– Federal regulators today announced new rules for the credit card industry. These consumer-friendly rules will hopefully cut back on some of the industry’s most egregious practices. Some examples of the new rules? Credit card companies will no longer be allowed to raise rates on existing balances; any payment above the minimum amount must apply to the balance with the highest interest rate; the minimum time before a change in terms goes into effect has been increased from 15 to 45 days; and consumers must have at least 21 days to make a payment. There are more rule changes (read about them here); unfortunately, they won’t go into effect until July, 2010… assuming we’re all not broke before then. Also, no rule was passed regarding universal default – the rule that allows Citibank to increase the rate on your Citi Visa if you’re late with a payment to Discover – but with the new Congress and the economy in the tank, I feel action will come on that soon.
– Think you can get rid of a hangover by eating greasy food, or keep your children calm by keeping them away from sugar? Think again. Researchers at Indiana University have busted these (and other) “winter food” myths. Read all about it all the BBC’s website here.
– R.I.P. to “Slammin’ Sammy” Baugh, former Redskins quarterback. He was 94. Baugh was one of the NFL’s biggest stars from 1937 to 1952, and he was also the last surviving member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s “inaugural class” of 1963. To show you how big a star Sammy was, I was born nearly 20 years after he finished playing (my parents were 4 years old when Sammy quit!), and even I knew his nickname! Rest in peace, Sammy!
– Two articles of interest for Georgia Tech football fans: this AP article talks about how coach Paul Johnson is adding several tweaks to his already-potent offense for the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. I followed Navy football for the past few years under Johnson, and I’ve been saying that Johnson hasn’t come anywhere near to using his entire Navy playbook at Georgia Tech. This, apparently, will change. Also, in this article, Johnson talks about how, despite being the winningest freshman coach in America, and despite winning against UGA, Johnson is nowhere near satisfied with his team. I like the cut of that man’s jib!
– SGAE, a Spanish group for musicians similar to America’s RIAA, has been busted by a Spanish court for secretly infiltrating weddings and other events, looking for music licensing violations. It seems that back in 2005, a SGAE investigator posing as a cameraman, infiltrated a wedding party at La Doma restaurant just outside Seville. The agency had long suspected La Doma of using music without having the requisite license. Sure enough, La Doma was found guilty of this and forced to pay a fine of €43,179. Amusingly, SGAE was fined €60,101 for violating the privacy of the wedding party. So… SGAE got their victory, but it cost them almost €18,000… not to mention all court costs and all the bad publicity!
– The Yankees just shelled out a quarter of a billion dollars for two pitchers? Seriously? Well, this just proves that, if the New York Yankees’ chartered jet collided in midair with the Dallas Cowboys’ jet… I’d burn my penis jerking off over the wreckage!
