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Thoughts About Today’s ‘Headlines’ Plus Links!

July 23, 2011 · 144 comments

in Commentary, Link Round Up

I was reading CNN this morning when I noticed what a large variety there is in headlines.  The major headline (as it should be) was the massacre in the youth camp and the bombing in Norway.  What absolutely horrifying incidents.  In reading the story, it was revealed that after the killings, the authorities were notified that the suspected killer had recently purchased 6 tons of fertilizer.

I am not a farmer, so I don’t know if buying 6 tons of fertilizer is an unusual order or not.  But ever since the fertilizer bomb created by Timothy McVeigh in Oklahoma City killed so many, I have wondered if people that don’t usually buy huge amounts of fertilizer should be reported somewhere.   I am sure such a plan is unrealistic and probably illegal since fertilizer is used all over the world for perfectly innocent reasons.  (It isn’t like people are placing a large order for napalm.) However, I do wish such horrible plots could be avoided somehow.

Getting back to headlines, I was amused by some of the other news stories that made the front page of CNN.  Other such important things going on in our world are:

“Bristol admits lying to mom”.  I am assuming this is about being pregnant or ‘active’.  Some lies just can’t be kept quiet for long, and some have a shelf life of 9 months or less.

“Aniston, Theroux house hunting”.  Wow!  Does this mean poor Jen has finally found love post-Brad?  I wonder if she too will lie to her mom at some point.  Oh wait, they don’t talk.

There is another important headline that may be too inappropriate for this site, but we will just say a woman  was angry at her husband, craftily used a knife, and had her bail set at a million dollars.

The information doesn’t stop there.  Take some time to do some great reading from around the web this week:

101 Centavos shares some great tips about personal security when traveling.  I never thought about how someone could look at my luggage tag, get my address, and try to make an illegal visit to my house while I was on vacation before.

Barb Friedberg Personal Finance is embarrassed because she received an $800 refund because of a mistake made on a previous year’s tax return.  I had a similar experience, except my letter stated I owed $7200 for 2009.  I like Barb’s letter better. (I will write about my snafu in the near future.)

Budgeting In the Fun Stuff is officially self-employed, and is taking some time to volunteer for Meals-On-Wheels.  She does a great job of tying Meals-On-Wheels together with saving for retirement.

Debt Free By 30 saved money while on vacation- stop by and see how she did it.  I think I want another vacation!

Financial Samurai shares his disappointment in Zillow.  What do you think?  If you were buying or selling a home, would you rely on Zillow estimates to determine price?

First Gen American won the day and got the chess set she was looking for.  However, there is a lot more to the story than just purchasing a chess set…

Invest It Wisely shares an alternative to city living – sea living!   I have always wanted to live near the ocean, but I never considered living ‘on’ the ocean.   It is a very interesting post, and if you live in New York City now, it may not be much more expensive than what you are paying now!

KrantCents discusses accountability (and lack thereof).   If only more people were willing to take personal pride and responsibility for the work they do, the world would be a better place.

Len Penzo hit a million page views this week.  This is truly phenomenal.  (I have all of 175,000…)  Len has a great sense of humor and a very interesting site, so start reading if you don’t already.

Lindy Mint is almost done selling her items on eBay (just 2 more to go).  What’s great though is the little ‘ode’ she wrote on her site about eBay.

Millionaire Nurse Blog does a great write up about infertility.   Infertility is not a life threatening (for you) problem, but it sure can cause torment, and it is an incredibly expensive problem to treat.   My heart goes out to anyone that has fertility issues.

MoneyCone writes about one of my favorite companies- Vanguard, and compares expenses for ETFs vs Mutual Funds. Very informative, and it got me thinking more about ETFs.

Money Reasons shares some interesting thoughts on Warren Buffett and how you wouldn’t  know he was incredibly wealthy if you just look at how he lives.  (Everyone could learn from Buffett’s example.)

My Journey To Millions provides an update on his dividend stock portfolio. I actually learned about the Dividend Aristocrats from Evan, so I really enjoy these updates.

Retire By 40 discusses the desire to live on one paycheck.  It would be great if everyone budgeted to just rely on one income since the job market is so volatile these days.

Squirrelers evaluates the difference in retirement expectations between the East and the West. (I am not talking East and West coast of the U.S., but the world.) It is interesting how the perceptions are totally different.

Untemplater wants us to chase our dreams and goals at full force. I couldn’t agree more.  Everything in life deserves effort, and just getting by ultimately hurts you in the long run. (Even if at the time it allows you to watch more TV.)

Wealth Informatics teaches us how to save on magazine subscriptions.  I know I never renew when an subscription expires, because I know I will get a much better deal if I wait.  However, there are a lot of tips that I never even thought of to get that magazine even cheaper.

Have a great week everyone!

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{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }

Nicole July 23, 2011 at 12:06 pm

I believe the euphemistic/technical term you are looking for is “Bobbittize.”

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Crystal @ BFS July 23, 2011 at 12:07 pm

Thanks for the mention!

In the USA, anyone who buys large sums of fertilizer is investigated now eventually, but we don’t have enough personnel to keep up with the list so they sometimes just spot check and look into it deeper if they have reason to be suspicious later. My uncle works with the FBI to maintain the lists.

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krantcents July 23, 2011 at 12:36 pm

Thanks for the link. I am i good company.

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101 Centavos July 23, 2011 at 12:55 pm

Thanks for the mention.

The last one is the kind of headline that makes all guys instinctively wince and cross their legs.

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Niki July 23, 2011 at 4:43 pm

Thank you for the link.
The news seems to be thoroughly depressing lately.

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First Gen American July 24, 2011 at 7:46 am

Farmers also have lojacks on some of their raw manterial inventory that’s tied to police stations, so that if certain chemicals get stolen, they can track them.

Thanks for the mention and the good links. I have to go find these other news articles. I haven’t seen a few of them.

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Barb Friedberg July 24, 2011 at 5:31 pm

Hi-What a great surprise to stop by and see a link to my site!! I never get trackbacks!! the news is incredible. I have to admit being a bit of a Casey Anthony addict. BTW, anyone know where she is?

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Money Reasons July 25, 2011 at 3:19 am

Thanks for the mention! Norway was a shocker!

Hope you had a most excellent weekend!

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MoneyCone July 25, 2011 at 12:21 pm

I love how in all your roundups you list the links alphabetically Kris! Attention to details…

Much impressed!

(PS: Thanks for the mention – my roundup is long overdue!)

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Lindy Mint July 25, 2011 at 8:12 pm

Thanks so much for including me with your links.
I do find that the CNN headlines can be a source for amusement, on a good day.

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Untemplater July 26, 2011 at 11:00 pm

Thanks for the mention! I totally hear you on how random headlines can be! It amazes me how many simultaneous events are taking place every minute of every day. It’s no wonder there the news can get random! -Sydney 🙂

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Invest It Wisely August 10, 2011 at 10:56 pm

Thanks for the inclusion, Kris!

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