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Customization overload

Posted by aolson | 09/19/08

Two weeks ago, I switched my checking account over, from Massachusettes to New York, and was presented with a catalogue of themed debit card and check options from which to choose. I knew, because I had asked - yes, I had to choose a new card and books of checks, and no, there was no 'regular' option. I felt something close to guilt for hoping I could weasel out of the "opportunity" to select the graphic that best represented my personal beliefs to anyone I owed money. My landlord would soon see a whole new side of me - did I want him to know of my secret love for Precious Moments or my penchant for the Seattle Theatre Group? Hmm.
I looked closer, scanned the pages, (yes, pages), of options, and realized many of the themes were touting charitable causes...

CATEGORY: General Society

TAGS: custom, environment, marketing

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Overlooking the obvious

Posted by aolson | 09/24/08

While I hesitate to take a general side in the consolidation argument, the prominence of the discussion both regionally and within the communities I cover has lead me to ponder where I stand on the issue in certain circumstances.
Earlier this month, the Department of Criminal Justice Services released their final report to the town of Geddes and village of Solvay; the municipalities had requested a study be conducted to analyze the efficiency of their respective police departments. The end game in this was to determine whether maintaining separate police forces was the most efficient and cost-effective way of doing business, a question with a long history in these communities dating back to the 1930s...

CATEGORY: General Society

TAGS: police, consolidation

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Problem solved

Posted by aolson | 09/30/08

Don’t worry. I’ve solved the economic crisis.
The big news is still the bailout. The first package may not have passed Congress, but there will undoubtedly be a second attempt, or so say the experts. For or against, or on the fence, you and I have no say in whether the federal government will hand over billions of dollars to floundering financial institutions.
Last week my boyfriend asked if we, his sister and myself, had heard the latest rumor surrounding Wallstreet’s misery: that the loans in repayment owed to lenders seized by the government may be wiped clean.
After four years apiece at private universities, the three of us all owe substantial college debt to Fannie Mae, and though none of us really believed this could be the case, the idea was mindblowing...

CATEGORY: Economics

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Listening to...

Damien Rice