FreeCreditReports.com

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For years I have made a habit of ordering a free credit report each year. In order to get the free report they make you sign up for a paid account. They give you 30 days free afterwhich they start charging your credit card. I always cancel five minutes after I get the report so that I don’t forget.

Today I was reviewing my credit card bill and found this obscure charge. I did some checking and found I had missed this charge for the last 10 months. I called the number and guess who it was? Freecreditreport.com.

I told them I had cancelled the account immediately but my protests went nowhere. I told them I hadn’t received a phone call, letter or email this whole year. (yes I checked my spam filter) Saying that they didn’t care was an understatement.

It was my fault for not scanning my credit charges more thoroughly but that doesn’t excuse theft. I’m disputing it with my credit card provider but I don’t expect much to come of it.

An interesting note is that I recently signed up for credit monitoring from the same company. Our mortgage lender lost our personal information and offered to provide two years of free credit monitoring. I asked Experian (the owners of both companies) why they let me open two monitoring accounts with the same SSN. They said they were two different systems.

I’m convinced that the three credit bureaus are all crooked. 

Did I mention that the support person hung up on me after waiting 15 minutes to talk to her manager? I need to get in the habit of ALWAYS asking their name at the beginning of the call. I need to get in the habit of doing a lot of things.

MIDHTV

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I would like to start a new organization. I would call it MIDHTV. It stands for, “Make It Dang Hard To Vote”. I realize it doesn’t role off the tongue like ACORN but acronyms are not my best subject.

I’ve always held that age 18 is way too young to vote. I remember the stupidity running through my mind when I was 18. I remember thinking I would use cloth diapers when I had children so I wouldn’t pollute the environment. What was I thinking? We have Nevada just a hundred miles to the west. You could mound dirty diapers and other nuclear waste out there for ten thousand years. Not only am I fine with other states nuclear waste traveling through Utah bound for Nevada—I’m fine with other planets dumping their waste there. Ouch that was a tangent. Back to voting….

I just don’t think 18 year olds are experienced enough to vote. Realistically, 25 should be the minimum. I would prefer 30 but I don’t want to be inflexible.

There is one case where I would be for lowering the age back to 18. Remember the 70’s movie “Logan’s Run”? The movie depicts a future society in which population and the consumption of resources is managed and maintained in equilibrium by demanding the death of everyone upon reaching the age of 21, thus avoiding the issue of overpopulation. So, in the MIDHTV’s charter I would make a provision for such a change in our society. “In the event that everyone is forcibly euthanized at age 21, the legal voting age would revert back to age 18.” That seems like a reasonable variance.

Along with increasing the voting age, I would increase the barriers to voting. No typo’s there. You read correctly. I would INCREASE the barriers to voting. Voting is a privilege. In some countries people walk many miles to vote. Some risk death by voting. If you are not willing to manually register yourself, you shouldn’t be able to vote. And you better bring a photo ID with you. Fraud is serious. Someone caught stealing someone else’s vote should be branded with a capital “D” on their forehead. The D stands for “Democrat” a term synonymous with stealing votes.

If a person is not willing to go through the simple steps of manually registering, do you expect them to do the research necessary to make a well thought out decision? We live in a country where people are elected based on their looks, charisma, or other superficial qualities. That’s a lousy foundation for good government. I want someone smart, articulate and ugly. If we had uglier politicians maybe we would have less infidelity in Washington.

Another item I would change is the straight party vote. Can you imagine someone voting straight Nazi, or straight Khmer Rouge? How about straight Marijuana Party? If you can’t study the issues and form a knowledgeable opinion—just stay home. 

Poor Joe

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Finally, the Obama campaign faces a real reporter but all they can do is run for cover. Biden absolutely crashed and burned. It shows that even veteran liberal politicians have no experience facing the press. I don’t consider the major news channels press. Frankly I don’t consider many of what are considered “right wing” news organizations as true press. When they get a rare interview with a liberal politician they soft toss questions so they don’t completely kill their opportunities for interviews in the future.  

The questions Joe faced had easy outs. He just couldn’t think of them because he was so shocked that the question was even asked. He never imagined a question about: ACORN, Obama’s “spread the wealth” comment or his own comment on an international crisis. These questions are nothing compared to the questions faced by Sarah Palin. It would be fun to see them face real scrutiny for just a week.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQXcImQfubM

It seems like Bill O’Reilly is the only one with the guts to ask hard questions.

Death Row Binge

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Richard Cooey was convicted in the sexual assaults and slayings of University of Akron students Dawn McCreery, 20, and Wendy Offredo, 21, in September 1986.

The evening before his execution, which had been delayed because he was too fat, Cooey was given a feast fit for a king.

“Cooey dined Monday evening on the special meal he ordered, including T-bone steak, onion rings, french fries, four eggs over easy, toast with butter, hash browns, a pint of rocky road ice cream, a Mountain Dew soft drink and bear claw pastries.”  

Did the girls he murdered get a feast before their deaths?

Obama

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You know, I told my friends several months ago that this would not be a close election. Obama is so easy to beat. Sure he speaks well and yes the country is in pathetic shape but Obama is a pure socialist. Exposing his beliefs on the economy should be more than enough to kill his candidacy. His views on international relations and the military are terrifying. America is quickly becoming godless and immoral so, though his social views are not mainstream, people are willing to stomach them.

Unfortunately, I had it wrong. My friends told me that the media would bury McCain and I didn’t agree. McCain is a true centrist and has been for years. The media has been in love with him for a decade. They totally supported him in 2000. Though they certainly prefer Obama, I thought they would tolerate McCain. I was wrong. They have pulled out all the stops to kill his campaign. Of course McCain’s ineptitude when it comes to the economy hasn’t helped but I was wrong in underestimating the media. 

Personally, I can’t stand McCain. He is pathetic. As much as I can’t stand Obama, the Clinton years taught me that I can live through a liberal Democrat as president. The thing that scares me most is the unchecked nomination of judges. Since the Democrats own the Senate, we are poised for a significant shift in the makeup of the Supreme Court and a continued rise in legislating from the bench in the district courts. That really scares me.

Should the State Invest in Private Companies?

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Constitutional Amendment E would allow the State Treasurer to invest in private companies.

I am very surprised that the Voter Information Pamphlet does not include opposing arguments. The argument in favor says, “In order to operate effectively in today’s financial markets, the State Treasurer must be able to diversify school and institutional trust fund portfolios in an appropriate manner, consistent with the prudent investor standard.”

Private companies do not have to adhere to the same financial reporting standards as public companies. Even receiving financial statements may be difficult which makes it hard to determine how your investment is performing. Private companies do not have to disclose ownership which makes it difficult to safeguard against conflict of interest. Since holdings in private companies do not have a ready market, selling your shares can be difficult.  

There are literally thousands of public investment opportunities available. The State Treasurer can do just fine with the options at hand without a change in the State Constitution.

That 70’s Show

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This is a filthy, immoral show yet it’s on ABC Family. Give me a break!

Caraway Seeds…Wheat’s Ugly Cousin

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Caraway seeds in rye bread…….whoever came up with the idea of putting these noxious seeds in rye bread should join a leper colony. I bet 100% of the people in this world who hate rye bread, think they hate rye. In reality, you hate the caraway seeds. These seeds have done serious damage to the reputation of this fine bread.

Isolated tribe left alone

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An indigenous tribe that is believed to have never been contacted by the outside world, has been discovered in the region between Brazil and Peru. The governments have jointed together to keep the tribe isolated. I think it is ridiculous. They are treating them like they are children. Actually, they are treating them like animals. They believe they need to be observed in an isolated environment. These are people for Pete’s sake. What is the purpose of keeping them primitive? The whole world demands health care. Why shouldn’t they have the benefits of a doctor or dentist. I bet if you hand them $100 and access to a Home Depot they would be happy to spend it.

If a decent cold forged axe could greatly improve their lives, what about penicillin? What about a Wii? Don’t they deserve access to education?

Don’t we believe in progress? We are constantly inventing new ways to make life better. Nobody wants to go back to the dark ages. Why should we keep these people in the stone age? I think it is criminal.

Brazil Discovers Uncontacted Indian Tribe in Amazon Jungle

Friday, May 30, 2008

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil  —  One of Brazil’s last uncontacted Indian tribes has been spotted in the far western Amazon jungle near the Peruvian border, the National Indian Foundation said Thursday.

The Indians were sighted in an Ethno-Environmental Protected Area along the Envira River in flights over remote Acre state, said the Brazilian government foundation, known as Funai.

Funai said it photographed “strong and healthy” warriors, six huts and a large planted area. But it was not known to which tribe they belonged, the group said.

“Four distinct isolated peoples exist in this region, whom we have accompanied for 20 years,” Funai expert Jose Carlos Meirelles Junior said in a statement.

The tribe sighted recently is one of the last not to be contacted by officials. Funai does not make contact with such Indian tribes and prevents invasions of their land to ensure their autonomy, the foundation said.

Survival International said the Indians are in danger from illegal logging in Peru, which is driving tribes over the border and could lead to conflict with the estimated 500 uncontacted Indians now living on the Brazilian side.

There are more than 100 uncontacted tribes worldwide, most of them in Brazil and Peru, the group said in a statement.

“These pictures are further evidence that uncontacted tribes really do exist,” Survival director Stephen Corry said.

“The world needs to wake up to this, and ensure that their territory is protected in accordance with international law. Otherwise, they will soon be made extinct.”

http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,4088,00.html#5_0

 

Free Tibet

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Great article to read: Palestine vs. Tibet