The Wall Street Journal has an interesting article about retailers who hire law firms to engage in something called “civil recovery,” in which alleged shoplifters are harassed into paying thousands of dollars… even if the case against them has been dropped, or the retailer never intended to sue at all.
Government Policy
Sharper Image Files Chapter 11, Will Close Half Of Their Stores
By 2.20.08
Hey want to buy an “ionic air filter”? You don’t? Is it because of that annoying class action lawsuit? Hey guess what? You’re not the only one! After losing a class action lawsuit Sharper Image ” said in court papers it fell victim to “negative publicity” as it fought lawsuits over its Ionic Breeze air purifiers.”
This Sunbeam Heating Pad Is Maybe A Little Too Hot
By 2.20.08
This is a Sunbeam heating pad that a LiveJournal user bought for his girlfriend. After a little while she said that the heating pad was too hot, even on low, turned it off, let it cool, and set it aside.
By 2.19.08
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In response to consumer backlash, Verizon has decided to make it so alarms on its new phones don’t go off on its phones when you dial 911. This is so if you hide and call 911 when a prowler breaks in, you don’t give them a handy homing signal. [KOMO]
Two Georgia Gas Stations Closed For Shorting Customers
By 2.19.08
Georgia state inspectors closed two large Cisco gas stations just across the state line from Florida last week in what the Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture described as “one of the worst cases of shorting gas customers he’s seen since he took office back in 1969.” (Why Ag? Why not?) An inspector found that a five gallon test pump turned up over a quart short at the Cisco Travel Plaza off Interstate 95’s Exit 6, and a similar test revealed a suspiciously similar shortage at another Cisco Travel Plaza off Exit 1.
By 2.19.08
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Commenter Witeowl points out in another thread that if your adjusted gross income was $54,000 or less last year, the IRS can direct you to 19 different companies that will allow you to e-file your 2007 taxes for free. When this writer took advantage of it in the past, “free” meant jumping through a series of GoDaddy-like pages, but in the end it was free to use. [IRS]
Court Rules "World Yacht" Can Be Sued For Not Distributing Gratuities To Its Servers
By 2.19.08
“Hold on,” you say to yourself—”If it’s a gratuity, doesn’t that by definition mean it goes to the wait staff?” Not if you’re a server for World Yacht, a “luxury dining fleet” in Manhattan that will now be sued by its employees for slapping automatic gratuities on diners’ bills, then keeping the extra money for itself. New York labor laws require “employers to pass on to workers any payments that customers understand to be tips,” but World Yacht argued that the banquet industry was exempt, and its servers should get nothing. Thanks to last week’s ruling, the employees can move forward with their suit.
By 2.18.08
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If you’ve just realized that someone has stolen your catalytic converter, here’s why they did it. [Wired]
By 2.18.08
../../../..//2008/02/18/time-has-an-interesting-article/
Time has an interesting article about the unmarked cloned beef that will be washing up at your grocery store sometime soon. Are you grossed out? Not? [Time]
Tax Tip: Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007
By 2.18.08
Tax Cat knows that it’s a hard subject, but if your home has been foreclosed there’s something you should know about changes to the tax laws.
USDA Recalls 143 Million Pounds Of Beef
By 2.17.08
The U.S. Department of Agriculture initiated the largest meat recall in U.S. history today, recalling 143 million pounds of beef from a macabre California slaughterhouse that chopped up downer cows—a rich source of mad cow disease—and sold them to school districts across the nation. The massive recall affects all beef produced by the Westland/Hallmark Meat Company after February 1, 2006.
22,000 People Died As Bayer Reaped Profits, Withheld Key Study From FDA
By 2.17.08
The FDA yanked the heart surgery drug Trasylol off the market last November, but a medical researcher now claims that 22,000 lives could have been saved if Bayer AG hadn’t withheld the results of an earlier internal study proving the drug’s danger. An FDA committee held hearings in September 2006 to determine Trasylol’s safety, but three of the committee members had a financial interest in Bayer, and the drug maker had underwritten the committee chairman’s research.
Pokemon Valentine's Day Lollipops Should Not Contain Razor Blades
By 2.17.08
A 10-year-old elementary school student found a razor blade in the Pokemon lollipop he was about to hand to his sister. Dollar General, which sold the lollipop for $1, immediately recalled the remaining Pokemon Valentine Cards and Pops from its 8,300 stores, but they are concerned that “most of this candy has already been purchased.”
Gas Station Attendant Busted For Re-Using Customers' Credit Card Numbers
By 2.16.08
A 23-year-old gas station attendant in Massachusetts has been charged with identity theft after a customer noticed that her card was used to make additional purchases a few hours after she’d been at the station.
This Is Your Brain On Chantix?
By 2.15.08
NY Magazine has published a interesting personal account from a patient who was taking the smoking-cessation drug Chantix. The FDA has reported 37 suicides and more than 400 reports of suicidal behavior in connection with Chantix, a pleasure blocking drug that sits in the nicotine receptors and prevents the smoker from properly experiencing their nicotine high. The FDA recently issued a patient advisory about the drug, requesting that patients carefully monitor their moods. The possible side-effects of Chantix now include “anxiety, nervousness, tension, depressed mood, unusual behaviors and thinking about or attempting suicide.”
Recalls
By 2.15.08
A Life of Faith Charm Bracelet Sets (lead), Polaris All-Terrain Vehicles (fire), Soft Air USA Remote-Controlled Helicopter Toys (Fire and Burn), GE Gas Clothes Dryers (shock), Trek MT220 Girls Bicycles (frame failures), eeBoo Corp Sketchbooks with Colored Spirals (lead).
By 2.15.08
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A roundup of places to find deals on TurboTax products. [ProBargainHunter]
Free Advice: Don't Deposit Bags Of Meth In The ATM
By 2.15.08
Here’s a little free advice from your friends at The Consumerist: Don’t deposit bags of meth at the ATM. You don’t get any interest and they’re probably going to figure out who are after they see your name and account number.
