When it comes to credit card regulation, American policymakers soon could be peering Down Under for a model or a cautionary tale -- or both -- when it comes to reigning in fees and some of the unintended consequences that can result.

In a twist on the usual tale of fee-plagued consumers, the New York Times highlights the fees credit card companies slap on merchants - and exposes how a well meaning attempt to curb those fees via legislation has led to merchants sticking their customers with added charges instead.

At issue are a host of charges credit-card companies charge merchants for the privilege of accepting credit cards. The charges are nominally small, generally just a penny or two, but they add up to big bucks for the banks that issue the cards -- and big losses for the merchants.

It seemed like an innocent enough donation. A Marietta, Ohio Goodwill store received a large galvanized metal water jug with a spout -- perfect to hold lemonade during some long-ago summer picnic. Yet, the jug, which was donated anonymously, wasn't holding a refreshing drink; instead, it was filled with a heady cargo of marijuana.

The weed, bagged and labeled according to weight (i.e.; 124 grams) carries a street value of $1,500, local police said, and was about a year old; leading them to conclude that the stash had been accidentally abandoned.

Seniors who were in good health when they signed contracts with continuing care communities -- communities that promised to care for them as they aged and needed assisted living or nursing care -- are now finding those contracts just empty promises. Many of these continuing care and assisted living facilities are facing bankruptcies with seniors left to find new homes at a time when they can no longer care for themselves. Some of these seniors thought they had bought into a permanent care facility they could depend upon until they died, but now if they need additional care they must find new accommodations.

Continuing care communities were a retirement dream for those who could afford to pay. A person usually put down about $150,000 on an apartment (that number varied depending on apartment size and location) with the promise that they would have a place to live until the day they died. To qualify, seniors had to be able to live independently when they first moved in. Some would make their own meals and some would choose to eat in a common dining room. All would pay a certain amount per month for services. Those who needed more than basic services would pay according to the nursing or other services they needed.

The Associated Press reports that huge for-profit college chains are raking in huge sums of federal student loan dollars.

According to the AP, "Last year, the five institutions that received the most federal Pell Grant dollars were all for-profit colleges, collecting more than $1 billion among them. That was two and a half times what those schools hauled in just two years prior, the AP found, analyzing Department of Education data on disbursements from the Pell program, Washington's main form of college aid to the poor."

The problem isn't that for-profit colleges are evil: it's that they're at a huge competitive disadvantage. Non-profit public colleges benefit from state funding, endowments, and they don't have to pay taxes.

Traditional German nutcracker manufacturers are having a miserable holiday season thanks to a combination of the recession and the strong Euro.

German manufacturers of nutcrackers and similar traditional Christmas decorations have seen their sales plunge by an astounding 50% thanks to reduced demand in the United States because of a weak dollar and a generally conservative holiday spending environment.

While manufacturers of cheaply made imported products have been able to slash prices to spur demand, high-end German nutcracker vendors don't necessarily have that option, and the weak dollar has made it hard for them to stay competitive on price.

However, there are some good deals on nutcrackers to be had. Take for instance this absolutely amazing limited edition signed Yoda Steinbach nutcracker can be had for $389.98 from Nutcrackers.com -- 56% off the retail price, and really: what price is too high for a Yoda nutcracker?

If high prices on high-end nutcrackers have you down, you can always check eBay for great deals on vintage nutcrackers.

This isn't your father's banker. Your father's banker was probably human. Today, you can get online loans without ever stepping into a bank -- actually, without even leaving your home. But that facelessness can be either convenient or dangerous. You need to be cautious when shopping for online loans, so you find a legitimate online loan provider and not a scam artist trying to take rather than give you money.

Here are the top 10 tips for getting online loans.

Online Loans Tip #1: Make the most of online advantages. One of the biggest benefits of shopping for online loans is you can easily compare rates and offerings and get qualified and approved quicker than from traditional banks.

WalletPop's Lan Nguyen chats with Jennifer Jolly, bargain mommy blogger of GoodIdeaGal.com, on how to shop on the Internet efficiently and effectively. For year-round savings that won't take up over your life, pick your favorites and check out mall-like sites like Bing.com, Amazon.com and ExtraBux.com. Other favorite sites include CouponShack.com for coupons, Overstock.com for furniture and ShopItToMe.com for clothes.

In a sign that pressure is mounting for retailers to offer free shipping, online shoe seller Zappos is offering free overnight shipping for your lifetime when you register to become a VIP today only.

Standard shipping is free both ways on Zappos. Sign up to become a Zappos VIP here.

Joining is free and requires you to share an e-mail address, name, and create a password. The offer expires at midnight PST Dec. 1.

Here's a pair of Seychelles gray shorty boots that I'd like to own. Zappos has them for $114 and with my new VIP status I could try them on tomorrow.

Bargain secret: Zappos sells its overstock at 6pm.com.

Caveats: not available for shipments to Hawaii, Alaska, U.S. Territories, P.O. Boxes or AFO/FPO addresses. Orders placed before 1 p.m. Pacific time (4 p.m. Eastern time) on a business day will be delivered the next business day but orders placed after 1 p.m. PST will be delivered in two days. For example, orders placed prior to 1 p.m. Pacific time on Monday will be delivered on Tuesday, while orders placed after 1 p.m. Pacific time on Monday will be delivered on Wednesday. Orders placed on Friday after 1 p.m. Pacific time, Saturday or Sunday will be delivered on Tuesday. Business days do not include holidays.

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, I swiped my debit card to get on the light rail and was billed for a bus ticket the machine wouldn't give me. I had to pay $1.50 again to get my oldest son onto our next connection. I know! Frustrating.

As someone who's always living on the very edge of black in her checking account, I know too well the dangers of unexpected transactions, and for me they come in $29 overdraft increments. Customers at Toys R Us this weekend, shopping before regular store opening hours during Black Friday, experienced a similar and far more account-balance-deadly problem: double billing.

Keith Bossey, a marketing and strategy consultant in New York City, may not be at the edge of his bank account, but he just found out today he was double-billed for his purchase.

A spectre is haunting America -- the spectre of car leasing.

The credit crunch led to a massive decline in the ability of car manufacturers and dealers to offer leasing to customers, but as credit markets have begun to function more normally, leasing is making a comeback.