Glacier National Park

On August 14, I started by motorscooter adventure to Glacier National Park.I left Cheney, Washington at 8:00am(PST) and road I-90 into Spokane taking the Argonne exit north to Trent Ave (SR290). Upon entering Idaho it turns into State Route 53 and in Rathdrum, Id it turns in State Route 41.Just before Spirit Lake, I turned right onto State Route 54 to Athol, Idaho. After s short break in Athol, I head north on Highway 95. In Sandpoint, Highway 95 and Highway 2 merge as I ride into Bonners Ferry. At the local Safeway, I buy lunch and a snack to go. I also make my first fuel stop. A few miles north of Bonners Ferry I turn right to stay on Highway 2 as Highway 95 continues north to Canada. While looking over the Moyie River, I have a snack. A couldn't find a good place for lunch, so I stopped a trash receptacle station in the Kootenia National Forest to eat my sandwich. At about 3pm (MST), I arrive in Kalispell, MT where I had reservations at the Kalispell Hill Top Inn. It was a nice clean place with wifi, and a great value. The weather was sunny and very hot, but there was rain in the forecast for tomorrow. I woke up at 2:30 in the morning and looked out my window to see it raining. I was just hoping the forecast was right in predicting that tomorrow afternoon would be sunny. When I woke up the next morning the rain was gone and there was some blue sky, but not much. I packed up and headed for the Park.

While riding along Lake McDonald, it looked like it was going to be great day for a motorcycle ride; cool and party cloudy. After I passed The Loop, I stopped to take a picture of Heavens Peak and the McDonald River valley. It was at this point, the weather started to change; cloudy, cold, and rain. There was road construction in the Park and I sat in the drizzle for 20 minutes waiting our turn to continue up the road.

I took the opportunity, to connect my heated gloves and vest. When the pilot car arrived, I continued up the road. On the way up, the rain stopped but the cold and clouds did not. The views were amazing as I made my way to the Logans Pass Vistors Center. I see beautiful plants around the vistors center but clouds were in the way of seeing any mountains. I started my way down the other side of the Continental Divide. I stopped to see Jackson Glacier but the cloud cover made it difficult to see. It was a nice ride out to St. Mary at the eastern entrance to the park. I ride down to East Glacier where I got fuel and followed Highway 2 back to the west entrance to the Park.

At this point, I look up and noticed the clouds have lifted and it was a nice day. I really wanted a picture of Jackson Glacier, so I went back into the Park. I took a few more pictures on my second trip up the road.

I road passed the summit and straight to Jackson Glacier. I was glad to be on a motorscooter, because by the afternoon, the Park was crowded. There was no room for a car at the glacier, but I made room on by bike and got my picture. It was a great day. The next day, I left Kalispell and 6:30am(MST) for my trip back to Cheney. I took Highway 93 south and watched the sunrise over Flathead Lake. Turning left onto State Routes 28, 200, and 135 I made my way into St. Regis.

I had breakfast at Jaspers. I stopped at the Old Mission on my way through northern Idaho. A great rest stop and very interesting. I arrived at home on August 16, at noon(pst). I drive a total of 823 miles, used 15.16 gallons of gas, and averaged 54.3 mpg.

Healthcare Insurance

Insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. My college finance professor defined insurance as "taking on unknown future cash flow and converting it in to known present cash flows."
When an employer offers their employee "vision insurance" it isn't "insurance" because there is no risk that is being hedged. The employer is giving a known amount of money to an insurance company and the insurance company then pays out that money as planned. The employer has decided to pay for a bi-annual doctor visit, and kick in some money toward the purchase of glasses; all planned in advance.

Healthcare is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans; to maintain the body operating as designed. Getting a haircut would not be healthcare. I might mentally feel better after a haircut, but it is not restoring the body to designed operation. In fact a case could be made that a haircut goes against designed operation. By design, hair grows; cutting it is anti-growth.

Today, in the political sphere, we are debating the governments requirement that birth control be provided by all employers to all their employees. There seems to be two different groups against this requirement; one religious and one political.

The political group sees this as the government forcing employers to buy birth control for their employees. It is not insurance because there is no risk; the cost is known and regular. Birth control is not healthcare because it does not maintain the body operating as designed. In fact, it causes the body to not operate as designed while increasing the risk of injury and disease. Birth control is anti-healthcare. Women should purchase their own birth control just like they have to purchase their movie tickets, bicycles, or video games. Birth control is not a requirement of life, so it would not be in the same category as food, shelter, and clothing. This is gender politics in action.

Birth control was condemned by Christian culture until the 1930's because it artificially interfered with the procreative possibility of the marital act. The Catholic Church, and some other Christian individuals, still holds that belief. The religious group sees the government requirement as a violation of the first amendment. Catholic employers are being forced to pay for something they find morally repugnant; contrary to their conscience.

Tolerance

A chair is a thing with a flat raised surface held up by four legs with structure protruding up from one or more edges. Some would be satisfied with this description while others would think it incomplete or no explanation at all.

A chair is something humans sit on. Some would be satisfied with this description while others would think it incomplete or no explanation at all.

There are two ways of describing and comprehending a thing. Some would comprehend it from a description of what it is. While others would require to know the purpose before they felt like they understood it. The full explanation would be to describe it and give its purpose.

I have a yellow chair in my dining room that spends most of it time as a hat rack. I throw all my hats on it and I grab one before I run outside. The chair has also been called to serve as a punch bowl holder, and a foot stool.

The chair was created for the purpose of a human to sit on, but I have tolerated it being used a few different ways. Because my yellow chair spends most of its time as a hat rack, I've grown to think of it as a hat rack. My yellow hat rack. My wife would never accept it as a hat rack, but she does tolerate it as one.

If the state were to pass a law declaring a flat raised surface held up by four legs with structure protruding up from one or more edges as a hat rack, would it really turn my chair into a hat rack?