The Old Woman in the Shoe

Clark Howard Ripoff Alert - Your Bank?

There is a scandal breaking involving one of the nation’s largest banks, Wachovia. Wachovia is a well-respected bank, based in North Carolina, and a huge presence nationally. They may be the fourth or fifth largest bank in the United States. They have been involved in a criminal enterprise that little inklings of it came up last year when I first mentioned it then, and now there are smoking gun documents showing that Wachovia was involved aiding and embedding criminal activity, stealing from people’s checking accounts, especially senior citizens. The New York Times has done more work on this than any other newspaper in the country and has great detail in a series of stories about the criminal activity at Wachovia involving the company aiding and embedding criminal activity.

Let me tell you what they have been doing, Wachovia has been assisting criminal rings that have been stealing money from peoples checking accounts by presenting drafts against people’s accounts. A number of Wachovia’s internal documents have come to light, showing that Wachovia employees knew they were dealing with criminal enterprises, but were participating because the fee income to Wachovia was so large from helping the criminals steal that Wachovia jumped in with both feet.

Now, I’ve got to share something with you, I am bashing myself at the same time as I’m telling you this because I own stock in Wachovia. There are a small number of companies that I own stock in, most everything I do is through various Index funds and mutual funds, just a very small handful stocks and so I am one of the guilty parties, I guess. Well actually, as a stockholder I call myself the guilty party, but I just want full disclosure to you so you know that as a stockholder I am embarrassed and outraged that a company that I would own stock in is involved now in this criminal activity.

Full Article Here

Apparently nine banks are guilty of doing this but so far only Wachovia has been named but I am sure the rest will come in the future. I hope all of you that this has happened to can recoup your money. know Clark Howard is the best place to go to keep abreast these changes. You can listen to him live from WSB Radio on pod-casts, read his newsletter, visit the site archives and he also has a cable television show though it may only be local thus far (but that needs to change he is a priceless commodity).

His motto is: Save more, spend less and avoid rip-offs. I honestly think he is invaluable to any person, no matter what fiscal level for anything that involves money or consumer issues. Learn from Clark!

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The Duck Dog Dilemma

In Loving Memory of Sarge

Sarge was a Springer Spaniel mix that looked much like the one in the image below.  Like the dog pictured below and like the dog in the image below he was a inmate at the animal shelter.

Picture courtesy of Newberry County Animal Adoptions

My mother adopted him when he was just a puppy some eleven years ago with a big chain around his neck.  He was the very image of a pound puppy and she took him home with her to fill the empty pen that once almost housed my dog, Sheba.

He lived in the house, the, yard, on a chain and in the pen and was given a very good life by my mother and our family but sadly he passed away this passed Weekend and Mt Brother in Law did the honors of burying.  I am quite sure my mother will plant dozens of daffodils on the site to commemorate his passing and the joy he brought to our family.

But now we are left with the duck.

The duck was an Easter gift I got my mother last year.  I had gotten her one the previous Easter but at the time she was unsure of whether to not to allow the dog and the duck in the same pen so Sarge became an indoor our door house dog and the duck took over his pen.  He was a dyed duck with a gimp head, though my mother denies this imperfection, he defiantly was gimpy.  One eye was always looking at the sky and it was this imperfection that caused me to choose this duck from the pet shop from dozens of others.

She named her duck Emeril and hung out with him every day.  She told me he was the best gift I ever got her every one was happy until disaster struck.

My mother lives out in the woods on her personal ponderosa and we believe a predator got in the pen and killed sweet Emeril.  It was a very sad time for everyone but she acquired a covered smallish pen that was covered and requested I get her a duck for easter again.

This duck lived in the small pen and sarge moved back out to the huge pen in the back yard because he had to many problems to be in the house anymore because he was deaf and blind.  This was not a cruel move because he could not run into things in the pen as he could in the house and had a huge shed to protect him from the elements.

Most  would think all was good at this point but not my mother because she is a true ani,al lover and felt the small pen was just not enough room for the duck when the big pen had a swimming pool in it for sarge to drink from and lay in if it were hot  and the huge shed and much more room. So because sarge was deaf as well as blind she movced the duck in with sarge which ended up being a fantastic arrangement!

You see Sarge had a very hard time fining his water and his food because he was deaf and blind and no longer cared much too groom himself but the duck to care of that.  The duck would spend hours a day cleaning his dog and when my mother brought out their food the duck would first herd Sarge to the food then water with that done the duck would eat .

We still think this is one of the most incredible relationships we have ever encountered in outr life times and it went on for just shy of a year, until now.

Now with Sarge gone the duck is miserable and we do not know what to do.  It would be very hard to got and get a dog that would not hurt the duck no matter how good he or she seems to be in the pound they have instincts to kill and with Sarge the reason the friendship happened may have been need and the fact he was mostly deaf and blind.  I do not think we can duplicate that other than by giving princess my animal loving dog to my mother which would cause my boys upset as well.

I suggested a duckling since it is now Easter time again and I am sure they will have one that is a bit older and less saleable because his big feathers are coming in (others buy for cute) but because of this the new duck will not be as fragile as one a few weeks younger. We are not sure they would get along but the poor duck is miserable and alone he is much more likely to fall victim to a predator.  I even though a gosling might work because they are pretty good defenders and since it would be a baby they might be friends too.  Do let me know what you think!

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