LillyPip

Annual reminder: you may have unclaimed funds that are being held by your state (US) or other government.

There are many reasons you might have unclaimed funds: abandoned accounts, unclaimed deposits, uncashed checks, misspelled names, estate funds, incorrect addresses, misplaced inheritance and trusts, etc, and your government is required to hold your property until you claim it.

They will not seek you out, and most people are completely unaware they may have lost funds or property being held by the state.

Every state in the US and most governments have an official website where you can check whether you have unclaimed property and submit a claim. There are typically no fees, and you shouldn’t need an attorney or solicitor to claim them.

Just search ‘[my state] or [my country] unclaimed property’ (or ‘biens non réclamés’)

Make sure you’re at the official site for your government and not one of the many scam sites trying to get a cut by doing this for you. The official sites are typically easy and should not require a 3rd party. There should be no extra fees.

If you’re in the US, check every state you’ve lived in. Moving state is one of the major reasons this happens, and your unclaimed funds will not move to a new state with you.

e: Here’s my previous year’s thread on this, with more discussion. This isn’t sovcit bullshit. It’s real.

Also note that you’re unlikely to find life-changing amounts this way. Most people report a few dollars to a few thousand. Large amounts motivate lawyers to seek you out.

e2: I wonder how much this could change a government’s budget if enough people started claiming these funds at once? Would that basically do what the run on banks did? The money is hypothetically there, but it’s not really there at scale.

Pack one for poor Claudia. My fingers were slippery with alcohol after I dipped her for cleaning, and now she’s gone. Several years of faithful service. She’ll be missed. :(

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting was dissolved Monday by its board of directors, ending its 58 years as the primary funder for PBS, NPR and local TV and radio stations.

The board of CPB, which was created by Congress to oversee the federal government’s investments in public broadcasting, didn’t have much choice. Trump and Republicans in Congress last year stripped the organization of its $1.1 billion in federal funding, which represented the full amount it was set to receive over two years.

Trump’s White House claimed NPR and PBS shouldn’t get federal money because they produce “woke propaganda.” But both are reputable news sources, and the reality is Trump simply wants to shut them down because they don’t report on him in flattering ways. Public radio stations are also a lifeline to rural communities, where plenty of Trump’s supporters are now being hurt by the loss in services.

The effort to defund CPB was led by Office of Management and Budget director Russ Vought, who has been downright gleeful about haphazardly slashing billions from federal programs.

In a statement, CPB board members said the combination of lost federal funding and sustained political attacks “made it impossible” for it to continue operating.

“What has happened to public media is devastating,” said Ruby Calvert, chair of CPB’s Board of Directors. “After nearly six decades of innovative, educational public television and radio service, Congress eliminated all funding for CPB, leaving the Board with no way to continue the organization or support the public media system that depends on it.”

Patricia Harrison, the president and CEO of CPB, said public media still remains “essential” to a healthy democracy.

“Our hope is that future leaders and generations will recognize its value, defend its independence, and continue the work of ensuring that trustworthy, educational, and community-centered media remains accessible to all Americans,” she said.

Doing another showing of Star Wars Christmas Special.

See you shortly.

I’m going live in Bigscreen on Quest VR, showing the Star Wars Christmas Special in like 20 minutes.

I’m Lilly Piper on Quest. Room will be open. I might be kinda drunk and maybe a bit high, so adults only.

Happy Xmas all!

We'll be watching via Bigscreen (mostly in VR via Meta Quest). I'll post the invite here.

Happy christmas!

At this wonderful time of year, as we transition from our past hardship and look forward to all new hardships, I’d like to thank my supporters who have got me through many hard days, and acknowledge the holy books, without which life would have been even more difficult.

Also called Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE), it affects like 1 in 5,000 people who contract measles (vaccinated), but jumps to 1 in 609 in the unvaccinated.

Basically, you get measles and then seem fine, but anywhere from months to 15+ years later, you develop brain inflammation, seizures, spasms, blindness, and coma, and it’s basically 100% fatal. The disease attacks your nerves and brain. There’s no treatment or cure, and it hurts the whole time you’re dying. It can take months or more of excruciating suffering to kill you. It’s similar to rabies, in that you lose all control and are guaranteed a protracted, painful death.

It’s preventable by getting the measles vaccine.

Not like I’d have had money for gifts this year anyhow, but whatever. Adulting often means having to do the things you don’t want to do.

I guess having to wait for the fraud department to clear your account then wait for a new card to be shipped mid-December is peak adulting this year.

Also available in Shavian: https://a.co/d/gpq8LFK