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THE RED TAPE CHRONICLES

Technology has hidden side effects -- we reveal them here

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Don't Get Ripped Off Series

Did you get ripped off on your last airline ticket? Here’s a tool that offers a clue

November 7, 2013 Bob Sullivan 2

Sometimes, all you need to avoid getting ripped off is a reference point.  To wit: I love FlightAware’s average flight cost tool. You pick two cities, click a button, and see the average one-way cost of a flight between the two.  For example, I just checked flights between Newark and [Keep reading]

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Red Tape Wrestling Tips

Her mom died, but the student loan bills just kept coming

November 6, 2013 Bob Sullivan 0

Dealing with the death of a parent is sad and complicated enough without having to deal with bills from a student loan servicer. But as Axton Betz-Hamilton helped her widowed father deal with the death of her mom Pamela, she found herself lost in red tape trying to beat back [Keep reading]

Photo stories

In the first week of darkness, a visit to Southwestern light

November 6, 2013 Bob Sullivan 0

There is just nothing like Southwestern light. Lucky enough to spend two quick days in Arizona.  Reminded me of my time in Lake Havasu. A nice reminder that light still exists during this first week of post-daylight-savings-time darkness.  

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Technology run amok

Autoplay video ads steal bandwidth from users; Facebook should drop the idea (as should others)

November 5, 2013 Bob Sullivan 0

Hey website builders – stop stealing my expensive bandwidth!  Video autoplay is a terrible idea (I’m looking at you, ESPN.com). And according to AdWeek, it might be coming to your Facebook walls. Auto-play video a terrible user experience. It’s annoying. It bothers co-workers. It feels a little like a hacker [Keep reading]

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Don't Get Ripped Off Series

Don’t Get Ripped Off series: The right way to buy a cell phone in the age of data charges

November 4, 2013 Bob Sullivan 0

Shop for a cell phone these days, and you aren’t buying a cellphone plan. You really shouldn’t be buying a gadget, either. Shop like you are first and foremost buying a data plan. Data will cost many of you $2,000-$3,000 during the next two years — a lot more than [Keep reading]

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Money and Life

Can this 20-something live in Chicago on $100 per week? She’s taken a ‘no-spend’ November challenge

November 1, 2013 Bob Sullivan 0

Can a hip Chicago 20-something spend only $100 a week? That’s $50 for food and $50 for fun on the weekends? We’re about to find out. Nicole DiVito is imposing the strict budget limits voluntarily as part of “No-spend November.” She’s slamming her purse shut, limiting herself to $400 for [Keep reading]

Privacy

‘Reclaim Your Name’ is U.S. version of EU ‘Right to Be Forgotten’

November 1, 2013 Bob Sullivan 0

Feel like you’ve lost control of your identity and personal information? The “Reclaim Your Name” initiative aims to win control back for you. Reclaim Your Name is the brainchild of FTC Commissioner Julie Brill, who ventured into the belly of the Beast on Monday — AdAge.com — to make a case [Keep reading]

Uncategorized

Debt Isn’t All Bad, a new series: Rita’s, Cory Booker, and a happy ending with good taste

November 1, 2013 Bob Sullivan 1

When $200,000 stands between you and a dream, what do you do? You borrow the money, of course. But what if you have a good idea, but no one wants to listen? Every small business that survives a few years in downtown Newark is a success. Janell Robison had made [Keep reading]

Identity Theft

What does the NSA think of your personal life? =) Why Uncle Sam is just another hacker now

October 31, 2013 Bob Sullivan 1

If you want to know what some folks in the federal government think of your privacy, just look at that smiley face. If you want to know what stands between your personal life becoming public — well, it’s that smiley face. And when future generations scream at us because we [Keep reading]

Technology run amok

HealthCare.gov took off without a test-flight, memo says

October 30, 2013 Bob Sullivan 0

When Boeing builds an airplane, several parts are constructed separately — the engines, the fuselage, the landing gear.  While these parts go through manufacturers’ testing, when they are finally assembled into a completed aircraft, Boeing flies the thing to make sure it’s airworthy. (Airbus does this too) It sure sounds [Keep reading]

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About me

BOB SULLIVAN is a veteran journalist and the author of four books, including the 2008 New York Times Best-Seller, Gotcha Capitalism, and the 2010 New York Times Best Seller, Stop Getting Ripped Off! His latest, The Plateau Effect, was published in 2013, and as a paperback, called Getting Unstuck in 2014. He has won the Society of Professional Journalists prestigious Public Service award, a Peabody award, and The Consumer Federation of America Betty Furness award, and been given Consumer Action’s Consumer Excellence Award.

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