In one of the most crass actions yet taken by a financial institution during the blooming economic crisis, the Bank of America has decided to raise interest rates, without reason or warning, on up to four million cardholders. So what, you may ask, did these cardholders do to earn themselves up to a 50% increase in their ostensibly fixed interest rate? Nothing. At least nothing beyond having a low interest rate to begin with.
Now it's important to point out that these rates (usually 8.9 pr 9.9%) were not granted as "teaser" rates, where card companies offer a low introductory rate to encourage people to join up and rack up balances...rates which are then jacked up after the introductory period passes. No, these were fixed rate offers. But now Bank of America has decided that to remain competetive they must raise rates on consumers who have never been late on a payment, have no credit difficulties of any kind, and have given BoA no reason whatsoever to be leery of them. This action is being taken despite all the TARP funds that were supposed to stave off such actions to begin with. BoA is now flush with taxpayer cash, but is still ratcheting up rates on those same taxpayers with no good reason.
If you happen to be (as I am) one of the unlucky ones who received this rate increase notice there is action you can take. You can, by May 1, call a special number to "opt out" of the new, higher interest rate. But by doing so you also "opt out" of ever using your card again. If you do your rate will automatically increase to the new rate, which ranges around 14.9%. This even applies if you opt out but have a recurring payment scheduled on your card...so check carefully before you make that call. And get this...if you miss even one of these recurring, scheduled payments, the new rate applies to your entire existing balance. It's not just applied to new charges. Talk about unconscienable.
But the worst part of this seemy little business deal is the timing. Care to guess what the United States Senate did yesterday? That's right. They passed a bill that would prevent credit card companies from doing exactly what Bank of America just did. Accoding to news reports the Senate gallery was packed full of credit card industry lobbyists. Yes, there were consumer advocates on hand as well. Three of them. Three. But the Senate did what we pay them for. They passed the first bill in history to rein in the credit card companies. Unfortunately for BoA customers it was too little, and just a few days too late.
My suggestion? Opt out. Close the card. Make doubly sure you don't have any recurring payments (like eBay or PayPal accounts) tied to the card. Pay off your exitsting balance and never, ever do business with a Bank of America credit card ever again. I sure as hell won't.
Looking for something fun, engaging and educational to do with your kids this summer? Here's the recipe and instructions for the Sidewalk Chalk science experiment that our Tuesday morning guests referred to. Have fun!
Always looking for new, talented people to add to the show, we've scored again. Television critic Tom Jicha from the Sun-Sentinel newspapers will join us every friday to talk about the highlights and lowlights of this week in TV. In between visits please follow Tom's blog online...
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Right now 16 colleges from around the country are competing in a challenge issued by the US Department of Energy and sponsored by General Motors. The teams are using existing technology to come up with implementable solutions to improve gas mileage and limit harmful emissions.
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As you know if you caught the show this morning, our movie reviewer is up for a Webby Award! Brett Erlich, co-host of the "Rotten Tomatoes Show" on Current TV has been nominated and is a finalist for the video that's currently our featured video on the homepage. It's very funny, and Brett deserves a win.
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No matter whether the Saints or Colts emerge victorious on Sunday, there's bound to be tens of thousands of disappointed fans of the loyal opposition. Jeff Goldblatt, founder of the Rejection Hotline (www.humorhotlines.com) joined us Friday morning and said he's set up local "It Could Suck Worse" hotlines for fans of the losing side.
Here they are...your picks for the must-see horror flicks for this Hallowe'en week. So what are you waiting for? Hit the video store!
1. SUSPIRA
2. DAWN OF THE DEAD
3. SCARECROWS
4. ZOMBIES ON AN AIRPLANE
5. MONSTER CLUB
6. PET SEMATARY
7. SLEEPY HOLLOW
8. IT
9. OMEN
10. MONSTER SQUAD
11. FRIGHT NIGHT
12. BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA
13. FORBIDDEN PLANET
14. THEM!
Last night on the program a caller alerted us to a broom standing by itself on the floor of a convenience store. We decided to try to replicate the experiment here in the studio and...voila!
A grandmother from Rockville, IN, Sally Harpold, was recently arrested for violating the state's laws against the purchase of more than 3.0 grams of pseudoephedrine in less than 7 days. That violation occurred because she purchased a box of 24 Zyrtec-D tablets for her sick daughter, then six days later purchased a 36-count box of Mucinex-D for her husband and herself.
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Many thanks to our good friends Bob Heil of Heil Sound and Dave Hinson of Killer Vintage Guitars for joining us on this morning's program in tribute to the life, music, and legacy of Les Paul who died yesterday at age 94. Bob and Dave were also kind enough to furninsh us with some pictures of their interactions with Les...
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Friday morning we talked with UCLA linguistics professor Pam Munro about the newly-released 20th anniversary UCLA Slang Dictionary. If you want to order a copy online you can email Anya at anya@humnet.ucla.edu for information. Enjoy!
