VA: problem is not the government

Many have been raising complaints about service at many Veterans Administration centers, and many of those blame President Obama and his administration.  But what critics overlook is that they got what they wanted: a smaller government.

How is there a smaller government?  By outsourcing management to private companies.  In the case of the Veteran Affairs Clinic in Hibbing, Minnesota, it is managed by Cincinnati-based Sterling Medical Associates.  See “Elected leaders meet with Hibbing VA workers over scheduling concerns”. http://www.startribune.com/politics/statelocal/283912201.html

According to many of these same critics the purpose of a company is to generate profits.  In other words, good service is secondary.  Some companies do provide good service as a means of increasing profits.  Too many others will short-change good service if it means costs are cut and profits raised.

The sole purpose of government is to provide service.  Sure, this gets side-tracked too, but it is far easier to bring that leviathan back to its purpose than it is to get profit-driven companies to put service first.

Insurance: good claim service, roundabout technical support

When I hit the bear in June (http://magree.blogspot.com/2014/06/bear-with-me-as-i-am-mad-and-sad.html) I received prompt and courteous service from the online representative to the adjuster to the auto body shop.

When I tried to find where the iPhone App to access my information, I had to go through a cycle of three messages.  On the envelope from some recent documents, there was an ad to have insurance ID cards on my phone.  “Download it today in the Apple App Store or Google Play.”  I could not find it in the Apple App Store no matter what search words I used.

I sent email to the insurance company.  The first reply was to supply my insurance ID and phone number.  I supplied those and received the reply “available in… the Apple store…”

Surely she couldn’t mean a physical Apple Store.  I tried iTunes and bingo!  I sent that news back and received no reply, not even a thank-you for the clarification.

In 2013 there were some rave reviews for the App but the only 2014 reviewer claimed it would not accept his ID and password.  I downloaded it anyway.

None of the screens showed me my insurance ID card, no matter how many promising links I tried.  Then I figured I had to click the lock in the upper right had corner.  Then I had a screen asking for my username and password.  Now I could navigate to copies of the IDs for both cars.  But, oh, it was so easy to misinterpret where the navigation triangles would take me.  Often I wound up back at the log-in screen.

All-in-all I would say that the app was more inconvenient than digging around in the glove compartment for the ID card.  When I hit the bear, I think I found our insurance papers in less time that it would take me to log on to the app.  Also, I don’t need an app to call in a claim; I have the claim number in my contact list.  I can find that phone number in about the same time as I could find the app icon on the right screen.

Today's round: corporations beat government on inefficiency

This morning I went to my medicare.gov to ask that I receive "Medicare & You" online rather than the big fat paper tome we never read.  I supplied all the information asked and was told I couldn't be found!  There was a help number I could have called, but I don't care to call for help because I never know how long I'll have to wait.

I downloaded the paid version of Evernote sometime ago, but iTunes never told me a download was in progress or completed.  It appears that the paid version is only a switch setting to enable more features.  I have the paid version working.  I sent questions about this to both Evernote and iTunes.  I was charged and then uncharged for it by Apple.  The iTunes representative keeps coming back with the same "I don't understand message", even after I answer that the question is settled.

I tried to set my iPhone up as a hotspot with Consumer Cellular.  My iPhone gives me the choice of calling Consumer Cellular via 611 or going to Consumer Cellular's website.  When I get there I can find nothing about setting up a hotspot.  I sent email and received a reply today.  Essentially it said I should call.

I was notified of a new iTunes version today.  After I downloaded it, many things no longer worked as before.  Apps are marked as having updates even when I have already updated them on my iPhone or iPad.  Podcasts are duplicated on my iPhone.  No longer can I sync a device just by having it on anywhere in the house.  I have to hook it up to my Mac with a USB cable.  I'm going to have to spend an hour or so in the Apple Support Community to find out what's going on.

Good news on the government side.  Several weeks ago I received a notice that my commercial driver's license would no longer be valid unless I had a physical exam before January 31.  Since I haven't driven any commercial vehicle in over 13 years, I decided to give it up.  I went to the County Service Office to have it replaced.  The latest number being served was 16 and I drew 19.  A guy who drew 18 groused about the wait!  I filled out a renewal application, watched as the clerks explained to their current customers various details, took pictures, and gave eye tests.  When my turn came, the friendly intern and her mentor explained the I did not need to reapply.  All I needed to do was sign an affidavit that I would not be driving a commercial vehicle.  No charge.  Smiles all around.

The simple done with difficulty

Years ago I bought a Timex Ironman from a jewelry store: a $50 watch from a store that would rather sell me a $500 watch.  It is one of those multi-function watches, and I think I used every one of them.  Also it is very accurate.  I think that it would gain about three seconds a month.  I was very annoying in telling people that whatever clock they were using was off.

Twice the battery wore down and I went to the same store to get a new battery.  The second time the clerk was not too happy about replacing it.

The watch is starting to get old and most of its functions are on my iPhone.  The best feature is that I don't need to dig in my pocket to check the time, I just hold up my wrist and pull my sleeve back.

Then suddenly, on my way to our cabin, the screen went blank.  At some point when I didn't want to be outside, I decided to pull the battery out myself and later buy a new one at Walgreen's.  I did have a set of small screwdrivers and set to.

I got all the screws out but the back wouldn't come off.  I had to repeatedly slide a pen knife under the back to loosen it.  Once I got it off I was confronted with a mechanism I didn't understand.  There were two tabs with arrows closely that indicated that they should be pushed towards the center.  It never budged.

I gave up and put it back together.  I think I only dropped one of the tiny screws once.

Yesterday I took it to Walgreen's and two friendly clerks worked on opening it up.  The first deferred to another who more experienced.  The second easily exposed the battery, went to the rack to get a replacement, put it in, and closed everything up, without dropping a thing.  She proceeded to reset the time, but I said I could do that later.

My cost, $6.25 for the battery!

When I got home, I tried resetting the time, but I couldn't get the next button to work.  Hoo boy!  Shall I just give up on the watch and purchase a cheap, time only watch?

Today, I thought if I took the mechanism out, then I could push on the next button directly rather than the button on the case.

I successfully took the watch apart again.  I don't have any small screwdriver at home, but I was able to use the blade of my pen knife as a screwdriver.  I was right that pushing the next button directly did work.  I reset the watch to the current time and proceeded to put it back together.

I got three screws in, losing them only twice on the floor.  The fourth screw just wouldn't stay upright in the hole.  I don't know how many times it fell to the floor, a floor with a rug whose nap is bigger than the screw!

I asked my wife to try with her smaller and more dextrous fingers.  She too dropped the screw a few times.  I went to the cold, cold garage to get a magnetic wand from my tool box.  I made a swipe over the floor and heard a tiny click.  There was the screw.

After a few more tries I was able to get the last screw started in the last hole.  Of course, it didn't seem to set right.  I loosened the other screws, tightened the last screw, and then tightened them all.

Well, I hadn't set the time as exact as I wanted.  But guess what, the outside next button worked!

I reset the time as close as I could to the time displayed on my laptop, a time that is synced with a standard clock somewhere.  I can't quite look at both times easily, but I would say that my watch is two seconds or less behind the actual time.

I'll see how much it diverges in a month or two.

Once again I can be a time pain; "that wall clock is off by…"

Good service news

Geek Squad sent me email the other day with a link to a status page for the repair of the laptop that I spilled coffee on.  I saw that it was shipped on Saturday.  Today I saw from the UPS tracking number that it had been delivered to a loading dock in Kentucky this morning at about 8:30.  Later the status page said it had been received at 10:57

I think there may be a discrepancy between the UPS time and the Geek Squad time.  The first is using local time and the latter is using customer's time.

Anyhow, as the afternoon progressed, the messages were needed a part at 1:42, part in stock at 1:43, and work completed at 3:16.  I supposed I'll get a status tomorrow that it was shipped, and I will probably be able to pick it up Friday, maybe Saturday.

This incident has sold me on comprehensive coverage for more expensive items.  I don't know what the repair would have cost me without the coverage.  And as I get older and more clumsy, this kind of coverage seems like a very good idea.

Netflix comes out ahead again on customer service and trust

We put a Netflix DVD in a mailbox outside a post office on Sunday, October 14.  On Saturday, October 20, it was still listed as not returned.  I clicked on a button about returns, noted that I had returned it on October 14, clicked that it was a street mail box, gave my ZIP code, clicked OK or whatever, and poof!  The DVD was no longer in my account as not returned!!!

We thought about the problem a bit and wondered if it was because we opened the mailer at the wrong end.  That cut off the closing tab from the return envelope.  My wife jury-rigged a closure.  Maybe that closure didn't hold and the package wound up getting jammed in a sorting machine.  I also realized that the post office where we returned the DVD does not have the same ZIP code as we do.

I called Netflix and within two minutes was speaking with Travis of the cheery voice.  Essentially he said, "Don't worry.  It's not your problem.  It will probably turn up."

I know there are lots of company's that take the customer's word about a problem and make amends quickly.  But there are also many company's that don't trust their customers any farther than they can throw them.  The former are companies that treat their employees with respect; the latter are companies that create rule-burdened bureaucracies.

Three cheers for independent stores

A twist switch on a kitchen wall light wouldn't stay in the on position.  I kept putting off looking at it, but finally did last week.  We turned off the circuit breaker for the kitchen and I disassembled the light.  Hurray, there was enough wall wire to reconnect it.

I took the switch to Denny's Hardware for a replacement.  Denny Moran, the former owner, who now spends his time on the floor, was in.  He said he didn't have exactly the same thing but something close.  The difference was the new one had screws to attach wires rather then wires soldered to it.  Close enough and in fact even better.

This afternoon I reassembled the light and it works fine.

Now if I'd gone to a big box hardware/lumber store, I would have wandered the aisles to find the right shelf.  If I didn't find what I needed, I might wait five minutes for a clerk.  The clerk may or may not know if the store had the part.  I might have paid a few cents less for the part, but I would have used up the savings in the gas to get to the box box store.

As it was, I parked right at the door of the local hardware store, I was waited on right away, I got exactly what I needed, and was in and out in less time that it would have taken me to walk from my car to the correct aisle, walk to the cashier, and walk back to my car.

Three cheers for the dying breed, the local hardware store.  Two bigger ones have closed in the last five or six years in Duluth.  Killed not by policies in Washington, but by big box stores.

And maybe by local politicians who are always trying to attract businesses to town.  Often those new businesses put local businesses out of business.  The key to business success in a city is not to attract businesses but to attract people.  People start businesses.  Businesses don't start people.

Why do people pick on the Post Office?

For some time it has seemed the fashion to claim the United States Post Office is a bad example of government services, that it is run by the greedy mail carriers' union, and that it should pay its own way.

From my experience, the United States Post Office has been run effectively, provided friendly and courteous service, and provided an essential public good.

I have often found that mail deposited one day is often delivered the next day within the state and often delivered within three days within the lower 48.  It almost always arrives in the same condition as it was deposited.

A case in point is the delivery of DVDs from Netflix.  I put a DVD in a box on Sunday, next scheduled pickup was 12:30 on Monday, at 2:00 a.m. on Tuesday Netflix sent me email that it had received my DVD, and on Wednesday around 10:00 a.m. I had my next selection.

Granted the return address for Netflix is Duluth.  But what would happen if the processing center was closed in Duluth and all local mail had to first make a 300-mile round-trip to the Twin Cities?

If the Post Office is so inefficient, why does UPS use USPS for the last-mile delivery of small packages?  Several times I've gotten small orders delivered by our mail carrier, but the shipper had originally given the order to UPS.  This hand-off happens because it is inefficient for UPS to deliver such small packages door-to-door.

Some have complained about surly counter service at the Post Office.  My general experience is that counter personnel treat every customer as the only customer.  They give alternative shipping costs and conditions and always ask "Anything else?"

The Postal Service seems to be the only government agency that Congress expects to pay its own way.  Is Congress going to insist that every Interstate highway be a toll road?  Is Congress going to insist that every homeowner whose house has been saved by U.S. Forest Service firefighters pay a fee?

The U.S. Constitution states: "Congress shall have the power … to establish Post Offices and post Roads."  The Constitution mentions nothing about how post offices and post roads should be paid for.  In fact, in recognition that newspapers were important for an informed populace, an early Congress determined that newspapers should be sent at a lower rate than letters.

The benefits and the costs of the Postal Service should not be examined as a direct cost/benefit problem but as a system cost/benefit problem.  It is not a question if the revenue of the Postal Services is meeting its costs, but it is a question of what benefits would not be realized if postal service were cut back.  For example, if all Duluth mail had to go to the Twin Cities to be processed, would the Netflix office in Duluth close, putting some local people out of work?

Back on the air

I took my MacBook Pro to Geek Squad in Best Buy this morning.  The good news?  I got to talk to someone within five minutes.  The bad news?  Within ten minutes the technician determined it was the mother board.  She said it would cost $500 - $1000 and they would have to send it out.

Now comes dither time.  Pay that and have something else go wrong in a few months.  Buy a new one and have a warranty for another three years.  Also, could my data be moved to a new computer?  Yes, for $100.  Would they recycle the computer?  Yes.  What about the security of my data on the hard-drive.  They could take it out and I could get a case to make it a stand-alone hard-drive.

OK, I sprang for a new computer and put it into the Geek Squad's tender hands.  The tech thought I could have it by Friday afternoon.  I whipped out my credit card, paid up, and left.

More dithering on planning the weekend.  We wanted to be at the cabin tomorrow.  Did I want to wait to Sunday to pick up my computer?  Dither, dither!

Mid-afternoon I got a call that my computer was ready.  Jump in car and pick it up.

Now I am a happy camper.  I just noticed that this one is a lot quieter and a lot cooler.  I wonder if the heat of the other one destroyed the mother board over time.  Could be.

I have also gotten back some data or features that stopped working for some reason on the other.  Like Spotlight couldn't find anything anymore on my hard drive.  The index just disappeared and the OS made no attempt to rebuild it, and I could find no magic button to do so.  This afternoon this computer rebuilt the index in an hour or so.

But the worst thing of all were the withdrawal symptoms.  All the writing and reading I do online was not available to me.  I just couldn't get to deep into the newspapers.  But I did read a couple more chapters of a book I've been reading.  See "A word to the wise on compromise".

I still have to figure out which piggy bank to break to pay for all this.