More CyaNN

Another one of the good guys goes. Politico:

CNN's Jamie McIntyre, who's covered the Pentagon since 1992, is leaving the network

In a memo to staff, McIntyre said that "the time has come for me to leave the beat."

"Although I was never bored, CNN and I both agreed it was time for a change," he wrote. "We were unable to reach an agreement on another assignment, so after a friendly discussion, I decided to pursue other opportunities.

I've always been a big Jamie fan. Whatever it was he wanted to do, they should have let him have the spot.

UPDATE: Ok, so I should have checked Chez first, but it turns out there's more. From the TVNewser write that puts all this downsizing into perspective:

Although McIntyre wrote "CNN and I both agreed it was time for a change," he is the latest in a series of departures at CNN since CNN/U.S. president Jon Klein told the New York Observer, "We can afford more people on our air and off our air. So, goddamn it, we're going to have more people," on November 18.

Since then, Miles O'Brien has left the network and the entire science, space, environment and technology unit in Atlanta dismantled, correspondent Veronica De La Cruz will be leaving the network and head of on-air hiring Henry Mauldin exited as well, among others.

On the upside, there's a small touch of personal vindication in here too (beyond the one I've already expressed). Let's just say someone in that last blurb worked me to the bone, strung me along, and then tried to sell me out after the fact.

It sucks to be unemployed unexpectedly. Maybe now he'll get that.

UPDATE 2: Oh no. Kathleen too? Wow.

Christmas Cheer

Snark runs in the family. My brother emailed this one:

When four of Santa's elves got sick, the trainee elves did not produce toys as fast as the regular ones, and Santa began to feel the Pre-Christmas pressure.

Then Mrs Claus told Santa her Mother was coming to visit, which stressed Santa even more.

When he went to harness the reindeer, he found that three of them were about to give birth and two others had jumped the fence and were out, Heaven knows where.

Then when he began to load the sleigh, one of the floorboards cracked, the toy bag fell to the ground and all the toys were scattered.

Frustrated, Santa went in the house for a cup of apple cider and a shot of rum. When he went to the cupboard, he discovered the elves had drank all the cider and hidden the liquor. In his frustration, he accidentally dropped the cider jug, and it broke into hundreds of little glass pieces all over the kitchen floor. He went to get the broom and found the mice had eaten all the straw off the end of the broom.

Just then the doorbell rang, and irritated Santa marched to the door, yanked it open, and there stood a little angel with a great big Christmas tree.

The angel said very cheerfully, 'Merry Christmas, Santa. Isn't this a lovely day? I have a beautiful tree for you. Where would you like me to stick it?'

And so began the tradition of the little angel on top of the Christmas tree.

Hey You

Happy birthday, doll. It's been a hell of a year. You may have lost a gig, but you stood up for what's right, spoke the truth, found your freedom, made loads of new friends and fans, self-published one captivating memoir, and most importantly, gained a precious little girl.

Thanks for being endlessly entertaining and almost always right on the money.

We may have met through TV, but it's been a pleasure not doing business with you.

Insure Oh Sure

I spent a good hour on the phone with my old health insurance company today. Good thing I fight these people for a living and can afford to spend the time it takes to deal with them. I bet they make so much money off of people who just chuck in the towel and pay up to avoid the hassle. If I weren't in this line of work, I probably would too.

It all started when I got a call from a collections agency last night. Turns out I owe Quest Diagnostics some money. However, I don't remember ever getting a bill or a warning or really anything that even resembled a notice that - if ignored - might turn into a call from a collections agency.

So I typed in the url left on my voicemail, and sure enough, Quest had my old address. From more than a year ago. So if they've been sending bills, they haven't been sending them to me.

So my first call was to the collections agency followed by a call to the doctor on the claim. My next call was to the insurance company. The call after that was to another department of the insurance company. Then another call to the doctor's office. A call to the astonishingly unhelpful people at Quest. And then one last call back to my doctor's office where the office administrator - LOVE HER - offered to call Quest herself and set them straight.

But the reason I had to waste so much time on the phone with the insurance company in the midst of all this is because the bill was for blood work they refused to cover. According to "Brian" who was combative and defensive, I'm only allowed blood work once every two years. In fact, Brian explained, I may have had the plan that only allows physicals once every two years.

Really?

That sound like a strategy that's best for the patient's health or a short-sighted, cost-saving policy implemented to maximize a health insurance company's profits?

I'm going with door #2.

Turns out when they do this particular blood work, if something comes out a little off, the lab does more blood work to figure out what's going on. That's the test they allegedly coded inaccurately - the follow-up - and the insurance company's refusing to cover. But as the office administrator at the doctor's office told me today, the lab has to do the follow-up. If they didn't, and g-d forbid something happened to the patient, the lab and the doctor would be liable.

It's a dangerous game the insurance companies play when they refuse to cover health care people need. And the fact that they're willing to play it for pay is all you need to keep in mind when you hear they're "on your side" and "all for reform" this time around.

Sorbet For The Soul

In the interest of cleansing the palate and bringing a little positive energy back to the site, I'm changing the subject.

An environmentally conscious friend just turned me on to The Meatrix.

I know it's not new, but I hadn't seen it before. What's cool about the video is that afterwards, it gives you the tools to get involved and find good food in your neighborhood.

I was pleased to discover some of my favorite spots are supporting sustainable agriculture.

Two More Two Cents

First read Chez. Then read the following sent to me by another former CNNer:

The big problem with these two getting the boot is that JK, in all of his intellectual glory, always confused the two. He treated Eccleston like a living doll with no brain when she was actually an astute and intelligent journalist with a wealth of knowledge and a store of experiences that allowed her to take complex situations and provide context so that even us dumb Americans could get it. She was fearless and compassionate and she had a great sense of humor. Eccleston just happened to also be hot as hell. But only an idiot who had never really paid attention to who she really was (or who had never bothered watching a single liveshot she did from the mountains of Northern Afghanistan with the sound actually ON) would say that was her first, second, or even third quality. Her face may have opened doors, but 2 minutes spent with the woman proved she had every right to walk on through.

DeLaCruz, on the other hand, had a marginally-attractive face (someone described her as “toothy”) that opened doors, but as soon as she entered the room, proceeded to blink confusedly as if the shiny lights were too much for her. She was arrogant and demanding without having the goods to back that attitude up. Unlike Eccleston, who would travel to the Taliban-controlled ends of the earth to get her story, DeLaCruz would pull up some websites at 4am, skim the headlines, and head up to makeup. And JK acted like she might give Einstein a run for his money.

The fact that these 2 are in the same article is an outrage. Especially when you read that article a little closer and realize that Eccleston actually ended her relationship with CNN back in August.

Blame The Other Guy

The health insurance and hospital lobbies have a new strategy they rolled out today:

It's not our fault.

AHIP, AHA, and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association held a webcast press conference during which they released a report they commissioned which says "inadequate Medicare and Medicaid payments" are why we charge you more.

Rather than go through all the reasons why it's ridiculous, here's a link to the press release we sent out immediately following their little pity party.