Posts in the "consumer watch" category - Chris Hardie

As an employer, my company Summersault is required to withhold and then turn in federal taxes from our employee paychecks.  In the past we've turned in those withheld funds by printing out a check, walking it a block down the street to the bank, and getting a receipt. I recently took the IRS's advice and inquired into enrolling in "EFTPS" - Electronic Federal Tax Payment System.  (It's too bad they didn't call it something really cool like "Maximum Velocity Pay" or "Blue Tiger," but I guess...

For over a year now, I've been living well without cable or broadcast television in my life.  I thought I would share some thoughts on how that transition has gone, and some pointers to tools and technologies you might be interested in if you're on a similar path. (Disclaimer: I'm not here to tell you how to live, but my general sense is that the world would be a better place if people didn't spend their time watching television.  Period.  That said, and the reality of TV watching as a cultural...

A few petitions and e-mail campaigns have been circulating that demand financial institutions waive their processing fees for the handling of donations to help relief efforts in Haiti, following the earthquake there last week.  Some of the requests that I've gotten have expressed irritation that fees are charged at all on charitable giving transactions of any sort. While I commend the efforts of those who are seeking to maximize the funds that have a direct impact on the actual aid work, I'm not sure...

I've been consuming a lot of information, and I'm here to tell you, briefly, what I've learned: Book, The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz: a great little book, a quick read full of wisdom that seems like it should just be common sense.  To find happiness, be impeccable with your word, don't take anything personally, don't make assumptions, and always do your best. Book, Leaving Church by Barbara Brown Taylor: moving reflections on a life devoted to ministry...

Once in a while I can't help but comment here on a company or organization that has so clearly committed themselves to creating the worst possible customer service experience for their customers.  Interpage paging, which offers network paging services, faxing, voice and e-mail gateways, etc., is just one such company.  If you're considering using them, you'll definitely want to make sure you ask lots of questions about what happens if you're not satisfied.  Here's our story: Summersault contacted...

I'm not sure that any version of a national health care system - existing, proposed by President Obama, or otherwise - is going to truly meet the needs of every U.S. citizen.  As I've said about our approach to supporting the elderly in our culture, I think there are ways to approach true care for health and well being that focus on community and local/regional resources instead of nationally calibrated insurance premiums and risk formulas. But if we accept for a moment that people in this country...

Lierre Keith's The Vegetarian Myth is one of the most important books ever written about food and the sustainability of the human species. It is at once deeply personal, overwhelmingly provocative, and academically sound as it calls into question all of the stories we have ever been told about where food comes from, what kind of food we should eat (especially in the context of veganism and vegetarianism), and what impact our food choices make on our bodies and the world around us.  And that's just...

One of my recurring summer jobs, in addition to filling and unfilling the tubes of the Internets, is to adjust the height of the small vertically-oriented plant life that densely covers the land surrounding my house. Many people refer to this act as "cutting the grass." Over the last few years I've tried quite a wide variety of approaches to and implements for "cutting the grass," and I'd like to share them with you now, because imparting unsolicited and only moderately useful information to a halfway-interested...

Some people think I'm paranoid when I shred certain documents, or when I lock my doors, or when I dart erratically down the street to avoid giving the snipers a clear line of sight.  But if you've ever needed convincing that a little paranoia is good for you, especially when it comes to how you dispose of those annoying credit card applications you get in the mail, here's a great story from the folks at cockeyed.com: The Torn-Up Credit Card Application. Basically, the guy took an application...

This weekend I had the opportunity to sample three local/regional shopping destinations that were all new to me: 1) The Fireplace Shop at 1000 North F Street in Richmond is an amazing little brick complex that showcases all that can be done with wood and other heat sources. From traditional fireplaces to wood burning stoves to corn pellet stoves to crazy other conflagrant configurations, it was quite a wonderland of temperature control. With the added bits of atmosphere like lazy cats sprawled...