| Payday loan's hook a sinker
Clara Cichosz of Littleton couldn't stop pumping coins into the slot machines. The spinning dials, the electronic bells, and the occasional clank of a jackpot had hypnotized her. She started going to Black Hawk without her friends, so she could be alone with the machines. "I called myself a slot slut," she said. "I am a compulsive gambler." Despite working for a large telecommunications company for more than 30 years, Cichosz plunged headlong into bankruptcy in 2000. Her credit destroyed, she turned to payday lenders. "Sometimes I would get a payday loan just to gamble, hoping that I would win," she said. "Of course, what happens is you don't win." Eventually, she found herself taking out payday loans to pay off payday loans. She's now in a couple of 12-step programs trying to recover as debt collectors drag her into court and hound her at work for payments.
Students get taste of election
I am sick of guys running this world. Whenever her husband was president, we had a balanced budget, we never went to war, everything was fine and peaceful, and that went to pot whenever Bush came in."Although they are a few years away from participating in real elections, the underclassmen also had strong opinions. Richard Joseph, a sophomore focused on one key issue."Obama said he would bring the troops back first, Hillary Clinton just said she would have Congress decide, but she didn't say how long or anything."Sophomore Dakota Jones has a very different outlook on the same issue."I kind of like the right to bear arms thing, and staying in Iraq, so that's why I picked McCain. I try to keep up with politics on my own, so that's how I based my opinion," he said.DBHS principal Steve Easterling was surprised to see students arguing key political issues not only in the classrooms, but also in the halls."I thought they were having a verbal argument, but they were debating the candidates," Easterling said of one debate he had witnessed.
My credit card's been blocked and now I'm under house arrest in New ...
As I type these words, I'm sitting in New York, failing to enjoy myself. Not because I'm a miserable curmudgeon (I'm not - I'm a sparkling sunbeam) but because I neglected to tell the Halifax that I was going abroad, and it has punished me by putting a security block on my card. It's like a parent-child relationship. I went out to play without asking permission and subsequently I've been grounded. Sorry mummy. Sorry daddy. I was trying to buy a coat and some earmuffs - it's minus 10 million degrees out here and like an idiot I arrived woefully unprepared - when the block kicked in. It's pretty embarrassing when a shop assistant hands your card back, smiles weakly and says it's been rejected. If you're like me, you ask them to try again, and they reluctantly do so while a queue builds up behind you.
Hot New House Polls
Calls to the House clerk's office were referred to the House Administration Committee, and a spokeswoman was not able to say where the bill was. [Congressman Steve] King said he has assigned his staff to track down the bill because he, too, wants to know where it stands. Maybe Captain Ed's Hill source--the one who assured him that the White House wanted to "get as much coverage as possible"--can straighten everybody out. ... 9:26 A.M. He'll Have a Fit: Seth Stevenson, like the car mag pros, loves the Honda Fit. He must be right--but I've now seen a lot of them and still have trouble getting over its gruesome '80s styling. Of course, when you're in it ... what was it Frank Lloyd Wright said about the Harkness Tower? 12:38 A.M. Against the Liberal Media: Amid the ecstatic media frenzy of stories about looming Republican disaster, one contrarian dares speak up.
Topsail chamber readies for tourist season
SURF CITY — The Greater Topsail Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism is ramping up its effort to provide more information about the area to residents, businesses and tourists. In addition to launching a "Chamber Communicator" newsletter and a redesigned Web site, a new logo and freshly painted and furbished work space has brightened the tourism’s office as part of its preparation for peak tourist season, according to chamber officials. Business manager Suellen Brooks said she put a great deal of effort into the revamped Web site, www.topsailcoc.com. She said the site is more user-friendly and informative, and she thinks its visitors will enjoy the area photographs posted. "We think the photos will really attract people to the site, and we are thinking of changing those quarterly," Brooks said.
HSBC banks £12.2 billion profit
Banking giant HSBC has seen profits rise 10 per cent to £12.2 billion despite having to write off £8.7 billion from bad debts and investments linked to the credit crunch. The UK's largest banking business said it was "continuing to face challenges" in North America as a result of the housing market troubles and associated credit crunch. HSBC also warned that the credit outlook in the US may "get worse before it gets better". HSBC said overall performance during 2007 was bolstered by "exceptionally strong" results in the emerging market regions of Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East. In the UK, profits from commercial banking topped the £1 billion mark for the first time. But the group's US consumer business - comprising mortgages, credit cards and personal loans - suffered from high bad debt charges, with write-offs in this area increasing 80 per during 2007 to £5.9 billion.
EPD warns residents of possible phone scam in area
The Eureka Police Department has received three phone calls from citizens regarding a phone scam. EPD Public Information Officer Suzie Owsley said that if three residents have reported the scam, there are probably many more receiving the bogus offer. The scam artist contacts residents and says he represents an international shipping company and that he will be shipping a package with money and prizes worth more than $10,000. The caller attempts to ask for personal information, Owsley said. She reminds people not give out any personal information over the phone when on the receiving end of a call. The best thing to do is to tell the caller, “no thank-you," and hang up, Owsley said. .
Winter Garden Distraction Thief Always Wears Medical Scrubs
WINTER GARDEN, Fla. -- Police in Winter Garden are looking for a thief wearing an unusual outfit. Each time the crook targets someone, she's been wearing medical scrubs. Police said the bandit has been stealing people's wallets and then using their credit cards. For police, the images are very clear, showing three females using a stolen credit card to buy thousands in electronics. But less than an hour earlier, they were posing as church-going customers with the best of intentions While employees at Trophies Unlimited helped their customers, Tammy Carson's wallet disappeared from her desk. At least twice in Winter Garden, and more times in Ocoee, groups have entered stores to distract employees while at the same time raiding purses. In both Winter Garden cases, the same woman was involved and caught on tape wearing scrubs as if she were a nurse or doctor.
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