgaf about bad press. It's a mechanism to cope with all the trauma. Otherwise they'd be up all night with terrors and sweats. Or dead of crippling anxiety.