Going back three or four years ago, Clark got calls about HDTVs every couple months. Then, around Halloween 2005, the calls became more frequent and they haven’t stopped since. Last year alone, 50 million flat panel HDTVs were sold. That’s just that model. There are tons more on the market. The Wall Street Journal did some research on this topic to see which TVs are the most popular models. By far, the 42-inch high-def plasma is on top. About two years ago, those were more than $4,000. Today, a common price point is $999 and you can find them for even less. Large-sized LCDs are also popular. Ones that cost $2,100 a year or two ago are now $1,200. In general, prices have dropped by about 40 percent and it’s only going to go lower. Looking forward, competition at the wholesale and retail level is going to drive prices down even more. This Christmas, it’s possible that an HDTV will cost $500. What you need to remember is to never buy an extended warranty on these televisions. You never want to ensure a rapidly depreciating asset and that is what these TVs are. In fact, it’s a good idea to buy the entry-level model, if you’re thinking of purchasing. The higher the price, the more it will drop in value. When the HDTV market stabilizes in three or four years, then it’s okay to overpay for a fancy brand name. But until then, just get the standard product.

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You may laugh when you hear the words plug-in hybrid. But these are not just for nerds and tree huggers anymore. The Wall Street Journal reported recently that our country can become energy-independent if more people drive these cars. And there is an obvious interest in this topic. It was the most e-mailed story for days after the story came out. People are ready to listen to the ideas about plug-in hybrids.

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In other energy-related news, chicken fat and waste can be turned into fuel to operate trucks. There is a huge problem with this waste, yet someone has come up with a way to use it that will cut down on costs and help our energy production. We want to remain strong and powerful in the world and reducing our energy consumption is the way to do it.

Organic foods are a fairly new phenomenon, but they seem to be sweeping the nation. Last year, 17,000 new products were introduced into the market and about 4,000 of them claim to be “organic” or “all natural.” So, how do you know if a product is truly organic? Well, just because a product says it’s organic doesn’t mean it is. And, just because a product is organic doesn’t mean it’s good for you. Lay’s new “organic” potato chips have sea salt and special oil, for instance. But the price is higher and the amount of fat and calories is exactly the same. The good news is that prices on organic food in general are going down. Organic products used to cost a ton more than regular products. But now they are available in all kinds of grocery stores, so the price is going down. Kim, one of our producers, challenged Clark to a yogurt taste test. He agreed to test organic low-fat yogurt versus regular low-fat yogurt, and we’ll let you know the results.

If you’ve ever been sick, health insurance companies have no interest in having you as a customer. You’d think it would be the other way around since insurance is supposed to provide financial protection by pooling money. But health insurers only want to ensure the healthy and, therefore, are looking for ways to boot people with illnesses. Some insurers in California are even going back and reviewing people’s medical histories in an effort to kick them to the curb. For instance, they will review a person’s medical history and compare it to their application for insurance. If someone forgot to list a cold or left something out of the application, that company will claim the person committed fraud and kick them out. Kaiser Permanente is the only insurer in California that isn’t doing this, and the rest of the companies are furious at KP because of it. Clearly, the insurance industry wants to collect premiums but doesn’t want to ensure people. This could lead our country down a path to socialized medicine and that would be terrible for the country. Insurers will have to live with causing that decline unless they change their behavior.