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Sun Feb 9 06:00:01 EST 2020 ======================================== Slept from ten-something to eight-something. Woke a couple times in the night, and had trouble falling back to sleep. Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of snow showers. Near steady temperature in the mid 20s. North winds 10 to 15 mph. Lazy day. Watched some anime. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! feels like somebody's passion project. https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/03/12/biden-vs-warren-2020-democratic-primaries-bankruptcy-bill-225728 > Warren, Biden allowed, had made “a very compelling and mildly demagogic argument” about why the bill would hurt people who needed to file for bankruptcy because of medical debt or credit card bills they couldn’t pay. But Biden had what he called a “philosophic question,” according to the Congressional Record’s transcript of the hearing that day: Who was responsible? Were the rising number of people who filed for bankruptcy each year taking advantage of their creditors by trying to escape their debts? Or were credit card companies and other lenders taking advantage of an increasingly squeezed middle class? > > Warren blamed the lenders. Many credit card companies charged so much in fees and interest that they weren’t losing money when some of their customers went bankrupt, she said. “That is, they have squeezed enough out of these families in interest and fees and payments that never paid down principal,” Warren said. > > Biden parried. “Maybe we should talk about usury rates, then,” he replied. “Maybe that is what we should be talking about, not bankruptcy.” > > “Senator, I will be the first. Invite me.” > > “I know you will, but let’s call a spade a spade,” Biden said. “Your problem with credit card companies is usury rates from your position. It is not about the bankruptcy bill.” > > “But, senator,” Warren countered, “if you are not going to fix that problem, you can’t take away the last shred of protection from these families.” > > At this last remark, Biden smiled and sat back in his chair, according to Mallory Duncan, a lobbyist who was in the room. > > “I got it, OK,” Biden said. “You are very good, professor.” Servings: grains 7/6, fruit 3/4, vegetables 3/4, dairy 2/2, meat 3/3, nuts 0/0.5 Brunch: banana, celery, cucumber, pineapple Lunch: toquitos and sour cream Afternoon snack: orange, green tea Dinner: Indian 123/79

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