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Consumer

To Speak To An Operator, Press §

by Luke Landes

This is old news to many including me, but I heard a segment on the television news tonight about this helpful tool. It is worth spreading the information for those who haven’t heard about it. I can’t say that I’ve been flustered while navigating interactive voice response (IVR) systems. I do get frustrated when I ... Continue reading this article…

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Rebate Scams

by Luke Landes

One piece of advice by those who love frugal shopping is to take advantage of rebates whenever possible. Many people followed this advice in the recently passed holiday shopping season. Most of those purchasers will not receive their rebates. According to Senator Chuck Schumer, the most diligent customer who follows the complicated instructions exactly has ... Continue reading this article…

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Postage Rates and Online Stamps

by Luke Landes

Nickel over at Five Cent Nickel reminded me that postage rates are going up on January 8. One of the most convenient things I’ve discovered last month is the ability to print postage yourself, using your internet connection and printer. I’ve known this service has existed for a while, but I had been under the ... Continue reading this article…

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Less Materialistic Holiday Season?

by Luke Landes

The Center for a New American Dream conducted a poll about materialism surrounding the holidays and found some interesting results: … [M]ore than 3 in 4 Americans (76 percent) say that kids are too materialistic, and the holiday season just makes things worse. Only 28 percent of those polled say that it is necessary to spend a ... Continue reading this article…

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True Meaning

by Luke Landes

Around this time of year, we like to recognize that the holiday season is not about exchanging gifts, spending money, and supporting the economy, but more about family, peace and possibly reigion or heritage — the centuries-old “traditional” Christmas-related values. This History Channel has a nice feature online about the Real Story of Christmas, and ... Continue reading this article…

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Pope is Anti-Consumerist

by Luke Landes

The well spoken-of Pope Benedict is warning Christians about “rampant materialism” which he believes is diluting the Spirit of Christmas. The trouble with this statement is that it belies the initial spreading of the Christianity meme. Marketing has been a big part of Christianity since the early days of the religion, whether it involved spreading ... Continue reading this article…

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Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Strategies

by Luke Landes

Just like for the older Xbox, the new Xbox 360 costs more to manufacture than Microsoft charges for the system. The retail price is $399 (which will eventually be cut down, which is the pattern for video game consoles) but the cost for all of the components is $552.27. Microsoft must believe that people who ... Continue reading this article…

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Gift Giving Among a Circle of Friends

by Luke Landes

I have a group of ten or so friends that comprise the “usual crowd.” We get together for people’s birthdays, movie nights, game nights, that sort of thing. At some point, we’re supposed to get together for Christmas/Hanukkah/etc. There seems to be an avoidance of what to do about the gift-giving arrangement. In the past, ... Continue reading this article…

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HOWTO Excessively Spoil Your Kids, Part 2

by Luke Landes

Last year, I wrote about pricey gifts available for children of those with money to burn. Now that we’re back in the holiday season, I noticed a new article from CNN Money with the latest updates for the upscale gift shopper. While last year’s article mentioned the most expensive toys, this year’s list seems comparatively ... Continue reading this article…

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Gift Cards Denote Laziness?

by Luke Landes

Do you give gift cards? Liz Pulliam Weston does not like gift cards or gift certificates and she believes they say that the giver doesn’t care about the recipient’s wishes and desires. But young people seem to be happy to receive gift cards and they grow increasingly popular.

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The World Is Bitchier

by Luke Landes

This article from Wired Magazine takes a look at how technology has changed consumerism over the last sesquicentury. It’s a little bit tounge-in-cheek, but it resonates with me and my feelings towards working and living. Just because technology makes it possible for us to work 10 times faster than we used to doesn’t mean we ... Continue reading this article…

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Shopping For Experiences

by Luke Landes

According to CNN, the new luxury gift this year is an experience. Rather than treating loved ones to clothing or electronics, the new trend is supposedly providing them with an experience and the memories associated with it. If you ask the people who sell these gifts, they will tell you it’s an escalating trend. I ... Continue reading this article…

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Amazon’s Digital Books

by Luke Landes

Amazon.com is planning on offering books in online form in addition to the physical objects. They will be selling online access to digital books, and it seems customers will be able to buy the entire book or a portion, such as a chapter. This is only part of the story. Amazon also plans on offering ... Continue reading this article…

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HOWTO Purchase a Bed (Mattress and Box Spring)

by Luke Landes

You may have read that I purchased a bed this past weekend. This was my first purchase of major furniture, but it was a long time coming. I had suffered from morning back and neck pain for too long, and I believe the problem had much to do with the sleeping surfaces I’ve had over ... Continue reading this article…

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Fun With Google: Consumerism Is…

by Luke Landes

Here’s something to pass the time while we await the Fed’s announcement of a quarter-point rate hike. A few years ago, there was a meme that traveled from blog to blog whereby the author searched Google for the phrase “name is” (where name was the author’s name). The results were, of course, posted to his ... Continue reading this article…

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ShareBuilder $50 Promotion Updated

by Luke Landes

Click here for the latest Sharebuilder promotion, a $50 bonus. I have been participating in ShareBuilder’s $50 bonus promotion which offers the free cash to those who open a new account online with a certain coupon code. Originally, I funded the account with $50 from my checking account and invested in $46 worth of IYZ, ... Continue reading this article…

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Verizon Wireless $25 Referral Bonus

by Luke Landes

Did you know that you can easily get a $25 credit on your Verizon Wireless phone bill? I don’t recall seeing it advertised anywhere, but if a new customer lists an existing customer as a someone who referred him or her to the company, the existing customer will receive $25 to be used towards their ... Continue reading this article…

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Ride of the Valkyries

by Luke Landes

Jonathan compiled a list of cars owned by personal finance and money-related bloggers. It’s a neat list. He doesn’t say whether the cars are bought with cash, financed, or leased, but I’m sure not everyone shares that information. I’m probably one of the few people on the list who bought a new car, against most ... Continue reading this article…

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Monday’s Articles – New GM Deal

by Luke Landes

GM shifts from rebates to price cuts. Remember when GM began offering their Employee Discount for Everyone deal? More car makers followed suit soon after. Now GM is forced to change its strategy by cutting prices and offering improved warranties. These deals will affect the 2006 models; details about another program for moving 2005 inventory ... Continue reading this article…

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Free Music, Woo

by Luke Landes

If you like free music, and who doesn’t, and Gap jeans, then you might be exicted about this deal. Gap is running a promotion where those who simply try on a pair of one of its new styles will receive a free song from iTunes. I’ve never used iTunes to purchase music, but a song ... Continue reading this article…

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