Universal Health Card -- Money for Nothing

How does the Star Tribune decide what ads to accept? Would they accept an ad from me that read, "Send me $18 and I'll give you health care"? I guess so.

In today's paper, on page A9, there's a full-page, four-color ad for something called Universal Health Card. It's one of those layouts that's supposed to look like a newspaper article, in hopes of confusing the old or less media-savvy reader into thinking it's legitimate.


It's hard to tell what the ad is promising. Basically, though, I think it says if I send them $18 within 48 hours as a registration fee, I get a card that gets me "affordable care provided by 561,000 doctors, dentists, pharmacists and hospitals." It never says how much it will save me on health care, but it says it's accepted at 57,000 of the largest pharmacies (such as CVS, Target, Walgreens, Rite Aid and Wal-Mart) and by 561,000 health care professionals (although I think that total includes the pharmacies).

After reading the ad this morning, I thought the only cost was $18, which would give me the card permanently, but then I saw somewhere in the midst of all that sans serif text this gem:

Long term protection will also be extended to card holders at just forty-nine dollars a month, but now that everyone can get the card for free, it's so important that everyone in need of protection calls now and beats the 48-hour deadline. All that is needed is to cover just the registration fee that will provide the first thirty days of complete, affordable protection with the Universal Health Card for free.

Yes, you read that right -- it costs $49 a month for access to this list of unknown discounts. It's the first month of access that the ad is offering for free (if you don't count the $18 registration fee... I guess that puts the "fee" in "free"). But the ad's creators couldn't be bothered to helpfully transform the words "forty-nine dollars" into $49, since that way a reader might actually realize it's a price. These charlatans could type "48-hour" in the same sentence, but not $49.


They repeat the dire 48-hour warning seven times throughout the ad, but the monthly cost the buyer would be incurring appears only once, buried in the middle of 20 inches of copy, written out as if it were not number, and lacking a dollar sign to flag the reader that the text is discussing money. In contrast, the copy mentions the $18 fee twice as numbers and once written out (downplaying it by calling it a "registration fee," of course).

It does say several times that "this is not insurance." It manages to imply that if it were insurance, that would be a bad thing, since insurance would require you to submit to a medical exam, fill out forms, and could exclude you from coverage.

I mean, the ad doesn't even list a website prominently, although I did finally spot one at the very end of the text that looks like a legal disclaimer near the bottom of the ad (www.universalhealthcard.com)... A logo-like thing appears on the fake "this is not insurance" card that says BioScrip. A company called Coverdell & Co. of Chicago is listed as the administrator.

BioScrip, Coverdell and Universal Health Card all have legitimate-looking websites. BioScrip's site doesn't mention the card that I could find. Coverdell doesn't mention UHC specifically, but does offer "loyalty plans" for a number of things, and "fee-income products" for everything from health care to insurance to personal ads (a nice product mix, I'd say).

The UHC site tells us right away that their card entitles its bearer to a 5 to 60% discount (this statement was not included anywhere in the ad) at participating health care providers. Using their handy search engine to look for providers that are supposedly covered in my area, I found chiropractors and social workers listed as physicians (despite the fact that chiropractors have their own category for searching) and a relatively short list of names, none of which were familiar to me (except the gynecologist at Boynton Health Services at the U of M).

When I searched pharmacies (which are queried through a separate search, and come back labeled "Bioscrip Network Pharmacies") I got a locally owned drugstore in St. Paul and Health Partners for my St. Paul search, and lo and behold, Target, Cub, and two Walgreens for my south Minneapolis search. I wonder if I called them, would I find out they've never heard of the UHC? Or that they offer a 5% discount on a limited range of products, perhaps. (I'll update tomorrow if I get a chance to call while the stores are open.)

A quick search of some of the relevant terms in the ad turned up (surprise!) evidence that it's a fraud. A story from WAFF-TV in Alabama on Oct. 10 reports on the ad's claims and checks in with the Better Business Bureau. The reporter called a number of the providers listed and found they were not accepting the card. The Alabama BBB also called some of those listed, and found the same thing. Update: WAAYYTV in Huntsville, Alabama, now has a similar story; the North Adams (Massachusetts) Transcript has a story on insurance scams generally, which includes the UHC.

So, back to my original question. Is the Star Tribune so hard up for money that it has to run ads from companies that want to rip off its readers? I guess so.

By the way, the toll-free numbers listed in the ad are 866-729-5807 and 866-619-6786, and a third one, 800-731-4576, is listed on the UHC website. I wonder if I could figure out a program to autodial them all continuously for days on end. Hmmm.

Update #1: I called the two Walgreens, as well as the Target and HealthPartners, that were listed. None of the people I spoke to had ever heard of the UHC or BioScrip but they all said that didn't mean they wouldn't accept it because they take a lot of "pharmacy benefit cards." Walgreens, for instance, has its own card that costs $20 per year and covers 500 drugs.

The very helpful woman I spoke to at Target at first assumed it was a free discount card, and when I told her it cost $50 a month, she paused, and then said I should call the UHC company and give them a list of my specific medications "and if they can't tell you what it would save you, I wouldn't touch it."

So I just called one of UHC's 800 numbers to ask just that. I was told that they couldn't tell me what savings I would have on any specific medication without knowing what specific pharmacy was involved, and that I should ask the pharmacy. Of course, I said the pharmacy had said to ask UHC. And this is when the customer service rep said, "That's why we have the free 30-day trial, so you can take the card in and see how much it saves you."

Except, of course, it's not free. It costs $18 to get the free card.

Update #2: Ted Vaden, the ombudsman of the North Carolina News & Observer took his own paper to task for accepting the UHC advertisement. He had checked with the University of North Carolina hospital to see if it was covered by UHC and was definitively told it was not; UHC claims that it is.

Wow, the Star Tribune used to have an ombudsman, but that job was lost in the newspaper diaspora.

Update #3: See my latest post on the UHC, posted on Dec. 6, 2008.

Universal Media Syndicate -- Half-Truths, Puffery and Outright Lies

If it seems like you're seeing more and more newspaper ads that pretend to be news stories, you're not imagining things.

The ads are created by a business called Universal Media Syndicate, which specializes in buying up "remnant advertising" space from newspapers. Basically, they sign a contract with the papers saying they'll buy any quarter-, half- or full-page ad spaces at rock-bottom prices. They're the advertiser of last resort.

How does it work?

The papers' ad departments have UMS's insertion orders on hand along with advertising art for a range of questionable products, from expensive space heaters to the Universal Health Card to the product I saw in yesterday's Pioneer Press, an over-the-counter joint medication called Trigosamine.

All the ads look like newspaper articles, but beyond that, there are commonalities in the design approach and details among them. For instance, the Universal Health Card, Amish Heater and Trigosamine ads all set their photo cutlines in a not-too-common sans serif face, with a gray square bullet at the beginning of the line, followed by bold capital letters as a lead-in to the caption. (In fact, the bottom of the Amish heater ad and the Universal Health Card ad is identical except the specific photos used and the wording of the cutlines. Click on the image for an enlarged version.)


All use Helvetica Condensed Bold or Extrabold for the headline. All have hairline rules around the photos and light gray sidebar boxes.

The Triogsamine and Amish heater ads purposely reinforce their similarity to news design by including an actual byline: "BY G.W. NAPIER, Universal Media Syndicate" for Trigosamine and "BY MARK WOODS, Universal Media Syndicate" for the Amish heaters. In a context where readers may be familiar with Universal Press Syndicate (distributor of comic strips like For Better or For Worse and Garfield and numerous feature columns like Dear Abby) and United Press International (long-time competitor with the Associated Press), the use of a name like Universal Media Syndicate is clearly intended to borrow credibility the ads don't deserve.

The ads share a common set-up:

1. There's a product with a startling claim (access to health care, joint pain relief, cheap winter heat).
2. It's only available for a limited time, sometimes in limited quantity.
3. A long passage of text is included, written in a pseudo-journalistic style, with quotes attributed to people with authoritative-sounding titles.
4. There are sidebar boxes with diagrams and details that bolster credibility.
5. Multiple photos are used with cutlines that repeat key points from the body copy, since many readers won't read all that type.
6. The reader is called to action by use of an 800 number, and the ad is assigned a "claim code" that the caller is supposed to use. This reinforces the implied limited availability of the product.

Who are these UMS people?

Universal Media Syndicate is located in Canton, Ohio, near the Akron-Canton Airport. And it's not just the creator of these ads, it's actually part of a larger company that is the distributor of the products as well: Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings, which is owned by a guy named Rodney Napier.

On its website, Arthur Middleton says that its mission is "to have pride, purpose, profit & growth because we will exceed our customer's expectations." It's named for one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, who probably wishes he could sue for defamation of character.

In addition to Universal Media Syndicate, the Arthur Middleton site lists several other companies as subsidiaries: HeatSurge (makers of the Amish heaters), PatentHealth (creator of Trigosamine), World Reserve Monetary Exchange, Republic Telcom Worldwide, and Midwest Model Management.

World Reserve Monetary Exchange -- with its pseudo-governmental name -- markets "collectible" coins and uncut sheets of U.S. currency at higher than market rates. According to coincollector.org, WRME consistently sells currency products that are available at half the cost. (As an incentive in one ad, they offered to include "a cross made with grains of sacred sand from Christ's tomb." !)

Republic Telcom employs several hundred people in call centers to support all of the Arthur Middleton products. Midwest Model Management appears to be what its name implies, but I'll bet part of their work is to provide models for all those photos in the UMS ads. (These guys are all about vertical integration; why pay somebody else when you can do it yourself?)

How does the Universal Health Card fit into this picture? According to the Independent newspaper (Massillon, Ohio) in a story back in September 2008, Universal Health Card was opening a call center in a former Republic Steel building, taking advantage of a $2.1 million Job Tax Credit from the state. The tax credit had originally been arranged for Arthur Middleton's PatentHealth subsidiary, but was to be used by UHC, "a company associated with [PatentHealth's] parent-owner, Rodney Napier." According to the Independent, Napier helped a local auto dealer, Doug Waikem, start UHC, and "although not listed on [Arthur Middleton's] web site, Waikem's Universal Health Card LLC is part of Arthur Middleton."

The $2.1 million tax credit from the state was given to create 500 jobs in the economically distressed area, south of Cleveland. In July 2008, the Independent also reported on a different expansion of Arthur Middleton's business interests in Jackson Township near Akron, this time netting a 45 percent tax credit.

It's pathetic that the mayor of Canton and the lieutenant governor of Ohio have fallen all over themselves to praise Napier's companies as they expand into new locations. Do they have any idea what kinds of jobs Napier is creating, what types of products they're helping to unleash on an unsuspecting public?

In addition to his for-profit businesses, Napier is behind a nonprofit called the Granted Wish Foundation, located in the same building as Arthur Middleton, which lists all the Arthur Middleton companies as corporate sponsors. If I were the Ohio attorney general or even the IRS, I'd be interested in looking into just how nonprofit that foundation is.



Walking the line between puffery and outright lies

When does puffery turn into lies?

As I said in my first post on the Universal Health Card, the list of providers who accept the card is at a minimum hard to verify and most likely highly exaggerated or even partially fabricated (based on news and Better Business Bureau stories from around the country, compiled in my second post).

The Amish heaters perform as promised (they make heat), but are priced higher than comparable heaters that are widely available, and won't save you money on your overall heating bill as promised -- just on your gas bill, since you'll be paying for electricity instead of gas. (See Karen Youso's column from the Star Tribune analyzing both the cost of running the Amish heater and the cost of purchasing one vs. other options.)

The Trigosamine ad claims that there is a double-blind, placebo-controlled study that found "significant" positive benefit from its mixture of three drugs (the familiar glucosamine sulfate and two others). (As has been recently reported, the effectiveness of glucosamine is being questioned.) Of course, the ad doesn't give an actual citation to the research. Looking on the Trigosamine website, I found the title of the research, and then via Google found a specific reference to it at www.scribd.com (page 119 of the lengthy document, which is not actually a medical source, but rather an analysis of key trends in "nutraceutical" food and drinks). It reports that the study included just 20 patients, and that there was a statistically significant improvement in pain measurement when they were given one of the three ingredients listed as part of Trigosamine. However, if half the group of 20 was assigned to placebo and half the drug, that means only 10 people are in each experimental group... can you even compute statistical significance from a group that size?

But even if it does have statistically significant effects, the fact remains that Trigosamine is not the only product that includes this ingredient. It is readily available and not subject to limited quantities or timeframes, and can probably be had for a better price (or at least one that doesn't include shipping and handling) at your local drugstore.

In general, all the UMS ads belong to the Chicken Little school of advertising, warning you that there's only a short time to get the product or service. This is patently untrue, since Napier's hundreds of call center employees are eagerly waiting to talk to anyone who calls, any time. The Trigosamine ad, for instance, said "we can only allow the phone lines to be open for 72 hours because we have to be able to get it to people in other parts of the country." This is known as the "scarcity effect" and while it's one of the oldest tricks in the book, the UMS ads come up with a new twist based on time, rather than quantity.

Aside from being untrue, it's also just plain silly, given that these ads are waiting to run whenever the newspapers have trouble filling space -- so UMS has no idea until the last minute that an ad will run in any given market.

As the newspapers get more desperate for ad revenue, we'll see more and more of these ads, I'm afraid. I'd like to think that most people are too smart to fall for these appeals, but the growth of Rodney Napier's companies over the past few years makes it clear that quite a number are willing to fork over their cash, based on the ads' promises.

Ironically, Napier is looking to hire an attorney as Senior Corporate Counsel for Arthur Middleton Capital Holding. The notice on the website says the job requires "5+ years experience working for a State or Federal government agency in the area of consumer protection" (emphasis added).

From what I can tell, Rodney Napier never met a consumer protection law he couldn't skirt.

______________

NPR recently ran a story on the increased number of infomercials during prime television hours, and it's happening for the same reason -- with the economic downturn and auto industry troubles, particularly, remnant advertising agencies are buying up TV time at low prices so they can sell products no one really needs (PedEgg, Snuggies and ShamWow) or that don't work at all (HeadOn).

Summary of Univeral Media Syndicate Posts

In case you've just arrived from MinnPost, here's a list of all my past writing on the Universal Media Syndicate:

March 24, 2014 - Senior Mobile Phones — $97 Is Not Free

March 6, 2012 - Clear-Cast, Another Waste of Your Money from UMS

Ocober 24, 2011 - Even More Heat Surge Absurdity

December 2, 2011 - BBB Denounces the Scammers from Canton, Ohio

June 16, 2011 - ArcticPro Air Conditioners -- Not Free, and Not the Best Choice

January 30, 2011 - Find Out More About SmartLean and Flucoxanthin

December 7, 2010 - Uncut $2 Bills Cost 6 Times Their Face Value

September 11, 2010 - More Puffery from the Amish Heater Company

June 17, 2010 - Mira-Cool -- Repackaged Cool Surge?

February 20, 2010 - Apatrim -- Scam or Science?

August 30, 2009 - World Reserve Monetary Exchange Exploits Ted Kennedy

June 12, 2009 - Overpriced CompTek Laptops from Universal Media Syndicate

May 20, 2009 - Cool Surge -- Another Scam from Canton, Ohio

March 25, 2009 - Call the Papers When You See the Ads

January 21, 2009 - Obama Mania -- at a Price

January 10, 2009 - Universal Media Syndicate -- Half-Truths, Puffery and Outright Lies

December 6, 2008 - Universal Health Card Scam, Update 2

November 21, 2008 - Update on the Universal Health Card Scam

November 19, 2008 - Universal Health Card -- Money for Nothing (The post that started it all)

Uncut $2 Bills Cost 6 Times Their Face Value

It's the holiday shopping season, which means it's time for a new offer from the World Reserve Monetary Exchange and the Universal Media Syndicate. This time it's uncut sheets of $2 bills, available for only 48 hours to people who live within a limited set of zip codes. No pressure!

Today's Star Tribune carried the ad. This offer is not a good deal because each sheet of currency (which comes in a plastic folder the ad calls a "bankers portfolio") sells for $48, when the face value of the currency is only $8. That price is six times the face value of the currency. Six times. Plus shipping!


The ad spouts all the usual misleading hyperbole about the value of these sheets:

• People who buy them "will feel like they just won the lottery."
• "..those who get in on this now will be the really smart ones. Just think what they could be worth someday!"
• "VALUABLE... It's impossible to predict how much the bills will be worth in the future."
  
• "Rare uncut sheets of real Gov't issued currency have sold at prestigious auction houses for thousands of dollars."

Ah yes, rare uncut sheets are worth a lot -- but these sheets are not rare at all. It's impossible to predict how much (or how little) the sheets will be worth in the future.

And, to balance their hyperbolic statements, the UMS copy writers are always careful to include a single instance of this caveat: "Currency values always fluctuate, and there are never any guarantees."

"But," the ad continues right after the caveat, "at just forty-eight dollars the full uncut sheet and bankers portfolio is a real steal..." I would agree it's a steal, but in my opinion the people who buy aren't the ones taking advantage of the steal -- it's the World Reserve and its parent company Arthur Middleton Capital Holding who are getting the "real steal" from their customers.

More stupidity in the ad's text:

• "You would expect to only see uncut money sheets on display in the Oval Office or under guard at the Smithsonian." Who makes up this puffery?
  
• "...they are so seldom seen, banks don't even have them." Well, duh. Banks have no need for uncut sheets of money, since they're in the business of circulating currency.

It appears there's a minimum order of three, which as a group the ad calls a "Vault Stack." I would argue that the full-width photo at top, showing large stacks of uncut bills, is meant to imply that this type of "stack" is what the buyer would be purchasing, rather than three sheets stuck into plastic folders.


The ad makes a point of saying that the government stopped printing $2 bills in 2006, hoping to emphasize the scarcity/scare appeal of the offer. That's probably because there's not a lot of demand for $2 bills in circulating money. However, as of last fall, the Bureau of Engraving was selling these same uncut sheets on its ecommerce site for $2.815 per $2 bill, or $11.26 per sheet of eight. That's a whole lot less than $48 per sheet -- about 75 percent less.

How long would it take for the WRME $2 bills to even reach the value they're charging for them? Who knows, but it seems to me it won't be any time soon, if ever.

________

If you want to complain to the Strib about carrying this ad, their main number is 612-673-4000 and their feedback form to the advertising department can be found here.

________

Past posts about the World Reserve Monetary Exchange:

October 6, 2009 - Sheets of Money -- Cheapest and Uncut. Since I wrote this post, which describes uncut sheets for sale on the official Bureau of Engraving ecommerce site, the Bureau has stopped selling sheets of $2s, $5s and $10and is only selling $1s and $20s. This does not mean there is a shortage overall of other denominations or that they are necessarily worth more than they otherwise would be. They're just not available right now.

August 30, 2009 - World Reserve Monetary Exchange Exploits Ted Kennedy

Other past posts about WRME's sister companies, all part of Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings and advertised by the Universal Media Syndicate:

June 17, 2010 - Mira-Cool -- Repackaged Cool Surge?

February 20, 2010 - Apatrim -- Scam or Science?

June 12, 2009 - Overpriced CompTek Laptops from Universal Media Syndicate

May 20, 2009 - Cool Surge -- Another Scam from Canton, Ohio

March 25, 2009 - Call the Papers When You See the Ads

January 21, 2009 - Obama Mania -- at a Price

January 10, 2009 - Universal Media Syndicate -- Half-Truths, Puffery and Outright Lies

December 6, 2008 - Universal Health Card Scam, Update 2

November 21, 2008 - Update on the Universal Health Card Scam

November 19, 2008 - Universal Health Card -- Money for Nothing (The post that started it all)

Cease and Desist

It finally happened. Today I received a cease and desist letter from Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings, telling me to remove "defamatory" language about their products from my blog.

So instead of writing about some other topic, I've spent the evening going through old posts to read them from a more legalistic perspective, to the best of my ability, and also to see if I have been fair.

Here's what I changed:

• I have removed several instances (cited in the letter) where I made a blanket statement that their products are "overpriced," but left in discussion and analysis about their pricing, leaving it to the reader to draw her/his own conclusions.
• I have added two examples provided by AMCH's counsel on the value of several coins sold by the World Reserve Monetary Exchange. These values come from the Guide Book of United States Coins, which appears (to me as a non-expert) to be a reputable source of coin valuation, and in one case, from the U.S. Mint website.
  
• I have added a link to the Granted Wish Foundation's website, and I apologize for not including it earlier. Although an oversight, it was a breach of good Web etiquette.
  

I intend to reply to AMCH's counsel by the arbitrary deadline she set next week telling her what measures I've taken to address her concerns. I'll keep you posted on what happens.

I welcome comments on my posts from any and all, including people from Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings and its subsidiaries.

Here is a list of all my posts on this topic, if you want to read through the updated versions:

February 20, 2010 - Apatrim -- Scam or Science?

August 30, 2009 - World Reserve Monetary Exchange Exploits Ted Kennedy (updated)

June 12, 2009 - Overpriced CompTek Laptops from Universal Media Syndicate

May 20, 2009 - Cool Surge -- Another Scam from Canton, Ohio (updated)

March 25, 2009 - Call the Papers When You See the Ads (updated)

January 21, 2009 - Obama Mania -- at a Price (updated)

January 10, 2009 - Universal Media Syndicate -- Half-Truths, Puffery and Outright Lies (updated)

December 6, 2008 - Universal Health Card Scam, Update 2

November 21, 2008 - Update on the Universal Health Card Scam

November 19, 2008 - Universal Health Card -- Money for Nothing (The post that started it all)

Universal Health Card Scam, Update 2

Since it's Saturday and I've got a spare moment, I thought I'd check out who's been discussing the Universal Health Card lately. I've been getting a fair amount of search traffic to my post on the UHC -- it's good to see people taking "let the buyer beware" to heart by doing a bit of research.

A guy who uses the name UpDownMostly has posted a video to YouTube where he basically reads the ad out loud and says it sounds like a pretty good deal. (I apologize for the pornographic related video link you'll probably see that appears on the YouTube sidebar for this guy's page. This makes me suspect what else UpDownMostly has been doing with his YouTube account. Ahem.)

Another user, RootBrian, has posted a video response, pointing out that UHC is more likely a scam. RootBrian's video is unpolished and even a bit raw, but I think it's a good demo of how YouTube can be used to create an interactive conversation. Unfortunately, RootBrian's video has only been watched by about a third as many times as UpDownMostly's.

I originally suspected that UpDownMostly might actually be in the pay of UHC (yes, I'm that skeptical), but given that he's had his own channel on YouTube for several years, covering many different topics -- including his own health issues -- it's more likely he's just a guy who hopes that there is a quick fix for our health care problems... and isn't too good at the math of figuring out that $18 isn't free, and $588 a year ($49 x 12 months) definitely isn't free. Or even a particularly good deal for a bunch of unknown discounts (what us old-timers call a pig in a poke).

A few other finds:

• A letter to the editor in the Berkshire Eagle (Pittsfield, Mass.) sheds a bit of light on the UHC.
• The New York Better Business Bureau weighed in, stating: "BBB staff found it impossible to determine the exact amount of these discounts without signing up for the card. Therefore, consumers will not know how much the card will save them before being billed for actual medical services." And to top it off, the same parent company is responsible for both the UHC and one of the "miracle" space heaters I've been writing about recently! (My first post; second post.) The BBB says: "One of these promotions, Heat Surge, offers two 'free miracle heaters' capable of providing dramatic energy savings." (Coincidence? I think not.) And this, my absolute favorite part of the BBB post: "It is important for consumers to understand that simply formatting an advertisement like a news story does not lend credibility to its claims." In my opinion, ads that try to look like news coverage should actually be perceived as less credible.
  
• The Rhode Island Office of the Health Commissioner blog has also posted a critique of the UHC.
  
• The AARP Bulletin Today followed suit.

Whew. But even with all that, I'm really amazed there hasn't been more written about it.

Update on the Universal Health Card Scam

Note: I've also added this to my original post on the UHC scam.

Today I called the two Walgreens, as well as the Target and HealthPartners, that were listed. None of the people I spoke to had ever heard of the UHC or BioScrip but they all said that didn't mean they wouldn't accept it because they take a lot of "pharmacy benefit cards." Walgreens, for instance, has its own card that costs $20 per year and covers 500 drugs.

The very helpful woman I spoke to at Target at first assumed it was a free discount card, and when I told her it cost $50 a month, she paused, and then said I should call the UHC company and give them a list of my specific medications "and if they can't tell you what it would save you, I wouldn't touch it."

So I just called one of UHC's 800 numbers to ask just that. I was told they couldn't tell me what savings I would have on any specific medication without knowing what specific pharmacy was involved, and that I should ask the pharmacy. Of course, I said the pharmacy had said to ask UHC. And this is when the customer service rep said, "That's why we have the free 30-day trial, so you can take the card in and see how much it saves you."

Except, of course, it's not free. It costs $18 to get the free card.

PS Family Healthcare Is Not Health Insurance

This recent ad from the Star Tribune isn't quite as bad as the one for the Universal Health Card, but it's close.


It doesn't threaten readers with a contrived cut-off date for signing up, and it doesn't lead the gullible to believe the service is free (rather than that the first month is free), as in the case of the UHC.

The PS Family Healthcare product, however, is more expensive than the UHC ($59.93 per month vs. $49). And both are basically money for nothing, since it's fairly common to get a discount for paying cash for health care.

Like the UHC ad, PS Family Healthcare includes small print pointing out that the product is not actually insurance, and it even uses the word "discount," which alludes to the true nature of the product.



Clearly, PS Family Healthcare has found a way to skirt consumer protection laws with its small print, unlike two other companies pursued by the Minnesota Attorney General's office. (Both of which charged a whole lot more money per month and used terms -- like "coverage" and "premium" -- that were even more misleading than PS Family Healthcare's ad.)

Despite the lack of interest shown by the Minnesota Attorney General so far, PS Family Healthcare is not allowed to sell its product in Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, South Carolina or Washington state, so that tells you something.

Another blogger named Neil Davis has already done the research on the confusing network of companies behind the PS Family Healthcare ads. As Davis writes, "What all this nonsense boils down to is that between you and your doctor there are many hands in the American health care system reaching out to skim off your money one way or another. Health discount cards are just one of the mechanisms for doing it."

LifeLock Ads -- Curiouser and Curiouser

Last Sunday's Star Tribune business section included this full-page ad for LifeLock. In case you haven't heard of it, it's a company that guarantees it can prevent identity theft, and its CEO is known for publicly disclosing his Social Security number to prove how iron-clad the service is.

I was vaguely aware of LifeLock (I think from an ad that was in Parade magazine a while ago), and wondered if it was a legitimate product. I looked into it a bit at the time, and decided it seemed like it was basically on the up-and-up, and so I left at that.

This recent ad caught my eye, though, because its layout is almost identical to the ads done by the Universal Media Syndicate.

For instance, compare the layout above to this one for the Universal Health Card (ignore the pink boxes -- those are from me):

It has the same right-dominant image at top, photos of "real people" across the bottom with their stories marked off by a square bullet, and a call to action box about two-thirds of the way down the right side of the page, complete with Promo Code and two different phone numbers to call depending upon whether you want single and multiple coverage.

There are even similar little icons for each phone number (although the "padlock man" icon has been used by LifeLock before this ad).

So either LifeLock is imitating the successful formula of the UMS, or possibly they've actually hired UMS to produce the ads.

Looking into LifeLock a little further, I discovered they weren't quite so up-and-up as I had thought. They do offer an actual service (which costs $110 per year), but it's something you could do yourself for free.

Basically, the same 2003 law that brought us each a free credit report per year also made it possible for us to put a fraud alert on our credit reports so that no one can open a new account in our name without checking with us first. Jeez, you say, that sounds like something that should be required in the first place. But it's not, you see, because that would slow down the credit bureaus and therefore cost them money, so they didn't let it become law.

What LifeLock does is put one of those fraud alerts on your reports, and then renew the hold every three months. As security expert Bruce Schneier explained it in Wired, you do get something for your money from LifeLock, but in his opinion, it's not worth it. He writes, "LifeLock's business model is based more on the fear of identity theft than the actual risk."

But just because it's not worth the money, doesn't mean people aren't doing it, which angers the credit bureaus. According to Schneier,

This service pisses off the credit bureaus and their financial customers. The reason lenders don't routinely verify your identity before issuing you credit is that it takes time, costs money and is one more hurdle between you and another credit card. (Buy, buy, buy -- it's the American way.) So in the eyes of credit bureaus, LifeLock's customers are inferior goods; selling their data isn't as valuable. LifeLock also opts its customers out of pre-approved credit card offers, further making them less valuable in the eyes of credit bureaus.

So the credit bureaus and others sued LifeLock, claiming they are misusing the law that allowed fraud alerts. The alerts, they argue, were only meant to be used after a person's wallet had been stolen, or their house broken into. Schneier counters that by saying, "the text of the law states that anyone 'who asserts a good faith suspicion that the consumer has been or is about to become a victim of fraud or related crime' can request a fraud alert. It seems to me that includes anybody who has ever received one of those notices about their financial details being lost or stolen, which is everybody."

Despite that, the credit bureaus recently won their suit, and so I guess LifeLock's whole business model has been thrown out the window.

Which leads me to question what the point of the recent ad was. It ran weeks after the lawsuit was decided. The text does emphasize several times that the service is for people who "have a good faith suspicion that you are at risk of identity theft," so perhaps that's LifeLock's way of trying to get around the recent ruling.

If there's one upside to all of this, it's that it may make more people aware of their right to put a fraud alert on their credit reports. If you want to do it, this is how, according to the site lifelock-scam.com:

Placing your own fraud alert takes a few minutes and costs nothing. You only have to place it with one of the [credit] bureaus as by law the one you place it with must inform the other 2.

To find out just how easy it is simply ring or write to any of the following credit bureaus to request a fraud alert to be placed on your credit file:

TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241

Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013

An ‘initial’ fraud alert is designed to be used if you feel you are at risk, so if asked for a reason you might mention the wallet or purse that you lost or the ‘post that has been going missing.’

Do it today, if only to annoy the credit bureaus!

Overpriced CompTek Laptops from Universal Media Syndicate

Well, at least the latest product from Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings (via the Universal Media Syndicate) isn't snake oil -- it's just overpriced, in my opinion, and its price is advertised in a deceptive way. I guess that's a step up for them.

Thursday's Star Tribune included a full-page ad for a "new, easy-to-use laptop computer" from CompTek, but darned if it isn't just another ad from the Universal Media Syndicate, complete with a limited time offer and a "special" claim code. (Click on the image for a larger version.)


Actually, I find this ad less deceptive than many of their others (such as the Universal Health Card), because it at least displays the price as numerals with a dollar sign! But check out the weaselry in the headline:


In case you can't read the smaller, italic type, it ends with "for a final payment of just $188."

That's right -- you send them $188 up front, then after you've had the computer two weeks, you owe them another $188. This is made clearer in the Terms and Conditions box (right under the toll-free number).

Why are they trying to hide the fact that the CompTek costs $376? Well, that's because $376 is a bad price.

A quick check of the Dell website put me onto their Mini 10V, which costs $299 -- with a larger screen and a 50 percent larger hard drive. It also has 1GB of RAM, while RAM is not even mentioned in the CompTek ad... which seems pretty odd.

At this point, I have to acknowledge that Dell charges $40 to get a color case on the Mini 10V, while the CompTek comes in white, pink, yellow or red at no additional cost. So if you assume no one wants a black laptop, the price comparison is $339 vs. $376 -- still about 11 percent more for the CompTek.

I haven't seen much Internet discussion of the CompTek yet, so perhaps this is a completely new product from the princes of puffery down in Canton, Ohio. One item I did see was on a site called The Amish Cook, which took the UMS gang to task for their past scams, and for involving the Amish in their ads. After pointing out the deceptive price listing in the CompTek ad, the post (which -- in case you were wondering -- was written by the editor of the site, not the Amish woman who writes the column for which the site is named) finished with this thought: "At least there is no mention of Amish in the ad!"

An Amish laptop... even the Universal Media Syndicate wouldn't go that far!

Cool Surge -- Another Scam from Canton, Ohio

Here in Minnesota, we went from heating to cooling season in about 12 hours this week, and what do you know? Instantly we have a Star Tribune ad from the Universal Media Syndicate scammers selling something called "Cool Surge."

Recycling the same layout they used for the Universal Health Card, Amish Heaters, Trigosamine, "free" safes, and a multitude of coin collections, now the dishonest marketers at Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings, parent company of UMS, are selling a mobile box that contains a fan and "two sets of reusable glacier ice blocks" -- basically containers that you fill with water, freeze in your freezer, and then put inside the box so the fan blows over them.

As Dan at Regruntled.com says, the net effect will be to warm your house, given the laws of thermodynamics. In the lengthy comments on Dan's post, at least one person pointed out that it's basically the same as blowing a fan over a bowl of ice. And last time I checked, a fan cost maybe twenty bucks.

Aside from the obvious dishonesty of the whole Universal Media Syndicate enterprise (they dare to describe the Cool Surge as "eco-friendly"!), the thing that irks me the most about them is the insane prices they attach to their junk. $298 for one of these Cool Surges! (You get the second one "free," except the cost of shipping, which -- according to one of the commenters on Regruntled -- was almost $100. So even at best, $200 per unit.)

I can just hear the meeting where they set their prices. Like anyone who's taken Marketing 101, they know that some consumers associate higher prices with higher quality. So jacking up the price reinforces the wishful thinking of the gullible.

I wonder if the people of Canton, Ohio, are ashamed of the way this company drags their town's name through the mud. I sure would be.
________

If you want to contact the Star Tribune to complain about the ad, try their main number (612-673-4000) or use the web feedback form to the advertising department.

Obama Mania -- at a Price

When it comes to both kitsch and sucker-born-every-minute examples, "commemorative" objects are a category all their own. As I began to see the Obama inauguration commemoratives being advertised, I put them in a pile. Here are a few:


Commemorative photo collage with "24kt gold-plated solid bronze medallions" from the Danbury Mint. Listed at $99 plus $9.90 shipping and handling (payable in three monthly installments).


A "Collector's Folio" from PCS Stamps & Coins, sporting an uncirculated Illinois State Quarter, a 24kt-gold, electroplated Obamamedal, a one-day-only postmark from Inauguration day, and three "mint-condition" stamps -- arranged around a "specially commissioned portrait." All this for $59 plus $4.50 shipping and handling (payable in two installments).

Commemorative plate from Telebrands. Listed as $19.99 plus $6.99 shipping and handling. (Oddly, if you send them a check, however, the cost including handling is $33.97.) This one comes with a special bonus -- a U.S. Mint commemorative President Washington coin.

I'm not critiquing buttons or t-shirts, you'll notice, and also no items that have a hint of cleverness. No, these are all straight-up kitsch -- plaques and plates, primarily.

The prices on these items are silly and outrageous, but they're clearly labeled, and so if someone pays the money, they know what they're getting.

Not so the most recent pitch I saw in today's Star Tribune from the hacks at Universal Media Syndicate and the World Reserve Monetary Exchange. Their full-page ad talks a whole lot about a "free" Obama presidential quarter, while what it is actually selling is a "solid Silver coin for forty-nine dollars" in a "handsome Presidential Display" (i.e. box). If you order that item, you get the "free" quarter with it.


Note the lack of numerals or dollar signs in that price (suddenly, $49 = forty-nine dollars), a technique they also use in their ads for the Universal Health Card. I read the coin ad thoroughly without seeing the price until I looked more carefully. (The other item shown in the ad, a set of five Obama coins, is never given a price at all.) This obfuscation of the price is a common tactic in UMS ads.

Other common UMS tactics used in the ad:

• The scare tactic of limited time ("all those who beat the 48-hour order deadline")
• Inclusion of a map dividing the country up into territories with supposed different access to the product
• Provision of a "claim code" that makes the product look more limited and special
• The use of words like "authorized," "restricted" and "exclusive."

The copy says that UMS makes no promises about the coins appreciating in value, but at the same time it recounts numerous examples of other items that have appreciated in value, implying the coins could do the same. There is absolutely no possibility these coins will have any special value -- there are too many of them. (The reason Teddy Roosevelt campaign buttons are worth $3,000 is because there are not very many of them. Remember all those Beanie Babies you see for sale for $1? The ones everyone thought would finance their retirement? Yeah. Like that.)

As anyone who has read my past posts on UMS knows, I find the company and its products revolting. Their Obama coin offer sinks to a new low. Perhaps the new Obama administration will do something to protect gullible consumers from the UMS and its products.

HeadOn, Brain Off

My daughter just showed me an ad from listoftheday.blogspot.com, a site she checks every day. It's for a product called HeadOn, and it's famous for the fact that all it says is "HeadOn -- apply directly to the forehead" three times, while showing a woman rubbing what looks like a roll-on deodorant on her forehead.



I know I'm generally out of if it (mostly because I don't watch much television), but I hadn't heard of this. However, the Wikipedia tells me that the ads are famous, having been riffed on by the advertiser and many others, as well as decried by famous skeptic James Randi.

So what is this product? As one would suspect of an ad that doesn't actually make any claims, it's total quackery. At this point I'll just quote the Wikipedia:

As of September 2008, there are two versions of HeadOn available in stores: "Extra Strength" and "Migraine". Chemical analysis of the Migraine formulation has shown that the product consists almost entirely of wax. The three active ingredients are Iris versicolor 12× (a flower), white bryony 12× (a type of vine [Bryonia dioica, botanical name added]), and potassium dichromate 6× (a known carcinogen). The "×" notation indicates that the three chemicals have been diluted to 1 part per trillion, 1 part per trillion, and 1 part per million respectively. This amount of dilution is so great that the product has been described as a placebo... The formula for the Extra Strength version of the product is the same as the Migraine except that it excludes the Iris versicolor.

Seymour Diamond, director of the Diamond Headache Clinic in Chicago and the inpatient headache unit at St. Joseph Hospital, was quoted as saying "I see nothing in this product that has any validity whatsoever." Consumer Reports states that no clinical-trial data involving HeadOn have been presented, and that "any apparent efficacy may be the result of the placebo effect."

Correspondence was published with a statement from HeadOn Customer Service that "It works through the nerves."

I don't know about you, but when I have a migraine, there's no placebo in the world that could touch it. Back in the 1980s, I tried using Tiger Balm (rubbing it on my forehead) when I had a headache. While it was mentally soothing, it didn't do anything for the pain.


Iris versicolor is a North American native wetland plant, while Bryonia is a European weed that's related to the cucumber. It sounds like it's not a plant you want to eat any time soon, though. The Plants for a Future website (a resource on plants of interest to herbalists) says about it: "All parts of the plant are poisonous. One report says it is very toxic, another [which concentrates mostly on effects on livestock] says it is of very low toxicity. The fresh root is a severe skin irritant."

According to the website of HeadOn's manufacturer, Miralus Healthcare:

Miralus Healthcare is dedicated to developing innovative and high-quality pharmaceutical, cosmetic and dietary supplement products. Our mission is to research, develop, and market exceptional healthcare solutions that help improve day-to-day living. We strive to go beyond the standards of excellence to bring you effective and reliable products aimed at enhancing your quality of life.

We also have the responsibility of ensuring that all our products meet all relevant regulations, and we give careful consideration to all related bioethical issues. Our stringent guidelines and principles ensure that we deliver solutions that are safe and dependable.

I wonder how much money they make each year by selling their worthless products, which are available at all the major drugstores and discount chains. They've probably even worked out a deal with the marketers of the Universal Health Card, which would be particularly appropriate.

The Fascinating Year at DN3

Lately, I've been excavating my closets and basement (which means there'll be lots of future "It Came from the Basement" posts), but today I'm cleaning out my site statistics.

Boring stuff first:

• Browser use was more diversified than at any time I can recall (36% Firefox, 32% Internet Explorer, 22% Safari, 9% Chrome).
• 70 percent of the visitors came to my site only once (sad face).
• Visitors came from almost every country in the world. Though nobody likes me in Guyana, Greenland, Bangladesh, Papua New Guinea, Laos, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Syria or more than half of Africa (visitors did come from Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique, and South Africa)
• Not surprisingly, of the U.S. states, Minnesota led with 31% of the traffic. New York was second with a little under 8%. Daughter Number Three is least popular in Delaware (.09% of the traffic).
  

My two most-visited posts of the year were about Universal Media Syndicate topics: the "diet" pill Apatrim and the Mira-Cool swamp cooler.

Search Me

In keeping with those stats, the most common search terms were related to Apatrim or Mira-Cool, followed by others connected to UMS or Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings. They must have been running a lot of ads this year.

Search terms, as Carmella recently reported, make for fun reading. Some were done by inexperienced searchers:

• "michele bachmann + photo" (never heard of Google Images?)
• lynne thigpen actress (as if she might get confused with some other Lynne Thigpen who wasn't an actress?)
• what percent of people think stuff about the westing game (umm... everyone who reads it?)
  
• 75 separate searches that started with the word "the" (Google ignores all articles unless they're included in a phrase that's in quotes)
  

Others are looking for such bizarre topics, I wish I knew the whole story:

• i am a symbol of times past. the daughter of a sevivor of white men in
• george santayana solvent
• what does a enema pan beetle eat?
• how do i make a health card
  
• i found a bat where did it go
• cow's perspective of sam westing in the westing game
  

Some are working on an assignment without benefit of reading the book first:

• quotes from the ghost map with page numbers
• why did the puritans hate the american indians and the pilgrims didn,t?
• what are some quotes turtle uses in the book westing game
• what happens in chapter 3 of how we decide
• write outlines on how to steal a car by pete hautman
  
• what two things nurture the seeds of totalitarianism (gee, are there only two?)
• why resist feed in novel feed?
  

Still others combine typos with thinkos:

• how to no which there and their it is (but no question how to know which no/know to use)
  
• ammonia smell coming for beef (watch out, beef, the ammonia smell is coming for you!)
• bacon lattice turkey (maybe they were looking for my post on a turkey covered in a lattice of bacon, but maybe they were looking for bacon lettuce turkey... who can tell?)
• can u give me a card number and a scurity cold to upgread my yearbook (wow, I hope that person was typing in the dark)
  

And here's the one I found most interesting of all:

• who is daughternumberthree@blogspot.com

This person spent 48 minutes on the main page of the site.

World Reserve Monetary Exchange Exploits Ted Kennedy

Well, if it's not another expensive, opportunistically timed coin collection from the World Reserve Monetary Exchange.

It's the day after Ted Kennedy's funeral, and we've got a full-page, color ad in the Star Tribune promoting "free" Kennedy half dollars.


(Click on the ad to see it larger.)

How does it work, and what's the free part?

World Reserve offers a "vault tube" of 20 never-circulated, half-dollar coins (face value $10) plus a special Ted Kennedy portrait coin for free, for a total of $10.50 in face value. These two items (the vault tube and the free coin) cost $28 plus shipping. So that's $17.50 over the face value (167%).

A second offer in the ad -- and one that is vastly more emphasized in the ad's visuals -- is a "treasure chest" containing three vault tubes (60 coins) and three "free" portrait coins, one each of Ted, Bobby and John.


The coins in these vault tubes have been plated in silver, gold and platinum. This set can be had for "3 payments of $96 and shipping." (Not clear from that language whether the set costs $96 total or $96 times 3 payments, or $288.)

So that means the 63 coins, with a face value of $31.50, will cost you either $96 or $288, depending on what the vague pricing language means. That's either 205% or 814% over the face value.

What is the full price?

I just had to know for sure, so I called to find out what the price really is. The guy I talked to was clearly working from a script, because he used words like "awarded" (congratulating me that I had called in time to be "awarded" the coins) and misspoke when he referred to Ted Kennedy as the "Lion of the State" instead of the Lion of the Senate. I did find out that the coins were minted in 2009.

And what is the price for the treasure chest? You guessed it. It's three payments of $96, or $288 -- a whopping 814% over the face value of the coins ($4.57 per coin). My customer service rep did let me know that the shipping on that offer is free, though. Hey, thanks!

When I demurred and said I couldn't decide right away because I had to talk to someone else about it, and that I would call back, he read me the part of the script designed to pressure me into making a decision on the spot. "I would hate to see you miss out," he said. The coins are available "first come, first served." He offered to put me on hold while I discussed it with whoever I needed to. But I said no, thanks, I would have to call back, and hung up.

What are the coins worth?

Maybe these plated coins are actually worth more than their face value, which would account for their price. It seemed possible to me, a layperson when it comes to coin collecting.

However, it appears this is not the case. WikiAnswers says there is "some small after-market for them but they have no additional numismatic value because they are technically classed as altered coins." This is confirmed on the Heritage Auctions site, which says, "Gold plated coins are not mint made. Most of the gold plated coins are common date coins. Unfortunately gold plated coins have no numismatic value."

Even if the plated coins had at least their face value to start, and increased in value by 500% (the amount of increase seen for uncirculated Eisenhower dollars, a statistic dangled by the writers of the ad to make readers think their coins will appreciate in a similar way), anyone who purchased the plated coins would still be 314% short of what they paid to the World Reserve.

Update: In a cease and desist letter I received from an attorney on behalf of the World Reserve, I was told: "Each 2009 issued Kennedy half-dollar in uncirculated condition has a current collector value of $2.00" (according to the Guide Book of United States Coins), and is being sold by the United States Mint on its website in a plain paper wrapper of 20 coins for approximately 83 cents per coin plus shipping (two rolls of 20 coins, selling for $32.95 + $4.95 shipping).

So the coins appear to have a current value of either $2.00 apiece or 83 cents apiece, depending on which of these pricing sources you rely on. This assumes that the coins' alteration by plating has not affected their value negatively.

Also note that the 20 plain, unaltered 2009 Kennedy half dollars in a vault tube offered by World Reserve for $28.00 plus shipping can be purchased directly from the U.S. Mint in a paper wrapper for $16.25 plus shipping. The only difference is the plastic tube vs. the paper wrapper.

Puffery and blather in the ad copy

As always, the ad is presented as if it were a regular page in the newspaper, including a dateline at the beginning, noted as (UMS). UMS stands for the Universal Media Syndicate, the ad agency that shares a parent company with the World Reserve.

The ad's copy is full of puffery terms. The Kennedy half dollars "have been lavishly covered" in gold, silver and platinum. In reality, it's likely to be a microthin amount of the material, since that's what plating is.

The coins come packaged in "specially sealed crystal clear vault tubes"...better known as plastic, which I think we all know is generally transparent. The word "crystal," however, is being used to associate common plastic with a much more valuable and desirable material.

One paragraph quotes someone named Robert Anthony, director of the World Reserve: "The never-circulated U.S. Gov't minted Kennedy half dollars are one of the highest denomination coins ever produced by the U.S. Mint." Which means exactly nothing. The U.S. Mint makes coins in different amounts, including dollar coins. They make half dollar coins, too. So what?

Another paragraph has Anthony raving about the treasure chest with its coins "lavishly gilded in gold, silver and platinum." He goes on to say "You just won't believe the expression on people's faces when you hand them these. It's like you just gave them a Million Dollars." Odd use of capitalization there -- its clearly intended to make the words "million dollars" jump out of the copy.

Plus $3 to the Granted Wish Foundation!

At the end of the ad copy, Robert Anthony is once again quoted:

And, in the tradition of John, Bobby and Ted's dedication to helping others, The World Reserve is contributing three dollars to the Granted Wish Foundation for each caller who calls and beats the order deadline.

In a previous post, I found that the Granted Wish Foundation is part of the same network of companies as the World Reserve, all associated with Arthur Middle Capitol Holdings, a marketing conglomerate started by one Rodney Napier. The Foundation's mission is to "provide wish fulfillment to disabled, disadvantaged and deserving individuals and families."

Since I'm not located in Ohio, I can't fully comment on the Granted Wish Foundation's effect in their local community. However, I can say it instantly creates several blips on my fraud radar.

First, there is a serious vacuum of discussion about the work of this foundation. Googling the organization's name returns links to pages from the Foundation's own website, podcasts or YouTube channel, a bunch of mentions of Cleveland Browns quarterback Brady Quinn making an appearance on behalf of the Foundation, and a few media articles about its executive director.

What's lacking is discussion about any work they've done (except on the testimonials page of their own site). Wouldn't you think their name would turn up repeatedly somewhere on the Web if they were doing good work for people? Update: There is one story from the Roanoke (Virginia) Times about the Foundation purchasing a $600 tricycle for a young man with cerebral palsy.

Second, they don't publish an annual report on their website, nor do they provide a breakdown of their expenses to show what percent is spent on administration and fundraising vs. program.

Third, Rodney Napier, head of Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings, is listed as one of two board members for the foundation on the About magazine site; I'm not sure if this is the full extent of their board or not, since there is no board list on the Foundation's own site. I'd love to see a copy of their IRS 990 form (also not available on their website), which is another place where financials are disclosed and conflicts of interest are monitored.

Looking at board lists, 990s and financial statements is key to assessing a nonprofit's worthiness, according to the Charities Review Council. This information "should be found on the nonprofit's web site, preferably in one place so that the same content can be reliably printed and mailed upon request." (See the CRC's accountability standards here.)

In honor of Ted Kennedy?

In my opinion, it's an odd way to honor the memory of Ted Kennedy: by making a $3 donation to a foundation with no clear track record from payments made for products that aren't worth nearly as much as the asking price.

But the World Reserve doesn't really honor Kennedy's memory, of course; they just see his death as a marketing opportunity.

________________

Other resources on the World Reserve Monetary Exchange:

• One coin-collecting blogger did a great job of exploding the lies and half-truths in one of World Reserve's earlier presidential coin ads.
• Another has written about the World Reserve's pricing in general.
• I've written numerous times about the ads of the World Reserve, its sister companies and parent company, including the Universal Health Card.

Twitter in June: Mood Swings

Looking back through my Twitter favorites for June, the issues spring out in reverse order: the Supreme Court decision on marriage equality, taking down the Confederate flag, and the killings in Charleston. First those three, starting with marriage equality:

A bit jealous that Minnesotans have a Black, Muslim congressman who supports marriage equality.
By Saladin Ahmed

Marriage used to be so simple. You'd meet a man, buy his daughter; make awkward conversation til she died in childbirth. What went wrong?
By Alice R Fraser

So gay marriage is a threat to Democracy, but Citizens United isn't?
By Robert O. Simonson

It was a 5-4 ruling: Men 4-2 against, Women 3-0 for. Another reminder of benefits of women in leadership positions.
By Vinicius Vacanti

If you had told me in 2004 that America would have a black president, universal health care, and gay marriage by 2015, I would have laughed.
By Ezra Klein

I'd take Scalia's concern about SCOTUS inventing laws more seriously if he hadn't recently waved his hand and turned companies into people.
By Ken Tremendous

Scalia's next dissent will consist of him singing "Daisy" over and over while he slowly winds down into nothingness.
By jay smooth

Weird that the US now sanctifies the right to marry but has no similar protection of the right to vote.
By David Roberts

How far we've come since the President Obama & Senator Clinton ran against gay marriage in 2008! People can change. Never give up.
By Michael Moore

Don't worry, conservatives. In a way, the Supreme Court stopped gay marriage for good. Because it's just "marriage" now.
By Hemant Mehta

Taking down the ridiculous Confederate flag:

"Southern Lives Matter." Even when showing their hate for Black people they manage to appropriate from Black people.


By William Anderson

We also have a heritage in Italy. It's called fascism. We don't celebrate it or miss it. Time to grow up for some Americans.
By Federico Viticci

I can’t believe we’re even discussing whether to take down the flag of a treasonous, racist revolt against our country.
By David Roberts

The people who are offended by "Happy Holidays" want to know what your problem with the Confederate flag is.
By Pete Nicely

Bree Newsome is like part Spider Woman, part Ida B. Wells:


By Disgruntled Haradrim

Reacting to domestic terrorism when it’s committed by a white guy, and the aftermath of the Charleston mass murders:

Dylann Roof gets "a difficult childhood,” Mike Brown gets "no angel.”
By Sarah Kendzior

Still a lot of talk about how moved folks are by the victims’ sense of "forgiveness." One way to reflect this is by taking down the flag.
By Ta-Nehisi Coates

In the black church forgiveness isn't to absolve the horror but to preserve one's soul from being consumed by hate.
By The Libyan

Go directly to forgiveness. Do not pass accountability. Do not collect reparations.
By Vandal

Like it or not, killers ARE human. There's nothing wrong with 'humanizing' white killers. The problem is that ONLY white killers get to be human.
By Saladin Ahmed

In retrospect Sandy Hook marked the end of the US gun control debate. Once America decided killing children was bearable, it was over.
By Dan Hodges

Bobby Jindal says this is a time to say "we're not blacks or whites...we're Americans."
By Ana Marie Cox

Sure that works ... Unless of course you're ACTUALLY fucking Black.
By besos!

Same whites who claim the Charleston church shooting is an ”isolated incident" shout "culture of poverty" and "thug culture" to demonize the poor and blacks.
By Paul Thomas

"If they are to be a part of our society, they must do a better job of rejecting violence and fanaticism." Never said about young white men.
By Saladin Ahmed

"Troubled loner w/ mental illness" & "suggestible ideologue taking cues from racist superstructure" are not mutually exclusive explanations.
By David Roberts

We can't swim, we can't buy skittles, we can't listen to loud music, we can't shop, we can't play, we can't breathe, we can't pray.
By P.K. Eduah

And the rest of my favorite subjects and a sprinkling of chuckles and aha moments. (This list continues to run a bit shorter than average; I'm still not spending as much time as I was on Twitter before May.)

What if we made you terribly aware of your deficits every single day? What if you had to work on those deficits every moment of your day?
By Sisyphus38

Name-calling is what happens when you desperately want to argue, but you are in fact inarticulate.
By Neil deGrasse Tyson

I HAD THE TIME OF MY LIFE AND I NEVER FELT THIS WAY BEFORE:


By Sean Leahy

The Greek crisis is being fought over $240 billion in Greek debt. Wondering if stocks will lose over $240 billion in value because of it.
By Steven Greenhouse

!!! "In Alabama, an adult in a 4-person household w/ income of $4,400 a year earns too much to qualify for Medicaid." [Citing the New York Times.]
By Steven Greenhouse

I like the term "douchebag" because it means "a thing that women were historically told they needed, but actually does more harm than good."
By Occubrarian Rachel

Protest is confrontation. Protest is disruption. Protest is the end of silence. It is not the solution, it creates space for the solution.
By DeRay Mckesson

Hours/week associate professors spend on service by race/gender:


By tressie mc

The testing industry makes more money annually than the NFL and the box office.
By Nikhil Goyal

Walkable cities called "a trend." Hardly: thriving cities have been walkable for centuries. Planning around cars is a blip in comparison.
By jennifer keesmaat

Don’t reactionaries ever notice how much they have in common with other reactionaries, even their purported enemies?
By David Roberts

Remember: when someone calls you a resource, call them overhead.
By Sean Cribbs

When I was in college a pack of smokes was $1.50. Everyone smoked. Now they’re $10. Almost no one smokes. Make bullets $1000.
By Mike Monteiro

It’s dangerous to assume that you are a better human than slaveholders. It misses the great power of structures, and furthers the myth of the individual.
By Ta-Nehisi Coates

The idea that the solution to gun violence is more guns is analogous to the medieval belief that you cure syphilis by giving it to a virgin.
By Neven Mrgan

Don't do this, Target:


By abi who?

Local grocery store has baby formula locked in glass cage, across from security desk. Think what it means that baby formula is a theft risk.
By Andy Barenberg

Shout out to the people outraged that the president said "nigger" once but don't care about the countless times he's been called it since ’08.
By Marc Lamont Hill

obama: racism is real. media: ... obama: racial tension in the US is a serious issue. media: ... obama: "nigger.” media: OOO U SAID A BAD WORD.
By blacklivesmatter

For every criminal killed in self defense, 2 people die from misfire, 34 die from gun homicide, and 78 die from gun-suicide. So the "logic" that more guns would prevent gun violence is not only crazy, it is demonstrably false.
By Jonathan Foley

The world spends $15 billion each year on ocean cruises while all it would take is $11 billion to provide clean drinking water for all.
By Injustice Quotes

I wish we could have expansion of train service, just one more train to Chicago a day from Union Depot.
By Avidor

“What are we supposed to do, just have dirt around our house on four acres?” Rich Californians on water limits.
By Joseph Nathan Cohen

I think it is OK when women are really into furniture and property because it used to be our cousin.
By Aparna Nancherla

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” ― Ernest Hemingway
By David Roberts

And this is what happens when your education system dies:


By Charles Hoskinson

In conversations with peers in my school district I notice that they talk a good game about innovation and change but they really want known and sameness.
By Sisyphus38

On an average day, an offshore wind turbine produces the energy needed for production of 20 tonnes of steel, paying back the energy invested.
By Kees van der Leun

Tell me more about how hiring people you feel comfortable with, based on an interview, is going to change your school.
By Sisyphus38

Your afternoon reminder that masculinity is the most fragile thing in the world:


By c_d

It's crazy that once personal video recorders became ubiquitous UFOs stopped visiting Earth and cops started brutalizing people all the time.
By Stephen Judkins

America is founded on "the race card," the false superiority of whiteness. "Don't pull the race card" is code for "black folk be silent."
By DeRay Mckesson

Online is a horrible urban legend come to life. If you say a brand's name too many times, it appears in order to torment you.
By Matt Christman

If America's police for one day treated white kids like kids of color, they'd all lose their pensions. [Referring to the police overreaction at a Texas pool party.]
By Andrew J. Padilla

Bullet points and spacing can add clarity to your writing:


By Jason L. Sparks

Monthly reminder: They're not SPEAKING through a translator; you are LISTENING through a translator.
By Merlin Mann

Learning should help child discover unique talents, not standardize them.
By John Chase

A useful response to *so* many Twitter conversations:


By Tom Tomorrow