Help Get The Word Out 

On Monday, January 18th, Oprah did a powerful show regarding texting & talking on cell phones while driving.  You can watch the entire show at Oprah.com, but here is a sampling.  Please help get the word out that people are being killed & families torn apart by something so preventable.  No phone call or text is worth someone's life!

 Millions of people text, talk or e-mail on their cell phones while driving-a recent survey finds that 71 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 49 admit they text or talk on the phone while they drive.

If you think you can call, text and drive at the same time, you cannot. That message you can't wait to send could kill. Distracted driving is an epidemic that is sweeping through our country, claiming lives and destroying families. Think you can drive and text or talk at the same time? Science shows your brain just can't keep up. University of Utah researcher David Strayer has been studying distracted drivers for 10 years. "The brain just doesn't work the way we'd like it to work," he says. "We can't multitask the way that a lot of people think they can."

David's research found that talking on a cell phone quadruples your risk of an accident. "For comparison purposes, someone who's drunk at a 0.08 blood alcohol level has a four-time crash increase. So talking on a cell phone is about the same as driving drunk," he says. "When you're text messaging, the crash risk goes up to eight times."        

 "One of the things we know when people are talking on a phone is that they get in kind of a tunnel vision," David says.  "You don't see the information in the periphery. So if there's a car, a pedestrian, something like that, you just don't see it," he says. "They're not looking at their side mirrors." "You suffer from something called inattention blindness," David says. "About half of that information is removed. It could be a stop sign. It could be a pedestrian. And so this inattention blindness makes us drive in a way that makes it worse than drunk driving."

The next time you're in the car, put down the phone. "We're just not wired to multitask in that way. We think we can do it. We simply can't," he says. "And we're deceiving ourselves if we think we are."

This is good information - 2010 Census to Begin

Be Cautious About Giving Info to Census Workers by Susan Johnson

With the U.S. Census process beginning, the Better Business Bureau advises people to be cooperative, but cautious, so as not to become a victim of fraud or identity theft. The first phase of the 2010  U.S. Census is under way as workers have begun verifying the addresses of households across the country. Eventually, more than 140,000 census workers will count every person in the  United  States and will gather information about every person living at each address including name, age, gender, race, and other relevant data.  The big question is - how do you tell the difference between a U.S. Census worker and a con artist? BBB offers the following advice:

     If a U.S. Census worker knocks on your door, they will have a badge, a handheld device, a Census Bureau canvas bag, and a confidentiality notice. Ask to see their identification and their  badge before answering their questions.  However, you should never invite anyone you don't know into your home.
 
    Census workers are currently only knocking on doors to verify address information.  Do not give your Social Security number, credit card or banking information to anyone, even if they claim they need it for the census.  REMEMBER, NO MATTER WHAT THEY ASK, YOU REALLY ONLY NEED TO TELL THEM HOW MANY PEOPLE LIVE AT YOUR ADDRESS.
 
  While the Census Bureau might ask for basic financial information, such as a salary range, YOU DON'T HAVE TO ANSWER ANYTHING AT ALL ABOUT YOUR FINANCIAL SITUATION.  The Census Bureau will not ask for Social Security, bank account, or credit card numbers, nor will employees solicit donations.  Any one asking for that information is NOT with the Census Bureau.
 
  AND REMEMBER, THE CENSUS BUREAU HAS DECIDED NOT TO WORK WITH ACORN ON GATHERING THIS INFORMATION. .  No Acorn worker should approach you saying he/she is with the Census Bureau.

  Eventually, Census workers may contact you by telephone, mail, or in person at home. However, the Census Bureau will not contact you by Email, so be on the lookout for Email scams impersonating the Census.  Never click on a link or open any attachments in an Email that are supposedly from the U.S. Census Bureau.
 
For more advice on avoiding identity theft and fraud, visit  http://www.bbb.org

JANUARY BIRTHDAY GREETINGS TO THE FOLLOWING: