Hunter  GWPB wrote:
I came within inches of experiencing this problem first hand (leg), yesterday.

It would have seriously messed up my day had I put my foot down.







Kinda think the model might not want to shoot at this location.

Holy crap!!!!!    Not gonna lie I'd have peed my pants.

MN Photography wrote:

Robb Mann wrote:
It's not like you can shop around. Or wait for next-day shipping from Amazon. Supply and demand.

Well, that's exactly it.  Anytime you have a for profit business serving clients with an inelastic demand for the service, you are going to get price gouging.   I have a friend who lives in a rural area who had a medial emergency that the local hospital was not comfortable dealing with.  They told her that she would have to be helicoptered to a hospital 30 miles away.  They gave her no choice about it.  She got a bill for $40,000 for the helicopter.  Her insurance wouldn't pay and she hired an attorney and got the bill knocked down to $10,000.  Among the overcharges were a gouging fee from the rural hospital for picking up the phone to call the medevac company. 

Imagine if something like fire protection was run like healthcare.  You wake up at 2AM to find your house burning, call the fire department and they come out and give you an estimate of $50,000 for putting out the fire.  They also offer to rescue your children in the upstairs bedroom for an additional $30,000.  You'd shop around for other fire services while your house is burning, wouldn't you?[/quote

Moments like that is why i'm glad I live in nz.

Allen Carbon wrote:

MN Photography wrote:

Robb Mann wrote:
It's not like you can shop around. Or wait for next-day shipping from Amazon. Supply and demand.

Well, that's exactly it.  Anytime you have a for profit business serving clients with an inelastic demand for the service, you are going to get price gouging.   I have a friend who lives in a rural area who had a medial emergency that the local hospital was not comfortable dealing with.  They told her that she would have to be helicoptered to a hospital 30 miles away.  They gave her no choice about it.  She got a bill for $40,000 for the helicopter.  Her insurance wouldn't pay and she hired an attorney and got the bill knocked down to $10,000.  Among the overcharges were a gouging fee from the rural hospital for picking up the phone to call the medevac company. 

Imagine if something like fire protection was run like healthcare.  You wake up at 2AM to find your house burning, call the fire department and they come out and give you an estimate of $50,000 for putting out the fire.  They also offer to rescue your children in the upstairs bedroom for an additional $30,000.  You'd shop around for other fire services while your house is burning, wouldn't you?[/quote

Moments like that is why i'm glad I live in nz.

Quotes are fucked again.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
And many did their damnedest to stop ACA. Which is still just a bandaid towards fixing the big  problem.

Sadly there is no legal or ethical cure for stupidity.

Tony From Syracuse wrote:
I just thought of something, I will have to google it...I wonder if cowboy boots genesis was in protection from rattle snakes in the old west.

I would be interested to see your google results, but I am going to say, not really.  Anybody that worked a horse wore boots long before the American West was settled by Europeans.  Statues and portraits of Revolutionary War men, all had boots.   I think what would have lead to the creation of cowboy boots was the work required.  The pointed toes and pointed heel is a result of working the horses.  Though they still used spurs.

Wye wrote:
They know you have no real choice so they take advantage.

Part of this problem is directly related to the amount of regulation in the US, Canada, etc.

Let me use rabies as an example.

In the USA, most hospitals give you only one choice when it comes to rabies treatment. It is a fairly new treatment protocol. And I have been told (do not know if this is true) that it is the only protocol approved for use in the USA.

In Thailand, hospitals give multiple choices, from a protocol that was common 30 years ago, to the protocol that followed that one, to the protocol currently offered in the USA. The older treatments require more shots, and at least one requires the shots in the stomach.... but it works. And the older protocols are much cheaper.

Hunter  GWPB wrote:
I would be interested to see your google results, but I am going to say, not really.  Anybody that worked a horse wore boots long before the American West was settled by Europeans.  Statues and portraits of Revolutionary War men, all had boots.   I think what would have lead to the creation of cowboy boots was the work required.  The pointed toes and pointed heel is a result of working the horses.  Though they still used spurs.

went to the wikipedia page, there really is no mention of snakes, it all appears to be relating to having rugged footware for the environment and riding horses... 

from wikipedia

"If a rider fell from a horse but had a boot get caught in the stirrup, there arose a very great risk that the horse could panic and run off, dragging the cowboy, causing severe injury and possible death.

"The tall leather shaft of the boot helped to hold the boot in place in the absence of lacing. The tall shaft, comfortably loose fit, and lack of lacing all were additional features that helped prevent a cowboy from being dragged since his body weight could pull his foot out of the boot if he fell off while the boot remained stuck in the stirrup. While mounted, the shaft also protected the lower leg and ankle from rubbing on the stirrup leathers, as well as fending off brush and thorns, particularly if also worn with chaps or chinks. While dismounted, the shaft helped protect the leg and foot from rocks, brush, thorns, and rattlesnakes. In wet weather or creek crossings, the high tops helped prevent the boot from filling with mud and water."