Credit card customers get a break starting today, thanks to the newly passed Credit Card Act of 2009.

Companies must now mail bills at least 21 days in advance (instead of the lame 14 days) and they must provide at least 45 days notice before making any significant changes in fees or interest rates.

It's a start. 

The bulk of the changes which could save people a ton of money in interest goes into

No one knows when the economy will actually recover.

Don't let anyone tell you they know. They don't.

In today's Wall Street Journal, I got a kick out of an article titled, "The Economic Recovery: Fast, Slow or Neither?" Fortune telling financial analysts are crawing out of the woodwork to proclaim their predictions.

Just ignore them.

Read the article instead as a way to educate yourself in three of

I just got off the phone with a man who is desperately trying to figure out how to make it until his retirement kicks in. He just got laid off and has some physical challenges that makes employment in his field at best challenging, and at worst, impossible.

He's out scouring for a decent job so he can put food on his table and afford a much needed surgery.

And, Goldman Sachs just reported record

In today's Wall Street Journal, an article titled, "Design Challenge: How to Make Stocks Safer for Older Investors" profiled so-called "safe stock" investments.

The article focuses on stock-based investments that guarantee upside plus protection. The last I checked, that doesn't pan out. The Journal likens this to alchemy. I say it's trying to have your cake and eat it too.

One of the reasons

 I was so pleased to read about investors withdrawing their assets from their wealth management firms in today's Wall Street Journal.

The old model is broken. It's based on getting as many assets under management as possible and charging fees based on the amount of those assets. What's more, many firms accept commissions and other fees on financial products they recommend.

That's just wrong. Too

We are a long way from benefiting from any real reform. Though there are elements of the Administration's proposal that I believe could ultimately benefit business and individuals, the reforms appear as little more than political window dressing. Moreover, these initiatives still have to pass into law - and much can happen as well as die on the vine - before legislation gets passed and signed

Simon Johnson and Peter Boone, both notable economists with common sense (don't laugh!) have written a thoughtful piece on what the US should be doing to salvage the financial system (published by the New York Times).

The net net. The US Government should stop being so cautious and unwilling to restructure America's banks and should instead force the restructuring now while the public's appetite

You have to read this article about 6 degrees of Bernie Madoff. Enjoy!

 Click the link below to see the article

http://www.bankrate.com/elink/news/advice/20090416_six_degrees_madoff_a1.asp

I encourage you to follow thought leaders on what could happen vis a vis the Treasury Department's (aka the Geithner) Plan to shed banks' toxic assets off their balance sheets, free up capital for lending and restore our confidence in the financial system.

The New York Times has published the perspectives of 4 highly regarded economists: Paul Krugman, Simon Johnson, Bard Delong and Mark Thoma.

Here's a website for you that contains documents and links about what the US government is doing to help stablize the financial system.

http://financialstability.gov/

 You can read the latest offerings from Treasury on the Public Private Investment Program, unlocking credit for small businesses, and making your home more affordable.