Here’s the situation: Tough Money Love has been named a finalist for a Plutus Award in two separate categories:  ”Most Controversial Personal Finance Blog” and “Best Personal Finance Blog for Retirement.”

My Go To Retirement blog has also been named a finalist in the “Best Personal Finance Blog for Retirement” category.  If it were up to me, Go To Retirement would win the retirement category while Tough Money Love would win “most controversial.” But it’s not up to me. It’s up to you.

If you would like to help put Mr. ToughMoneyLove on the winner’s podium, please take 20 seconds, visit the Plutus Award vote page, scroll about 2/3 down the page, and record your votes. Ask your friends to consider doing the same thing.

If I win, I will celebrate by giving away some copies of my Failsafe Retirement System to some lucky readers so be sure to check back.

Thanks for your support!

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I read about a lot of crazy financial ideas and products. It used to be that checking and savings accounts led the way in offering different features and so-called benefits to entice new customers. That trend was displaced by credit card products as Americans became less interested in saving and more interested in spending.

It’s to the point now that selecting credit card features is like buying options on a new car purchase. (Another expensive activity.)

The latest is the ZYNC card. This is a fee-based charge card with optional “Lifestyle” packs that you can “add” for an extra fee.  Wow – I definitely need the fully-loaded version. But what’s with the “Zync” moniker? Have we finally run out of precious metal versions of spending aids?  What’s next – the “TYN” card? Or how about the “LEAD” card for spending that will really weigh you down.

OK enough about that latest in credit card fashions. On to some tough money love reading for the week.

First up: Paul Farrell at MarketWatch gives us 20 reasons why the global debt time bomb is ready to explode. If you read credit card ads but won’t read Farrell’s piece, you deserve to have your finances blown up.

The Moolanomy blog wrote about having a no-spend weekend. I like the concept, particularly for young adults who have come to believe that the national pastime is clubbing with big bar tabs. If you can break out of the “weekends are for spending” mindset when you are young, the rest of your financial life may go a lot smoother.

Kyle at Amateur Asset Allocator wrote a summary of places to find coupon deals. I have started to appreciate finding these coupon deals and now make a habit of checking them before any significant purchase. As a techie, I would add Tech Deals to the list.

Money Crashers published a piece about the “fat tax“, i.e., taxing food products that are objectively unhealthy by their contributions to our national obesity problem. I don’t like taxes but I like this one. Face it – the gazillions of extra pounds that our fellow citizens are lugging around cost us all a lot of money, particularly in health care. Now that I think about it, I need to write an entire post on this topic.

Finally, check out this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance.

Enjoy the weekend (maybe a no-spend one?)

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Mr. and Mrs. ToughMoneyLove arrived at our lake house yesterday (Lake Barkley, Kentucky) joined by our three sons and one significant other who is becoming part of our family. Everyone is relaxing (except some of the five dogs who are with us). No snow yet (maybe Saturday) but a fire is blazing. It is so peaceful up here in the winter. I have surprised myself by finishing my gift wrapping before the wee hours.

We have long-standing Christmas Eve traditions in our family as I am sure you do. Our “Secret Family Recipe” Christmas Punch, cheese fondue, Christmas Eve Mass, and watching It’s a Wonderful Life.

I hope and pray that each and every one of you having something and someone to bring you peace and joy this Christmas Season. I am so thankful for your readership and comments.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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Atlanta is such a mix of economic cultures. As my friend and host drove us around some of the wealthier neighborhoods with endless multi-million dollar homes, we all wondered out loud: “Where do all of these people work?” There are similar neighborhoods in Nashville and when I drive through them I often ask myself that same question. My gut feeling is that a lot of the money is inherited. I also suspect that many of the owners are house rich and cash poor. Our oldest son has worked in a number of area McMansions. He regularly finds overly large homes with many rooms having little or no furniture in them. That’s a telling sign.

Speaking of over-the-top consumption (how’s that for a segue way), Lynnae at Being Frugal tipped my off to the Advent Conspiracy site which seeks to diminish the materialistic nature of the holidays. The mantra is Give Presence (not Presents). I like that.

Other interesting reads this week:

Over on my Go To Retirement blog, I wrote a short summary of different approaches to planning for tax-free retirement income.

Clever Dude wrote a post celebrating the end of his family’s consumer debt.  He deserves a lot of credit for that $113k payoff accomplishment, particularly considering that it included $40k in student loans.

Forbes published an article that interjects some hard truth into the current “you must buy gold” craze. I know that gold speculators (I can’t really call them investors) have enjoyed a nice run-up this year so I ask again: Is it time to take your profits? If not, when?

Also check out this past week’s Carnival of Money Stories and Carnival of Personal Finance.

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First, have a look at Cash Commons. This is a brand new site launched by a fellow personal finance blogger, the Mighty Bargain Hunter. The concept is simple. Users ask questions of a financial nature. Other users answer them. It’s all free. I spent some time there this morning reading the questions and offering some answers. I’m going back because I’ve already found some useful stuff there that I can use. Cash Commons can only get better as more readers learn about it.

If you want to know what professional financial planners are thinking about current topics in personal finance, try reading some of the online articles in the Journal of Financial Planning. In the upcoming (December) issue, these subjects will be covered: Constructing and Defending Portfolios During Chaotic Markets; Bonanza or Bust? Roth Conversions in 2010; and Long-Term Approaches to Managing Retirement Healthcare Costs. Each of these is important to most of us.

A site I’ve recently discovered for learning about sales, discount codes, and online coupons, is Offers.com. Some of the offers are exclusive to this site. You can also find free shipping and free trial deals, and learn about upcoming Black Friday deals.

Speaking of learning, the Khan Academy has something for almost everyone. The publisher of this non-profit site has created over 1000 YouTube educational videos on a variety of scientific and mathematical topics. More to the point of my readers, there are sections covering numerous contemporary issues in economics and personal finance. You need to check it out if you are an audio/visual learner.

I hope you benefit from learning about at least one of these links. Either way, please let me know in a comment.

Thanks for reading this week and enjoy your weekend.

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This “policy” is not free to the consumer. Rather, if you want to reserve the right to return your new Chevrolet, it will cost you $500. The reason is that Chevy is offering all buyers a $500 “rebate” if you “waive” the right to return your purchase.

Seriously, who is going pay $500 for a sixty day “free” trial on a Chevrolet?

Instead of buying a GM car, spend some time catching up on your personal finance reading. I recommend the following:

Over at Debt Free Adventure, Matt Jabs joined the “I don’t care what my FICO score is” club. Don’t overlook the comments to the post. I wish more folks would throw off those credit score shackles. It’s sad and disappointing that many personal finance bloggers devote so many of their words and advertising links promoting the “best” credit cards. There is no “best” credit card. Rather, there are some that are less bad for you than others.

Andrea at Fools and Sages wrote a nice piece on the attributes and benefits of thoughtful spending.  Americans are notorious for being impulsive shoppers and less than mindful of the consequences. As Money and Such tells us, buyers on credit are often undisciplined consumers.

For a final dose of hard truth, the Macroblog (from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta summarizes the evidence that our economic recovery will be a “jobless” recovery. A lot of the jobs that have been lost are not coming back. Get used to it.

On my Go To Retirement blog, I wrote about planning for a phased retirement and at Failsafe Retirement, I commented on ways to turn savings into retirement income.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

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Here are some other hard truth articles from the past week that you may like:

Money Musings wrote an excellent commentary about the “bail me out” whinings of a student loan borrower. I have no sympathy for that borrower and no interest in contributing to his bailout. He should put a sock in it and just finish paying his stupid tax without asking for our help.

No Debt Plan kicks his old bank to the street for a better interest rate deal. Further to this topic, at Go To Retirement, I wrote how you can easily get much better interest rates on your money than are offered by the well-known internet savings banks.

On my Failsafe Retirement blog, I wrote about upcoming developments in TIPS and I-Bonds. Folks, if you haven’t yet considered inflation protected securities as a component of your portfolio, you are wasting precious time.

J. Money at Budgets are Sexy comes clean with his buyer’s remorse on the purchase of the house he lives in. Everyone should read and learn from his experience.

Money Ning clears up some important misconceptions about the use of debit cards. Credit card addicts should take note.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

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