SpendWize – Guide to Wiser Consumer Decisions

I really get frustrated at the number of people who are so easily misled by terminology when a group with a specific agenda puts a spin on it to rile up the populace. Case in point- “Public Option”. Look, it doesn’t mean that the government is taking over the health-care system! And if there IS such an option, you are not forced to use it! That’s what the word “option” means- its the opposite of mandatory!
Now, if you are under 50 years of age, I don’t even want to hear your opinion on health-care, because the way the system works now, once you hit the 50-year mark, and you try to obtain or to change insurance coverage, it’s a whole different ball game. You are seriously limited to the few companies who will accept you with preexisting conditions. Is there such a creature as a 50 year-old who has no prexisting conditions? I mean, this includes everything from high cholesterol to allergies to high blood pressure. And the cost – the monthly premium- should you be fortunate enough to find a company which will insure you – easily is over $500 for a single-insured. And that’s on an HMO plan which has co-pays for office visits and drugs! The only thing worse than trying to come up with the funds to pay your premiums is trying to come up with the funds to cover your costs should you NOT have insurance.
So bring on the reforms. I for one can’t wait! I just hope I still have the health to appreciate it when it is finally a done deal!

Watching the price of gasoline lately is like watching kids on a see-saw. It seems to me that the only factor which is fairly constant in determining which way the prices go is how much outcry there is from the public. So – c’mon people – let’s keep making some noise!

I was surfing thru Craig’s List recently, looking for a used car . There were 2 scam themes which became readily apparent. The first was the divorcee who got a car as part of her settlement but doesn’t need a 2nd car so she’ll let it go for a song. The second was the military man who is about to be redeployed for an extended period of time and wants to dispose of his car quickly. What both of these scams had in common was the seller insisting on using E-Bay and/or Pay Pal so that both the buyer and the seller would be protected.
Unfortunately, I have had experience doing transactions this way and the buyer is NOT necessarily protected. In my case, once the money was put into the seller’s account, the seller was free to withdraw it.
If the buyer has a problem with the purchase after payment has been made he has to go through a process which can take at least 30 days before Pay Pal determines what the resolution will be and even then he may have to wait for money to show up again in the buyer’s account before he is reimbursed. It seems to me that an easy way to at least partially deal with this disadvantage to the buyer is for Pay Pal to freeze the monies in the seller’s account for 30 days to ensure that there are no issues. But then again, who asked me?

Re: Frugal Living
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Just a few comments on the way our society sometimes seems to be so out-of-whack :
Re: The octomom–Why not have the good doctor who implanted those 8 embryos provide all the financial support for those babies?
Re: Bernie Madoff – how about letting those whom he bilked out of their entire life-savings have free access to his properties so they can take items which would be some compensation for their losses?

This is not an article about how to wisely “shop” for college and/or financial aid. Rather, it is for parents of young children who have recently entered -or are about to enter- the public educational system.
The bottom line here is two-fold: Noone knows your child as well as you do and there is a fine line between being an advocate for your child and alienating those who are educating him/her. (more…)

If you are waiting for the government to do what it will take to make a positive impact on the environment, then you are dooming your grandchildren -maybe even your children- to a disastrous future.
This is something to which every individual can make a positive contribution in very simple ways. Here are 2 for starters: (more…)

One of the catch phrases in the dating scene these days is the term “soul mate.” Everyone is searching for their soul mate or has found their true soul mate. But what do people really mean when they use this term? Most people probably mean only that they have found – or think they have found – or are seeking- that very deep love which will lead to an eternal committment since both halves of the twosome see the world in such similar ways.

I however, have developed my own detailed definition of the term. See whether you agree. (more…)

Social Security disability. Usually one’s first reaction to the term is that it’s for really -disabled people. However, the older I’ve become, the more I see ” regular joe” types who for one reason or another were forced to leave the work force and had to turn to ssd for their primary source of income. Only trouble is , this governmental division which is supposed to exist for the welfare and betterment of the citizenry which is truly entitled to the services and financial support it can provide, instead tends to victimize those very same citizens. How? Well ,ask anyone who has dealt with ssd or who has first-hand knowledge of how it works. The rule of thumb is that most initial applications for this service are rejected. It doesn’t matter how much supportive data you have for your claim, you will be denied. The thinking must be that out of those who are denied, at least 50% will not have the means (i.e. getting an attorney) – or will be too intimidated – to press their case any further. (more…)

Am I the only one who wonders why: The government is so anxious to intervene in the private life of an average citizen, issuing parameters for what goes on behind closed doors to what one can or cannot do with one’s own body; why then aren’t they trying to put a cap on the outrageous profits being amassed by the oil companies to the detriment of every single soul in this country?

And when I’m driving behind some of these large trucks, they often hide my view of the traffic light ,so that I may not know whether the light is changing or has changed until I’m right on top of the intersection. At the least, this is annoying; at worst, it is dangerous. Isn’t there a way to place these lights so that drivers have an unimpeded view of them?

Here are a few things which you should already know, but may not— (more…)