Current Events in December 2010

I remember working on the Broadcast News desk at a well-known wire service and the editor yelling at me, "where are the pork belly futures?" And he refused to run the agriculture report without them for fear of the wrath of angry radio and television stations in the Midwest that were depending on them for their viewers and listeners.

It's doubtful that scenario would occur today primarily because when it comes to pork bellies, the one-time futures kings of the commodity pits are close to going -- if you'll pardon the pun -- belly up.

In fact, when you walk the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange CME) you may not even find any pork belly traders. For the past 50 years, pork bellies were among the most traded commodities at the CME, but in recent years, volume has dropped considerably and the bitter irony of it all is that the reason is due to the growing popularity of bacon.

Pork belly primer

For those of you who have no idea what a pork belly is, it's a slab of frozen meat from which bacon is cut. Futures contracts on pork bellies began as a way for meat packers and food companies to manage their price risk of bacon.

Pork bellies were frozen and stored away in the winter, and then thawed out in the summer to accommodate the annual summer spike in bacon demand. The summer was when the nation devoured millions of bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwiches.

It was this seasonal pattern that created the need for producers to hedge against price fluctuations.

Over the years bacon grew more popular and became less seasonal as it appeared on breakfast dishes, hamburgers and in salads. Food companies no longer need to store as many frozen pork bellies during the winter months.

Declining fortunes

In the 1950s, 60s and 70s, pork bellies were one of the highest traded commodities available. This past November, just six contracts changed hands in the entire month. The pork-belly pit that had once been the center of attention, has since been moved to a corner of the CME's floor, and is now just an appendage to the lean-hog-trading pit.

George Segal is one of the last pork-belly traders at the CME. Recently, he found himself alone in the market. He used the exchange's electronic-trading system to place two orders -- one to buy and one to sell. By day's end, no one else had entered the market, his offers were still dangling, and pork bellies passed another day with no trades.

What it means

So, how does this affect us? Without a viable hedging tool for pork belly prices, bacon producers, and consumers, can be subject to price fluctuations. Retail bacon prices in November surged 34 percent from a year earlier to close to $4.70 per pound. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, that makes bacon more expensive than pork chops.

For independent bacon processors, the decline of the pork-belly futures contract has meant that pork belly prices are becoming a mystery. The amount they pay for spot bellies is now based on a daily price quoted by the Agriculture Department, which collects it from producers on a voluntary basis.

This year, spot prices have soared 45 percent from June to an all-time high of $1.60 a pound in September, before tumbling back to a low of 88 cents by late October. Now they sell for around 96 cents.

New life

According to the Wall Street Journal, the CME and industry executives are trying to rejuvenate the pork-belly future. The exchange is looking at modifying some of the contract's specifications, such as allowing traders to settle in cash instead of actual slabs of meat.

Currently sellers, if holding a contract through expiration, must deliver 40,000 pounds of inspected frozen pork bellies with a producer certificate within 15 days, and a buyer must take possession. Another exchange idea is to trade fresh pork bellies instead of frozen ones.

The Journal says changing the contract from physical settlement to cash settlement could help. Financial traders have largely shunned the contract because it requires buyers to take possession of massive quantities of meat. 

First there was the high-tech bubble, then the housing bubble. What bubble will burst in 2011?

Many are betting it will be for-profit education - as critics question the value of the expensive degrees and certificates awarded by the likes of Kaplan University and the University of Phoenix.

"Serious questions have emerged about the share of the military educational benefit pool going to for-profit schools with questionable outcomes," said a report issued earlier this month by the Senate's Health, Education Labor and Pensions Committee.

Committee chair Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said that by extending benefits similar to the GI Bill to current veterans, "Congress may have unintentionally subjected this new generation of veterans to the worst excesses of the for-profit industry: manipulative and misleading marketing campaigns, educational programs far more expensive than comparable public or nonprofit programs, and a lack of needed services."

The for-profit colleges make big profits on federally-guaranteed loans but critics say that even students who graduate - a small percentage - aren't likely to snag the kind of high-paying positions they're led to expect.

For-profit schools exploded over the last decade. They appeal to working adults seeking training that will help them advance their careers, veterans and active-duty military hoping to smooth the transition to civilian life and, in many cases, those who did poorly in high school and are unable to gain admittance to more selective universities.

Kaplan's bubble may already have burst. Owned by the Washington Post Company, Kaplan is facing Congressional investigations and numerous lawsuits, including a whistle-blower suit filed by the school's former director of education, David Goodstein.

The lawsuits claim that Kaplan recruiters aggressively signed up students who were unqualified and enrolled students in vocational-training courses for industries that they knew to be over-staffed.

Alarmed by the reports of graduates who leave school with heavy debt only to wind up working low-paying jobs, the U.S. Department of Education has proposed regulations that would cut off federal financing to programs that have high debt-to-income ratios and low repayment rates.

One such student is Hope of Hahira, Ga. She graduated from Kaplan in 2006 with an associates degree in paralegal studies and despite having a straight-A average in school, she was fired after a year because her Kaplan education was inadequate, she said in a complaint to ConsumerAffairs.com.

"I now owe all of this student loan debt and am unable to find a job in my field and am in default of my student loans because I can't support myself," Hope said. "I wish that I had known that this school was not a school where credits are transferable and where the "material" isn't appropriate or conducive to learning how to work in the legal environment."
The Washington Post Company has been quick to defend Kaplan, its most profitable unit. It reported spending $350,000 on lobbying during the third quarter of 2010, more than any other higher-education company.

Post Company chairman Donald Graham, a powerful figure in Washington, has also put his personal influence to work, schmoozing lawmakers and regulators. The Post has editorialized against the regulations, saying they would limit students' choices.

"The aim of the regulations was to punish bad actors, but the effect is to punish institutions that serve poor students," Graham said in a recent interview with The New York Times.

But Department of Education figures show that only 28 percent of Kaplan students were repaying their student loans - well below the 45 percent level generally considered the minimum acceptable rate. At the University of Phoenix, by contrast, 44 percent of students were repaying their loans.

The Florida Attorney General has also launched an investigation of Kaplan. In a statement, the office of Attorney General Bill McCollum said the investigation concerned "alleged misrepresentations regarding financial aid; alleged unfair/deceptive practices regarding recruitment, enrollment, accreditation, placement, graduation rates, etc."

Earlier this year, Sen. Harkin's committee held hearings that included undercover videos showing high-pressure recruiting tactics by Kaplan and other for-profit colleges.

The Post Company's Graham called the videos "sickening" and said the company has done its best to clean up the abuses.

The lobbying muscle of the Post Company and other for-profit education companies may be adequate to squash further Congressional action and head off restrictive new regulations.

But the question for consumers to ponder is whether a degree or certificate from a for-profit school will carry the same weight as a similar degree from a community college or public four-year university. Returning veterans and job-seekers hoping to advance their prospects are often better off going directly to potential employers and talking with them about the requirements and aptitudes they look for in prospective employees, employment counselors say.

The poorest of the poor in this country are in for a rough winter. A new study released by the Conference of Mayors says more Americans requested emergency shelter and food assistance this year.

The study, which surveyed 26 cities, found that the number of families experiencing homelessness rose an average 9% while the number of unaccompanied individuals experiencing homelessness rose by 2%. Meanwhile, requests for emergency food assistance jumped an average 24% over last year.

This increase comes at a time when cities are struggling to survive financially and have had to cut some programs because of budget shortfalls. The combination of an increased demand and funding cuts has limited space available at city shelters, putting thousands of homeless people at risk of hypothermia and death.

The annual assessment, found that 58% of the cities analyzed showed an increase in family homelessness. To break down the numbers further, on any given night, more than one thousand family members are living on the streets of these 26 cities, 11,000 are in emergency shelters, and more than 15,000 are staying in transitional homes.

Many of these families are suffering because of unemployment, while 20% cite low wages as the reason for their homelessness. They made too little to afford to pay the rent, heating, and electric. With social services drying up due to budget cuts, more families have been forced out of their homes and into the street.

Nearly 80% of the households with children stated that unemployment was to blame for their situation while 72% reported that lack of affordable housing as being the issue.

The mayors note the irony that that thousands of foreclosed homes sit empty while thousands of families go homeless.

Here's a thought. What if Washington put its muscle behind housing reform similar to what it did with health reform? Just as all Americans will be required to have health coverage, no American shall go without a roof over his or her head.

On your list of tasks to take on in the new year should be an annual review of your credit report. It's free and you aren't required to sign up for anything.

Several years ago Congress passed a law requiring the three credit reporting agencies - Experian, Equifax, and Trans Union - to provide a free copy of every consumer's credit report once a year.

However, consumers need to understand there is only one source for this free annual review. Consumers should go to www.annualcreditreport.com and follow the directions. (Be sure to either type the URL in yourself or click on the link in the previous sentence.  Just typing "free credit report") into a search engine won't turn out well). 

There are some for-profit companies that say they too will provide a free credit report, but it comes with a very large string attached. Consumers are also required to enroll in a credit monitoring service that carries a monthly fee. If they cancel in time, they can avoid the fee, but it's not always easy to do.

Julie of Marlborough, Mass., said she went to one of the commercial sites, freecreditreport.com, thinking she was getting a free credit report.

"Of course without realizing it, I got charged $25," Julie told ConsumerAffairs.com. "I was able to 'eat that' thinking that perhaps I'd not paid attention and inadvertently checked the wrong box. But then today saw a charge from them for $14.95 on my bank. When I called to inquire, I was told I'd signed up for the monthly service, of which I had no idea."

Julie was clearly unaware that she was on the wrong site to get a truly free, no-strings-attached credit report.

Starting in April, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) began requiring FreeCreditReport.com and its competitors to add disclaimers to its advertising to help consumers avoid confusion. FreeCreditReport.com's ever-present TV ads now say "enrollment in Triple Advantage required" at the end, but the disclaimer goes by very quickly and consumers like Julie could be forgiven if they missed it, or didn't understand what it means.

Disclosure

The new rule requires websites offering "free" credit reports to include a disclosure, across the top of each page that mentions free credit reports, which states:

THIS NOTICE IS REQUIRED BY LAW. Read more at FTC.GOV. You have the right to a free credit report from AnnualCreditReport.com or 877-322-8228, the ONLY authorized source under federal law.

The Web site disclosure must include a clickable button to "Take me to the authorized source" and clickable links to AnnualCreditReport.com and FTC.GOV.

Once you are at the official AnnualCreditReport.com site, select your state from a drop-down menu and click on the "Request Report" button. Download and print out your credit report from all three reporting agencies and carefully review it, making sure the listing of open credit accounts and balances matches your records. If your identity has been stolen, for example, and someone has opened credit accounts in your name, this review could be the first warning that this has occurred.

Aside from identity theft issues, make sure the information in the report is factual. Why is that important?

Information in credit reports may affect whether consumers can get a loan or a job, so it is important that consumers check their credit reports and correct any information that is inaccurate. To learn more about your rights when it comes to annual credit report reviews, check the FTC's website.

When you're looking for a new car, you usually take it out for a test drive before buying or leasing it. What can you do to test out a house? Unless it's a mobile home, you won't be making any test drives. But there a few things you can and should do before signing those closing papers and taking ownership of a dream house that could just turn into a nightmare.

You've done your own quick inspection and you like what you see. It's got everything you need from the right amount of rooms, to the right size and layout. You even like the colors and plan to keep it painted the way it is. It looks ready to move in, so what's the problem?

Well, you may want to do a deeper dive inspection wise and take someone along who's a professional home inspector and knows what to look for to head off any future problems that could arise that your untrained eye would miss.

If this is your first time buying a home, it's easy to get caught unprepared for all the future repairs that seem to appear as soon as the ink dries on those closing papers. Here then are some tips gathered along the road of leaky roofs, damp basements and crowded highways that seemed so easy to handle on the weekends while you were house hunting. Some of the tips are mine and some come from Money magazine.

Tip 1. Money magazine recommends checking the home's foundation. When you inspected the house did you check the foundation? A home's foundation can be one of most expensive things to repair. This is something you probably shouldn't do yourself. Hire an inspector to go down into the basement with you. He or she will find cracks that you won't because you won't know where to look, especially if the basement is finished. Drywall could cover structural problems. So you need to look for any cracks in the drywall, especially around windows and doors. Since you've hired your own personal inspector, have them inspect the rest of the house as well.

Tip 2. Check the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment. This one also comes from Money. So while you're down in the basement, look at the heating and cooling equipment. How old is it? Does it look like it's running properly? Are the vents connected well? These are important questions to answer in order to make your home energy-efficient and ensure that you reduce utility bills. Replacing a home's HVAC system can cost tens of thousands of dollars, but many first-time buyers never give it a second look.

Tip 3. Visit your potential neighbors to the right, left and across the street. This one's mine. You want to know who your neighbors are and the kind of people they are. Do they have children? Are there any issues with the neighborhood you should be aware of? Are your neighbors friendly or private? Most first-time home buyers do this after they've moved in which is way too late if the person next door turns out to be the neighbor from hell.

Tip 4. Look for water damage. Money magazine says that if the house has had problems with water in the past, you're looking at several expensive fixes. First, what happened once, like a leaking basement, can easily happen again. Second, that water damage could have resulted in mold, especially the dangerous black mold. Look for brown or white stains down the side of the basement walls, which would indicate a past leak. If the floor is bare, then look for horizontal stains. Be suspicious if the basement has been freshly painted. Sellers often do this to hide water damage stains. It's also important to check the bathroom, and under the kitchen sink. Look for stains that would indicate mold growth.

Tip 5. Check the electrical. According to Money, if the home you're looking at is pre-1930's, it might still have the old knob and tube wiring. Knob and tube wiring is relatively safe as long as it hasn't been tampered with in any way. For instance, if the house has blown insulation in the attic sitting on top of the knob and tube wiring, this is tampering and it's a serious home fire safety hazard. Most insurance companies consider knob and tube wiring to be unsafe, so you're going to pay more for homeowner's insurance coverage. That's even if they'll insure you. Replacing it means rewiring the entire house, which will cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Tip 6. When you found the house, was it during the week or on the weekend? If you're looking for a place that will be an easy commute you need to see the house during the week and on a day you'll be commuting. Otherwise, you could be in for commuter shock. A friend once bought a townhouse in the Washington, D.C., suburbs, only to find it was nearly impossible to get out of the driveway, let alone the neighborhood, during commuting hours.

Tip 7. If the price is too good to be true, it probably is. These days putting an accurate value on a house is difficult because of the housing mess. So you may have to trust your instinct here. If not, trust your bank's instinct because chances are they're not going to give you a mortgage for more than 80% of what they think the home is worth. However, if the home's price is suspiciously low, there's probably a good reason so beware.

Buying a house is a huge decision and investment, especially if it's your first. So follow these seven tips and spare that buyer's remorse.

The oldest of the Baby Boomers -- that 78 million person "bump" in our population -- turns 65 in 2011, and for the next 18 years that bump will be grinding through some of our most important systems of survival for the elderly. We're talking about Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security -- the three pillars of senior living support.

The key question on most boomer's minds is can the system handle it, or will this be the generation that breaks the foundation on which so many Americans are depending on?

Demand for benefits

Boomers started burning through Social Security three years ago when the first ones turned 62 and became eligible for benefits. And now they're going to be eligible for Medicare. Some may have even signed up already because you're supposed to sign up for medicare three months before the month you turn 65.

Coverage typically begins on the first day of your birth month. If your birthday is on the first day of the month, your coverage will start the first day of the prior month. Individuals who wait until their birth month or later to turn in the paperwork may experience coverage delays.

Baby boomers turning 65 next year should sign up right away to avoid a 10 percent Part B premium increase for each 12-month period they could have had Part B, but didn't sign up for it. Those who delay Medicare enrollment because they're still working and covered by a group health insurance plan must sign up within eight months after their coverage ends to avoid the penalty.

Many boomers are looking forward to joining Medicare this year, especially if they're paying a lot for their own health insurance. More than 6,000 Medicare beneficiaries with the birth date January 1, 1946, have already pre-enrolled in Medicare, so that their coverage will go into effect on the first day of 2011.

Some are even postponing serious or expensive medical procedures until they qualify for Medicare so that it's covered.

As for Social Security, even though the oldest baby boomers already qualify for partial benefits, they are still a year away from qualifying for the full amount. For 1946-born boomers, that's age 66. Those who have already signed up for Social Security, or plan to this year, will receive reduced payouts for the rest of their lives.

Many baby boomers plan to delay their Social Security as long as possible to lock in higher payments later on in retirement. Some even plan on waiting until they're 70 because they'll receive even more.

The perks

According to insurance actuarial tables, most of us will live another 20 years or so. So that means you have plenty of time to enjoy the perks that come with being a senior citizen. Turning 65 means you receive a number of breaks beyond being able to get Medicare.

Some will receive a break on property taxes, and discounted airline and movie tickets. You may not even be aware of it, but when you turn 65 you can get free hunting and fishing licenses along with reduced fees at state parks. You can even ride the bus and subway for less.

Medicare is still by and far the best deal of all and will mean thousands in savings related to medical and healthcare expenses.

And the two perks with the most impact for seniors are government programs relating to property taxes and health insurance.

The Sunshine State

Since 2002, many Florida property owners 65 and older who earn less than $25,480 have gotten property tax breaks with increased homestead exemptions above the standard $25,000. And you thought it was just the weather that attracted the seniors to Florida.

Florida has long been one of the centers for senior citizen discounts. The state has the largest proportion of senior citizens in the nation. An estimated 2.8 million Floridians are older than 65, representing 17.6 percent of the state's population.

If there were a Mecca for seniors, it would be Charlotte County in southern Florida. By percentage, has more people 65 and older than any other county in the country. Four of the top nine metropolitan areas in the country for seniors stretch from Bradenton to Naples. Senior discounts are everywhere.

What has most state and municipal governments concerned is will this huge influx of people break these systems that were designed to make senior living easier.

Trouble in Texas

Texas Governor Rick Perry (R) recently threatened to pull  out of Medicaid because the state couldn't afford it anymore. Across the country, state budgets continue to be strapped. Federal stimulus dollars are running out. And the latest federal tax and stimulus package will not provide much relief at the state and local levels. Meanwhile, looming provisions of health reform will add a projected 16 million to the Medicaid rolls. Where are the facilities to take care of these folks? Where is the money?

Most eyes are on the federal government's massive budget deficits. Safety net programs would be affected by deficit reduction proposals that have been introduced to generally favorable receptions. Politicians on both sides of the aisle agree that Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have to be reined in for meaningful deficit reduction to occur.

The crunch

The battle over these programs has already begun and will intensify when the new Republican majority takes office next year in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Even as the lines are drawn for the federal deficit-reduction war, the states have become a battleground for resources to fund Medicaid. States share the funding for Medicaid services with Washington and have been increasingly hard-pressed to come up with their portion of Medicaid funding.

Meanwhile, demand for services continues to rise. That's particularly the case for seniors, who face a second straight year with no cost-of-living increases in Social Security. The poverty level of people aged 65 and older compares favorably with other age groups in the United States. That's almost entirely due to Social Security payments, which are large enough to keep most seniors above the poverty line. However, millions of older Americans live on incomes that are very near the poverty level.

Mandated increases in federal benefits under the health reform law are not the only source of financial pressures on safety nets. Baby boomers begin turning 65 next year at the rate of an estimated 7,500 people a day, taxing a Medicaid program that already is hurtling toward insolvency.

While federal support for Medicare is being reduced in the Medicare Advantage program, health reform will require that many preventive office visits and tests, including an annual physical, must be provided at no charge to Medicare participants. Federal support to pay for prescription drugs is also being increased for seniors with large drug bills.

As the song goes, "Something's Got To Give.”

As parents and caregivers for our children, we usually expect that at some point in our lives our children will grow into adults and eventually become self-sufficient. It usually happens around the time we realize that our days of being a caregiver are not really over, but merely shifting from our children to our aging parents.

The costs of elder care, such as assisted living facilities and nursing homes, has risen dramatically over the past few years, along with the cost of health care. Fortunately, we have Medicare and Medicaid to carry some of the weight of this expense burden.

But what we almost always fail to realize is the hidden costs to the caregiver in these situations.

Caregiver demand

According to data from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the demand for informal caregivers such as family members, friends or neighbors, is expected to increase by more than 20 percent in the next 15 years, and by 85 percent in the next 40 years.

Nearly 62 million people already care for another adult at least part-time, an expensive and time-consuming undertaking. It usually starts when you notice your mother or father is having trouble getting up the stairs, or begins to fall in the bathroom.

Even if you hire someone to provide care, more than half of the related care-giver -- the son or daughter -- will spend more than $4,500 a year on expenses such as food, transportation and medication for their elder parent.

What about the physical and emotional cost to the caregiver? According to a 2010 study of employees by the National Alliance for Caregiving and the MetLife Mature Market Institute, an estimated 11 percent of caregivers report feeling stressed compared with seven percent of non-caregivers. Marc Agronin, a geriatric psychiatrist and the author of "How We Age," says the stress and physical demands can bring about higher medical expenses and career roadblocks for anyone tending to another person.

Addressing hidden costs

Based on the MetLife and National Alliance for Caregiving Study, here are some hidden costs along with some ways to address them.

Hidden cost number 1.

Caregivers of all ages have a heightened risk for chronic health problems. Among working women 50 and older, the MetLife/NAC study found 20 percent of caregivers report just fair or poor health -- more than double the number of non-caregivers. Nearly 26 percent of adult men under the age of 39 say the same thing, which is more than three times the rate of non-caregivers in that group. Among the most common chronic health conditions reported at higher rates are diabetes, high blood pressure or hypertension and high cholesterol.

Those, and other related illnesses, can be expensive to treat. And because many caregivers are strapped for time, they end up skipping or delaying the medical care they need.

The best way to deal with this is to carve out time for your health needs. Consider using an adult day care center, which run about $75 per day, or hire a temporary home health aide once or twice a week to give you a break. You can usually find a list of such services, as well as other resources, at Caregiver.org and Eldercare.gov.

Hidden cost number 2.

Your career could easily take a hit. Nearly half of caregivers report that they've lost a job, had to change shifts or have missed out on career opportunities as a result of their responsibilities. A 2010 study by Genworth Financial and Age Wave found that those lost wages, promotions and other benefits can add up. The study also showed that 37 percent of caregivers quit their jobs or cut back on hours. Even those who keep their jobs may be overlooked for promotions and raises because of the time they're forced to spend away from the office.

You can deal with this by making your work schedule work for you. If you've established yourself as a strong performer, you can try to negotiate a flex-time or partial work-from-home arrangement. Newer companies in creative and high-tech fields often are most amenable to such arrangements. If ever you can't meet a deadline, talk to your boss and offer alternatives.

Hidden cost number 3.

You may have to delay retirement. The Genworth study found more than half (57 percent) of caregivers used their retirement savings to care for a loved one at some point during the past year. It also discovered that 63 percent of caretakers suffer a reduction in or loss of income because of their responsibilities. That double whammy makes it difficult to save enough to retire at a reasonable age.

You can deal with this by taking advantage of assistance programs. In 15 states, caregivers -- even family -- can get paid for their services through Cash and Counseling programs which dole out payments to Medicaid recipients who can then use the money to pay their caregiver. Some long-term care insurance policies may allow for compensation to a family member for providing in-home care, though pay rates vary widely depending on the policy and some require caregivers to complete a training session to qualify. Make sure to maximize available caregiving tax deductions, including a deduction of up to $3,650 for taking care of a qualifying relative.

Hidden cost number 4.

A family lawsuit. Fights between siblings over money used to care for parents are common and can lead to legal wrangling. Issues like who pays for care, the level of input each sibling has in caregiving preferences and how much time each sibling spends on care can top the list of hot button issues. Then there are those "medical end-of-life issues" that throw some families into an emotional hurricane that can cause lasting damage. A legal fight with your siblings over the estate, end-of-life care or a small stipend you may get for caring for mom can end up costing tens of thousands of dollars. Even mediation is pricey with sessions cost anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000 depending on the weightiness of the issues.

You can deal with these issues by talking it over among the entire family and then put into writing all health and end-of-life care preferences, as well as estate issues. All siblings and immediate relatives should sign a caregiving agreement.

You can get an outline for such a document at ElderLawAnswers.com. It lays out the financial and time responsibilities that each person will assume. If the family fighting becomes problematic, consider hiring a care manager to oversee and organize what needs to be done for a parent and who does it.

According to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, when it comes to possessions like cars, computers, bicycles, and even firearms, many owners exhibit love-like emotions.

Researchers and study authors John L. Lastovicka of Arizona State University and Nancy J. Sirianni of Texas Christian University visited five car shows in Arizona and conducted in-depth interviews with car enthusiasts (males and females, aged 19-68).

Emotional attachment

They found that love-smitten consumers were more likely to use pet names than brand names when describing their cars and that some people even seemed to use their attachment to cars to remedy pain and disappointment in their romantic lives.

"Material possession relationships may reduce the negative consequences of social isolation and loneliness, and can contribute to consumer well-being, especially when considered relative to less-desirable alternative responses like substance abuse, delinquency, and the side-effects of anti-depressant medications," the authors write.

The researchers found various combinations of passion, intimacy, and commitment in consumers' relationships.

"Consumers felt a passion, or a relentless drive to be with their beloved possession, and this often manifested in gazing at and caressing their cars, and even some love-at-first-sight purchase decisions," they write.

Nurturing relationships

People nurture relationships with their beloved possessions, investing time and money into improving them and becoming fluent in understanding their details.

"We found love-smitten consumers spent six times more on accessories and enhancements for their prized guns than firearm owners who did not demonstrate passion, intimacy, or commitment toward their guns," the authors write.

These findings could come in handy to for companies that sell accessories and after-purchase services such as cleaning, enhancements, and repairs.

"For those in the throes of material possession love, it should be no wonder that they so freely spend their time and money on their beloved," the authors conclude.

To play off that cliche' about how guns don't kill people, people kill people, credit cards don't drive people deep into debt, but they sure do make it easy for people to get there.

Credit card debt has become the bane of the American consumer's existence. As hard as we try, it seems that getting completely out from under credit card debt is extremely difficult.

It doesn't help that credit card companies will do everything they can to keep you from paying off that balance. After all, the interest rate they get to charge when you don't is a large portion of their revenue, along with what they charge business to use their cards.

Catch 22

Not many people know this and the credit card companies have done a great job keeping it secret, but they regard people who pay off their credit card bills each month and never carry a balance as "deadbeats."

At the same time, if you carry too much debt or make a late payment, your credit score goes down and credit card companies will use that as a way to penalize you by raising your interest rates. How's that for a mixed message?

Sooner or later, you'll say you've had enough and decide that it's finally time to do something about your credit card debt to get away from all those late fees and finance charges, and say no more to all those hefty transfer fees to cards with introductory low interest rates that eventually climb back up.

Cutting the cord

If that's where you are, here are some relatively easy ways of finally paying off that credit card debut.

• First, you have to change the way you think about credit cards. No, they're not an easy access to free money. Thinking like that is what got you in trouble to begin with. Credit cards are merely tools -- tools of convenience and should be considered as such.

• Second, you have to put those cards away and be real. And by "being real," we mean you have to not buy something you really can't afford. You'll never be able to pay off your debt if you keep adding to it. If this is too difficult and you fall into that category of consumer-holic unable to stop spending, then you have to take a more severe approach. Cut up your credit cards. If you don't have them you can't use them.

Now if you do have a serious problem, you can expect a form of withdrawal to take place, for which you may need to seek out a Debtor's Anonymous meeting or even a therapist. If "not spending" makes you ill, then it's time to admit you have a problem and you have to deal with it.

• Step three, now that you've curbed your excessive spending, you need to create a budget or a spending review. This will give you an idea where the money goes every month. When you stop the compulsive spending you should have some extra money that you can use to make larger payments to your credit card bills. If you continue to pay the minimums you'll never pay the balance off.

• Step four: start paying off your credit card debt by paying off the highest interest rate card first. Some people will say they'd rather pay off the lowest balance because it gives them a sense of accomplishment. That's fine, but paying down the higher interest rate card first is still the best solution financially.

This step of paying down debt could take a while, but that's okay because it will also be teaching you a new way of living. Once you pay off those last balances, you will enter a special group of Americans, that rare breed of sensible consumers who live within their means and carry no credit card debt.

Yes, the card companies will call you a deadbeat behind your back, and they'll inundate you with offers of easy access to "free money." But you beat them and you can rest assured that you will feel a lot better about yourself, not to mention your glowing credit score if you continue to resist their temptation and not slide back into that deep well of debt.

The year 2010 was marked by continued slow recovery from a devastating recession, a still-sinking housing market, skyrocketing gold prices and a proliferation of charities that were, in reality, less than charitable. It all plays into our annual list of the Top 10 Scams of 2010.

1. Foreclosure rescue scams

For millions of struggling homeowners, 2010 was a year of desperation, as they tried to hang onto their homes against the threat of foreclosure. Many who turned to so-called foreclosure rescue firms, who promised to save their home for an upfront fee, ended up in worse trouble.

Throughout the year, various states stepped up the pressure on individuals and companies in the foreclosure rescue business. In August, California Attorney General Jerry Brown won a $1.1 million judgment against Los Angeles Attorney Mitchell Roth, who he said promised foreclosure relief through aggressive litigation, "but the frivolous and phony lawsuits he filed instead left 2,000 desperate homeowners in even greater debt."

In most cases of foreclosure rescue, the company promises to assist the homeowner in avoiding foreclosure by negotiating directly with the lender. Most make little or no effort on the clients' behalf, but charge a hefty upfront fee.

As of early December, Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller had filed 34 lawsuits this year against foreclosure rescuers. In the most recent case, Zoeller said Evansville, Ind., residents Harold and Sharon Matthews paid Hope4Homes, a California firm, $1,800 to negotiate a home loan modification.

According to the state's complaint, the Matthews were instructed by Hope4Homes to stop making payments on their mortgage while Hope4Homes negotiated a new loan. The Matthews fell three months behind on their payments, which had been current, and new loan terms were not reached.

Hope4Homes advertised a "100 percent Money Back Guarantee if we cannot achieve a loan modification for our clients," however no refund was provided, according to the complaint.

"So-called 'foreclosure consultants' are taking advantage of those who are facing desperate financial hardship and scamming them out of thousands of dollars when they are most vulnerable. They are operating illegally and this will not be tolerated in Indiana," Zoeller said.

Those promising to help modify loans didn't confine themselves to home mortgages, either. In Florida, Attorney General Bill McCollum filed a lawsuit against a Broward County company accusing it of deceptive and unfair trade practices related to automobile loan modifications.

According to the complaint, Auto Relief Group, its subsidiaries and owners John J. Boyle and John J. Boyle III falsely represented in national television and radio commercials that they could reduce consumers' car payments by up to 50 percent. The Florida Attorney General's Office was granted an injunction to freeze the company's assets and appoint a receiver to take possession and control of the company.

2. Uncharitable charities

With a stubborn recession, more people are in need of the assistance provided by legitimate charities. But with the worsening economy, there seems to have been an increase in scams masquerading as worthy causes, seeking to exploit those willing and able to help others.

By mid-year, a number of states were cracking down on these sophisticated telemarketing fundraisers, some of whom gave a small portion of the collected funds to charity but others who pocketed the entire amount.

The State of Iowa won a settlement with a Minnesota fundraiser it says was calling consumers in the state seeking donations for several law enforcement associations. Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller said the firm used deceptive tactics to solicit the money, and has agreed to make changes in how it deals with consumers. Before the settlement, Miller was keeping as much as 85 percent of what it collected from Iowa citizens.

Oregon Attorney General John Kroger assembled a list of the "20 Worst Charities," and placed Shiloh International Ministries at the top of the list. Kroger said the organization claims to solicit money to provide medical necessities and moral support to needy children and to provide assistance to the homeless. According to the most recent financial filings, Kroger said the California-based non-profit spent an average of $937,315 per year, 96.37 percent of which went to management and fundraising.

Over the summer a number of states investigated the U.S. Navy Veterans Association, which said it was collecting money on behalf of veterans. Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray reported the group seemed awfully fishy.

"Our investigators have not been able to locate any of the Ohio officers of the USNVA, although, oddly enough, the organization's national counsel is based here," Cordray said. "Through the counsel, USNVA has advised us that it does not consider the order to be valid and that it does not have to comply with our order to cease and desist fundraising in Ohio."

3. Phony debt collector

At mid-year, ConsumerAffairs.com began to receive a growing number of complaints from people who had been contacted by a man claiming to be a debt collector on behalf of a payday loan company. In nearly every case, the consumers said they had never had a payday loan.

The caller was abusive and threatened to have the consumers arrested and, most disturbing, had personal information about them, such as Social Security numbers and bank account information. In some cases, the consumers had said they had begun an online loan application process and entered sensitive information, before deciding not to complete the application.

Investigations are continuing but it isn't clear how the scammers are getting the information or choosing their victims. However, the scam is spreading and has been reported in many areas of the country.

4. Work-at-home scams

The work at home scam is simply the latest "get rich quick" scheme. It was more prevalent in 2010 because so many people are out of work, or working part-time and need extra income. The lure of easy work from home making big bucks resonates right now. It shouldn't.

In February the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a warning to consumers not to fall for these scams that are often advertised among legitimate job listings.

"The ads don't tell you that you may have to work a lot of hours without pay, or they don't disclose all the costs you might incur, for placing newspaper ads, making photocopies, or buying the envelopes, paper, stamps and other supplies you need to do the job," the agency warned. "People tricked by these ads have lost thousands of dollars, not to mention time and energy."

In September Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray sued three Northeast Ohioans for their roles in NSA Technologies, a work from home business scheme that left consumers without promised jobs and out of money.

According to the lawsuit, NSA Technologies advertised work from home jobs, self-employment guides and job placement services through online ads. In the suit, Cordray accused the operation of taking money from Ohioans in payment - some victims paid hundreds of dollars apiece - and then not providing the services that were purchased.

Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning says any work at home "opportunity" that requires you to pay an upfront fee is not reasonable and is not legitimate.

"Whenever you're asked to pay for the chance at a job, or information about work from home jobs, it's a scam," Bruning says.

5. Facebook scams

It seems everyone was on Facebook in 2010, including scammers, capitalizing on the social networking site's popularity to spread computer malware and steal identities.

In August spammers sent out millions of emails touting a Facebook "dislike button." Of course, there is no such thing, but many people clicked on the link to download the button, and instead downloaded malware that gave hackers control of their Facebook accounts.

That same month many Facebook users began seeing messages telling them to go to a website where they could sign up to "test" Apple iPads. Needless to say there was no such offer, but people who went to their site were asked to submit personal information.

In November, some Facebook users received an email that appeared to be from Facebook security, telling them their password had been changed and the only way to get a new one was to open an attached .zip file. Those who opened the file downloaded a Trojan horse.

6. Gold scams

The price of gold hit record highs in 2010, prompting many consumers to try and cash in by selling Aunt Martha's old broach. Many jewelry stores advertised they would "buy your gold jewelry." In many cases, this was a case of "seller beware."

In July, the New Jersey Office of Weights and Measures cited 49 gold and jewelry buying businesses with more than 1,600 summonses for alleged violations of state statutes. Following a statewide inspection sweep, officials said they found inaccurate scales that misweighed items and resulted in consumers receiving less money.

"Some of the buyers defrauded consumers, short-weighing their items and likely paying them less than the true value of the items," New Jersey Attorney General Paula T. Dow said.

Even without a rigged scale, consumers often risked receiving less than the market price of gold when they sold their jewelry. A survey conducted over the summer by the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office found a wide range of prices offered for the same piece of gold jewelry.

"Our survey shows significant differences in the prices various jewelers will pay average consumers for their gold," said Barbara Anthony, Massachusetts' Undersecretary of the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation. "It takes a little legwork and a little time for consumers to make sure they are getting best price for their gold. A few hours of work can mean hundreds of extra dollars."

Companies selling gold to consumers also came under scrutiny. Two California district attorneys launched a probe of Goldline International, claiming the company steered vulnerable consumers into purchasing overpriced gold coins instead of pure gold.

7. Debt settlement scams

Companies promising to help consumers settle their credit card and other debt for less than the amount owed have done very well during the recession, but increasingly consumers complained these firms did nothing to help, just took more of their money.

"I signed with Legal Helpers which is the Customer Service Arm of Square One Debt Settlement out of Sunrise Florida in May 2010," Sandra, of Dayton, Ohio, told ConsumerAffairs.com in September. "It has been five months and they have almost $1200 of my money. One of my creditors told me yesterday that Lebal Helpers are not Lawyers and they will not negotiate with them, period."

In the second half of the year the FTC adopted new rules prohibiting these companies from collecting money from consumers until they had delivered on their promises. The rules were aimed at weeding out the scammers who collected a hefty fee from the distressed consumer, then disappeared.

"Most debt settlement companies charge big fees up front even though most consumers don't get the help they expect," said Lauren Bowne, staff attorney for Consumers Union's Defend Your Dollars campaign. "These new rules will help protect consumers who are already drowning in debt from being ripped off by debt settlement companies that fail to provide any relief. But more needs to be done to ensure that the amount of fees charged for debt settlement services are fair."

At the end of the year, however, many debt settlement firms were still advertising on radio and television.

8. Ponzi schemes

After Bernie Madoff was arrested two years ago, you would think people would be wiser about Ponzi schemes, in which an investment is guaranteed to pay off in unbelievably high dividends. Either people are desperate to find a lucrative investment in this environment or authorities are more diligent in rooting out these schemes, but 2010 saw more arrests, prosecutions and convictions.

In Minnesota, investors lost nearly $80 million in an alleged Ponzi scheme in which the operator oversold participation in large commercial and personal loans arranged through his company.

Investors lured by the glitter of Hollywood got taken for a ride, according to California Attorney General Jerry Brown, who has charged a Laguna Niguel movie producer with 89 felony counts for orchestrating a "cold and calculated" $9 million Ponzi scheme.

Brown says the producer promised investors up to 35 percent returns for making loans to his B-movie production company. Another California man was sentenced to 135 months in federal prison for running an investment fraud scheme that took in almost $4 million from more than 100 victims who were lured to the scheme with promises of "guaranteed" annual interest rates up to 120 percent.

In September, an Illinois man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for bilking 75 investors, some of them close friends, out of $28 million.

In October the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a radio talk show host of misappropriating $2.5 million in investors' money that was supposedly being used to fund real estate loans. Instead, say authorities, it was used for personal expenses.

In the case of all Ponzi schemes, the investors usually lose their nest eggs they were counting on for retirement or other vital expenses.

9. Unauthorized charge scams

The unauthorized charge scam is a perennial on our annual list and occurs when consumers discover that a company has placed a charge on their credit card or phone bill without their informed consent. Over the years many companies have used fine print and outright trickery to make sales in which the consumer is unaware that a sale is taking place.

In September, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo reached a settlement with discount club marketer Webloyalty.com, which agreed to refund millions to consumers who say they were defrauded into paying unauthorized charges.

Cuomo's investigation into the discount club industry found that when consumers completed online purchases from familiar retailers, they were often presented with a cash-back or discount offer from a marketer like Webloyalty. Information about accepting the offer and its ramifications -- including the fact that the consumer was agreeing to transfer his or her credit or debit card account information -- was buried in fine print and cluttered text.

Since consumers were not required to provide their financial information as part of the enrollment process, they often accepted the offer without knowing they were joining a fee-based program.

Once enrolled in a discount club, recurring charges begin to appear on consumers' credit or debit card from unfamiliar companies. Due to their low dollar amount or the non-specific club names on consumers' account statements, the charges often go unnoticed.

"In this all too common Internet scheme, consumers were tricked into paying for monthly services for a discount club while shopping online at trusted retailers," Cuomo said.

Other states began actions of their own. The State of Iowa filed a consumer fraud lawsuit against Trilegiant, a major marketer of discount buying clubs that are often sold to consumers through third-party and negative option market arrangements. Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, who filed the suit, claims the company unfairly and deceptively charged Iowans for memberships in discount buying clubs or other programs, in many cases without consumers' knowledge.

In Minnesota, Attorney General Lori Swanson filed suit against Discover Bank, accusing it of deceptively charging some credit card customers for pricey optional financial products that the company markets.

10. Timeshare sales scams

True, not everyone owns a timeshare, but many who do would love to unload them. Unfortunately, in this market that's easier said than done. That's why so many timeshare owners were taken in when they received an unsolicited call from a "broker" who claimed to have a client interested in buying their timeshare. To proceed further, however, they had to pay an upfront fee.

In Illinois, Attorney General Lisa Madigan warned timeshare owners in her state that scammers have moved into the timeshare sales space, collecting money but making no attempt to sell anything.

Madigan said the scam typically works like this: a timeshare owner gets a call out of the blue from someone claiming to be a timeshare reseller. They have a client who wants to buy their timeshare, are they interested?

If the owners rise to the bait, the scammer tells them they must pay a refundable security deposit or fee to ensure that the sale goes through, and instructs them to wire money to an out-of-state bank account. As soon as the owners wire the money as directed, they've fallen victim to the scam. In most cases, by the time the owners realizes they've been defrauded, the con artists have closed out their bank account, disconnected their phones and disappeared.

Victims filing complaints with the Attorney General's Office have reported wiring as much as $5,000 to the scammers, Madigan said.

In March, Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum unveiled continuing investigations into at least 17 timeshare companies and their affiliates throughout the state for deceptive trade practices.

"Florida's consumers are trying to make prudent financial decisions," the attorney general said at the time, "but many timeshare resale companies are blatantly scamming people by promising sales or refunds and failing to provide services even after taking hefty up-front fees."

Dishonorable mention

There were plenty of other scams during the year that cost consumers money and heartache. Making our dishonorable mention list this year are the many scams related to the BP oil spill, this year's one-time $250 payment to Medicare Part D participants  and the growing number of cyber scams. In that last category, "tabnabbing" could be one to keep an eye on in the new year.

It goes without saying, as we do each year, that consumers must remain vigilant against those who use deception and trickery to part them from their money. Important financial decisions should never be rushed and consulting a trusted friend of adviser is always a good idea.

As always, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Prichard, Alabama may have been one of the first but it certainly won't be the last municipality in this country to see its pension fund run out of money. For Prichard, it happened last year and the small city was forced to stop paying its retired workers.

Living without those checks became extremely difficult and according to the New York Times, 11 retirees died, while others have declared bankruptcy. Today, the rest of the 150 retired workers are struggling to get by and although they've sued the city of Prichard, the suit was unsuccessful. There just isn't any more money.

As public pension funds across the nation suffer from years of underfunding, and from assets that lost value in the financial crisis, experts say similar scenarios are fast approaching for a number of other towns and cities across America.

After years of putting off the inevitable, financially strapped municipalities across the nation are facing a huge problem. State laws require that retirees be paid. Cities and towns like Prichard that can no longer pay their retired works the pension they promised them are in effect, breaking the law. But there seem to be few legal requirements that governments actually put the money behind their promises.

In the years leading up to the financial crisis, many cities delayed funding their pensions, as assets were seeing high returns and governments expected good times to last. But as the crisis hit, from the end of 2007 to the beginning of 2009, pension funds lost nearly one third (29%) of their value.

Experts estimate city pension funds are short more than half a trillion dollars ($574 billion). Fund analysts expect a number of pension funds to run dry in the next ten years.

Under-funded pension funds are plaguing some of the nation's largest cities. The Pittsburgh firefighters union has filed suit to prevent a state takeover of the city pension fund, urging city officials to raise taxes, if necessary, to shore up the under-funded pension fund. Union attorney Joshua Bloom says a state takeover would deprive firefighters of the local pension control guaranteed by their contract and put the city on a course to insolvency. Bloom adds that Pittsburgh will "go from the most livable city to the most bankrupt city."

The financial troubles in South Burlington, Vermont have gotten so bad the city might have to borrow money to pay its employees. City Manager Sandy Miller has discovered a $9 million shortfall in the pension fund and an undetermined deficit in the general fund that he says resulted from unconventional accounting practices. Now, the city is strapped for cash.

In a previous article Municipal Default Crisis On the Horizon, we told you about a warning issued by a leading finance guru that over 100 US cities could face bankruptcy in 2011.

Meredith Whitney, who's known for predicting the financial crisis, says the coming municipal crisis is now the biggest threat to the U.S. economy.

Detroit has reportedly reduced police, lighting, road repairs and cleaning services affecting as much as 20% of the population. The state of Illinois is about six months behind on creditor payments, while potential defaults threaten the state of Florida.

Moreover, many cities and states are fighting an uphill battle to keep their pension plans adequately funded. New York City is planning to put $8.3 billion into its pension fund next year, which is twice what it paid five years ago. Along with New York, Detroit, San Francisco and Los Angeles are among the cities that risk bankruptcy in 2011.

Social media seems to have taken over just about every other aspect of our lives, why not jobs? The demand for social media jobs has virtually exploded, up some 600% according to one job site. Some industry observers say it all could be happening too much too fast to last.

Even with unemployment nearing 10%, one of the sectors that is sprouting jobs is social media. A recent study published by SocialMediaInfluence.com shows that 59 of the Fortune 100 companies have at least one employee who works full time in social media.

It adds that job postings directly related to social media have soared 600% in the last five years.

Working with the job site Indeed.com. the Social Media Influence report researched online job listings. It found more than 21,000 postings related to social media. In 2005, that number was in the low thousands.

Curtis Hougland, founder of the New York-based marketing and social media firm Attention, warns that just as social media hiring has picked up, the pool of qualified talent has failed to keep pace and the resulting imbalance of supply and demand is a sign of hiring inflation.

Hougland says that demand for social media skills in the corporate world has outstripped the supply of candidates with training in communications and the analytical skills to track the effectiveness of a media campaign. He says this void has been filled by a burgeoning workforce of self-proclaimed social media experts, some of whom are qualified, but many are not.

Hiring for social media jobs started picking up steam in about 2005, though it still constitutes only a small percentage of overall post-college job placements. New York University's Trudy Steinfeld, director of the university's office of career services, says only a few students, 1 to 2%,  take jobs in social media specifically, but that those numbers have been increasing.

She says more often, companies looking to fill social media jobs, actually look even younger, asking student interns to chart their new media course. That can be a dangerous strategy, says Bernhard Warner, director of Custom Communication, the London-based consultancy that publishes Social Media Influence.

That hasn't stopped recent graduates from adding Facebook and Foursquare to the skills section of their resumes. Nor has it stopped colleges from promoting social media classes or even adding a Master's degree in social media.

There are several levels of expertise within the social media profession. Some of the more common positions include the community manager - who oversee a company's online communities; the analyst or strategist -- who builds and monitors social media campaigns; the product developer -- who is responsible for keeping the company's software up to date; the editor or publisher -- who oversees content and the brand; and the executive -- a rare position, usually filled by a public relations professional.

Typically, companies hire some combination of these positions. The field also stays along the edges of customer service, IT, public relations, marketing and sales, according to the Social Media Influence report.

It can be hard to separate those with legitimate qualifications for a social media manager from those who pretend to have the appropriate skills. It presents a serious challenge for hiring managers, especially those unfamiliar with social media. In a field less than five years old, can anyone claim to be an expert?

And then there's the question, how long will this last. Social media careers may not even exist 10 years from now. After all, isn't social media evolving into a skill set, not a profession?

Remember the dot-com boom-and-bust? After the bubble burst, Internet companies were left with an oversupply of programmers, which had been the hot job of the day. But you rarely hear about programmers going hungry.

Maybe we shouldn't be cheering so much over the recent tax deal that -- among other things -- extends the Bush tax cuts.

Robert Weiner, the former chief of staff of the House Select Committee on Aging, and policy analyst Jonathan Battaglia claim the tax deal is a major threat to the solvency of Social Security.

Hastening insolvency

They charge the primary threat would come if the new Social Security payroll tax holiday, which reduces the match employees pay from six percent to four percent of salary, is made permanent. If that happens, they say, 14 years would be removed from the life of the social security program. They claim the program will become insolvent by 2023 instead of 2037.

In a recent editorial, they wrote: "The new philosophy in Congress seems to be 'once a cut, always a cut.' When the payroll tax holiday expires in a year, Republicans will insist on keeping it, just as they did with the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy."

The two say there had been an opportunity to avoid this if Congress had adopted an amendment to the tax bill that would have replaced changes in payroll taxes with a one-year credit to provide tax relief to businesses.

But instead, say Weiner and Battaglia, Congress "broke down the firewall of separate Social Security funding and gave it to general revenue to help business."

Scientists are seeking ways to detect the earliest stages of Alzheimer's disease, since harmful changes may be taking place in the brain years before symptoms appear.

Now, researchers report that a blood test detecting a specific protein in blood samples from cognitively normal older people may reflect the levels of beta-amyloid protein in the brain-- a hallmark of the disease.

Findings of the study, supported in part by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), may eventually lead to a blood test that helps predict risk for Alzheimer's disease and who may be a good candidate for participating in clinical trials.

"Recent advances in imaging and biomarkers that help track the onset and progression of Alzheimer's disease show promise for early detection of the disease process, and for tracking the effectiveness of early interventions," said National Institute on Aging (NIA) Director Richard J. Hodes, M.D. "This is critically important in streamlining and conducting trials more efficiently so that we can find out about possible therapies that much sooner."

Protein study

Using proteomics technology, a method of studying hundreds of proteins from a small blood sample, the researchers analyzed blood samples of 57 older and symptom-free volunteers to determine whether specific proteins were associated with amyloid burden in the brain.

They measured brain amyloid using PET (positron emission tomography) scans with Pittsburgh Compound B, a tracer that binds to amyloid plaques. The volunteers are participating in the NIA's Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA), America's longest-running scientific study of human aging.

The researchers found the amount of a specific protein called apolipoprotein E, or ApoE, in the blood samples was strongly associated with the level of beta amyloid in the brain. Those with high blood levels of the protein had significantly greater deposits of amyloid in the medial temporal lobe, the region of the brain important to memory function.

'Intriguing' results

"These results are especially intriguing as this protein is made by the APOE gene, the most robust genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer's," said Madhav Thambisetty, M.D., Ph.D., of the Intramural Research Program atNIA, the lead author on the study. Late-onset Alzheimer's is the most common form of the disease and occurs around age 65 or later.

He now plans to test these findings in serial blood samples collected every year in BLSA volunteers to determine how changing blood levels of ApoE protein may relate to pathological changes in the brain over time.

"If the results are equally positive, we may be able to develop a blood test that provides a less invasive, inexpensive method that helps to detect the early pathological changes of Alzheimer's disease," he said.

The study appears in the Dec. 20, 2010, issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

Back in September, we told you about new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rules aimed at debt consolidation companies. The rules were designed to clamp down on scam artists who dominate the debt consolidation industry. Well, it seems some of those so-called debt relief scoundrels have figured out a way around the rules.

The FTC imposed new rules on September 27, 2010 that banned debt-fixers from engaging in telemarketing that misrepresented their services, such as promising to cut your debt in half or charging fees before services are delivered.

Apparently, some of the debt consolidation companies are still charging those upfront fees. According to the FTC, which is responsible for regulating telemarketers, the debt settlement companies are supposed to first negotiate with a customer's creditors to whittle down the amounts owed, and then get paid for their services. Instead, many of those firms continue to collect fees amounting to thousands of dollars without making even a dent in the customer's credit card balance.

Chris Viale, CEO of Cambridge Credit Counseling, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group, says that intead of complying with the new rules, the majority of debt settlement companies are evading them and doing everything they can to continue charging advance fees and misleading consumers.

Cambridge Credit Counseling is one of a dozen nonprofit debt counselors that sent a letter to the FTC warning them about this situation.

The advocate groups say debt settlement firms are targeting prospective customers via text message, Skype, Internet chats, or setting up in-person meetings claiming that these marketing techniques don't fall under U.S. telemarketing regulations. The advocates also warn that debt-fixers may pose as law firms or may hire attorneys, since lawyers are exempted from the rules.

Evan Zullow, an attorney in the FTC's division of financial practices, says he's aware that companies are looking for loopholes and that the FTC is monitoring the industry to make sure that what they're doing actually meets the exception. He added that this alleged practice of baiting prospects with text messages and getting the consumer to make the initial call, will not exempt them from the FTC rules.

Zullow explains that whether a debt settler's ad is on TV, radio or text, if the ad prompts a consumer to call, the companies are not allowed to charge advance fees.

Chris Viale of Cambridge Credit Counseling told CNN that one of his organization's staffers received recently a text that asked the staffer to call to speak with a credit analyst. When the staffer called back, the rep asked if his debt totaled more than $10,000 and then transferred him to a company it claimed was a law firm that would charge a "retainer" for legal services. That retainer is basically an upfront fee.

Just weeks after the FTC rules banning deceptive practices went into effect, the North Carolina Attorney General sued the Consumer Law Group of Boca Raton, Florida accusing it of being a debt relief company posing as a law firm. It reportedly collected $2.6 million in fees from more than 3,000 consumers in North Carolina.

Another way to evade regulation is for debt settlement companies to move their operations offshore, similar to online gambling sites in that operate out of the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica or Panama. There are reports many debt fixing companies are now based in Bermuda.

When we think of some of the great inventions of the past 100 years, we think of breakthroughs in computer science, energy, and health care. And one would figure many of the inventions took place in California's Silicon Valley and Stamford, or among the scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, better known as MIT and possibly even around such futuristic companies as GE which is headquartered in Connecticut.

You probably wouldn't consider such states as Utah or Oregon to be boiling pots of invention, but they are. In fact, according to the Kauffman Foundation, which claims to be the world's largest foundation devoted to entrepreneurship, these two states generate the most independent inventor patents per capita than any others.

In fact, Utah produces 22.1 patents per million people which is nearly one-and-a-half times more than number two state Oregon, which had 14.4 patents per million.

Michael O'Malley, communications director of Utah Science Technology and Research (USTAR) Initiative, an economic development group, says it's due to Utah's taxes and light regulation, which make it "business-friendly" and the kind of state that encourages innovation.

He says it USTAR Technology Commercialization Grant program promotes cooperation between entrepreneurs and faculty at research universities in the state. USTAR has provided grants to 76 projects, which have helped spark 27 new patents and applications.

Inventors in Utah are active in the biomedical, information technology, energy (conventional and alternative), and homeland security industries.

As for what makes Oregon so inventive, it has a reputation for being a cool place for the young, hip and smart people to live. David Chen, chairman of the Oregon Innovation Council, a state business development group, says highly educated young people are attracted by what they perceive to be the lifestyle and culture of the community. He adds that they in turn contribute to a creative and innovation-based economy.

Of course, the state's natural resources and strong high-tech sector also play a role. The offices of giants like Intel and Hewlett-Packard bring thousands of tech-minded folks to the state. So it shouldn't be a surprise that Oregon generates so many patents in areas like nanotechnology, material sciences, sustainable and natural products, medicine, biology, and advanced adhesives.

In the early part of the decade, Oregon started encouraging its companies and universities to work together more closely, sharing equipment and cooperating to develop intellectual property.

Chen says the move "really paid off" said Chen, allowing the state to gain critical mass as an innovator beyond its size.

After Utah and Oregon come California, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Number three, California, which has 11.3 patents per million people. After all, it is the home to Silicon Valley and tech leaders like Apple and Google, along with renowned research universities like Stanford.

With its relaxed lifestyle and beautiful weather, California is simply an attractive state to anyone including inventors. Many patents are coming out of the IT and social media fields, but medical devices, biotech, and wireless communication also generate a lot of innovation.

Tim Gerrity, director of the Alliance for the Commercialization of Technology, a business development nonprofit, says one of his clients developed patented technology aimed at medical and military users that translates language in real time. You can speak English, for example, and the system, created by a company called Fluential, lets your words come out in Spanish on a user's headset.

Number four, Massachusetts, produces 9.8 million patents per million people. But when you consider this is home for Harvard, MIT, Tufts, and UMass, you would wonder why it wasn't even higher. The highly-educated population attracts a lot of investment money. Massachusetts leads the nation in venture capital per capita, according to a study from the John Adams Innovation Institute, a state economic development organization.

And coming in at number 5, is Connecticut, with 9.4 patents per million people. Connecticut's corporations and universities attract smart, educated workers. General Electric, Xerox, United Technologies and Pitney Bowes are just a few of the name-brand companies with offices in the state. And of course, Connecticut is also home to Yale, Connecticut College and Wesleyan. Connecticut also gets spillover talent because of its proximity to New York and Boston. Biotech and medical devices are key areas for innovation in the state.

Some 647,000 minimum wage earners in seven states will get a raise next year, according to the National Employment Law Project (NELP), an employment advocacy group .

Those states are Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. Granted, the increases aren't going to be much: they range between nine and 12 cents an hour. But in these times, every penny counts.

The state of Washington will raise minimum wages the most -- by 12 cents -- bringing the hourly rate to $8.67 and adding an extra $20 a month to paychecks. Colorado will hike its minimum wage by 11 cents, while Arizona, Montana, Ohio and Oregon will raise it by 10 cents and Vermont will boost its minimum wage by nine cents.

Left out?

But what about the other 43 states?

It seems only 10 states automatically adjust their minimum wage levels each year for inflation. Florida, Missouri and Nevada which also require annual cost-of-living adjustments are leaving the state minimum wage rates unchanged at $7.25 per hour.

And the remaining 40 states and the District of Columbia that have no automatic adjustment must pass legislation to increase the minimum wage. According to NELP, none of those states have plans for increases at this time.

The advocacy group is trying to get more states to implement the automatic adjustments, saying that even the smallest increases in pay help workers keep up with the cost of living and benefits state economies.NELP points out that right now, one in seven people in the U.S. relies on food stamps.The number could decrease significantly if more people were able to survive on their income.

Struggling

Christine Owens, executive director of NELP, says the small increases mean hundreds of thousands of minimum wage earners such as health aides, child care workers, fast-food restaurant workers and retail clerks will be in better shape to put food on their tables, provide for their families and keep a roof over their heads.

Three-quarters of minimum wage earners are 20 years old or older and more than 60 percent are women.

She adds that in addition to helping working families, raising wages helps sustain consumer spending and that will help spur economic recovery.

Automatic increases

NELP says 17 states and the District of Columbia have minimum wages above the federal level of $7.25 and points out that Congress has  increased the federal minimum wage just three times in the last 30 years.

But the group says, if automatic adjustments based on inflation had been made beginning in 1968, the federal minimum wage would currently be above $10.

As reported in the Los Angeles Times on December 20, some researchers are suggesting cutting carbohydrates is the key to reversing obesity, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and hypertension.

Dietary fat has traditionally played the role of "public enemy No. 1" and consumption of carbohydrates has increased over the years with the help of a 30-year-old government-mandated message to cut fat.

Today individuals -- on average -- eat 250 to 300 grams of carbs a day, accounting for about 55 percent of their caloric intake; the most conservative recommendations say they should eat half that amount.

Differentiating carbs

But the answer may not be to cut all carbs completely. Some health experts are urging the public not to paint all carbohydrates with the same negative brush.

"You just cannot lump all carbs into a single category," said Tom Griesel, coauthor (along with his sister Dian) of the forthcoming book "TurboCharged," which outlines a new approach to reducing body fat as the key to weight loss.

According to Tom Griesel, carbs like fruits and vegetables are in a class by themselves."This is because they are truly unrefined and contain fiber along with a high moisture content in their raw or lightly cooked state, and contain many readily available and usable nutrients. Because of this, they do not have the same insulin effect of any other refined or 'complex' carb."

He says eliminating or reducing fruits and vegetables from the diet is always a mistake because then people tend to gravitate towards "inferior types of carbs."

Concentrated carbs

"Other types of carbs are the problem," said Dian Griesel, "and they are what should be eliminated or severely restricted in one's diet. Other than calories, they contain almost no nutritional value. This is why they are almost always fortified."

This group includes all sugar, particularly high fructose corn syrup; refined foods and drinks. Anything packaged, all grain products -- refined or unrefined -- can also be lumped in.

"All these are concentrated carbohydrates -- the most densely caloric of any 'foods' -- and even small quantities will cause blood sugar levels to rise to problematic levels and subsequently result in unhealthy insulin spikes," she said. "People do not realize that consuming even a small amount will have this effect."

Both authors note that our bodies cannot store much glycogen, and so this excess sugar is almost all stored as body fat. This happens even if we have way too much body fat already.

Unburnable

The presence of insulin makes fat burning -- using fat for energy -- impossible. So even small amounts of these "other carbs" at the very least keep people fat, and most likely fatter. Reducing the amount consumed is not the answer; eliminating them is.

"So we do not have a carbohydrate problem; we have a wrong kind of carbohydrate problem," Tom Griesel says. "This is a critical point to understand."

A separate problem, observes his sister, concerns the substitution of proteins and fats for the restricted or eliminated carbohydrates.

Although not as obvious, she says, too much protein is just as bad as not enough.

"You only need enough to take care of repair and maintenance of existing lean body mass (LBM) and possibly building new LBM," she said.

Protein problem

According to Dian Griesel, too much protein will either get used as fuel (although not efficiently) or get stored as fat. Plus, processing excess protein puts unnecessary stress on the body.

"There is an optimal amount of protein that is based on an individual's current LBM and activity levels which is generally about 10 percent of daily calories," she said.

The right fat

The Griesels say fat is the body's preferred energy source, drawn either from diet or available existing body fat. However, choosing the correct dietary fat is of utmost importance.

Most refined fats, vegetable oils, are problematic in anything other than small quantities.

Trans-fats, they say, are very bad and should be avoided entirely, because they cause major metabolic problems and may remain in the body for more than two years. Trans-fats are in almost all processed foods, including vegetable oils.

"The only healthy fats are the ones that come naturally in animal products like organic, wild or grass-fed meats; fish and eggs; and even dairy, along with nuts, olives, avocados," says Tom Griesel.

And as for oils, since there are no natural ones, they should be used sparingly as they are all refined.

When assessing the relative effects of fats vs. carbohydrates, it pays to carefully study what dietitians know about their effects on the body -- and choose our foods accordingly.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who last week praised a new federal ban on drop side cribs, is now warning parents and caregivers about bumper pads -- the soft pillow-like objects used along side of cribs.

Madigan said immediate action is necessary in light of the number of infant deaths and injuries attributed to the pads.

The attorney general said she issued the warning to alert caregivers of this danger to prevent infant deaths. Babies might suffocate or be strangled if they roll against a crib bumper, press their faces against the bumper, wedge their heads between the pad and the mattress or crib side, or if their necks get wrapped by the tie that secures the bumper to the crib.

Known problem

Her warning follows an investigative report published in the Chicago Tribune that found federal regulators have known for years that bumper pads pose a suffocation hazard for babies but failed to warn parents. Bedding manufacturers and their trade group have been alerted to the issue but have yet to take action, the Tribune reported.

"We know that children have tragically died in their cribs because of these bumper pads," Madigan said. "Parents and caregivers should remove these bumpers to prevent tragedy."

Since 2008, the National Center for Child Death Review has received reports of 14 infants who have died from suffocation caused by crib bumpers. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American SIDS Institute and the Canadian Health Department have all urged parents not to use crib bumpers.

Call for action

Attorney General Madigan said she has partnered with the American Academy of Pediatrics, Kids in Danger, the American SIDS Institute, SIDS of Illinois and the Canadian Health Department to alert caregivers of the danger crib bumpers pose.

She also sent a letter to the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) demanding the group release results from its study into the dangers of crib bumper pads. A study commissioned by JPMA to investigate these dangers has yet to be published while the group internally reviews the report. Madigan urged the association to release the study immediately, so the proper authorities can take any necessary steps to prevent further harm.

"The JPMA needs to release results of its study and implement effective measures to remove these bumpers from the marketplace," Madigan said. "Manufacturers and distributors of these pads must take responsibility for the dangers posed by these products. We must work together to educate parents and caregivers and ensure cribs across Illinois and nationwide are safe for babies."

The Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association is a national trade organization that represents companies across the country that manufacture, import and distribute infant products like cribs, car seats and strollers.