Eric the Red

Bank fees are in the news, with many banks testing out monthly fees for debit card use.

The best way to avoid such fees on a national scale is for customers of the fee-charging banks to shut their accounts due to the fees. As of posting, Wells-Fargo, Suntrust and Bank of America are planning to roll out monthly fees as high as $5/mo for debit card use.

If you are looking to make a change, here are some banks that do not plan to charge such fees as of this post date:

ING Direct
PNC Bank
Schwab
Ally
BB&T

Internet banks typically have low overhead, and are naturally lower cost. The downside is, checks have to be deposited by mail or electronically.

Other banks limit the number paper checks customers can write per month or require monthly direct deposits.

Disclaimer: listings are made on my own initiative, and I make no claims as to the quality or correctness of this information. Use at your own risk.

Hi All,

I’ve decided to post my ideas for a bailout of the auto industry (GM, Ford, Chrysler – all big union employers which are big Democrat contributors):

1. GM, Ford and Chrysler all file Chapter 11.
2. The Government provides low interest loans so the Big 3 can continue operations, pay employees and pay suppliers and produce cars.
3. GM, Ford and Chrysler can re-work their labor contracts such that they are sustainable.

Folks, these companies have been losing money for the last 4-5 years. They were able to stay ahead because of the sales of large trucks and SUVs. Now, they are unable to manufacture products they can sell at a profit. This is why the cost of Big 3 benefits adds $1500 per car while Toyota/Honda only pay $500 per car.

Thays why UAW bosses are shaking in their over-fed fat asses.

I give you, from the campaign of Barak Obama via Rev. Jeremiah Wright:

The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing ‘God Bless America.’ No, no, no, God damn America, that’s in the Bible for killing innocent people.”God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme.”

I’m not going to editorilize too much here, but it seems as though the Democrat reliance on race-baiting divisiveness is coming home to roost!

As the BratBoy Ship continues to burn, a question remains: who is Rick Altmann?

I think this scam continues to go forward. Think about it folks….why do you get defrauded – and allow others to be defrauded – and not involve law enforcement (think of the amounts of money lost here) – unless you are equally guilty of fraud? Better to try sweeping the mess under the rug…they better hope the rug is big enough!

RIAA nazis are finally heading to trial, against a divorced mother of five. Thats right: after almost 15,000 lawsuits and settlements just under $5,000, someone has finally decided to fight. Their willingness to litigate doesnt surprise me in light of their unsucessful efforts to prosecute 14-yr old girls.

RIAA executives and Attorneys, waiting for trial.

The defendant is likely to challenge the accuracy of the RIAA’s methods in tracking those eeeeeeeeeevile downloaders. Since lawsuits have done nothing to stop illegal downloads of crappy music, why are they wasting their time?

And why don’t consumers care about the outcome? I don’t condone illegal downloading, but I am concerned about the spread of over-reaching Digital Restrictions Management Technology (DRM), like the virus released by Sony earlier this year that threatened national security. The broadcast flag is another example.

I’d like to see a boycott and lots of angry letters to our grand elected officials.

I have posted clips of individual speakers at the Sheehan rally at the Memorial Chapel on Campus here at UMCP. I will try to refrain from commentary, leaving it up to the reader to review the clips and make up his or her own mind. I will post the complete hour-plus of audio I have. Please be aware, that each clip is approximately 4M in size.

The Cindy Sheehan rally at the University of Maryland, College Park was sponsored by the Democaracy Collaborative, College Democrats at UMD, Global Communities, UM Votes and the Peace Forum. Sheehan visited the University at the behest of left wing activist and 2006 Maryland Senate hopeful Kevin Zeese. The emcee of the event was UMCP Lionel Bauman Professor of Political Economy Gar Alperovitz. A list of Mr. Alperovitzs publishing can be found on his website.

The first speaker at the event was Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development Shibley Telhami. Mr. Telhami is a modern day Neville Chamberlain, who seems to see two things: the world as-is, and what the world could be. He either fails to see the immense chasm seperating the two, or believes that it can be bridged with words all the time. Well Mr. Telhami, appeasement politics have no credibility in any age, let alone one ruled by cultural rifts that drive people to kill. Near the end of the event, he spoke to OF Jay and stated that the liberation that occured in Afghanistan post-9/11 could have occurred by strictly diplomatic means, making the war there unnecessary. As if a nearly prehistoric religious government will give women western-style rights through democratic means…….Perhaps he, like I’m sure the rest of the hippie brookings morons, fails to remember Col. Qaddaffis declaration that he would do whatever the Americans want, because of what he saw in Iraq. Yes, Mr. Telhami, a stalemated peace a-la-Korea is EXACTLY what we need here….

Mr. Telhami is seated in the middle. Mr. Alperovitz is seated to his left. Ms. Sheehan is speaking. To listen to Mr. Telhamis address, see the Telhami audio file.

The second speaker made me think that this whole thing was just a political campaign ad and recruitment drive. Mr Zeese, who was a spokesman for the Nader campaign in 2004, balsted Republicans and Democrats alike, over everything from an “unjust” economy to the failures of the government in New Orleans and their handling of the situation in Iraq. In a typical leftist fashion, Mr. Zeese fails to point out any solutions to all of these things, besides electing him so he can build a coalition. While he spoke, his minions circulated sign-up sheets thoughout the crowd so they could recruit volunteers.

To listen to Mr. Zeeses address, see the Zeese audio file.

Finally, Ms. Sheehan spoke. She commented on Casey as he was as a child and on his military service. She remarked how he enlisted, was discharged after fulfilling his duty, re-enlisted and was later killed needlessly. Interestingly, Ms. Sheehan stated that her son did not wish to return to Iraq. Why, I wonder, did he re-enlist to begin with? No matter. I had wanted to ask Ms. Sheehan what motivated her to begin her “national tour” to Washington, but she did not take questions.

To listen to Ms. Sheehans speech, see the Sheehan audio file.

My two cents: this event was organized for the political benefit of Mr. Zeese and his left wing agenda. His firebrand political rant-n-recruit efforts makes Ms. Sheehan look like some sort of wind-nut. It is obvious that Ms. Sheehan does no honor to the memory of her son by attacking something he obviously believed in. Her efforts do no honor to her son and even less to all the other men and women who lost their lives in Iraq. Casey served his country, and decided to do so again on his own free will. While it is very regrettable that he was killed, Ms. Sheehan’s message is obscured by the fact that she stands alone in her opinion. Otherwise, there would be over a thousand gold star moms due to the war in Iraq.

And now a message to Ms Sheehan: after attacking the beliefs of your son, and losing the rest of your family for the sake of being a tool for the far-fringe-left, what now?

You may download audio of the entire event here:
MP3 format, approx. 18 M
WMA format, approx. 19 M
Higher quality MP3, approx. 40 M

College Park’s latest Dr. Ruth wannabe is a sexual economist. Her name is Emily Apatov, and she is a junior Government and Politics major at the University of Maryland, College Park. Her motto: “I demand, you supply – on demand.” Like many American women, she is the price-maker when it comes to sex. Like increasing numbers of my female peers, she has been screwed by more guys than all of our moms put together.

I’m sure that my half dozen or so readers agree that this is why gay men are glad to be gay and why terrorists want to slink into our bedrooms at night to saw off our heads. It is also why 86% of all STD cases occur in the 15 – 29 year old population block. I speak, of course, of the “Me, me, me first and me, only!” attitude that has crept its way into the minds of womyn kind. They have become the ultimate pretenders – looking to mankind for sex, money and “fun”, while pining away for some Hallmark-inspired concept of romance, demanding sacrifice from their partner while offering little to none of their own. For some reason, its great to see womyn-kind exercises its liberation from mankind by selling itself to feel physically fulfilled.

Ms. Apatov immediately brought to mind Clinton Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders, who was forced to resign after her efforts to teach “proper” masturbatory techniques to first graders (I may be crazy, but I’M letting MY 6-yr olds masturbate however they choose). But Ms. Elders at least equated sex and love. Ms. Apatov equated sex with money, and she’s priced it to sell. Good for her, and all womyn kind: now they finally have ONE talent. If only they could learn something that doesn’t require flexibility….