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Debt consolidation san diego

An Introduction to Debt Consolidation in San Diego: Pros and Cons Debt consolidation san diego can be a great way to save money and improve your overall living situation. It can also be a great option if you have high debts, or if you’re struggling to pay your bills on time. There are pros and cons to debt consolidation, so it’s important to understand the different types of offers and how they…

[darcylindbergh]

I've talked a lot about why you should vote AGAINST Trump. No fucking shit, right? But I want to vote FOR something, too.

Kamala Harris hasn't had time yet to put together her platform documents, though no doubt we'll see those in the coming days. But this is a good analysis of where she and Joe Biden stand - and Kamala is more progressive on every front.

Abortion rights: Joe would've restored Roe, but Kamala would expand it to prevent states from limiting access. The pre-clearance measure discussed here is a non-starter but I'd expect Kamala to be looking at how to frame the issue for another try.

Israel and Gaza: it's true that Kamala hasn't broken with Joe publicly about Gaza. However, the article goes on:

Harris hasn’t exactly broken with Biden over the issue. But she has expressed more public sympathy than Biden has over the tens of thousands of Palestinians who have died during Israel’s counterattack. In March, she was one of the earliest high-profile leaders in the administration to call for an immediate temporary cease-fire in March. She also delivered the sharpest rebuke against Israel’s handling of aid flows into Gaza and described the conflict as a “humanitarian catastrophe” for innocent civilians. And privately, she has told Biden and other top officials that the administration needed to take a stronger stance against Netanyahu and focus on a long-term peace to the decades-long conflict, people familiar with her remarks have previously told POLITICO.

Kamala has also declined to preside over the upcoming session of Congress that Netanyahu is speaking at, on invitation by Republicans. She wasn't scheduled to before this, but I think declining now is a clear indicator that her foreign policy will not include the broad support we saw from Joe.

Climte Change: Honestly, the Build Back Better bill was so fucking substantial and incredible I think Kamala would be hard-pressed to do much more. I think Kamala needs to have a solid response ready to the recent Supreme Court decision overturning Chevron, which is the biggest threat to the EPA and other agencies in our lifetimes. (Trump, by the way, would abolish the EPA and the vast majority of environmental protections.)

Student debt relief: She was more progressive earlier, and I expect we'll see many of Joe's relief packages continue expanding.

Similarly:

Free college: Kamala's in full support. I understand Joe's position that students from wealthy families should pay their own way, but I also know from experience that students from wealthy family not immune to financial abuse by controlling parents.

Trade: this is actually a great one to know, because Kamala's hesitance on these trade agreements are related to a) environmental concerns, and b) outsourcing American jobs. Republicans love to lose their shit over outsourcing American jobs. Here's more significance in the trade sphere:

This is going to be a HUGE talking point for your conservative-leaning relatives. Business leaders do not want Trump in office, because the agenda laid out in Project 2025 will make it harder for them to do business - it will make it harder for them to attract global talent, costlier to import and export, and stunt economic growth. Do you know that "undecided" voter who votes red for "fiscal responsibility?" This your talking point. Kamala's platform spends, but in such a way that it will stimulate economic growth and solidify the US as a business leader worldwide.

Artificial Intelligence: I'll let Kamala speak for herself.

“History has shown, in the absence of regulation and strong government oversight, some technology companies choose to prioritize profit over the wellbeing of their customers, the safety of our communities, and the stability of our democracies,” Harris said during her visit to the U.K. for November’s AI Safety Summit.  Last July, during the early days of the White House’s mobilization on AI policy, Harris led a meeting among civil rights, labor and consumer protection groups where she rejected the “false choice” between promoting innovation and protecting the public.

The article also talks about data privacy, where Kamala and Joe are very similar, and animal welfare. Historically, Kamala defended animal welfare protections in CA, but remember that as Attorney General, Kamala's job was to defend the law no matter what her personal feelings were. Biden made some strides here, but many will agree not enough - I think this is a place where Kamala has to tread very carefully because progressives are in favor of more stringent animal welfare protections, but agricultural and rural voters are already a demographic inclined to view progressive agendas negatively, feeling forgotten, misunderstood, and passed over in favor of large cities. It's definitely a weakness for the Dems so I wouldn't expect to hear much about animal welfare as a voting issue.

IN SUM

I'm very happy to vote FOR Kamala, not just against Trump. I think she stands to take stronger action on abortion, stronger action on Israel and Gaza, stronger action on college and student debt relief. I think she'll continue work inherited on environmental protections and infrastructure. I think she will do more to protect LGBTQ+ individuals and unions, as well as standing strong on disability reform and criminal justice reform (yes, I know she was a prosecutor, and I also know that she worked on several important CJ reforms during her time as AG - here's an article about her progressive record as DA).

Remember, there's no such thing as a protest vote. The only people who benefit by third-party voting or choosing not to vote are the far-right.

[bobohu4eva]

Hitched (M)

Characters: Baekhyun x Reader

Genre: arranged marriage au, acquaintances(?) to lovers, smut

Summary: Can great sex make an unwanted marriage less shitty? Yes. Yes it can.

Warnings: explicit unprotected sex, semi public (outdoor) sex, edging, Baekhyun has a Big Dick, alcohol consumption

WC: 9.8k apparently I don't know how to keep things brief anymore!

A/N: The majority of this is extremely self-indulgent smut. Oops? You're welcome? It is (mostly) pretty soft though.

Masterlist

“Smile!” 

The cameras flashed, and you put on a show for your friends and family. Your new husband kissed you, and from the outside, everything seemed perfect. 

The perfect dress, makeup, hair, a rich and handsome groom, and everyone you cared about right there with you, celebrating you and the man who was supposed to be the love of your life. It was a lavish ceremony and even more opulent reception, but you couldn't enjoy it at all. 

There was nothing wrong with him, but you and Baekhyun had never even dated, and you definitely never pictured yourself marrying him. You didn't exactly have any reason to dislike him, you'd known him since you were a kid and he was undoubtedly an attractive guy, but marrying him had been your parents idea, not yours. 

As a kid your family had everything you could've imagined, foreign sports cars, numerous vacation homes, a yacht, nannies, tutors, and the list goes on. Your parents' companies had been doing well, and life was easy. 

But that didn't last forever. Now in your early 20’s, you watched as the fortune your family had built for generations was slipping away. 

You were still a teenager when it started and couldn’t fully comprehend what had happened, but it seemed like some combination of bad investments and unpaid debts. Slowly the vacation homes, yacht, and cars were sold off one by one just to pay the bills. As the years passed it seemed that the walls were starting to close in, but on the surface your family, especially your mother, made sure it didn't seem that way. 

The good family name was pretty much all that was left now, and your mother would do anything she could to keep it strong. 

Growing up with generational wealth, your family always associated with others of similar standing, and one of the families you'd grown up with had been particularly close; the Byuns. 

Their only son, Baekhyun, was someone you'd grown up around, but at seven years older than you, you hardly knew each other. He was the perfect rich kid, smart, handsome, and polite, but you still would've much preferred to marry someone you actually loved, or at least were close with. 

“Y/n, you're doing it again.” He whispered in your ear, and you realized that your smile had once again fallen as you zoned out, and his mother was right there in front of you, looking concerned. 

You perked back up, and saw her face flood with relief. You looked at Baekhyun, and he was still smiling for the pictures as well, but you noticed the slightly apologetic look he shot you. 

You really did try to play the part, for the sake of your families, but it was hard. This was supposed to be one of the happiest days of your life, but instead you were putting on an act, hiding how miserable you felt under the facade of it all. 

The worst part was just how happy both his and your families were. Both moms cried, and even your dad teared up a little. You couldn't even blame them, either. It had been a beautiful ceremony, and you and him both looked the part so perfectly. It was everything a high society wedding should be, and on top of that, it was the only thing saving your family from bankruptcy. 

Once pictures were done with it was time for the first dance- in a gazebo decorated with fairy lights and at least a thousand fresh white roses. All you could think was how incredible this would have been, if it was a real wedding, between two people who actually loved each other. Every beautiful thing was a cruel reminder of how you would never get to experience that for yourself.

Baekhyun did a better job than you, and if you hadn't been so depressed, you might've even gotten flustered a few times. He looked incredibly handsome in his tux, smiling sweetly at you as he led you through the dance, a painfully romantic song filling the spring air. He was the picture perfect groom. 

You so badly wanted to hate him for agreeing to all of it, but knew it was more complicated than that. Despite not knowing him very well, you did know how close knit his family was. If his parents really wanted him to do this, he would have a tough time refusing. 

You were closer with his parents than you had ever been with him, and they adored you. Despite not being related, you almost thought of them like your own aunt and uncle. Baekhyun, on the other hand, was like your mysterious older cousin. He always seemed preoccupied with his studies, or later, his job. You'd been around each other at holidays and various parties throughout the years, but he never felt approachable. 

To act so romantically with him felt unbelievably strange. On top of your disappointment at the whole situation it was also just very awkward. The kissing and touching, the dancing, the “loving” looks you shared, they all made your chest feel tight. Baekhyun was obviously very handsome, but the nature behind all of it still got to you. 

Before the wedding Baekhyun had asked you if you would rather not kiss or touch at all, not wanting to make you uncomfortable, but you'd assured him that it was fine. Aside from the parents and those closest to you both, most of the guests had no idea this wedding had been arranged just a few months earlier. If this was going to be believable, you had to make it look real. 

Eventually the dancing ended and the reception began, relieved beyond belief to finally get to have a drink. The champagne made things much easier, and as distant friends and family asked you and your new husband about your love story, you lied with increasing confidence. Baekhyun, too, was leaning into the act more heavily after a few drinks. His arm around you and the way he looked at you made everyone oooh and ahhh, giving them the same story you'd told minutes earlier, about how the two of you realized one day that all of those years you'd been hiding your love for each other, and when you realized that the other felt the same, you couldn't marry quickly enough. 

It was all bullshit of course, but they ate it up, and that was the important thing. You didn't want to think about how embarrassing it would be if an acquaintance or extended family member found out your parents had orchestrated everything. 

Several times people gushed about how lucky the two of you were to have found each other. The bitterness you felt was so intense you hoped dearly that they couldn’t see right through your smile. 

The relief you felt when the guests finally started to clear out, leaving the lavish ballroom for their hotel rooms, was monumental. Eventually the last of them were gone, and since both families insisted, you and Baekhyun retreated to your shared suite. 

Both you and him knew that your families were hoping for a grand baby soon, but that wasn't something you could even consider at the moment. 

“I don't mind sleeping on the couch.” He told you once you were alone with him. 

As nice as the room was, it didn't make sense for him to sleep on the couch. The bed was huge, and the couches weren't long enough for him to fully lay down. You shook your head. 

“Are you sure?” 

You smiled a little at his sweetness, “There's plenty of space for both of us, don't worry about it.” 

And so you and Baekhyun shared the bed on your first night together as husband and wife. You stayed on your side, and he stayed on his, not once touching, even a little. 

It was expected that eventually you and him would buy a house together and live there, but in the meantime, you stayed at that suite together. His parents owned it, and they hoped that living together would help spark something real, not to mention sharing a bed. 

Life after marriage wasn't that different, aside from your living space. You didn't have a job yet, having only graduated college a few months earlier, so you spent much of your time out with friends. As nice as the suite was, it reminded you of your loveless marriage, so you took every chance you could to get away. Baekhyun mostly just worked, keeping to himself, although he always asked you about your day when you’d get home. To his disappointment you kept your responses short. He wanted to try and get to know you better, but you didn't seem interested. 

The truth was, every time you saw him and he tried to talk to you, it made you feel worse. He did absolutely nothing wrong, but he, like the suite, was a painful reminder of your unfortunate fate. The result was you essentially avoiding him, even in your shared space. Baekhyun, however, wasn’t willing to live that way. 

A few weeks passed with hardly any words exchanged between you and him, so he decided to try something different. That evening when you returned to the suite, you were met with a generous dinner spread, the entire room meticulously decorated, and your husband sitting at the center of it all, looking at you bashfully in the candle light.

You were surprised, to say the least. 

He noticed the way you froze up, getting up from the table and taking one hand, guiding you to the table. He pulled out your chair for you, leading you to sit. 

Soon Baekhyun was seated across from you, looking back at you with a slightly unnerving intensity. 

“Why are you doing this?” You asked. 

He took a deep breath, “I want to try to make this work.” 

You raised an eyebrow. 

“I can tell how much you hate being married to me, and I’m sorry. I think we should at least try to make the best of it, though.” 

“Make the best of it?” 

“Well, yes. I mean it could be worse, right? Am I really that bad?” 

You sighed, annoyance taking hold at his nonchalant attitude. “No, Baekhyun, that's not the point, this whole situation just… sucks. Maybe it's stupid but I always thought I'd marry someone I was actually in love with, and it would be one of the best moments of my life. Instead I’m married to someone I barely even know.” 

“I'm sorry, and I know how you feel, I really do. But don't you think we should at least try to get along?” 

After a week of keeping your discontent to yourself, it came bubbling up and you no longer bothered to hide how you felt from him. You let it out, finally letting out what had been plaguing your mind since the wedding.

“Every time I see your face or even this suite for that matter, it makes me feel like shit. I really didn’t want this, and I don’t understand how you seem so unbothered. I mean, are you really not that upset about all this? Why did you agree to it so quickly?” 

“I didn’t have much of a choice either, you know how my parents are. A couple years ago when I still wasn't in a serious relationship of any kind they started floating the idea of setting me up with someone. Your name got mentioned a lot, so I've had more time to come to terms with it, I suppose.”

You scoffed, “So you've known for years that this would happen?” 

“Well, no. It was always just a suggestion, until a few months ago when they told me that they discussed it with your parents and actually wanted to go through with it.” 

Not sure what else to say, you shifted your focus to the plate of food before you, and he did the same. An awkward silence filled the dining room, though you still preferred the silence to his rationalizing of your miserable arrangement. Much to your dismay, however, it wasn’t long until he was again doing just that. 

“A lot of our parents' friends started out like this too, you know. To be fair most of them at least got to date for a while before getting married, but they’re happy now, so why shouldn’t we be able to do the same?”

He wasn’t wrong, this kind of thing wasn’t exactly rare, though you still hadn’t planned to turn out that way yourself. Still, you just stared back at him with a look of annoyance. 

“What I really wanted to talk to you about, the reason I made this dinner for us, I thought maybe, if you would be interested, we could go on a honeymoon. I know that wasn't originally part of the plan, but I think it could be good for us. Anywhere you want to go, I'll make it happen.”

His offer was extremely generous, but still didn’t exactly sound appealing. Being alone with him for days on end wasn’t your idea of fun, you worried that it would even become quite depressing, not to mention awkward. 

“I don't know….” 

“It can be as long or short as you like, and if you decide you hate being around me that much you can come back here anytime. You're my wife now, and I want to be able to make you happy, to make this whole thing work out for us. If there's anything I can do to help us get there, I’ll do it, whatever it takes.” 

When he put it like that, it was hard to argue with him. 

“Anywhere I want? And you’ll really fly me back if I don’t like it?” 

He nodded, “I promise.” 

Though you still had your doubts, you reluctantly agreed. A couple days later you were packing your bags, flying first class to Switzerland, where you'd stay for two weeks at one of his family's vacation homes in the mountains near Lucerne. 

Baekhyun grinned when you told him you wanted to go somewhere with mountains, “excellent choice.” 

The flight had been surprisingly nice. You’d expected that Baekhyun’s family would fly first class, but you were still surprised by just how nice the Swiss airline he’d booked was. You and him essentially had an entire bedroom, and while it was spacious for a plane, that was the closest you’d ever been to him in bed before. Maybe it was just hormones and general touch depravity, but you were all too aware of the way he occasionally brushed up against you as he slept.

When you finally arrived at the house you'd call home for the next couple weeks, walking into the main living area, you understood his excitement at your choice to stay in the mountains. It was nothing short of breathtaking. 

The house itself was beautiful, modern, and impeccably decorated, but you'd seen plenty of nice houses. It was the view that made it so special. The sprawling green valley surrounded by snow capped mountains looked like something out of a fairy tale. 

“My wife has awesome taste.” He said, not missing the way you grimaced, cringing at the word ‘wife’. 

“It still feels super weird hearing you say that.” 

You kept your eyes fixated on the view, and after a moment he was taking your hand and leading you into the master bedroom. Inside on a small table stood a bottle of champagne as well as two glasses, and beyond the sliding glass doors you could see the patio, fit with a hot tub and infinity pool. The king sized bed stood at the center of the room, covered in rose petals. 

You let out a short exhale of a laugh, mostly in disbelief at the sight in front of you. 

“Not bad right?” 

“Oh God, you really are trying to make me fall in love with you. Rose petals and everything…” 

He laughed, shaking his head. “I don't think two weeks is long enough to fall in love, but if you did, that would be great. I guess the staff went a little crazy with the romance since my parents told them this is our honeymoon.” 

He opened the bottle of champagne, pouring each of you a glass and handing one to you. God knows you needed it.

“Cheers.” You clinked the glasses together, each taking a sip. “By the way, I can sleep in one of the other bedrooms, if you'd prefer that. I know the rose petals on the bed are a little much.” 

Maybe it was the alcohol, but it looked like he was blushing ever so slightly as he said it.

Your immediate reaction was relief, that you'd get your own room, but then again that wasn't why you'd traveled all this way together. You were used to sleeping in the same bed with him by now anyway, so you shook your head, hoping you wouldn’t end up regretting it. 

A long sigh passed your lips.“You didn't take me here for us to sit in different rooms all day, we can do that back at home.” 

There was a faint smile on his lips and he nodded, cheeks still a little pink. You both knew what your families were hoping would happen in that bed, and you couldn't help but blush a little as well. For a second you wondered if you and him would ever get that far. He was perfectly fuckable, in theory, but the nature of your arrangement sucked all the excitement out of it for you. 

It was still early in the day, and once the champagne glasses were empty Baekhyun called a car to take the two of you into town. 

“You already seem less bummed out than you've been the last few weeks.” He commented as you headed into the city. 

“Yeah, don’t get me wrong, I’m still sad about everything, but you're right. It's better to at least try to make this work out. I'm trying to be optimistic.” 

He was smiling again, and you couldn't deny how gorgeous the sight of it was. He reached for one of your hands, giving it a light squeeze, holding it for the rest of the car ride, and then again as you walked through the streets together, window shopping.

The city of Lucerne really was like a fairy tale. The old buildings, the crystal blue lake, and the mountains in the distance were the perfectly romantic setting for your time with him. In front of that amazing backdrop, he truly looked like a prince. 

As sad and angry as you'd been the past month, now that your hand was in his, on this beautiful honeymoon, just enjoying the scenery, you couldn’t find the energy to harbor any resentment towards him. Although you still had a lot to learn about each other, you realized you could enjoy his company more than you expected. Either that, or it was just hard to be mad when you were in such a lovely place. 

You'd been walking together in comfortable silence for a while, just appreciating the city, when he told you, “If you see something you like, tell me and we can go inside for you to try it on.”  

As nice as it was, you knew you weren't actually going to go inside any of those shops. They were all high end designer outlets, the kinds of places you hadn't been to since your family was actually doing well. 

Baekhyun saw the way you shook your head, turning your eyes to the pavement in front of you. You felt him abruptly stop, your hand still in his. 

“What?” 

“Now that we're married, you don't need to worry about all of that anymore. Your family wasn't so insistent on you marrying me just so that they could finally pay off their debts, you know. They want a better life for you, too.” 

“Yeah well they have a funny way of showing it.” You mumbled, not even trying to hide the bitterness in your voice. 

“Did you tell them you didn’t want to get married?” 

You scoffed, because of course you didn’t, and he should know that. You gave him a bit of a bitchy side eye and he seemed to get your point. 

“They know I would’ve much rather chosen my husband myself. But I wasn’t really given a choice, just like you.”

He mustered up a surprisingly sympathetic look, sitting you down with him on a nearby bench. 

“I’m not saying this to call you ungrateful, really, but I think we should remember how lucky we are. Because of our parents we got the best educations, grew up in nice homes, get to travel the world, and so on. Money isn't something we'll ever have to worry about. When they asked me to marry you, I didn’t fight them, because I know how much they’ve done for me.” 

You understood perfectly where he was coming from. However, despite it all, you still couldn't deny your disappointment. 

“I know it would've been selfish to refuse, and of course I am grateful to be this fortunate. That doesn't make it feel any less shitty, though. I always had such big dreams for how I would meet the love of my life and get married, and they know that. When they told me I should marry you, they knew it would be heartbreaking for me, they just didn't seem to care. They didn't even want to acknowledge it.” 

“I'm sorry. I can imagine how hard that would be, I want you to know that I don't blame you at all for being upset. I just want to do whatever I can now to hopefully make this better for you.” 

When you didn’t respond his hand was pulling you back up with him, “Come on, there’s a really great ice cream place nearby.” 

He was relieved to finally see you smile again, even though you rolled your eyes at him. “I’m not a little kid, you can’t manipulate me with ice cream.” 

“I’m not manipulating you! I just want to cheer you up.” 

At least the ice cream really was fantastic. 

Eventually you returned to the house, deciding to finish the champagne in the pool together, enjoying the view. You'd seen Baekhyun shirtless in the past, but it had been years, and you couldn't deny how great he looked as he joined you in the water, holding both of your glasses of bubbly. 

The mountain air was chilly on your upper half, and you sunk deeper into the warm water as he handed you your champagne. Steam rose from the water into the cold air creating a wispy fog, the sun barely peeking out from behind the mountains as it set. 

You said cheers, clinking the glasses together, giving Baekhyun a funny look at how intently he insisted on making eye contact before bringing his glass up to meet yours. 

“You know why Germans are so insistent on eye contact when cheersing right?” He asked before taking his first sip. 

“No..?” 

His eyes widened ever so slightly, surprised, to say the least. 

“Oh… uhh, never mind.” 

“No, tell me!” 

This time, he was definitely blushing, “Ok but don't get mad at me! I was joking… I didn't think I'd have to explain it..” 

“So..?” 

He sighed, ready for you to scoff at his lame attempt at flirting with you. “In Germany, it's said that if you don't make eye contact while cheersing with someone, you'll have seven years of bad sex.” 

To his surprise, you actually let out a small laugh, again meeting his eyes and holding his gaze intently as you clinked your glass to his one more time. 

It had to be the atmosphere, both of you barely clothed in your swimsuits, the alcohol, the sunset, and the view of the mountains. That had to be it, that had to be why you were going along with everything he said so easily. Because at the end of the day, you both knew well what he was implying. He was your husband, and you his wife. Unless you both planned on cheating, which to your understanding still wasn’t acceptable despite the nature of the marriage, he would be the only one you'd be having sex with anytime soon. 

You kept slowly sipping on your drink, enjoying the calmness and beauty of the landscape. This time, the silence between him and yourself actually felt comfortable. 

“Do you really think that it's possible for us to eventually be happy, like any other married couple? You know as if we'd actually chosen this for ourselves?” You eventually asked. 

“Yeah, I definitely think it's possible.” 

“You really mean that?” 

He shrugged, and nodded. “I don't want this to sound too forward, but that's part of why I wasn't too upset about the marriage. I would've liked to marry someone I chose myself, just like you, but in our situation I think we still have a good chance at making it work. Even though we've never been particularly close, I feel like I know you fairly well, because of our families. I know that we had similar upbringings, share the same basic values, things like that, and those things really matter in a partnership. You're beautiful too, which definitely helps.”

“Thank you… I've never really thought about it like that.”

‘You’re beautiful.’ Those words had a greater effect on you than you expected.

His eyes had been fixed on the sun setting over the mountains, but slowly he turned back towards you. “Do you find me attractive, at least physically?” 

His sudden question left you dumbfounded. The answer was so obvious but the way he asked you truly didn't sound cocky at all. You had to stop yourself from making a dumb joke considering his abs were currently glistening in the light of the setting sun and his face looked like something out of a magazine. 

“Baekhyun, you know you're a good looking guy.” 

“Well, some women are more into big muscles, or really tall guys, or a more rugged “manly” look. I could still not be your type.” 

You shook your head, feeling the way your cheeks burned, knowing they were probably bright red. You kept your eyes glued on the valley below, avoiding the way you knew he was looking at you. “You definitely are my type, at least when it comes to looks.” 

You expected him to say something cocky and smug but instead he just smiled at you when you finally met his gaze again, seeming genuinely happy and relieved by your answer. 

“I appreciate that.”

It occurred to you then that despite the champagne, his words and eyes on you made you quite shy. He was simply an extremely handsome guy, and you found yourself having to fight the urge to downright ogle him. 

His broad shoulders and strong chest looked so inviting, the water on his skin adding a gorgeous sheen to his entire form. You wanted to touch him, to feel his skin against your own, and know how his slender hands would feel on your body. 

The view of the mountains was nice, but as the minutes flew by, your eyes kept traveling back to him. It didn't go unnoticed, as he felt himself slipping into similar thoughts as well. 

Maybe you really were just that easy to read, but it surprised you nonetheless when he stepped closer, taking your hand in his, before placing it on his chest. 

“Wh-what are you doing?”

Your eyes were stuck to his torso, heart beating rapidly at the knowledge of his eyes gazing down at you, his heartbeat under your hand a comforting reminder of the shared tension. His gentle touch on your chin triggered a small gasp, and he finally guided your face up towards his own where he could look at you, and you at him.

Being so close now, you noticed the scattered moles painting little constellations across his face. Each one appeared to have been placed with purpose, further adding to the near perfect harmony of his stunning features. 

When his eyes shifted downwards ever so slightly, gaze falling to your lips, you stopped breathing. You could smell him, so sweet and inviting, every minute aspect of his presence pulling you in. 

“Can I kiss you?” 

His eyes bore into your own again, and you could feel the magnetism between you both. All you gave him was a small nod, but that was enough, his lips meeting yours. 

This was so different, so much better than when you'd kissed before at your wedding. His chest under your palm felt warm and firm, the taste and smell of him surrounding you, easily letting you melt into him. His lips were soft, and the lack of clothing, the feel of his wet skin against your own, made you shiver despite the hot pool. 

Growing increasingly overwhelmed, you pulled away, red faced and genuinely a little embarrassed to have given into him so quickly. You quickly grabbed your glass and downed the rest of your champagne.

Baekhyun, however, saw right through you. He gave you a knowing smirk, he knew you were still skeptical of him and the marriage, but that didn't mean you weren't attracted to each other. Being half naked in a pool with a view definitely helped set the mood, too. 

“What? There's no reason to get shy now.” 

Still, you turned away from him, bracing both hands on the edge of the pool as you fixed your eyes back onto the mountains and valley below. 

“Hm? What's wrong?” 

His breath on the back of your neck sent a shiver down your spine, surprised by the proximity. Gently, he brushed your hair aside, giving himself access to whisper in your ear. 

“As odd as it might feel to be married, as husband and wife, there's no use in denying that we're attracted to each other.” 

He didn't miss the way you whimpered when his lips gently grazed the sensitive skin just below your ear, turning your head to grant him more access. 

He took that as his sign to continue, leaving a trail of kisses along the side of your neck, his lips growing bolder as the minutes passed. Soon he was sucking and biting at the spot on your neck that made your knees weak, and his hands slowly came to rest on your hips, leaving you every chance to stop him, but you did no such thing. 

Maybe it was just how pent up you were after not having sex for so long, and barely even having an opportunity to touch yourself, but you found yourself squeezing your thighs together, trying to relieve some of the ache that was starting to form between them. 

When one of his hands left your hip, instead coming to your jaw, turning your head to grant him access to kiss you again, you easily let him. The kiss was nothing sweet, desperate and hungry as you both fought for dominance, though Baekhyun quickly took the upper hand, not that you minded. 

“Can I touch you?” He asked the second your lips parted. 

“You are touching me.” 

“That's not what I mean.” 

His hand moved slowly down the front of your body, the soft touch making your head spin, until his delicate fingers began to play with the waistband of your bikini. 

He resumed the movement of his lips on your neck, soon coming to whisper in your ear, “May I?” 

You nodded, breath shaking, and let out a soft moan when his fingers finally pushed beneath the wet fabric. His first touch against your clit sent a jolt through you, and you didn't miss his soft chuckle before pressing his lips against you for the nth time. 

The way he nibbled and sucked at the skin of your neck combined with the soft circles his fingers made on your clit, were nothing short or euphoric. You leaned back into his chest, quiet moans and whimpers filling the air. Being touched like this from behind had always been a big turn on for you. He already made you feel so weak under his touch. 

Baekhyun was obsessed with all of the delicate sounds escaping your lips, sounds that proved how much you were enjoying what he did to you. The more he listened, the more he felt himself grow needy for more.

A breath got stuck in your throat when he pushed his hips forward, letting you feel his hardness against your ass. Even through his swim trunks, you could tell he was big. 

With his cock pressed to your ass and his fingers moving perfectly between your thighs, you were already losing any rationality you’d once possessed. When his other hand untied the knot of your top and began to tease your nipples, you couldn’t bring yourself to worry about how exposed you were, outside in the open. You knew you would be pushed over the edge sooner rather than later if he kept it up, and he did. 

“Are you gonna come for me, baby?” He whispered in your ear, the smirk on his lips apparent in his voice. 

You nodded frantically, warmth bubbling up inside you, turning into a searing heat. 

“Good girl, let go, I got you.” 

His fingertips slipped across your clit just right, one hand pinching and twisting the sensitive nub on your chest. Your whimpers grew into delighted moans, the craving for even more growing almost unbearable. The promise of eventually having his length inside you was what pushed you over the edge, shaking and twitching in Baekhyun's arms as you fell. 

“Fuck.” He whispered into the crook of your neck. “You're really sexy, you know that? Can't wait to be inside you.” 

The combination of his words and breath against your heated skin prolonged your pleasure, nodding to show him just how badly you wanted him, too. 

As soon as his hand withdrew from between your legs you turned towards him, throwing your arms around his neck to pull him into a heated kiss. It was messy, desperate, communicating the urgent need you both felt for more. His tongue greedily licked into your mouth before biting your lip, coaxing another weak moan from you. His hand on your thigh quickly had you wrapping both around him, and the feel of his substantial length and girth against your center, even through your bathing suits, left you panting, desperate for more. 

He put some pressure on you, pushing you against the edge of the pool, letting you feel even more of him. 

“Do you wanna go inside?” He whispered into your ear between kisses, but you didn't have the patience for that. 

You shook your head, “just fuck me right here.” 

His cocky smirk somehow had even more moisture flowing out of you, “as you wish.” 

With that, he undid the string of your bikini, and pushed down his shorts. 

You reached for him, intimidated by the size, hoping you would even be able to handle him. He was hot and hard in your hand, and you felt the telltale throb of his own arousal. 

Anticipation hung thick in the air as he positioned himself, his tip nudging against your clit, and you swore you were about to lose your goddamn mind. 

“You ready?” He questioned with an unexpected softness, forehead resting against your own. 

“Yes.” 

“You sure?” 

“Yes, Baekhyun, please.”

As soon as he pushed forward, however, you understood his desire to double check. His size presented quite the challenge, your eyes squeezing shut at the discomfort of being stretched so much. He could sense how you struggled to take him, hands digging into the skin of his back, legs squeezing involuntarily around his hips.

“Fuck you're so big.” 

“Just relax, I'll go slow. Tell me if it’s too much.” He said before pressing another kiss to your lips. 

You couldn't remember ever feeling so full, and he was still only halfway in. Slow, shallow thrusts carefully let you get used to him, going deeper with every roll of his hips. Soon tears pricked at your eyes, the new sensation of being fucked by such a huge cock leaving you awstruck. 

When he finally fit himself all the way inside of you, his hips meeting your own, you felt his head pressing firmly against your cervix. The slight pain of it heightened the already intense moment even further. 

“Oh my God.” 

He pulled almost all the way out, sinking himself all the way back inside, and you swore he had to have the best cock you’d ever fucked, by a mile. Any unpleasant thoughts surrounding your marriage to him were long gone as he set a steady rhythm, each thrust pulling gasps of pleasure from you. 

The water splashed wildly around you but you might as well have forgotten it was even there, too overcome with Baekhyun’s length as it pleased you in ways you never knew possible. The way he filled you so completely was unlike anything you’d experienced with another man, blissed out by his incredible size and precise thrusts. 

“You’re so perfect, take me so fucking well.” 

His lips crashed into yours, hot and greedy as you moaned into one another. You were certain you’d never felt anyone that deep inside you before, and it was addictive. 

“Think you can handle more?” He muttered, now that you’d gotten fully acclimated to his substantial length and girth. 

You nodded, greedy for anything and everything he could give, and Baekhyun wasn’t going to deny you. 

His lips swallowed more moans and cries of delight as he picked up the pace, thrusting harder, faster, feeling you clench down on him as you got closer to your release. 

Every time he sunk into you completely, he felt your body tremble in response to the intense sensations. As much as you wanted to keep your eyes open to look at him, you simply couldn't. The force with which he pounded you and how deep he reached left you an incoherent mess. Your eyes rolled to the back of your head, desperate whimpers and whines leaving your parted lips. 

“Will my beautiful wife let me feel her cum on my cock? Hm?” 

Frantically, you nodded. With only a few more pumps into your dripping core he made you cum, so hard that you just about forgot your own name. 

Baekhyun let out a deep groan at how tightly you squeezed him when you came, the pulsating of your orgasming pussy bringing him to his peak soon after. His hips fell out of pace, eventually slowing to a stop as he emptied his cum deep inside.

It wasn't until you slowly started drifting back to reality that you realized you were still outside in the pool with him. 

You continued to cling to him, feeling him gradually soften and slip out of you. When his eyes found your own you both stared, panting, basking in the afterglow. 

You finally stood back on your own two feet, leaned back against the edge of the pool, and couldn’t fight the fit of laughter that came over you. 

Baekhyun stared at you, confused, unnerved, and slightly bewildered at your sudden outburst. 

“Jesus fucking Christ Byun! That might be the best sex I’ve ever had. No, it definitely was. I can’t believe you...” 

A relieved sigh escaped him, grinning at your admission. “Go on. I’d love to hear all your thoughts.” 

“Oh shut up you don’t need any more ego stroking with a dick like that.” 

He leaned in closer, bracing both hands on the edge of the pool at your sides. “Well you’ll be happy to know that this dick is all yours, till death do us part.” 

A genuine smile graced your lips, and this time as you looked at him, your new husband, you actually felt a little excited for what your future with him could hold. 

You leaned in, giving him a quick kiss. “It's only day one and you already succeeded at seducing me. I have to admit I feel a little pathetic.” 

“I didn’t seduce you.” 

“Oh yes you did! You got me half naked and drunk and started kissing my neck. That has to count.” 

“You only had one glass of champagne and we're in a pool, what else would we wear?!” 

You rolled your eyes. “Okay fine, but you still seduced me. Not that I mind, that was fucking incredible. I hope no one saw us, though.” 

Baekhyun just shrugged. “I doubt it, but if they did, we put on a pretty good show.” he smirked. 

“You’re unbelievable.” You laughed, enjoying the way he admired you. 

“I asked if you wanted to go inside, but someone was too impatient.” 

“You’re awful cocky, you know that?” 

Again, he shrugged, moving away from you to find his glass of champagne. He finished it, and since it was getting late, you both finally decided to get to bed. This time, the rose petals just made you giggle. Once you'd both settled in, you even found yourself inching closer to him, until one of his arms pulled you closer, wrapping around you. It was easy to fall asleep like that, in his embrace. 

~

The first night in a new bed was usually pretty rough, and the jet lag didn’t help. When you awoke in the early morning, you knew you wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep. 

Baekhyun had detached himself from you at some point during the night, the blanket bunching up around his waist. He seemed to still be resting peacefully, and you shamelessly enjoyed the view of his bare chest and sleeping face. Everything about him was just so gorgeous, it didn’t really make sense to you how you’d ended up with him like this. You’d been so pissed about the marriage for so long, but now a small smile crept to your lips as you watched him, his chest slowly rising and falling with every breath. 

You turned to fully face him, shifting around for a bit before settling into a comfortable position. From that point of view you could enjoy the profile of his face as he slept, taken with the seemingly perfect outlines of his jaw, nose, and lips. 

Minutes passed, dragging on painfully slow, and the sight in front of you definitely didn't help you get back to sleep. Images from your time in the pool with him kept resurfacing, along with the memory of how incredible he'd made you feel. You couldn’t understand how you hadn’t always wanted to touch him, even when he was more of a stranger to you. He was way too attractive to just ignore, you thought. Every cell in your body seemed to gravitate towards him, now that touching him was allowed, and even welcomed, holding yourself back was nearly torturous. 

You and him could nap during the day. Right now, you needed him to wake up. 

Carefully, you moved closer, molding your body to his, leaning in to press your lips to his neck. He stirred a bit, but didn’t wake up, so you went on to plant more kisses, moving down towards his chest. When you gently sucked on his collarbone, his eyes finally fluttered open. 

Much to your delight, he didn’t question your actions, or why you’d woken him up. He just took hold of your waist, pulling you on top of him, and into a kiss. You ended up straddling him, lips still locked as they moved together lazily. 

“Goodmorning,” He hummed, looking around at the dark bedroom. “Awake already? What time is it?” 

“Four? Five? I don't know.” 

“Why'd you wake me up?” He half groaned, half whined, voice rough due to the early hour. 

Instead of replying, you just kissed him again, kissing down to his jaw, then neck, moving your hips a little to make your intentions clear. 

“Ready for round two? Already?” 

“Shut up.” 

He chuckled, “Why don't you make me?”

You moved to bring your lips to his once more, but he stopped you, one finger pressing to your lips before they could make contact. You pouted.

“I have an even better idea.”

“Oh yeah?” 

A mischievous grin lifted his cheeks so prettily. 

“Sit on my face.” 

You froze, “Huh?” 

“You heard me. C’mere” 

He hoisted you up, eliciting a small shriek from you, but you didn’t let him take you all the way up the bed, instead settling atop in chest. 

“Are you serious?”

“Hmm I’m a hungry boy. Now come here.” 

His hands on your ass attempted to push you further up towards his face, but you stayed put. 

“I still have underwear on, dummy.” 

He looked down, narrowing his eyes when he spotted the lace that was, in fact, covering you. 

“Do you like this pair?” 

“Kinda? They’re a little old I guess, why do you-” 

Before you could finish his hands were taking hold of the flimsy fabric, easily ripping it and tossing it to the side. 

“Baekhyun! Are you out of your mind? Why-” 

He cut you off again, hoisting you up by your ass till your thighs were on either side of his head. 

“Don’t worry baby, I’ll buy you new ones.” 

With that his arms circled your thighs, pulling you down, until your center met his hot tongue. 

You inhaled sharply, bracing your hands against the wall as he licked and prodded at your clit. It was soft, teasing, wanting to warm you up before showing you what he was really capable of. When you would start to whine and plead for more, he would pull away entirely, instead leaving kisses on your inner thighs, letting the anticipation grow until it was nearly unbearable. 

Until then you'd still been hovering, not wanting to smother him, but when you once again began to whimper and ask for more, he told you, “I’ll give you what you want if you just sit.” 

“But-” 

Without giving you a chance to protest his strong arms, still wrapped around your thighs, yanked you down roughly. At last you got the kind of pressure you needed, putting some weight on him, no longer caring if he could breathe or not. His hums of pleasure made it clear that either way, he was enjoying this as much as you were. 

He lapped at your clit with greed, happily drinking you in. Every gasp, sigh, and groan he drew from you egged him on, eagerly awaiting your release, wanting nothing more than the taste of your delight flooding his tongue. When he transitioned from mere licking to sucking your bud past his lips, he felt your thighs shake, gripping them so tightly you almost wondered if it could bruise. In your ecstasy, however, there was no place for such thoughts. You were too preoccupied with your building orgasm. 

His fingers earlier in the pool had been fantastic, but his tongue and lips were on a whole new level entirely. The way the warm muscle flicked at your most sensitive spot was absolutely perfect, and when combined with the suction of his lips, you almost couldn’t handle it. He could tell you were getting close when you began to rock your hips against his tongue, silently begging for even more, and he was eager to deliver. 

He picked up the pace, suckling harder, licking faster, and he reveled in the increased volume of your moans as you got lost in it. When the moans were silenced, replaced instead with sharp gasps, he knew you were on the precipice. He didn’t falter, if anything, he gave you even more. 

Seconds later you fell apart, twitching and shaking while he still didn’t stop, the sensation flooding your body with relief and joy until it slowly became too much. Baekhyun still had a firm hold of your thighs, and he moaned with delight at the taste of your orgasm on his tongue. He kept lapping at your tired pussy, not wanting to let a single drop go to waste, until you basically begged him for a break. 

When his hold on your thighs finally weakened, you sat back, your ass landing on his chest eliciting a grunt from him. You looked down at your husband's face and he was beaming, lips and chin still wet with your arousal. You grinned right back, watching as he wiped his face with the back of his hand. 

Again, all you could do was laugh, and this time he happily joined you. 

“You know, I really hadn't expected all of this to happen on our first night here.” You told him. 

“Neither did I.”

He was still smiling up at you, now just watching, admiring you, and when he still didn't look away after several seconds had passed you started to feel shy. 

You rolled off of him, one arm covering your eyes as you basked in the unexpected comfort of the moment. Eventually you felt him move your arm away and his face was hovering above your own, slowly moving closer until he was kissing you. It was slow, relaxed, just enjoying the closeness as you gradually recovered from the heated moment. 

You felt him shift, realizing that he was adjusting himself beneath his silk pajama pants, and your hand followed. His eyes fluttered shut when you palmed him, and he took the hint, discarding the shirt you still wore before stripping himself. 

Wet lips met the sensitive skin of your neck as he positioned himself between your thighs, the heat and weight of him above you somehow making your heart race even more. His fingers entered you first, stretching you out to get you ready to take him. He started with two, soon adding a third as he leaned up slightly, watching your flushed form squirm and whimper beneath him. It was a sight that didn’t help his patience one bit, throbbing as he thought about getting to be inside you again so soon. 

It wasn’t long until Baekhyun assumed you were ready, that or he just didn’t want to wait any longer. Both of his hands found yours, lacing them together and pressing them to the bed above your head. His eyes were on yours, dark with lust as you felt him push inside, the stretch again making you wince, though you easily powered through, too enticed by what was to come to even consider stopping him. He rocked into you, getting deeper with each push, until he was burying himself into you entirely with each roll of his hips. 

This time, he was slower, savoring the way your tight walls hugged him, in contrast to the frenzied passion of the evening prior. You sighed gratefully each time he hit that spot inside you, appreciating the unhurried pace he set as he continued to thrust. Your previous orgasm left you especially sensitive, and you seemed to be floating on a cloud of pure bliss while he steadily fucked you, the euphoria of it reaching even greater hights than before. 

His size was one thing, but Baekhyun was also just good. He knew how to angle himself to make you feel just right, keeping a steady pace to allow the pleasure to build. 

“You feel amazing, so tight and wet for me.” He whispered into your ear, and your knuckles paled with how hard you gripped his hands. 

Normally faster, rougher sex was what you preferred, but now, with him, you couldn’t help but think that this slower, more relaxed approach was even better. Maybe it was because it was so early, and you were still a little tired, but this felt nothing short of perfect. Baekhyun was taking care of you so well, listening to your body, and giving exactly what you needed. 

Your orgasm was getting close again, warmth growing into a burning heat in the pit of your stomach, but as soon as you started to clench around him, about to let go, he pulled out. 

He chuckled softly at the way you whined in protest, but assured you, “Just trust me, this will be even better.” 

He stood on his knees and straddled one of your thighs, bringing the other leg over his shoulder before pushing back in. With the same leisurely pace from earlier he continued on, the new angle making you feel him even deeper. 

When you started to whimper and ask for him to go faster, he just shushed you, pushing his hips into you slower, but harder, leaving you with little room to protest. Either way, it was divine, and you knew he’d easily get you there in the end. After a while you decide that whatever he had in mind, you would happily accept it. He made you feel so damn good, you trusted him to take you however he saw fit. 

His thrusts were steady, letting you chase your orgasm, but when you started to get close he pulled out again, leaving you shaking and whining and clenching around nothing. 

One hand came to rest on your cheek and his forehead met your own, prompting you to open your eyes and meet his. He stared for a second before pressing a quick kiss to your lips and whispering, “Turn around for me baby.” 

You obliged, rolling onto your stomach, and you felt him straddle you, leaning down to leave a trail of kisses along your shoulder. Without any warning he filled you once again, and this time when he bottomed out, the increased pressure against your cervix made your stomach tighten, the pain almost too much for you. 

His moans and grunts made it clear that he, too, felt the added pressure, making sure not to press too hard, to be gentle as he continued working his way in and out, his eyes fixed to the view of your ass and his length plunging in and out of you. Every time he sank himself inside completely he felt the way his tip would reach the bottom, savoring the feeling while doing his best to not hurt you in any real way. 

Little did he know, you enjoyed the intensity of it, and your high was approaching even quicker than before. He’d been edging you for so long, all you cared about was getting your release. He could’ve fucked you as fast and hard as he wanted and the pain still wouldn’t have stopped you from cumming all over his length. 

But Baekhyun was cautious nonetheless, filling you in the same relaxed manner, wanting you to feel as good as possible, to prolong your pleasure, without bringing it to an end just yet. He, too, was enjoying himself far too much to rush this. 

However he soon felt the same tell-tale throb that your orgasm was quickly approaching, so he pulled out once again. 

Once he’d turned you over, settling back between your thighs, he took in your fucked out expression, eyes softening at just how desperate you looked. 

“Does my baby want to cum?” 

You nodded, frantic. “Please, Baekhyun.” 

He placed a tender kiss to your lips, then your forehead, before pushing forwards to fill you up. This time as he kept moving you could feel the difference, and you knew he was getting close to his own release. His thrusts were less consistent, and he became shaky, gasping and moaning more freely than before. 

For you it came as a relief, knowing that it wouldn’t be long until you finally got your long awaited high. You weren’t sure how much more you could take, more than ready for him to finally just fuck you through your orgasm, and let you feel his release, too. 

The push and stretch of his length inside you, the angle of it, and his entirety surrounding you, the heat and weight and smell of him, they all became too much. When he finally let you reach your peak it was strong, blinding you and making your skin tingle with the intensity. Every time he’d denied you he’d built the tension to such a degree that when it was finally released, it was otherworldly. Broken versions of his name passed your lips, though you weren’t conscious of it, the wave of pleasure leaving no room for coherent thought, only gratitude for the incredible feeling after having been deprived. 

He didn’t stop when he felt the obvious pulsating and twitching of your orgasm, he continued to chase his own high, which came soon after. He’d been holding himself back, so when it finally hit him, the burst of euphoria was explosive. As he shuddered apart his lips crashed into yours, hungry and rough as they sought greater contact, something to communicate how much it affected him. 

The kisses became more relaxed as you both slowly drifted back to reality, until he finally collapsed on top of you, burying himself in the crook of your neck. Gently kisses were peppered across your skin, each one paired with some sweet words, “So beautiful, so perfect, so good for me.” 

After some time his weight above you lost its charm, turning sweaty and uncomfortable prompting him to roll off you, though you still desired some contact. Your head rested atop his chest, and the feeling of his hand on your waist was a welcome comfort. 

Something about this just felt right to you. Your marriage to him, now, came as more of a relief than anything else. You knew that after having him, nobody else would ever be able to compare. As sure as you’d been that the jet lag would keep you up until daylight, his embrace ended up luring you into a peaceful sleep in mere minutes. 

As it turned out, your honeymoon ended up being a beautiful experience full of gorgeous scenery, plentiful laughter, and amazing sex. Most days were spent strolling through town, enjoying the spa and pool at the house, and in bed with your new husband. 

He was fun, maybe a little cocky, but you couldn't blame him for that, everything considered. At the end of the day, he was always sweet to you, and never acted truly arrogant in any way. Confident, that was how you would describe him, and that confidence came as a comfort for you. He was confident in himself, yes, but he also showed a lot of confidence and optimism towards his relationship with you. 

The initial awkwardness disappeared completely after your encounter in the pool. The sex had been great, but more importantly, it brought your guard down. You quickly became far more comfortable around him, and as the days passed, he started to feel like a genuine friend. A friend, who also gave you the best sex of your life. 

While it may have still been early in the relationship, by the time you were flying back home with him, you felt confident, too. 

You'd make it work with Baekhyun, your new husband. 

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Wall Street Journal goes to bat for the vultures who want to steal your house

Tonight (June 5) at 7:15PM, I’m in London at the British Library with my novel Red Team Blues, hosted by Baroness Martha Lane Fox.

Tomorrow (June 6), I’m on a Rightscon panel about interoperability.

The tacit social contract between the Wall Street Journal and its readers is this: the editorial page is for ideology, and the news section is for reality. Money talks and bullshit walks — and reality’s well-known anticapitalist bias means that hewing too closely to ideology will make you broke, and thus unable to push your ideology.

That’s why the editorial page will rail against “printing money” while the news section will confine itself to asking which kinds of federal spending competes with the private sector (creating a bidding war that drives up prices) and which kinds are not. If you want frothing takes about how covid relief checks will create “debt for our grandchildren,” seek it on the editorial page. For sober recognition that giving small amounts of money to working people will simply go to reducing consumer and student debt, look to the news.

But WSJ reporters haven’t had their corpus colossi severed: the brain-lobe that understands economic reality crosstalks with the lobe that worship the idea of a class hierarchy with capital on top and workers tugging their forelacks. When that happens, the coverage gets weird.

Take this weekend’s massive feature on “zombie mortgages,” long-written-off second mortgages that have been bought by pennies for vultures who are now trying to call them in:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/zombie-mortgages-could-force-some-homeowners-into-foreclosure-e615ab2a

These second mortgages — often in the form of home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) — date back to the subprime bubble of the early 2000s. As housing prices spiked to obscene levels and banks figured out how to issue risky mortgages and sell them off to suckers, everyday people were encouraged — and often tricked — into borrowing heavily against their houses, on complicated terms that could see their payments skyrocket down the road.

Once the bubble popped in 2008, the value of these houses crashed, and the mortgages fell “underwater” — meaning that market value of the homes was less than the amount outstanding on the mortgage. This triggered the foreclosure crisis, where banks that had received billions in public money forced their borrowers out of their homes. This was official policy: Obama’s Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner boasted that forcing Americans out of their homes would “foam the runways” for the banks and give them a soft landing;

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/06/personnel-are-policy/#janice-eberly

With so many homes underwater on their first mortgages, the holders of those second mortgages wrote them off. They had bought high-risk, high reward debt, the kind whose claims come after the other creditors have been paid off. As prices collapsed, it became clear that there wouldn’t be anything left over after those higher-priority loans were paid off.

The lenders (or the bag-holders the lenders sold the loans to) gave up. They stopped sending borrowers notices, stopped trying to collect. That’s the way markets work, after all — win some, lose some.

But then something funny happened: private equity firms, flush with cash from an increasingly wealthy caste of one percenters, went on a buying spree, snapping up every home they could lay hands on, becoming America’s foremost slumlords, presiding over an inventory of badly maintained homes whose tenants are drowned in junk fees before being evicted:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/02/08/wall-street-landlords/#the-new-slumlords

This drove a new real estate bubble, as PE companies engaged in bidding wars, confident that they could recoup high one-time payments by charging working people half their incomes in rent on homes they rented by the room. The “recovery” of real estate property brought those second mortgages back from the dead, creating the “zombie mortgages” the WSJ writes about.

These zombie mortgages were then sold at pennies on the dollar to vulture capitalists — finance firms who make a bet that they can convince the debtors to cough up on these old debts. This “distressed debt investing” is a scam that will be familiar to anyone who spends any time watching “finance influencers” — like forex trading and real estate flipping, it’s a favorite get-rich-quick scheme peddled to desperate people seeking “passive income.”

Like all get-rich-quick schemes, distressed debt investing is too good to be true. These ancient debts are generally past the statute of limitations and have been zeroed out by law. Even “good” debts generally lack any kind of paper-trail, having been traded from one aspiring arm-breaker to another so many times that the receipts are long gone.

Ultimately, distressed debt “investing” is a form of fraud, in which the “investor” has to master a social engineering patter in which they convince the putative debtor to pay debts they don’t actually owe, either by shading the truth or lying outright, generally salted with threats of civil and criminal penalties for a failure to pay.

That certainly goes for zombie mortgages. Writing about the WSJ’s coverage on Naked Capitalism, Yves Smith reminds readers not to “pay these extortionists a dime” without consulting a lawyer or a nonprofit debt counsellor, because any payment “vitiates” (revives) an otherwise dead loan:

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2023/06/wall-street-journal-aids-vulture-investors-threatening-second-mortgage-borrowers-with-foreclosure-on-nearly-always-legally-unenforceable-debt.html

But the WSJ’s 35-paragraph story somehow finds little room to advise readers on how to handle these shakedowns. Instead, it lionizes the arm-breakers who are chasing these debts as “investors…[who] make mortgage lending work.” The Journal even repeats — without commentary — the that these so-called investors’ “goal is to positively impact homeowners’ lives by helping them resolve past debt.”

This is where the Journal’s ideology bleeds off the editorial page into the news section. There is no credible theory that says that mortgage markets are improved by safeguarding the rights of vulture capitalists who buy old, forgotten second mortgages off reckless lenders who wrote them off a decade ago.

Doubtless there’s some version of the Hayek Mind-Virus that says that upholding the claims of lenders — even after those claims have been forgotten, revived and sold off — will give “capital allocators” the “confidence” they need to make loans in the future, which will improve the ability of everyday people to afford to buy houses, incentivizing developers to build houses, etc, etc.

But this is an ideological fairy-tale. As Michael Hudson describes in his brilliant histories of jubilee — debt cancellation — through history, societies that unfailingly prioritize the claims of lenders over borrowers eventually collapse:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/07/08/jubilant/#construire-des-passerelles

Foundationally, debts are amassed by producers who need to borrow capital to make the things that we all need. A farmer needs to borrow for seed and equipment and labor in order to sow and reap the harvest. If the harvest comes in, the farmer pays their debts. But not every harvest comes in — blight, storms, war or sickness — will eventually cause a failure and a default.

In those bad years, farmers don’t pay their debts, and then they add to them, borrowing for the next year. Even if that year’s harvest is good, some debt remains. Gradually, over time, farmers catch enough bad beats that they end up hopelessly mired in debt — debt that is passed on to their kids, just as the right to collect the debts are passed on to the lenders’ kids.

Left on its own, this splits society into hereditary creditors who get to dictate the conduct of hereditary debtors. Run things this way long enough and every farmer finds themselves obliged to grow ornamental flowers and dainties for their creditors’ dinner tables, while everyone else goes hungry — and society collapses.

The answer is jubilee: periodically zeroing out creditors’ claims by wiping all debts away. Jubilees were declared when a new king took the throne, or at set intervals, or whenever things got too lopsided. The point of capital allocation is efficiency and thus shared prosperity, not enriching capital allocators. That enrichment is merely an incentive, not the goal.

For generations, American policy has been to make housing asset appreciation the primary means by which families amass and pass on wealth; this is in contrast to, say, labor rights, which produce wealth by rewarding work with more pay and benefits. The American vision is that workers don’t need rights as workers, they need rights as owners — of homes, which will always increase in value.

There’s an obvious flaw in this logic: houses are necessities, as well as assets. You need a place to live in order to raise a family, do a job, found a business, get an education, recover from sickness or live out your retirement. Making houses monotonically more expensive benefits the people who get in early, but everyone else ends up crushed when their human necessity is treated as an asset:

https://gen.medium.com/the-rents-too-damned-high-520f958d5ec5

Worse: without a strong labor sector to provide countervailing force for capital, US politics has become increasingly friendly to rent-seekers of all kinds, who have increased the cost of health-care, education, and long-term care to eye-watering heights, forcing workers to remortgage, or sell off, the homes that were meant to be the source of their family’s long-term prosperity:

https://doctorow.medium.com/the-end-of-the-road-to-serfdom-bfad6f3b35a9

Today, reality’s leftist bias is getting harder and harder to ignore. The idea that people who buy debt at pennies on the dollar should be cheered on as they drain the bank-accounts — or seize the homes — of people who do productive work is pure ideology, the kind of thing you’d expect to see on the WSJ’s editorial page, but which sticks out like a sore thumb in the news pages.

Thankfully, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau is on the case. Director Rohit Chopra has warned the arm-breakers chasing payments on zombie mortgages that it’s illegal for them to “threaten judicial actions, such as foreclosures, for debts that are past a state’s statute of limitations.”

But there’s still plenty of room for more action. As Smith notes, the 2012 National Mortgage Settlement — a “get out of jail for almost free” card for the big banks — enticed lots of banks to discharge those second mortgages. Per Smith: “if any servicer sold a second mortgage to a vulture lender that it had charged off and used for credit in the National Mortgage Settlement, it defrauded the Feds and applicable state.”

Maybe some hungry state attorney general could go after the banks pulling these fast ones and hit them for millions in fines — and then use the money to build public housing.

Catch me on tour with Red Team Blues in London and Berlin!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/06/04/vulture-capitalism/#distressed-assets

[Image ID: A Georgian eviction scene in which a bobby oversees three thugs who are using a battering ram to knock down a rural cottage wall. The image has been crudely colorized. A vulture looks on from the right, wearing a top-hat. The battering ram bears the WSJ logo.]

[kinicheous]

kisses with him

ft. xiao, kazuha, kinich

genre/notes: fluff-ish, mildly suggestive (kinich) (let me know if something is missing!)

☁︎ xiao

it feels like a little secret, sitting alone on the rooftop of wangshu inn while bustling and gleeful conversations go wild inside, visitors unaware of you and the company next to you. very close next to you.

your knee brushes against xiao’s, so do your shoulders. in the back of your head you remember the first few times you sat like this, how beat red the adeptus used to be, flustered beyond one’s comprehension. it’s better now, but it’s amusing that you can still find remnants of it — tips of his ears tinted red, eyes darting over your every feature, lips parted from mesmerization as they burn in the want to lock with yours.

xiao’s fingertips merely feather your cheek, but when you lean even closer his palm curls to fully caress its expanse. it brings a smile to your face and for as long as it remains, he allows himself forget the weight of karmic debt, breathing out in what sounds like relief. the final push is the way you place your hand on top of his, the underlying sign of mutual affection urging him to close what’s left of the gap.

it’s a light touch, and xiao is so tender in the way he moves his lips against your own, almost as if he’s afraid the slightest pressure will break you; you’re simply too dear to him, a mortal being out of many, many others that he cherishes more than he’d ever even let himself imagine, and it’s that particular feeling that makes him push just the slightest bit closer.

it’s pure tenderness that the kiss conveys, and xiao knows the taste of it will remain on his lips even after you part. yet, it’s faint, so delicate and fleeting. it’s not enough, not for an adeptus who’s living through loving and being loved for the first time, so it makes you laugh a bit when he’s quick to lean in once again.

☁︎ kazuha

for his nature to be the definition of calm, kazuha must love to make all hell break loose within you.

at this hour, the crux is just about as quiet as the vast sea is tonight. the ship’s deck is empty, even beidou, who’d been up drinking until late, is sleeping soundly and nowhere to be seen. yet, he’s being awfully carefree and comfortable with having you held between himself and the ship’s railing when anyone could come out and see at any moment.

with one hand on the wood, the other is holding your chin in the other. the bandaged fingers of a sword-user feel rough against your skin, though you hardly notice that with how soft his grip is—he’s giving you a clear opportunity to slip away from the risk of being caught, but you can’t bring yourself to do so when kisses feather from the spot below your ear, gradually further up towards the corner of your lips. your stares lock for a moment, and kazuha can’t help but let out a breath of someone utterly lovesick. “don’t give me that look,” he breaks the night silence, “you’re going to drive me insane.”

and just like that, he presses his lips against yours. upon responding to the kiss, kazuha sighs in relief, revealing the slightest hint of eagerness in the touch. he shifts from the railing to hold you closer by your lower back; in the back of your mind, you wonder if he had anything to drink tonight, but you don’t think much more about it, instead letting yourself indulge in the love he’s so shameless about giving you.

☁︎ kinich

kinich rests his weight back on his palms, one leg curled up to his chest as the other dangles from the side of his bed. you’ve been yapping for quite a while now, but he doesn’t mind at all, entertained by the fresh stories of your most recent journey outside of natlan’s borders. with that said, parts of his mind isn’t even present, something which you seem to notice in the middle of your talking. “and that traveler actually had this flying little companion with he— hey, are you listening?”

the small smile he’s been wearing this entire time doesn’t falter even as he answers, head tilting to the side, “yeah—what about the traveler?”

“oh—... well, yeah. after she proved me innocent to fontaine’s iudex—i think they were friends, by the way—we hung out a bit, she told me about her adventures, and how she was looking for her brother…” your words, trail off a bit, the excitement turning into a pout, “but she looked quite sad while talking about him. i’m sure she misses him a lot.”

“that’s not really strange, is it?” kinich responds, “waiting for someone to come home can get quite lonely sometimes.”

the wording makes you curiously glance up, but he’s already reaching a hand out, his warm palm finding your cheek. you’d lie to say it doesn’t cause an extra skip in your chest, but you hide that with a smug grin, “are you saying you’ve missed me too?”

kinich doesn’t answer through more than an airy laugh, and it surprises you when he suddenly leans in without warning. there’s only a brief pause, one where his eyes dart down to your lips, before he locks them with your own.

his kisses are gentle. every time, without fail, but there are occasions they’re accompanied with a certain longing; his hand shifts from your face to the back of your neck, like he’s trying to keep you from retreating, although he knows just fine you’re not even considering it; it takes every bit of his power to not laugh when you gasp into the touch, all while he’s not even trying to hold back how he deepens the kiss. quite a way to welcome you back.

[mariacallous]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed a proposed order against the student loan servicer Navient for its years of failures and lawbreaking. If entered by the court, the proposed order would permanently ban the company from servicing federal Direct Loans and would forbid the company from directly servicing or acquiring most loans under the Federal Family Education Loan Program.

These bans would largely remove Navient from a market where it, among other illegal actions, steered numerous student loan borrowers into costly repayment options. Navient also illegally deprived student borrowers of opportunities to enroll in more affordable income-driven repayment plans and forced them to pay much more than they should have. Under the terms of the order, Navient would have to pay a $20 million penalty and provide $100 million in redress for harmed borrowers.

“For years, Navient’s top executives profited handsomely by exploiting students and taxpayers,” said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. “By banning the notorious student loan giant from federal student loan servicing and ensuring the winddown of these operations, the CFPB will finally put an end to the years of abuse.”

“I applaud the CFPB for obtaining concrete relief for borrowers and deterring similar failures in the future,” said U.S. Under Secretary of Education James Kvaal. “Today’s action builds on the Biden-Harris Administration’s work to hold loan servicers accountable and protect borrowers, including more than 1 million borrowers who have received debt relief by fixing past failures to properly track progress toward forgiveness, such as correcting harms from forbearance steering.”

The CFPB’s investigation of Navient kicked off a series of efforts by state and federal agencies to examine forbearance steering and other breakdowns in the income-driven repayment program. Those efforts have resulted in more than $50 billion

in debt relief for more than 1 million borrowers who were wrongly steered into forbearance, as well as those who had payments miscounted. Today’s order complements actions already taken by the Department of Education and state attorneys general to provide redress to borrowers harmed by Navient.

Navient (NASDAQ: NAVI) is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia, and was formerly known as Sallie Mae. At the time of the CFPB’s lawsuit in 2017, Navient was the largest student loan servicer in the United States. It serviced student loans of more than 12 million borrowers, including more than 6 million accounts under its contract with the Department of Education. Altogether, it serviced more than $300 billion in federal and private student loans. During the period covering the CFPB’s lawsuit, the company was led by CEO Jack Remondi. Remondi orchestrated the launch of Navient out of Sallie Mae. Since the launch of Navient, the company’s performance has lagged others in the industry. Last year, Navient’s board of directors replaced Remondi and began to transition the company away from its sordid history.

The CFPB sued Navient for failing borrowers at every stage of repayment. The lawsuit alleges that Navient steered borrowers who may have qualified for income-driven repayment plans into forbearance instead. This practice was cheaper and simpler for Navient, but detrimental to borrowers. By steering struggling borrowers into forbearance – where interest continues to accrue and capitalize – Navient’s illegal actions led numerous borrowers to pay additional interest charges.

Navient is a repeat offender with a long history of regulatory violations. After a referral from the CFPB, in 2014, the Department of Justice and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ordered Navient and its predecessor, Sallie Mae, to pay almost $100 million for illegally overcharging nearly 78,000 servicemembers. In 2021, the Department of Education ordered Navient to return more than $22 million in overcharges. In 2022, 39 state attorneys general announced a $1.85 billion settlement with Navient for originating predatory student loans in addition to its forbearance steering practices.

In 2021, Navient’s contract with the Department of Education to service Direct Loans finally ended. Navient announced in early 2024 that it intended to transfer the servicing of its remaining loans to another servicer. The CFPB’s order would ensure that Navient can never harm federal student loan borrowers at scale by getting back into the business of directly servicing federal student loans or growing its Federal Family Education Loan Program loan portfolio.

Navient violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. In addition to its unlawful steering activities, the CFPB alleges Navient harmed student loan borrowers by:

Misleading borrowers about income-driven repayment plans: Navient failed to adequately notify borrowers who enrolled in income-driven repayment plans about the requirement to annually recertify their enrollment. Borrowers were not properly notified that submitting an incorrect or incomplete application to recertify their enrollment could lead to an increase in their monthly payments and delay loan cancellation.

Botching payment processing: Many borrowers had multiple student loans with varying interest rates and monthly payments. When borrowers made payments meant to cover multiple loans, Navient misallocated payments. Navient also misapplied payments made to a particular loan. These errors resulted in late fees, interest accrual, and negative credit reporting.

Harming the credit of disabled borrowers, including severely injured veterans: Navient tarnished the credit reports of borrowers who had received a discharge on their federal student loans due to a total and permanent disability.

Deceiving borrowers about Navient’s requirements for cosigner release: Navient made representations to private loan borrowers that if they paid down their loans in a certain way, they could apply for their cosigners to be released. But Navient did not honor those representations for some borrowers.

Misleading borrowers about improving credit scores and the consequences of federal student loan rehabilitation: For federal student loan borrowers whose loans went into default, Navient’s debt collection arm promised credit reporting relief to borrowers if they completed a rehabilitation program. Navient failed to deliver on all of the promised relief.

Enforcement Action

Under the Consumer Financial Protection Act, the CFPB has the authority to take action against institutions violating consumer financial protection laws, including engaging in unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices.

If entered by the court, the CFPB’s order bans Navient from most federal student loan activities. Navient would no longer be able to service federal Direct Loans and, with certain limited exceptions, no longer be able to acquire Federal Family Education Loan Program loans. Navient would also be banned from conducting consumer-facing servicing activities for the Federal Family Education Loan Program. Where Navient is the master servicer for any remaining Federal Family Education Loan Program loans, the order requires Navient to take a series of steps to help ensure borrowers’ rights are protected, including the right to enroll in more affordable repayment plans.

The order also requires Navient to:

Pay $100 million redress to consumers: Navient will be required to provide $100 million in redress for affected consumers.

Pay a $20 million penalty: Navient will pay $20 million into the CFPB’s victims relief fund.

Read the proposed order.

Borrower Relief

The CFPB will mail checks to consumers who are eligible to obtain redress under the settlement. Consumers do not need to do anything to obtain redress and should be aware of scammers that may try to use CFPB employees’ names and imagery to try to steal money or private information. The CFPB will never require consumers to pay money to obtain redress, nor will we ask for additional information before consumers can cash a redress check that we’ve issued. On the CFPB’s webpage, consumers can obtain general information about CFPB redress checks and more information about how to avoid potential scams.

Since 2013, the CFPB has supervised the student loan market for risks to consumers. In addition to the Navient enforcement action, the CFPB has engaged in a range of supervisory work on the failures in the income-driven repayment system, in partnership with the Department of Education, state enforcement agencies, and banking regulators. This work has identified the shoddy student loan servicing that has derailed borrowers from making progress toward loan cancellation under existing federal programs, including income-driven repayment. This work was instrumental to a 2022 announcement by the Department of Education to implement a fix to correct the failures of servicers and to help borrowers receive or move closer to loan cancellation.

Learn more about the information and resources the CFPB has available for consumers considering student loans and for consumers with student loans.

Read consumer complaints about Navient.

Read consumer complaints about student loan servicing.

Consumers can submit complaints about financial products and services, including student loans and student servicing, by visiting the CFPB’s website or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).

Employees who believe their company has violated federal consumer financial protection laws are encouraged to send information about what they know to whistleblower@cfpb.gov. To learn more about reporting potential industry misconduct, visit the CFPB’s website.

[bokunosoul]

i’m gonna need you to elaborate on ceo lau 🙏🧎‍♀️

CEO Lau x Reader

You bit your lip as you look at the most biggest high rise building on town. Kong Rong Corporations, one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in all of the world.

Having too many companies extend their hand onto you offering opportunities for your impressive skills it seemed like a fantasy. But you are an indescisive person and ended up making a roulette to make the choice on which company to apply.

That's when you made the dumbest decision of your whole existence.

I did not knew what i was getting into.

Just playing a long with it you were offered an secretarial position that was weirdly a high salary despite you were new.

It paid a whopping $130,000 a year. You can't say no to that money after you paid off your debts.

You have read and watch in the news that the CEO, whos name you forgot is an really impressive person whom donates to charity and reportedly is a playboy and the heir of the company Kong Rong.

Well the nasty thibg about him he was rumored to be a hard person that's why many people quit on his company.

I don't really now since the media is full of trolls right now.

Setting that aside, the company's boss seemed to have weird taste. Noticing as i first went inside the building every employee was dressed in a casual suit and pants.

Meanwhile i look like an first lady watching my husband spout nonsensical lies and stand there being pretty.

But you did not mind the cute gray suit top and the pencil skirt you are wearing. But you must admit these loubotins are like daggers going through my feet.

Entering the department you will be managing you get all those kind of weird concerned looks.

The same goes as for everyone else you met.

"Why does everyone stare at me like i'm going to get killed or something?" you smiled akwardly and asked the girl showing you around.

"W-well that's beca-."

The girl suddenly stopped by a smack coming across her face causing her to fall down on her butt.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" i shouted as i help the girl stand up.

You glared at the woman. Yet you were so taken aback causing your jaw to drop.

An beautiful asian girl wearing red satin cheongsam and her hair perfectly in fingered waves and angelic face glared at you back.

Your eyes widened as you also recognized who she was. The famous supermodel and designer Ran Mao!

"You must be miss y/n l/n, you are late follow me."

Ran Mao said, she was different in the magazines and the news. I thought she was kind and shy but this was shocking and disappointing at the same time.

"U-uh miss-."

"Get this report done before 8pm tonight, it's about the report on our monthly sales and stocks, chop chop."

She said and pointed over at my workspace filled with paperwork.

"And, also if the clock strucked at exactly 7:30, do give coffee to the top floor for Lau."

"Uh sure, on thing is this office mine?"

"Yes it is."

She replied annoyed before shutting my office door.

Looks like im going to work the shit out to get my 130 grand.

_____

Typing the third to last page of your report you are already exausted. Lights are starting to go off in each departments as each employees clock out.

Standing up to your feet all sleepy and getting your 8th glass of coffee on the day you sighed.

You looked at your watch and suddenly remembered what the supermodel has said to you. Give a "Lau" guy some coffee when the it turned 7:30.

"FUCK."

You hurriedly stirred the coffee and went to the elevator headed top floor.

You were out of breathe when you reached the top floor.

There it leaded only to one big hallway and one big wooden door.

Knocking three times you said.

"Coffee for Lew?Lu?Lo???? Aha LAU!"

You can't prounounce the name well but managed.

"You may come in."

A man's voice behind the door.

"I-i'm sorry sir i'm late a bit, hehe this is your coffee."

You put the coffee on his table and sighed in relief as you've seen he's not mad.

The swivel chair turned around and there appeared a handsome tall man smirking.

You blushed, expecting an old fat man to welcome you.

"Is this the coffee?"

He said while stirring it.

"Yes sir."

"Why don't you come closer dear."

His deep husky voice gave you the chills and have no choice but to come closer.

In a flash the warm coffee was already in your white polo shirt drenching you.

"WHAT THE F-."

You stared at the man in disbelief as you can't believe what just happened.

"You are approximately 4 minutes late miss y/n."

he said coldly before laying the coffee cup again on his table.

"I'm very sorry sir, i was-."

Your eyes fell to the ground and come across at a shiny thing. A golden name plate which engraved the world "Lau, CEO of Kong Rong."

"Do you realized your mistake now darling?"

Still shocked from what just happened he just smiled and said.

"I'm going to make your life hell."

______

[antidrumpfs]

Opinion-Joe Biden: We must keep marching toward Dr. King’s dream

From the Joe Biden Washington Post opinion piece August 27, 2023

Sixty years ago, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and hundreds of thousands of fellow Americans marched on Washington for jobs and freedom. In describing his dream for us all, Dr. King spoke of redeeming the “promissory note to which every American was to fall heir” derived from the very idea of America — we are all created equal and deserve to be treated equally throughout our lives. While we’ve never fully lived up to that promise as a nation, we have never fully walked away from it, either. Each day of the Biden-Harris administration, we continue the march forward.

That includes a fundamental break with trickle-down economics that promised prosperity but failed America, especially Black Americans, over the past several decades. Trickle-down economics holds that taxes should be cut for the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations, that public investments in priorities such as education, infrastructure and health care should be shrunk, and good jobs shipped overseas. It has exacerbated inequality and systemic barriers that make it harder for Black Americans to start a business, own a home, send their children to school and retire with dignity.

Vice President Harris and I came into office determined to change the economic direction of the country and grow the economy from the middle out and bottom up, not the top down. Our plan — Bidenomics — is working. Because of the major laws and executive orders I’ve signed — from the American Rescue Plan, the bipartisan infrastructure law, the Chips and Science Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, my executive orders on racial equity and more — we’re advancing equity in everything we do making unprecedented investments in all of America, including for Black Americans.

Black unemployment fell to a historic low this spring and remains near that level.More Black small businesses are starting up than we’ve seen in over 25 years. More Black families have health insurance. We cut Black child poverty in half in my first year in office. We aredelivering clean water and high-speed internet to homes across America. We’re taking on Big Pharma to reduce prescription drug costs, such as making the cost of insulin for seniors $35 a month. We’re taking the most significant action on climate ever, which is reducing pollution and creating jobs for Black Americans in the clean energy future.

This administration will continue to prioritize increasing access to government contracting and lending. We awarded a record $69.9 billion in federal contracts to small, disadvantaged businesses in fiscal 2022. We’re taking on housing discrimination and increasing Black homeownership. To date, we’ve invested more than $7 billion in historically Black colleges and universities to prepare students for high-growth industries. We’ve approved more than $116 billion in student loan debt cancellation for 3.4 million Americans so that borrowers receive the relief they deserve. And a new student debt repayment plan is helping Black students and families cut in half their total lifetime payments per dollar borrowed. We’re doing all of this by making sure the biggest corporations begin to pay their fair share, keeping my commitment that Americans earning less than $400,000 a year not pay a single penny more in federal taxes.

And to help guide these policies, I made it a priority to appoint Black leaders to my Cabinet, my staff, in the judiciary and to key positions in agencies such as the Federal Reserve to ensure policymakers represent the experiences of all Americans in the economy.

But we know government can’t do it alone. Private-sector leaders have rightly acted to ensure their companies are more reflective of America, often in response to their employees, their customers and their own consciences. Right now, the same guardians of trickle-down economics who attack our administration’s economic policies are also attacking the private sector and the views of the American people. A recent poll from the nonpartisan Black Economic Alliance Foundation shows overwhelming bipartisan support for promoting diversity as central to a company being more innovative and more profitable, and central to fulfilling the promise of our country for all Americans. Despite the attacks, we all must keep pushing to create a workforce that reflects America.

For generations, Black Americans haven’t always been fully included in our democracy or our economy, but by pure courage and heart, they have never given up pursuing the American Dream. We saw in Jacksonville, Fla., yet another community wounded by an act of gun violence, reportedly fueled by hate-filled animus. We must refuse to live in a country where Black families going to the store or Black students going to school live in fear of being gunned down because of the color of their skin. On this day of remembrance, let us keep showing that racial equity isn’t just an aspiration. Let us reject the cramped view that America is a zero-sum game that holds that for one to succeed, another must fail. Let us remember America is big enough for everyone to do well and reach their God-given potential.

That’s how we redeem the promissory note of our nation.

[echantedtoon]

Demon Bride Ch12 In Wait Of A Doctor

It had now been almost five days since you last ended up in this strange place. Every time you woke up after sleeping, you were still expecting to wake up back in your old home on top of your sorry excuse for a futon and be still in poverty and deep debt having the threat of Sanemi down your back. Or you were expecting to wake up on the side of the roads traveling on your way around the mountains to whatever life laid ahead of you. But no. Neither of those two scenarios happened. You were usually woken up by Eri with a smile and something in her hands for breakfast, then it'd be the same. You'd just sit there on the chair in the mostly empty room, with your leg dunked in the cold well water to cease any swelling that was there, which was mostly gone by now, with Eri for company who'd talk to you, fetch you food, or replace the water whenever it got too warm. You barely felt your leg at this point, and sitting still without moving for days on end was starting to give you cabin fever. But you couldn't move. ...It was funny however.

Your ankle didn't hurt nearly as much as it did a few days ago. 

It still hurt and there was throbs of pain if you hit your leg or accidentally moved it too suddenly, so there was obviously still something wrong with it. But you'd have to wait at least another two days or so for this doctor to show up. Hopefully it wasn't anything serious and you'd be able to leave at the end of January when this whole thing was over with! But life moved on. Once and a while Eri would help you get to the women's bath and gift you another spare kimono to wear, and things were starting to look up a bit. You got your boots back! After inquiring about them, Eri left only to return with them later. You decided not question it and only took them with a thanks to her. Even if you couldn't wear them yet, you'd certainly be needing them when you leave. You did not see this 'Kaigaku' for the last three days however, and you asked Eri about it. She only shrugged and replied casually-

"He stayed for a day or two and left yesterday morning to continue on his duties. Count yourself lucky. From what I've heard, he wanted to take you somewhere and even I despite my lack of human medical knowledge, can tell you're not fit for travel. He seemed to have change his mind however after Lord Kyogai spoke to him."

"Really?" She nodded and you hummed. Kyogai calmed him down about that idea huh? Guess you'd have to thank him later for that. "How were the two of them anyways? Any injuries?"

She shook her head no much to your relief. "None at all. Lord Kaigaku had none and Lord Kyogai's fully healed by now. You shouldn't worry yourself about them. They're much stronger than the both of us combined, and they both have important jobs to take care of for our Master."

Your interest was peeked and you looked to her again. "Hey. What exactly do they do that's so important anyways?"

Eri paused in her movements, blinking all four of her eyes at you for a good moment seemingly confused at the question, before realization came over her and she perked up. "Oh! That's right. I forget you're not from here, so you'd have no idea what the lords would do at all." Duh! Glad she was on the same pace at least. "You might've already noticed, but Lord Kyogai's the Record Keeper!"

Your brow rose higher at the demon. "Record Keeper? What's that?"

"He's in charge of anything and everything going on that's important enough to write down or whatever the Master tells him to. He keeps records of everything and anything really now that I think about it," she mumbled scratching her head with one hand and raising a brow, "Business contracts, criminal records, new laws, and books on all kinds of information. But I think he mostly works with certificates. You know. Like life and death, and marriage and all that." She shrugged. "That's why he's usually in one of his studies. He has lots to keep track of."

Wow. That sounded like a stressful job. Is that why you hadn't seen him for a few days? Was he that busy? You hadn't considered he had this big of a role, but then again you were just a stranger here. Just a bystander that wouldn't be here for much longer because after you were all healed you were leaving and never coming back. 

"Then what does Kaigaku do?"

"He patrols the Eastern Borders of the forest. His job is to keep anyone from crossing one way or another unless they're an offering or if the Master says otherwise. He's also in charge of breaking up any unnecessary fights that go on during this time."

"Well it doesn't seem like that matters when things like this still happen," you deadpanned gesturing to your leg.

"Oh no. You've got it all wrong! Before the Master assigned people to break up fights there used to be many more deaths, and many more hostile marriages. It affected our kind's population negatively for years. Now that the Master's set down stricter laws, it's spared a lot more lives. Although things are far from perfect. I'm afraid old habits die hard."

"Are the men of your world that desperate to get married?"

"Actually, being married brings you higher respect?"

You blanked. Looking at her like she suddenly sprouted a third pair of arms. ".....What!?"

Eri nodded. "It's complicated for humans to understand because your customs are different from ours. Believe it or not, it's actually very difficult to get married for a man unless your family arranges it for you or a woman accepts your courtships. Like I did with my fiancé!" She said proudly with a smile. "That's also the reason for why many of the males become desperate enough to resort to kidnapping and where people like Lord Akaza comes in."

"How does that equal up to 'respect'?"

"Well it does in a lot of ways. If you're married, that not only shows you're competent enough to be trusted in a relationship, but it also means you'll be trusted enough to be let in the woman's family, affairs, any wealth or status she may have, and you're family will see you as more responsible as well as able since you'd be able to successfully continue on the family line. Of course, there's always the possibility the woman will reject you but that's a risk many take."...Eri hummed. "Now that I think about it...The only Lord that I've ever known to be married was Lord Hantengu since he has five sons."

"I-....Well I guess that makes sense. But then how does that explain what happened to me?"

"Well you are a human bride-"

"NO! I was NOT!!" Eri blinked and leaned away at your sudden outburst and scowl, which made yourself pause and clear your throat. "*ahem* I mean-...I wasn't ever a sacrificial bride. I just..got lost on my way up the mountain at the wrong time. Simple as that."

Eri continued to stare at you for a long moment before raising a brow and humming like she didn't believe you. "Uh huh...Well in any case. Human brides are seen as an arranged marriage of sorts." She explained making you blink at her again. 

"They're what?"

"They're a form of arranged marriage, that's why they're an exception to the rules,'' she explained further holding up a finger, "You see back then it was arranged that human brides would be gifted to demon men by their families in exchange for land, the right to live on our land, and the rights that come with it, so they're considered arranged marriages. But the problem is that they were never arranged with any specific man so they were open for anyone to accept the arrangement. They're the one exception to the Master's laws since...Again." She shrugged. "The humans never made any agreements for who they would marry so it was all up in the air. Now a days it's a bit of a taboo topic really. Human wives are seen as more of a luxury for the nobility and wealthier families because of the special abilities the family can carry on in later generations."

"Like..what?"

"Demons with at least one human ancestor has benefits from both parents, but most don't prefer it. Humans aren't exactly the most understanding."....You rose a brow deadpanned at her. "Oh. But not you. You're different!" She smiled. "And I must say for my first time meeting a human, you're very nice!"

"Thank you?...I think."

"Your welcome!," she cheerfully exclaimed before motioning to the bucket your leg had been stuck in for the last few days, "Now if you would please hold still. I need to replace the water."

Day six of your rather small stay came around and it was still the same song and dance as the last few days had brought although you did get one small surprise. You were just sitting there, Eri had come in with the usual cold bucket of water in one pair of arms and with the other pair helped to hoist you up into the same chair and carefully your leg was placed back into the cold water where you knew it would go numb and lose feeling after a little while.

"How are you feeling today?," Eri asked you as she leaned up from the bucket with a smile, "Any pain or discomfort?"

"Other than my leg being really cold?" You shook your head. "No. Not really..Come to think of it." You rose a brow giving your leg a curious look. "It's not hurting a lot anymore. It still stings and it hurts if I bump it, but it doesn't feel as painful as it did a few days ago."

"That's wonderful!," she cheered with a clap of her hands, "That must mean the medical tea is working! It seems your ankle's not swollen anymore either. Which is good but we should keep up the routine since it seems to be affective so far." Eri nodded to herself. "Yes, it'd be best since I don't know anything else that could help."

You nodded. That'd probably be best, as annoying as the cold was, since you didn't really know much medical practice either. The bitter medical tea they've been making you drink with your meals was prescribed by this mysterious 'Doctor' and it tasted like sour salt, but they insisted that you down it when they gave it to you because it was supposedly supposed to help relieve any pain you may have had....Huh. Maybe that was why you hadn't been feeling much pain in your leg lately? Speaking of food, you were hungry having just woken up today. Maybe you should ask Eri to grab you something from the kitchen? As if the world was reading your mind, a small knock came from the sliding door making both you and Eri turn your heads to it. Before either of you had a chance to say anything like 'Who is it?' or 'Come in!', the door went ahead and slid open and on the other side stood someone with purple skin and cinnamon brown hair. The newcomer smiled at the both of you with a tray of food in her hands.

"Good morning to you! I got you some food to keep up your strength!"

You instantly smiled. "Nagi!"

The other lady demon you had met before smiled at you both from the sliding doorway before she stepped in and you had the scent of fried vegetables hit your nose from what food she brought you. ...Although you still don't know how she was able to see without any eyes. She stopped just beside you both, although you didn't notice the large-ish square thing under one of her arms.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was assigned to bring you some food, but I cannot stay for long. I have other duties to attend to." She then held out the tray to you, to which you took from her. "But I have heard from Eri you are doing well. I'm glad your recovery is going along so graciously." You stared at the small tray in your hands. A simple dish of fried vegetables, and of course more of that bitter tea. Yuck! A simple dish but you were grateful for it all the same. She then turned to Eri and produced something that looked like a darkly tinted bottle from her dress sleeves. "Also the yearly supply just arrived from the Master. Here's your bottle of hu-"

"SHUSH!!!"

A small slap sound was heard. You jumped. Dropping the tray in your startle. Thankfully it didn't fall on the floor, and instead hit your lap, although some of the bitter tea spilt from the cup and over the vegetables and tray making a small but contained mess. Your head turned to where the sounds came from and paused seeing a strange sight. Both women were staring at you (or the closest thing Nagi had to 'staring' without having any eyes, her head was facing your way), and Eri looked like she had been caught in the middle of doing something she shouldn't, and one of her many hands was slapped right over Nagi's mouth. 

Silence.

Awkward silence.

....Eri slowly retracted her hand from Nagi's mouth before snapping a scowl at the poor woman who looked as confused as you did. "Thank you, Nagi." Eri's tone made you blink more. It came out in a forced hiss to match her frown, and a hand of hers snatched up the small bottle from Nagi's rather bluntly. "I really needed this medicine." Her voice hiss that last bit harder, as if to emphasize it to Nagi. "This medicine was missing from my kit. Thank you for delivering it to me." You didn't see it as she was facing away from you, but her top pairs of eyes motioned in your direction as you still stared at them.

"....Oh...OH!" A flash of realization came over Nagi. "O-Oh! Yes! Y-You're medicine! That you wanted. Of course." She cleared her throat as your brow rose. "*ahem* Anyways-....I'm glad that's been solved." 

Your eyes turned to Eri who fumbled with the small bottle until it disappeared within the folds of her kimono rather quickly. ...What was that all about? Some kind of secret medicine of demons you weren't supposed to know about? Nagi must've noticed the way your f/c eyes stared at Eri because she coughed catching your attention back onto herself.

"Well I must be going, but before I do I brought a gift that might interest Miss Y/n!" A gift? What gift? Nagi reached over to her arm and you just now noticed the square object she had. What was that? The object was maneuvered into her hands and held up by her hands to reveal it to be a....Book? "I found this wedged under a shelf while cleaning one of the studies. I thought maybe you would like to read it during your stay here. It is must be stuffy sitting in the same place all the time."

You stared at it. Oh! A Book! You'd seen these before in the small library your village had (or the closest thing to one your small community had), but they had always been small and didn't have very many pages. Mostly because paper was costly where you lived. This one however was quite large and it looked about as thick as a standard brick with many pages visible to the eye all snuggly fitted in the middle of a bark black cover. You'd never seen one like this before. 

Eri rose a brow also seeming surprised by what Nagi produced. "Isn't that one of Lord Kyogai's notebooks?"

"That's what I thought at first, but when I flipped through it there wasn't any notes or anything important. It seems to be a story book. When I asked around, no one claimed it so I thought maybe Miss Y/n could find some entertainment in it."

"Story book?"

She nodded and held it out to you. "I have no need for such things." Wait...How was she able to read it without any eyes?? "But I heard humans like to read these!"

"...I..Haven't read many of them before." You slowly reached over and took it from Nagi, the black leather cover feeling cool and smooth in your hands, the book about as heavy as a typical chicken...You smiled. "But it seems like a good way to pass the time until something more important happens." You looked back to her. "Thank you so much!"

She nodded her head, but turned. "I'd hate to cut this reunion short, but I must get back to work lest I get in trouble with my Lord."

"I understand. Again thank you for both the food, and the entertainment." 

Nagi left soon after and you were left with the book. Out of pure curiosity, you opened the cover to the first page with Eri looking over your shoulder probably wondering what this was all about as well..You debated asking her about the mysterious bottle Nagi handed her, but decided against it. It wasn't any of your business, and you'd be leaving soon anyways so even if you did know, it wouldn't matter in the long run. So why bring it up? The first page had some big and bold letters on the top, maybe the name of the story?

"'Tale of Fate?''', you said questioning. Huh. You never heard anything like this before. Must be a story from outside your village-

"You can read that?"

Eri's voice so close to you made you jump and turn to Eri to blink. "Um...Yes? Can't you?" It was printed pretty big and as clear as day.

She shook her head no. "I can speak human language, but I don't understand your written language. Not every one of my kind can."

Huh. Well that explained a bit. "I see...Would you like me to read it to you?"

All four of her eyes widened to the size of plates gawking at you. "Really!? You would do that!?"

"I mean..Sure. I don't see why not. It'd be the least I could do after all you've done for me- ACK!!"

A strong, excited shake to your shoulder almost made you fall off the chair and toss the food tray from your lap. "Yes! I'd love that! Wow! I've never known someone who's gotten literature translated to them before. My family is going to be so jealous when they find out!"

Despite the awkward start to the day, you couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm finding it amusing. "Alright. Alright. Just calm down before you squeeze my arm off. Should I begin now?"

"Yes please!"

Eri's antics reminded you faintly of a child excited to be told a story. "Alright. Just give me a moment to." F/c eyes switched from the excited demon by your side to the beginning of the page right under the bold, bigger letters. And read across the first few sentences.

Down in the world unknown there laid a kingdom drab and dark. Where darkness and shadows collided and lived in fear and power. One would be mad to even think about stepping in a place like this. Where the dead are gone but still there, the shadows played and roamed and full of terror. A frightful place brace heros dare not venture unless they wish to meet a tragic fate. Yes. This one place was alone ruled by a power hungry spirit, spited by his love in life and now seeks vengeance on any mortal who dared be foolish enough to be beckoned into his awaiting claws.

The creature of vengeance was known as one of promises and dealings. Whether If one were to want something most dear to their heart and was determined and pure, or if their heart was filled with greed, envy, and lust he would grant your reply if you were brave or stupid enough to find him. It was when one day a child from a nearby village heard of this rumor that they were excited to find out if it was true or not. Against their parents and everyone else's wishes and warnings, the small child had snuck out to venture into the forbidden dark woods. The brambles scraped and left cuts on their body, the creatures chased after and threatened to eat them if they didn't turn back now, for darker and more sinister things slept in these woods, but bravely the child went on. On and on on their journey to really see this sinister ghost who granted wishes and promises that the mortal eye would repulse to believe. Until the sinister avenger had been found and the massive shadow beckoned the child closer with a boney rigged hand.

"You have traveled far and withstood the tests my forces forwarded. For that you have earned the right to one miracle granted to you. But a warning you have also earned. Be warned, with a pure and honest heart comes great rewards. With a heart who bleeds nothing but black with greed and jealousy, a foul end you shall meet. Think about the consequences greatly, for the repercussions shall be swift and tight. Think well, dear child."

The small child dared to smile at the creature and simply reply, "I have no need for any treasures or anything of preciousness near me. I solely only wished for to see myself if the avenger of shadows was a true sight. And now that I have seen you for what a true being you are, I will simply be leaving satisfied my wish was fulfilled."

The answer of the child amused the ancient spirit and he chuckled his hollow laugh at the very notion of it all.

"Wise answer to an otherwise difficult mortal choice. For that you shall still be granted a prize for your efforts. Name one and answer wisely."

The small child as said had no need for such items like treasure and fortune, but they knew that the child's hard working mother were in need of some fortune in her life. So with a kind heart, the child looked to the spirit and asked for their miracle. "My mother works oh so hard to take care of me. It would be so nice for her to have just a little more luck on her side. Oh spirit, let me repay her for all her kindness she has shown me."

"Your wish shall be granted. A selfless act is always it's own reward, but be wary of those who wish to use those fortunes to their own will."

The child was permitted a safe leave back to their home and as promised their selfless act of kindness was granted by the spirit of shadows. The child and their mother mysteriously found an old box in their pantry one day that they had never known of before and upon opening it discovered many, many priceless jewels. The likes of which they had never seen before. With this new found fortune, the mother and child were able to gain a plentiful farm with all the necessities they needed to have a plentiful life. Farther down in the years the mother even remarried one of the strongest most handsome men in the small village. But this man was nothing but green with want, and treated the mother and her child terribly.

He was lazy, rude, and had a heart full of greed. Seeping of those who had better and helping him in life. But one fateful day everything changed. For one day he asked the child's mother a question.

"My dear wife. You know I love you dearly, but I must ask you. Where did you receive such wealth and fortune."

"Why, from a old wooden box in the pantry," she replied happily, "And inside the little wooden chest was gems and riches beyond our wildest dreams."

"Yes, yes! But where did it come from?"

"I know not how it got there or where it came from, but my child and I are oh so happy to have received such a delightful fortune. How we may live happily for a long while."

Her husband was displeased with such an answer and once again asked but this time to the child. The child happily told the man his venture into the woods and his encounter with the spirit of shadows, filling the man's heart with more greed. That very night when the family slept, the man snuck out and made his own way into the deep woods of shadows and fears. Brambles cut his clothing, he cursed those who dare chase him and snap at his hinds as he ran, but the greed and lust in his heart was strong. So strong he persisted his heart green with envy. Alas finally he arrived and looking as though some creature had mangled him with their claws. The spirit was beckoning him closer with a bony rigged hand and spoke.

"Oh one who's heart is sewn with greed and plight. You have sought me through danger and fright. Your actions of greed are inexcusable but like many before you have made it through the path of darkness. For that you have earned the right to one miracle, but also a warning. Be warned, with a pure and honest heart comes great rewards. With a heart who bleeds nothing but black with greed and jealousy, a foul end you shall meet. Think about the consequences greatly, for the repercussions shall be swift and tight. Oh one who comes to me with a black heart for his own wishes. I offer this to you so you may choose your wish wisely."

The man paid no attention to the wise words of the ghost nor did he think about any real consequences for his actions as he spoke what he oh so desired.

"Give me more riches than any man shall have!! Make my fortune one who will make me a fortunate man!! A bright castle and beautiful jewels is what I seek and most desire!!"

"A answer I foresaw and one your shall have for not heeding my warnings. Oh man of greed and selfishness, you shall indeed have your wish awaiting you home. But do not be surprised when your unfortunate fate you shall unevitably meet. Now be gone creature of greed. My domain is not fit for one of you."

The man left for his home and once his got there his had his miracle in the form of the purest black horse with a magnificent couch of ebony, inside the couch was boxes and jewels of every imagining. The man cared not for his wife or the young child that he had left behind, away in this marvelous new couch he received and off that horrid man went into the night with his shouts of greedy glee and pleasure as his family long forgotten. The mother and child awoken to no greedy man plaguing their lives and while the mother was quite saddened, she still had the child to watch after. As luck and fortune does benefit those with kind hearts, another man the mother sought and a kinder gentler man she got. With as much kindness to her and her child this man gave to combat the sorrows left behind by the other greed filled one. One day a message they did receive, about a much bigger estate of land and riches. The greedy man who had once left them behind without a second thought, was now no more as the spirits warnings he did not heed. As fate had decided he would be no more, a swift and tight end he did get. Leaving everything he valued behind of jewels and gold, to no man but a woman he did not care for. His wife and next of kin did receive, fame and fortune for kindness indeed. With kindness in their hearts the family did grow, and with it came all luck and fortune soon to glow.

For those with kind hearts and bright minds, often find themselves on the favorite end of fate's hands.

[hanzajesthanza]

Angouleme for the character bingo

i am so normal about them - did you know that when the guards call her "skittish" in her debut in ttos ch. 5 and fringilla calls her "flighty" in lotl ch. 4, they're actually using the same word, płochy? of which could be translated as "fickle," "thoughtless," "skittish," or "insignificant, trivial" or "unsteady in (her) feelings", or "careless," "untamed," or "reckless" ... isn't that interesting! i just think that's interesting.

i have so many headcanons about them - my entire (planned but not written) fic with her and regis spins around my head... i'm torn on whether to post a plot summary of this on here (basically copying over what i've said in discord messages), or if i want to avoid spoiling any of this and just wait until i've finished it (and who knows when or if i will ever write this)

*projects onto them like a mf* - yes, though admittedly to her detriment, it's a habit i've tried to stop. i find that my excessive editorializing of her spoils her character :p stick to the facts, people! i admit it's difficult if only because we share some similar issues, but the thing that i have to keep in mind is that we have entirely opposite personalities, and even if we feel similarly, her feelings will express themselves differently.

wordless space 1, "i just think she's neat"

everyone else is wrong about them - people just forget about her character, and i'm not only speaking of them forgetting about her existence - that they also do often enough, but they also do not pay attention to her. that's probably my biggest pet peeve regarding her, is that people find her quirky and funny, but do not remember the context around her character... that she nearly escaped the scaffold, and from that nearly the stake, with eyes gouged out and breasts torn by iron-hot pincers? that she genuinely was begging to be hanged when she was introduced as a character, begging for death? or that she has hidden from pursuers in toussaint before? that she has "friends" such as golan drosdeck whom she owed debts to? that she is knowledgeable about the mining operations and the reddishness of the earth, and explains the subject to geralt and cahir? or that she is upset when civilians are afraid of them from killing bandits "because they were evil," so she indeed has a moral compass? that she screams like a banshee when trying to kill nightingale? or that she 'resembled a pretty girl' when given a comb and dress, and that she got tipsy during the october banquet and could be heard throughout the hall? her character actually has so much detail and diversity if you actually pay attention, but hardly anyone remembers her as anything asides from a silly little girl that joined geralt's hanza and provides some laughs for the reader. and then they ask why the female characters are one-dimensional. idk, possibly because it is these reader which made them one-dimensional in their very own minds because they are not strong readers and forget all the detail that's literally written right there on the page... oh, and by the way, it was not a hanza before she joined, because she is the very one which dubs it that in the first place. before angouleme joined, they were just the "company". that is my angouleme rant done 😌

that's a solid design right there - canonically, great: "The girl sniffed again, inclined her head and fixed Geralt with her huge eyes. Nut-brown, not green. Then she shook her untidy mane of light hair, causing it to fall onto her forehead in unruly locks," and personally (if i can compliment the own personal way i see her), i love to give her a silhouette with a short, cropped top and long, flared pants. somewhat like this:

they are so silly - ignore my entire rant above about her being treated like a comic relief character and nothing more... because she is indeed funny and a bright little jester of a girl.

wordless space 2, "squeaky toy"

bastard - literally. she is an illegitimate child born out of wedlock.

character bingo

send an ask

[thehappyvet]

Are there any vet areas that you think have good potential for someone with fibromyalgia? The most anyone ever says is Radiology, but it scares me to only have one option if my condition continues to get worse.

I'm unmedicated because I can't find anything that works, and it is difficult to even work part time. I don't want to waste my time and money if it isn't a realistic path.

Is nutrition amotther possibility or is it oversaturated? It's hard to find anyone who can answer these questions for me aside from " you can do anything you set your mind to" because they don't understand that I literally work, eat, shower, go to bed and stay there until work, and repeat because it hurts too much.

I want a life outside of work, but I also worry about working part time as a vet with the amount of debt, another topic people struggle to talk to me about.

Thank you!!!

Hey - thanks for the question 🥰

My first thoughts on this would be a non-clinical role such as a clinical director, subject matter expert for an insurance or pet food company, research or university.

If you're keen on a clinical role there's still so many options! Off the top of my head radiology, ultrasound, anaesthesia, clinical pathology, dermatology, and behaviour would all be more than suitable.

In Australia there doesn't seem to be a saturation of nutritionists but I can't speak to other countries.

I always recommend putting alerts on for vet jobs in areas you are interested in well before you graduate so you can see what kinds of jobs are going and what they involve. It's also a nice stress relief as you can see just all the amazing options of a career your vet degree gives you.

Stay open and flexible to where you want to go, and try to network with people currently doing what you are interested in.

I hope this helps!! Followers please comment or reblog if you have any thoughts 🥰

[mostlysignssomeportents]

The "small nonprofit school" saved in the SVB bailout charges more than Harvard

There are no libertarians in a bank run. No sooner had venture capitalists whipped each other into a terrified Twitter frenzy at the imminent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank — a collapse caused by that selfsame frenzy — than the Ayn Rand-poisoned elite of Sand Hill Road started begging for Uncle Sucker to open the sluicegates:

https://twitter.com/EricNewcomer/status/1634300928621793283

If you’d like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here’s a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/23/small-nonprofit-school/#north-country-school

Now, on the one hand, it’s easy to dismiss these guys as very, very, very stupid. After all, they played a game of prisoner’s dilemma in which they were allowed to talk to each other as much as they wanted — and they still sold each other out:

https://newsletter.mollywhite.net/p/the-venture-capitalists-dilemma

But they still have the commonsense to realize that an America where $10k in student debt cancellation, school lunches for hungry children, and library budgets are out of reach, handing billions to a bank rescue a balance sheet overwhelmingly made up the investments of “high net worth” investors wouldn’t be popular.

After all, these guys have been crying about incipient guillotinism for years:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-08/billionaire-cartier-owner-sees-wealth-gap-fueling-social-unrest

Sure, they don’t compare small rises in the top marginal tax-rate to Kristallnacht anymore:

https://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2014/01/26/266685819/billionaire-compares-outrage-over-rich-in-s-f-to-kristallnacht

But they are locked and loaded for The Event, feathering elaborate subterranean, antipodean nests in the most luxurious bunkers New Zealand has to offer, against the day that the poors come to eat them:

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/15/business/bunkers-new-zealand-intl-hnk/index.html

So amid the clamor for socialism-for-the-rich, these billionaires went on the hunt for average joes who could serve as the face of the bailout. Like the “Ohio mom with 4 kids and a husband who works in manufacturing, who owns a small business:”

https://www.businessinsider.com/mother-small-startup-ceo-fall-svb-not-1-problem-2023-3

She’s ex-McKinsey and raised $4m in VC for a $600/month life-planning app; her husband, another McKinsey alum, is a senior manager at a steel company (that is, he “works in manufacturing”).

Clearly, the ex-libertarian 0.01 percenters begging for relief needed to find someone else. Enter David Sacks, a billionaire Paypal mafiosi who waded into the debate with screenshots of an email from a “small, non-profit school” that would miss payroll if the bailout was not forthcoming:

https://twitter.com/DavidSacks/status/1636054055121453057

Sacks held this up as evidence that SVB’s depositors were “more diversified than the media narrative has allowed.” Sacks went on to claim that the bailout saved “innocent bystanders” like “teachers” from being “laid off.”

What is this small, nonprofit school? Writing in The American Prospect, Luke Goldstein sleuths it out: the “small, nonprofit school” is North Country School, an upstate New York boarding school where tuition runs $62k/year — more than Harvard or Yale:

https://prospect.org/economy/2023-03-22-david-sacks-bank-bailout/

North Country sounds like a great place to get an education. It’s got its own private ski-slope. The local city raised a $7m municipal bond on its behalf. There’s a rock-climbing range and horseback riding. The school emphasizes unstructured, outdoor education, with “farming, wilderness trips…even maple sugaring”:

https://northcountryschool.org/

Let’s be honest, this is the kind of education a lot of us dream of our kids having. No wonder that the alumna include numerous Rockefellers, and a scion of the Aga Khan family — claimed lineal descendants of the Prophet Muhammad.

As illustrious as the student body is, the trustees are even more gilt-edged. There’s a former Jpmorgan managing director, a former Google exec, Austrian nobility, the Welch’s grape heir and even JD Salinger’s kid. The chair ran a booze delivery company that sold to Uber. Together, they manage $30m in assets and raise $3m/year in donations, on top of $9m/year in revenues.

As Goldstein points out, it might be a lot to ask of the median small, nonprofit school trustee to investigate the soundness of the school’s bank. But these aren’t the median trustees of the median school. They’re raising millions from Vanguard and Fidelity and the JM Kaplan Fund. Perhaps it’s not asking too much that high-flying financiers craft a risk management plan for their deposits — or, you know, just have the nous not to stash all their money in a single bank account, diversifying their risk the way that any financial planner would tell them to do.

According to Sacks, if the FDIC had frozen SVB withdrawals, or imposed a 10 percent haircut on depositors with more than $250k in the bank, the “modestly paid workers who tend not to have a lot of savings to fall back on” who worked at the school would have been out in the cold. But with donors on tap who give $50,000 at a pop, it seems likely that the trustees could have tapped someone for a bridge loan.

It’s doubtless true that there are low-waged, precarious workers who would have been out in the cold if the FDIC hadn’t stepped in, but the wealthy “investors” who clamored for the bailout spent the last several years consistently, brutally, loudly calling for an end to covid relief, no student debt cancellation, and cuts to public services. The idea that they were worried about saving the janitors and receptionists of Silicon Valley strains credulity:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/18/2-billion-here-2-billion-there/#socialism-for-the-rich

You can’t be on record calling for tech billionaires to “Sharpen your blades boys 🔪” ahead of mass layoffs and also claim to be a champion of the middle-class:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/21/tech-workers/#sharpen-your-blades-boys

As Goldstein writes, “David Sacks couldn’t find a mom-and-pop institution to justify his cockeyed version of reality without turning to a VC colleague’s ultra-rich boarding school.” There might be mom-and-pop institutions on the SVB balance-sheet, but David Sacks evidently doesn’t know any of them.

New York State is a good place to be a Silicon Valley banker. For one thing, the Southern District of New York is an exceptionally nice place to be a bankrupt billionaire, which is why SVB’s investors now claim that their headquarters are at 387 Park Ave, 2,951 miles from the Santa Clara HQ the company listed on all its filings:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/18/2-billion-here-2-billion-there/#socialism-for-the-rich

In New York, elite boarding schools get federal rescues, so long as they can claim some nexus with SVB. But, as Goldstein writes, NY city and state schools are in outright financial crisis, with no aid in sight. The State University of New York system is drowning in debt. NYC schools are about to bring down massive layoffs, having lost $469m out of their budgets:

https://comptroller.nyc.gov/newsroom/testimony-of-new-york-city-comptroller-brad-lander-to-the-new-york-city-council-committee-on-education-on-resolution-283-2022-to-immediately-reverse-doe-reductions-to-school-budgets-for-fy-2023/

The FDIC stepped in to rescue SVB, claiming that it wouldn’t cost the public anything — instead, the money would come from increases in the entire bank system’s insurance premiums. But as Adam Levitin writes for Credit Slips, banks “will pass those premiums through to customers because the market for banking services is less competitive than the market for capital…higher costs for increased insurance premiums are likely to flow to the least price-sensitive and most ‘sticky’ customers: less wealthy individuals”

“So average Joes are going to be facing things like higher account fees or lower APYs, without gaining any benefit. Instead, the benefit of removing the cap would flow entirely to wealthy individuals and businesses. This is one massive, regressive cross-subsidy.”

https://www.creditslips.org/creditslips/2023/03/the-regressive-cross-subsidy-of-uncapping-deposit-insurance.html

Nothing about this bailout intrinsically protects anyone’s job. Yes, if the companies that banked with SVB went under, they’d have fired everyone. But tech companies are firing everyone anyway, 280,000 and counting, in profitable companies where they do stock-buybacks big enough to pay every worker’s salary for the next quarter-century:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/21/tech-workers/#sharpen-your-blades-boys

I’m kickstarting the audiobook for my next novel, a post-cyberpunk anti-finance finance thriller about Silicon Valley scams called Red Team Blues. Amazon’s Audible refuses to carry my audiobooks because they’re DRM free, but crowdfunding makes them possible

[Image ID: A vast castle surrounded by a stately brick wall bearing an ornate gilt-framed sign reading 'Small, non-profit school,' in gothic lettering. Atop the wall is a caricature of Humpty Dumpty, looking distressed. He has a SVB logo over his chest. He is being restrained by tiny, top-hatted bankers.]

[yourreddancer]

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

September 26, 2022 (Monday)A headline in the New York Times today read: “Factory Jobs Are Booming Like It’s the 1970s.” The story explained that more money in the hands of consumers thanks to federal stimulus spending, along with a new skepticism of stretched supply lines, has created a rebound in American manufacturing.

Since the 1970s, authors Jim Tankersley, Alan Rappeport, and Ana Swanson explain, outsourcing and automation have meant that every recession has seen factory jobs disappear and never return as employers used downturns to move operations to countries with lower wage levels. This time, though, American manufacturers have not only regained all the jobs lost during the pandemic, they have also added about 67,000 more. Those numbers would be higher if the labor market weren’t so tight, a condition leading employers to offer higher wages and better benefits

.Biden has made it clear that he is trying to overturn 40 years of “supply side” economics, ushered in by President Ronald Reagan. This system was designed to free up capital at the top of the economy through tax cuts and deregulation in the belief that putting capital in the hands of the wealthy—the “supply side”— would lead them to invest more in the economy, thus making it grow more quickly and providing more jobs. While Republicans came to embrace that ideology wholeheartedly, in fact it never showed signs of increasing economic growth. What it did was to move wealth dramatically upward. It also made the measure of the economy the health of Wall Street rather than Main Street.

Since Abraham Lincoln’s administration, which faced a similar economic stratification and a similar justification for it, another approach to the economy has stood against this ideology. Leaders from Lincoln to Theodore Roosevelt to Franklin Delano Roosevelt have argued that providing opportunity for people at the lower end of the economy—the “demand side”—would drive production and consumption, spreading prosperity upward. Biden has followed in this tradition. Insisting that he would build the economy “from the bottom up and the middle out,” he, along with the Democrats in Congress, bolstered domestic manufacturing with measures like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the CHIPS and Science Act.

Now, statistics show, that investment has paid off. Chad Moutray, the chief economist for the National Association of Manufacturers, told the New York Times reporters: ​​“We have 67,000 more workers today than we had in February 2020. I didn’t think we would get there, to be honest with you.”

National Economic Council director Brian Deese told the reporters, “One of the most striking things that we are seeing now is the number of companies—U.S. companies and global companies—that are committing to build and expand their manufacturing footprint in the United States, and doing so based on their view that not only did the pandemic highlight the need for more resilience in their supply chains, but that the United States is creating a policy environment that makes long-term investment here in the United States more attractive.”Meanwhile, the real net worth of the bottom 50% of U.S. households has climbed 60% since Biden took office, now reaching $67,524. 

One of the things that will continue to feed this change is the plan to forgive significant student loan debt, especially among low-income Black and Brown Americans. This story is hitting the news today after the Congressional Budget Office responded to a series of questions posed by Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) and Representative Virginia Foxx (R-NC), both fervently opposed to the program. The CBO’s responses to those specific questions have been widely published, suggesting the program will cost the U.S. $400 billion. This is sparking cries about its expense, but this particular CBO number calculates the cost over the next 30 years rather than the usual ten, does not address the stimulus effects of the relief, and does not take into account how much anyone would actually have repaid. The estimate is, the CBO states in its letter, “highly uncertain.”

In contrast to Biden’s economic program, on Friday the new government of Prime Minister Liz Truss announced the most radical tax cuts in Britain since 1972, cutting the top income tax rate as well as corporate taxes to spur the economy. This unfunded cut will mean borrowing at rising interest rates. Concerns about inflation, already hammering the British economy, made the value of the pound, which is the English unit of currency, drop to its lowest level since 1985.

(MY NOTE: didn't this silly bitch learn ANYTHING from what happened in the US from the false "Trickle down" bullshit? She's another Thatcher!!)

These different economic visions are in conflict here in the United States. Former Trump economic advisor Steve Moore reacted to the Truss tax cuts by saying: “This is exactly what we should be doing in the US." White House economic advisor Jared Bernstein said: "President Biden has been very clear about the negative track record of trickle-down, Reagan-style tax cuts."

Republicans have managed to keep voters behind their economic program by downplaying it and emphasizing cultural issues, primarily abortion, which reliably turned out anti-abortion voters. Now that the Supreme Court has overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion, Republicans have a demographic problem: a majority of voters support reproductive rights and are turning out to vote, and there is no longer a reason for anti-abortion voters to show up.

So Republican leaders are downplaying abortion: reporter Eric Garcia noted today that Republican representative and Senate candidate Ted Budd (R-NC), who is a cosponsor of the House version of Senator Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) national abortion bill, didn’t mention his stance in a recent rally with former president Trump. They are also inventing new cultural crises, most notably an attack on LGBTQIA folks but also a renewed attack on immigrants.

Trump has gone further, jumping aboard the QAnon train, which the FBI considers a domestic terrorism threat, as his own legal troubles are mounting. His lawyers failed to slow down the criminal investigation into his theft of documents, including many marked with the highest levels of classification. New York Attorney General Letitia James has sued Trump, his company, and his children and two associates for fraud. And now the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol is beginning to turn up more information.

On Friday the committee subpoenaed Wisconsin House Speaker Robin Vos to ask about a phone call he had with Trump in July 2022 (not a typo) in which Trump tried to get him to change the 2020 result in Wisconsin. Vos is challenging the subpoena. 

 In the lead-up to Wednesday’s midday public hearing of the committee, Zachary Cohen of CNN reported today that election denier Phil Waldron, a former Army colonel associated with Trump loyalist Michael Flynn, was in contact with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows in late December 2020 about gaining access to the voting systems in Arizona and Georgia. Waldron referred to Arizona as “our lead domino we were counting on to start the cascade,” to overturn the election.

Meanwhile, Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas, was texting QAnon links to Meadows. And now, after flirting with QAnon since 2020, Trump has embraced it wholeheartedly, first “retruthing” social media posts featuring him as a QAnon hero and warning that “The Storm Is Coming,” then using QAnon music at a rally. Now, he has sent out an email calling for the death penalty for drug dealers—a favorite theme of fascists since the 1930s and a major part of the program of former dictator Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines, whom Trump admires—along with the warning that “Under Democrat control, the streets of our great cities are drenched in the blood of innocent victims,” tapping into the QAnon themes of violent retribution for those they see as preying on America’s youth.

“I certainly will do whatever it takes to make sure Donald Trump isn't anywhere close to the Oval Office,” Representative Liz Cheney said this weekend at The Texas Tribune Festival, which highlights politics and policy. “And if he is the nominee, I won't be a Republican.” She warned that a Republican majority in the House would empower Trump Republicans like Jim Jordan (OH), Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA), and Lauren Boebert (CO).

And when asked if Trump should testify before the committee, Cheney answered: “Any interaction that Donald Trump has with the committee will be under oath and subject to penalty of perjury.

[outlookproperties]

We Buy Homes Massachusetts: Your Guide to Selling Your Home Fast and Hassle-Free

Selling a home is often a complicated and time-consuming process, especially if you’re in a situation where you need to sell quickly. Traditional real estate methods can be overwhelming, involving repairs, staging, and waiting for the right buyer. Fortunately, if you're in Massachusetts and looking for a quicker and more convenient solution, We Buy Homes Massachusetts services offer a reliable alternative. This guide will explore everything you need to know about selling your home fast through home-buying services and how they can provide relief from the typical stressors of the home-selling process.

What Is "We Buy Homes Massachusetts"?

We Buy Homes Massachusetts is a home-buying service that specializes in purchasing houses directly from homeowners, usually in exchange for cash. These companies offer a streamlined alternative to the traditional home-selling process by buying properties "as-is" without requiring any repairs or renovations. Whether you're dealing with foreclosure, relocation, divorce, or simply looking to offload a property quickly, these services are designed to make the process fast and hassle-free.

Why Consider Using a We Buy Homes Service?

If you’re considering selling your house, you might wonder why you would opt for a We Buy Homes Massachusetts service instead of listing your property on the market with a real estate agent. Here are several reasons why many homeowners choose this route:

1. Fast and Convenient Process

One of the biggest advantages of working with a home-buying service is the speed of the transaction. Traditional home sales can take months from listing to closing, especially if the property needs repairs or if the real estate market is slow. In contrast, home-buying companies can often close the deal in as little as a week.

2. Sell Your Home As-Is

When selling through traditional means, many buyers expect the home to be in top condition, which means you might need to invest in repairs, upgrades, and even staging. With a We Buy Homes Massachusetts service, there’s no need to make any repairs or cosmetic improvements. These companies will purchase your home in its current condition, whether it’s outdated, damaged, or facing other issues.

3. No Hidden Fees or Commissions

Selling a home through a real estate agent typically involves paying commissions, which can eat into your profits. Additionally, there may be other costs, such as closing fees, inspection fees, and marketing expenses. With a We Buy Homes Massachusetts service, there are no hidden fees or commissions. You receive a cash offer, and the amount offered is what you’ll walk away with at closing.

4. Avoid Foreclosure

If you're facing foreclosure or other financial difficulties, selling your home quickly might be your best option to avoid damaging your credit score. Home-buying services can step in and provide a fast cash offer, allowing you to pay off debts or move forward without the burden of foreclosure looming over you.

5. Eliminate the Stress of Showings and Open Houses

For many homeowners, the process of preparing a home for open houses and showings can be exhausting. Keeping your home in pristine condition and accommodating prospective buyers’ schedules can add stress to an already taxing process. With a We Buy Homes Massachusetts service, you won’t need to worry about showings or staging. You can bypass this step altogether, as the buyer will make a quick assessment of the property before presenting an offer.

6. Relocation and Downsizing

Life changes like job relocation or downsizing often require a fast sale of your home. If you need to move quickly, listing your property on the open market may not align with your timeline. Home-buying companies allow you to sell your home on your schedule, ensuring you have the flexibility to relocate without delay.

How Does the We Buy Homes Process Work?

The process of selling your home through a We Buy Homes Massachusetts service is simple, straightforward, and designed to minimize stress for the seller. Here’s how it typically works:

1. Contact the Company

Start by reaching out to a reputable We Buy Homes Massachusetts company. Many home-buying companies offer a simple online form or phone consultation where you can provide basic information about your property, such as its location, size, and condition.

2. Property Evaluation

After you’ve provided initial details, the company will arrange a time to assess the property. This evaluation may include a walkthrough or a more formal inspection, depending on the company’s process. Since home-buying services purchase properties as-is, they won’t expect the house to be in perfect condition. Instead, they will assess its current state and market value.

3. Receive a Cash Offer

Once the evaluation is complete, the company will present you with a cash offer. This offer is typically based on the condition of your home, comparable sales in the area, and the company’s buying criteria. You are under no obligation to accept the offer, and you can take your time to review and consider it.

4. Accept the Offer

If you decide to accept the offer, the company will move forward with the sale. This is where We Buy Homes Massachusetts companies shine, as they handle all of the paperwork, eliminating much of the back-and-forth that comes with traditional home sales.

5. Close the Deal

The final step is closing. With traditional real estate transactions, closing can take weeks and often involves negotiations, repairs, and contingencies. With a We Buy Homes Massachusetts company, the closing can be completed in as little as a week, and you receive the agreed-upon cash payment at the close of the deal.

Who Benefits Most from We Buy Homes Massachusetts?

While We Buy Homes Massachusetts services can benefit many types of homeowners, they are especially helpful in specific situations, such as:

1. Homeowners Facing Financial Hardship

If you are dealing with financial difficulties, such as foreclosure, tax liens, or significant debt, selling your home quickly can help alleviate the financial burden. Home-buying companies provide immediate cash offers, allowing you to pay off debts and move forward.

2. Inherited Homes

Inheriting a property can sometimes be a mixed blessing, especially if you already have a home or do not want to manage the upkeep of an inherited property. Home-buying services offer a simple way to sell inherited homes without the need to invest in repairs or deal with probate issues.

3. Owners of Distressed Properties

If your home has significant damage, is outdated, or needs extensive repairs, selling it on the traditional market can be challenging. We Buy Homes Massachusetts companies will purchase properties in any condition, allowing you to avoid costly repairs and quickly sell your home.

4. Landlords Looking to Exit the Rental Market

If you’re a landlord tired of managing rental properties, a home-buying company can provide a fast, hassle-free way to sell. Whether you’re dealing with difficult tenants or simply looking to retire from the rental business, these services can help you offload properties quickly.

5. Divorce or Life Changes

In the case of divorce, downsizing, or other life changes, selling a home quickly may be necessary. Home-buying companies can help you finalize the sale efficiently, allowing you to move forward without the stress of a prolonged real estate process.

Choosing the Right We Buy Homes Massachusetts Company

While there are many We Buy Homes Massachusetts companies available, it’s important to choose one that is reputable and trustworthy. Here are a few tips for selecting the right company:

Research Reviews: Look for customer reviews and testimonials to ensure the company has a strong track record of satisfied clients.

Verify Credentials: Make sure the company is licensed and accredited, and ask about their experience in the Massachusetts market.

Compare Offers: Don’t feel pressured to accept the first offer you receive. Take the time to compare offers from different home-buying companies to ensure you get the best deal.

Ask Questions: Before signing any agreements, make sure you understand the terms of the sale and any potential fees involved.

Conclusion

Selling your home through a We Buy Homes Massachusetts service by Outlook propertiesllc offers a fast, stress-free alternative to the traditional real estate market. Whether you’re facing financial hardship, inheriting a property, or simply looking to sell quickly, these services can provide a straightforward solution that helps you move forward. By eliminating the need for repairs, showings, and drawn-out negotiations, home-buying companies make it easier than ever to sell your home and receive cash in hand quickly.

[lexingtontaxgroup]

Life Without Tax Debt

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