The U.S. government is spending so much money every year that the country could lose its credit rating. We currently enjoy a top tier credit rating, but the country has been warned by Standard & Poors about losing that credit. We’re being looked at as a struggling country, and it’s because our elected officials are spending money like crazy. If we keep spending money like we are, we will have debt that is 350 percent of our national output. That makes us a third world country. In addition, our budget deficit will rise to more than one-fourth of our national income if we keep spending this way. There are only two answers here. We must reduce government spending, which Clark prefers. Or we must raise taxes, the undesirable move. We are all affected by this. As a result, we have to change our expectations of our government and plan for our own futures.
Who should use AT&T for long distance? NO ONE! It’s an overpriced dinosaur that is trying to rip customers off again. In order to “serve customers better,” AT&T is now going to charge customers up to $9 a month in fees. Isn’t that great. AT&T already charges outrageous prices per minute. Now, the company is adding on more fees for who knows what. One rate plan charges people 12 cents a minute, which is outrageous. If you are a long distance customer of AT&T or your parents are customers, fire them! Look at your parents’ bill and get them out of that deal. Also, if your parents live in the same house they did in the ‘80s, they’re probably paying to lease a phone from the company. That is ridiculous!
Clark has talked in the past about using towing services from your insurance company versus buying service from a warehouse club or from AAA. In the past, he has said that it’s cheaper to get the service from your insurance company. Well, that’s true. But by using your insurance company to tow your car is not a good idea. Why? Insurers will increase your rates if you use their towing services, according to Consumer Reports. State Farm, the nation’s largest insurer, does this, according to the magazine. They see it as the equivalent of a claim. Worse yet, some insurers report you to ChoicePoint if you use the tow rider on your insurance. That can cause you huge problems if you shop for insurance with another company down the road. Geico and Nationwide are just a few of the companies doing this. Sometimes just calling and asking a question of your insurance company will prompt the company to raise your rates. Insurance companies are cheating their members out of money with these procedures and should be ashamed of themselves. See what information is being reported about you at choicetrust.com. Read more from Clark on his topic by clicking here.
Clark gets a lot of feedback on Internet phone calling services, both good and bad. It’s still not mainstream in the U.S., but it’s growing every day. Recently, the feedback has been negative, especially regarding Vonage. The complaints about Vonage involve the company’s poor customer service and technical support, and it’s causing people to drop the service. Clark has used Vonage for years and he hasn’t had much trouble. But the churn rate is more than 2 percent right now, which is high. In addition, the Wall Street Journal contacted Vonage to ask about the complaints and no one respond. That’s just not smart. This is a critical time for Vonage, especially with the recent flubbed public offering. Reputation matters and Vonage needs to step up and fix its problems. The other issue is that there is no regulating body in the Internet phone service, so Vonage hasn’t had any incentive to work on its customer service problems. It will just mean other companies will join the market and people will go with the best one.
J.D. Power is considered to be a highly respected source of automobile ratings, second only to Consumer Reports. The company conducts two surveys – one regarding the “initial” quality of a car and another that rates the quality of cars after three years. Well, in the most recent initial survey, there is a new winner and a surprising runner-up. Porsche, which hasn’t done so hot in the past, is now No.1. Lexus has won year after year but Porsche beat them out this time. And the real mind blower was No. 3 – Hyundai. The company used to have one of the worst reputations of any car company. But Hyundai reworked how its cars are built and it now ranks above Toyota on the car quality list. So, the top five in order are Porsche, Lexus, Hyundai, Toyota, Jaguar and Honda. So, which car is the worst? Land Rover ranked way below all other cars. Just above them were Isuzu, Volkswagen and the Hummer was the fourth worst. Take that into consideration when buying your next car.
Have you heard about the washable wool suits that are flying off the racks in Europe? Well, Clark found out that J.C. Penney was selling these suits in the States and he wanted to check it out. He wanted to see if the suit would hold up in the wash, as the manufacturers claim, so he bought one. The suit cost him $149. He then went to an Italian suit maker before he washed it to get the man’s opinion about how the suit would fare after being washed in the washing machine. He told Clark it would look like a rag when it came out. But when the suit came out, everyone was shocked. You couldn’t tell a difference, and the suit maker had to eat his words. The problem is that J.C. Penney is not getting a lot of traction out of these suits. Apparently people don’t trust something that costs that little, and they continue to buy suits at traditional stores. We’ll let you know if that changes. And, if you’re willing to try something new that has proven itself to Clark, give this a try.
