Internal conflict and moral decisions.

[Sunny]

I can kind of understand the pain he's going through.  My front 8 teeth are veneers (or however it's spelt) and I couldn't hardly eat for over a week from sheer pain.

I'd donate if I could, but college is sucking away all of my finances.

[Shadrok]

I wish I had some money I could send but I don't.

Did post their link in my FA journal, just hope it helps.

[Blazehawk]

I'm going to donate what I can. That's just horrible...I want to help more, but I'm not sure how...if anyone ever gives me a job, I'll donate more though.

[skwerly]

I've had various health insurance and medical bill problems over the years, and while I can't help with donations, I might be able to help with a suggestion or three.

First off, if I'm reading this thread right, it sounds like y'all are going about it backwards.  You're trying to raise the money first, then get the medical help.  Switch it around. 

He needs to find a place that won't demand a copay up front.  When it comes time to pay the bill on checkout, he tells 'em that his insurance is always making mistakes and he would prefer to wait for the EoB (Explanation of Benefits) to arrive so he can get it corrected before commiting to the final bill.  If they insist on something, he can give 'em a $25 or $50 token offering. 

This will give him time to gather funds and donations while getting better rather than sicker.

If insurance decides he's not covered or won't pay out for some reason, he can appeal.  He can take it to court or arbitration.  He can make small monthly payments for 20 years.  He can make a deal with the hospital (or whatever) for a reduced bill.  As a last resort, he can file bankruptcy to have that bill and others written off.  If he doesn't want to screw the hospital, he can pay by credit card and then write off the card bills with a bankruptcy.

Lots of ways to deal with the problem, some of them somewhat unethical.  But that's the American way.  The main point is as some have already suggested:  Health first, finance later.

Good luck.

[fesworks]

Well, in my state, Minnesota, .. Or at least ot the Hospital in my town, if you make any sort of payment, even as little as $1 a month, it will not be sent to claims, but might still show as debt.

In any case, hope things work out alright.

[Forestcat]

*mew* That sounds horrible, I've already read about it on the Jack page as well! I enjoy his comic, I think I shall have to donate *something* anyhow. *digs around in her bank account*

Y'know the nice thing about having fans though is that they always come through for ya. Amber has a lot of fans around here and I'm sure Dave has a lot of fans around all of his hangouts too. I've faith. ^^

[Rafe]

I just wanted to come back and thank everyone here again.  The response to help Dave has been  amazingly generous.  They have more than half of what they need to get Dave the procedures he needs, and already have been able to get started setting him up with an oral surgeon.  He's going to be getting some painful work done, but at least he'll be getting better now, and it's you guys who are responsible, you friends from DMFA, Jack, and Gaia.  Seriously -  without you, I don't know what would happen.  They're going to need some more, but I really think it can happen now.

I've seen the list of everyone who's sent in contributions and a bunch of them are from you DMFA forumites and fans.  Not everyone can send in a big amount, but so many people sent in what they could, just a few dollars at a time, that they made a real difference. 

I've been around a while,  but I don't think I've ever seen such a generous bunch of people in my life, helping someone they've probably never even met.  Some people might think you're a little too trusting -  I think you are gift from heaven.  I don't think I'll forget this display generosity if I live to be a hundred.

  Thanks,

    Rafe

[Aridas]

I've known these guys to jump in with money for much less serious things so why not? If I wasn't saving up for moving out i'd have plenty to spare, myself... but I can't x.x

The way it looks though, my help might not even be needed... Everyone's working so hard to help..

[icarus]

i say make like a nice person and donate. i sent in what i could affourd.

i imagine that a lot of people don't have paypal or means to send in money. for those people i suggest doing things like, oh, i dunno...writing short fanfics on commission or drawing on commission and sending the money on to dave. writing silly poems about people for pennies, etc etc. some of you do sprite editing, or maybe silver would do a special run of yappies for a dollar each in donations to dave or something. there's lots of ways to raise money.

also i like this emoticon.

[Amber Williams]

Dancing zombie-kun is full of win.

But anyways, judging from the site it looks like the donation drive is nearing its final stages.(woo!)  All thats left is one extraction and then onto the most important part....THE DRUGS!

urgh...I dunno about you guys, but when I had my wisdom teeth taken out, those lil vicaden(I spell bad) pills were like magical little pain lifesavers.  I hate to think what it would be like having to go through a full extraction without any pain meds. O_o'

But seriously...I want to thank everyone who has sent in support or at least was a decent person over the whole situation.   It means a lot to me, and as Rafe said, its a type of kindness that will likely live on years in memory for many.

[Boog]

Man... That rather sucks. Wish I could donate, and that if I could I could donate enough to be noticable. Hope it works out for him.

[Dakata]

I wish I could donate too.

But if my parents found out I was reading a webcomic that was rated MA, they'd kill me. >> Hell, they'd kill me just for reading Vinci and Arty. Friggin' evil parents.

[Aridas]

Those insane people who donated $500 and $666 should probably considered heroes... I think that's a hefty chunk of cash to put in, for anyone...

[Rowne]

I agree on that count.

I wish I could actually keep my internet connection and throw that kind of money at a charity.  They deserve any praise they get.

[topher chee]

grr....so this explains yesterdays "internal problem" dont ya just hate `em

[Meech]

I just sent Dave what I could afford right now.

I too have been the victim of bad circumstance.  The short version.  I was on a motorcycle and I was hit from behind by a large pickup truck.  I have one warning about Vicodin.  I was given a prescription for a full month at two pills per day.  Total number of pills, 60.  I took the little pink pills for four days.  ONLY FOUR FREAKING DAYS!!!  Total number of pills taken so far, 7.  I missed taking one pill.  I wasn't hurting too bad at the time and decided to just wait till that evening to take the next one as scheduled.  It started to get late and I started to feel kind of weird.  I'd developed the shakes, chills, I was feeling paranoid and had broken out into a cold sweat.  I felt like crap.  It was totally scary.  I took my next pill and all of the symptoms that I just described went away in a matter of minutes.  I felt better so fast that I realized what I had been feeling was withdrawal, and that the druggie had just gotten his fix.  It was at that point that I decided to tough it out and I quit the magic little pink pills cold turkey.  Total number of pills taken from the bottle, 8.  I flushed the other 52.

I leave this warning because I know that Vicodin is a common prescription for oral surgery patients.  I also know that it is one of the most common prescription addictions.  Dave is going to have a lot of work done and is therefor going to get a lot of pills.  I read Jack all of the time.  I would hate for Dave's recovery to be marred by something as stupid accidental addiction.

[Vidar]

<rant mode: ON>

RARGH!

I got my credit card today, however, paypal isn't accepting it.
It also states that my phone number doesn't have a valid area code, my zipcode is incorrect, and I didn't select a state, because I don't live in the states.
I LIVE IN EUROPE! I DON'T HAVE A ZIPCODE IN U.S. FORMAT! I DONT LIVE IN A STATE! MY PHONE NUMBER DOESN'T HAVE A U.S. AREA CODE! FYI, EUROPE IS NOT PART OF THE U.S. OF A.!

Does anyone know how to work around this retarded interface?

<rant mode: OFF>

[Tapewolf]

I got my credit card today, however, paypal isn't accepting it.
It also states that my phone number doesn't have a valid area code, my zipcode is incorrect, and I didn't select a state, because I don't live in the states.

Just checking, you are going through www.paypal.nl and not www.paypal.com, aren't you?  I never had any problems with it, but it was a long time ago so I can't remember quite what I did when I signed up.

[Vidar]

I got my credit card today, however, paypal isn't accepting it.
It also states that my phone number doesn't have a valid area code, my zipcode is incorrect, and I didn't select a state, because I don't live in the states.

Just checking, you are going through www.paypal.nl and not www.paypal.com, aren't you?  I never had any problems with it, but it was a long time ago so I can't remember quite what I did when I signed up.

I got my credit card today, however, paypal isn't accepting it.
It also states that my phone number doesn't have a valid area code, my zipcode is incorrect, and I didn't select a state, because I don't live in the states.

Just checking, you are going through www.paypal.nl and not www.paypal.com, aren't you?  I never had any problems with it, but it was a long time ago so I can't remember quite what I did when I signed up.

I clicked on the link on the donation site. Don't they all refer to the same site?
After all, I put my country of origin in the form. Why would they allow you to input a country, if the only country you can use is the USA?

* /me == software tester *
* /me logs issue *

Also, why the .nl?

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

because paypal runs different automated checks when you sign up, depending on which country you're in.

If you're in the states, it asks for valid data for the states. If you're in the UK, it asks for valid data for the UK. etc, etc.

[Tapewolf]

I clicked on the link on the donation site. Don't they all refer to the same site?
After all, I put my country of origin in the form. Why would they allow you to input a country, if the only country you can use is the USA?

That will work if you're already signed up, because it will redirect to the appropriate site when you log in.  But for creating an account, you should use the one specific to your country.

Also, why the .nl?

I could have sworn you were in the Netherlands.

[Rafe]

I just checked on things this morning on the Save Dave website, and it looks like the fund has officially met the $10,000 goal (although I'm sure that, for those who had to wait to contribute, more will still be very welcome).  I'm still amazed, but I guess my faith in you guys was justified.  Katie has put up a very nice thank-you, which reads in part:

When I awoke this morning (August 18th), tallied the latest donations, and sent what was in paypal off to the bank, I realize that this was it. Thanks to all of you, it was done. Just thirteen days ago, we were wondering how we'd ever afford something like this, and today, you have all helped to create a miracle.

I cannot possibly express how much your support means to us. This is not something temporary that you've helped to pay for that will be forgotten in time, this is something life-changing that will be with Dave for the rest of his days.

When Dave starts to put on weight and stops being malnourished due to his problems, we're going to think of all of you.

When Dave can actually eat an entire meal without having to stop because his mouth hurts him, we're going to think of all of you.

When Dave's health problems start to diminish due to his body not having to work overtime fighting off infections, we're going to think of all of you

When the pile of ER bills we're currently paying off vanishes someday and doesn't come back, we're going to think of all of you.

This was a tremendous thing all of you did, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Your donations, whether they were $5 or whether they were $500, will all work together to save a life. I am not exaggerating, I am not blowing sunshine, I am serious. The next time any of you feel you've not done anything significant, I want you to remember that you helped save someone else's life. It may sound a little cheesy to you, but its the truth. No matter how insignificant you may have felt your donation was, it made a difference.

Read the rest at the Save Dave site here:
http://jadephoenix.org/karma/savedave.html

You have restored my faith in at least some of humanity.
Thanks,

  Rafe

[Falcarthum]

For those that donated and gave support:

[Paladin Sheppard]

Excellent! Way to go everybody! Good luck Dave hope it all goes smoothly. 

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

For those that donated and gave support:

You crack me up. :-)

[icarus]

rock on. XO dave lives for the win.

[Netami]

I wonder how long before they see another money post on their forums, heh.

[Gabi]

Congratulations! I'm sorry I couldn't do more than spread the word, but I'm really glad you've reached the goal. I hope he gets better soon.

[Damien Holtz]

Happy Endings ftw.

[ShadesFox]

Yay!  Glad to see that the goal was reached and Dave will be fine!