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Identity Theft, Credit Reports, And You Money

Patrick McKenzie | Kalzumeus | 9th September 2017

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Definitive guide to what you should do in case of identity theft — at least in America, but the lessons generalise. “Never pay a penny of a debt which isn’t yours. Paying waives your legal rights, because the system assumes that nobody would pay something they didn’t actually owe. Paying also doesn’t help you, because in most cases paying debts which were once delinquent does not improve your credit scores. Why? Math math, clustering algorithms, blah blah; just trust me” (5,500 words)

How To Make History Thought

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Existentialism updated. How to give meaning to your life. “In everything you do, from posting a tweet or buying a coffee to running for President or tackling the Riemann hypothesis, you must choose between two extreme contexts: to either mark time with labor, or make history with action. In between there is a third context, where you can choose to slow time, which includes any sort of making, including art and trade (which is making in the sense of market-making)” (4,500 words)

My Drowning (And Other Inconveniences) Life Pick of the day

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In which the celebrated writer is thrown from a raft, almost drowns, and flirts with death. “My face turned blue, then gray, and then my heart stopped beating altogether. I died that December day on Tequila Beach. This created a great deal of consternation. I was, at the time, 71 years old, and most of my team was half my age or less. These fine and foolish folk had every reason to imagine that I had all the skills necessary to handle a winter trip down the Grand Canyon” (5,400 words)

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Identity Theft, Credit Reports, And You Money

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How To Make History Thought

My Drowning (And Other Inconveniences) Life Pick of the day

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