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The United States has fallen to around 45th in the world in Internet availability and use because our government allows the phone and cable companies to monopolize the field as Internet service providers. But there's something really good coming down the pike, according to Clark. With TV switching its signals from analogue to digital, the stations are giving back their analogue spectrums to the government. The licenses for these spectrums will soon be auctioned to new players who will use them for all kinds of new communication possibilities. So the feds will be helping to create a licensing opportunity for an open system -- a high-speed network that Google may own if it wins the auction. This open system will accommodate cell phones that surf the Internet at high speeds for extra cheap, plus it will host new devices that we can't even imagine yet. Once that day comes, we'll leapfrog from 45th place to much higher. Then the phone and cable monopolies will have to innovate or become obsolete in the marketplace.

Already there's been a lot of talk in the cell phone industry about how America is one of the few places where you can't just use any brand of cell phone you want on any carrier of your choice. Verizon in particular is hostile to any open-market changes. In fact, many cell phones manufacturers have to remove factory-enabled functions in their phones before Verizon, Sprint and other will adopt their product for their systems. AT&T, on the other hand, took the opposite approach when it allowed Apple to pack all kinds of goodies into the iPhone. Maybe soon Verizon, Sprint and the others will smell the coffee and open their systems. On a related note, look for companies to offer unlimited cell phone calling for free in the future -- in return for delivering ad content to your mobile handset. Virgin Mobile is already experimenting with this business model, and it's going to be great for people on a tight budget.

Diesels cars and other vehicles are poised to make a big comeback, according to the latest findings from J.D. Power and Associates. The survey said that one in four Americans would consider buying a diesel car; a year ago, that figure was more like one in 10. Clark remembers the diesel station wagon his family had when he was growing up. That automobile shook like crazy, had terrible acceleration and belched smoke and odor. But today's diesels are not like your daddy's diesel. Clark's driven some modern diesels throughout Europe and enjoyed great acceleration, quiet operation, good gas mileage and less pollution than a regular gas-engine car. So if you're looking for a car next year, diesel could be part of the picture. On a related note, J.D. Power also revealed stats about the reliability of vehicles after three years of ownership. Two brands tied for the top spot: the foreign-made Lexus and, somewhat surprisingly, the American-made Buick. In fact, several other American brands were toward the top of the tally, with Cadillac placing fourth and Mercury placing fifth. Meanwhile, Japanese standards like Honda and Toyota placed fifth and sixth, respectively. On the bottom of the heap were some foreign cars like Suzuki, Isuzu and Saab. But the single least reliable automobile -- based on how many problems were reported per 100 vehicles -- proved to be a Land Rover. Clark thinks it's interesting that some Japanese and European cars were selected as least reliable, while a lot of domestic rides are back on top. But perceptions take a long time to change, and people who grew up on foreign cars sometimes won't even consider a domestic vehicle.

Clark's Consumer Action Center has been receiving a lot of questions about accelerated mortgage offers. People are wondering if these offers are a new kind of scam. Clark thinks "scam" is too strong of a word, but he does think this is a serious rip-off -- and he wants to show you how to avoid it! First, let's take a look at the offer. It arrives as a friendly letter inviting you to pay off your mortgage years quicker than you normally would. The deal is that you have to pay your bank or an appointed marketing company $200-$400 to set you up on a bi-weekly payment plan. It also stipulates that you'll be billed another couple bucks each time you make a payment, or alternately that you'll pay nothing up front but every bi-weekly payment will be assessed a fee. This plan will have you paying half your monthly mortgage payment every two weeks. That's equivalent to 26 half-payments in a year. At the end of year, the marketing company on behalf of your bank makes one additional payment toward your mortgage. So the end result is that you pay 13 months in a 12-month period. But because you probably paid an initial fee to set this up, the bank held some of your money all year long and got rich off the interest.

Here's what you should do instead. Clark wants you to keep making monthly mortgage payments and add one-twelfth extra in the additional principal box on your monthly coupon. So if your monthly payment is $1,200, pay $1,300 instead. That way you'll do for free what your bank wants to charge you for -- and you'll bring your principal down quicker. There's one more possible bank rip-off related to your mortgage that you should avoid. They're going to try to sell you "croak and choke" insurance -- otherwise known as mortgage life and disability insurance. It states that if you buy their policy and die, they'll pay your mortgage. But Clark sees two problems here. First, you're paying an insurance premium to protect the bank. At the time of your death, there may be better uses of your money for your heirs. So you're better off with a standard term life insurance policy. Second, the bank charges a premium that's about 10 times as much as your plain old life insurance policy. Sometimes Clark wonders where the ethics in banking have gone!

The cost of prescriptions has been in the news a lot lately. Regional supermarket chain Publix is now giving away select generic antibiotics to drum up business for its in-store pharmacies. Clark recently had a funny prescription story related to his ongoing sinus infection. The doctor first put him on a generic antibiotic that cost $8 for 20 pills. But when the infection didn't go away, the doctor wrote a new prescription that cost more than $120 for 10 pills at a warehouse club -- and he's still not cured! Meanwhile, his 8-year-old daughter needed a liquid prescription that ran $225. Clark jokes that he had it filled and then didn't eat for four days! The best advice here is to ask your pharmacist what your prescription is going to cost before you buy it. If it's too expensive, call your doctor's office and see if they can write a prescription for an alternate drug that's more affordable.

Clark recently read that 60 percent of all prescriptions being filled are generic now. The New York Times reported that a number of brand name drugs are going generic in the next two years, which is throwing BigPharma into a tailspin. One company is laying off 5,000 people because a blockbuster brand name drug is set to go generic. The consumer is set to save a bundle when this trend heats up. Discount stores have already been getting into the action with Kmart doing a three-month supply of some medicines for $15, and Wal Mart doing its own $4 deal. Other consumer-driven shifts in the medical field can be seen in new websites that let you rate a doctor online. Forbes reports that RateMDs.com is one of the most popular. Some doctors who have bad bedside manner are getting their feelings hurt because patients are acting as consumers and rating them. Clark loves that patients are seizing the power to rate their medical providers, and he thinks it's especially important to vet your doctor when you get a referral to a specialist.