Imagine being a Baldoni supporter and STILL saying he is a good person after today’s New York Times piece on Melissa Nathan, Bryan Freedman and Jed Wallace. Baldoni supporters: what is WRONG with you? You’re seriously going to defend a trio that targeted the Alexander brothers’ rape victims, alongside everything else appalling that is mentioned in the article?
Just saw a comment on another post linking to this article, which I had no idea about, and thought I'd do a separate standalone post on it. In 2007, the Washington Post wrote a story on a DC-area AA cult called Midtown that sexually abused teenage girls and vulnerable members; I had no idea about Midtown and am horrified after reading it.
Along with the disturbing, awful details of how Midtown was run, this part about how the AA bureaucracy itself is run is also unsettling to me; the WaPo tries to figure out why it's so hard to get a simple comment from an AA spokesman. How is it OK for AA to not have a PR rep who will issue a comment under their real name? AA is so creepy!
Despite a stellar reputation and worldwide brand, AA has never been more than a set of bedrock traditions. It has no firm hierarchy, no official regulations, and exercises no oversight of individual groups. Disgruntled former Midtown members discovered this in recent months when they tried to get the central AA office in New York to condemn Midtown's tactics and departures from the traditions, including a highly unusual practice of assigning older men to sponsor young women.
"The assumption since our founding was that groups that did not follow the traditions and concepts would fall away," said a staff member at AA's General Service Office, who spoke on condition of anonymity "because we are all alcoholics, and that is our policy."
In the gambling recovery group I’m in, there is so much relentless pressure to not talk about the money lost or the regrets people have at getting sucked into such a tough, brutal addiction (I get the sense that there are similar pressures in AA). The GA members are for sure the ones who push that thinking the most; whenever I note that I’m doing well in recovery (which I’m so happy about; I don’t have urges and am glad I stopped betting) but that I still feel regret and pain over the money lost and time wasted, I’m told I am thinking about this wrong. Why is it wrong to feel regret and sadness about my gambling addiction (or any addiction) if I am doing well in recovery? The 12 Step culture and the things its adherents say are so bizarre to me.
Currently visiting friends in Durango and came across this spider in the bed I was sleeping in at their house when I pulled back the sheets (fun!) It disappeared down the mattress and into a crevice and now I am sleeping in another room. Any Durango residents able to help? Just mysterious to me because Google Images isn't helping...
Hi all! I'm in my 40s and getting my Fallopian tubes removed next month to lower my risk of developing ovarian cancer. Can anyone with experience after one year or more of removal let me know if they've had any weird side effects in the long term? I will be relieved to have the procedure done but am unsure if there will be any lingering pain or side effects from this in years to come, after the first week of recovery (abdominal pain etc) is over.
Thank you a million...
Hi Durango residents, I'm visiting your city in a week and staying for two weeks. I'm not from Colorado and have a huge fear of bears, so I'm feeling paranoid about the huge uptick in bear sightings across Colorado, including in Durango. Are bear sightings there happening every day? Are people taking trash securing more seriously because of it? Just curious what the bear-prevention culture is like given the huge surge in bear sightings this year. Last, but more important than my paranoia: I feel SO sorry for the bears; the simple fact that they are so hungry they're approaching towns and homes in places like Durango makes me feel awful for them; it sounds like the drought has made their lives miserable. So I feel guilty being like "what about ME?" given how hungry the poor bears are. Just trying to stay as aware as possible while I'm visiting (and plan on being very paranoid about the home I'm staying in and its garbage bins)...
This is the first time I have gone through this experience with a senior dog and man, it is AWFUL in every possible way! I am sending the biggest hug to everyone else on this sub who has gone through this or is going through it. I know that this is a universal experience, but my boxer has been with me through EVERYTHING and I am just panicking nonstop right now; I feel like I can't breathe. I am giving him tons of treats and smiling at him and trying not to let him see me cry, and he's on really good pain meds, and I'm trying to make him comfortable and the euthanasia will be done at home tomorrow where he feels calm. But I am in a daze and feel like everything is meaningless and empty and like I've failed him. He is the best dog in the world -- has always been so calm for a boxer (although I love meeting hyper boxers as well, they are such wonderful dogs and crack me up); he never barks but instead just gives hilariously judgmental looks in response to unfamiliar noises; he is super gentle with my nieces and nephews; he has (or had before this year) a great sense of humor; he loves (loved) trying to make me play tug-of-war with his toys (then running down the hall with them while wagging his tail). His old-dog pain issues kicked in about half a year ago and it's been a struggle since then, but I did my best to make sure that I was tending to him without being selfish about my own worries and obsession about not losing him, until his pain became clearly too much for him. But he's still the most wonderful boy and makes me appreciate the beauty and resilience of senior dogs, and I want to do something after this to help other senior dogs -- maybe foster one once I am ready.
Anyway, to everyone else going through this on this sub -- the biggest, biggest hug to you and the awful pain you're going through.
Hi everyone, I'm recovering from a pretty brutal gambling addiction (all on apps, never have been to a casino, but just as tough for recovery since the online apps are everywhere). I've found SMART recovery meetings to be so helpful for me; currently at almost 100 days of not betting. One thing I am working on though (and I mentioned this in another comment too) is trying to adjust to when GA alums or members join SMART meetings and introduce themselves as "I'm a compulsive gambler" (I don't intro myself like that) and talk about 12-step-type tendencies that have helped them. Does anyone else dealing with gambling problems (or any addiction tbh) feel thrown off by 12-step culture and phrases like "I'm a compulsive this-or-that?" I completely support the individuals in their recovery process and want them to make the choices that work for them; I just sometimes feel a little thrown off by recovery culture in general and am unsure if I'm using the right lingo at meetings (or what the right lingo is for people new to recovery). Sorry if this is a dumb question...
NYT health reporter Gina Kolata has just published an article (gift link) on how women who remove their Fallopian tubes reduce their chances of getting ovarian cancer by nearly 80% (!) This is an insane finding on a simple procedure that allows you to go home the same day. It could save so many women's lives if 1) doctors bothered telling their female patients about it in a world that does not take women's health seriously and 2) every insurer covered it; unclear to me how many currently do.
We'll see if this post gets allowed, but I'm going to try anyway.
After sports betting was legalized in my state a few years ago, I fell into a vicious sports betting addiction (yes, entirely my fault) that I didn't know I had to pay taxes on because I was a net loser each year and DraftKings and FanDuel told me each year I had no tax documents. But the IRS and your state tax authorities don't care that DK and FD are being so shady documents-wise. If you take the standard deduction each year when paying federal and state taxes, you must pay taxes on your "winnings" even if they were canceled out by your losses that year (which was my case each year), and you cannot deduct your losses unless you itemize (which most people don't do or even know how to do). Even if you DO itemize, many states do not allow you to deduct your sports betting losses anyway for state taxes (brutal). And since 2026 began, Trump and the GOP decided that people who itemize their taxes are no longer allowed to deduct all their sports betting/gambling losses -- that deduction is limited to 90%, so even if you itemize, you're paying taxes federally on income you never had.
STOP BETTING ON SPORTS.
I've posted this in other Reddit venues on taxes and sports betting because it's genuinely unsettling that sportsbooks have spent years NOT telling bettors what their taxes are. 99% of DraftKings and other sports bettors have not been reporting properly since the Supreme Court and various states legalized sports betting. This issue has remained unresolved because W-2Gs rarely get issued so DraftKings users who lose money just report nothing without hearing a thing. This is about to change. North Carolina is requiring sportsbooks to provide the entire wagering history of registered players so they can generate computer mismatches and send assessments (mostly to net losing players). Other states and the IRS are likely to follow suit. If you've never declared "winnings" on your tax forms in previous years because you were a net loser for the year, this is going to be a huge hit to your finances. Shame on DraftKings for not warning users.
Got an email from a friend of mine that is in my contacts; it was the stupid fake-email-invite scam. I was distracted, though, and absentmindedly clicked the "View the Card" link in the pic above, then half a second later after it opened into a tab on my Firefox browser, panicked as I realized it must be a scam and closed the tab. I didn't see what appeared in the tab since I closed it so fast, and so I didn't enter any of my info into anything on the page; I don't see anything downloaded on my Mac (am currently running my Sophos antivirus program just in case). Not sure what else to do...all help appreciated!
Just caught up on some of the coverage of Swift's wedding, as well as some of the unrelenting hatred and mockery of Lively for not being there (barring some shocking revelation that she was and it just hadn't been reported). I supported Baldoni for a while last year, then switched sides this year after seeing a bunch of the depositions/texts/learning about Melissa Nathan's and Jed Wallace's other clients. And I felt like I had a bit of a wake-up call in feeling like "JFC this hatred towards Blake is INSANE. It's so over the top. The Reddit hate pages are psychotic. What is happening?"
Most of all, Swift ditching Lively during the worst time in Blake's life feels incredibly petty and shallow to me. And it's bizarre if Baldoni supporters give Taylor a pass if they're going to be so harsh on Blake. If you believe the text messages from the lawsuit exposed Taylor as a mean girl and a liar, but you're celebrating her not inviting Blake to the wedding...why are you giving Taylor a pass for deserting her friend?
NC lawmakers this week passed a tax bill that further penalizes sports bettors who have gross winnings of $2K from any single mobile app. NC bettors are already not allowed to deduct losses at all from winnings on state tax return (!) & are already capped at deducting 90% of losses on the federal return.
With this precedent-setting provision, the Secretary of State can request win-loss reports from mobile operators & determine whether taxpayers are accurately reporting.
Most losing bettors (which is 95% of all sports bettors) don't bother reporting winnings because they either don't know they're supposed because they're net losers, or they are confused by what to report since they lost money overall, so people generally roll their eyes on these issues. But now the North Carolina tax authorities will know that you were supposed to report & even worse, it starts with last year.
Links:
TurboTax claims that sports bettors and gamblers get taxed on both the wager and the profit of their bet. It is also (thanks to TurboTax) the first result you get on Google when you ask if your wager AND profit are taxed by the IRS. This would be ruinous for high-volume sports bettors who only make a small profit or break even. The IRS's guidance for 2026, however, does not say this! So why is TurboTax giving wrong advice, especially given how many sports bettors will have to pay taxes next year after the GOP's "Big Beautiful Bill?"
Sports wagering. A section has been added with information on reporting gambling winnings earned from wagering on sports. See 5. Sports Wagering for more information.
5. Sports Wagering
File Form W-2G for every person to whom you pay gambling winnings meeting or exceeding the applicable reporting threshold, if the winnings are at least 300 times the amount of the wager.
If the person receiving the winnings is the sole winner; complete Form W-2G showing the name, address, and TIN of the winner.
If gambling withholding is required, the winner must sign Form W-2G, under penalties of perjury, stating that they are the sole winner and that the information listed on the form is correct.
Withholding
You must withhold federal income tax from the winnings if the winnings minus the wager exceed $5,000 and the winnings are at least 300 times the wager. Withhold 24% of the proceeds (the winnings minus the wager). This is regular gambling withholding.
Why isn't TurboTax reaching out to the IRS and then correcting its blog post?
Paraphrasing from a great comment on another Reddit thread about this: Taxes on sports betting and gambling are about to get terrifying. This is not a niche issue anymore. It is mainstream and 99% of sports bettors don’t report properly because they have no clue a session may be per wager. It has remained unresolved because W-2Gs rarely get issued so people just report nothing or only net profit without hearing a thing. This is about to change. Lobbyists are telling states instead of raising taxes on the books, start collecting taxes on players. NC is passing a law tomorrow where the books will provide the entire wagering history of registered players so they can generate computer mismatches and send assessments (mostly to net losing players). Even if you go back and deduct losses, people will lose child tax credits due to fake AGIs, lose value of standard deduction, 401k benefits and lose 10% due to OBBBA. The whole sports betting community has ignored this issue for several years and because of that it is finally time to pay the piper. Every single person that ignored this and didn’t pressure lawmakers are about to find out. The news will never cover it because well it is just big bad gambling and honestly most people in this country don’t even understand our tax system. Most look at it like a savings account or government handout. Meanwhile all the CPAs are going to tell you that you need pay thousands in taxes on money you never actually had.
Why aren't more people talking about this ahead of next year?
I have a nearly 14-year-old boxer and am exhausted all the time. I haven't slept past 5 a.m. or vacationed in two years. I love him to pieces and am trying to focus on every minute I might have left with him, and I treat him like a prince, but I also constantly feel like I am failing him because old dogs have such painful issues. If anyone else feels like this with their senior dog, just sending hugs because you aren't alone. I wish I wasn't constantly feeling like I could be doing more for him.
Amid all the discussion this week about Ryan Reynolds' appearance on Colbert, and how Colbert may have included Ryan because Ryan helped raise money for writers during the WGA strike, just want to call attention to Justin Baldoni actually saying during his deposition last year that he "would have no problem being called a scab."
Baldoni supporters: you're actually going to defend him saying he doesn't mind crossing picket lines and hurting workers? Way to support labor rights! How can anyone in Hollywood, especially writers, be on Baldoni's side given these actual words?
This is an update to a previous post/question I'd asked this page about whether U.S. gamblers (especially sports bettors) are paying taxes on both the wager AND the profit of their bet. TurboTax today on their Instagram says YES, you are paying taxes on both the wager AND the profit (contrary to what I've seen on tax forums on Reddit). Here's their full response:
"You can't subtract the cost of gambling from your winnings. For example, if you win $620 from a horse race but it costs you $20 to bet, your taxable winnings are $620, not $600 after subtracting your $20 wager. You are not permitted to "net" your winnings and losses. So, in your example, when you bid $100 but win $50, the $150 is your taxable amount, because when you are bidding, you are forfeiting that amount in hopes of winning."
This is going to be a huge shock for many people, given the current state of sports betting/gambling in the U.S. and how widespread it is.
Sports bettor here (I know, such a ridiculous addiction, sorry) who is finally scaling back on the volume of my betting this year because I'm so nervous about next year's tax bill under Trump and the GOP's Big Beautiful Bill. If I have a huge volume of bets but only a small profit, am I taxed on the WAGERS + PROFIT or just the PROFIT?
Wagers: $100,000
Winnings: $110,000
Profit: $10,000
And why won't the IRS clarify this?
Bonus question: are Kalshi/prediction-market sports bettors with a large volume of bets also screwed in the same way if wagers are taxed?
