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Clark wanted to report back to you on his 2006 national Christmas Kids campaign. It was his 16th year doing the campaign and he wanted to thank everyone who graciously donated money. All together, people from 36 states donated close to $130,000. So, thanks for the following for their kindness and generosity: AK, AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, TN,TX, UT, VA, WA, WI. The money you donated was used to buy clothes or gifts for kids in your area. Thanks also to teh Salvation Army, our partner in this worthwhile venture for the past two years.

One of the best gifts you can give yourself is financial independence. So, how do you get that? You spend less than you make. A study done by Hewitt Associates shows that saving $1 at age 25 becomes $8 at retirement age. At age 35, it becomes almost $5. And, at 45, it’s worth $3. That’s why it’s so important to start saving as early as possible. If you’re in your 40s and you haven’t saved a dime, you may be feeling like a heel right about now. But you can still make a decent amount. Just get it started! And, if you have kids, get them started in a plan once you’ve started one for yourself. Clark has a “Daddy Match” for his kids, which gives them more of an incentive to save.

Clark admits he’s not very aware when it comes to using products that are environmentally friendly. He uses a lot of plastic utensils and Styrofoam cups for example. But there is hope for him. But there may be hope for him. A company out West called Excellent Packaging and Supply creates biodegradeable and compostable products such as forks, knives and spoons. The utensils are made of potato starch and soy oil and they're completely safe for the environment. EPS also makes dinner plates and coffee cups out of leftover sugar cane. This is a great idea with huge potential. The company has already sold $5 million so far. It costs a bit more to make these products and that is reflected in the cost to the consumer. But it may be worth it to you. Let us know in our new poll.

Everyone knows Clark is not a fan of gift cards because they are an inferior form of cash. But did you know there are ripoffs tied in up gift cards as well? Business Week wrote a long story about the enormous amount of fraud affecting retailers because of gift cards. About two-thirds of retailers have had to deal with this and they are losing tons of money on it, the costs of which are then passed down to you and me. So, how does it happen? Dishonest employees basically learn how to track the data on gift cards and empty the cash before the cards are bought. So, people go to the store to use the card and there is no money on it. Some people aren’t reporting the issue because they are afraid to hurt the giver’s feelings. If it’s happened to you, please tell the person who gave it to you, so that person can work with the store to track down the culprits. You’re probably wondering why retailers are attracting dishonest workers. Well, there is massive turnover at these companies and people with ulterior motives sometimes slip into the system.

Remember the Ford/Firestone defects of the ‘90s that resulted in numerous injuries and deaths? It happened because there were no laws requiring that the government tell us about the safety complaints reported on a defective vehicle. That was remedied, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is at it again. There is a bill circulating around Capitol Hill that will once again prevent complaints from being shared with the public. Clark can’t understand why the woman who runs NHTSA, Nicole Nason, is supporting this, especially since she has two young daughters. It’s all to protect the high-rollers in the automotive industry. When you hide from the truth and harm people, it ultimately costs you. So, give the NHTSA an earful and tell them you want the safety information about cars to be made public. Click here to tell NHTSA how you feel.