GEEZE, DEAN - LET SOME ELSE MOUNT THE PODIUM!
We recognize that we, at DAX, are not the only opinionated S.O.B.s in the world so, from time to time, we publish what others have to say in other publications, on television, radio, the Internet, etc.
That’s what this feature is for - and when we find something we feel should be brought to your attention - perhaps, some obscure new discovery or other item of interest that you may have otherwise missed, and if it can be BEST said by whomever first said it - you’re apt to find it repeated here.
By the way, a pet peeve of me - which I was reminded of by the caption above is that hardly anybody - including learned members of the media - seem to know the difference between ‘’podium'’ and ‘’lectern.'’ You’ll often hear someone say something like, ‘’As she stood behind the podium and delivered her speech . . . ‘’ If ‘’she'’ did THAT - she’d probably be behind the stage curtain, as the podium is the raised platform on which people STAND. The lectern is the stand with the slanted top on which one can place their speech notes and stand behind . . .
In listening to copious numbers of people over the years make reference to the two words, the ONLY person I recall getting it right consistently, is Garrison Keilor of ‘’Prairie Home Companion'’ fame.
Oh, and this:
If you wonder what the ‘’-30-'’ that we’re using to separate articles is all about: That’s a very old term used by reporters and other writers back in the days of manual typewriters. and indicates to the editor that ‘’no more copy to follow'’ as regards that particular story. Thus . . .
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MEASURES TO TAKE TO THWART IDENTITY THEFT
There was a very informative article in the June issue of AARP (The Magazine) concerning measures one would be wise to take to thwart identity theft, which last year resulted in the largest of all consumer frauds - totalling $56.6 billion! Some highlights from the piece:
Avoid carrying any meaningful documents on your person (wallet, purse, etc.) Naturally, we need to have-at-the-ready our driver’s license and probably, one credit card but beyond that, there is no real need to carry a ‘’just-in-case'’ blank check, our social security card or other personal identification data. Especially, do NOT have your bank PIN scribbled somewhere handy to thieves!
DAX-Comment: ’tis a good idea to establish an address that is different from your actual one for your driver’s license, vehicle titles and other similar sensitive data. Ditto for home phone numbers. It costs to have an unlisted number, but there is no charge if you set up your phone in a fictitious name - and it can generally be done with one phone call.
If you have all the credit cards and insurance plans that you need - why bother yourself with getting two or three offers for new ones in every day’s mail? By law, you can stop those solicitations by filling out a form that’s available on-line: www.optoutprescreen.com
By doing so, all three of the major credit bureaus will no longer be allowed to offer your name and credit history (for a fee, by the way) to casual inquiries from banks, insurance companies or others snooping around. You can opt for a five year limit - or forever and can, if you choose, have your name placed back ON the ‘’okay to contact'’ list at any time.
DAX Comment: Around here, we each opted for the FOREVER time frame. If we come to ‘’miss'’ all those credit card and insurance solicitations (which require that you immediately send all data with your name on it into the shredder) - we’ll get back on the list . . . sure, we will!
Today’s crooks are very sophisticated, yet one of their more damaging tactics is low tech: You write a check to someone (anyone) -the crook gets ahold of it, places a piece of tape over your signature then, bleaches the check to effectively remove all the other data you’ve written, i.e., the recipient’s name, amount, etc. After the check dries, the crook writes in whatever amount of $ he thinks the ‘’traffic will bear'’ and makes off with your money!
DAX Comment: There’s a far too simple way to determine whether YOUR account has a thousand bux or a hundred thousand bux in it: This inside data is from our days in the collection business (you may not know that yours truly was the founder and Executive Director of Michigan’s largest network of debt collection agencies.)
If a thief or a bill collector (some folks place both in the same category, of course!) has your check in hand - let’s say it’s for ten bux. He calls the bank, asks for bookkeeping and says, ‘’I have a couple checks here from (your name). The account number is: (whatever). The first one is for two thousand dollars . . . is there enough to cover that? Yes? The second one is for five thousand - is there enough to cover that, too? No - not both - but there is enough for the five, right? Okay then - thanks!'’
Just so you know, the reason collectors do that is to determine if there are enough funds to warrant a legal garnishment - NOT because they’re off in the back room bleaching checks!!! Suggestion: Do as we have always done with ALL of our checking accounts - personal and especially, business: Keep only enough funds in there at any given time to cover basic expenses.
It requires numerous transfers on a regular basis but is just prudent. Whereas the bank can charge you only $50.00 (by law) if someone pilfers your credit card and uses it - there is no ceiling on fraudulent checks written on your account!
ALSO: To keep ahead of check crooks, either take the time to type all data or easier - and more portable - get a Uni-Ball gel pen (about $1.50 at most any store.) It’s impossible to bleach that particular ink!
About your credit cards: This is the most dangerous of all areas when it comes to crookery! You already know that, no doubt. But here are some refreshers to be mindful of: NEVER-EVER give anyone who emails you any pertinent data on your credit card, social security number, phone number, home address or other similar data.
No legitimate bank, insurance company, on-line auction or anyone else will ever ask for such information, If they do, do NOT provide it! Instead, send a copy of the email to the legitimate entity’s security department.
Bear this in mind, too: Each time you give your credit card to a waiter/waitress/retail store person, etc., you risk their making a copy of your card number, expiration date and the security code on the reverse side.
Sooner or later, statistically, you probably WILL be ‘’took,'’ but you need to weigh that fact against the convenience of having at your disposal instant access to whatever your card limit allows you! Al,so, as mentioned else-where, your liability is limited to $50.00 if someone uses your card without your authorization.
DAX Comment: We get email requests for sensitive data on an almost daily basis! Especially, from people posing as reps for Ebay and AMAZON.COM That, along with those idiots in Africa promising to cut us in on a zillion dollars if we merely provide them with the routing numbers for our bank account!
We do use our charge cards when dining out, but we also keep track of each transaction (just throw the receipts in a box) for future reference. If/when someone snags and abuses our card data we can assist in tracking down the bastards - and they better hope the bank gets to them before I do!
Finally, more and more of us are paying our recurring bills on-line rather than risk checks and/or card data being sent through the mail. It is easy, fast and usually there is no problem. And (for the third time) IF someone were to ‘’phish'’ (the actual term) the pertinent data and use it inappropriately, the maximum loss would be that fifty bux - because a credit card was used rather than a check.
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SHOP AROUND FOR BEST BANK RATES!
Here’s some very helpful information gleaned, in part, from an article by Peter Davidson of www.bankrate.com It concerns the ‘’hidden dangers'’ of owning and using credit cards - often overlooked by the unwary. As underscored by Ed Mierzwinski, Director of the Public Interest Group in Washington, D.C., ‘’When you read the fine print in your credit card agreement (you’ll learn) it’s a license to steal.'’ Examples:
Card issuers regularly check their customer’s credit reports for any late payments on accounts other than theirs. Such late payments are used as an excuse to trigger hiking your card’s interest rates - despite your never having made a single late payment TO the card issuer.
DAX NOTE: Any and all inquiries (from any source) into your credit history affects your FICO score - negatively. When prospective lenders (for mortgages, auto loans, etc.) discover a number of other inquiries, they automatically lower your FICO score which translates into huge extra sums you must pay in interest costs! (FICO = Fair Isaac Company - the firm that invented the credit scoring system in the mid 1960s)
Traditional grace periods (of 25 - 30 days or so) - a period in which you are charged NO interest on purchases - are starting to dramatically shrink: Some are down to as low as 23 days - even 20 days - and worse, some cards no longer offer any grace period at all!
Beware of those bait and switch card offers: You are enticed to switch cards and get a much lower rate, but the fine print reveals that’s for a limited period after which the rate jumps - often to a percentage much higher than the card you now have.
‘’Two cycle'’ billing is becoming popular: Where once the card issuer calculated interest charges on a one-month basis, some are starting to average it over a two month period - which effectively, negates any grace period you would enjoy on current charges AND increases the overall net interest that you must pay. Sure it’s sneaky to you and me - legal to the card issuers, banks and politicians whose palms are being greased nicely.
This one is just plain confiscatory: If your card is inactive for, say, six months, many card issuers are now imposing a hefty fee - as much as $15.00 - just because you have not used your card! DAX NOTE: Some banks are starting to also impose a fee on money market funds that offer checking privileges if no checks are written during a specific time frame - often, just a month or two!
Late payment fees are a killer: A study by Vertis, which monitors consumer credit usage and payment habits, found that 2% of all credit card holders miss getting their monthly payments in on time. The average slap on the wrist for that is $29.00. But MBNA and Bank of America hit you for a phenomenal $39.00!
Similar to the above, ‘’over-limit fees'’ become costly, too - $25.00 to $39.00 each time you charge a bit more than your card limit. And be doubly aware: Let’s say your card limit is $5,000.00, you have reached your limit, and you get your monthly payment in late, so you incur that aforementioned $29.00 - $39.00 late charge. Well, my friend - THAT will trigger an ‘’over-the-limit'’ charge of whatever your card issuers feels like tacking on!
You are no doubt often offered a chance to make a balance transfer - to another card that ostensibly offers a lower interest rate - usually rock-bottom to get your attention. If you bite, the chances are your decision will place in motion a steep transaction fee of 3 to 5 percent just for making the transfer. For each $1,000.00 you transfer, you may end up paying upwards of $50.00.
Think that such fees are not worth bothering with? The industry knows otherwise: Last year alone they took in an extra $43 BILLION just from nicking you and other unwary cardholders.
A DAX BRIGHT SPOT
As we’ve said over and over for many years - it is possible to beat those blasted bankers at their own game in certain ways. Here’s a current one that we have found effective for DAX-DOERS:
If you are unable to pay off your credit cards in full each month (which is the only sensible thing to do, if at all possible) call your bank, have a chat and request strongly that your interest rate be lowered elst, you may well take your business elsewhere.
In almost all cases, the bank WILL lower your rate - on average, a full one-third less than you now pay. With many card holders paying as much as 24% - that’s a significant savings!
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SOMETIMES, AU NATURAL IS PREFERABLE!
In an article titled, ‘’MR. NATURAL, M.D.,'’ by Robert Scheer which originally appeared in PLAYBOY, we found some interesting obser-vations which underscore some of the philosophy that we’ve been espoused ourselves concerning the validity of alternative, healthier lifestyles - especially as regards diet, and holistic versus ‘traditional’ medical treatment, vitamin therapy, etc.
Specifically, Scheer addresses the fact that the FDA, as well as the administration adamantly refuse to even consider such things in any proposed ‘National Health Plan’ - despite the facts which have proved that certain alternative treatments are either superior, or sometimes, the ONLY ones available.
And of course, in virtually all cases, such choices are far less costly. Methinks THAT is the true underlying reason that the ‘powers-that-be’ balk at the notion of sanctioning such treatments: The old, but familiar notion of, ‘’when seeking the truth - follow the money trail.'’
Scheer agrees and concludes his article: ‘’The underlying threat of alternative medicine, then, is that the patient will take responsibility for his or her own health needs. That, and the threat to the immense profits of the medical-industrial complex, which freaks out at the possibility that mother nature might just have provided some healing balm on the cheap.
‘’It is hoped that the Congress will begin responding more to the demands of patients and less to the AMA and the drug and medical-equipment companies. The big money is in cutting up people, stuffing them with expensive drugs and testing them with ever more elaborate and costly machinery - compelling reasons, in this season of cost-cutting, to consider the alternatives.'’
We concur . . . do you?
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R U PHAT OR JUST PLAIN FAT?
According to my Urban dictionary, ‘’phat'’ means cool, pretty hot and tempting. We both know what FAT means . . .
But no need to waste a lot of words about how awfully overweight we Americans have become - and elsewhere, on numerous occasions, we have addressed that fact and the remedies to fix. But currently, there’s great interest in what is called BMI - short for Body Mass Index.
Everyone who is seriously concerned about their own weight or that of their spouse or children seems to know exactly what BMI means and what their’s IS. Here’s the ‘’skinny'’(!) on BMI - taken from a recent article in ‘’Living Healthy.'’
To determine your BMI:
1. Multiply your weight in POUNDS by 704.
2. Now, multiply your height in INCHES by the same figure - your height in INCHES.
3. Divide the first number by the second number. THAT is your BMI and here’s what it means:
18 or below - underweight
19 - 24 - normal
25 - 29 overweight
30 (or greater) - OBESE!
An example: If you weigh 162 pounds and are 69 inches tall (5′ 9″), your BMI is arrived at by: (162 X 704) divided by (69 X 69) = 23.9 - which is normal. Congratulations! Now, let’s compute what your REAL BMI is . . .
. . . and before you just blithely dismiss the above data and go onto something else, read THIS data which I just gleaned from the National Center for Health (because this is truly frightening):
‘’New research shows that the number of Americans who are 100 pounds or more overweight and thus, classified as morbidly obese, is growing twice as fast as the number of Americans who already fall into (just) the obese category.'’ Remember: ‘’Morbidly'’ means. . . deathly.
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THE VERITABLE VIRTUAL YAHOOS AT YAHOO!
We had been wondering why we were getting SO many ‘’spams'’ (unwanted, unsolicited e-mails attempting to sell a wide variety of things) at just one of our screen names, whilst the other ones were mostly free of junk.
Then, we saw an article in the July PLAYBOY which revealed that YAHOO, hurting for revenue, had switched everyone’s Group Membership accounts from ‘’do NOT send me spam'’ to ‘’send me spam'’ - really! S.E. belongs to one of the YAHOO stock market groups and had dutifully told them to not send spam. But, as the article said, they did, anyway!
There are many different YAHOO on-line groups -and they can provide you with a goodly amount of help, information and such BUT, to avoid getting all that spam (and it can get heav-vee!) go to: www.groups.yahoo.com Click on ‘’Account Info'’ which will bring up your ID card. Click on ‘’Edit your marketing preferences'’ where you will need to change every ‘’yes'’ to a ‘’no'’ and then, be sure to click on ‘’save changes.'’
Bear in mind that YAHOO may well arbitrarily switch you back (without notice!) to the ‘’spam me'’ mode - so you’d best repeat the afore-mentioned procedure now and then in the future - OR just ‘’resign'’ from all the nastiness and find another, less sneaky group. Go to good ol’ GOOGLE (www.google.com) and punch in what-ever you need or want and you’ll have more than you can handle in about five seconds!
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REBATE THIS!
Good Housekeeping Magazine published a report earlier this year in which it was revealed that Dell Computer was dragging its tail on promised rebates - some of which were for several hundred dollars. When pressed hard, a representative would offer to credit one’s account rather than send the actual rebate check.
It turns out that DELL and many other companies that promote offers with mail-in rebates are failing to fulfill their obligation according to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission).
To ensure getting any rebates due you, make copies of everything that pertains to the offer from the moment you are lured into the deal until it has become an actual purchase. Then, hound the buggers until you get your $!
We bought a new Dell in February with nice, big, flat but thin LED screen for about $2,000.00, with a rebate promise of $150.00. We did not get the check until May and only then after I had personally gotten on the horn and had a ‘’what’s up?'’ with CEO, Michael Dell.
Also, nowhere did the advertising say that speakers for the cotton-pickin’ machine were NOT included. When queried, they were more than wiling to send us a pair for seventy bux - I said ‘’no,'’ and we used a set that we had from another old computer in the store room. Dell the Deceiver . . .
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WHEN SMALL PUBLICATIONS SPEAK LOUDLY!
Periodicals for those actively engaged in the home-based tier of ‘’mail order'’ have come and gone by the dozens - more likely, the hundreds - during the past half century. The names of most of those erstwhile publishers have faded and indeed, in many cases many of them have passed on to that big mail-sorting bin in the sky: Wellman, Whitaker, Buchanan, Proudfoot, Haylings and a host of others whose names escape me now.
It’s a tough field: Producing any periodical and getting subscribers is costly, and the preponderance of people who might benefit the most from such regular inside intelligence are, well, pretty darn cheap, from my experience!
Fortunately, for the past several years a long-time DAX-DOER, Terrence J. Thomas has been producing an excellent monthly effort which I’ve noticed has continued to improve noticeably. For instance, he has recently decided to quit accepting advertising - a big bugaboo and often more of an annoyance than a potential profit with this particular genre.
To give you an idea of the solid insight you’ll find in his publication, in an article discussing the scams of most MLM outfits, he points out, ‘’There is something wrong with FORCING your organization to purchase only from you, or restricting their ability to obtain tools and services on their own, or to become a leader themselves. This is where it crosses into the scam territory. Sadly, this practice is all too common.'’
We at DAX have preached that for several decades. I came up through the direct-selling ranks (much of it ‘’party-plan'’) and it used to bug me that everything needed to function - literally, from note pads to pencils to more substantial sales tools, had to be bought from the main source, sponsor or whomever at ridiculous and exorbitant cost.
When we originally structured DAX it was with the thought that we would NEVER require any of our associates to acquire any sales tools, printing or whatever from US and in fact, we have always gone out of our way to encourage dealers and others to shop around, because frankly, in most cases you can get printing, for example, for much less in your local area than through DAX - as we have to factor in our ‘’middle-man'’ costs PLUS rather hefty shipping costs.
Anyway . . . ‘’Mail Order Marketing News,'’ 8 pages filled with lots of useful and interesting data every month is one of very few of its type still active and ‘twould be worth your while to contact Terry, get a sample copy, if need be - or just buy a year’s subscription: I’m certain you will not regret it.
Contact: TJT Publications, Box 55685, Valencia, CA 91385-0685. Website: www.tjtmarketing.com E-Mail: tjtpub@aol.com Also, he has some very good mailing lists you might want to try: We used 10,000 of ‘em as part of a recent very large mailing and the cash-results we got from his lists alone were very significant, I’m told.
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TOP TEN WORDS OF THE YEAR
Until recently, someone at Northern Michigan University (Traverse City) would send out a press release every year around Christmas listing a bunch of words or phrases that had been beaten to death in the press and public during the year just ending.
This year we did not receive such a press release, but it made us think of all the words that are often used incorrectly - and here are a few standouts from the year that just ended:
Garnished. Sometime back when that computer boob offed seven people in Wakefield, Massachusetts the day after Christmas (great timing, Clyde!) every newscaster in the world reported that it was believed that he was motivated to commit his evil deed because the I.R.S. had conspired with his employer to ‘’Garnish his wages for back taxes.'’
Well now, TWO things there: First, the I.R.S. does not conspire with anyone. They do not need to. They will secure a court order which REQUIRES an employer to attach wages. Second, no one will garnish someone’s wages. They may garnish their SALAD but they garnishEE wages. Two totally separate words - two totally separate meanings!
Pretty much the same level of ignorance exists when people (try) to describe something made from concrete. They usually say, ‘’cement.'’ Wrong! Cement is the material that is added to sand, aggregate and water to create a semi-liquid mixture which, when poured and allowed to harden BECOMES concrete.
A sidewalk or driveway or wall may BE concrete when you look at the finished product - but it was MADE from cement - one of the ingredients.
A penny and a cent are two different coins. The first is British and is worth (about) the same as TWO (American) cents.
I will not live long enough for the press or public to realize that it is redundant to say ‘’Old adage'’ or ‘’revert back.'’ I gave up on that pair long ago.
Ditto for consensus of opinion. That’s what consensus MEANS all by its ownsome.
Yes, I know . . . nit-picky. BUT, methinks someone on occasion should mention these infractions because if you ever watch Jay Leno during one of his ‘’Jay Walking'’ segments, you know that even many of today’s college-educated people - who, after all, get much of their information, training and beliefs FROM the popular media - are . . . well, pretty darn stupid, frankly.
And if yours truly can notice these screw-ups (with barely a ninth grade education!) - it seems that it behooves folks much smarter than I - especially, those electronic media types who have the ears (and eyes) of millions of people - to start correcting those who err. ‘course, that’s just my opinion - I may be wrong . . .
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‘WEIGH’ OVERWEIGHT? BLAME IT ON A VIRUS - SCIENTISTS DO!
Oddly, the following did not receive anywhere near as much national attention as we would have thought, so I’ll bring it to your attention here. In the August issue of the International Journal of Obesity, it was reported that researchers at the University of Wisconsin in Madison discovered that chicken and mice infected with a common human virus added a great deal more weight than other animals who were not exposed to the virus.
They further reported that the selfsame virus is much more evident in overweight people, thus, they feel this is a strong indication that the virus may well cause obesity in humans.
The virus, adenovirus-36, is a member of a viral family of some 50 varied strains. Actually, in closely examining the report we find where the upshot of the research seems to show that (whatever the cause) whilst subjects given the virus gained only about 7 percent more in weight - their bodies contained TWICE as much fat!
That is certainly significant and begs for much additional research into the possible cause and effect of viruses in general, because as far as we can determine this recent study is the first such to make a connection to obesity.
Now, we would not be too quick to discredit the notion of a virus being at the root of a problem that most think is caused mostly by over-eating in general and eating the wrong foods in particular.
That, because for aeons everybody in the medical community were ‘’certain'’ that human ulcers were caused by stress, spicy foods and such - when in fact, as we reported as long ago as our first year of publishing this particular periodical (Personal Success - The Newsletter) - in 1993 - it is now an undisputed FACT that such ulcers are caused, in the main, by a bacterium, Helicobacter pylori.
So, the guys from Wisconsin may have something there: With upwards of a full 30% (their stats) of the 67% overweight people in the U.S. population being infected with adenovirus-36 - compared with just 5% of the ‘’lean'’ folks - there certainly seems to be a trail worth exploring further. We’ll keep you posted: Maybe there’s a simple, ‘’magic pill'’ to fight fat in the offing!
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