09 Jan 2006
Waking up to recurring ID nightmares

Nightmare? More like horror story! But bureaucracies can be very, very frustrating, and it's not just limited to government bureaus, either. In fact, sometimes private entities can be much more difficult...

I sold a business in 1990, made a decent sum and was retained by the new owners as the director of their R&D department. But when the business was absorbed by the new owners, a clerical error was made - the sales tax account with the State of Indiana wasn't properly closed.

Since the mailing address of my company had been a PO box, and the box was closed, all the mail bounced. And since I wasn't filing monthly sales reports, the State very gracious estimated my assumed sales for me and charged the company. Of course, I never knew any of this - until we went to buy a new house in 1994 and were told we owed over $250,000 in back taxes! Talk about a shock!

I immediately contacted the state revenue folks, and went down to Indy and had the whole things straightened out in about an hour. They even printed off "clearance copies" of every dun they'd sent over the preceding years, so I'd have a paper record. And I still have it, and I still use it, every time I apply for credit of any sort.

You see, while the state corrected it's error almost immediately, getting the error out of the public databases maintained by the credit bureaus has proven problematic. I've called, faxed and written, including copies of the clearances. I've even taken two (TRW and Equifax) to court - always receiving assurances that the matter was taken care of, and always having it show back up within a few months.

At this point, I've ceased trying to fix it, having become convinced it's useless. I no longer even act shocked when somebody tells me I'm a quarter million dollars in debt to the government. I just pull out my little file, and straighten things out on a case by case basis.

Presumably, if this had been a private debt, it would've disappeared from my report long ago. But taxes, like diamonds, are forever. And so I've left instruction in my will for whoever is the executor of my estate, not to be surprised when a massive past due tax bill shows up after I'm dead and gone.

Raymond Lorenzo, a victim of identity theft, still does not have his life back after 15 years.

(link) [CNET News.com]

00:00 /Home | 0 comments | permanent link

Going organic: When is it worth it?

According to this study by Consumer Reports

Certain fruits and vegetables grown using chemicals, which is how most food is produced, were found to contain high levels of pesticides, even after washing, according to Department of Agriculture data cited in the study.

They include apples, bell peppers, celery, cherries, spinach and strawberries, imported grapes, nectarines, peaches, pears, potatoes, and red raspberries.

Meat, poultry, eggs and dairy products can also contain antibiotics and heavy metals such as arsenic that are used to promote growth in animals, said Urvashi Rangan, one of the report's authors.

all of which is probably true. But the study goes on to claim that

Other labels, like "free range" or "all natural" were found to be meaningless.

Unfortunately, I must confess that it's probably right on this point as well, even though I label my meat and poultry products as "free range" and "grass fed". But the real upshot is that the organic label is just as meaningless.

Best advice: buy as much as possible directly from a local farmer you know and trust, preferably one who'll let you observe his operations and decide for yourself. Education will always trump marketing - it just takes more work.

If you've ever wanted to buy more organic food but didn't want to take out a second mortgage to do so, a new report can help stretch your health-conscious dollar further.

(link) [CNN.com]

00:00 /Agriculture | 1 comment | permanent link

Vengeful mouse sets house ablaze

Well, I debated about where to put this one, that's for sure. I finally settled on the most obvious choice, 'Humor', because, well, a mouse burning down a house definitely qualifies! But more than that, I've been known to post tales of gross acts of stupidity here as well, and the homeowner in this case certainly qualifies for committing one of those.

What in the world was he doing burning leaves in New Mexico during a drought, when fires have been spreading throughout the west? Frankly, if the mouse had run off and started a forest fire, I'd be inclined to hold him criminally negligent for starting it.

A mouse got its revenge against a homeowner who tried to dispose of it in a pile of burning leaves. The blazing creature ran back to the man's house and set it on fire.

(link) [CNN]

00:00 /Humor | 1 comment | permanent link