At their peak in February 2007, U.S. and foreign-owned companies sold automobiles in America at an annual pace of 16.6 million units.

Last month, their sales pace plunged to 9.3 million, a decline of
44 percent (including the best performers like Toyota and Honda).

Again, as with housing, we saw a tiny uptick in the prior month, hailed by high officials as a “sign” of improvement. Yet, as with housing, it was weaker than all prior “signs of a turn” over the past 26 months – each of which was followed by a sharper plunge.

Any lights at the end to Detroit’s dark tunnel? Only those of three speeding freight trains:

• The Chrysler bankruptcy, despite all the talk of a “quick and easy” procedure, is not only frightening U.S. car buyers away from the Chrysler brand, it’s also scaring them from other U.S. and foreign makers. And it’s not only hurting auto dealers and parts suppliers, but also smacking auto lenders. Meanwhile …
  
  
• GMAC, the nation’s largest auto lender, is already in its death throes, with the government now estimating it could suffer additional losses of a whopping $9.2 billion over the next two years. Will the Obama administration bail it out? Perhaps. But it would still have to downsize its operations, throwing another monkey wrench into General Motors’ sales. Meanwhile …
  
  
• General Motors is now sinking even more rapidly toward bankruptcy than it was just a few months ago. According to last week’s New York Times column, G.M., Leaking Cash, Faces Bigger Chance of Bankruptcy …

“Even after receiving $15.4 billion in federal loans, General Motors is once again on the brink of financial collapse.

“The automaker’s first-quarter earnings released Thursday showed that G.M. was losing more money and sales than it was in late December, when the government began its bailout.

“With its cash reserves down to the bare minimum and its revenue plunging, G.M. seems more certain each day to be heading toward a bankruptcy filing. …

“The company’s chief financial officer, Ray Young, called the drop … ‘a staggering number,’ and said consumers were showing increasing concern about G.M. products because of the potential for bankruptcy.”

General Motors’ CFO added: “Once you start losing revenues, you get yourself into a vicious cycle from which you cannot recover.”

Sound familiar? It should. It’s the same vicious cycle I’ve been warning about for many moons – falling revenues prompting mass layoffs, and mass layoffs driving down revenues.

Storm #4
Biggest Decline in Consumer
Credit Ever Recorded!

Any economist counting on the consumer to get things going again had better go back for some more Rorschach tests …

… because you don’t need a therapist to interpret the image depicted in my chart below. It shows very clearly how the nation’s lenders are dumping consumers and making a mad dash for the exits:

In the third quarter of 2007, banks dished out $44 billion in net new loans on credit cards, autos, and other consumer credit (excluding mortgages).

Then, just 12 months later, in the third quarter of 2008, that giant credit machine collapsed to a meager $8.7 billion, a decline of 80 percent!

But the collapse didn’t end there. In last year’s fourth quarter, not only did new credit disappear, but lenders actually pulled out of the consumer credit market to the tune of $19.5 billion.

And they did it AGAIN in the first quarter of this year, pulling out another $12.2 billion.

It is the biggest collapse in consumer credit ever recorded.

Now do you see why I’m recommending a shrink for any economist fixated on a recovery?

They know how important credit is. They know that few Americans have the savings to splurge on consumer goods. And they’re tired of knowing that a recovery is virtually impossible without credit.

And yet here we are, with the biggest-ever collapse in consumer credit – and they’re still searching for the “signs”!

Storm #5
Big Banks!

Whether the government lets big banks fail or not, the impact on the economy is similar: A massive contraction of bank loans and credit, sabotaging attempts to revive credit flows and stimulate the economy.

Reason: These banks must build capital quickly, and the only realistic way to do so is by cutting back on their lending.

The official stress test results released Thursday on 19 U.S. bank holding companies were supposed to help determine exactly how much capital they’ll need, and the total came to $75 billion.

That’s no small amount. But the stress tests will go down in history as the world’s most elaborate effort to paint lipstick on a pig.

To show you why, first, let me provide our analysis based on data from TheStreet.com Ratings, the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the banks’ first-quarter financial statements. Then I’ll show you why I believe the official results grossly underestimate how much capital the banks will need and how much pressure they’ll be under to slash lending.

We find that …

• Seven institutions – JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup, Wells Fargo & Co., Goldman Sachs Group, GMAC LLC, SunTrust Banks, Inc., and Fifth Third Bancorp – are at risk of failure and may have to cut back lending dramatically to stay alive.
  
  
• Eight institutions – Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, PNC Financial Services Group, US Bancorp, BB&T Corp., Regions Financial Corp., American Express Co., and Keycorp – are borderline, meaning they could be at risk of failure with worsening economic or financial conditions and will also have to cut back on lending.
  
  
• Only four institutions – MetLife, Bank of NY Mellon Corp., Capital One Financial Corp., and State Street Corp. – appear to have adequate capital to withstand worsening conditions. But even they may voluntarily cut back their lending in an attempt to maintain their current financial health.

Moreover, of the $11.6 trillion in assets held by the 19 institutions, those likely to cut back dramatically represent $6.56 trillion, or 56.5 percent, of the assets; while borderline institutions hold $4 trillion, or 34.7 percent.

Only $1 trillion – just 8.8 percent – of the assets are held by institutions with adequate capital, based on our analysis.

In contrast, the government is trying to persuade us that most have plenty of capital … the rest can easily raise it … and none will have to slash lending in a way that would sabotage the prospects for an economic recovery.

So what explains this vast discrepancy between the official conclusions and ours?

The simple answer: Three unmistakable deceptions in the government’s stress tests …

First deception: The assumptions.

To come up with estimates of future losses, the government assumed what they call “a more adverse” scenario. But their more adverse scenario is actually less adverse than the current reality!

Hard to believe? Then just look at their own numbers in the chart the Fed published recently:

• Their “more adverse” scenario is predicated on the presumption that the GDP will contract no more than 3.3 percent this year. But in actuality, the GDP is already contracting at an annual pace of 6.1 percent!
  
  
• Their “more adverse” scenario also assumes that unemployment will average 8.9 percent this year. But unemployment has already reached 8.9 percent in April, and no one – not even economists fixated on recovery signs – is anticipating anything but a further rise.

Either they’re delusional. Or they’re cheating at solitaire.

Second deception: No mention of systemic risk!

The banking regulators have published two major white papers on the stress tests – “Design and Implementation” plus “Overview of Results.” However, in these papers, they have failed to even mention the greatest risk of all: systemic risk.

This is the risk that …

• A few key players in highly leveraged instruments like derivatives could default on their trades.
  
  
• These defaults could set off a series of failures, with the most severe impacts felt by banks that hold the largest share of the derivatives in the country.

This is the giant risk that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) wrote about in its landmark 1994 study, “Financial Derivatives: Actions Needed to Protect the Financial System,” warning of “a chain reaction of market withdrawals, possible firm failures, and a systemic crisis.”

This is the giant risk that triggered the collapse of Bear Sterns, the failure of Lehman Brothers, and the $180 billion bailout of America’s largest insurer, AIG.

It’s the giant risk that AIG executives themselves wrote about in their recent memorandum, “AIG: Is The Risk Systemic?,” warning of a “cascading impact on a number of life insurers already weakened by credit losses” … and “a chain reaction of enormous proportion.”

It’s the giant risk that the International Monetary Fund is most concerned about when it warns of another $3 trillion in global losses due to the banking crisis.

It’s the giant risk that prompted former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to literally drop to his knees last September, begging Congress for $700 billion in bailout funds for the banking industry.

Since that day, the U.S. economy has suffered the worst back-to-back GDP declines in over 50 years, burning the nation’s fuse even closer to a blow-up.

And yet, suddenly, in a massive undertaking that was supposed to accurately evaluate the banks’ exposure to these dangers, it’s also the giant risk that has been scrupulously scrubbed from 59 pages of official white papers, a half dozen press releases, plus multiple public pronouncements – all about the stress tests, all without a single mention of systemic risk.

This omission is both deliberate and unforgivable.

It means the stress tests have failed to fairly evaluate the credit exposure of each bank to defaults by their trading partners. And it means the tests are creating a false sense of security for investors and the public that can only lead to greater mistrust, more loss of confidence, even panic.

The omission is especially misleading for large banks that dominate the derivatives market … would be at ground zero in any meltdown … and would therefore be among the first to suffer massive losses.

The prime example: The OCC reports that, at year-end 2008, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) held $87.4 trillion in notional value derivatives, including $8.4 trillion in credit default swaps.

(To see for yourself, click here to download the OCC’s latest report; scroll down to page 22; and check out the top line “JPMorgan Chase Bank NA.” Note: The next to the last column “Total Credit Derivatives” is 99 percent made up of credit default swaps, according to the OCC.)

Why is this such a big problem? For several reasons:

• Although it’s cut back a bit, JPM still has 43.6 percent of all the derivatives held by all U.S. commercial banks, or $17 trillion more than Bank of America and Citibank combined. Among the 19 bank holding companies in the stress tests, that puts JPM closer to ground zero than any other bank.
  
  
• It’s well known that credit default swaps are the highest-risk sector of the derivatives market. And yet, in this sector, JPM has 52.8 percent of the total held by all U.S. commercial banks, or nearly double the total held by BofA and Citi. This puts JPM even closer to ground zero.

• JPM execs insist they’re smart and know how to handle their risks very neatly. But if that were the case, why did they suffer a whopping $2.5 billion loss in their credit default swaps in the fourth quarter? (OCC, page 27, Table 7, line 1, last column.)
  
  
• The OCC also reports that, for each dollar of capital, JPM still has $3.82 in total credit exposure. Mind you, that’s JPM’s exposure to just one kind of risk (defaults by trading partners) in just one kind of instrument (derivatives). In addition, JPM is also assuming market risks in derivatives plus a series of risks in its other investing and lending operations. (OCC, page 13, table at bottom of page, line 1, last column.)
  
  
• Despite all this, in their “more adverse” scenario, the banking regulators estimate JPMorgan Chase’s total “counterparty and trading losses” will not exceed $16.7 billion, a fraction of the true potential losses in a financial crisis.

With the fatal omission of systemic risk from their analysis, the government concludes that JPMorgan Chase is in good shape and does not need any additional capital.

The same omission leads to a similar conclusion for Goldman Sachs, despite the fact that Goldman has over $10 in total credit exposure per dollar of capital, or nearly triple the credit risk of JPMorgan Chase.

The only realistic conclusion: Both these institutions will need huge amounts of capital, driving them to cut back massively on new lending.

Systemic risk is the elephant in the room. Everyone knows it’s there. Everyone understands the dangers. But they’re afraid of the answers. So they dare not ask the questions.

The fundamental answer, though, is clear: Systemic risk is what drove the financial markets into a deep freeze seven months ago; and it was that storm which helped drive the economy into a tailspin.

Today, systemic risk is not gone. If anything, it’s far worse.

Third Deception: Improper influence.

In its white paper, the Federal Reserve admits that the stress tests were based, to a large extent, on each bank’s self-evaluation – not only for loan loss estimates that can be derived from past data, but also for the future performance of trading accounts, which can be far more subjective.

Moreover, each institution was allowed to appeal the final results, and several banks strenuously negotiated for more favorable grades. They even got regulators to accept their projections of future revenues, treating those future revenues almost as if they were cash in the kitty.

In contrast, we never permit the companies we evaluate to influence our evaluation process or our results. To do so would defeat the entire purpose of the exercise. But much like conflicted Wall Street rating agencies, that’s essentially what the bank regulators have done – from start to finish.

Put simply, the stress tests were too easy; the banks took the exams home with cheat sheets; and if they didn’t like their final grade, they could get the examiners to give them a better one.

Yet despite all these fudge factors, the government still estimates these institutions could suffer $600 billion in additional losses over the next two years.

And this is being portrayed as another “sign” of recovery?!

My view: We will have a recovery someday. But only AFTER we honestly recognize the grave mistakes of the past and own up to the hard sacrifices still ahead.

Until that happens, I’m staying the course, investing my own money in a way that protects me from the dangers and gives me an opportunity to profit from the next decline … which, by the way, promises to be the biggest of all.

If you want to follow along with me, check your inbox for an alert that I’ll soon be sending you personally – with the sender name “Martin D. Weiss, Ph.D.”

Good luck and God bless!

Martin

This investment news is brought to you by Money and Markets. Money and Markets is a free daily investment newsletter from Martin D. Weiss and Weiss Research analysts offering the latest investing news and financial insights for the stock market, including tips and advice on investing in gold, energy and oil. Dr. Weiss is a leader in the fields of investing, interest rates, financial safety and economic forecasting. To view archives or subscribe, visit http://www.moneyandmarkets.com.

Consumer confidence is a difficult thing to measure, but the latest Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) from Nationwide Building Society, which is based on a survey of consumer opinion, rates consumer confidence at its lowest in at least four years (the index did not exist before 2004).

The evidence is there: budget supermarkets are boasting their highest profits in years, sales of new cars have fallen 21% in a year, and more established High Street chains such as John Lewis and BHS have announced significant falls in profits. It would seem that consumers are becoming increasingly eager to save money where possible.

Consumer confidence and loan availabity

Traditionally, consumer confidence has primarily been a concern for providers of consumer goods and services. Banks and building societies, meanwhile, can sometimes benefit from reduced consumer confidence: when customers do not spend their money, it stays in their bank accounts, which provides funds for financial institutions to do business with. It also encourages taking out loans to finance more expensive purchases, which earns the lender interest.

However, with the uncertainty surrounding the financial sector at the moment, this situation could change. With a number of banks merging and others reporting large falls in profits, the old cliché of keeping savings under a mattress might not be such an exaggeration.

However, a spokesperson for Think Money said that savings are still very important – not only for financial security, but for the good of their lenders too. “Consumer confidence is important to lenders, because they too rely on continuous business,” she said. “If lots of customers withdraw their savings in a short period of time, the banks could be left with very little money to do anything with, meaning they would have little money left to fund loans and other forms of credit. In a worst-case scenario, they could even fail.

“Our advice to consumers is not to panic and to try to carry on as normal. Take confidence from the fact that lenders are still offering loans to customers, which they simply wouldn’t do if the money wasn’t there.

“The Government’s £50bn rescue plan, combined with the recent half-point base rate drop, will only serve to improve lenders’ ability to offer loans – it may just take a little longer to find the right deal.”

Free Guest post by loan and mortgage specialists www.ThinkMoney.com

If your looking for bargains, now is a good time to snatch them… I don’t think I need to say anything else.

I know where Minimum Wage is coming from. I grew up in a household with a far below average income, and while we may have done all right for ourselves, I grew up around people who existed in true poverty. Thankfully, I was able to take advantage of the great opportunities that life offered me – and the great foundation that my parents gave me as a person – and was able to find a better, financially healthy life where I could raise my children without a regular sense of necessity underlying day to day life.

But what can a person do if they’re in Minimum Wage’s situation? Here are the ten things I would do if I found myself only able to earn minimum wage.

1. Go rural.
It is far, far easier to make a living on minimum wage in a rural situation. There are many small towns where you can find a room to rent for $100 a month and a small apartment to rent for $200 a month. Yes, these really exist – I see them fairly regularly when I get out in the more rural areas of Iowa. Even better, these areas often have lots of jobs for minimum wage workers – I see lots of help wanted signs around these towns and notices inside of town halls and gas stations looking for workers.

2. Don’t drive.
A car is a giant money suck. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about it, if you’re working minimum wage, your car is killing you. Ditch the car – get whatever cash you can from it. Then choose a place to live where you can get to work by foot or by bicycle. In a small town, it’s pretty easy to reach any other place in the town (and many places in the nearby countryside) on foot or by bicycle, and it’s something that people often do to cut corners.

3. Find the free stuff.
In towns of any size, there are resources available for the impoverished, from free dinners at churches to food giveaways to soup kitchens. The library provides free entertainment in the forms of books, music, and internet access. There are parks, recreational activities, and countless other things even in the smallest of rural towns. Look around for the free stuff and use it – it’s there for everyone to utilize. When you must spend money, be as frugal as possible. Ramen is very cheap, filling, and full of carbs, for example.

4. Don’t be proud.
Pride often keeps people from walking into a soup kitchen. Don’t let it. That kind of pride is an obstacle ground into you by a life in a consumerist society. People who are there to help you want to help you stand on your own two feet – give them that opportunity. Look for every opportunity to help you with your situation, from consulting to WIC to Medicaid to welfare (regardless of my political feelings on it, it’s definitely a resource someone in that position should use). If you don’t know where to start, start off by asking a pastor or a clergyman for help.

5. Minimize your required commitments.
Repaying debts? Call the debtors and explain your situation and ask for an abatement. This won’t get rid of your debt, but it can minimize your requirements for the time being. If you have children that you simply can’t support, look for opportunities to help you with that burden – your family is a great place to start, for example. Don’t saddle yourself with burdens heavier than you can carry or you’ll do nothing but collapse. You don’t become strong by carrying 500 pounds of weight on your back – you become strong by learning how to carry ten pounds, then adding more as you go along.

6. Take every side opportunity you can.
There are all sorts of little opportunities to make more money if you pay attention. Doing things like helping someone shingle a roof for $10 an hour cash is an opportunity you can’t let pass by. Free meals? Take them. Twenty bucks for helping an old man clean out his garage? Do it. Ask around for odd jobs and other small-scale moneymaking opportunities – perhaps even get started on your own “handyman” business.

7. Minimize your possessions.
There are a lot of reasons for doing this. The biggest one is that the more stuff you have, the more money you’ve wasted. Also, fewer possessions mean that you need less room to live. For a while, all of my worldly possessions (clothes included) fit in a single Rubbermaid tub – and that made it extremely easy to actually live in someone’s living room for a while.

8. Make a steely commitment to succeed.
Even after you’ve done all of this, it still takes some serious commitment to make all of this work. You can get yourself in a position where you’re not spending more than you make, but it takes commitment to stay there. Remind yourself every day that you’re not going to waste money and that you’re going to spend less than you earn this week – and this month – and this year. That’s the one way you can get ahead.

9. Save automatically.
So what do you do when you are making more than you’re spending? Take that extra money and put it into a savings account. But just doing that every once in a while won’t cut it. Keep most of your money in a checking account, then go to the library and use the internet access there to set up an online savings account with a big bank, like ING or HSBC. Set up an automatic savings plan there to withdraw $10 a week from your main checking – or maybe even more. Then walk away and forget about it. What will happen? After a year, you’ll have $530 or so in the account. If you’ve put in more weekly, you’ll have even more.

10. Educate yourself.
While you’re putting yourself in a better financial place, spend your spare time educating yourself. Take classes at the nearest community college and work towards some kind of degree. If you need to, transfer to a state university – if you’ve been working on minimum wage for a long time and are actually making strong progress towards a degree, they will help you big time with paying for it. The key is getting started – see what your local community college has to offer.

One final tip: don’t give up the dream.
If you’re working a minimum wage job, either you’re very young, very lazy, or very unlucky. All of these can be overcome, but they take time and commitment and a lot of hard work. It’s very easy to give up the dream of a better life when you’re doing this. Don’t. You can succeed and you will succeed if you spend every day taking steps in the right direction. Surround yourself with people who are also fighting to go in the right direction. Don’t be resentful of people in a better situation than you – instead, use them as inspiration and realize that if you keep on the path, you’ll get there too.

Thanks to thesimpledollar.com

UPDATE

I added direct links to the videos below:

Over a Thousand Miles from Wall Street…
How the unlikely state of South Dakota became the place where America’s credit card industry first began to really take off

A Closer Look at the Industry’s Best Customers

The big profits come from the 90 million who don’t pay off their credit card debt. The industry’s success has also been shaped by the genius of financial innovators.

Credit Reporting Agencies/Traps in the Fine Print

Why it’s important to understand your credit score and how it is compiled and also to read your credit card agreement — hard as it may be to decipher.

More Complaints Than Any Other Industry

Consumers’ banking/credit card complaints increase. But the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which regulates the national banks, has been engaged in what some call a “turf battle” with the states’ regulators

The Efforts To Get Reform

Sen. Chris Dodd has introduced a credit card reform bill that would curb industry practices. But Dodd’s many previous attempts to reform the industry have all failed.

Memorable Quote: “The issuer can change the terms and conditions at will . You could be offered a 0% or 5 % interest rate today… and two months later that interest rate could be 30%”

In “Secret History of the Credit Card,” FRONTLINE® and The New York Times join forces to investigate an industry few Americans fully understand. In this one-hour report, correspondent Lowell Bergman uncovers the techniques used by the industry to earn record profits and get consumers to take on more debt.

Secret history of the credit card: watch it online

1. Compare credit cards to obtain the best deals. There is a variety of credit cards out there that offer interest free deals, including balance transfers. If you compare credit cards then you could find a deal of anywhere up to 15 months interest free on balance transfers and save on the interest whilst giving yourself a chance to clear the debt in that space of time.

2. If you have to make a big purchase and do not have the money for it then you could also tap into interest free purchase credit card deals. These deals are often similar to the balance transfer ones in that you get a certain period of time to pay the credit card’s balance off before interest is applied, thus saving you money and reducing your debt. Again, compare credit cards to find the best deals.

3. Finally, there is a whole host of reward credit cards out there that offer cash back offers and various reward points. This can save you money and earn you a little bit back on your purchases, but some of the reward deals are incredibly poor so, again, you have to compare credit cards to find the better ones.

I’m sure that you can see the common theme here – compare credit cards! It is a must if you want to access the best ones. So many of the credit card comparison websites are complicated to use. To solve this problem take a look at About Your Money. The credit cards section is simple to use, complete with a comparison table and a guide to plenty of information. Choose the best ones for your situation, whether you want to save money or reduce your debt.

User submitted ideas

Try to obtain a credit card with lower interest rates than your current credit card and you can then use this credit card to pay off the balances on your other credit cards. By doing this, you are avoiding heavy fees charged by the companies and you are transferring your debts to the credit card with lower interest rates and so, you save money. But some credit cards charge a higher fee for transferred balances and so, you need to make sure that you choose the right card. Also, make sure that you can transfer your balance again to another card in order to save some more money. Use this tip with caution.

Send us ideas on paragraphes how to “Save Money with a Credit Card”.

Fear of Not Knowing What You Want

Problem: You have a good job; you make a lot of money. Yet, you’re not satisfied with your life. You feel like something is missing.

Solution: Step back. Take a look at your life and what you’ve done so far and what you would like to do. Make a list of things that you’ve always wanted to do. Pick the most significant ones and work out steps to accomplish them. Use the money you make whenever needed.

Fear of Society and keeping up with the Jones

Problem: You make a good sum of money each month but your judgment and belief goes against spending too much of it. Yet, assuming that society won’t accept you the way you are, you proceed to spend large amounts on things you don’t even want or need.

Solution: Take a look at the bigger picture. Many years from now, how you lived is not going to count but how much you were able to save or invest will be vital to your well being. Make small but powerful decisions on how your lifestyle should change.

Fear That You May Go Broke

Problem: You’re scared stiff of falling ill or getting into an accident that will cause you to stop working and lose all your savings. You can’t have enough money right now.

Solution: Letting a probable situation affect your daily functioning is unhealthy. Every day living poses a little risk in some way, but it should not interfere in your life. Make sure you’re well-insured against potential situations and invest in a savings plan so that you can live a comfortable retired life.

Fear of Breaking Bad News about Money to Your Partner

Problem: You’ve been in debt for too long and it seems to be getting worse. You can’t let your partner know for fear of what they might say to you or what actions they might take.

Solution: Remember, your partner is just that, someone to stand with you and by you through every circumstance. It may come as a shock to them when you reveal the truth, but it is far better for them to know now, than later, when your financial standings get you into more trouble – like being denied a loan, mortgage, etc. Sit down together and make a long-term plan. Decide how to save and spend from now on, make detailed strategies and stick to them. It will help both of you in the long run.

Fear of Wealth

Problem: You’re entitled to a raise but you don’t know how to ask for it. Secretly, you think you don’t deserve it and that is what the bigger problem here is, probably.

Solution: Taking care of yourself is something you should be determined to do. Never be afraid to ask for something you know that you have earned. Make sure you are responsible for yourself and your future by accepting raises or inheritances passed down to you.

Fear of Taking Control

Problem: You know you have to start investing your money and save for the future. However, it all seems so intimidating that you’d rather not think about it now, although you know you’re wrong.

Solution: Start small. Read a few good books about investing and talk to a recommended financial consultant. Make a small investment and learn from it. Slowly explore and understand until you’re able to take bigger steps. Make sure you’ve got a savings plan too.

Overcoming these fears may not be the easiest task, but taking small, deliberate steps can get you through quicker than you realize!

Last Friday I received yet ANOTHER set of cash advance checks to use for “special vacations or emergencies.” They keep telling me that “because of my strong financial history” they are offering me this great deal of quick cash at “only” 14.99%. Only 14.99%? I have kindly called them several times explaining that I didn’t have any use for their money anymore, and that they could stop sending these checks for security purposes. Each assures me that I will receive no more mailings, and, for good measure, attempts to convince me that I should do a balance transfer or increase my credit line. Uh, yeah, go ahead and increase it, so you look even more ridiculous with a $0 balance on a $40,000 credit line.

My biggest beef with these guys is not that they’re out to make a buck. Where I get angry is that every customer service representative seems to solve the problem, but I find out later they were unsuccessful. It is just too large a risk to have checks coming in the mail that could be used to throw me right back into debt. I’ve already stopped nearly all credit card offers using OptOutPreScreen.com. Why can’t they follow suit and just stop?

Has anybody else had any luck in stopping these mailings?

How many of you have multiple credit, debit, and loyalty cards sitting in your wallet? Do you dislike digging through your wallet or purse to find that one card that gives 1% cash back on whatever you are purchasing? If you answered yes to either of these questions, Jonathan Ramaci, the founder of iCache may have the answer for you.

The iCache will be relatively inexpensive device (less than $100) that will allow you to upload your credit card information into a website and upload the information into an iCache device. Once there, the removable card can be programmed (and reprogrammed) to be any credit, debit, or swipable loyalty card you own. After a single use, the information on the card is erased.

But wait, what happens if your iCache is stolen? The iCache uses a biometric strip where the owner uses their thumbprint to gain access to the device. Combine that with the previously mentioned fact that the data on the card is erased after a single use, and it seems to be a fairly secure system. Time will tell, though, if some genius hacker can still get into the device.

Although I am a minimalist when it comes to carrying cards, this may be a device I have to get. I would consider the one time $99 payment as insurance against a theft of my wallet. If a theif were to steal my wallet now, I would have to call each of my credit card vendors to cancel my cards. With the iCache, it sounds like I would be safe to continue using my cards since the device is protected by fingerprint scanning technology. Of course, I’m never an early adopter of technology, so I’ll wait a year or so after its release to see how it fares in the “real world.”

Source: iCache.com

Photo: SlipperyBrick.com