Senior Anarchy Web Site

BJC opened a new web site to provide information and heighten awareness on the ever-increasing problem of con artist scam techniques. Articles include information on email scams, identity theft, and cell phone scams among numerous other fraudulent activities. Senior Citizens continue to be one of the most vulnerable and susceptible targets, so it's important to offer all the assistance that's available. There are ways to recover from these scams, but the best protection is to be cautious and aware before they occur!

Don't become the victim of a con or scam! Fight back with the knowledge you need to safeguard yourself! This important info is provided free of charge, so make sure you pass the word along to anyone who may be interested!

Check out the information available at http://www.SeniorAnarchy.com

Saving Money the Painless Way

For those of us with shallow (or non-existent) savings accounts, there are some relatively simple steps we can take to put dollars away in savings.

I'm sure you have all heard about 401K plans and company matching contributions. The company match dollars are free money, so if there is any way possible to enroll in the 401K you just have to take it! This is a method of accumulating savings that's relatively painless, with our personal contributions taken out of our pay automatically. There is plenty of information readily available on 401K plans.

But there are other ways to save money also...

A few years ago, I started taking all my pocket change at the end of the day and stuffing it in a jar. When the jar filled up, I moved on to bigger containers. I don't know exactly how long I was doing that, but it was probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 years. My pocket change got so heavy after 4 years that I couldn't lift it any longer! Maybe I should go buy a Plasma TV this year with the money I accumulated? Nah, I'm still exercising my consumer restraint....!

Banks are even offering incentives for us to save money these days!

Bank of America has a plan called "Keep the Change". I'm reminded of it every time I go to their web site. Each time you buy something with your Bank of America VISA® Check Card, they round up the purchase to the nearest dollar amount and debit your checking account. Then, they transfer the difference from your checking account to your savings. It's an automatic way to start saving, and with little or no effort on our part. And I always save the best for last of course!! For the first three months Bank of America will match your "Keep the Change" savings at 100%. Think that's enough? Nope, they just keep on giving...!!! When the first three months are over, they continue to contribute 5% a year, every year!

Be sure to check out their web site for important details about the plan. The matching funds are credited to your savings account yearly, so you won't see the money right away. There are a few more details you need to know also, but the main thing to keep in mind is that they are GIVING YOU MONEY! Check their web site to get all the details if you are interested. If you don't have an account with Bank of America, maybe your bank has a similar plan.

And while we are on the subject of banks, you are taking advantage of online banking and bill pay right? Why pay money for envelops, stamps, and checks? You can bank online for free at most banks these days!!!

So there you have them! Four simple ideas to save you money. Maybe you have already thought of even more ways to save. You can do it! Just remember to stay away from impulse buying, exercise your consumer restraint, and avoid wasteful spending. It's amazing how easy saving money becomes when you start to see the savings account build up!

BJC Computer Services

Exercising Consumer Restraint

p>One key to success in maintaining control over your personal finances is exercising Consumer Restraint!

You have heard the latest buzzword right? GenerationDEBT has arrived! We now know that our young people today are struggling just like everyone else when it comes to Personal Finance. It's easier than ever before to obtain credit cards, to get long term financing, or to cash in on offers of "No payments until..." whenever! Get what you want know and don't worry about paying for it!! At least not today... Remember the call-to-action from President Bush after the 9-11 attacks? Let's go shopping...??

Quote from the movie "Twelve Monkeys" released in 1996

DR. PETERS (played by David Morse)
Surely there is very real and very convincing data that the planet cannot survive the excesses of the human race: proliferation of atomic devices, uncontrolled breeding habits, the rape of the environment, the pollution of land, sea, and air. In this context, isn't it obvious that "Chicken Little" represents the sane vision and that Homo Sapiens' motto, "Let's go shopping!" is the cry of the true lunatic?

Many of us spend money like there is no tomorrow. Credit cards have made spending so easy!! And, there are SO MANY wonderful products out on the market today that we MUST HAVE!! This works great for the economy, and doesn't seem to be much of a problem if you have plenty of money to spend. For the rest of us, after the purchase we struggle to find financial balance when the bills come in.

Another quote from "Twelve Monkeys"

JEFFREY (played by Brad Pitt)

Why you're here is because of the system, because of the economy. There's the TV. It's all right there. Commercials. We are not productive anymore, they don't need us to make things anymore, it's all automated. What are we for then? We're consumers. Okay, buy a lot of stuff, you're a good citizen. But if you don't buy a lot of stuff, you know what? You're mentally ill! That's a fact! If you don't buy things...toilet paper, new cars, computerized blenders, electrically operated sexual devices... SCREWDRIVERS WITH MINIATURE BUILT-IN RADAR DEVICES, STEREO SYSTEMS WITH BRAIN IMPLANTED HEADPHONES, VOICE-ACTIVATED COMPUTERS, AND...

Although JEFFREY didn't get to finish his statement above in the movie, the inference is clear. If we aren't buying things, then something must be wrong with us? If we don't have the latest PLASMA HDTV, or the most lavish and advanced luxury sport vehicle, or we don't have a surround sound home theatre system that will shake the walls, then we must be under-achievers...

Now, I am not suggesting that having a nice car and big screen TV are necessarily bad things... I like both, although I don't have either of them... My point is simply that IF LACK OF MONEY IS AN ISSUE, then we should exercise some restraint when deciding how to best use our hard earned money, or piling up credit card charges! This isn't easy of course... Consumer marketers know how to make us want things...

Another quote from "Twelve Monkeys"

JEFFREY (played by Brad Pitt)
Here's my theory on that. While I was institutionalized, my brain was studied exhaustively in the guise of mental health. I was interrogated, x-rayed, studied thoroughly. Then, everything about me was entered into a computer where they created a model of my mind.

Then, using the computer model, they generated every thought I could possibly have in the next, say ten years, which they then filtered through a probability matrix to determine everything I was going to do in that period. So you see, she knew I was going to lead the Army of the Twelve Monkeys into the pages of history before it ever even occurred to me. She knows everything I'm ever going to do before I know it myself. How about that?

Focus groups, study groups, polls and surveys, beta-testers, test markets, industrial design engineers... Consumer Marketers have many tools to determine what we want or need as consumers, and then how to make sure we buy it! Sometimes they seem to know what's best for us before we know. TV is certainly an EXCELLENT example of how to plant ideas into our heads... Phrases like, "Best movie of the year", "Number one in customer satisfaction", "A must have", or the current classic, "It's a no-brainer!"... All are intended to convince the consumer that the product being advertised is the best on the market, and that we NEED to have it. After all, how could we NOT want something which is the best on the market? It's a NO-BRAINER right? Of course, we didn't want or need that item before seeing the commercial. But we sure need it now right? How many times have you bought something that after a few weeks ended up on the back shelf never to be used again? I find plenty...

There are ways of not getting trapped into buying something you really don't need... One method that seems to be working for me lately, is to simply study all the various choices in a particular item. Usually, there are at least a few different manufacturers to consider. Look at them all and be sure to read all the packaging! There are also different sizes, shapes, and materials. Study and compare all of the options! Oh, and I haven't mentioned the pricing differences. Make sure you look closely at all the prices!!

Many times that process leaves me scratching my head, and making me unclear as to which item really is the better buy... I go into the big screen plasma TV room at least a few times a month now. Each time I see bigger, better, newer items than before. So, I walk out of the store empty handed, to perform some additional Internet research and reevaluate later... It's hard to walk out of a store empty handed... But I am getting better at it...!

Exercise YOUR consumer restraint privilege! Watch your spending! Buy what you need and avoid impulse buying, then sit back and watch your savings account grow...!

BJC Computer Services

Personal Finance Problems

Many people today are struggling with personal finances.

If you are anything like me, it has taken close to 12 years to unravel my financial burdens! Even though I struggled to keep up with spiraling interest rates on credit card loans, I continued to receive invitations to extend more credit. And, I continued to accept them! Why not? There are so many things I need, and buying things are so darn easy using credit!

That is, until the credit card companies decided to increase my interest rates to nearly 29%! After that, I could barely keep up with the interest charges. I would make a substantial payment, then be discouraged when I got my next bill and the balance remained unchanged! Whenever I did find a little extra money at the end of the month, I was quick to find SOMETHING to spend it on... After all, I deserved it after struggling all month right?

In 2004, I found myself paying nearly $1,231 per month on interest payments alone. Today, I am nearly debt-free! Don't let yourself get caught up in GenerationDEBT! There are plenty of resources available to help provide guidance. Don't get caught up in wasteful spending! Buy what you need and save the unnecessary items for another day...

BJC Computer Services