Like everything in modern divorce, it's not about love, but money. Your sister-in-law is poorly advised if she is trying to use alienation law to keep her husband chaste. That said, where available alienation laws are part of the basic playbook for a wronged spouse's divorce litigation strategy, and especially so when the cheater's boyfriend / girlfriend has his/her own money, because technically the boyfriend / girlfriend is the defendant of an alienation claim, not the... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 4:54 PM on September 3, 2008

A top school-JD and a Bar admission in a major jurisdiction are very portable: you can (and many do) immediately practice US law in many foreign capitals, and you can also qualify, with varying hoops to jump through, to practice law in many common law jurisdictions (but you seem to wish to rule those out).

It is very difficult to obtain admission to either Columbia or NYU -- a career plan which involves only an application to those schools is at best half a plan, unless... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 6:26 PM on September 2, 2008

Just because they don't usually (which is the case) doesn't mean they can't. Please read any contracts you may have signed, and take extra care if your department runs an (unfunded) MA program in parallel with its PhD program. If people are regularly paying for MAs out of pocket or with loans, the department is going to have precautions to keep people from getting them for free by way of doing PhD coursework and dropping out.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 6:22 AM on September 2, 2008

Font: Times New Roman please -- 11 pts or 12 pts. The point of all resume formating is not to be noticed as formating but instead to emphasize the points you are trying to make as organic truths.

Paper: ordinary laser printer paper is fine. A slightly heavier stock is okay too -- but white as snow in all cases.

Envelope: run it through the printer if you can.

Stamp: a tasteful,... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 4:54 PM on August 28, 2008

Call the Secretary of State's office. New corporate filings are public records and are likely to be available at a nominal or modest charge in bulk from them. However, what they give may well be in an antiquated mainframe database format and on some nasty mainframe storage medium. A couple of years ago a friend ordered a public-records data set from a different state and got it in reel-to-reel magnetic tape!
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 7:49 AM on August 27, 2008 marked best answer

Deposits, deposits, deposits.

Deposits are incredibly profitable for banks. Better yet: not only do branches attract lots of local deposits (iminurmefi suggests), they also attract the most profitable deposits: people who value convenience more than interest rate or fees.

And your town has much, much more cash than you think. A town of 20,000 can easily amount to $1 billion in deposits; if it has a healthy business... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 12:43 PM on August 22, 2008

If you don't believe me about deposit volume, check out the FDIC site. Be sure to enter each of your town's zip codes if it has more than one.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 12:51 PM on August 22, 2008

JLowen, maybe I'm cynical, but your post strikes me as a lot of euphemisms for a very common situation: some schools are so hard-pressed by defective parenting that they cannot educate competently-parented children to their full potential.

If that's so, you know what you have to do, and no, it won't make you into a Republican if you do it -- just a realistic and responsible parent.

If my cynicism is out of place, and it's not... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 4:41 PM on August 21, 2008

DIY with Nolo isn't a bad way to start a business, but rolling an existing sole proprietorship business into an LLC is a quite a bit more complicated if it is to be effective in eliminating your personal liability to vendors, customers, employees, etc. (Lenders presumably will require you to make personal guarantees, so no issue there.) Lawyer and accountant are strongly recommended, and absolutely worthwhile.

By... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 4:55 PM on August 20, 2008

Krinklyfig -- that's not the RIAA enforcing the rules on bars -- it's ASCAP and BMI -- who are a bit more benevolent a force, in that the performance royalties they collect provide a living to a many songwriters and supplement the living of many more, inlcluding quite a few indie titans who wouldn't be caught dead with an RIAA-member major label.
posted to MetaFilter by MattD at 8:48 PM on August 19, 2008

I don't want to pile on, except to note that how weird it is to assume that the world is coming to end as a result of road-to-hell behaviors which were themselves quick adaptations to new conditions, and then not to assume that the new challenges will meet quick and most likely successful adaptation.
posted to MetaFilter by MattD at 7:38 PM on August 19, 2008

A great answer from dhartung, and, to add to it: the point of training for crisis reactions is to enable people to react in real crises with the calm and focus with which they react to (known as such) exercises and simulations. This how you get soldiers who will advance towards the enemy who is shooting at them, doctors who will treat a ward full of highly-contagious patients, compliance officers who will bring down the hammer on popular, high-powered executives whom they suspect of wrong-doing,... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 6:45 PM on August 19, 2008

Given that Fortune 500 companies regularly flop out on protecting personal information, do you really want to give literally every piece of your personal information to some web-based company?

Name change on marriage is one of the easiest things you can do.

(1) Use your marriage license to change your name with Social Security and get a new card.

(2) Use your marriage license and new Social Security... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:36 AM on August 19, 2008

It's really important to recognize that most of the people who advocate lots of exercise as an immediate component of a weight loss regime are presuming that someone is basically healthy.

It could well be that you're too heavy, particularly given your underlying poor health, to take on a challenging exercise program -- to say the least of one which is (as you seem to make it) the principal component of a weight loss program.

Why don't you ask... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 3:46 PM on August 17, 2008

For everyone who rains contempt upon all the bad, stupid, pathetic scam attempts out there, please remember that they serve a very important auxiliary function: they create marks for the good scams. Good scams rely upon your confidence, and what better way to create confidence than to have a pool people conditioned by checklists of what is, and is not, reliable.

Good scammers are also multi-disciplinary.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 9:14 PM on August 13, 2008

It's a 19th century fiction convention which (in its original form) was intended to create a sense of verisimilitude. It was used to obscure names to create the suggestion the character was or could be a real person (who couldn't be outed) and was used to obscure precise dates (esp. years, i.e. "May 8, 18__" so as to give a sense that the events might be now.

Its contemporary use is going to be in some measures to produce the same effect, and in other measure... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 11:12 PM on August 11, 2008 marked best answer

i.e. was supposed to be e.g.

what a terrible kind of topic to make such an error!
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 11:13 PM on August 11, 2008

The "just say no" approach isn't a good one. For some people, under some circumstances, traditional life insurance can be a valuable product for tax minimization and estate planning.

However, you are not likely to be among those people, given that your income is low enough that you are are apparently still eligible for a Roth IRA.

Moreover, the commissions for whole life insurance are so high that they inevitably color the advice... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 10:22 PM on August 11, 2008

Privatization, deregulation, and tax reduction -- each of which transfers power into the hands of those who have the most powerful incentive of all to make unbiased and intelligent decisions: ownership.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 9:57 PM on August 11, 2008

It absolutely is a violation, called "registration parking." A broker-dealer can only maintain the registrations of people who are associated with it AND acting in the capacity in which registered. While part-time work is perfectly legal, and it still would need to be a bona fide working relationship. Your paying for the privilege of being registered would be a great piece of evidence that it wasn't a bona fide relationship.

(And I am not your... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 12:22 PM on August 7, 2008

The above is correct generically, but don't forget that many MPs have earned and honorary distinctions personal to them which would alter or supplement how they are properly addressed in writing. Ask someone English (and polished) should your MPs bio page disclose any of these!
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 6:05 AM on August 3, 2008 marked best answer

Hipster is a way of being cool, that's all.

And like all ways of being cool, it is exclusive. You have know / do / look / be some way that most people cannot.

The base of the hatred of hipsters is simply distaste for exclusion, just like any other team / club / sorority one couldn't join. Even if one honestly don't want to join, the exclusion still hurts.

What makes it worse is that hipsterdom makes claims to... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by MattD at 3:15 PM on August 1, 2008

Hersh gets great scoops and he gets played by sources. Nothing inconsistent, or even unusual about that: it's how business is done in DC.

It's actually not surprising at this state of the game for people either to gravely (and potentially identifiably) compromise a small private meeting with Cheney, or to make up absurd shit about Cheney either. You really only stand to gain in DC by beating up on Cheney. He and his team are yesterday's men -- a... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by MattD at 2:19 PM on August 1, 2008

You have nothing to worry about, because she has moved at least as far beyond you as you have her.

The reason why she "freaked out and ceased all contact with you" wasn't out of grief or anger that she would have nurtured for years and now wish to express flamboyantly.

It was because flakey-with-friends, life-of-the-party people like that are very superficial in their connections with anyone who isn't amusing to them right now, and... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 11:05 AM on August 1, 2008

...which means that anything she does to be fabulous at this party will be 100% about her and 0% about you ... and thus not to be taken personally.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 11:06 AM on August 1, 2008

I want to second what zippy said. While there seem like good reasons not to fight to keep this particular client, you should certainly worry about why any 15-year client wanted to leave in the first place. In a competitive service business, your entire profit margin depends upon veteran customers, given the costs and uncertainties of selling new business.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:54 PM on July 26, 2008

IANAIPL (I am not an IP lawyer), but:

Infringement is not the solution, particularly when there's so long a paper trail of your acknowledging the primacy of his copyright over your trademark rights. (Without your history of licensing you might have had some interesting IP arguments to make.)

Part A of a solution: resolve to repaint your awning. As painful as it may be partially to rebrand, you are never going to dig yourself out of the hole of... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:40 PM on July 21, 2008

By the way, you still need at least a quick consultation with a lawyer to make sure that the agreement with the repaint artist, or the buyout agreement with the original artist, effectively transfers the copyright to you. Artists and photographers have their own standard form agreements which they like but which can be tricky in terms of retaining some economic rights (or, worse, "moral" rights) in their work.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:43 PM on July 21, 2008

The audacity of Chinese go to Africa to sell the goods in which it has comparative advantage and buy the goods for which Africans have for comparative advantage.

How could the Chinese not have learned the lesson of the NGOs that Africa is exempt from economics? How dare they prefer to enrich enterprising African partners rather than subsidize the poverty of the rest?
posted to MetaFilter by MattD at 9:43 AM on July 20, 2008

WordPerfect has held on to the extent it has (and I think you overstate that extent, based upon the prevalence of Word documents I get from law firms) because in principle one never sits down to draft an agreement or pleading from a clean sheet of paper. You always start with a "model" (a past agreement or pleading) and adopt it. This can perpetuate documents, and their word processing file formats, in an evolutionary form for literally decades.

Legal... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 6:52 AM on July 17, 2008 marked best answer

You needed a lawyer the first time you talked to the company's lawyer -- who wasn't representing you, and was taking notes that in all likelihood will be handed over to the SEC and any other law enforcement agency that asks.

You now really need a lawyer. You will need to put down a serious retainer but you will get it back if you don't use the time. The time will be $500+ an hour if the lawyer is qualified. And worth every penny.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:05 PM on July 14, 2008

6'2" and 200 pounds are basically ideal proportions in terms of standard business attire (if not for overstyled euro slimsuits), and a longer torso is one of the two basic fitting issues (the other being sloping or narrow shoulders) for height-weight proportionate men, which any competent suit salesperson and his tailor can address for you.

That said, probably the most important rule is that when it comes to men's business attire: there's no shabby chic and there is... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 9:10 AM on July 14, 2008

Tell us more about this "personal project." You say it won't earn out, yet it is "related" to your work. If by "related" you mean that you can reasonably expect to enhance your earnings, it may be worth it -- a long-term earn out. The interest rates and non-deductibility of the interest make credit cards an expensive source of educational capital, but that doesn't mean that they are always too expensive.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 3:49 PM on July 13, 2008

This isn't a huge issue to worry about. In the copyright context, time-order of creation is way down on the list of things people argue about. Most important is who has the right to use a work whose creation and creator are undisputed (sale, licensing and work-for-hire issues), what degree of use and adaptation is fair use and is not, and what is copyrightable in the first place (certain common themes and devices are not copyrightable).
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 9:00 AM on July 13, 2008

If she's like most first-time novelists, even with major imprints, she's about to embark on a long author's tour under less than luxurious circumstances.

Something that eases the pain of that kind of travel might really hit the spot.

Depending on your budget, you might consider:

* high-end noise filtering headphones,

* a portable DVD player (less annoying and battery-straining than playing... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 9:47 AM on July 11, 2008

You should not mention it in your application package (cover letter, resume, other required materials) simply because it is not a qualification. If there will be many applicants to this job, anything in your package which raises potential disqualifications, even if only to rebut them as such, will simply make it easier to hit the delete key on you.

However, I strongly disagree that the gap will never come up. While it is short, it is... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 6:33 AM on July 4, 2008

The whole point of the power of attorney is that you can sign in your grandmother's name -- so she takes the loan and not you. Similarly, it gives you the ability to write checks on her bank account, etc.

A reverse mortgage isn't a bad idea in principle, but they are very expensive, and if your mother is near death they aren't any kind of long-term solution, since her death will mature the obligations and might force a sale under very unfavorable... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:55 AM on July 4, 2008

sell the second house. Hopefully you aren't having to sell your pockets!
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:56 AM on July 4, 2008

Saying nothing about so limited a piece of work as this, let me just say that people as a mass are economically rational actors, and it makes perfect sense to apply rational economic behavior as an analytic of societal trends, particularly when mediated through political and judicial dispositions which respond very explicitly to economic pressures.

Were people as a mass not rational economic actors, we wouldn't have a functioning economy, to say the... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by MattD at 5:28 PM on June 29, 2008

In all likelihood, COBRA is your best bet. For the same quality of coverage (amount of coverage, deductibles, exclusions, network, etc.) group is always cheaper than individual. The only way an individual premium will be lower than your COBRA is if the quality is worse -- probably much worse. Having a history of claims can only make it worse.

However, you still may be able to come out ahead with private if there are certain aspects of the group plan you can give up.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 4:36 AM on June 29, 2008

People who slam the slow progress in "responsibility" at BIGLAW either don't know what BIGLAW does or think what BIGLAW does is unimportant. If you know, and regard as socially and economically important, the kinds of deals and cases that BIGLAW handles, you will know that it takes a number of years of learning and experience to be able to run one properly, just like it takes many years of criminal experience to (for example) first chair a capital murder or a RICO case. Because of... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 2:41 PM on June 28, 2008

Don't just look at public schools! Many of the best private schools have large financial aid budgets, and work overtime to find deserving smart kids who will attend for a tiny fraction of the $50k+ average tuition plus contribution of full-fare families.

Another important reason to consider going private: if your daughter isn't an ace test-taker, her chances of getting into Stuyvesant are minimal, and I believe that Hunter actually admits at the 7th... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 3:07 AM on June 24, 2008

Don't go too far in the other direction. People do fulfill emotional needs their partners can't provide for on their own and do do practical things for their partners (and for others to whom their partners are obliged) that their partners can't do, or do as easily or as well, themselves.

However (and perhaps somewhat contra twirlypen) some of these needs aren't going to be obviously mutual or collective, and certainly you can't have an accounting that... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 7:53 AM on June 19, 2008

If immersion isn't practical for you right now, or your skills are too deficient to make much use of an immersion-light approach, consider enrolling in a good college foreign language program as an extension or non-matriculated student.

A program like that should have at least five hours of classroom time and several hours of required language lab time a week. Unlike the total joke that it is the standard secondary school / high school foreign language instruction... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 9:16 AM on June 18, 2008

First, the market size who can't get their business done in customary hours is even smaller than the raw numbers of 9-5 workers (which is itself a minority of the consumer population. Many 9-5 workers have spouses or other people to run their errands for them and/or are free to take time off to attend to problems. Quite rationally, they prefer to have their spouse do, or to do it the expense of their company, than to do it themselves at the expense of their personal free time.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 8:55 AM on June 18, 2008

You need to be very careful with any deal whereby the seller (in effect) refunds you part of the purchase price.

First of all, in the short sale context that value that the seller is giving you (the boat, car, appliances) is value that he is presumably representing to his mortgage lender he doesn't have the ability practically to give. Indeed, he may be hiding those assets from his lender so that the it will accept his short sale proposal in the first place. Were... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:31 AM on June 14, 2008 marked best answer

I should say about appliances, that it really only applies to appliances of material value which are not customarily included in a sale -- which, come to think of it, doesn't leave many appliances left.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:33 AM on June 14, 2008

New York is (perhaps?) unusual in that there are two huge projects -- the Chelsea projects, and the Amsterdam projects near Lincoln Center -- which are in ultra-prime neighborhoods. There are non-project buildings 100 feet away in every direction where condos sell for $5 million and apartments rent for $10,000 a month.

Those projects create some interesting features and challenges from a standpoint of public service, retail landscape, and law enforcement.
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 5:14 AM on June 14, 2008

While you shouldn't ignore it, there may not be much you can do to keep from occasionally recurring.

The basic problem is that there isn't one collector or one bad debt -- there are many of each. Every time your same-name-deadbeat defaults on a new obligation, and every time an old defaulted claim is sold or transfered, there's a new person, office, and/or company assigned to the debt, and your history of complaints and corrections is either ignored or not even... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by MattD at 7:50 AM on June 11, 2008

freebird, are you saying that you have a math degree and have to resort to a calculator to determine 8x9 or 7x8? Or are you refering to some recondite sense of learning multiplication tables (like from 13 to 20 or something?)
posted to MetaFilter by MattD at 10:17 AM on June 8, 2008