augustus

Yeah Ok. And you also knew at 4 or 5 that Santa Claus and the tooth fairy weren't real.

Au contraire. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health has issued new "guidelines" advising that surgery is now ok at 15. What a nightmare.

This is absolutely despicable, it's literally child abuse. Why would anyone argue that it’s okay to launch a minor right into menopause (what happens with a full hysterectomy) over dysphoria? Even hormones and puberty blockers have serious side effects and can cause damage in so many ways. Someone not old enough to choose their bedtime, but they can choose their gender?

So.....80% of the country is fascists, homophobes and white supremacists.

The next step would b\e no parental consent anyway.

A minor should not get "gender-affirming surgery" with or without parental consent. This is an absolute nightmare. They can decide at 18, period. How idiotic. Let them be kids and decide when they're 18!

Restricting a choice or way of thinking is not about rights. If that were the case then those who identify as sovereign citizens should also have their rights, wants, desires and ways of life granted as well. Such as being able to squat or claim property that isn't rightfully theirs. No license plates, registration or paying taxes. They have just as much belief in who they are or want to be as anyone else even as asinine as it sounds. But No. We can't go that route though because then you create a whole new set of rules for one subset that takes away from the rights or societal way of life for others. Basic Human rights for all equally, Yes. Not the right to be whatever you want to say or believe that you are that trounces the rights of others.

We, as Americans, cannot legally buy Alcohol until 21, drive a car until 16, buy it tobacco 21, vote 18 yrs old, legally purchase a firearm 21 yrs and you are trying to tell me it’s ok for a kid, a child, to be able to have life altering, sex changes and hormone therapies before any of those ages??? Those are forever changes and it is not right. Period. What they do when they are of a legal, established adult age is their business, but not as a child.

Exaggerate much? Doing surgery on minors to change their sex is utterly ridiculous and has NOTHING to do with "equal rights". They can make their own decisions when they reach 18. The gay community has been opposed to conversion therapy for minors to turn them straight but having surgery on minors and rearranging organs is OK! Give me a break.

Preferred stocks offer some really good yields but the 2 main drawbacks are no capital gain potential and interest rate risk (if interest rates the value of preferred shares usually fall, but vice versa too).

Agreed. Of course, gay bashing still exists but the hatred against homosexuals has diminished greatly over the years.

The vast majority of people are just be and let be. Some of these "social controversies" are outrageous and are not making "gay being more socially acceptable". Teaching K-3 kids that perhaps you were born in the wrong body or that we should build hundreds of thousands of bathrooms to accommodate the trans people is just so ridiculous. The backlash is enormous and plays right into the hands of the evangelicals and radical right.

I find the attitudes against smoking fascinating. Weed smoke stinks worse and is mind altering. The pot grown today has 10x the THC levels of the weed from 30 years ago and is causing psychosis and schizophrenia, but that's cool.

I still smoke old fashioned cigarettes. How on Earth can you drink a cup of coffee, or have a beer or do a #2 without a cigarette?? E cig usage is soaring. The tobacco companies aren't going anywhere.

I'm pissed that they are stopping the DVD envelopes in September.

Why is this even a crime? If he was told to stop sending pics but continued to, then it would be harassment. Or if he sent them to minors. I guess it may be like exposing yourself in public, I don't know.

A friend told me he mailed old, matured savings bonds about 2 weeks ago to be redeemed and direct deposited into his bank account. It is taking up to 3 months for the government to process this request because they are so backed up.

As a New Yorker that T-bill rate is actually equivalent to about a 5.30% - 5.40% yield from a bank CD.

That's not true.

I agree. The problem is when most of these people get into trouble they don't blame themselves, they blame others. Like the government or their spouses or family that won't bail them out, etc. Their own frivolous behavior is never the culprit.

I'm not surprised at all. Nearly 60% of the population lives paycheck to paycheck, but people still find the money for concerts, expensive clothes, cars and drugs. It is amazing. I believe it has been like this for a long time. With inflation stubbornly high, 58% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck: CNBC survey WWW.CNBC.COM With inflation stubbornly high, more than half of all Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, according to a new report.

US 3-MO 5.117 +0.016 US 4-MO 5.19 -0.002 US 6-MO 5.057 -0.002 US 1-YR 4.784 +0.023 US 2-YR 4.179 +0.009 US 3-YR 3.884 +0.008 US 5-YR 3.661 +0.021 US 7-YR 3.614 +0.02 US 10-YR 3.568 +0.023 The above are the closing Treasury rates for Friday, April 21, 2023. The bond market is expecting lower inflation/recession and hence the inverted yield curve with long rates lower than the short-term rates.

Especially since, I'm pretty sure, there is no blanket deposit insurance at First Republic over the 250k limit as was granted to SVB.

Do not pay or negotiate with this pos at all!! You tell him that you have gone to your lawyer and the lawyer recommends going to the police/FBI with the evidence of blackmail. He will back off and move onto someone else. Do not show any fear.

There has always been a mismatch between assets and liabilities in the banking system. The banks since the 1930's have been able to borrow from the Fed and the FHLB when they needed cash in a hurry and would put their bonds up as collateral. But it's a bit deeper than that now because 1) their bond holdings have lost value because of the rise in interest rates the last year and 2) many of their loans are going bad.