The Straight Scoop

Credit unions are a unique creature (I guess I should say species) within the financial services firm universe. Credit unions are similar to banks in the products and services that they offer (although private banks tend to offer a deeper array). However, unlike banks which are run as private businesses

Hucksters and thieves are often several steps ahead of law enforcement. Eventually, some of the bad guys get caught, but many don't, and those who do get nabbed often go back to their unsavory ways after penalties and some jail time. Crooks might access one of your accounts;

Update May 21, 2012: After the Federal Reserve completed its second round of quantitative easing (QE), explained in my previous article below, various pundits have speculated whether their would be a third round of QE because of further expected economic sluggishness. With the recent resurgence of problems in the EU

Update: There continues to be plenty of bickering in Washington over the supposed causes of high oil and gasoline prices and what actions the government has or has not taken. The following graphic from the American Petroleum Institute shows a big source of the problem. Just 13 percent of federally

In the last several years, as I have written on this web site, I have gained a deeper perspective on how and why various folks think about and misunderstand economic issues in America. In my previous work as a financial counselor and as a syndicated columnist and book author, I&