A man, a job, and a secret — James found himself sitting alone in his car at around 8:30 each night, wet from a mixture of his own sweat and the sprinklers on the fresh rack — the place in the tiny store where the vegetables were displayed. He’d light up a White Owl Sweet and roll down…

Digital dark patterns light the way for deception and manipulation — If you’ve ever been tempted to purchase a credit monitoring service from one of the three major credit bureaus, don’t. If you already have this service, chances are the company that sold it used something called “digital dark patterns” to lure you into the purchase. The bottom line: You can…

A woman, her church, and some birds . . . — 10 AM Saturday morning. Supper Club day. Wanda would be hosting the group of eight that evening. She always relished hosting days. The chance to show everyone the modest home where she and Dean still lived despite his apparent career success. It was the home where they’d raised their children…

Affirm claims a short-term loan for groceries is good for consumers — Buy Now, Pay Later provider Affirm is suggesting that consumers want the opportunity to use short-term loans to finance groceries — especially during a time of rising prices. The news comes courtesy of a story in American Banker. The story notes: Affirm’s newest product, which ties a buy now/pay later…

Or did Vocal just deal the platform a death blow? I’ve been writing at Simily for 18 weeks now. Overall, I’ve enjoyed the experience. The platform seems to have a focus on creative writing and there is a decent community of dedicated writers there. Simily at 17 Waiting for changeadvocateandy.medium.com Simily is slowly approaching 4000 members…

Comments finally arrive at Vocal.Media — For a very brief time in 2020, I posted some fiction over at Vocal. I remember telling people I was writing there and they would ask, “what is Vocal?” A great question, really. The site has lots of content and a fair amount of creative writing. The site also does…

Consumer groups urge FTC action on deceptive earnings claims — Consumer Federation of America (CFA) responded to a request for comment from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on proposed regulations around deceptive earnings claims. Specifically, CFA called out gig economy companies, multi-level marketing firms, and for-profit colleges for practices that deceive individuals into believing they’ll be able to live a…

Equal credit offers protection AFTER loans are made, too — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an advisory opinion extending protections found in the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) beyond the issuing of a loan. …

Fintech darling Solo Funds held accountable by Connecticut Banking Commissioner — It seems a darling of the fintech lending industry is being taken to task by the Connecticut Banking Commissioner for lending money at effective APRs in excess of 4000% — yes, you read that right. Jason Mikula of Fintech Business Weekly tells the tale: Apparently, the Connecticut Banking Commissioner issued…