James says (to Best Buy):

Finally, on NOVEMBER 12th, I received a message from the Geek Squad asking if the service call that took place on November 5th had gone satisfactorily. This was news to me as I had never been informed that anyone had tried to come to take a look at my TV. I didn't receive a phone call before November 5th to schedule the appointment. I didn't receive a call on November 5th to tell me a tech would be coming at some point during the day. I didn't receive a call after November 5th to tell me that I had missed an appointment.

As of today, November 19, 2008, I have no idea where else to turn for help but it has now been almost 3 months since I first called in for assistance. In that time, I have been left with a TV that works WORSE than when I first called and have been left waiting for a phone call that never came SIX TIMES. In your latest press release, you said that "we [Best Buy] continue to see improvements in employee turnover, customer satisfaction and market share". If this is the type of service that you are offering, I cannot imagine how the second and third of those three could possibly be true.

Oh, that's harsh, quoting the press release. We hope your EECB is successful, James. If it isn't, you can always try small claims court!

For more information about launching your own EECB, click here.
(Photo: dooleymtv )

Dow Jones says:

The chain, purchased in 2003 for $12 million, had 11 stores at the time and has since grown to 78 stand-alone shops and 20 locations within department stores once owned by Saks. Club Libby Lu's closure should be completed in six months.

Some 1,700 employees will be affected by the shutdown of the chain, which had nearly $60 million in sales for the year ended Feb. 2.

In an effort to fully comprehend just what has been lost, let us now read from Club Libby Lu's explanation of their services.

At the party, girls arrive at the Club. They are all greeted by a fairy and make a wish on her fairy dust. Each girl then creates her own secret Club name. Then their Libby Dus™ comes true. After dressing up and playing games, they visit our Goodie Shop and make their own Goodie Bags. Singing and Dancing, all the girls celebrate the guest of honor.

This is the part of the post where we'd write something to sort of wrap up, but we're too busy laughing and have decided to quit while we're ahead.

Saks To Close Club Libby Lu Chain After 5 Turbulent Years [CNNMoney]

Thomas says:

Just wanted to shoot you guys and gals a quick note on how I am an idiot and hopefully others don't make my mistake. I was under the impression that the monthly charge of $7.99 for Xbox Live service would roll into a year once I hit a total of $50 in charges.

I was wrong. Dead wrong. Over the past year and a half I have paid $143.82 for Xbox Live. Almost the price for THREE FULL YEARS of service.

When I noticed this I called their support and asked why they don't just roll it into a year once a user hits the $50 mark, both representatives I spoke with said the exact same thing "You are signed up for a reoccurring monthly payment of $7.99" and could not comprehend why I would ask such a question... I guess as a naive consumer I am expecting to much from a company to give me the best bang for my buck automatically.

I accept full responsibility for this situation and hope others avoid this.

-Thomas

Oh dear, that really sucks. At least you learned a valuable lesson (check your bank statements) and are trying to help others avoid your fate.

Because we didn't already have enough to worry about this week, the New York Times took a moment to remind us that recessions and crime go hand-in-hand. Consider:

• 1970s: New York almost dies, neighborhoods follow.
• 1987: Stocks crash. The next year, murders soar.

"Every recession since the late ’50s has been associated with an increase in crime and, in particular, property crime and robbery, which would be most responsive to changes in economic conditions. Typically, there is a year lag between the economic change and crime rates."

Nearly 80 police departments say that the subprime meltdown is already boosting crime rates. In Santa Anna, foreclosed homes have been converted to playgrounds for gangs and whores.

New York is enjoying record-low crime rates, even with 4,000 fewer officers than we had eight years ago. Of course, the police department is funded by tax revenue, and New York, more than most, depends on Wall Street for a double-digit chunk of budget grease. Former top cop Bill Bratton said:

Those are tough choices. Where are you going to put the scarce tax dollars? I would advocate it is the wrong thing to do if you start impacting police.

Mayor Bloomberg disagrees and told the police to slash $94 million from this year's budget. Next year, the cops are set to lose another $192 million.

Of course, these social scientists don't really know anything. Some think bad times and foreclosures lead to falling wages, unemployment, and crime. Others think crime is caused by the prosperity and gaudiness found in good times. So unlike the countless investors driving us inexorably towards recession and potential stabbings, you can take solace in the uncertainty.

Keeping Wary Eye on Crime as Economy Sinks [The New York Times]
(Photo: Getty)

Unfortunately, the private equity firm that owns the company (it's passed through at least four owners in the past 18 years) didn't give employees the federally required 60-day notice, citing "unforeseeable business circumstances." If they couldn't secure money to pay salaries, that may very well be the case.

If you've got $20 in your household goods budget and can't live with the idea of a circus animal-less world, you can make your own with this kid-friendly cookie cutter set. Or just buy some vanilla wafers and pretend you're eating single-celled organisms, you big baby.

"Mother's Cookies abruptly shut down" [SFGate] (Thanks to Tom!)

Now she wants a refund of half of her costs but the store says no. They're offering $75 as compensation, which is not half of the $230.50 she paid for the wrong dress.

On that day of departure, she looked for the tag, found it and noticed something odd. It didn't say Bill Levkoff. It said Eden Bridal. Tia thought that perhaps Eden Bridal was part of the Bill Levkoff line. Maybe Eden Bridal did the larger dresses. So she went to the computer and looked up Eden Bridal. It did not seem to be connected to Bill Levkoff.

Had there been a mistake? Had she gotten the wrong dress?

She rushed to Ultimate Bride. If there had been some kind of a mistake and the seamstress had been given the wrong gown, would there be time to do the alterations on the right gown? She explained to the seamstress that they had been working with the wrong dress. The seamstress went to talk to the store manager. She came back and said, no, this is the dress we ordered for you. The manager didn't think the other one would work for somebody of her size.

Tia started to cry. She took the dress and left.

She told the story to her mom in Iowa. It was humiliating. By the way, she now hated the gown. The sash was long and embroidered. Way too frilly. It wasn't shiny enough. She called the store from Iowa. She spoke to the manager. I want my money back, she said. The store manager said she couldn't do anything because Tia had taken the dress.

When Tia came back to St. Louis, she called the owner of the store, Ann Rafferty. She offered Tia a $25 refund, but overall, the discussion did not go well. Tia then spoke with general manager Richard Craig. That conversation was better, but resulted in the same $25 offer. Tia asked for half her cost back. In all, including shipping and alterations, she had paid $230.50. Craig continued to offer $25.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is asking readers to decide what should happen. What do you think?

OK, jury, you decide the Case of the Wrong Dress [St. Louis Post-Dispatch]
(Photo: Getty)

Here, courtesy of CNN, are the lyrics to the rap:

"When I retired, I was famous," McMahon raps in the video. "I had money and glory/I bought a house for 6 mill/I thought nothing could touch me/Until my credit went south, and debt started to crunch me/Next thing I know, instead of playing gin rummy, I was scrambling just to make ends meet/It wasn't funny."

After being joined by two scantily clad women, McMahon continues: "Got a bump from the media chumps, but that was temporary/Wife with bad credit was scary, so I got wise/I may have fallen, but I got back up/Now I'm back on the attack, like a ninja swinging nunchucks/I told the haters, 'Go on, take a hike'/It's my show now, and I can do what I like."

It will be released, presumably on sites like YouTube, in October. Watch it if you must, but remember: freecreditreport.com is a rip-off. If you want a free credit report, use annualcreditreport.com.

"Ed McMahon turns gangsta rapper" [CNN] (Thanks to Bryan!)

The Lowe's in Cary, NC already has Christmas decorations up. Right next to the Halloween decorations.

Argh! It's not even the MLB post-season yet!

A sad tale to illustrate the perils of walking around uninsured, and the cold-blooded and illogical arithmetic of our health care system.

Janne in Norman, OK [Consumer Reports]

Well, that's just too bad for you, because even the trash bags are not immune from the evil grocery shrink ray.

Reader annelise13 says:

As I was picking up an 80-pack of Glad trash bags at the store last week, I thought to myself "Didn't there used to be around 90 per package for this exact same price?" Sure enough, when I checked the old box back at my house there were 96 in it!

You can't win, can you?

"When we were trying to sell the house one time, there were about 100 paparazzi there," Davis, the real estate agent who holds the listing, told the AP.

McMahon's spokesperson says that Ed's been unable to work since breaking his neck 18 months ago.

"There are plenty of people affected by the weak economy, bad housing market or bad health," Bragman told the AP.

He also said that McMahon and his wife are negotiating with Countrywide, but it's unclear whether or not they will be able to stay in the home.

Countrywide declined to comment. Um, does anyone want to show up at Ed McMahon's door with a giant check? Save Ed!

Ed McMahon fighting foreclosure on his Beverly Hills home [AP]
(AP Photo/Matt Sayles, FILE)

As we've mentioned before, Target doesn't accept returns or exchanges of gifts bought through their wedding registry unless you have a receipt. Got two of the same thing? You're out of luck unless you're willing to call your wedding guests and ask them if they kept the receipt.

Reader Terry has two ice tea makers and two griddles that she'd like to exchange, but is having no luck with Target. Terry has launched an EECB and cc'd us so we could listen in:

My fiancée and I registered at Target as well as Elder-Beerman for our wedding on May 24, 2008; it went wonderfully, by the way. At least until after we opened the gifts. We received two iced tea makers and two griddles from our registry, and they were marked “Fulfilled” on the registry. We also didn’t receive any receipts on the items, but I’m sure our family assumed like I did that you wouldn’t need a receipt with an item purchased from a gift registry.

I hauled my packages back to my local Target, with registry printout in hand as some extra insurance. The person behind the counter informs me that I will need a receipt or gift receipt even for an exchange of the items. I asked him why that was so, that you could clearly see from the registry that Target knew the items were paid for. He said that they used to be able to look up purchase information from the registry but they cannot anymore. He again told me that I should contact my relatives and get a receipt. I asked him if he thought that was tacky, and he agreed. I informed him that I would be escalating this issue, and offered to allow him to escalate it himself, which he was completely uninterested in.

When I went out into the parking lot and loaded the packages back into the car, I called the only phone number I could find which was on my registry printout. After verifying my information with the person on the other end of the phone, she proceeded to tell me that everything the person told me in the store was correct and there was nothing she could do to help me. I went over the same argument points with her that I went over with the person in the store: that it was tacky to call someone for a receipt and that Target knew when and where those items were purchased. She did tell me one thing that the person inside did not mention, that our registry was created before this policy change took place. She told me that gift receipts print out automatically and that it was the gift giver’s responsibility to make sure a receipt was given with the gift. I told her that I found this policy hard to believe, since in the time I have been shopping in Target since this policy change not one of the cashiers have told me that gifts I give from a registry can no longer be looked up and the person MUST get a receipt or gift receipt.

I informed the person on the phone that I would be informing all of my friends of the customer-unfriendly practices at Target, but I also wanted to contact a person of authority at Target to give them a chance to rethink this anti-consumer policy. Low and behold though, while searching for the e-mail address of someone I could contact at Target HQ I found this story, which is another formerly loyal customer with the same issue.

Target: You’re logging registry purchases. We know it. You know it. Your employees know it. I understand that fighting internal and external shrink is important but intentionally removing the ability of team members to verify purchase information is ludicrous. I am not asking for a refund, just the ability to make an exchange for a gift that I can actually use. This is not an unreasonable request.

Also, FWIW: Elder-Beerman had no trouble looking up a duplicate gift I received there. They even issued me a gift card so I could order a china set that they didn’t have in the store. I guess you really do get what you pay for.

Terry

PREVIOUSLY: Target Bungles Wedding Registry, Won't Exchange Duplicate Gifts Without Receipts
(Photo: pdxmac )

A retiree in Altoona, PA says that his bank told him he could spend the $280,276.76 that was mysteriously deposited in his account. He knew it wasn't his, but the bank assured him that everything was in order and he was free to start spending.

From the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

His checking account with First Commonwealth Bank showed an Oct. 23 deposit of $280,276.76. The Altoona retiree said he knew the staggering amount of money didn't belong to him, or to his wife, Becky, so he called the bank — several times — to report the mistake, his attorney said.

Starbird's attorney said the bank assured his client more than once that everything was in order, that the deposit was accurate, that all was OK with his account. So, Starbird and his wife began to spend their unexpected windfall, thinking that an anonymous benefactor had given them an awesome gift of free money.

Yeah, not quite. Now the bank is suing Herbert Starbird, claiming that he never contacted the bank. By the time the bank noticed the error, Mr. Starbird and his wife had spent $163,330.37. The bank recovered $102,935.48 that remained in Starbird's checking account and took $14,010.91 from his savings account, according to the lawsuit. Starbird's lawyer says that his client has been trying to pay the bank back, but doesn't want to mortgage his house to do it and would like an interest free payment plan. The Tribune-Review says that the lawsuit shows Starbird has made two payments so far: $624.25, and $5,500.

Couple say they began spending after bank's OK [Pittsburgh Tribune-Review] (Thanks, Justin!)

(Photo: This Year's Love )

From the Toronto Star:

Nicole Lilliman, 27, was fired yesterday from her Tim Hortons job for giving one of the 16-cent blobs of fried dough to a tot.

"I have been fired for giving a baby a Timbit," Lilliman said yesterday.

"It was just out of my heart – she was pointing and going `ah, ah...' I should have gone to my purse and got the change, but it was busy."

Lilliman, who has worked at the store for three years, said she thought little of the incident since Timbits are often doled out to dogs and children.

She said the baby was about 11 months old, and she gave her the treat to quiet her, since her mom – a Tims' regular – had been ``having a bad day."

"I could see (the dismissal) if it was a sandwich or something," she said. "But it was a Timbit."

Three managers greeted her yesterday, saying she had been caught on video giving free food to a child.

"They said, `Remember, Monday you gave out a free Timbit,' " she said.

"I had to think, then I was like, `Oh yeah,' and I smiled because I thought I'd get a warning."

Instead, she was fired for theft.

That's harsh, Tim Horton's. Very harsh.

Tim Hortons fires single mom over free Timbit [Toronto Star]

(Photo: FlyGuy92586 )

UPDATE: Hey, she's been rehired!"We're working with the store owner on this policy,” said a Tim Horton's spokesperson, calling Lilliman’s firing “an overreaction and not appropriate.”

My name is Matt [redacted]. Last week, I purchased a refurb iPod nano 4GB from apple.com for my mom for Mother's Day. Today, it was supposed to be delivered to my work. When I received the package, the seal was broken, and all that was in the box was the packing slip and the packing material. No iPod. It has been stolen by FedEx. I filed a claim with FedEx over the phone a few munutes ago.

What I need is for you to replace my iPod in time for me to give this to my mom for Mother's Day on Sunday 5/11/08. Please help. I am a loyal Mac user and have purchased several iPods in the past

We're not actually sure what effect emailing Steve Jobs will have in this case, but Matt's Mom... if you're out there... you have a very nice son who wants you to get your gift in time.

(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

From Reuters:

The Sunday Telegraph said Kohnstamm also claims in his new book "Do Travel Writers Go To Hell?" that he accepted free travel, contravening company policy.

He said in one case he had not even visited the country he wrote about.

"They didn't pay me enough to go to Colombia. I wrote the book in San Francisco. I got the information from a chick I was dating — an intern at the Colombian consulate," the newspaper quoted Kohnstamm as saying.

Lonely Planet said it had reviewed Kohnstamm's guidebooks but had not found any inaccuracies in them, the Sunday Telegraph said.

In an amazing coincidence, Kohnstamm is set to release a new book next week called Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?: A Swashbuckling Tale of High Adventures, Questionable Ethics, and Professional Hedonism. The book, from what I can tell, is the story of how Kohnstamm manages to embody every bad stereotype about travelers there is, and he comes off sounding like a complete boor who's just dying to tell the world about his unbelievably cool life. Here's an excerpt:

"The waitress suggests that I come back after she closes down the restaurant, around midnight. We end up having sex in a chair and then on one of the tables in the back corner. I pen a note in my Moleskine that I will later recount in the guidebook review, saying that the restaurant 'is a pleasant surprise . . . and the table service is friendly.'"

You had sex with a girl? In a foreign country?! Cool!

5 reasons to be outraged by the Lonely Planet fraud [Gadling] (Thanks, J!)
Lonely Planet writer says he made up part of books [Reuters]

Representatives with KDA and its owner, Design Ventures, were not available for comment Thursday. A regional manager for KDA said he couldn't comment on the store closings or the status of customer orders.

Evans said he used his tax refund to make the down payment for the cabinets, which he ordered in early March.

"My cabinets were supposed to be in two weeks ago," Evans said Thursday. Signs posted at stores instructed customers to call KDA, where they were greeted with a recorded message telling them "an effort will be made to return all calls within 48 hours." Evans said he did get a return call Thursday from a KDA employee, who couldn't tell him why the stores closed or whether he'd see his costly cabinets.

Any readers have unfulfilled orders with KDA?

KDA customers paid deposits but haven't seen orders, refunds [Sun-Times] (Thanks, Jim!)

American Airlines says the "disruptions" will continue at least through tomorrow, and American's CEO says he's taking "personal responsibility" for the mess.

"I run the company," Mr. Arpey told reporters at an afternoon news conference, "so if there's any blame to be had, it is my fault, and I take full responsibility for this."

We hope that tactic works out better for Mr. Arpey than it did for David Neeleman of JetBlue.

Meanwhile, Flickr Pool member kevinq2000 sent in the above shot of unused American MD-80s being stored on a runway.

American Airlines Cancels Another 570 Flights [NY1]
American Airlines CEO takes blame for maintenance errors, disrupted flights [Dallas Morning News]
(Photo:kevinq2000)

From Marketplace:

The Symantec report found stolen credit card information sold for as little as 40 cents.

How about your full bank account credentials? As low as 10 bucks.

Kevin Haley tracks Internet fraud for Symantec.

Kevin Haley:: Some credit cards in the U.S. are easy to get, other European countries, not so easy to get, and that affects the price they're charged, just like a regular economy.

The underground internet economy is getting more sophisticated. Bob Sullivan is author of "Your Evil Twin: Behind the Identity Theft Epidemic."

Bob Sullivan: There are now these toolkits, so instead of having to be a programmer yourself, you go to some other broker who sells you a piece of software that might look like a new piece of Microsoft software. You install it, drag and drop a few things and next thing you know, you're renting time on hijacked computers and sending out millions of e-mails an hour.

So why have prices for stolen information dropped? The Symantec folks say its supply and demand — cyberfraud attacks increased five-fold last year. There's so much stolen information out there, it's getting cheaper.

Sullivan offers a different explanation:

Sullivan: How valuable is a low-limit MasterCard that's been stolen from a bank now? Banks are getting better at cutting those cards off, so if the odds are you're only going to be able to buy something for $20 or $30 and then the card goes bad on you, you're not going to pay very much for it.

I moved into a new apartment last month, and just received my first electric bill. It is run through a company called AUM Inc. (aum-inc.com), on behalf of my apartment complex. I went to pay the bill online (as I prefer to pay my bills) and I noticed something on the page. In fact, it's on the page no less than 5 different times.

My bill: $11.84
"Online Convenience Fee": $7.50

That means this convenience will cost me... 63% of my actual bill. In fact, for reference, if I don't pay my bill until after it's due, I'll owe a total of $17.84. That means I can wait until the bill is past due, buy a stamp, and still pay $1.09 less than I would if I paid online today.

This means now I have to go buy stamps, as their kindly enclosed envelope does not include postage.

I've attached a screenshot of the payment page. I blacked out my name and apartment complex, I didn't see anything else identifying on the page.

Can I use multiple gift cards when making a purchase?
Yes. You can use up to six cards when making a purchase at a retail Apple Store and up to four cards at the online Apple Store

I have exactly the same problem.

I have 7 gift cards totaling $1250. Apple refuses to sell me a computer despite having $1250 upfront.

As soon as I found I could not enter more than half my gift cards on the Apple website, I used their online chat facility. That didn't work out so I rang Apple and was passed from Sales to Customer Service and told "no" all the way. I have filed a complaint against them with the Better Business Bureau.

Right now I'm more interested in getting money back on my gift cards than in ever getting an Apple computer, given the stupid nonsense they've been giving me. I understand that New York law treats gift cards like cash and states that a refund must be given for them so I might follow that route. Having said that, my next most immediate thing is to look into SC law.

We guess that solution was just to stop all the negative PR.

What a shame! Apple has $1250 of Rhys' money and Rhys has no computer.

Here's some Apple people Rhys can send a complaint to:

abarney@apple.com
katiec@apple.com
dowling@apple.com
lfox@apple.com
anuj@apple.com

In addition, he could call Diana at (408 974 6401) or Sam Spoor at 800-676-2775 ext. 46447.

"I found a shattered LCD screen at the Columbus Circle CompUSA that was marked "MAY HAVE MINOR DAMAGE," John writes. He also describes the scene during the final days of the liquidation:

It was the Land of Misfit Electronics. I found wheezing printers, disemboweled PCs, grimy office equipment that had been hauled out of the manager's office for liquidation, and "today only!" tags advertising great deals on the actual shelving—in case you want to recreate the thrill of CompUSA in your own home, I suppose.

Columbus Circle CompUSA May Have Minor Damage [Geek Out New York]

When fire rescue personnel arrived, they cut off Martin's shirt to treat him, and three more counterfeit $100 bills fell out, the document said.

In addition, two more fake $100 bills and one counterfeit $20 bill were found under Martin's armpit, officers said.

Police: Fake $100 Bills Had Lincoln's Image [WDSU]
(Photo: Wikipedia)

''We're trying to reinvent Polaroid so it lives on for the next 30 to 40 years,'' Tom Beaudoin, Polaroid's president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer, said in a phone interview Friday.

Polaroid failed to embrace the digital technology that has transformed photography, instead sticking to its belief that many photographers who didn't want to wait to get pictures developed would hold onto their old Polaroid cameras.

Global sales of traditional camera film have been dropping about 25 percent to 30 percent per year, ''and I've got to believe instant film has been falling as fast if not faster,'' said Ed Lee, a digital photography analyst.

''At some point in time, it had to reach the point where it was going to be uneconomical to keep producing instant film,'' Lee said.

Polaroid instant film will be available in stores through next year, the company said — after which, Lee said, Japan's Fujifilm will be the only major maker of instant film.

Ahh!!! This is so upsetting and yet I absolutely cannot find an e-mail address for ANYONE on their website. I need to revolt. We all need to revolt!! Do you know of any e-mail addresses or anything so I can obsessively write letters?? I would really appreciate any help you could provide.

1265 Main St., Bldg. W3
Waltham, MA 02451
USA - Map
+1-781-386-2000 (Phone)
781-386-8588 (Fax)

Sorry, Jessie. This is pretty sad. Polaroid film is pretty cool stuff, and is beloved by art nerds.

Polaroid won't make Polaroids any longer [Chicago Sun-Times]
(Photo:Tubes.)

And don't just print out our certificate. We earned that through hard work. Brush up on your DTV transition facts and win the respect of friends and neighbors alike with a certificate of your own.

DTV Deputy Quiz [dtv.gov]

Steve Turner was an airline mechanic. The day that he went to the Wal-Mart he was scheduled to work a shift beginning at about noon. He got to the store shortly before 8 a.m. and called Karen to ask if there was anything that she wanted him to pick up while he was there.

"We said that we loved each other and that was it," she said. "Then, when I didn't hear from him by noon, I knew something was wrong. He was never late."

Karen went to the store and asked employees to help her search for her husband. One of the first places they checked was the bathroom. She said that a custodian had the door blocked for cleaning and told her the room was empty. She would learn later that her husband had died in one of the stalls of an aortic dissection, a weakened blood vessel that ruptured. It's the same condition that killed actor John Ritter.

"Steve showed no signs of anything being wrong," she said. "I was told that he probably died suddenly at 8:30 that morning."

Karen called the police. She roamed the store for hours. But it wasn't until 5 p.m., when another janitor mentioned that a customer seemed to be spending the afternoon in the bathroom that she rushed in and found Steve's body.

Attorney Douglas Belknap later wrote a letter for her to Wal-Mart officials. It reads in part:

"I do not 'represent' Karen in the usual sense and I do not intend to file a lawsuit. Karen simply wants to make sure that someone at Wal-Mart's corporate level understand the excruciating mental anguish she suffered as a result of almost unbelievable set of circumstances that she hopes Wal-Mart will prevent from recurring."

Karen's son is 5. She was hoping to show him correspondence from Wal-Mart when he's older as a way of explaining what happened. It's still possible a note of some kind will arrive.

(The old "Rule 240" was from the Civil Aeronautics Board, and stated that in the event of a delay, an airline had an obligation to rebook you on the next flight to your destination... not just their next flight. )

From American's Conditions of Carriage:

DELAYS, CANCELLATIONS AND DIVERSIONS

American Airlines and American Eagle will provide customers at the airport and onboard an affected aircraft with timely and frequent updates regarding known delays, cancellations and diversions and will strive to provide the best available information concerning the duration of delays and to the extent available, the flight's anticipated departure time. We are not responsible for any special, incidental or consequential damages if we do not meet this commitment.

When cancellations and major delays are experienced, you will be rerouted on our next flight with available seats. If the delay or cancellation was caused by events within our control and we do not get you to your final destination on the expected arrival day, we will provide reasonable overnight accommodations, subject to availability.

In extreme circumstances, it is possible that a flight will cancel while on the ground in the city to which it was diverted. When this happens you will be rerouted on the next American Airlines or American Eagle flight with available seats, or in some circumstances on another airline or some other alternative means of transportation. If we are unable to reroute you, reasonable overnight accommodations will be provided by American Airlines or American Eagle, subject to availability.

American Airlines and American Eagle will provide amenities for delayed passengers, necessary to maintain the safety and/or welfare of certain passengers such as customers with disabilities, unaccompanied children, the elderly or others to whom such amenities will be furnished consistent with special needs and/or circumstances.

ESSENTIAL NEEDS DURING EXTRAORDINARY DELAYS

In the case of extraordinary events that result in very lengthy onboard delays, American Airlines and American Eagle will make every reasonable effort to ensure that essential needs of food (snack bar such as Nutri-Grain®), water, restroom facilities, and basic medical assistance are met. We are not responsible for any special, incidental or consequential damages if we do not meet this commitment.

(Photo:whatatravisty)

We'd love to tell you more about the website, but we can't get most of it to load, and neither could the reader who told us about it.

We're also not sure how people without internet access are supposed to apply. If any of you manage to get the website to work, you can post your thoughts about it in the comments. We're going to stop clicking and go make some coffee.

DTV2009

Reader Justin, who sent this in, says, "You have to wonder if Ed even typed it up himself or if he used a Microsoft Word template." Don't Word Templates let you customize the recipient's name?

CompUSA sends out layoff letters, bad service extends to employees [Engadget]

PREVIOUSLY: Leaks: CompUSA's Going-Out-Of Business Discount List

The entire story is horrific, but the most relevant part for our purposes comes at the end, when Frances' finances have been so wrecked that Dash can only borrow from now-defunct subprime lender Ameriquest:

A year later, Frances paid the prepayment penalty of $4,350 to refinance her home again, this time with Ameriquest Mortgage, then the nation's largest private subprime lender. A 26-year-old salesman in Tukwila collected Frances' information and set up the loan. He then sent it to the company's underwriting department for approval.

The salesman, Laughton Dean Fisher, had a technical-school degree in electronics. He earned a monthly salary of $2,000 but made most of his income in commissions.

In a handwritten application, Frances' age is listed correctly, but the Ameriquest records repeatedly showed her as 30 years younger — at 62 years old. Fisher, who no longer works for Ameriquest, couldn't explain the error. He said, however, that the company forbade selling adjustable loans to anyone older than 65.

The company listed Frances' income for the previous year at $32,000 a month — treating transfers between her accounts as income.

Frances paid Ameriquest $18,000 in fees for the loan, a $297,500 adjustable-rate mortgage, in July 2003.

Nine months later, Frances applied for another refinance from Ameriquest. The timing violated a rule Ameriquest had adopted in 2000 to stop a Federal Trade Commission investigation into allegations of predatory lending. That rule required Ameriquest to wait at least two years before refinancing one of its customers' loans.

By then, Frances no longer owned any rental property, was behind on eight credit-card bills, had been late on several mortgage payments and had monthly income from Social Security of $761.

But in its paperwork, Ameriquest listed her occupation as landlord. It also used altered tax returns that whited out her business losses. Ameriquest lent her $324,000. It charged her more than $19,000 in fees and added an $8,424 penalty if she paid off the adjustable note within three years.

Diane Haugsvar of Seattle notarized the loan papers. She said she still can see Frances sitting at her dining-room table, nodding and saying "OK, OK," in a singsong voice as she signed the documents. She remembered Frances, and her house, because the situation seemed chaotic.

Haugsvar noticed clutter everywhere, and much of it seemed to belong to Dash. She remembers thinking: He's supposed to be taking care of her, yet he's making it worse.

She didn't think the situation rose to the level of a 911 call, but she now wishes she had called someone to investigate.

Frances' new mortgage payment was $2,047, nearly three times her monthly Social Security check.

She missed the first five payments, and Ameriquest filed to foreclose. Dash said he broke the news to her.

She replied, "Not my house, not my house."

The Times says Frances, whose illness has progressed so far that she isn't even aware that she's in debt, has " a mailbox full of offers for new mortgages and credit cards."

The fleecing of Frances Taylor [Seattle Times](Thanks, jp!)

PREVIOUSLY: Ameriquest Is Dead
$325 Million Amerquest Settlement Payout Might Average $812.15 Per Person
Ameriquest Employees Confess: Lying To Customers, Forging Papers

"I bawled for three days after I got fired," she says. "I was the most loyal, dedicated employee they could have. In 30 years, I never called in sick or was late to work. Not once! And I was good at my job. Damn good."

Shilson started at the Zantigo on W. 7th Street in St. Paul in 1977 (Taco Bell later bought Zantigo). Her pay was $2.85 an hour, not enough to make her husband, a truck driver (now retired), think that it was worth the inconvenience of having his wife, and mother of their four kids, take a job.

"He wouldn't even look at my paycheck the first two years," she says. "Then one day, I said, 'We need a new clothes washer' and he said, 'We can't afford one.' That's when I said, 'Well, I can!' That changed his mind."

Shilson rose rapidly, working 60-hour weeks and becoming general manager at the W. 7th Street store and, later, at the Richfield Taco Bell. She was robbed at gunpoint twice, including the time she was shot while opening the W. 7th restaurant one morning in 1998.

Nick Coleman: After 30 years, Taco Bell didn't even offer her any hot sauce [StarTribune]
(Photo:thicket23)

Here's Sam's letter:

Hey Guys,

I got on my computer and bought a Western Digital 1TB hard drive from BestBuy.com and arranged for a store pickup so I could speed up my normal Saturday errands. I got the confirmation sheet and headed to my local Best Buy to pick it up. Well it took them a good 15 minutes to get my stuff out (quick pick up my ass) and I got a 10 buck discount for my time.

So I got home, opened the box and found not a 1TB internal hard drive but 6 pieces of bathroom ceramic tile wrapped in last months New York Post. I got into my car, raced back to Best Buy and voiced my complaint. The employee and assistant manager were more than willing to help, saying that it happens. So they set up the return and I repurchased the drive and while I was checking the contents to ensure it was a hard drive this time, the store manager came up, took the box from me and said to take it up with the manufacturer.

Now to my surprise, I argued with the guy saying that they have already accepted the return and I have now purchased the new one. He said I was shit out of luck. I followed up with the manufacturer today and they said they would get the complaint to the Best Buy Purchasing department. Best Buy corporate said that they stand by their manager's decision.

I've told American Express to stop payment and went to the local consumer affairs department and will be going to the better business bureau. I don't know if I'll be held responsible for payment yet or not or if that Best Buy will get investigated or what. I'm going to go back there tomorrow to argue with the guy some more and get his boss's number. I hope to get the local news media involved seeing how it's getting close to the holiday shopping season and they love to get horror stories like this out on the air.

Western Digital informed me that the drive was manufactured in Malaysia on 9/4/07 and the newspaper that was in the box was from 9/16/07. The Best Buy is in Yonkers, NY. I might end up $300 bucks down the hole. Do you guys have any tips on how to better deal with the situation?

A chargeback is appropriate. We'd also recommend filing a complaint with Andrew Cuomo, the AG of NY. Filing a false complaint with the AG's office is actually illegal (Class A Misdemeanor), so maybe they'll "take it seriously."

You could also try filing a police report. This will be useful down the line (if you need to go to small claims court) because it provides additional official documentation of your claim, and hey, they might even help you.

The moral of Sam's story is this: If Best Buy sells you an empty hard drive box, they're going to think you're a liar if you do this honest thing and bring it back to complain. (Rather than trying to return it without telling them there was bathroom tile in the box and risk getting busted for someone else's scam.) Check your boxes before you leave the store.

UPDATE: Sam writes:

Hey Meg,

Thanks for posting the story. I'm amazed at the response it has gotten so far. I will definitely take up the advice offered.

Here is a quick update:

Western Digital said it was Best Buy's issue (surprise surprise).

I've been told to contact Lewis the store General Manager who is the only person to overturn the other store manager's decision. I was told to find him at the store this past Saturday. I was assured by Ed, the assistant manager on Friday evening that he would be there all day on Saturday. I get up at 10 and drive all the way back to Best Buy to speak with him and first I was told he was doing orientation for the new Best Buy employees. Then the acting store manager Joe told me that it was his day off and he would be back there Wednesday. I have a feeling the other employees have been warned about me and my case. I'll start getting a police report together and start prepping something for Mr. Cuomo to look at.

Thanks Again,
-Sam

UPDATE: Amex Slaps Best Buy, Obtains Refund For Reader's Box Of Tile Hard Drive

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

The bag fell out of the Delta Connection plane Sunday after a door in the cargo hold opened after takeoff. The plane landed safely, and no one on the ground was injured by the two pieces of luggage that fell out.

One of the bags was found and returned to its owner, but Abby's duffel is still missing. Now she is trying to cope with the loss of some of her closest friends.

"One thing you learn as a parent, especially a father, is that little girls treat these dolls much like people," said Telan, of Orlando, Fla. "The image of these things crashing into a field or a building is rather traumatic for them."

The family has been contacted by American Girl Place about replacing Abby Ann's beloved Marisol Luna doll, one of the casualties of Sunday's mishap.

Telan appreciates the interest in his daughter's lost dolls, but he said "the overriding concern in my mind is we had a cargo door come off during takeoff."

"How in the world does that happen?" he said.

Jet fallout: Girl's dolls lost from plane [Sun-Times] (Thanks, Daniel!)
(Photo:Leonid V. Kroujkov)

The public advocate has released a statement, according to the NYT:

Saying it appeared that her stepdaughter-in-law had been "manhandled" by police officers before her death in police custody in Phoenix on Friday, New York City's public advocate, Betsy Gotbaum, called yesterday for an investigation into the circumstances of the death.
...
"The family has not reached a conclusion as to whether her care and treatment were inappropriate, but the circumstances were highly unusual," Mr. Manning [lawyer] said. "This woman — who was 5 foot 7, less than 110 pounds — was without doubt emotionally disturbed, and at this stage the family understands why the Phoenix Police Department intervened, but it's what happened after the intervention that causes us concern."
...
"We are not jumping to any conclusions, but the circumstances surrounding Carol's death appear to be unusual enough to raise serious questions and warrant a thorough investigation," [Betsy Gotbaum] said. "She cried out for help at the airport, but her pleas appear to have been met by mistreatment."

NYC Public Advocate's Relative Who Died at Airport Was Heading to Rehab [Fox News]
Gotbaum Seeks Investigation Into Death [NYT]
Family seeks answers in airport death [Arizona Republic]

Translation: "We were losing money. Lots of money. Sorry, but the program has to go."

This news is a bit old, but since it affects the upcoming holiday shopping season, we found it interesting.
From the WSJ:

Under the new Borders plan, each time customers reach $150 in purchases at Borders superstores or Waldenbooks stores, they will receive $5 in Borders Bucks at the beginning of the following month. They can then use that $5 until the end of that month, at which point the offer expires. Users will be contacted by email and urged to print out a $5 coupon, although those who forget will be able to use their $5 credit by presenting their Borders Rewards card in stores. Customers will be able to earn Borders Bucks online after Borders opens its own Web site next year.

Members were given Personal Shopping Days, which enabled those who had spent $50 in a month to apply a 10% discount on all purchases made on a specific day in the following month. Gift cards were the exception. Customers also received a credit equal to 5% of their store purchases made through Nov. 14 in a special Holiday Savings account. That credit could then be used on purchases made from Nov. 15 through Jan. 31. The only caveat was that customers had to have at least $10 in their account — which meant they had to have spent a minimum of $200 to qualify.

If you're a current member, you were able to redeem the credit you've accrued through April 11.
"And Borders customers who have spent at least $200 through April 11 will qualify for the Holiday Savings Rewards; those savings will be redeemable from Nov. 15 through Jan. 31, 2008. After April 11, the Borders Bucks program will be instituted," says the WSJ.

Borders Slashes Buyer Rewards, Cuts Discounts [AOL Money & Finance] (Thanks, Bill!)
(Photo:Maulliegh)