By Gene Ayres, Your Consumer Curmudgeon
We have, as a culture, been so victimized and indoctrinated by commercial media into thinking we want, or worse, need most of these products and services, that we take them for granted. Now would be a great time to make some real savings for things you may actually need (like healthcare).
I’ve written about most of these things before, but a good list (such as the one modified and edited below that was first published by Woman’s Daily last July) is always worth repeating. Somehow we ignore facts, no matter how elegantly or precisely stated, in favor of opinion, especially when stated loudly enough. But one of the most useful means of lifestyle change and modification I have found over the years is to make and keep a simple list. Such as this one, which might find a good place on, say, your refrigerator.
I’ll start with the health-related items I mentioned last week, because they are so basic, and simple, and offer such obvious savings:
1. Fast Food
Nobody ever needed any of this stuff less than now. It’s expensive (don’t let those ads fool you), especially when the health costs are factored in, and offers little or nothing in the way of nutritional benefits. And such benefits (e.g. protein) as might be present are way, way overmatched by negative consequences, namely gross quantities of fats and sugar.
2. Gym Fees
I wrote last week of the benefits of simple, basic exercise in maintaining good health. I also mentioned that this doesn’t require joining a gym. In fact, taking on a legally binding contract for up to three years makes as little sense as, say, those cell phone contracts we all keep getting hooked on, literally.
Plus, gym users are notorious (or a godsend, if you’re a gym owner) for not showing up after the first few times. True, some gyms don’t require contracts. But they still cost more than, say, taking a walk, a bike ride, or a jog.
3. Free Lunch
Of course, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. But if you are one of those lucky enough to still have a job, dashing off to the nearest fast food joint is the first thing to stop doing. The next would be to stop dashing off to the nearest diner or restaurant or cafeteria (even if it’s the company cafeteria). We all know this isn’t the best food out there, and it’s still going to run you $5 no matter what or where you go. So why not pack and bring your own lunch. It could even be healthy, and better yet, nutritious, and still cost a fraction of those other alternatives.
4. Cell Phone Apps and Ringtones
I have written before about how other countries allow much more freedom of choice in terms of cell phones and services. We are still pretty much stuck with those two-year contracts unless you want to buy one of those cheap phones that offer monthly service fees and per call charges (I’ll be doing another dispatch on those later on, they are not that good an option, for many of us yet).
But here’s a no brainer: no way do you need to download some pricey game (do you really have that much time to waste?) or ring tone. Your favorite tune in the whole world may be your heart’s desire, but it’s still going to sound like crap blasting out of a mini-speaker on a phone. And if you just have to have some other noise to listen to besides the dozen or so that came with your phone, there are actually plenty of them out there you can find and download for free. As for texting, don’t ask. I simply disable that, and save a lot of time and money. If I absolutely have to contact someone, I can make a call. Otherwise email works just fine.
5. Late Fees
The banks are evidently not sufficiently satisfied with the billions they’ve gotten in TARP and bailout funds this past year, and have been ever more ingenious at finding ways to soak the customer more than ever before. Apparently, now even the junior vice presidents are demanding and getting those multimillion-dollar bonuses, and gee, somebody’s got to pay for all that besides just the taxpayers. Namely, you (do you sense some redundancy here? You could, of course, complain to your congressperson, if he or she isn’t already in the pocket of said bankers).
Credit cards are running upwards of 20% interest now, if you don’t pay in full within the deadline. This used to be called “usery,” and is still frowned upon by many religions and societies. Not ours, it seems.
Bounce a check? That’ll be $35 at Chase. Overdraw your account by three cents because your automatic deposit was two minutes late? That’ll be another $35 please (actually, they don’t need to ask, they just take it).
My favorite (or least favorite) late fee rip-off is the “Bill Pay” version. With online bill pay services, they take the money out of your account first, and then send the check. So for that week or so it’s in the mail, you’re still out the money. I’ve been hit with “overdraft” charges for this more than once. My recommendation is pay checks the old fashioned way: mail them. It’s worth the 43 cents, especially if you post-date them to the actual due date.
6. Landline Extras
Most of us are roped into extra services we really don’t need and rarely if ever use, all of which have service charges, often substantial ones, attached. Among these are call forwarding, call waiting, and caller I.D. If you really want to know who’s calling, use an answering machine. (Message answering services are another un-needed add-on.)
7. Rental Car Insurance
This is one of the biggest rip-offs out there, for two reasons. First off, you can’t rent a car without a credit card. And most if not all credit cards already provide rental car insurance automatically. Furthermore, you need to have your own insurance as a driver, and that will cover you as well, if you own your own car, which most of us do.
8. Extended Warranties
This is yet another way the insurance industry gets rich ripping us off. When you buy a new product, it already has a warranty, and the better the product, the better the warranty. But even a so-so product usually has a one-year warranty at least. And thanks to global competition, most products no longer have the built-in obsolescence General Motors used to specialize in, and will last well beyond even the period offered by an extended warranty.
9. Software Specials
I read a useful web service called Computer Tips Weekly that offers lots of useful information such as keyboard shortcuts, and how to navigate Windows, and so on. But they make their living selling hot deals on software that as often as not are available as freeware. And you may be enthralled at the selection of software to do everything from study French (I bought that one once) to balance your checkbook. But just like gyms, you’ll use it twice and forget it. And if you really want this stuff, you can get it for free. It’s called freeware for a reason.
10. Bottled Water
I’ve written about it before but this bears repeating. Bottled water is possibly the biggest waste of money in the world. It offers absolutely no advantage over tap water, produces hugely damaging environmental waste (the Pacific has a huge plastic dead zone full of them), and is actually dangerous due to the cancer-causing chemicals that leach out of the plastic and into the water. You’re better off drinking from the nearest ditch.
Sources:
Woman’s Day July 2, 2009
Mercola.com
Gene Ayres is a career writer, author and freelance journalist. His latest book is A Billion to One: An American Insider in the New China. He can be found at: www.geneayres.org.