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National Legal Debt Centers, Inc. – Consumer Alert
New Bankruptcy Law - Alternatives Are Available

Burbank CA (PRWEB) March 15, 2005 -- The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, which passed the Senate on Thursday and is expected to pass in the House of Representatives, limits who can qualify for bankruptcy under Chapter 7 of the bankruptcy code, because it permits them to erase their debts after forfeiting their assets. Instead many filers will be forced into a Chapter 13 Repayment Plan.

There are alternatives. Most people do not realize the difference between the various types of bankruptcy and could easily find themselves paying back a large proportion of their debt anyway, forced by the courts to make those payments. Some are even mandated into credit counseling programs and forced into a lengthy repayment plan. So they wind up with a bankruptcy and repay their debts anyway!

Although some types of bankruptcy may get rid of unsecured debts completely and help stop foreclosure on your home, stop garnishments by creditors and debt collection activities, be aware that there are still many areas it does not help with. Bankruptcy will normally not help in areas like child support, alimony, current taxes, and most government-backed student loans, etc.

On top of this, you have also just ruined your credit for the rest of your life. Not only does bankruptcy stay on your credit report for 10 years and stay in the court records for 20 years, but many people do not realize that applications for home loans and many employment forms require you to answer the annoying question: "Have you ever filed for bankruptcy?" So, in effect, it follows you for the rest of your life. A bankruptcy can also hinder you in many major areas of your life, such as finding a job, buying or even renting a home, acquiring insurance, security clearance and buying or leasing a car. It should be considered as an absolute last resort.

Most consumers do not know there are bankruptcy alternatives and that an attorney can help you avoid bankruptcy and negotiate a settlement of your debts. Though there are many different types of debt relief companies advertised, most creditors will not negotiate with them. However, an attorney experienced in handling clients debts, can act on your behalf and help you avoid the devastation of bankruptcy.

Before you decide to do a bankruptcy, explore your options:

Bankruptcy Alternatives
http://www.nldc.us/debtoptions.html

Debt Elimination Scams... Fraud Warning
http://credit.about.com/od/shamsandscams/a/082504.htm

FTC Consumer Alert:
Advertisements Promising Debt Relief May Be Offering Bankruptcy http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/bankrupt.htm

Debt, job stress threaten families

Tom Ehrich
May 14, 2005 - For the good of the family, let's bury the usual hatchets, step back from our accustomed religious barricades, and think about what would truly make a difference in family life.

The modern family isn't being undermined by liberal or conservative judges, by Roe v. Wade, by stem cell research, women's changing roles, lack of prayers in school, or movements to legalize or ban same-sex marriages.

Those are smoke screens that turn us against one another, make us long for a time that never was and divert our attention from deeper issues.

What are the real issues? Here is my take on what is undermining family life:

1. Excessive indebtedness

The average American family owes more than $20,000 in personal, non-mortgage debt. As interest rates soar past 20 percent, the debt load becomes a permanent member of the family. Financial problems are a critical factor in an estimated 83 percent of divorces.

Meanwhile, banks flood our mailboxes with more credit card and home-equity loan offers, and consumer advertising pushes us to keep spending.

Faith's role: Help people make better choices about money and property -- which are, after all, the two topics Jesus addressed more than any other.

2. Job stress

Our post-industrial, increasingly global economy is rapidly eliminating the former foundation of family well-being: a steady job, health benefits and a secure retirement.

High-wage factory jobs are disappearing, health benefits are evaporating, retirement accounts are less secure. Say hello to service-industry jobs, lower wages, marginal benefits, declining disposable income, and two people working longer hours to make ends meet.

Mounting layoffs touch all families, but seem especially vexing for wage earners in their 50s, whose expenses are peaking and career options shrinking.

Faith's role: Support families in distress, encourage open and compassionate responses to change, avoid blaming.

3. People as objects

Look beyond bare midriffs, mindless entertainment, garish malls, street gangs and vapid public schools.

Those are symptoms of something deeper: a sense that people are objects, commodities, of little value as persons, of greater value as consumer units to be played for someone else's benefit.

Hence, the focus on predictable, controllable behaviors, gathering mountains of data on us, minimizing privacy and discouraging uniqueness.

Faith's role: Remind people that they matter, with every one a treasure to God.

4. Dishonesty

It seems quaint and refreshing nowadays when someone says exactly what he or she means, intends to do or did wrong. Normative behavior is to deny, shade, minimize, spin or simply lie.

When leaders lie, a community's fabric of trust unravels. People make up "facts," guess at reality, lose trust in one another and become suspicious of outsiders. Families pull inward and isolate themselves.

Faith's role: Set a godly standard of honesty in all doings, transparency within the faith community, respect for one another and trust in God.

5. Avoidance

Avoidance looks the other way as problems mount, opportunities arise, people evolve, situations change. Avoidance buys calm today at the expense of tension tomorrow.

Avoidance pleases one person today at the expense of failing many people tomorrow. Avoidance loads today's unmet needs onto tomorrow's constituents and thereby guarantees frustration and failure.

Faith's role: Encourage accountability, affirm mercy, create communities where people deal forthrightly with problems.

In my opinion, those five issues don't bear a conservative or liberal label. We all care about them.

They are the middle ground where a divided nation could meet to consider its way forward.

On those issues, I think we will find less disagreement about Scripture, less distrust of other faith traditions.

In fact, if we could talk about things that really matter, I think we would find ourselves not fighting one another, but saying "no" to those powerful elites that keep us off balance with minor wrangling while they go about amassing wealth.

Tom Ehrich is an Episcopal priest, writer and computer consultant. Send e-mail to tehrich@earthlink.net.

Answer the Phone: Your Identity is on the Line

Beverly Hills, CA -- (ArriveNet - May 06, 2005) -- There hasn't been much good news in the battle against identity theft lately, with fraudsters staying one step ahead of the game. But don't panic, our old friend the telephone has come to the rescue.

We're all aware of the problem of identity theft, but did you know that your local pizza chain has had a solution for years? You recognize it as the system that prevents little Johnny from having twenty pizzas delivered to your door at midnight: the pizza chain calls you immediately after the order is placed to verify the validity of the order. Because little Johnny is afraid to be caught, he'll think twice about causing this pizza-related havoc.

TeleSign's patent-pending verification system has transferred this pizza concept to the high-tech world. It works like this: after filling out a form on a website, the user is prompted to enter his phone number. A robotic system then places a call to that number and speaks aloud a unique three digit code. Once that code is entered into the website, the authentication is complete. This system can be implemented at any point on a website: at registration, purchase, a specific time interval, or at the request of a user.

Email verification is the current standard for user authentication, but email may end up filtered, junked, bulked, or trashed. Because of spam, viruses, and phishing, email filtering has become so aggressive that even legitimate emails don't reach the inbox. But a telephone call cannot be stopped, making this the perfect time for the introduction of TeleSign’s solution.

The future of ecommerce is threatened by rampant fraud and lack of trust. TeleSign will force anonymous users to expose their faces by revealing their working phone numbers.

To try an interactive demo, visit (http://www.telesign.com/demo2/demo.asp) and have your phone ready.

For more information about TeleSign’s products and services, visit (http://www.telesign.com/demo2/) or email press2@telesign.com.

About TeleSign Corp.
TeleSign is a leader in innovative internet security solutions and provider of intelligent telephone-based verification solutions for any entity conducting business online where trust is essential and where fraud is a concern. TeleSign’s patent-pending Verification System provides a critical layer of security for the e-commerce world and is a proven deterrent against ill-intentioned web users. The company’s first product, the TeleSign Verification System, blends the latest internet, security and telephony technologies into a powerful new tool to combat fraud and enhance trust in e-business.

TeleSign Corp. seeks to provide simplified solutions for any company conducting business online where trust is essential and where fraud is a concern. TeleSign’s patent-pending Verification System provides a critical layer of security for the e-commerce world and is a proven deterrent against ill-intentioned web users. TeleSign’s Verification System is able to legitimize a web user’s claimed identification at a miniscule cost and with little inconvenience to all parties involved.

TeleSign’s Verification System is based upon the premise that ill-intentioned web users hesitate to disclose their working phone numbers. By placing a computer-generated telephone call coupled with a unique security code, we insist that a web user provide a legitimate telephone number or be rooted out. The company’s first product, the TeleSign Verification System, blends the latest internet, security and telephony technologies into a powerful new tool to combat fraud in e-commerce.

Visit http://www.telesign.com/demo2/ or call 310-276-5900 for more information.

TeleSign Corporation
Contact: Sam Gonen
Telephone: (310) 276-7843
Email: press2@telesign.com