Consumerist
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Walmart: You Cannot Buy This Lamp Anywhere, So Just Give Up
We love Walmart's website. We really do. Here's a nice lamp that you can't buy. At all. Deal with it.
(Thanks, Evan!)
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bad deals
Sears Is Rather Generous With The Term "Sale!"
Reader S. says:
I went to a local Sears to return some parts (don't get me started) and the attached [photo] amused me.
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Your taxdollars at work
AIG Swaps "Retention Bonuses" For Annual Bonuses
In order to get a giant honking bailout from Congress, AIG pledged it would give up executives annual bonuses, but guess what? They found a way to give them anyway. More » -
Frugality
Man Extends Cleanser's Life By Putting Water In It
Reader Andrew would like everyone to know that he's able to get 20 extra uses out of his Neutrogena skin cleaning face wash by dribbling a bit of water in the top. He writes, "The resulting soap isn't much thinner than the original formula; it foams up and cleans just as well." Congrats, Andrew. Now, if we can just get you to not buy the unnecessary metrosexual cleansing product in the first place then you'll really be set. -
melamine
FDA Sets Acceptable Melamine Levels For Baby Formula
Mommy, I'm hungry, can I have more melamine? Sure thing, sweetie, because the FDA established that 1 part per million of melamine in baby formula is cool, as long as an additional chemical isn't present. More » -
Mervyn's
Mervyn's Charges $15 Fee To Talk To Customer Service
Reader Christi reports that Mervyns, a mid-range department store that is closing all its locations, now charges you a $15 fee if you want to talk to customer service over the phone. When Christi called a store to complain, they told her to call the number back, accept the charge, then ask them what the heck was going on. Thing is, Christi was just calling to make a payment by phone, More » -
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Sales
Morning Deals
- Woot: Philips Plug and Play USB Webcam with Microphone – 2 Pack for $12.99
- Lowe's: Dog Kennel for $15
- FinishLine: Crocs Toddler Endeavor Sandal Shoe for $4.98
- Amazon: OCZ OCZ2G8004GK DDR2 800MHz 4 GB Gold Edition Kit for $4.99 after two $20 rebates w/ Free shipping
- Victoria's Secret: 20% OFF your Entire Order w/ coupon code: GET20
- Ralph Lauren: 30% off any purchase + Free Shipping w/ coupon code: GIFT2008
- Best Buy: Polaroid POGO Mobile Photo Printer now $80
- Amazon: SanDisk Sansa Fuze 8GB MP3 Player $70 Shipped
- Borders.com: Save 40% off All DVD Box Sets
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Most Popular Stories
- Can You Finish The 50 Pound Burger And Win $1,000? (13,173 views, 65 comments)
- Mom Finds Scorpion In Bananas (10,852 views, 54 comments)
- How Many Hours Does It Take To Tell Comcast That You Can't Make Local Calls? (7,393 views, 48 comments)
- Walgreens Jerks You Around When You Try To Buy Plan B (139 comments, 7,385 views)
- WaMu Told Washington That Adjustable Rate Mortgages Were Safer Than Some Fixed Ones (43 comments, 3,341 views)
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Gift Cards
Panic: Are Consumers Scared To Buy Gift Cards?
Earlier this year when the Sharper Image declared bankruptcy, they briefly stopped accepting gift certificates. Eventually, they did start accepting them again — but with the requirement that consumers buy twice the face value of the card. This, it seems, has caused a fair amount of panic among consumers. Chain emails are circulating warning shoppers not to buy gift cards from various retailers — claiming that they are going out of business. But are they? More » -
Plan B
Walgreens Jerks You Around When You Try To Buy Plan B
Michael's girlfriend tried to buy Plan B yesterday, but the Oxford, MS Walgreens pharmacy seemed to go out of their way to make it has hard as possible. Mere incompetence doesn't explain what happened. Instead, it sounds more like a consciously decided system of policies designed to discourage people from buying the pill...
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Lawsuits
How To File A Lawsuit
Consumerist empowers consumers to take on bad companies, but sometimes even the negative PR that Consumerist can bring to bear is not enough to persuade companies to behave. When that happens, you might have to sue in order to get what you want. Here is a brief guide to your options when you decide you need to escalate your complaint to the courts. More » -
Black Friday
Black Friday Sugar Rush Won't Last For Retailers
While Black Friday revenues were up from last year, retailers are just getting a quick high. The crash starts tomorrow. More » -
Walmart
Mom Finds Scorpion In Bananas
A young mom found an Israeli Gold scorpion in a pile of bananas she picked up from ASDA, a UK supermarket chain owned by Walmart. More » -
If you're in the Boston area, be sure to check out Consumer Reports' Holiday Smart Labs. There's a kiosk where shoppers can access ConsumerReports.org and take away a free 24-hour access pass to the site. The kiosks will be open at the North Shore Mall in Peabody, South Shore Mall in Braintree and Burlington Mall in Burlington from 12/4 - 12/7.
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Today is apparently National Bloody Mary Day, otherwise known as the day Consumerist is not responsible for its many typos. [BuzzFeed]
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Department of no shit
US In Recession Since Dec '07, Says Official Stat Group
We've been in a recession since December 2007, according to a fancypants stat group. WSJ reports, "In a statement, the National Bureau of Economic Research said its Business Cycle Dating Committee determined that the U.S. entered recession in December 2007, marking the end of the economic expansion that began in November 2001." I don't think Americans need a committee to tell them the economy has been on the express the train to Suck City for over a year... More » -
Comcatastrophe
How Many Hours Does It Take To Tell Comcast That You Can't Make Local Calls?
Reader Brad forwarded some links to chat transcripts in which he tries to tell Comcast that he can't make local calls, during which he alternates from incredulity to despair then back to incredulity again. He even sings to the CSR. More » -
Money meltdown
WaMu Told Washington That Adjustable Rate Mortgages Were Safer Than Some Fixed Ones
The Associated Press says that a review of regulatory documents shows that years before the subprime mortgage crises developed into a full blown economic meltdown— the government ignored warnings and listened instead to lobbyists who represented some of the same banks that have now failed. More »
New York, 10:36 AM
Tue Dec 2
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