Bubbles the Vampire
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bubblesvampire.bsky.social
Bubbles the Vampire
@bubblesvampire.bsky.social
Recovering university history prof now corporate sell out, miniatures/war gamer, duplicate bridge player, traveler, music lover, cheese fanatic, OG Pooligan.
Pinned
Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.

Martin Luther King Jr.
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
And those Max OOP numbers don't include premiums, which, for us is another $6k per year. Our deductible is $6500...each. $1000 is like a cheap tip.
December 10, 2025 at 3:06 PM
The max out of pocket on a bronze plan in 2026 is $10,600 for an individual. An $8,000 deductible is common. $1,000 in a HSA is the R solution to affordability.

Wow...

Republicans unveil health care plan to counter Democratic effort to extend ACA subsidies - ABC News share.google/VVEtrTKf8oCp...
Republicans unveil health care plan to counter Democratic effort to extend ACA subsidies
With the deadline to address expiring ACA tax credits fast approaching, GOP's John Thune announced that two competing health care plans will get a vote later this week.
share.google
December 10, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
Caleb Ragland, president of the American Soybean Association, on Trump's farm bailout: "This is a band-aid on an open wound ... what we truly need are market-based solutions"
December 9, 2025 at 8:50 PM
They have nothing on healthcare. They've never had anything on healthcare. They will never have anything on healthcare.

Fundamentally, Republicans do not believe government has a role in solving problems around healthcare. They are increasingly out of touch with most Americans.
FOX: What do you say to Americans who say to Republicans, where's your healthcare plan? If they're not getting their subsidy, what's option B?

McCORMICK: In the short term, we're still wrestling with how to deal with this
December 9, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Some context: in a bronze plan the policyholder pays 40% of the bill with a max out of pocket at $10,600/individ or $21,200/family. An $8,000 deductible is typical. In other words, the first $8,000 of medical care is yours and then you pay 40% of the bill until you've shelled out $10,600.
Cassidy, Crapo unveil alternative to Obamacare subsidies
Cassidy, Crapo unveil alternative to Obamacare subsidies
Their bill, released Monday, is intended to replace the enhanced subsidies that are about to expire. New legislation from top Senate Republicans would create government- funded health savings accounts to replace enhanced Obamacare subsidies that expire after this year. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, the chair of the health committee, and Mike Crapo of Idaho, who leads the Finance panel, released their legislation on Monday. It aims to provide a sharp contrast to a Democratic proposal to extend enhanced subsidies for three years that’s up for a vote later this week. The Cassidy-Crapo bill also meets President Donald Trump’s demand to convert the subsidies into a direct payment to Americans. “Instead of 100% of this money going to insurance companies, let’s give it to patients,” said Cassidy, who was a gastroenterologist before entering politics. “By giving them an account that they control, we give them the power.” Majority Leader John Thune promised Democrats a vote on their bill when they agreed to vote for government-funding legislation last month, but he and other Republican leaders are leaning against offering a competing bill, POLITICO has reported. The Democrats’ bill does not have the 60 votes needed for passage. Cassidy and Crapo along with other Republicans with different proposals are hoping to convince their leaders to reconsider. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Bernie Moreno of Ohio floated their own proposal to extend the subsidies for two years with a new income cap on eligibility. The enhanced subsidies, which Democrats created in a 2021 Covid relief law, offered subsidies to people earning more than four times the poverty level for the first time. Democrats included an expiration date in order to save money, but now want to lift it. Extending the subsidies for 10 more years would cost $350 billion, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Subsidies will return to their original 2010 levels if the enhanced ones expire. Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) has also proposed legislation on “Trump Freedom Accounts” which resemble an HSA but with several key differences. The accounts can be used to pay for plan premiums, which an HSA cannot. Cassidy and Crapo’s legislation would give HSA funding to those earning less than 700 percent of the poverty level, $1,000 for people ages 18 to 49 and $1,500 for those 50 to 65. However, to get the HSA an individual must purchase a bronze or catastrophic plan on an Obamacare exchange. The bronze plans offer lower premiums than other plan tiers but have higher out-of-pocket costs, such as deductibles and copays. The average deductible for a bronze plan was roughly $7,000 last year, according to data from the nonpartisan health policy research organization KFF. The legislation would expand eligibility for catastrophic plans, which currently are limited to people under 30, those who are otherwise not eligible for an Obamacare subsidy or who get a hardship exemption.
dlvr.it
December 9, 2025 at 1:30 AM
This meme kinda feels like the recent Trump announcement to save farmers from the tariffs that he himself imposed on us all at (in part) the expense of farmers.
December 8, 2025 at 8:38 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
December 8, 2025 at 3:02 AM
MTG has the intellect, reading comprehension and temperament of a kid in junior high.

LESLEY STAHL: You contributed to the toxic culture. You were out there pounding, insulting people

MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE: You've contributed to it as well

STAHL: I want you to respond to what you have done in terms of insulting people

MTG: I'd like for you to respond to that
December 8, 2025 at 12:52 AM
In the movie 16 Candles, Anthony Michael Hall sings a bar of the Beatles song "Birthday." That song had only been recorded 15 or so years before the making of that movie. 🤯

For reference it would be like using Katy Perry's "Firework" In a movie made right now.
December 7, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
All the historians
December 7, 2025 at 4:37 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
🚨New episode🚨- King Charles X of France has arrived on the scene! 👑 Special guest & podcast host of The Siècle podcast David Montgomery joins the show to discuss the second attempt at replacing Napoleon. open.spotify.com/episode/54Us...

#napoleon #CharlesX #kingoffrance #frenchrevolution #History
December 7, 2025 at 1:00 PM
I'm on a road trip and I decided to listen to Beatle albums in the order of their release. And I am struck by just how creative Ringo's drumming is from the get-go, how fantastic the harmonies are, of course, and how underappreciated John Lennon's rhythm guitar style is.
December 5, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Who remembers these? 😛
December 4, 2025 at 11:35 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
#Pooligans! I'm on at 430p with the Julie Mason on SiriusXM 124 - tune in!
December 4, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
If you're on the microphone when the president starts dozing off, you need to tell him, softly but firmly: "go to the light"
Trump having a nap for peace.
December 4, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Absolutely hilarious.

When we tell Europe, essentially to go fuck themselves, favor Russia over Ukraine and slap tariffs on our allies and we're surprised when they don't want to buy our stuff.

I mean. . . . 🙄
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau today slammed European NATO allies for prioritizing their own defense industry over American arms suppliers, according to three NATO diplomats.
Top US official berates Europe over cutting American industry out of defense buildup
Washington is unhappy that some European arms programs limit U.S. participation.
www.politico.eu
December 4, 2025 at 3:54 PM
This is so sad. The deployment of the National Guard in Washington, DC, was ruled illegal six days ago. Absolutely tragic.

If the 2,200 existing troops didn't prevent this, what will 500 additional troops do except provide 500 more targets for the bad guys? NONE of Trump's policy makes any sense.
A sad irony in Washington, D.C., where West Virginia National Guardsmen were shot today. Six days ago, a court ruled their deployment was illegal, but stayed the order pending appeal. My heart goes out to these public servants and their families. oag.dc.gov/sites/defaul...
November 28, 2025 at 1:24 AM
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!! 🦃🍂🍗🥧

Listening to Arlo Guthrie's song "Alice's Restaurant" is a Thanksgiving tradition in our family. It's more timely than ever. Enjoy. 😊

music.youtube.com/watch?v=WaKI...
Alice's Restaurant Massacree
YouTube video by Arlo Guthrie - Topic
music.youtube.com
November 27, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Well... This didn't age well.
Pirro: "This is what happens in this country when people are allowed in who are not properly vetted"
November 27, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Trump on ACA subsidies: let's give the people the money & they can go out and buy their own insurance plans.

So, the insurance companies can get money from the fed govt through the ACA subsidies or they can get money from consumers directly. They get the money either way?

What am I missing here??
November 26, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Wow... I guess we might actually get some snow. I just drove by a car dealership and all of the windshield wipers have been pointed up. 🤔
November 26, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
It really is disgusting that Trump can insult, berate, single out, threaten, and demean female reporters on a daily basis for asking fair and legitimate questions and you can’t find a single Republican woman in Congress to say it is inappropriate behavior.
November 19, 2025 at 11:25 AM
He literally has NO IDEA how insurance works or why we even ended up with the ACA in the first place.

It's not only that he's uniformed, he doesn't know he's uninformed & even if he was subsequently informed, he wouldn't care, he wouldn't try to understand the issue better & won't change his mind.
Trump on healthcare: "I've had personal talks with some Democrats about paying large amounts of dollars back to the people. This was my idea ... why don't we just pay this money directly to the people of our country and let them buy their own health insurance?"
November 17, 2025 at 12:11 AM
How hard would it be to say something like: the package contains much less this year. If Walmart included everything from last year it would cost ___, a ___% increase year over year. 🤷‍♂️
KARL: The president claims that Thanksgiving costs are down 25%. Does he know that's not true?

HASSETT: Well if you look at Walmart--

KARL: Wait a minute. I've gotta stop you. The Walmart package this year contains much less than the one last year. That's why the price is less.

November 16, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Reposted by Bubbles the Vampire
ICYMI, new episode!
NEW EPISODE: After the July Revolution of 1830, France has a new king. And Louis-Philippe wants everyone to know he's not like a regular king, he's a cool king.

thesiecle.com/episode48/
November 14, 2025 at 2:13 PM