Daily Archives: August 14, 2021

You can't afford to make these errors with your credit cards.

Christy Bieber| The Motley Fool

Credit card debt: 6 steps to help get you through paying them off

If you're ready to start tackling your credit card debt, here are 6 steps to help you out along the way.

USA TODAY

Using credit cards wisely can be a great thing. Smart credit card use can help you to improve your credit score, which makes future borrowing easier and cheaper. Many cards also offer generous rewards, so you can actually earn free trips or even cash back just for your routine everyday spending.

The key, however, is that cards are a good thing if they are used wisely. Unfortunately, they can also be detrimental to your personal finances if you make mistakes when using them. In particular, there are three big errors to watch out for.

Maxing out your cards means charging up to the limit that the cardholder set for you. For example, if you have a $5,000 line of credit and you charge $4,999 on your card, you've maxed out your cards.

There are a few reasons why maxing out your credit cards could be a big mistake. You could find yourself with a balance that is really difficult to repay, for one thing. But a maxed out card can also do serious damage to your credit score.

In fact, using more than 30% of the credit available to you can actually reduce your score. That's because credit utilization ratio is one of the most important factors that credit reporting agencies and lenders look at.

Maxing out your card also puts you at risk of over-the-limit fees if you happen to exceed the amount you're permitted to spend. And you won't have available credit in case you need it.

To avoid this mistake: Cap the amount you spend on your cards and stay well below that all-important 30% threshold.

Credit card companies set really low minimum payments. They benefit when you pay only the minimum required because your payment will generally just barely cover the interest costs. You'll end up paying on your balance for years and years, making little progress in paying down your credit card debt -- despite diligently sending in a check every single month. Over time, you can end up paying tens of thousands of dollars in unnecessary interest charges.

To avoid this mistake:Pay more than the minimum every month. Ideally, the best thing to do is to pay off your entire balance in full when you get your statement so you never end up owing any interest at all. If that's not possible, send in as much as you can with each payment so you can bring your balance down quickly and avoid getting stuck in a debt trap where your hard-earned cash is sucked away due to interest charges.

When you miss making credit card payments you get hit with fees in most cases. But you will also damage your credit score. Once a payment is at least 30 days late, credit card companies will report it to the major credit bureaus. Even one missed payment could reduce your score dramatically and a history of missed payments could make it very difficult and expensive to get any type of loan.

To avoid this mistake:Set up autopay if you can. Or, if you are worried you'll overdraft your bank account, set a calendar reminder instead to make sure you pay your bill before the deadline.

If you can avoid missed payments, falling into the minimum payment trap, or maxing out your cards, you are well on your way to using credit cards successfully to help improve your financial situation.

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Were firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.Ally is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Christy Bieber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The Motley Fool is a USA TODAY content partner offering financial news, analysis and commentary designed to help people take control of their financial lives. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.

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3 credit card mistakes to avoid at all costs and steps you can take to avoid making them - Lexington Dispatch

LOVE Island's Liberty broke show rules while in bed with Jake last night.

The 21-year-old waitress confronted her boyfriend about playing up to the cameras while in the villa.

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However, a golden rule of the programme is that the Islanders aren't allowed to acknowledge the cameras, or the fact that they are on a TV show.

But after Jake held her back from congratulating best pal Kaz on going exclusive with Tyler, Liberty quizzed him while in bed together.

She said: "I know you say sometimes, like, 'We are on a TV show', but at the same time, what makes it good is just you being yourself, do you know what I mean?

Read our Love Island 2021 live blog for the latest updates

"Tonight, me wanting to run up and hug Kaz as soon as she came down the stairs was a natural reaction to me."

Jake was clearly unimpressed, replying: "Oh my god, serious? I just thought it'd be nice for you to have your own alone time with Kaz, not with everyone there."

Ex-Islander Sam Gowland, who appeared on the 2017 series of Love Island, was among the viewers to notice - and he reckons the fact that the scene made it to air has massive implications.

He tweeted: "So a little TV knowledge for you here When filming you're strictly not aloud to talk about 'being on camera' or anything related to being on TV.

"So for Love Island to actually air Lib saying that, Jake must have been playing up to the camera for some time, believe me ."

Jake and Liberty's relationship appears to have hit the rocks, with a teaser for tonight's episode showing Jake admitting that Millie and Mary are his type.

He tells his partner: "I feel like ever since the Movie Night onwards, I feel like it's just not been the same."

For Love Island to actually air Lib saying that, Jake must have been playing up to the camera for some time

He then adds: "Millie's my type, Mary's my type. I know a good looking girl and I can appreciate a good looking girl, but you're my girlfriend."

Liberty admitted to pals she was having doubts about Jake in yesterday's show after spotting his cosy poolside chat with Mary.

She told Chloe: "Things in my gut dont sit right. In my head I think am I overthinking it but no, I am just very perceptive and clued up on s**t. If he is taking me for granted, hes not the one for me babe. Its just hard to see Chlo."

And fans were later left horrified when Jake held Liberty back as she tried to celebrate with Kaz.

Things in my gut dont sit right

Liberty was desperate to congratulate her best mate - but Jake had other ideas, prompting their bedtime discussion about Jake playing up to the camera.

Previously, Liberty was left heartbroken when she was shown a clip of Jake admitting to the boys that he "didn't want to rip her clothes off", as well as him egging on the other lads to cheat on their partners while in Casa Amor.

Read all the latest Love Island news

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Love Islands Liberty broke show rules in bed with Jake last night but did you spot it?... - The Sun

On Wednesday, the NHL's Winnipeg Jets announced they will only allow fans who show proof of vaccination to attend games at Canada Life Centre this season. (Children under 12 are exempt.) Various other pro sports teams have dabbled with proof of vaccination rules, but they've been closer to recommendations than requirements, and with built-in exceptions for unvaccinated folks who are willing to wear a mask or show a recent negative COVID-19 test.

The Jets' policy shift comes as other venues indoors and outdoors, big and small are rapidly shifting to a proof of vaccination attendance plan because of the highly transmissible delta variant of COVID-19. And on Thursday, San Francisco became the second major city in the United States to require that people are screened for proof of COVID-19 vaccination before entering "high-contact indoor sectors."

With all of that in mind and with the necessary caveat that COVID-19 transmissibility remains far higher indoors than outside SFGATE reached out to five of the Bay Area's biggest sports teams to see whether they, too, are considering a proof of vaccination requirement. Here's what the Warriors, A's, Giants, 49ers and Sharks said (and didn't say).

The Dubs released the following statement about their new proof of vaccination policy, as required by the San Francisco Department of Public Health:

"The Golden State Warriors and Chase Center have remained in constant communication with the City and County of San Franciscos Department of Public Health throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic. Following todays mandate from the San Francisco Department of Public Health that any indoor event with more than 1,000 attendees requires fans ages 12 or older to show proof of vaccination, Chase Center will comply with this guideline effective as of the venues next event, scheduled for September 15, 2021.

"Consistent with the health order of the San Francisco Department of Public Health and subject to applicable medical and religious exemptions, proof of a negative COVID-19 test will no longer serve as an accepted health pass for fans to enter Chase Center. The Golden State Warriors and Chase Center will issue further information regarding logistics for fans to show proof of vaccination leading up to the venues next event, scheduled for September 15, 2021."

Presumably, the Warriors are figuring out how to best enforce a proof of vaccination system that doesn't significantly bog down entry into their arena.

No imminent changes for the A's. They're deferring to Alameda County Public Health Department guidelines, "which currently don't require proof of vaccination for outdoor events," an A's spokesperson told SFGATE.

Like the Warriors, the Giants play in San Francisco, but in an outdoor ballpark, so they aren't beholden to the city's new regulations. Which doesn't mean San Francisco Mayor London Breed or local health officials are ambivalent about what they believe the Giants should do. In the mayor's press release, she noted, "Sponsors of outdoor events with more than 5,000 people attending are strongly urged to require proof of vaccination for patrons and staff."

But for now, the Giants will be carrying on without a full proof-of-vaccination requirement, though they'll have to make a few alterations for around-the-ballpark destinations. A spokesperson told SFGATE that proof of vaccination must be shown at Public House and the ritzy Gotham Club, for instance. "Fans are also required to wear face coverings when accessing indoor parts of the park e.g. Club Level and Suite Level walkways, concessions and restrooms," the spokesperson added.

At this time, the 49ers are not requiring fans to show proof of vaccination.

"Our stadium management team will continue to follow the current health and safety requirements implemented by local and state public health officials," a spokesperson told SFGATE. "In addition, all 49ers full-time and gameday staff are required to be fully vaccinated in order to work in Levis Stadium and in the SAP Performance Facility. We are thankful to see reports showing nearly 80% of county residents have been vaccinated and we will continue to encourage eligible individuals to get their shots, more than 350,000 of which took place at Levis Stadium."

In a statement to SFGATE, the Sharks left the door open to a change of policy, but so far aren't joining their NHL competitors in Winnipeg with a proof of vaccination requirement.

"Sharks Sports & Entertainment (SSE) has instituted a mandatory vaccination requirement for all full and part-time employees, including arena event staff for all SAP Center events," a spokesperson wrote to SFGATE. "Currently, all ticket buyers are required to self-attest to either a) being full vaccinated or b) being able to produce a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of their ticketed event. SSE continues to engage in further discussions related to potential additional safety measures at SAP Center events, in conjunction with local and state health directives."

So there you have it: One Bay Area sports organization, the Warriors, now has no choice but to comply with a proof of vaccination requirement. Four other Bay Area franchises are indicating they'll carry on without such a requirement unless and until their local health departments tell them otherwise.

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We asked Warriors, 49ers, Giants, A's, Sharks whether they're considering proof of vaccination rule - SFGate

I once asked someone I greatly admire: "How can we convince people of something we want them to know?"

"Respectfully, it's the wrong question," he replied. He went on to compare controlling the narrative to mind control.

"I don't think you should spend one minute focusing on how what you say translates to the other person. Instead, you should be concerned with weighing and measuring your deeds and actions so that they resonate with one's true self."

This response jarred me, considering I am a veteran public relations professional who has spent nearly the last two decades trying to convince people of the concepts and ideas my clients put forth.

I first got into the field of mass communications in college because I was interested in sharing information I believed people needed to hear not tricking or bamboozling them.

Even so, what my friend said made a lasting impact. If persuasion itself was invalid without authenticity, then the entire premise of public relations my profession needed a paradigm shift.

It was so obvious once he said it that I couldn't believe I hadn't realized it before. Trying to convince others of something you are not fully embodying is a fool's errand at best and, as he put it, "spellcasting" at worst. It's true as an individual, and it's true as a brand.

You can't convince someone you're trustworthy. You have to be trustworthy to be trusted. You can't convince someone you're an industry disruptor. You have to be disruptive. You can't convince people you're diverse. You have to be diverse. Whatever you want people to believe about you, you have to be and you have to try to embody it more and more authentically over time.

After I got to thinking about it from this perspective, I became convinced that the term "public relations," which fundamentally implies that a brand is the actor and the public its audience, was pass or, respectfully, wrong.

A brand should not use psychological manipulation to dictate what its customers should believe about it, or how they should feel about it.

In recent years, expectations around authenticity have changed dramatically due to two-way communications created through social media channels, which smashed the old actor-to-audience model to bits by giving customers an equal voice and a sounding board with astronomical reach.

As a result, simply spinning the story controlling the narrative and staging public stunts is a thing of the past. These old-school techniques rarely sway today's savvy and discerning audiences, unless the story is based in truth and reality. Now, it's all about building trust among target audiences by putting those values into action and then communicating them in a persuasive way. In other words, if there is no integrity behind a narrative, or if a brand isn't providing real value to make the world a better place, today's consumers will know (or quickly figure it out).

Brands today must instead authentically position themselves to customers in the way they want to be perceived, and then communicate from that place of congruence. If successful, they will be handsomely rewarded by a positive, customer-fueled feedback loop.

This realization inspired me to coin the term "trust relations." Why trust relations? In technology, trust relationships are an administration and communication link between two domains. In communications, I believe they are a bond of mutual respect between a brand and the people it serves.

In other words, trust relations is the art of conveying a brand's authentic actions, value and goodwill, and illustrating them through great storytelling and creative brand activations that demonstrate how the brand best serves its target audiences.

The more brands increase their resonance, acuity and integrity with what they are trying to become, the easier it will be to convince others of this reality. Instead of luring people into believing what they want through messages that manipulate their audience's minds and emotions, they are true to their authentic self and actually represent what they say they are. They talk the talk and walk the walk.

Brands, like people, are ultimately intended to be servants of the divine in others. This is a universal truth, whether one believes in the golden rule or that we must be the change we want to see in the world.

I am a big believer in the fact that if you see something you think can or should be done better, and you have the means or talent to do it, then it's your assignment from the universe to complete and not via an invisible complaint box.

When companies and organizations set out to do this, and make the world a better place by providing a new or improved product or solution that people authentically need or want, it's awe-inspiring. People who work in concert for the same purpose to serve humanity can have a far greater impact than if they did so separately.

If all companies focused on what they could do for their customers, not what their customers could do for them, the world would be a much different place. Of course companies must remain profitable; but if their primary focus is on how they can serve the greater good of all by improving the lives of their customers, it would mark the dawning of a new era.

Not only will companies then serve the divine in others, but they will naturally draw their target audiences into their force field through their authenticity and coherence with their higher purpose. When this happens, strategic communications will shift away from PR as we know it and attempts to control others' perception and toward trust relations through an organic sharing of the brand's higher calling and true value proposition.

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Why PR Should Be Replaced by 'Trust Relations' - Newsweek

Stories like this one continue to fill my news feed:Why refusing the COVID-19 vaccine isnt just immoral its un-American.'Taking aim at people who assert that governments can't make them get vaccines, Penn State ethicist Christopher Beem claimed that arguments grounded in self-interest can often be correct but still deeply inadequate.

Vaccines, the accepted medical wisdom rightly notes, don't just protect us from deadly diseases, they also protect our friends, neighbors and family. Therefore, some commentators say, Americans who refuse immunizations are selfish. Beem went furtherthese people are immoral and un-American:

The Golden Rule do unto others as you would have others do unto you manifests that concern for the well-being of others is at the core of morality. Those who choose not to take the vaccine ignore this concern and therefore act immorally. But, I would argue that their indifference to the welfare of others is not only immoral, it is also un-American.

If we want more people to get vaccinated, shaming them into doing their patriotic duty won't work. Let's examine why that is by breaking downBeem's version of this claim.

Your civic duty

Citing several statements made by James Madison, Beem argued that America's founders believed in individual liberty, but that a free society couldn't survive without virtuous citizens willing to cooperate for the greater good:

Madison argued that this other side of human nature, this concern for others, had to be operative if democracy were to survive. In fact, he insisted that, more than any other form of government, a democracy depended on virtuous citizens.

We have some evidence that the founders were enthusiastic about inoculation, but there's no indication that they believed Americans should be pressured or forced into compliance.Kevin Gutzman,professor and former chairman in the Department of History at Western Connecticut State University, told ACSH by email that

Thomas Jefferson was an enthusiastic supporter of vaccination and inoculation ...He also sent matter for use in inoculation with Lewis & Clark. However, he did not force free people to be vaccinated or inoculated--even when, as in the cases of Lewis, Clark, and their subordinate soldiers, he could have ordered it.

It's conceivable that the founders wouldn't have objected to state (as opposed to federal) immunization rules, though,Gutzman added, "we have no evidence that they thought states as an internal matter had a right to force people to be vaccinated, though that would have been a matter for each state to decide for itself." We also know that riots broke out in Virginia when smallpox inoculation was initially introduced into the colonies. [1], [2]

In any case, how do you think vaccine skeptics will react to this argument? Not only does The Conversation think you're selfish and immoral, but James Madison wouldhave, too. Well since you put it that way, you could never imagine a skeptic responding, let me roll up my sleeve.

Shame can motivate us to change our behavior, but it has to come from people we trust. The science community needs to earn the public's trustbefore it claims any kind of moral high ground.

You're making it worse

Beem also argued that

Rising case numbers and hospitalizations, renewed restrictions regarding public events, even the emergence of the delta variant itself are happening largely because many millions of Americans chose not to get the vaccine.

While cases have rebounded in the wake of Delta, they are still less than half what they were in January. This very well may change; deaths lag behind cases and hospitalizations, and the variant could cause another surge. If it does, though, this is the context in which it will happen:

We still want vaccine uptake to climb, but morethan 60 percent of US adults are fully vaccinated, as aremorethan 80 percent of Americansover 65thosemost vulnerable to severe infection and death. Millions of us are also running around with some level ofinfection-induced immunity. We are clearlygaining ground against the pandemic.

This isn't to suggest that COVID-19 is a thing of the past; the virus is probably here to stayand we still have much to learn about how to control it. Still, the constant panic-mongering and finger-pointing need to stop, because they are counterproductive.

Back to Beem:

And for parents of children under 12 who cannot yet receive the vaccine some of whom are immune compromised the thought of returning to school this fall with infection rates again climbing no doubt fills them with dread.

"Whatever their partisan identification," a YouGov poll recently reported,"two-thirds of the American public (66%) and three in five parents with K-12 students (62%) agree that schools need to be open at full capacity this fall." 59 percent of parents said schools should be allowed to require masks, but these numbers don't suggest America's moms and dads are filled with dread. I think I know why, too.

The evidence is clear that children generally don't spread the virus very well, and their risks of hospitalizationand death remainlow, even post-Delta. "At this time," the American Academy of Pediatrics reported on August 5,"it appears that severe illness due to COVID-19 is uncommon among children."

A word about selfishness

Years ago, the economist Milton Friedman was asked whether or not it was wise that our society ran on a greedysystem like capitalism. After pointing out that greed pervades every country, no matter its economic views, Friedman quipped, Of course, none of us are greedy; it's only the other fella who's greedy.

Friedman's point is helpful in this context. Why do we wantthe skeptics to get vaccinated? So they don't infect others. Who are the "others" here? Us!Pretending that it's only the anti-vaccine fella who's selfishis transparently false and thus unlikely to convince anyone to get a COVID vaccine. If we want the praise ofpeople who already agree with us, articles like Beem's are great. But if we actually want to boost vaccine uptake, we should abandon these kinds of arguments immediately.

[1] According to the Thomas Jefferson Encyclopedia: "There were deaths associated with the inoculation process, as it initiated the disease, though in a milder form. There was also the not-unfounded concern that smallpox could be spread through an inoculated person not properly quarantined. Consequently, inoculation often encountered fear and opposition."

[2] The College of Physicians of Philadelphia notes that "George Washington, commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, ordered mandatory inoculation for troops if they had not survived a smallpox infection earlier in life." Beem didn't mention this, though.

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Pro-Vaccine Arguments That Don't Work: 'Get A COVID Shot Or You're Un-American' - American Council on Science and Health

Aug. 3 was the last day for a Kokomo Perspective graphic artist, so Martinos pizza was brought in for lunch.

That Tuesday was Keith Scircles last, but it was just my second day as KP editor. I slide a couple of pieces of the pepperoni and sausage on a paper plate.

Tell us your story, I was asked. The following is approximately what I said.

Im Jeff Kovaleski. I was editor of the Kokomo Tribune from May 2004 to March 2021. My wife of 34 years is a hospice nurse here in town.

My first full-time newspaper job was with The Shelbyville News in 1987. After a couple of years there as sports editor, I took a job as a copy editor at Wisconsins Kenosha News. There, our two children were born. Five years later, we moved to Marion, where I was city editor of the Chronicle-Tribune in neighboring Grant County.

We moved to Corning, New York, in 1999, where I was managing editor of The Leader. In 2002, the paper was named a Newspaper of Distinction by the New York State Associated Press Association.

Then we moved to Kokomo. This is our home for a few reasons.

One, our daughter, a graduate of Northwestern High School and IU Kokomo, teaches kindergarten at Northwestern Elementary. Shes married to a man whos married to the land. His family raises corn and beans, and has farmed land in Howard County since before the Civil War.

Now, more than ever, the world needs trustworthy reportingbut good journalism isnt free.Please support us by making a contribution.

Shes not going anywhere.

Two, Ive never lived anywhere longer than Ive lived here not even when I was a kid. My father was a teacher and football coach. We moved from Bourbon in Marshall County to New Castle in 1970. I was 7 years old. Eleven years later I graduated from New Castle Chrysler High School and left for IU Bloomington.

But theres another reason why I dont want to leave Howard County. Its the people.

Here, folks take care of their neighbors. They did when a tornado struck the city and county in November 2013. And again when another twister took a nearly identical path in August 2016.

And its not just the older people in town who look for ways to help others in need. Its the young people.

Over the last 17 years, Ive seen high school students from all five Howard County public high schools rally around classmates with cancer. Ive seen them organize in the hundreds to assist in tornado cleanups.

Truth is, my wife and I have never lived in a community where young people are so caring, so giving, so loving. Its a reflection of the culture here, rooted in the Golden Rule.

And as the next editor of the Kokomo Perspective, well continue to celebrate that culture of giving in the pages of your weekly newspaper.

Jeff Kovaleski is editor of the Kokomo Perspective. Contact him at editor@kokomoperspective.com

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New position, but with the same mission | News | kokomoperspective.com - Kokomo Perspective