Saturday, January 21, 2012

A Revealing Moment with Actor John Nicholson

Join me for another segment of Ask the Celebrity with our special guest, John Nicholson. John is best known as the actor on recent popular daytime drama's "General Hospital" and "All My Children." John is co-producing the documentary, "The Real Girlfriend Experience", shooting is scheduled to begin the summer of 2012.

Listen is as John and I talk about The Real Girlfriend Experience.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Suze Orman, the heat is on and getting hotter!

Financial Guru, Suze Orman is catching a lot of heat from experts and bloggers around the country for her new, self created Approved Card. Approved Card is pre-paid debt card which comes with a monthly fee and additional fees, if the card is not used properly. According to Ms. Orman's own website and video, "If you use the card the way I tell you, you will never pay more than $3 a month."Ms. Orman has a full disclosure of the fees on www.ApprovedCard.com.

Critics around the country are blasting Ms. Orman and the card touting it will not help the unbanked. It will only add fees. Some economic watchdogs are wondering if Suze Orman has lost her credibility. According to an interview on the Legally Steal Show with Ben Woolsey of CreditCards.com, "There are better prepaid cards out there that are free like the American Express prepaid debit card." Ms. Orman also states the Approved Card is working with Transunion to get your debit card transactions listed on your credit report. This is an experiment and according to a quote by John Ulzheimer, president of consumer education for SmartCredit.com, "Free reports and scores are also available from other sources, without having to buy a prepaid card."

As a consumer and credit union advocate, I would have expected Suze Orman to have worked with the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) to create a better solution for the unbanked. In 2011, Suze Orman became the spokesperson for NCUA. Credit unions have been serving and working with the unbanked and unbankable for many years. Join a credit union and forget all of the nonsense about a prepaid debit card. Your debit card is fee with a credit union and you get to learn about financial literacy from someone who treats you with respect and not like a dollar sign as banks would.


Monday, January 9, 2012

Suze Orman, The NCUA, and The Approved Card!

Suze Orman, America's Most Trusted Personal Finance Expert, has created the Approved Card and partnered with Bankcorp. As the spokesperson of the National Credit Union Administration, do you think this was a good move on her part or is she providing a service people need? Is the Approved Card a better alternative than join a credit union?

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Ray Charles Jr.

Join me as I interview Ray Charles Robinson Jr., son of the late, great Ray Charles. Ray Charles Jr. is also the author of the award-winning book, You Don't Know Me, Reflections of my Father and co-producer of the blockbuster hit movie, Ray (2004) and Hotel California (2008).

Ray is also an actor has starred in Black Prince (2004).

Ray is the 2011 winner of the NAACP Image Award for "Outstanding Literary Work for a Biography/Autobiography.

Ray is also a credit union advocate. Ray also founded the Ray Charles Jr. Foundation for America.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Bank Transfer Awareness Month

The banks retreated and ran for the hills. No more debit card fees. All is now calm in the financial world and the people are happy once more. Bank Transfer or Move Your Money Day was a success!

Now what? The banks are gearing up for Round 2. Most consumers do not understand the banking business model for generating revenue. Fee collecting is usually a third or 33% of that business model for generating revenue. According to Shawn Gilfedder, Chairman of the New Jersey Credit Union League and President of the McGraw Hill FCU, “In order for banks to provide the level of physical convenience out in the market place, they (banks) have to drive fee revenue because it pays for most of what you see out on the street corner, today! Fees have become a large portion of their business.”

As customers of banks, you are paying for the convenience of having ATMs, advertisement, and hundreds of locations near you. In order for these conveniences to continue, banks will have to collect additional fees. Pay close attention to your normal fees the bank charges. With reform in interchange revenue created by the Dodd-Frank Act and the Durbin Amendment, there is less fee income for banks to generate. And now that millions of customers have moved their accounts, you are assured to see an increase in your normal banking fees in the coming months. CNN Money reported TD Bank had already announced it will charge a $9 fee for any withdrawal over the monthly six withdrawal limit for their saving account holders. This is just the beginning of the fee hikes and many other banks will follow suite, they will just do it quietly and you will notice the effects on your monthly statements.

As a consumer and credit union advocate, I am spreading the message and declaring the month of November as Bank Transfer Awareness Month. Bank Transfer Day was a great start but it will soon fade into the history books and out of the media’s eye. The Occupy movement is a powerful, unorganized vehicle which is made up of several intended targets to enhance the credit union movement. As a talk radio show host, I have a medium to keep the drive alive and I will focus on these targets to help grow credit union memberships across America.

I aim to keep the pressure on and continue the movement with Bank Transfer Awareness Month. For far too long, credit unions have been treated as the red-headed stepchildren of the financial industry. In 1998 it took a presidential signature to stop the Bank Bullies from restricting membership access to credit union. I am on a mission to enlighten those ages 6 to 70 on the benefits of being a member and I will not be happy until CUs have just as many members as banks have customers. Credit unions should not be the alternative. Credit Unions should be the norm.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Bank Transfer Day, What is the real reason behind the retreat?


November 5th is the official marking of Bank Transfer Day! In recent news, the BIG six have scurried and scrambled and retreated on their proclamation to add charges for using your debit cards. The power of the people prevailed or did it?


Join me as I interview Mr. Shawn Gilfedder, Chairman of the NJ Credit Union League and CEO of McGraw-Hill FCU. Mr. Gilfedder will share somethings with you that you may not be aware of. Things which will have you say hmmmmmmmmmm as you decide on the alternative. It will also make you mad as hell as you realize the disconnect with you and your banker.