WalletPop Blog

Continue reading Depressed over money, but can't afford a therapist? We have tips

Depressed over money, but can't afford a therapist? We have tips

Geoff Williams — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Bargains, College, Health

There are more people these days going into therapy to discuss their financial stress and how it's wrecking havoc on their lives, according to a recent article in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

But the sick irony, of course, is that as people seek out help to talk about dealing with their financial stress, health insurance is paying less and less for people to see counselors and psychologists. One social worker is quoted in the story, saying, "The standard percentage paid by the insurance company used to be 80/20. Now it's 70/30 or 60/40."

It reminds me of a story a former boss of mine told me more than 10 years ago. He told me: "I was seeing a therapist, telling him how stressed I was because I didn't have enough money and could barely make ends meet. And then I said to him, 'Wait a minute, I'm paying you $75 an hour to tell you how stressed I am about my lack of money. Why am I doing that?' And I walked out of his office."

Continue reading Thanksgiving travel: Make your air reservations now

Thanksgiving travel: Make your air reservations now

Amey Stone — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Transportation, Travel

Even though summer isn't over yet, for those of you who travel over Thanksgiving, it is already time to start thinking about booking your flights.

Thanksgiving is one of the busiest flying times of the year and this year there are going to be a lot fewer flights available. In an effort to save on costs and in hopes of being able to raise prices, airlines are cutting back on the number of flights they offer. American airlines is shrinking its flight capacity in its main US markets by up to 12% in the Fall and United by up to 16.5%. (Southwest just announced it would cut 200 flights, or about 6%, but not till January, 2009).

Travelers in certain markets will find the cuts much more severe than those percentages imply. If you are used to taking a direct flight, from, let's say, Albany to Chicago on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, you will have half the amount of flights to choose from -- four this year, down from eight last year, according to a report from USA Today. From Boston to Chicago there are three fewer flights, from San Diego there are two fewer flights, and from Pittsburgh there are six fewer direct flights on that route that day.

College gaming degree worthless, but so what?

Tom Barlow — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Extracurriculars, Career

Recently, fellow blogger Tracy Coenen wrote about college degrees, questioning the need for a traditional, four or five-year college degree. I was reminded of her story when I read an article in England's Daily Mail explaining why a degree in gaming is virtually worthless in terms of leading to a job in the industry.

The story quotes the VP of Sony's gaming sector in Europe as saying, "I can't remember the last time I employed someone from them." Apparently, school-based training often falls short of the mark in teaching the real-world skills necessary.

I don't, however, see this as a particularly egregious example of education pandering to the immediate interests of the student rather than their long-term economic wellbeing; examples are rife. Does Art History or Dance or Egyptology make one the darling of job recruiters? Hardly.

I do, however, quibble with Tracy's implication that the purpose of education is to teach marketable skills.
In my opinion, the purpose of education is to aid us in leading satisfying lives. Certainly, income is part of that picture, but so is appreciation of art, understanding of other cultures, exposure to other ways of explaining the nature of the world, developing skills in organizing people and events, all part of my education that didn't result in an immediate payoff.

I also value the way that college taught me how to learn and gave me to confidence to tackle subjects and challenges I would have otherwise avoided. Finally, for many, college provides that most precious asset, a social contact with others that can and very frequently do open doors that become a career.

So when I think of some young person blowing $40,000 on a gaming degree he/she might never use, I look beyond the quid pro quo and hope that they will find that the random bits found along the path to their degree will prove to be more valuable than the sheepskin waiting at the end.

Thanks, Art technica

Continue reading Corporate income tax avoidance in America

Corporate income tax avoidance in America

Tracy Coenen — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Ripoffs and Scams, Tax

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the latest report from our government on corporate income taxes: About 2/3 of corporations pay no income tax. That report is somewhat misleading because certain corporations (like the one I own) don't pay income tax on earnings, but the owner personally reports that income and pays the taxes. Technically the corporation is not paying, but the owner is paying on its behalf.

I also argued at that time that corporations don't really pay taxes anyway. Consumers do. As taxes are raised, prices consumers pay for goods go up to cover them. So if we're looking to "stick it" to the corporations, we have to remember that we're the ones really paying for it. (And do we really need higher prices now?) My third argument against making corporations pay hefty income taxes is the effect it has on innovation and the creation and maintenance of a company. The more costs involved in doing business, the less attractive it is to start a company, and the more likely it is that the companies (and jobs) will go elsewhere.

One think tank suggests that corporate income taxes will be the next big "scandal" in business. (And don't news watchers love scandals?) There are many legitimate loopholes in the tax code, and companies pay big bucks to consultants and tax experts who help find them. But then there's the fine line that can be crossed... over into the illegal world of tax evasion.

Starbucks wants you back for breakfast

Tom Barlow — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Food, Health

On September 3rd, Starbucks will unveil a new line of breakfast foods ostensibly featuring better nutrition and lower calorie counts than its previous fare. According to USA Today, the menu will be higher in fiber, fruit and protein with fewer of those sweet, sweet carbs found in its previous offerings.

I compared the new menu with similar selected items on the Starbucks menu from 2003, as broken down by dietfacts.com. In 2003, the chain offered a 138-gram (quarter-pounder) Blueberry Muffin that packed 450 calories, 200 from fat, with 1 gram of fiber and 6 grams of protein. The new Apple Bran Muffin has only 330 calories, 8 grams of fat and 7 grams each of protein and fiber. Definitely an improvement.

The old Blueberry Walnut Coffee Cake ran to 340 calories, 162 from frat, with 1 gram of fiber, 4 of protein. The new menu doesn't have such a beast, but offers the Baked Berry Stella. At 280 calories with 13 grams of protein and 7 of fiber, a much better choice, imho.

Gone too are is the Apricot Currant Scone (450 calories, 3 gram fiber, 7 grams protein), but new items available included the Starbucks Power Protein Plate with peanut butter, 330 calories with a hefty 16 grams of protein and 7 of fiber.

Add to these items oatmeal in various incarnations served in a disposable bowl, and other diet-friendly fare appearing on the new menu, and I think Starbucks should be commended for making real progress in its morning offerings. The corporation seems very pleased, too, that the new selections don't override the coffee aroma that it sees as an essential part of the ambiance of its shops.

Colleges dumping cafeteria trays to save food and energy

Carol Vinzant — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: College, Food, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

You know that old dieter's trick of putting your food on a smaller plate? The food looks bigger and you eat less. Colleges around the country are trying out a modified version of the plan by getting rid of cafeteria trays. Kids are taking less food and throwing out less food. And nobody has to stock and wash all those trays. Aramark, which runs cafeterias at 500 campuses, says removing trays cuts food waste by 25 to 30%.

The cafeteria giant thinks half of its customers will get rid of trays. They've done a white paper on schools that have tried to go trayless. Every time you use a tray someone back in the kitchen uses one-third to one-half gallon of water to clean it. Trayless eaters waste 1.2 to 1.8 ounces less food per meal, or somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 pounds a year. Food waste isn't defined in the paper, but I assume it means just what you throw out after the meal. The University of Maine at Farmington removed trays in February, 2007 and thinks they've saved $57,000 since then.

It's unclear, though, whether the schools are saving the money or Aramark is. Perhaps a mixture of both since the school would be the one supplying water and power. The study doesn't go into if going trayless actually cuts overall food consumption. That could offer some real health benefits. And it could mean that Aramark's costs come down significantly (or at least lessened the impact of rising food costs). The company has done some great work pointing out how accepting this simple inconvenience can save food, water, time and energy. I just hope the colleges will get to share in that bounty.

Continue reading Identity theft risk: Data breaches at businesses increase

Identity theft risk: Data breaches at businesses increase

Tracy Coenen — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Ripoffs and Scams, Fraud

The Identity Theft Resource Center has released its most recent figures on data breaches at businesses, and they're not pretty. 2008 isn't even close to being over, and the number of reported breaches has already surpassed the total for 2007, at 446.

A data breach is simply a situation at a business in which unauthorized outside people get access to computerized confidential information. What are they looking for? Usually credit card numbers and personal data that can be used to commit identity theft.

The 446 data breaches reported here are simply a tabulation of each report of a business experiencing a data breach. They say nothing about the number of records or people exposed in each breach, which can be in the millions. The larger the number of records compromised, the more likely you are to hear about it on the news.

Worth its weight in gold, blood, feathers and other per pound pricing!

Josh Smith — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Simplification

People love to express their gratitude for a favorite tool or gadget by claiming that it's worth its weight in gold, a reference which is lost on most of us who don't know how much a pound of gold is actually worth. Thankfully Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories has cooked up a handy reference guide to help you measure the monetary density of things. This graphical comparison covers the weight value of U.S. currency, human blood, commodities, illicit drugs and pretty much everything else in between.

I'm still trying to take all this information in and it cracks me up how much a pound of many of these items are worth. Still, I noticed that a few items are noticeably absent from this lineup so I took the liberty of translating these into units to further expand your weight to value ratios.

Gasoline - $1.79 / lb locally, a gallon of gas weighs 6.15 pounds.
Crude oil - 39 cents / lb as of today, a gallon of crude is ~7 lbs, a barrel of oil contains 42 gallons at $118.35
Quarter Pounder with cheese - $18 / lb, assuming 1/4 lb weight of burger and bun post cooking.
With gold trading around $830 per ounce, and 16 ounces in a pound, a pound of gold is worth $13,280.

With energy prices coming across that low in pounds I wouldn't be too shocked to see pumps switching over to per pound pricing in the near future! In a more practical sense, I'm sure list will prove to be worth its weight in quarters when you turn a quick profit this weekend, betting some poor chump that a pound of peacock feathers is worth more than a pound of Uranium!

Planning on getting a gas card? Try here first

Geoff Williams — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Saving, Transportation, Travel

Gas prices have been dropping lately, but nevertheless, the dollar amount at the pump is still...what's the word I'm looking for... oh, yes, insane. Evil is another good word.

So when the spokesperson for Pump and Save contacted me, vowing that its average user saves over $175 per year at the pump, I knew I'd be writing some sort of post for WalletPop. So here it is: Check out PumpandSave.com, a web site that offers numerous tips and tools on how to save gas -- like price-saving maps and gas usage calculators. But by far, its reason for being is that you can compare the best of the best of the cash-back and rewards-based gas cards.

If you're in the market for a gas card, this is a really sharp site. They have a lot of gas cards listed here, on the home page, so that you can compare one from the other, since not all rewards are created equally.

As I often note when mentioning one of these saving money sites, I'm not endorsing it. Beyond just looking around, I haven't used PumpandSave.com, and in fact, I don't even have a gas card and am not currently planning on getting one. But as an objective bystander, it looks interesting, and like it's worth spending some time on, especially if you've been considering getting a gas card, or if you are just really frazzled by the price at the pump and want some gas-saving ideas.

Geoff Williams is a freelance journalist, author and--not that anyone asked--the owner of a 1994 Saturn that fortunately has pretty decent gas mileage.

School supplies take on new meaning as budgets tighten

Sarah Gilbert — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 18:59:00 EST

Filed under: Budgets, Kids and Money, Shopping, School

I was always civic-minded, but this year my school district's budget has more meaning to me than ever. Largely because it's being slowly but decidedly shifted from the tax base to parents.

It started when a friend complained that, with three boys in grade school and one in preschool, she'd noticed that the trend was toward more school supplies. "Expect to be asked for lightbulbs next year," she said. Others chimed in to say that, this year, unexpected requests included hand sanitizer; three boxes of Kleenex; a few canisters of disinfecting wipes; and, most amazingly, two reams of copy paper. I looked down the list of other grades at my son's eclectic elementary. Lewis, 2nd Grade, Spanish Immersion asks for a box of zip-lock bags and a magazine holder; and specifies how many ounces the hand sanitizer bottles should be. Another classroom specifies that the teacher wants regular size boxes of Kleenex; none of those cute mini boxes!

Can't get the school district to pay for art supplies, snacks, pencils, folders, surface wipes, and copy paper? Have the parents do it! seems to be the agreement among educators. While it's certainly preferable to allowing the teacher to pay for supplies out of his or her own meager salary, it's not what I'd call fiscally acceptable. School "supplies" seems more and more to mean stocking the school's supply room than a nicely-filled backpack.

But at least I haven't been asked to make a small contribution to the teacher's pension fund... not yet, anyway.

Continue reading What regular folks can do when their computers crash

What regular folks can do when their computers crash

Marjorie Backman — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Entrepreneurship, Technology

Computer meltdowns, data loss, spyware invasions - all the demons of the digital age I'd read about but never thought would visit my home PC. After all, I protected my home computer with a firewall, virus protection software and an anti-spyware program. Plus I had a subscription to Carbonite, an online backup service, that for $50 a year promised to save a copy of all my files, which could be safely sent me via the internet.

So when the hard drive of my home computer crashed a few weeks ago, I was unprepared for my feeling of utter disorientation. It was like the great Northeast blackout of 1965. Or the no-television punishment of my childhood. Or staring at my keys through the sewer grate.

No internet at home to look up a quick answer to a question or a phone number, no e-mail and no ability to work at home. As a freelance writer and editor, I frequently work at the editorial offices of various magazines. But my next assignment was to edit at home some stories that would arrive via e-mail. Plus, all my notations about my work schedule, my assignments and my business contacts were, for now, inaccessible.

Continue reading Funny Money: Minting your own currency for fun and profit

Funny Money: Minting your own currency for fun and profit

Bruce Watson — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 17:30:00 EST

Filed under: Entrepreneurship, Extracurriculars, Wealth

My introduction to funny money probably came with my first vistt to Chuck E. Cheese. In addition to its extensive collection of arcade games, creepy animatronic figures, and ball cages filled with questionable substances, the suburban pizza behemoth minted its own money.

Cast in gold-toned metal with a grinning rodent on one side and "In Pizza We Trust" on the other, Chuck E. Cheese tokens were a revelation to me. I was amazed that a company could, seemingly without any oversight, produce its own currency. When I left, I pocketed a couple of the coins, and they formed the beginnings of what was to become a small collection of funny money.

Some of my non-traditional currencies, like my Grey Fox bucks and my Floydian hours, simply involved being in the right place at the right time. After all, while Floyd, Virginia's experiment in homemade money began with the best of intentions, it didn't last very long. Similarly, the fake cash that gets printed at some bluegrass festivals generally gets a few days in the sun before it reverts to its component parts, namely funny pictures printed on pretty paper. Even so, I've kept my eyes open for Calgary Dollars, Disney Dollars, Toronto Dollars, Liberty Dollars, and other regional currencies.

Continue reading Alabama "Fat Tax" Causes Furious Debate

Alabama "Fat Tax" Causes Furious Debate

Ken and Daria Dolan — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Tax, Health

Boy, were there some serious fireworks in the Dolan household over this one!

Very seldom do Daria and I VEHEMENTLY disagree on an issue...much less about something that involves things we are both passionate about -- food and good health. But we had a hot debate about this one.

Here's the issue: The state of Alabama is giving its state employees, all 37,527 of them, one year to get fit. If they don't, they start paying $25 a month for health insurance that they get currently get free.

Continue reading More month than money: The numbers show why your wallet seems lighter these days

More month than money: The numbers show why your wallet seems lighter these days

Lita Epstein — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Budgets, Career

Real median household income in the U.S. increased 1.3% between 2006 and 2007, according to the U.S. Census bureau. It's up to $50,233. But, consumer prices climbed 5.6% between July 2007 and July 2008, so most households have to meet bills with less real spending cash.

In case you're wondering why you're no longer able to pay the bills, part of that could be related to the fact that inflation is eating up your raises. You may actually be able to buy less than what you did last year because your salary increases have not kept up with inflation.

If you're wondering where you can earn the most money, move to Plano, Texas. The median household income increased to $84,492, up 10% from 2006 to 2007. Houses are cheap there too. The median home price is $225,000. Plano is the home of several corporations, including Frito Lay, JCPenney, EDS and Perot Systems. The city that came in second place in median household income was San Jose, Calif. at $76,963, where many high tech companies are located. But the problem there is that the median home price is $744,000, so living costs will kill your budget.

Mad as hell: Credit card users tell the Fed they're not gonna take it anymore

Carol Vinzant — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Banks, Cards, Ripoffs and Scams

The Federal Reserve gave consumer a few months to mull over this proposition: Should credit card companies be allowed to raise the rate on debt you already owe? Is it fair for them to constantly reshuffle your debt so you are always paying the highest possible interest rate and the most fees? Should banks keep secret the way to opt out of their overdraft protection plans, where they can charge a huge fee for a tiny overdraft? And can they send you an offer of one rate, then switch you to another?

Guess what? Consumers overwhelmingly hate all these current practices. They think credit card companies should be reigned in. Nearly 20,000 people wrote in on the three parts of the proposal: credit cards, overdrafts and truth in lending rules. Many call for stricter rules and use florid language like "usury."

Also guess what? Banks think the rules are a stupid idea. Bank of America is not just worried about itself, of course. BofA is concerned about the "broad impact on the economy both at the retail level and in highly complex securitization markets, slowing growth and limiting access to financing. To quote Bill Murray: "Dog and cats, living together!"

BusinessWeek's Jessica Silver-Greenberg says that it's the most significant credit card rule change in 20 years. Till now, she writes, regulators were content to simply force banks to clearly disclose their terms (which resulted in those pages of small-type that practically nobody reads). So now regulators and getting around to actually regulating. The comment period ended August 4, (though the comment form is still up).

Naked packaging, naked employees -- is Lush the ultimate green product?

Beth Pinsker — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sex Sells, Extracurriculars, Shopping

Today is naked day at 24 Lush cosmetics stores across the U.S. today (except for, maybe, the Somerset Collection Lush store in Troy, Michigan, whose mall managers said no to the protest). Employees are being encouraged to show up to work in nothing but their aprons as a protest against unneccessary packaging. Does this make it the ultimate green product? Or is there something a little cheeky in its promotion?

Note: These photos contain partial nudity.

Lushs Green Day

Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics, based in Britain, are sold in cakes with as little packaging as possible. More than half of the companies products have no plastic wrap or other containers at all, even shampoos, which are sold in blocks.

Al Behrman, AP

To highlight its environmental cause, Lush stages "naked" days, where employees are asked to come to work wearing just a white apron that says "Ask me why I am naked." The first U.S. version of this was set for Wednesday, August 27.

Olaf Kraak, AFP / Getty Images

The company has also staged naked days in Amsterdam, Canada and Berlin.

Lush, a luxury cosmetic company based in Britain, is known for its efforts to reduce packaging -- about half of its products are sold without plastic wrap and other containers. Shampoos and soaps come in bars instead. Lush says that packaging uses up 8% of the world's oil resources. But still, that leaves a giant selection of its products with some packaging attached.

The company tried a similar naked day in Canada in 2007 and in Berlin most recently and for one, the blog treehugger.com asked how environmental is was to hand out leaflets explaining the protest.

Note: The following video has some partial nudity.

Many companies these days are making an effort to reduce packaging -- have you tried a water bottle lately -- but without a major stunt campaign. It, of course, would be difficult to sell bottled water and other beverages without some kind of packaging. But there is definitely a lot more that companies could do in order to reduce waste and at the same time improve customer experiences.

Here's some packaging I'd like to see go:

Styrofoam packing peanuts
Wrapping paper for presents, and even glossy gift bags
Shrink wrap for CDs and DVDs: wouldn't a simple tamper-proof sticker do just as well?