Cipres Biggs

A 71 year old man dies in March. Will. Trust. Beneficiaries on every account. He did everything right. BUT he kept his entire life on his IPHONE. Banking apps. Brokerage accounts. Crypto wallets. PayPal. Venmo. Credit cards. Passwords. Financial records going back many years. And every photo he ever took. His grandkids. His anniversaries. Years of family memories that exist nowhere else. His wife found a passcode scribbled on a piece of paper in his desk drawer. It didn't work. She tried everything. Nothing worked. What followed was months of frustration and thousands in legal fees recovering accounts and memories that were never hidden from her. A perfect estate plan on paper. Zero estate plan for his phone. Nobody ever told him his smartphone needed one too. Here's the free two minute fix that could have saved her all of that. 🧵

🚨#BREAKING: At this time, major clashes are taking place during the “No Kings” protest, with multiple arrests reported outside an ICE facility in Portland, Oregon. Authorities are detaining numerous protesters as tensions escalate, with some individuals throwing objects and engaging in physical confrontations with police. Video By :@ScooterCasterNY

A MIT professor taught the same lecture every January for 40 years, and every single time it was standing room only. I watched it at 2am and it completely rewired how I think about communication. His name was Patrick Winston. The lecture is called "How to Speak." His opening line hit like a truck: your success in life will be determined largely by your ability to speak, your ability to write, and the quality of your ideas in that order. Not your GPA. Not your pedigree. Not your IQ. How you speak is what separates people who get heard from people who get ignored. Here's the framework he drilled into MIT students for four decades. He said never start with a joke. Start by telling people exactly what they're going to learn. Prime the pump before you pour anything in. He called it the "empowerment promise" give people a reason to stay in their seats within the first 60 seconds. Then he broke down the 5S rule for making ideas stick: Symbol, Slogan, Surprise, Salient, and Story. Every idea worth remembering hits at least three of these. The part that floored me was his "near miss" technique. Don't just show what's right show what almost looks right but isn't. That contrast is when the brain actually locks something in permanently. His final rule before any big talk: end with a contribution, not a summary. Don't recap what you said. Tell people what you gave them that they didn't have before they walked in. I've used this framework in pitches, interviews, and presentations ever since watching it, and the results are not subtle. Patrick Winston passed away in 2019, but this lecture is still free on MIT OpenCourseWare. One hour, watched by millions, and it costs absolutely nothing. The most important class MIT ever put on the internet isn't about code or math. It's about how to make people actually listen to you.

Look, our healthcare billing system is a total mess and desperately needs fixing — no argument from me there. But let's not twist the facts just to stir outrage and rack up engagement. CPT 99460 is not a charge for mom doing skin-to-skin with her baby. There is no code or separate charge for that. 99460 is the bundled code for a healthy newborn's first day: the full head-to-toe physical exam, reviewing mom's prenatal labs and history, and answering every anxious parent question Skin-to-skin? That's completely free, evidence-based bonding we actively encourage because it's one of the best things for mom and baby. Zero extra charge. The real problems are the insane chargemaster markups, administrative bloat, and opaque billing games. Let's call those out instead of inventing new ones.

the hospital you were born in charged your mother $40 for the first time she held you it's called "skin-to-skin contact" and there's a billing code for it. CPT 99460. your mother went through labor, pushed a human being out of her body, and the hospital charged her forty dollars for the privilege of touching her own child this is the same billing system that's destroying your credit score right now a single ER visit generates 15-40 individual line items. each one has a CPT code. each code has a chargemaster price set by the hospital. and that chargemaster is a fictional document that has no connection to the actual cost of anything a bag of IV saline: hospital cost $0.86, chargemaster price $400-$900 a single acetaminophen tablet (tylenol): hospital cost $0.02, chargemaster price $15-$50 a basic blood panel: lab cost $12, chargemaster price $200-$1,100 a CT scan: equipment cost per scan ~$50, chargemaster price $3,000-$10,000 every single one of these inflated charges becomes a "debt" when you don't pay. and that debt gets sold to a collector for 2-4 cents on the dollar. and that collector puts it on your credit report as if you actually owe $47 for a tylenol tablet there are 100 million americans carrying medical debt right now. roughly 1 in 3 adults. it's the #1 cause of collections on credit reports and the #1 reason people file bankruptcy in this country and most of it is made up numbers from a document nobody was supposed to see the play: for any medical bill over $1,000, ALWAYS request the itemized bill first. not the summary bill they send you (one big number designed to scare you into paying). the line-by-line itemized version with CPT codes for every charge google each CPT code against the fair market rate at fairhealthconsumer.org. compare what the hospital charged versus what the procedure actually costs in your geographic area. you will find overcharges on almost every bill. sometimes 3x. sometimes 10x once you have the itemized bill, call the hospital billing department and say this: "i'm reviewing my itemized charges and i've identified several line items that significantly exceed fair market rates for my area. i'd like to discuss an adjustment before this goes any further. i also want to confirm whether i qualify for your financial assistance program under your charity care policy" every nonprofit hospital in america (which is most of them) is legally required to have a financial assistance policy under Section 501(r) of the Internal Revenue Code. if your income falls below a certain threshold relative to the federal poverty level (usually 200-400% FPL), the hospital must reduce or eliminate your bill entirely. they are required by law to have this program and required to tell you about it most don't tell you about it. because every dollar you pay in full is a dollar they don't have to write off if the bill has already gone to collections: the collector bought inflated chargemaster numbers for pennies. they can't produce the original itemized bill. they can't explain the CPT codes. they can't verify the charges are accurate. they bought a spreadsheet send the validation letter under FDCPA 809. demand the original itemized statement with CPT codes, the payment history showing insurance adjustments, and proof the remaining balance is accurate after all insurance payments and contractual adjustments collectors almost never have this level of documentation for medical accounts. the hospital sold the debt and moved on. the paperwork went with it a woman came to us with $67,000 in medical collections across three hospital visits. we requested itemized bills for all three. found $23,000 in duplicate charges, upcoded procedures, and facility fees that were already included in the surgeon's bill. disputed the collections using the itemized discrepancies as evidence. two collectors couldn't validate at all. the third settled for $4,200 on a $31,000 account she went from $67,000 in medical debt to $4,200 in total payments. her score went from 541 to 718 in 90 days. she bought a house 6 months later the hospital charged your mom $40 to hold you. and they'll charge you $50 for a tylenol today. and they'll put both on your credit report if you don't pay. and they'll sell it for pennies to a collector who'll harass you for years the entire system runs on your ignorance. the billing, the collections, the reporting. every layer depends on you never looking at the itemized charges and never questioning the numbers we look at the numbers. we question everything. and we get the bullshit off your credit report. link in bio

This is truly insane, and it should be front page news across America.  Denmark secretly deployed soldiers to Greenland prepared to blow up airport runways to stop a U.S. invasion. They brought blood supplies to treat the wounded. France, Germany, Norway, and Sweden quietly coordinated against us. This was not a drill. This was our closest allies preparing to fight Americans. Let that sink in. NATO allies. Countries whose soldiers have fought and died alongside ours for decades. They looked at this president and decided they had to prepare for the worst. Fewer allies does not make America great. It makes us more isolated, more vulnerable, and it hands Russia and China exactly what they have always wanted: an America abandoned by its friends. The American people deserve to know how badly this president has damaged our standing in the world.  bbc.com/news/articles/…

BREAKING: The Strait of Hormuz is no longer closed. It is no longer open. It is something the world has never seen before: a permissioned corridor run by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, priced at $2 million per vessel, payable in yuan. Three ships transited in the last 24 hours. Three. Out of a pre-war average of 60 per day. Total throughput: 310,000 deadweight tonnes. Three percent of normal. Four hundred vessels are waiting outside the strait right now. One hundred and fifty tankers. One hundred and twenty bulk carriers. One hundred and thirty others. Waiting for permission from the IRGC Navy to enter a 5-nautical-mile channel between Larak and Qeshm islands inside Iranian territorial waters. This is how the gate works. A vessel operator contacts approved intermediaries with IRGC connections, submitting full documentation: IMO number, ownership chain, cargo manifest, destination, crew list. The intermediaries forward the package to the IRGC Navy’s Hormozgan Provincial Command for sanctions screening, cargo alignment checks that prioritise oil over all other commodities, and geopolitical vetting. The toll is approximately $2 million per tanker. For a VLCC carrying 2 million barrels, that is $1 per barrel. Preferred currency: yuan. If the vessel passes, the IRGC issues a clearance code and route instructions. Upon approach, VHF radio hail, AIS verification, patrol boat escort. One ship at a time. Through the narrowest channel of the most important waterway on Earth. Iranian crude is still flowing. Approximately 1.1 to 1.5 million barrels per day, mostly to China, at near pre-war levels. Iran’s own oil transits the strait it controls. The blockade applies to everyone else. Iran is simultaneously the gatekeeper and the primary beneficiary. The toll funds the IRGC. The IRGC maintains the gate. The gate generates the toll. The circle is self-sustaining. Now look at what is NOT transiting. Fertiliser. Gulf nations supply 49 percent of the world’s exported urea. Ammonia requires the natural gas that Qatar declared Force Majeure on and that Iranian strikes disrupted at South Pars. Effectively zero fertiliser vessels have received approval through the permissioned corridor. The IRGC is prioritising oil because oil generates revenue. Fertiliser does not. The molecules that feed four billion people are trapped behind a gate that only opens for molecules that fund the gatekeeper. The yuan preference is the structural shift that outlasts the war. Every tanker that pays in yuan instead of dollars establishes a precedent. Every precedent weakens the petrodollar architecture that has governed energy trade since 1974. The IRGC is not just blocking a strait. It is building an alternative payment rail under live fire. The $2 million toll in yuan is not a fee. It is a proof of concept for a post-dollar energy settlement system, stress-tested in the most extreme conditions imaginable: a three-front war with the world’s largest military. The world’s central banks are trapped by the same strait: the Fed cannot cut, the ECB is hiking, the BOJ is tightening. Six countries are rationing fuel. Japan’s 10-year yield hit a 27-year high. Slovenia has QR codes at the pump. South Korea is barring government vehicles one day per week. And behind all of it, 400 ships wait outside a 5-nautical-mile channel for a clearance code from the IRGC Navy, payable in a currency that is not the dollar. Twenty percent of the world’s oil supply. Controlled by a VHF radio call and a yuan transfer. The strait did not close. It changed ownership. open.substack.com/pub/shanakaans…

Rock songs turning 50 years old in 2026. They got some good ones in here, but I can’t believe they’re 50 years old. I think they must be wrong. I can’t be that old🤣

This is how italian families raise their children ‼️‼️

They're going to tell their grandchildren all about the party that they just left in the Costco parking lot. I can't stop smiling

Parking skills: Beginner vs. Master

i pray debt collectors call me last month one called about a $4,300 medical bill. i let him do his whole speech. then i said six words: "is this debt past the statute?" silence in 38 states, debt expires after 3-7 years. once it passes the statute of limitations, they cannot sue you for it. legally. the debt still exists on paper but they have zero enforcement power they're calling you hoping you don't know this. because the second you make a payment, even $1, the clock RESETS and they can sue you again for the full amount that's why they say "just pay $50 to show good faith." that $50 reactivates the entire debt. it's a trap and they know exactly what they're doing the play when a collector calls: step 1: say nothing about paying. say this: "please provide written validation of this debt under FDCPA Section 809" they are legally required to stop all collection activity until they send you written proof. most junk debt buyers can't produce it because they bought your debt in a bundle for 4 cents on the dollar and don't have the original paperwork step 2: check your state's statute of limitations at your state AG's website. if the debt is past the SOL, send this letter: "this debt is time-barred under [state] statute of limitations. any attempt to collect or sue is a violation of the FDCPA. cease all contact immediately" step 3: if it's on your credit report and it's past 7 years, dispute it. "this account exceeds the FCRA 7-year reporting period. remove immediately." bureaus must remove it within 30 days or face $1,000 per violation i helped someone wipe $23,000 in zombie debt in one afternoon. four letters. zero dollars paid the collectors who called her every week? gone. the accounts on her credit report dragging her score down 80+ points? deleted. she went from 588 to 691 in 45 days without paying a cent debt collectors buy your old debt for pennies and try to scare you into paying full price. their entire business model depends on you not knowing your rights now you know (link in bio. i delete debt and fix credit scores)

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was pulled from a live interview mid-sentence today. “The President wants you right away.” He returned visibly shaken. His message: “The President is in great spirits. The Iranian mission is proceeding well ahead of schedule.” Then — unprompted — he said he would trust his child’s life in this team’s hands. Scott Bessent does not have a child considering military service. That line was not for the interviewer. That line was for Trump. This is what fear looks like in a cabinet meeting. 14 Americans dead. Casualties the Pentagon refuses to count. Russia helping Iran kill Americans. The Strait mined. 2,500 Marines deployed. A KC-135 down in Iraq. The Treasury Secretary was pulled from a live interview, returned shaken, and immediately auditioned his loyalty. “Well ahead of schedule.” Steve Witkoff still doesn’t know how it ends.

🚨#BREAKING: Watch Dramatic and chilling footage captured by a viewer shows a massive stovepipe tornado just north of their home while lightning lights up the night sky 📌#Wheatfield | #Indiana Watch as Dramatic and chilling footage captured by a viewer shows a massive stovepipe tornado just north of their home near Wheatfield, Indiana, as the powerful storm is repeatedly illuminated by intense lightning, during the night revealing both the awe-inspiring beauty and terrifying force of nature. This comes as powerful tornadoes have destroyed multiple homes across Illinois and into Indiana, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a rare Tornado Emergency, with reports also indicating extreme hail up to 4–5 inches in diameter.

A massive life-threatening wedge tornado is on the ground right now doing unthinkable damage. This is an extremely dangerous situation. We are live tracking this storm on the channel. Tune in to the stream immediately. youtube.com/watch?v=j5Ennq…

🚨#BREAKING: Officials in Kankakee, Illinois have declared a mass casualty incident after an extremely large and violent tornado tore through the area hours ago. Authorities report possible fatalities and multiple injuries, with numerous homes and buildings suffering significant damage as emergency crews continue search and rescue operations.

This is Charlotte. Golden retriever service dog for Air Force vet Clay. Most places said nah when he showed up with her for PTSD support, but Lowe’s hired the whole team. Now she’s right there in her vest keeping him steady Smartest hire ever

This is the secret trick my grandpa refused to teach anyone else 👇

Stop replacing your iPhone just because the battery is draining quickly. I also thought my iPhone needed replacing because the battery didn't last long. But that wasn't it. Apple leaves some default settings that end up consuming more battery. After adjusting a few things, my battery life went from 6 hours to almost 10 hours. Without replacing the battery. See how to do it: