Another TBB post featuring the most eclectic links around the web such as April 15 Tax Day is almost here, pyramid schemes, sneaky new credit card fees, my Chicago Thompson Hotel stay, who pays all the taxes in the US, TikTok financial influencers are the worst, the anti China wave is getting louder, always amazing photography, we visit India and Scotland and an island in Sierra Leone sinking into the sea, a few articles about running and a lot more and of course always all of the important developments in the crazy world of miles and points and a lot more. Enjoy the weekend and file your taxes now!
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Welcome to my quirky original authentic blog. It all started back in 2012 focusing on my crazy hobby addiction of frequent flyer miles, hotel and bank points. It has since evolved to a curated at least weekly post of the best web content I find along with my commentary. Here to Educate primarily, sometimes Entertain and if I get to Inspire you, well, that is a bonus.
This blog publishes on Fridays. This is a one man labor of love operation, enjoy it while it lasts. I may post on a Tuesday too.
PERSONAL FINANCE
If you have not filed your income tax returns by now, well, get an extension! April 15 is the date: What you need to know to file your taxes.
This is a pretty good history of how we got here: A Brief History of Stocks.
This easily stirs the pot with people always bitching about how much in taxes they pay: Americans think they pay too much in taxes. Here’s who pays the most and least to the IRS.
SCAMS/CRYPTO
In case you missed it: Terraform Labs and founder Do Kwon found liable in US civil fraud trial. He is still in a jail cell in Montenegro and the word on the street is that his guards are all now driving Mercedes cars lol.
Please please, avoid getting tax advice on TikTok! Bad tax advice is multiplying on TikTok. Reading about some of these “influencers” made me throw up.
Great podcast: The American dream is a pyramid scheme. Jane Marie is an expert in American b******t. Her podcast The Dream explores life coaching, wellness, marketing, and other fraudulent industries and exposes their exploitative practices. Her book, Selling the Dream, takes an even closer look at multilevel marketing schemes like Amway and Herbalife and gives historical context to this multibillion-dollar — and distinctly American — enterprise. [I like fellow BS fighter Jane!]
GEOPOLITICS
Some of these guys are always thirsty for war smh. No Substitute for Victory. America’s Competition With China Must Be Won, Not Managed.
Instead of spending about three percent of GDP on defense, Washington should spend four or even five percent, a level that would still be at the low end of Cold War spending. For near-term deterrence in the Taiwan Strait, it should spend an additional $20 billion per year for the next five years, the rough amount needed to surge and disperse sufficient combat power in Asia.
Meanwhile, Putin’s goon Kadyrov had a hell of a night the other day indulging in drugs so the next morning: Chechnya bans all music deemed too fast or too slow. Ooookay.
ODDZ & ENDZ
This resurfaced and it is one of the best reads to learn about depression. From the author suffering with it: The Depression Thing.
Amazing photography here: World Press Photo 2024 Regional Winners Showcase the Events That Shape the World.
Very interesting: Visualizing the Countries With the Lowest Corporate Tax Rates.
TRAVEL
Remember that story with that Indian billionaire wedding recently? The one Rhianna stopped by for a cool $5 million. Well, for my aviation geek blog readers, this article titled From Slumber to Spectacle is fantastic. How India’s Jamnagar airport managed an unprecedented number of flights for billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s family event.
Cool thread: Places on Earth that don’t look real.
A cute video traveling through Scotland: Local Lens: A brothers’ guide to Scotland with Colin and Ewan McGregor.
Stunning article and pics of what it feels like to be slowly washed away. The Water is Eating the Island. Villagers hang onto the last patch of Sierra Leone’s Nyangai Island, knowing that their home may soon disappear.
BUZZING
A section where I go on and on about some stuff that happens in my life and anything else that just does not fit in another section above
Well, I think this was written for me: Running is everything to me. What if it’s time to say goodbye?
And then there is this guy: Russ Cook: The Hardest Geezer who ran the length of Africa.
I loved the 3 Body Problem show on Netflix. The first four episodes were amazing! It did slow down in the second half a bit and near the end you just knew the plot was being set up for…Season 2.
This blog started with a focus on miles and points and travel. It has evolved since then. Everything below deals with the hobby of collecting frequent flyer miles and points and maximizing your travel experiences. If you are not interested, you can stop here, thank you.
MILES & POINTS NEWS/PROMOS/MY ACTION
It was another week with a lot happening but no event jumps out to define the week.
GENERAL NEWS/PROMOS/NEWBIES/ETC.
Do we really need yet another loyalty program out there, come on! Detroit Metro Airport launches free loyalty program offering gift cards, airline miles.
Good reference: Annual Fee Refund Rules For Each Bank.
Good addition to SkyTeam: SAS Exits Star Alliance On August 31 & Joins SkyTeam On September 1, 2024.
CREDIT CARD CORNER
Please help the small independent blogs like mine continue to exist by supporting them with your credit card clicks below, thank you!
Never underestimate the banking lobby so Get ready for sneaky new credit card fees. Your bank is looking for new ways to screw you over.
We have had the three Ink Business cards with great signup bonuses for a while. It is the 100k Chase Ink Business Preferred and the 75k Chase Ink Cash and the 75k Chase Ink Unlimited. More info on each card is below. But how do you differentiate among these three cards: Choosing Among Three Beasts: Selecting the Best Business Card.
The rest of this section is a repeat from last Friday’s blog post.
There was a massive 300,000 points Signup Bonus recently for the Capital One Venture X Business card. The offer now is back to 150,000 points. And that is a good thing. Why? Because to get the full 300k Signup Bonus required a ridiculous $100,000 minimum spend. To get the 150k Signup Bonus now requires “only” $30,000 minimum spend. Good luck getting approved, you will likely need it with this bank. Works almost the exact same way as the personal Capital One Venture X card. As in the $395 annual fee is offset by a $300 travel credit and 10,000 points anniversary bonus. Four Free authorized users get their own Priority Pass lounge membership, which includes restaurants!
MY ACTION
I used 24,000 World of Hyatt points to stay two nights at the Chicago Thompson hotel. I have some comments and pics about my stay here in THIS thread. I stayed in a Junior Suite and I have a video walking tour HERE. I booked right before this hotel went up to Category 5 from Category 4. It was my first time in a Thompson and logged in my 11th Hyatt brand, four more brands for another Free Night with the great Brand Explorer Award.
So, what do I think of the Thompson brand? Not that much really. Definitely a small boutique hotel feel. I am sure having the restaurant closed and not having the actual breakfast Globalist experience there took a lot away from the value of my points. So, breakfast was available only for room dine in and there can be a wait. Eating out of a to go bag just is not the same. The concerning thing is that the restaurant may not be open when we return for another two nights in late June. I got a few items from the little shop next to the front desk for the second morning breakfast. Fitness center is excellent. But no swimming pool. And no lounge. The suite was pretty good, again on the smaller size. Good location on the northern part of Michigan Avenue, richer area, lots of luxury stores around it. In a nutshell, I was underwhelmed with my first Thompson experience. I guess I won’t be getting any Hyatt corporation invites after this review. So, support independent blogs! 😉
One reason I booked the Thompson was due to the promo offering double night credits. But the extra two night credits did not post with my regular stay. My Hyatt Globalist Concierge responded to my email question to tell me that it can take up to four weeks after checkout for these promotional night credits to post. Also, there is no firm date on the opening of the restaurant in the Chicago Thompson. We come back June 25 and 26 and not looking forward to eat our tasty omelettes out of a to go bag. #FirstWorldProblems.
So my World of Hyatt qualifying nights stand at 12 as of today. Five I get each year from the personal Chase Hyatt Visa. I knocked out a bit over $10k in the Hyatt Visa to date which gave me another four nights (you get 2 night credits per $5k) spend. One night last week using a free night cert in the Dallas Hyatt Regency. Which makes it 10. And then these two Chicago Thompson nights takes me to 12. And then another 2 will be added after about four weeks due to the ongoing Thompson double night credit promotion. Last night I checked in the “ultra luxury” Flint Hyatt Place for a few of those 3,500 points Category 1 nights and then I burned another 3,500 points at the nearby Hyatt Place Detroit-Livonia for one night this weekend. So I will be at 17. And nearing another $5k spend in my Chase Hyatt Visa which will get me to 19 (and earns me another free Hyatt night cert too). With other already booked stays the rest of this year I can clear 30 easy. It will be a long road to hitting 60 to requalify as Globalist elite you guys.
Oh, and due to the Bonus Journeys promo I receive 3,000 Hyatt points every three nights. I already earned 3,000 points and by next week I will have another 3,000 points after my two Michigan Hyatt Place stays. Yeah, this is an addiction all right.
I knocked out a $4k spend promo on my United Gateway card to earn 12,000 United miles. Pfffft.
ADVANCED
Mailing out 1099 tax forms via snail mail on, gasp, April 9 should be a felony imho: American Express Will Send Out 1099 INT for Business Checking Bonus. I bet you whoever wrote this worked at Delta PR dept.
To make things right, we’ve issued your 1099-INT tax statement. We mailed it to the address on file on April 9, 2024.
Some developments in the banks you should know if this is your hobby: Weekend Bank Update.
It looks like we finally have an answer when we can get the US Bank Altitude Reserve card again, it is 5 years.
Is US Bank trying to gain relevance in our space? Major Changes to US Bank Altitude Connect Card. The $95 annual fee will be removed. And that is when Amex execs started laughing out loud.
MILES & POINTS
HOT CREDIT CARD OFFERS: 75k CHASE Ink Business Cash, 75k CHASE Ink Business Unlimited, 75k CAPITAL ONE Venture X, 75k CAPITAL ONE Venture Rewards, 100k CHASE Ink Business Preferred, 175k CHASE IHG Premier Business, 80k CHASE Southwest Performance Business, 60K CITI Premier, $1,000 Cash Back CHASE Ink Business Premier, 60k CHASE Sapphire Preferred, 60K CHASE Sapphire Reserve, 155k AMEX Hilton Surpass, 15k AMEX Blue Business Plus and many more!
This section is about my hobby addiction of collecting frequent flyer miles and hotel points since the early 1990’s! SKIP if you are not into it!
As of today, I have burned 346,808 miles/points year to date (1,148,286 in 2023) and have 4,549,339 miles/points in the bank. Some do drugs, I do miles lol!
Thanks to US banks, very lucrative travel rewards credit card offers come and go all the time. This section will act as a reference point on the best CURRENT offers. I will designate new material preceded by NEW.
Remember, you are NOT allowed to ever carry a credit card balance if you ever get a credit card here!
Let me leave you with this:
Some of the links are behind a paywall. You can try to read them using Archive.is.
Thank you for reading my blog. If you enjoy it please pass it on to a family member or friend. Or Buy Me a Coffee, thank you!
TBB
travelbloggerbuzz@gmail.com
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This site may receive compensation for sending traffic to partner sites. Travel Blogger Buzz and Your Best Credit Cards may receive a commission from card issuers. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not necessarily include all financial companies or all available financial offers. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone.
Since you ended with a fake resume, please check out this hilarious thread: https://twitter.com/JerryJHLee/status/1778484920593055763?t=jjXekFDNhf8Ca3JgrkZK0Q&s=19
Thanks for the info on the benefits for passing thru Detroit. That’s my favorite Delta hub so I’ll look into that.
Hope you survived tax season!
Buzz! That resume thing at the end is priceless! Saving this whole post for some good reading this weekend. It’s top notch and even by your high standards, this looks like you’ve hit it out of the park! Thanks so much!!
Glad to hear you are getting action! :O
Thanks for taking the time to comment. If it was not for these comments this blog would not have lasted that long.
I liked the movie Civil War. Maybe it was a warning not to elect Don?
Sounds like you are still a world of Hyatt fan boy!
This guy is fun https://x.com/dieworkwear/status/1779182511601717258?s=46
The buy a coffee thing is weird as I could not seem to leave a note this time, but bought you a couple coffees just now so you know who kicked in a couple cups!
Been reading more of the links this afternoon. I always say it but I mean it, this is the best email/blog/newsletter, whatever you want to call it that I get!
Thanks!
Well, there is nothing like waking up on Sunday morning to see I lost another email list subscriber!
Carl, in April, all this blog has earned is your two coffees and one credit card sale. I mean, how can this not be demoralizing? It is obvious that only a few of you think this way because most just don’t have the attention span. Been following this space for so long and I am seeing an even more accelerating trend towards clickbait “shocking” shit…
So, why keep the Tuesday post? It is obviously not doing for traffic or email list or $ support clicks.
And then you all wonder why bloggers quit and become ghost writers bringing in the dough…smh.
Serenity now…
Hey George, Bought you a few coffees today as my days of applying for credit cards are over. Maybe time to not focus on the stats or dreaming on the big time but think of your blog as appealing to a small but discerning crowd. I’m not subscribed but I do visit every week for the links. At least you can look at yourself in the mirror each day and not feel you have to wash away the dirt and grime of clickbait. BTW that’s a long haul to making top tier Hyatt whatever it is called. Is it worth it? Do you have plans for 2025 that would justify extending yourself to qualify for 2024?
Thanks Vicky, much appreciated. So, you are saying, I will never be discovered? 🙂
I am not giving up the plastic game. But will be even more choosy, got to be 75k and up, preferably six digits 🙂
I see your point about the mirror and I agree. But then I see all these successful big time bloggers feasting on clickbait and plastic and….you know, it is so unfair! And then boom, another one unsubscribes, like, what did I do to them? I don’t get it.
The comments keep me going. And the few clicks here and there. Already kicked out from one cc vendor. When this one kicks me out, this baby will be retired. Started November 2012! I mean, I should be getting awards for longevity any year now. Maybe, Hall of Fame lol.
Just back from another 3,500 Hyatt Place checkin…Plans? What plans? So many around my brain and I need many answers to fall into place to clear calendar space. #Developing
Mid 70’s in Ann Arbor today, everyone is out, took daughter to our favorite Indian restaurant #winning
Days start out much better when I am greeted with a new subscriber AND a credit card sale! So I guess I will do a Tuesday post…will bring hard to pick out 5 links that stand out.
Another gorgeous day in Michigan. Told son who needs Honolulu weather when you have it in Ann Arbor, MI