Vons is a big West Coast grocery store, if you don’t already know. I rarely shop there because their prices are far higher than the Smith’s a little further from my house. But that’s not the point here. What bugs me is that they are always – and I mean ALWAYS – asking me if I want to “donate” when I check out. Not only does the checker ask me, but I’m asked when I use my debit card, too. I once asked the checker why I must be asked to donate TWICE every time I come through the line. She just said she was required to ask. I know it’s not her fault, but it still bugs me! … Read entire article »

I’ve seen forums on fire with claims of thievery by Google… something like, “I had 5000 page impressions but Google shows half that!” So when I see such scathing and damning claims, I know I have to take a look. … Read entire article »

While shopping at Smith’s, a prominent West Coast grocery store, I noticed this “advertised special”  on Kroger brand sugar, where the shopper saves a whopping ONE PENNY. Really? I should stock up, shouldn’t I? I have to wonder what marketing genius determined that spending money to advertise, and print up stickers for, a 1 penny savings on generic sugar would make good business sense. … Read entire article »

It’s only been in recent years that I’ve seen a flood of advertisements for lawyers specializing in mesothelioma cases. I’ve seen them on TV, online, and on the radio. Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that is usually associated with exposure to asbestos. There are approximately 10,000 cases in the US per year. Compare that with over 1 million lawyers, and you can see that there is one mesothelioma patient for every 100 lawyers. So why the fierce competition for such a small niche of cases? Simple – it’s easy money. These cases are rarely litigated, but instead settled quickly. It’s easy money. In fact, the high advertising budgets some of these lawyers employ are the bulk of their expenses on such cases. The cases are quick, easy, and profitable. … Read entire article »

As October 2010 arrives, I don’t believe for a moment that the recession is over. And to you conspiracy theorists, no I don’t get my information from the news. I live in Southern Nevada, so all I have to do is look down my street. Most of my friends have been laid off. Many have moved away. A few years ago half of the houses on my street were for sale. Now many of those are bank foreclosures. I saw a poll this morning that 80% of Americans still believe we are in a recession. But I don’t need a poll to tell me. I see it all around me. But people are still making money. And some are flourishing in such an economy. … Read entire article »

So I’m on Facebook today and I see a shared link from a sports handicapper with the title, “It is All about Making Money” and something about a pre-launch business. There is a link to a subdirectory on getreadyreserve.com. This is one of those sites with some big “breakthrough” that provides absolutely no detail among their endless hype. Problem is, this “breakthrough” is far from new. … Read entire article »

I received yet another call from good ‘ol NCO Financial Systems this morning. The number that called me was 800-810-0590. Well, I don’t answer 800 numbers, unknown numbers, private numbers, or any numbers I don’t recognize. If it’s someone important, they’ll leave a message and I’ll call back. Anyway, they did leave a message, which was the following: … Read entire article »

Because my original teeth whitening scam list is nearly a year old, I decided it’s time to start a fresh list of dubious teeth whitening sites still advertising in 2010. The sad thing is that little has changed in a year. These ads are still everywhere. We still see the “fake blog” layout, though some are finally admitting in their microscopic disclaimer that the character is fictitious, and some are even listing their trial terms, which typically sign you up for their program within two weeks of your initial call. We still see the “two step” method, where two different products are being peddled, and we still see the same wording in the ads, such as “Mom’s trick to white teeth.” And I’d still not touch any of these with a … Read entire article »