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Idiots in New Jersey Finally Allowed to Vote

by Luke Landes

(Do you foresee jokes about New Jersey becoming a red state by 2008 as a result?) Thanks to a ruling last week, “idiots” have been granted suffrage rights in the state of New Jersey. Prior to last week, this was strictly forbidden by New Jersey’s constitution. In 1844, language was added to the state constitution ... Continue reading this article…

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Suze Orman Teams Up With TD Ameritrade

by Luke Landes

Vince from Investorial and GuruWatch is skeptical of Suze Orman’s new relationship with TD Ameritrade. Here are the details of what she is promoting. You can receive a $100 bonus by opening up an account with TD Ameritrade in March and by following the “Save Yourself Plan,” which involves automatic monthly investments of at least ... Continue reading this article…

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Pathetic Check: Interest on Security Deposit

by Luke Landes

Since I rent rather than own the apartment in which I live, my landlord is required by law to keep the security deposit I paid several years ago in an interest-bearing savings account. Although it would have been better if the company kept the security deposits in a high-yield online savings account, the funds are ... Continue reading this article…

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Don’t Forget to Use Your Gift Cards

by Luke Landes

This year for the holidays, I received gift cards for Circuit City, Amazon.com, Best Buy, JCPenney, and even Wendy’s. Besides the usual warnings with gifts cards (watch out for purchasing fees, reduction of value over time, and expiration dates), the most basic tip goes often overlooked: Don’t forget to use them. I’ve heard that many ... Continue reading this article…

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New Computer Has Arrived, What Should I Do With the Old?

by Luke Landes

Yesterday, the shipment containing the new Dell Inspiron E1705 arrived. I took it home, configured everything and put it through the motions. It looks and runs fantastic, especially after today’s shipment, 2GB of speedy RAM, arrived. I got a great price on a machine with all the features I wanted, so waiting four months paid ... Continue reading this article…

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Frugal Answer: Make Your Own Holiday Gifts?

by Luke Landes

I made this half-pony half-monkey monster to please you But I get the feeling that you don’t like it What’s with all the screaming? You like monkeys, you like ponies Maybe you don’t like monsters so much Maybe I used too many monkeys Isn’t it enough to know that I ruined a pony making a ... Continue reading this article…

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Free Downloads of Mozart Sheet Music

by Luke Landes

This is right up my alley. Ricemutt from Experiments in Finance brought this to my attention. The International Mozart Foundation has digitized and made available the musical scores to 24,000 of W.A. Mozart’s compositions. You can find the library online at the Digital Mozart Edition. Here’s some frugal entertainment, with very little expense: Get your ... Continue reading this article…

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Rule for Building Wealth: Keep it Simple

by Luke Landes

When you condense a wealth of financial knowledge into 10 “rules,” you’re taking part in a process known as “simplification.” Perhaps not ironically, that happens to be Fortune Magazine’s third rule for building wealth. Choosing three or four index funds – say, an S&P 500 fund, an EAFE fund, and a small-cap stock fund – ... Continue reading this article…

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Purchased a New Notebook Computer: Customized Dell Inspiron E1705

by Luke Landes

I’ve finally pulled the trigger. If you’ve been following along, I’ve been looking for a new computer since August, to replace a five-year-old Fujitsu laptop that has seen better days. I had a tough time with Circuit City a few months ago, so I continued looking. With the help of a former co-worker, we decided ... Continue reading this article…

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Rule for Building Wealth: Use Your 401(k)

by Luke Landes

Fortune Magazine is looking at 10 Rules for Building Wealth, and here is the second item on the list: Use your 401(k). If you have access to a 401(k) or 403(b) at your job, particularly if the plan offers employer match, then it makes sense to invest in the plan. The employer match is basically ... Continue reading this article…

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Five Things You May Not Know About Me

by Luke Landes

Steve over on his blog, Adventure Money, tagged me, so according to the rules I must come up with five things my readers may not know about me. I’ve been avoiding this for a few days, but I think at 1:30 in the morning I might be in the right state of mind to tackle ... Continue reading this article…

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Top 10 Blogs on pfblogs.org by Clicks per Post

by Luke Landes

Yesterday, I posted the Top 10 Blogs of pfblogs.org, ordered by total clicks since the beginning of the aggregator in February. Here’s a list that may be more relevant or interesting. What follows is the top 10 blogs listed by average clicks per post over the past two months, as of Wednesday night. Only blogs ... Continue reading this article…

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Top 10 Blogs on pfblogs.org by Total Clicks

by Luke Landes

As of Wednesday night, here are the top 10 blogs on pfblogs.org, when sorted by the highest number of clickthroughs since the aggregator’s humble beginnings in February 2006. I wouldn’t call this a “fair” list, as it does favor blogs that have been listed longer and that post more often. Later, I’ll present the top ... Continue reading this article…

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Comcast Digital Platinum With On Demand: $0?

by Luke Landes

For the last year or so, I’ve been paying $16 a month for the most basic cable television option from Comcast, the only cable option in my area. Every once in a while, I check to see if there are any specials being offered. After entering my address on the Concast website, I was provided ... Continue reading this article…

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Baby Boomers Plan to Work in Retirement

by Luke Landes

The younger generations are hoping for a mass retirement in the next few years as Baby Boomers leave the work force, opening advancement opportunities for younger people. There’s a problem. The mass retirement may never happen. That article includes some generalizations about those approaching 60 years old and their attitudes towards retirement, and includes a ... Continue reading this article…

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Financial Institutions Have Yet Another Terrorist Threat

by Luke Landes

A few years ago, my company was put on alert for a day thanks to the supposed discovery of a terrorist plot. The CEO announced a number of new security measures to be put in place. It looks like they’re at it again and this time it’s financial websites that may be targeted in an ... Continue reading this article…

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New MoneyBloggerPodcast: Frugal Duchess

by Luke Landes

Scott from the MoneyBloggerPodcast has posted a new interview with Sharon Harvey Rosenberg, the Frugal Duchess. They have a great discussion about product markups and the discount ruse. Is a 60 percent discount really a great deal when the original markup could be 1,000 percent? Thanks to Scott for another great interview and to Sharon for making ... Continue reading this article…

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Make Your Kids Rich: 5 Fun Gifts

by Luke Landes

Here is what I’ve been looking for: specific reasons for my lack of wealth at the age of 30, stemming from my childhood. Count on Money Magazine to let me know how I am not worth all I could be (and to have another quality list, like yesterday’s 8 smart year-end moves). Here are gifts ... Continue reading this article…

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Did You Miss National Retirement Planning Week?

by Luke Landes

While I was in California, I heard the venerable Ben Stein on the radio. (Why doesn’t he have a blog yet?) He was being interviewed for National Retirement Planning Week, which apparently started on November 13 this year and presumably ended one week later. I hadn’t heard much about this event, so I tried to ... Continue reading this article…

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Happy Thanksgiving!

by Luke Landes

From all of us here at Consumerism Commentary (that is, me) to all who celebrate Thanksgiving today, have a happy holiday! I’ve been in California with my family for the last few days, and I’m thankful I have the means to travel to see them twice a year. Regular posting will return next week after ... Continue reading this article…

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