I miss you Valeri, where have you been? I miss our exchanges and debates, I guess you're working, hope to caught up with you soon.

Why are my comments being deleted?

You may know that these people don't have a clue but to them it's all they have, they are not as lucky as you to own property in NYC O and to have an Amercian Passport, so don't knock someone when they are down. You may think you know everything about the US and you may even know a little more then most but again I say the FACT of the matter is find me one other place on this earth where if you work hard enough, you can do or be whatever you want and without paying off someone [...]

Read the full comment or being friends of some former communist parties Daddy. IF you trying to make the comparison that Bulgaia has it better then the US then you've been hitting the crack pipe to much my friend. I pity the peope here in Bulgaria that can't get good health care because there doctors were trained like shit, Vet's are trained better and your dog will get better health care then your Mother, you don't see a problem here? In BG you can go to school for 6 yrs and then hang a sign on an office and call yourself a Doctor, WOW! That is just f'ed up if you as me. Or better yet, you can just go and buy a diploma from some teacher at the University, Imagine that? Then you have the balls to talk about some moron govt who got caught cheating on his wife, who cares, This also is common in Bulgaria, most Bulgarian Men don't have enought respect for there own wife's to not cheat on them, most of them have a piece on the side and don't tell me this isn't true, I know it is and it's considered exceptable, how screwed up is that? So talk all the shit you want about Ameria, we are ot perfect not by a long shot but we are still the best chance in this world you'll ever get and deep down Valeri, you know this.

BTW if you only knew the scale of fraud and corruption in the US.
I do alright in BG and I do have dealings with all kinds of scum here, yet the scale in the US is staggering.
Good book: "Gotcha Capitalism" by Bob Sullivan - an eye opener.
Do you remember a guy named Eliot Spitzer? He was I think Governor of NY when he was caught with a hooker and in true US fashion was ruined over sex (although he did pay for it with other people's money).
Well he [...]

Read the full comment made very powerful enemies while an attorney general of the State, and was eventually ruined by them.
He apparently was fighting hard for 401K transparency - mostly fees clarity. Did you know that the management fees of your 401K mutual funds can rack up to 1/3 or 1/2 of the value over the life time? Not only that, but corporations actually get kick backs from the funds, for offering them to their employees. They call them "revenue sharing payments" a fairly innocuous description, that spells a first rate mafia racket - every mutra's dream, actually.
The beauty of those kick backs, of course, is that the employee is charged for it!
So in essence the employer is allowing a fund, to rob their employees, in return for a share.
Multiply this by countless, and this is what your retirement system is based on Stefcho! Perfectly legal racket, and only one of millions such, that we in BG are unfortunately adopting with time.
Don't listen to your Bulgarian friends who are bending over for you and are lining up the US consulate.
They are as clueless about the US as probably you are... trust me, I know..

Stefcho,
US government is getting robbed blind in the US already, you don't need BG for that.
US supported us for NATO for the same reason they are supporting Ukraine - self interest and as a part of their world hegemony.
Not so crazy about haveng your military idiots walking around my country.
Stefcho, from your mouth to God's ears - if I ever manage to unload my investments, that's the last you'll see of me there.

This comment has been hidden by the moderator because it contained квалификации.

Stefcho:

"I would take that as a compliment that they carded your 32 yr old wife, that just means that she looks much younger then she really is."

She's hot, yet she doesn't look 20, much less 17. Considering that they carded me too (and I am older), I understood it for what it was - little more than the ritual legal "гавра" (a wonderful BG expression) you people habitually subject each other to. Harassing adults this way, does little to protect 17 olds from driving drunk, and does much to protect [...]

Read the full comment establishments from law suits and fines.

Stefcho:

"The fact of the matter is I'm American, 100% red blooded American"

WFT does this mean? Do you know how pathetic that sounds to foreign ears? The same as, if I tell you that "I am 100% red blooded Bulgarian" or that I am "all Bulgarian young man"...

Who cares! Is this part of that "American exceptionalism" you people flaunt around the world?

You are predictably brainwashed like 99% of your type. To be proud, that your country enforces laws of keeping adults away from casual clubs, because they forgot their ID? The US is the Prussia of modern times, you know. Narrow minded annal mentality, which is so pedantic with unimportant matters, that ends up falling pray to the big stuff... You still have 17,000 teenagers getting killed from drunk driving every year, and mostly because you restrict them so much, that they end up getting wasted when given the chance, as it is a form of social rebellion by now. Then you give them a car at 16.... what do you expect..

I used to live in the US and in fact have to go back a few times a year because I still have some rentals there, that I can't shake until the market improves. Every time I go back, I hate the place more and more. I call it "Gestapo Land" because of all the little fat Mexicans you have at your border controls, harassing visitors. I use my American passport for entering the US (the only time I'd use it) and have a hell of a time trying to explain to the dark little uniformed NAZIs my long absence from the US. Their Indian brains just can't grasp the idea that I don't want to spend my life with them, and prefer to be in my country.

I would take that as a compliment that they carded your 32 yr old wife, that just means that she looks much younger then she really is. don't take that perosnal. Why does the fact that in the states we actually inforce our laws and rules? Isn't that what they are for? Would you want your 17 yr old son going into a night club and then leaving and driving drunk and killing himself or someone else.
Now are for your deep seeded hostility, it concerns me, what about certain people bothers you to the point of anger? [...]

Read the full comment Is it really worth all that engery? The fact of the matter is I'm American, 100% red blooded American that lives in Sofia works for an American company and have a wonderful Bulgarian girlfriend. My perspective of Bulgaria is of course a bit jaded but some of the things I see here shock me and I've been here for 7yrs and they still shock me. I'm not a Bulgarian basher, not at all, I don't know what your problem is with me. I come to live in your country, I contribute to your tax system and many other things that I''d rather not say but perhaps over a beer one day. I see you have an opinion about almost everything, I look at all the new in the Echo and you always have some sort of negative comment to make about something. Is there anything that makes you happy in life? Or are you just one of those fustrated Bulgarians that just can't seem to fine the right job that pay more then $7,000 lv a year and your fustrated? I don't know, help me to understand you. Don't hate me because I'm an American, we are all in this world together right? Let's put down the swords and talk like two adults do and leave out the name calling and trying to make the other feel as bad as possible. I can't say anything bad about you, I don't even know you, I see you are very passionate about several things and resent Americans for what reason? I don't know. But lighten up, have a beer,enjoy your wife and family and stop hating, life's to short.

Actually, I suppose I shouldn't get too personal with you, so try to disregard the personal element in my post, but the rest, I fully mean.

Stefcho,
If the US wasn't more "together" than BG, after 200+ years of free market, then you'd really be a waste of skin, over there... the last thing that I'd wanna be is American, and if some bimbo here wants to be blond, I don't see how that connects with the US where most people are dark and short.
Between Hispanics Asian and blacks, there aren't that many white people left, let along blond. Here and there...
Just take a walk in any of your cities.

Bulgaria is infinitely more [...]

Read the full comment free than the US. I've got more "civil" and "not so civil" liberties than you'd ever imagine in the US. I don't have to show my documents for a drink - one time my 32 years old wife couldn't get in a club because she didn't bring her ID - we had to go home with our friends waiting inside. The idiots! Complete anglo-saxon morons...
In BG I don't have to worry about what I said. It's a fee country - if someone is offended, may I suggest a high cliff or a 5 story building to jump off it?
If you have money life in BG is great and so is health care. Yeah, I wanna be able to bribe a cop. He is a cop - a loser! Wasting my time. I'll let my pussi-whipped American friends worry about them and every flicking thing that comes alone.

Get lost!
I don't have anything to discuss with you, agree or disagree. Just don't like your type - pure Balkan intolerant attitude and prejudice against half breed Americans, who expect to be admired in BG - those days are over....
Deal with it.

Just to add something here, yes wew respect out cops and are affraid when we get pulled over, ou see, your cops won't take 20 lv and just be on ther way, they will arrest you and you will go to jail if you committ a crime. Second, being fat, well I can't argue that one, when there is a McDonald's on every corner but alwo the quality of out food is also inspected by USDA maybe you've heard of it and it is all fit for comsumption unlike some of the things that just looked like they got killed [...]

Read the full comment in South Park that morning. As for style, you kidding right? You think you can buy cloths at some "magazine" for 15lv or maybe even 40lv and it's fashionable? Give me a break and you know it's true because most can't afford to buy designer cloth's a ZUME, I don't see much D&C or Versage on woman in Sofia. Last but not least, the Buglarian woman are very beautiful so why do they want to be blonds? I don't get it, they are perhapts the most beautiful woman in the world and they want to be blonde, is that to look more like American woman?
So, while paying off your local cops to get out of a drunk driving charge so you can go another KM and kill an entire family, or eat mistery meal from Fantastiko, or pretend to be Paris Hilton, you keep telling me how bad American is and how we want to be just like you in everyway, such as medicine, perfect socialist govt. and the perfect place to live and on anyday of the week, I'll take American, we are not perfect but we are a far cry better then Bulgaria and I'm half Bulgarian. Ciao Ciao

Your comparing BG with the US with regard to civil liberty? This is beyond funny. I'll be the first to admit that parts of the states are total shitholes don't get me wrong but the US certainly has it much more together then BG does or prob ever will at the rate it's going. My problem with you is still the fact that you seem to want to just get rid of all your old and/or unproductive people like trash, excluding gypsies of course. You blame the old of the mess this country is in and not the people that [...]

Read the full comment run your overly corrupt govt. And then the next election rolls around and you just elect more of the same old corrupt morons. I've lived in both places for a long time, over 7yrs here in BG and the rest of my life in the US and NO I don't enjoy your topless beaches or your streets that are hardly drivable because of disrepair, Bulgaria should be ashamed of the condition it is in, I think we might even agree on more points then we disagree on except the fact that the old are not expendable. They deserve just the same bad health care that you and I get here in Bulgaria by undertrained Doctors that mostly have no clue what they are doing. I fine that most people here are just looking for ways to screw someone else rather then do an honest day of work and I also realize that the pay rates here are not a livable wage. Bulgaria is in a bad way and it will take decades for it to come out of it and I'm sure one day the EU will have to do this and Bulgaria will have to try to use as much of this money before it is ripped off by the family's or friends of the people that control this money.
I see things in both places that when I walk around totally discuss me, it's just now I happen to work here and part of me does like Bulgaria and anothe part of me hates it, what can I say, I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2009/09/03/guards-sex-orgy-probe-115875-21643973/

Expat, just try to avoid that in BG, ok?

This is a product of a repressed culture. People who are chronically under sexed, and traditionally deprived of basic needs and made feel guilty about their natural inclinations.
I've seen it so many times, when Americans (and Brits, frankly) find themselves outside the confines of their prison like culture, go way over board with excess behavior.
Either that or find some child to abuse.
It has to come out of somewhere...

Stefcho,
You called me "heartless" and "passionate" in the same post so is it little wonder that sarcasm goes over your head....

Expat,
I know the US very well and there are places there that make Bulgaria look like Germany. You wanna see shit holes - go to Detroit or Oakland Ca.
Actually, I probably mirror your view of BG in every respect, except that I have nothing against the US on any general principal, only it's the regular people that I have the most contempt for.
Most [...]

Read the full comment Americans I know are boring, lame, and scared, not to mention fat and clueless about style..
When I think US I think fear. You people are afraid of everything. You fear being labeled sexist, racist, sexual (I've seen you how you look around before telling a colorful joke, to see if there are women around that would bitch slap you), you fear lawyers, the IRS, the cops, (try to argue a point with one - he'll handcuff you in a second), you are super greedy and corrupt, only in ways that are less overt that in BG - the whole Sub-prime mess was banks fooling people and people thinking that they are fooling the banks - in the end... Iceland was bankrupt, to lOL:)))

Relax, you are now in a free country. You can be yourself, without apologizing. How did it feel to see all those topless babes on the beach for the first time? Isn't freedom grand?

One other point Valeri, if your so against older people getting proper health care for past deeds "helped to ruin this country" then what not start by killing off people like your Grandparents, your parents or any other family member over the age of 50 in your family and show a good example of how bad these people are, be a leader Valeri or if you develop some common sense maybe you could just grow along with the progress that is suppose to be happening in this great country or perhaps maybe your of this age and it's time to [...]

Read the full comment off yourself for your past bad deeds. That's how much sense your point made Valeri, just because people are old and lived in a time where survival was number one, then the Health Care system should not waste its resources on them, just let them die without any dignity at all if you have it your way. Are you really that heartless? You say that these people were often the problem in this country back then, then who is now and do they deserve proper health care? I'm curious what you think.

Valeri, "the only real commies are in the US" LOL, normally you make good clear points but this one takes the cake. I live in the US and I must say by comparsion Bulgaria is a dump compared to the US; we give healthcare to whoever needs it regarding ability to pay. We don't throw out our old just because they are old and our old are the one's that build American, the WW 2 generation is the greatest generation ever in the USA and they get shit on the most. If by Commies you mean Obama then you may [...]

Read the full comment have a small point but this kind of politics won't last as he won't as well with the things he has on his agenda. Nobody want's them, he will be gone in 4 yrs and with any luci the Republicans will be back in power again and I don't mean Bush Republicans either. Comparing Bulgaria and the states is like comparing apples and oranges, I'm an American that works in Bulgaria and find it to be such a shithole it's unreal. I do fine however the people to be very warm and kind for the most part, they are the future of this Coutry but to call the USA commies, please explain yourself, I'm interested, this should be good.

Bobo,
like I said - the key is crappy health care for the old!
The sooner the go, the sooner we'll get back on our feet;)
Thanks to less access to health care, I am happy to report, that in this election, there were far fewer pensioners left to vote for the Commies.
That said, lets be honest - what we in BG call "Left" is probably every Republican's dream.
Don't forget that it was Stanishev, who pushed forward the 10 % flat tax! Not only that, but he actually [...]

Read the full comment fought off attempts by the opposition to exempt the poorest...
No bobo, the only real Commies left are in the US, sorry to tell you;)

Valerie,
you decry damage Communism did to Bulgaria, yet why Bulgarians vote back BSP and communist controlled NDSV???

Your heartlessness is overwhelming Valerie, you define a generation by putting them in a cemetary because they didn't contribute enough according to your generation's standards. Yes Bulgaria has had many problems in the past and you point them out so well Valeri, you reall do but where does it end? It all has to end somewhere, someone has to say enough already and move forward and not backward. The hostility some Bulgarians have seems so deep seeded and I'm sure for many reasons but it can't go on forever. If it does this will mean the end of Bulgaria, it [...]

Read the full comment will never be taken serious and will always just be some second rate EU country that they had to admit into the EU for stratigic reasons and no other.
One other thing, trust me when I say that most American's do not want their health insurance messed with,not by Obama or anyone else, I don't know if you watch the international news but during the summer breaks for the congress at the town hall meeting the people were outraged at the thought of national healthcare and it will not move forward. At the rate Obama is going he will be a one term President like Jimmy Carter but with less respect. He can't save American and certainly not the world, he needs to get over himself quickly.
It's always nice to read your quotes Valeri, your are a very informed speaker and fun to exchange thoughts with and your passion is very deep, I can tell this about you. Keep it up!

Stefcho, "the American":

"First of all to Valeri, we Americans don't want Socialism in our country.."

... and you elect Obama?

Well, you really are confused.
"They want to put all these efforts into transplants that cost 100 times more then taking care of a hospice patient" ... Like the bank robber said: 'Couse that's where the money is"..

You know I am sick of idiots screaming here "Shame" on this or that. What kind of housewife means of expression is this? Emotional garbage.

When you say:

"... is that too much to ask for the people that helped to build this country and have contributed to [...]

Read the full comment the health care fund?",

shows acute lack of understanding of the BG dynamics. In our subconsciousness these are not the people that help build the country, but these are the people that helped ruined our country. Every older Bulgarian was very much involved in their small way with a system that informed on their neighbors, punished the harder working, more entrepreneurial among us, and benefited from the largest theft, called nationalization and generally brought us to the amazing state of disrepair and misery, we are just now trying hard to remedy. There's much intergenerational contempt under the surface here..

You have to look at today's Bulgarians as children from abusive family. We all know what happened, there's nothing we can do about it, yet there's little love left among us. The hope is with the ones that were too young, of bourn after the abuse took place. Younger Bulgarians are great. My generation and older - the only hope for most, quite frankly is Орландовци.... (you know what that means Stefcho, right?)

First of all to Valeri, we Americans don't want Socialism in our country, our system is the best in the world and we would prefer to keep it that way.
As for confused, you are so right, the Bulgarian Govt has totally overlooked hospice and pallitive care, in fact they don't even have the proper drugs to treat a 35 yr old woman with breast cancer, chances are she will die because they are to cheap to purchase such drugs, I don't want to hear about the cost of these drugs, do whatever you have to, to save [...]

Read the full comment patients like this, this is just not fair. Oncologist in Bulgaria are so fustrated it's unreal, they don't have the resources to even treat the most treatable cancers that are out there and this is an EU country? HA what a joke. I have only one advice to give to my Bulgaria friends, take care of yourselves because the state isn't going to do it for you, God Bless!

I've seen the Bulgarian health care system up close and personal and how they treat patients in the hospitals. Now I can only speak of Pirogov and it was deplorable. Patients family is not able to speak with the doctors that are taking care of there loved ones, the nurses are just rude and won't share any information with the family as well.
But to get to an interesting point, why is it that this new Minister of Health as well as the old one's totally ignore the importance of hospice and palliative care for cancer patients? These [...]

Read the full comment patients are often treated at home or in a private facility and the state won't give them a dime. They write these people off as if they don't exist and all they want to do is to die with a little dignity and to be pain free, is that too much to ask for the people that helped to build this country and have contributed to the health care fund? These are not homeless people that are just looking for a place to live, they are people with deseases that need proper attention and are again totally ignored by the state.
Hospice and pallitive care are reconized around the world as an end of life care that is extremely important and Bulgaria should wake up and give these people the dignity that they deserve. They want to put all these efforts into transplants that cost 100 times more then taking care of a hospice patient. The funny part is that most of the doctors in Bulgaria don't know anything about transplants, it just sounded good to the powers that be so now they want to be a part of it.
With regards to hospice's the Health Dept wants all of these unresonable guidlines for hospice centers that require only 2 patients per room and many other unresonable requirments and all to receive 26lv a day for the care of the patients. So bascially they have written off these people and won't give them the dignity to die in a facility where they are given the proper care they not only need but require. So now the families of these patients must pay out of pocket to receive the care for there loved ones in order for them to die with some dignity. I think the Ministry of Health should get it's priorities together and take a look at these people that will die at home with hardly any care except by some doctors that have deicated there lives to the treatment of such patients and for barly any money because the state has written them off as expentable and useless. Shame on them!!!

"Nanev pointed to the lack of reforms in hospital care as another factor for the nagging deficit, adding that 1.6 million more people are now hospitalised, a "serious" increase given that the population is not growing and no new diseases have been registered."

Well, if the population is not growing one would think that naturally more people would be hospitalized.
Not growing means aging in practical terms.

The other bit here is that when we in BG talk about "Healthcare Reform" we indeed mean some type of privatization, as opposed [...]

Read the full comment to in the US where they mean some form of governmental control.
I think it's very interesting how this is a perfect case of the drunk looking for his keys under the street light, because he couldn't see well where he really lost them.
The fact is that as treatment and drugs get more sophisticated and effective, the cost rises.
The American lefties are in the process of using this fact, to institute what they would've liked to see in a first place regardless - more Socialism...

Have fun, where we are coming from!