I walked past an ad trying to find blood donors today. As a frustrated blood donor, it annoyed me. I used to be a vaguely regular blood donor. From the time that I turned 18 (and became eligible) to around 28, I would have given blood maybe once or twiceContinue Reading
After my previous post, and a few comments there, here’s some more detail on why I don’t think proper risk rated health insurance works particularly effectively for most people. (by the way, the US market, from what I understand, doesn’t have individual health insurance rating to any large extent; youContinue Reading
I went to Sculpture by the Sea on the weekend, and was pondering, as I walked past the Bondi Pavilion that some space that was once “public” (concrete in front of the Bondi Pavilion) was now “private” at least by some definitions – it’s a cafe. My local area hasContinue Reading
I’ve been pondering a mammoth post on health care for a while. I’m not sure if I’ve got it in me tonight. Or ever. So here’s a few thoughts. Mainly from my angle as an actuary who manages insurance companies for a living. Most places that try to privatize healthContinue Reading
I was watching TV tonight (commercial station – Channel 10 if you’re interested). They cut to a news break. The top stories were: Interest rates rise (0.5% increase in the Australian cash rate) The latest NSW parliamentary scandal (minister arrested for alleged teen sex) Britney Spears files for divorce Some storyContinue Reading
There’s a Heckler in the SMH today about how boring the Melbourne Cup is. Even though I have zero interest in the race, I find it quite a fun work interruption. One Tuesday in November, we all down tools, wander into the tearoom to watch TV for about 15 minutes,Continue Reading
It’s Jacaranda time in Sydney again, and I really need to take my camera out and record what is one of the most beautiful things about living in Sydney. Morgspace has done it for me: I found this post from Morgspace showing a beautiful carpet of Jacarandas (pictured above) – which isContinue Reading
A few weeks ago, APRA released a new draft set of Prudential Standards for Life Insurance. They’re generally following the standards that were released for general insurers late last year. Basically, they require a life insurance company to have a risk management framework in place, which the guidance notes giveContinue Reading
Mr Penguin and I were discussing global warming last night. Specifically, what should we do right now if we believed that all the worst case stuff was really true? Let’s posit a scenario. In 20 years time, the climate of Australia has changed irrecovably, so that our current drought isContinue Reading
Today’s book review is The Long Tail: why the future of business is selling less of more, by Chris Anderson. Originally a Wired magazine article, then workshopped as a blog, it got the biggest response of any Wired magazine, so Anderson decided to develop it as a book. I had beenContinue Reading