vania-janet/multiturn-rag-retrieval-data huggingface dataset:
I brought my car in to sears auto because the oil light came on after they had put in a new oil pressure sensor a month earlier. I assumed it was faulty so I brought it up. They checked it out after taking their sweet time about it and gave me a bullshit diagnosis. Ultimately I had to tell them exactly what to do to fix it, which they had to bring in a manager to give them the okay for, and I was right. Also, it took 6 hours when it should have taken 1 or 2 for the part to come in and install (not a busy day by any means either). I stood by them to make sure they did it properly because they had two 16 or 18 year old kids working on it.   Another time I went in to buy an impact driver and a few other tools. No one came up to ask if I needed help, and when I brought everything to the register, there was a line of 10 people and 1 cashier. It was a saturday afternoon, so traditionally a busy day.  Sears is a disappointment and I wouldn't mind if they close the one by me.
"You are literally claiming ammonia isn't bad for people. That's a claim. If you want to provide proof, then that's fine, but don't claim something without providing evidence.  And ""they have been doing it for years, so it must be okay"" isn't good enough.   Also, I think it's banned in Europe and Canada, so why don't they think's it's safe?"
Fixed  You are confirming the amount you are going t pay over the term of the loan. Variable: 3.79% over 82mo. The total difference over the life of the loan comes to around $1200 That is the wrong way to calculate the variable portion. The variable is primarily set with a margin over a certain benchmark i.e. Fed rate. Assuming the Fed rate doesn't change over or only goes lower the variable rate is the one to go. If it rises then your payment will increase. And the margin they take over the benchmark rate may increase, so the total amount you pay might increase too.  I would assume a read through the T&Cs should clarify that for you. Is it ever a good idea to choose a variable rate loan? Only if you think we are in a low interest rate environment i.e. the economy is in doldrums and the Feds are trying to simulate the economy by decreasing the benchmark rates. And you are sure that the lender isn't going to increase his margins if the rate remains low for quite a substantial amount of time. And I might assume there will be penalties for paying off a loan quicker.
I found out about Louis from the internet, I previously had only watched his stand-up on the internet, and then I bought one show for 5$.  I also used to watch Derrick comedy (online only) and would buy a similar download from Donald Glover if he offered one.  This model is EXACTLY what people need, since it will lead to a hell of a lot more middle-class artists selling directly to small portions of the public with very little over-head.
Contributing the $150 to put you over the $3k mark is somewhat pointless. The reason is that, although you won't be accumulating any fees, you won't be able to use the money, either, because as soon as you take a distribution, you'll be back under $3k.  Instead, I would look at two things: First, are you considering all the ways you can spend this money? Doctor visits, dentist, prescriptions, eyeglasses, chiropractic, and more: there are lots of ways to spend this money, and if you can spend it all in a relatively short amount of time, your problem is solved. The full list of things you can spend it on is in IRS Publication 502.  Second, have you talked to a local credit union? Credit unions often offer an HSA account with only a small setup fee and no ongoing monthly fee or minimum balance. If you roll your current HSA money over into your new account, you can then take your time spending the money until it is gone.  If you are having trouble locating a good HSA, there is a large list at hsarates.com. Look for one that is available in your state (or nationwide) and has low/no fees.
There is a metric ton of information regarding financial planning, but you can always read something like Investing For Dummies or you can try the Motley Fool's How To Invest (online and highly recommended). But I'm Only 17... So what should you do now? Budget. Sounds dumb, but just look at your basic expenses and total them all up (rent, utilities, phone, cable, food, gas, other costs) and divide by two. Out of each paycheck, this is how much money you need to save not to go into debt. Try to save a little each month. $50 - $100 a month is a good starting amount if you can swing it. You can always try to save more later. Invest early. You may not get great returns, but you don't need much money to start investing. Often you can get started with as little as $20 - $100. You'll have to do research but it is possible. Put money in your savings account. Checking accounts do not typically earn interest but money in savings accounts often do (that is, the bank will actually add money to your savings assuming you leave it in there long enough). Unfortunately, this rate of interest is only about 3.5% on average, which for most people means they don't get rich off it. You have to have a significant amount of money ($5,000+) to see even modest improvements in your savings account balance each month. But still, you may eventually get there. Get into the habit of putting money places that make you money in the long run. Don't go into debt. Don't get payday loans, pawn items, or abuse credit cards. Besides wrecking your credit, even a small amount of debt ($500+) can be very hard to break out of if you don't have a great paying job and can even make you homeless (no rent means no apartment). Remember, be financially responsible -- but assuming your parents aren't totally tight with money, don't be afraid to ask for cash when you really need it. This is a much better option than borrowing from some place that charges outrageous interest or making your payments late.
Just a thought, but have you considered approaching your sister about assuming the student loans or repaying your mother (even if it is a small amount/month) for financing her college education? If she is in her last year of college, in theory she should be earning at least some income within the next 2 years. Also, it doesn't seem like a lot to ask considering the sacrifices (both financial and otherwise) that a single mom probably made over the years. I'm sure your mom would be hesitant to ask as it seems like she prioritizes her children above herself by your description of the situation, but I bet if you could talk the sister into the mom would grudgingly accept it if she really is in such a tight financial situation.
I wouldn't say fair enough.  Go back and read the article again, right now, to remind yourself how bad it really was.  Passion is okay but that article needs a lot of work to be taken seriously by anyone other than those who already circle jerk to bitcoin.  If all he wants is hits and praise ($) from bitcoin fanatics, and doesn't care about the cause, then more power to him. If he wants to make a difference he needs a better writing style.
Well, if you can get a loan for 3.8% and reliably invest for 7% returns, then you should borrow as much as you possibly can - the whole employment/existing loan situation doesn't even enter into it! But as they say, if something is too good to be true, it probably isn't (true). The 7-8% return are not guaranteed at all, but the 3.8% interest is. And while we're at it, 3.8% for an unsecured loan sounds pretty damn low, I would be really doubtful about that. I mean, why would the bank do that if they could instead invest the money for 7-8%?
Not only is this article just referencing another longer article, but that article does nothing to explain WHY there is this difference.  It's frustrating because I'd like to know why.  They say it's because of a different configuration of culture, the law, and unions.  Uh, okay.  That explains nothing.
So basically, if you have a large savings account and are not investing... (because banks are actually a very poor way to get returns on capital), they will invest it for you...   The take home I'm getting is... invest your money, and leave it out of the banks.
"I see three areas of concern for your budget: This is way high.  I am not sure how much of a house you live in, but the total of these two numbers should be around 25% not 41%. I am a person that considers giving an important part of wealth building, and gives to my local church.  But as one other person has rightly said, this amount is irresponsible.  I am okay at 12%, but would like to see you at 10% until you are in a little better shape.   That is pretty vague for a significant portion of your income.  What makes up that other category?   You are doing pretty darn good financially, although I would like to see some contributions to investments.  I think you are kind of failing there.  Your debt management is spot on.  That is okay, we can all get better at some stuff. There needs to be some numbers behind these percentages.  The bottom line is if you make an average household income, say around 55K, you are going to struggle with or without children.  If you guys make about 110K, and your wife makes 50% of your income, and she quits work to take care of the kidlets, then you will be in that ""boat"". Having said all that I find 37% of your income as questionable.  At least 5% of that should be invested, so we are kind of like at 32%.  That is a significant amount of money."
BTC is infinitely divisble. RIGHT NOW it's only up to 8 decimals. But if needed, more can be added. But the only way I see that happening is if a satoshi is somehow worth more than $1. If that happens though, even people with a fraction of a bitcoin will be millionaires.
"At first, I thought this might be too broad. There are of course thousands of things that you can do with your money to ""help the economy"". But I think that there is room to discuss some broad strokes without trying to list a thousand details. Regular investing (as you are now) helps the economy in that companies obtain money by selling their stock. They can then use that money to fund expansion, etc. These things can help the economy permanently. Of course, they can also use the money to pay executive bonuses, which don't help the economy so much. Similarly, just spending money does not normally help the economy. Unless we are in a recession, it is mildly harmful to spend wastefully. Money that could be going to support long term improvements in production instead is used to buy a luxury that doesn't terribly interest you. I.e. if you don't want a bigger house or a more luxurious car don't buy it to ""stimulate"" the economy. Many charitable donations have the same problem. They help short term consumption somewhere. And of course the charity starts asking you for more money. Many charities waste most of a donation trying to get another one from the same person or family. Sir John Maynard Keynes proposed that the best thing that people could do to help the economy is to invest in things that cause economic activity in turn. He was mostly talking about things like roads, bridges, and dams that are out of the investing range of most people, so he wanted governments to do it, particularly during a recession. So we are looking for ways to invest in durable improvements that will support economic activity in the future. A million dollars is a small amount for many things, but there are some activities that work. I'm going to list a few examples, but there are certainly others: Fund microfinance. Basically loan your million dollars to people who need a small amount of money. These programs often allow you to determine the initial recipient and then that person determines the next recipient. A million dollars can finance hundreds if not thousands of these loans. They may be in the United States or in a developing country. Set up a scholarship.
I agree with stopit. I am pulling the lever for Romney. I want to see the Ryan budget come to fruition. Hell, I hope they repeal the minimum wage too. I just hope Republicans aren't chicken shits and come through with their entire agenda if they get voted in come November. I am making decent money. I'll be fine. You on the other hand who is making below the median family income, are going to lose your medicare, social security, unemployment and food stamps so you better get working if you don't have a job. The Republicans are going to send a clear message to free loaders come November. If you are laid off and living off the government its time to find a job!
I am not going to source for you a number I pulled out of my smelly, hairy ass. Not worth the trouble. Also, I am at work.  And I support not being strangled by debt.   Free for the student. Obviously someone pays for it i.e. we all pay for it because we  (or at least I) believe everybody has the right to a decent education. I guess you disagree on that latter poin, which makes you a luddite, if anything.
I am from the US so I can’t speak most of your questions, but I did work in the UK for a few months and did a good amount of networking while in London. I would use LinkedIn searches and just message people at firms I wanted to work for. 90% of the time they never respond, but it’s a numbers game and you have to keep going for it.   PM me if you want to talk in more details about it!
Thank you for the wonderful response. I actually work out 4-5 times a week and have been for the past year or so(it's helped my productivity ten-fold).   I think I am going to finish up the Python codeacademy course in order to understand the basics of syntax and then I will continue from there.   If you have any other suggestions; I am quite open to them!  Thanks!
I thought that for a while, but then i actually got it with a groupon. Once in there, I liked it, especially since we were going through a move. Because people pay to get in, the reviews are a little better actually. I was pleased.  For a company that does work on houses/etc., such as plumbing, it is a necessity to establish a positive presence there.
Well that is one opinion on the CFA.  My opinion is that if you havent read any finance text books for a year, you probably aren't going to be too sharp on various topics during the interviews.  The CFA offers a way to keep your knowledge sharp.  I also got more interviews in the 3 months since I started studying for the CFA and listing that on resume then in the 6 months before hand, so it certainly helped me atleast get my foot in the door.  And I disagree that I am not trying hard enough.  I am certainly trying pretty fucking hard.  My post here is about trying to find a better more efficient route since merely trying hard is not a sufficient condition for getting a job.
"I work in wealth management now - so it deviates from what you are looking to do long term, but what about getting your series 7 or 65?   I'm 37 now, and before I started my own firm I got my 7/63 and worked for a big custodian to ""cut my teeth"" - which quite honestly was a glorified sales position, however it was invaluable for learning to ""speak the language"" for lack of a better term.   I don't have a CFA (which I know is very challenging), but I am a CFP and ChFC (also not easy) and have a MS in statistics and MBA in finance.   If you have any questions or wanted to do a mock interview I'd be glad to help."
Look I'm up for a dialogue, but I'd appreciate civility. If you look back at my responses on this post I've said multiple times that I'm willing to help people who help themselves.   I'm also pointing out that 1.) this article 'slavery' aspect is off and 2.) I'm not 100% convinced she is doing all she can to further better herself (maybe she is but the article didn't convince me).   I've said before I give her props for getting her ass off, good on her. And I'm all for helping out people (for a limited time) who actually deserve it and have actually worked hard for it. In the lead featured in the article sounds like she would be a very very good candidate.  I am a generous person, I want to help people and I'm willing to do so. They just need to want help.  My generosity ends when it becomes mandatory to support anyone who has made any number of bad decisions and is not deserving of my help (we can talk about who deserves help in more detail anytime).  Should I support a family of people in which the parents keep pumping out kids, and the mom is a stat at home mom and the dad works at a slightly above minimum wage? No!   Should I support single mom who chooses not to work, and mooches off friends and family? No  Both of these cases may seem cherry picked, and while they are to an extent they are both real cases that I've/a personal friend have witnessed.
I am still fairly early on in the process so I can't give you the best insight. I study at a CC in California and one of the biggest roadblocks is finding like minded individuals. Most of the students have no interest in being there so it's hard to connect with 18-19 year-olds about finance/econ.   Personally, I am going to have to overcome my shitty high school transcript to get into the top schools. I have a 3.8, tutor econ and accounting for the school, am president of the veterans' club, and am founding the business club next semester. That still might not be enough, which stresses me out. If you have a good academic history and thrive in CC you should have a much better chance than I.
Well, from what I have heard, the pass is 60%.  Evidently, I am going to try to get a lot better but since I am still new to Finance, trying to put all the pieces together can be a bit of a challenge.  More studying would help that I assume.
"&gt; Favoring one position because it is more pleasant or resonates more emotionally despite the logical alternative is the very definition of naivety.  And what position would that be?  I have stated my position repeatedly:  these companies are doomed, millions of people will lose their jobs, and it will suck for them.  This is not a pleasant position;  nor does it resonate with me;  the one point I am making that seems to make you all so angry is that _I feel compassion for the people who are going to suffer._  So tell me where I'm wrong, why I'm ""naïve"".   Should Sears continue to exist as a shitty company?  I don't think you believe that.    Are these people who lose their jobs going to get better jobs?  Some of them, absolutely - but most of them have few marketable skills - I think you probably believe, like I do, that _most_ of them are obsolete workers and are going to have a lot of trouble even finding a job as good as the shitty one they are about to lose.  Or am I just ""naïve"" because I feel sad for all these people who are going to go through a tough time?  I call that ""compassion"" and I'm proud to be a compassionate individual, even if it makes me sad."
"You have to understand something, first. The selling point of ""Oh, just pass a test and get a raise"" doesn't tell the whole story. Those tests are HARD. You'll be studying your ass off everyday for MONTHS in preparation for it. My college roommate, whom I would consider to be one of the smartest people I've ever met (for what it's worth) is studying for the first actuarial exam, and he's struggling. He already took the test once, and failed.  I'm not trying to discourage you from going for it. It's definitely an excellent career, and you'll be paid a LOT of money. However, it's a TON of work in order to become one, so be prepared to work your ass off for it."
I went to a local college for 8k/yr while living at home. Since I didn't have to take any loans, I'm a lot better off than those people who went to 40k/yr schools and are up the river with loans. I think most local cheap school systems are good enough for majors that don't require the prestige of a major school system. It really makes 0 sense to spend 40k/yr if you're going to become a teacher and I think more and more people will start to realize this. Stay in state, don't live on campus = save moneys.
yup.  A related software services company anticipated this and have been migrating people to their own chat service for the last few years already by promising better features.  They have already won the battle.  I didn't want to use their service but now I am going to have to.  If I could I would put together an investor group to buy the AIM network and try to monetize it.  But I am sure trillian has already tried.  But if anyone else is down I'm down.  It can be monetized in my opinion.
I agree with you. I have many liberal viewpoints but over regulation is definitely not one of them. I work for a non profit health insurance company and a lot of the Affordable Care Act is something I am truly behind. However many things within it,  I believe, are going to increase costs across the board for all of us.   I hate to sound like Romney and say that regulation is of course needed but too much of it truly is doing more harm than good.
I'm in the same boat, except I was (am) going to do a masters in BA. I wouldn't be turned off by the requirements. Just call and negotiate. I imagine the majority of people never put in more effort beyond e-mailing a CV. I would aim for smaller companies, since there, there is a higher chance to reach out to the actual decision-makers of the firm, not just HR. Also, if I were you, I would read up on things to have some leverage and have something to talk about at interviews.
"Don't care... Uber is cheaper most of the times for me than Cabify, I am not a wealthy man so I can't afford the premium on Cabify just to ""support"" their better business practice. Cheaper is cheaper. If cabify can be a better buisness AND have better prices. than that is something i am willing to support."
I'm going to guess you're on Verizon and your wife has an iPhone. I just went through this exact same situation with my mom's phone last week. When you're off contract with Verizon you're saving $25/month on your plan (at least, I am), so staying off contract is big. If you do the monthly payment you're paying full retail over 2 years, without interest, so you do stay off contract at least. Here's the thing, as long as it's a 16GB iPhone 5 or better, you're going to be able to Craigslist it for the cost of the deductible, no problems. To me that makes the decision pretty easy to make. As long as you can Craigslist it for more than the deductible, get the insurance replacement. Then when you want a new phone you can sell your old one. Since you can sell the phone, I think that makes the comparison between the deductible and deciding to pay off the $100 now and start payments on the new phone less relevant. The real comparison I'd suggest looking at is the value of the phone and the deductible.
Disclaimer - I am going to refer you to Fairmark's web page. I have no relationship with this company, but the page is great to show you your marginal rate. Updated for 2011 and you can go back to prior years.  I would first ask you what tax bracket you are in. And then, I'd likely suggest you withdraw only enough to 'top off' that bracket and pay the mortgage down. Doing it all at once can create a bad situation, where you pay far more in taxes than you might otherwise.  I'd also ask- are your property taxes high enough to put you into itemized deduction land? If so, you have a bit of math to do. That 6% may be costing you 4.5% or less, and long term, you are better off not paying early, although I admit, I prefer to be mortgage free by retirement.
I was a Math-Econ interdisciplinary for my undergrad, have completed my MS in Math Finance, and am currently studying for a Ph.D. in Finance.  Verik's summary of the math required for a MS Math Finance program is accurate.  I'd also want to emphasize practicing your programming skills in general; depending on the professor, they may prefer you work in MATLAB, Stata, SAS, C++, etc., so a basic understanding of programming is helpful.  I can give you book suggestions for a few of these topics (for example, I'm fairly certain the Shreve books are the standard for Stochastic Calculus,) but it may not be much help if you're going to a program that is less quantitatively oriented.  Feel free to message me any random questions you have.