On Thursday, I put my ballot in a nearby drop box. Fortunately, there weren’t any Right-wing election deniers with guns standing nearby as has been reported in some areas of the country. It’s really important for people to vote in the upcoming election. Right-wing fanatics are on the ballot in every state.
When I switched from Verizon to T-Mobile, it wasn’t a problem to cancel once I finally got the correct information on what to do. However, some consumers have found it difficult or nearly impossible to cancel a service because companies illegally trick or trap people who use their services. An example is the phone company Vonage.
Being a consumer and personal finance journalist has many rewards. However, the consumer safety part of it can be gut wrenching. Reading about how the intestines of kids can be sucked out by spa and swimming pool drains, how kids who slump over in an inclined sleeper can die from suffocation, and how kids can be crushed by dressers and TV is sickening.
After a loved one dies, going to a funeral home to make arrangements for a burial or cremation is difficult. Fortunately, in the 1980s I wrote an article on how to pick out funeral goods and services. I learned a lot. I did a survey after funeral directors in the area told me consumers weren’t having problems.
Recalls were in the news last week more than usual. Italian pork sausage contaminated with thin blue rubber. Catastrophic engine failure on some Ford Broncos. Pine-Sol cleaners that may contain bacteria. Nearly every vehicle Rivian has produced this year. I picked out a wall-mounted basketball hoop to write about.
For years, I’ve suggested that consumers consider banking with a credit union rather than a bank. Why? Consumers often can’t trust banks not to gouge them with high interest rates and fees. It was great to listen to President Biden speak on the radio and on television about the action his administration is taking on “junk fees.”
Recently, I wrote about how price-gouging by corporations is responsible for a third or more of the inflation consumers are experiencing these days. Now, another instance of corporate wrongdoing that’s costing consumers millions has been exposed. Tyson Foods, the largest chicken producer in the nation, will pay $10.5 million to settle a lawsuit.
Do you know what a toy gel gun is? They shoot gellets, small, colorful water-hydrated balls that pop on contact and immediately begin to disintegrate, leaving no stain, no mess, and no clean up. Toy gels guns are being used for games like paintball and have gained popularity because they make less mess.
Michelle Singletary, financial writer for The Washington Post, has been recommending buying Series I Bonds for months now. Singletary says for investors with money to spare and who are looking for safety, inflation has been good for Series I Bonds, which the Treasury Department announced will be paying 9.62 percent until the end of October.
