Roland Burris….Roland Burris….Roland Burris…
*Shakes Head*
Blago’s gone, but he lives on politically through his appointment of Roland Burris to the U.S. Senate. Mr. Burris, famous for his ego, apparently lied or avoided answering a very direct question about his connections to Blago. Republicans are now calling for his resignation. I’m not sure he is qualified to be a U.S. Senator anyway, but this changes things.
Great customer service deserves recognition. For that reason, I want to give shoutouts to three companies that have given me amazing service in the past couple of days.
First of all, Newegg. This is no surprise for those of you who have bought computer parts or accessories from this site. Newegg has some of the best customer service I have seen from an online company. I have spent thousands of dollars there over the years and would prefer there over all other technology B&M stores.
Let me give you a few examples of Newegg’s fantastic customer service. Yesterday, I bought something from them, a small order less than $75. They shipped it out the same day and since one of their warehouses is in IL, it is being delivered today. That’s right, next day shipping because of their expediency. They are great for RMAs. In fact, they have never hassled me and with a kind request via their online help chat, will often upgrade the shipping for free.
Second, Logitech. Logitech makes a lot of solid products that I fully advocate. Including my G15 Keyboard and Z-5500 speakers. A few months ago, I would have included my G7 Cordless Laser mouse, but I started having problems with that after more than 2 years of ownership. A simple email to Logitech and they are now shipping a replacement product out via UPS. An inconvenient factor after two years, but an incredibly simple solution.
Lastly for today, Steep and Cheap. They feature deals on outdoor products at closeout prices. Anything you could imagine in REI store, may appear on the site. The great thing is that although closeout deals usually come with restrictions on returns, Steep and Cheap stands by all of their products. I have RMA’d several things without a problem. Recently, I sent back a pair of sunglasses that broke. I was forgetful and did not do this for a few months. They still accepted the return after a bit less than two years of ownership. That is what I call customer service.
Since, I mentioned REI, their prices are a bit higher, but if you are a member, returning anything without a receipt after almost any time period has never been a problem for me.
On the issue of the U.S. Senate selection, federal prosecutors alleged Blagojevich sought appointment as Secretary of Health and Human Services in the new Obama administration, or a lucrative job with a union in exchange for appointing a union-preferred candidate.
Rod Blagojevich, Illinois governor — chicagotribune.com.
Breaking news! Will blog after final…Illinois produces some shady politicians!
Hello!
Another blogging holiday. I’ve missed this outlet for the past few days, but have enjoyed myself relaxing and eating plenty.
Monica and I went to her folk’s place for the holidays and had a great weekend. I have to give a shout out to them and the delicious Thanksgiving Day meal.
I made a big mistake though when we left because I forgot my laptop! That required me to take a very early trip this morning to the Northern border of Illinois. I met Monica’s dad and got my laptop back. The bad news was the transportation-related nightmare for one of the busiest days of travel – snow. Chicago was expecting approximately 4 to 5 inches of snow with northern Wisconsin getting about an inch. This was a reversal from a few days ago where the opposite was supposed to happen. In the end, I think the original guess was correct because Wisconsin got snow and Chicago got a bunch of sleet and wind.
Today, I had an awful grocery shopping trip. I’ll exclude the name of the store though. I enjoy the experience of grocery shopping (besides paying). The store I was at is in the middle of remodeling, so the atmosphere was that of a store in war-torn Eastern Europe, rather than Chicago. I made it out less $150, but with enough supplies for a while.
I was in southern Illinois this weekend at ISU in Bloomington, IL. For the past two years, I have been participating on the Northwestern Mock Trial team. The teams I was on last year did not experience any major victories. This year has been different.
Last week, we took first place. This week, second. I’ll be honest, I was a bit disappointed, but being successful feels great. Moreover, the team that we sent to Macalester this weekend took third place and the other team at ISU got 5th place this weekend. In other words, NU Mock Trial has been kicking ass and taking names.
NU football, on the other hand, got their butts handed to them by Ohio State. Honestly, not a surprising outcome.
A little more surprisingly, Michigan beat Minnesota!
I’m heading to Green Bay this weekend for a wedding. I’m not sure what this weekend will hold for me, but I am hoping for a certain amount of adventure. Perhaps, a few small towns with some interesting shops or a weekend festival. I am also hoping to explore Green Bay a little. But, alas, it is only a weekend.
Let’s cut right to the chase: Lansing Cinema 8 of Lansing, IL – the worst theater that I have ever been to. I enjoy movies and consider myself an avid movie-goer. This by far culminates into the worst theater experience I have ever had. Here is the story:
On Friday, Monica went to visit Kim at her new residence in Valpo, IN via the South Shore Line electric commuter train. On Saturday, Monica called me and urged me to visit the Indiana Dunes State Park with them. I decided to join them and will write a little about the state park later. We stayed the night and left for home on Sunday. On the way home, we decided to stop and catch a movie. Both of us are horror fans and decided to catch Mirrors. The theater looked a bit old, obviously we would not be experiencing THX surround sound and stadium seating, but we wanted to see a movie anyway. Unfortunately the film started at 3:00 pm and the current time was 2:00. At the point, we decided a quick meal at Olive Garden was in order (a basket of bread sticks seemed like a delicious idea, and it was). About 40 minutes later, I dished out $12 for two tickets (cheap by Chicago standards) and we went into the theater.
We were about 20 minutes early, so the theater contained few people initially. Sadly, that trend would change all the way through the first five minutes of the movie. Not that I mind seeing movies with a large audience. For instance, we went to see The Dark Knight on opening day, here in Chicago, and the crowds at the theater were selling out showings every half hour. No, the problems came from this specific audience.
The first sign of trouble came from behind us. A young girl, probably 6 or 7, seeing the movie with her mother would not stop inquiring about the opening scene where a man had his neck cut open – hardly appropriate for a girl her age. To be fair, this girl probably did not know any better (but maybe she should have and her mother definitely should have), but she kept talking at a normal conversational volume intermittently for the entire time we were in the theater. The worst part, besides the constant murmuring of voices behind us, was that at every somewhat scary scene everyone would laugh afterward, completely destroying the mood of the movie. I think everyone knows the part in a horror movie where someone jumps out from behind a corner or a loud noise suddenly strikes, a distraction to spook you and set up something scarier. This showing of Mirrors could not possibly be enjoyed because every moment was interrupted.
Monica left and asked the manager if we could have a refund. The answer was yes, as long as we left before 30 minutes into the movie. I decided that we should leave. At the counter, the manager saw us approaching and pulled out two yellow pieces of paper. As I got closer, I realized they were vouchers for a future movie. Unfortunately, my phone just died, so I was unaware of the current time. Several times ( about three or four), I asked the manager what time it was. He would not answer, he only said that we were no longer eligible for a refund. Again, I asked for the time, he said it was about 3:40, so we had been in the movie for 40 minutes. Slightly skeptical of this time, I reasoned that he could not fudge the time by even 10 minutes? Considering we live in Chicago, tickets for Lansing, IL, in the worst theater (that I’ve been to), are completely worthless. Taking another route, I said, Monica came out here several minutes ago, so at most you are talking about five minutes. To me, it seemed reasonable that we should receive a refund. Still not knowing the time, I felt helpless to argue and walked out without the movie passes. (To all you Econ people out there – here is a great example of the effects of incomplete information on bargaining/negotiating).
When we got in the car, I looked at the radio and saw 3:35 staring back at me. After arguing for a while, it could have easily been 3:30 when we first approached the desk and much earlier when Monica initially did. I felt a surge of anger rise up inside me. Considering we had only been watching about 15 minutes of the movie and the rest had been previews, I really hated Lansing Cinema 8 at this moment. Instead of getting upset, I turned the ignition and sped out of the parking lot.
Is this a “Real ID” Compliant Card?
The federal government has not yet issued any federal regulations for the Real ID Act. While this card contains features that we expect will be included in these future regulations, this card is not related to the Real ID Act.When the regulations are issued, Illinois will determine if any additional changes are needed when those regulations take effect. Until then, Illinois will continue to make improvements to meet the immediate needs for technology upgrades and the challenges of ensuring card security.
This answer worries me as far as Illinois’s propensity to implement the Real ID Act.
This article on the DHS website, more or less outlines Real ID and its justification. It is interesting to consider the concept of linking many databases that compile more information that before somehow leads to a decrease in identity theft. This site also lists the cost of Real ID as $8 per license, according to Chertoff. That is still $102,655,760 for Illinois to pay.
“The American public’s desire for greater identity protection is undeniable,” said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. “Americans understand today that the 9/11 hijackers obtained 30 drivers licenses and ID’s, and used 364 aliases. For an extra $8 per license, REAL ID will give law enforcement and security officials a powerful advantage against falsified documents, and it will bring some peace of mind to citizens wanting to protect their identity from theft by a criminal or illegal alien.”
The problems that Americans face from document fraud are diverse and growing. A Public Opinion Strategies poll taken last year shows that more than 80 percent of the American public favors secure identification to prevent terrorism and identity theft. Identity theft has increased by nearly 800 percent from 2000 to 2006, according to the Federal Trade Commission. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement made 863 criminal arrests during various worksite enforcement operations in fiscal year 2007 – more than 500 were charged with crimes relating to federal and state document fraud – and their Identity and Benefit Fraud Units made 1,211 criminal arrests for document fraud related charges. The U.S. Secret Service made 4,348 arrests last year for identity theft or financial fraud crimes, accounting for approximately $690 million in actual fraud loss to individuals and financial institutions. In a sampling of Secret Service identify theft cases from 2000 to 2006, fraudulent drivers’ licenses were used 35 percent of the time.
REAL ID will address document fraud by setting specific requirements that states must adopt for compliance, to include: (1) information and security features that must be incorporated into each card; (2) proof of the identity and U.S. citizenship or legal status of an applicant; (3) verification of the source documents provided by an applicant; and (4) security standards for the offices that issue licenses and identification cards.
It appears that the largest figure being touted around for funding is partly for Real ID and the rest belongs to general homeland security costs. $80 million dollars does not cover the cost of Illinois at the low estimate provided by DHS. They further justify the policy’s implementation by claiming costs have been reduced. It seems to me that this just delays costs down the road. Another government strategy to make something appear viable in the short term.
DHS is making approximately $360 million available to assist states with REAL ID implementation – $80 million in dedicated REAL ID grants and another $280 million in general funding as part of the Homeland Security Grant Program.
The 73 percent cost reduction – from an original estimate of $14.6 billion to approximately $3.9 billion – was achieved mainly by giving states greater flexibility in issuing licenses to older Americans. Enrollment will be completed for all individuals under 50 years of age by Dec. 1, 2014. For all others, enrollment may be extended three additional years to Dec. 1, 2017. At that time, all state-issued drivers’ licenses and identification cards intended for official federal purposes must be REAL ID compliant.
CATO Institute: REAL ID Rebellion Comes to Illinois
Add to this that the Department of Homeland Security estimates that the bill cost states and individuals $17 billion — over $50 for every person in the country — and the recipe for state rebellion is complete.
U.S. Census Bureau 2006 Illinois Population Estimate:
12,831,970
A little quick math… 12,831,970 people x $50/people = $641,598,500
Nearly a billion dollars for the already budget strapped state of IL. I will have to step the search up to find sources confirming this number.
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