Category: health and fitness

Medicare for all, or the Bell System solution?

The other day an older woman in my social circle mentioned that she had to finance unpaid charges from her dual cataract surgery. “Four thousand dollars per eye,” she said. “Eight thousand in total.”

This woman is not indigent. She’s a retired public school teacher on Medicare.  She also has supplemental Medicare insurance through Anthem.

This suggests that neither Medicare nor Anthem is all that great.

What options are available for those who are too young for Medicare? The Affordable Care Act (ACA)—aka Obamacare—insurance plans provide high-priced, privately available health insurance plans that come with high deductibles. And there’s another catch—many physicians do not treat patients on ACA plans.

The Affordable Care Act was enacted in 2010 in an effort to make health insurance more accessible to individual purchasers. But the ACA preserved the oligopolistic structure of the preexisting healthcare insurance market. This factor (combined with the inefficiencies of government planning) made ACA expensive and inefficient, despite the underlying intentions.

The typical ACA plan costs $650 per month, with a deductible in the $5,000 to $10,000 range, and a very limited selection of network physicians. This is not good health insurance.

“Medicare for all” has therefore entered the public debate space again this election cycle. DSA-backed Democrats like Abdul El-Sayed are advocating for single-payer public insurance, and this is taken as evidence of the Democratic Party’s sudden lurch to the left.

But the first Democrat to make such a proposal was Harry S. Truman. In 1945, just seven months after he took office, Truman made a written proposal for the creation of a national healthcare program. Universal healthcare was also an animating cause for the Democratic Party in 1992—the election that brought Bill Clinton to power. Neither Harry Truman nor Bill Clinton are widely regarded as wild-eyed left-wing radicals today.

America’s healthcare system is expensive, inefficient, and often unavailable—in practical terms—for anyone who is not insured under a top-tier corporate plan.

The linkage of health insurance to specific corporate employment is a longstanding flaw that is no longer appropriate in the age of the gig economy, entrepreneurship, or—for that matter—the family farm. Recent headlines indicate that large banks and other corporate employers are gearing up for massive downsizing because of anticipated AI-related efficiencies. The demand for health insurance not linked to a corporate plan is likely to increase in the coming years. Continue reading “Medicare for all, or the Bell System solution?”

Rick Springfield, at almost my dad’s age, is in better shape than me

Rick Springfield is touring this summer, apparently. That alone is newsworthy, given his age. But the 77-year-old performer is also making headlines because of his physique.

There can be no hedging or prevarication here. This guy is in amazing shape for 77. He probably has good genes. But he also works at maintaining this degree of fitness. (I’ve seen some videos about his fitness routines on YouTube, and they’re definitely worth watching.)

From a personal perspective: I’m 58, and Springfield is three years younger than my dad. I can remember the girls in my junior high class, back in 1981, having crushes on him.

It’s all about maintaining good habits as you age.

One more personal note: I might be able to outrun Rick Springfield, but I definitely don’t have his degree of leanness. Now excuse me, while I head to the gym for an extra workout.

-ET

21st-century obesity rates vs the buckle-down culture of the 1980s

@kwbogen

Also whyte supremacy. All bodies are good bodies but let’s not pretend we aren’t all being sold something. Exclusivity creates a marketplace.

♬ original sound – kwbogen

K.W. Bogen, an author/influencer, declares in a public video that the commonly cited male preference for thin/fit women is a conspiracy of corporations and white supremacy.

Because isn’t everything a conspiracy of corporations and white supremacy nowadays? No doubt the patriarchy had a hand in it all, as well.

Ms. Bogen then goes on to show us her figure (about which I will refrain from comment). She asserts that thinness is “really, really difficult to achieve” without “starving oneself” or taking drugs. (I assume she is referring to Ozempic, though I can’t be certain.)

First things first. Many men do prefer thin, fit women. A smaller percentage prefer women who are “pleasingly plump”. A very small percentage actively seek out heavyset women. (This last group of men is rare; but they do exist.)

But what men like is not the central issue here. On that point, at least, I think Ms. Bogen and I may be in agreement—though for entirely different reasons. Continue reading “21st-century obesity rates vs the buckle-down culture of the 1980s”

Aging rockers and what they can teach us

I was a teenager in the 1980s, and I’m still a fan of the popular music of that era. This summer a number of the rock acts that I grew up with have gone on tour. That’s rather amazing when you think about it. Four decades have passed since I was listening to these same musicians as a suburban teen. I just turned 58, and most of these musicians are now well into their seventies.

This is a phenomenon worth examining not merely for nostalgia’s sake, but for what it can teach us about aging and longevity.

Let’s start with Rush. Rush was founded in 1968, the year I was born. The band had its commercial breakout a few years after that in the mid-1970s, when I was in primary school. I was a huge fan of Rush during their second heyday of the mid-1980s. (Rush remains my all-time favorite band.)

Following the death of Neil Peart in 2020, Rush hired the comparatively youthful (43) Anika Nilles to fill in as their drummer. But guitarist Alex Lifeson and bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee are 72 and 73, respectively.

I watched footage of Rush’s 2026 tour on YouTube and other social media platforms. I’ll begin with the now obligatory observation that yes, Anika Nilles is an amazing drummer, and as good a fill-in for Neil Peart as could reasonably have been expected. But Alex and Geddy seem to have lost little in recent decades. Rush’s music, we should not forget, is technically demanding to perform live. But these two septuagenarians are performing as well as they ever did.

There was, of course, one fly in the ointment. A few concert dates had to be postponed because Geddy Lee was suffering from acute laryngitis and bronchitis. Another thing about touring with a rock band: life on the road is physically demanding—no matter what music you’re playing.

As a counterexample, there is David Lee Roth, the former frontman of Van Halen. At age 71, Roth is a shadow of his former self. He canceled his tour this summer without completing it for unspecified reasons. The most probable reasons, however, were weak ticket sales and negative fan reactions.

David Lee Roth received a lot of criticism for his almost painful-to-watch performances. But David Lee Roth has reached an age when most men are traditionally sedentary grandfathers. We also have to remember that during his salad days he set the bar very high. Anyone who recalls Van Halen’s performances from the 1970s and 1980s will also recall his onstage gymnastics. It simply isn’t possible for a man in his seventies to measure up to that.

Somewhere in the middle are AC/DC and Def Leppard.

Def Leppard’s lead singer, Joe Elliott, is 67 years old. He is no longer the trim, energetic young man who captivated MTV audiences in the 1980s. His voice is still serviceable, but there’s no doubt that time has taken its toll.

All of the vintage members of AC/DC, on the other hand, are now in their seventies. The lead singer, Brian Johnson, was born in 1947. That makes him one year younger than my father—and I’m pushing 60. It is still fun to watch AC/DC perform live. But once again, time has left its mark.

I reiterate: playing live rock and roll on stage in a major commercial venue is both physically and mentally demanding. Most of the population could never do it, regardless of age.

What can we learn from the above examples? First of all, the definition of old has definitely changed. If you take care of yourself both physically and mentally, you can keep going for a long, long time.

But that doesn’t mean that any of us is about to become immortal—or that time no longer counts. No matter how well you take care of yourself, it’s impossible to be at 75 what you were at 35. That’s simply the constraints of time and human biology, which get us all in the end. 

-ET

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On turning 58

I write this post upon turning 58. To be precise, my 58th birthday is August 9.

This birthday marks a peculiar milestone. I have now reached an age at which I can remember my grandfather.

I passed this milestone with my father decades ago. My parents are only twenty-two years my senior, so I can remember my father at the age of twenty-nine.

But my grandfather? My grandfather was a World War II veteran who experienced the Great Depression. He was truly from a different time.

And yet… my grandfather, born in October 1921, turned 58 in October 1979. I was in the sixth grade then; but I remember late 1979 quite well.

***

This is the point where many people would suggest that fifty or perhaps even sixty (since I’m very close to that milestone too) is the new thirty—or perhaps the new forty. I’ll spare you such bravado. 60 is not the new 30 or the new 40. 60 is 60. And 58 is 58.

That said, I’m relatively fortunate insofar as my health. I’m a lifelong runner and weightlifter, and I’m in reasonably good shape. I’m not going to say that I don’t feel my age at all. But I feel it, I suspect, less than the average man my age.

***

The real problem with reaching this age is not that one feels old, but that the world feels old. I miss times that were more to my liking (even if they were less technologically convenient). I miss many people who are no longer here.

We all eventually reach the stage where the past becomes more important than the future. I suppose I have reached that point. This doesn’t imply a death wish, a state of despair, or a complete indifference to the present or the future.

It does, however, mean that I’ve become a temporal foreigner. I can operate in this era—for the most part—but if I had my choice… I would be somewhere else. Or sometime else.

I suspect that this is part of the normal process of aging. An indifference to the future prepares one for the inevitable day when one will no longer be part of the present. At 58, my journey is more than halfway over. I don’t expect to live to age 116, after all.

I’d like to stretch it out just a little bit longer. But whether that “little bit longer” means three years or 30 years, I’m already grateful. I’ve been blessed with a very good life—better than most.

Wherever you find yourself on your journey, I wish you happy trails, even though it’s my birthday we’re talking about. That’s another thing about being this old. Birthdays are kind of old hat now, too.

-ET

Runner’s high is real; I’ve known this for 40+ years

This week the Cincinnati area is under an oppressive heat wave, so I went for a morning run today, instead of delaying until the afternoon.

It was nevertheless about 80 degrees Fahrenheit and muggy. Bad air quality. Not ideal weather for running.

I pushed through, though, and completed my miles. (This morning, I did a light run of only 3 miles.)

Afterward, I was suffused with feelings of euphoria: a sense of centeredness and relaxation. My thoughts were crystal-clear and focused.

I was peacefully floating.

This is, I believe, the feeling that many recreational drug users search for.

I know a young woman, almost thirty years my junior, who begins each morning by smoking marijuana. She claims that the marijuana helps her anxiety.

I have told her many times: “Quit smoking weed, like a total f—cking moron, and start running.” (She is in perfect health, and there is nothing to stop her.)

Runner’s high is real. There are others who can better explain the science behind it: running’s effects on the hippocampus and whatnot. I can give you 40+ years of experiential testimony. Running makes you feel good, like no recreational drug or intoxicant can.

And unlike recreational drugs, running is also good for you.

-ET

Cloudsurfer: my new running shoes

I have been an avid runner since 1984. In more than 40 years of running, I have had relatively few injuries. But all of the injuries that I have had have involved my feet.

As a result, my quest for the perfect running shoe has lasted for 40 years, too. I’ve tried all the major brands at one time or another: Nike, Adidas, New Balance, etc.

I recently acquired this pair of Cloudsurfers, and they are like no running shoes I have ever owned. They are light for speed, but also provide extensive support.

My new Cloudsurfer running shoes

Regular readers will know that I often wax nostalgic about the 1980s. I’m a curmudgeon when it comes to most social media—and don’t even get me started about AI.

But sometimes, the more modern, high-tech solution represents an improvement. Cloudsurfers weren’t available for me to run in back in 1984. I wish such shoes had been on the market in my salad days.

-ET

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Sex appeal and cigarette ads: my 1970s/80s youth

During the 1970s and throughout most of the 1980s, it was common to see full-page cigarette ads in glossy magazines. Advertisements for cancer sticks had already been banned from television, but print ads were still legal, and considered fair game.

Camel ad, circa 1978 to 1983

Much has been said about the “Marlboro Man” over the years. But the Camel Dude (shown above) got a lot more female attention. I remember seeing variations of the above ad in a number of magazines that ended up in my hands during the late 1970s and early 1980s, including Field & Stream, which I read with some regularity.

We can assume that the Camel Dude got lucky on the day presented in the above ad. But one wonders: is he still alive? Perhaps not, with that smoking habit of his.

I was a pre-adolescent and adolescent in those days; and I may have been slightly influenced by the marketing message. A “great-tasting blend of Turkish and domestic tobaccos”, and hot women on the beach? Count me in, said the adolescent version of me.

Speaking of which: I haven’t smoked cigarettes at all as an adult; but I did smoke them on occasion when I was 12 to 13 years old. Another thing about the 1970s/80s: cigarette vending machines were everywhere, and underage people had no difficulty accessing them.

I certainly tried Camels. The hot blonde, as I recall, was not included.

-ET