Stuff to Blog About and More: In the News, October 17th, 2008

Nothing like a 20lb Burger Story to Jump Start a Friday...

The burger normally comes with everything on it, but Steve Kowalewski's family had the tomatoes and pickles put on the side. (Photo courtesy of Steve Kowalewski)

Brad Sciullo finishing off a 15-pound burger at Denny's Beer Barrel Pub in PA.

"We were on an RV trip last summer (2007) and stopped by to see what this place is all about. My son Mark called ahead and order the burger because it takes them 4+ hours to fix it. When we arrived the burger was ready and waiting for us," Kowalewski writes in an e-mail.

It took him four hours and 39 minutes to finish the burger, a 15-pounder with toppings and a bun that brought the total weight to 20.2 pounds.

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McCain and Letterman

Remember a few weeks ago when John McCain canceled his scheduled appearance on Letterman, citing his suspended presidential campaign as the cause?
McCain didn't go to Washington until a day later and did an interview with Katie Couric instead. Letterman let McCain hear about it. When they met while taping the show, McCain told Letterman, "I screwed up."

McCain tries to make peace with Letterman @ Yahoo! Video

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Enslaving a Girl in Seattle

Five Seattle-area immigrants from Afghanistan enslaved a teenage girl after they brought her to the U.S.
According to reports, she had morn to a poor single mother and was informally adopted by another family in Afghanistan that forced her to marry at age 13 .

After coming to the US, the girl, was forced to live with the family who beat her and sexually assaulted her. The girl escaped after some good Samaritans helped her report her situation to the police in January 2008 .

FTC: Your Rights: Credit Reporting

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, has prepared a brochure, Your Access to Free Credit Reports, explaining your rights under the FCRA and how to order a free annual credit report.

A credit report includes information on where you live, how you pay your bills, and whether you've been sued, arrested, or filed for bankruptcy. Nationwide consumer reporting companies sell the information in your report to creditors, insurers, employers, and other businesses that use it to evaluate your applications for credit, insurance, employment, or renting a home.

How do I order my free report?

You can order your free annual credit report online at annualcreditreport.com, by calling 1-877-322-8228, or by completing the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

When you order, you need to provide your name, address, Social Security number, and date of birth. To verify your identity, you may need to provide some information that only you would know, like the amount of your monthly mortgage payment.

A Warning About "Imposter" Sites

The FTC advises consumers who order their free annual credit reports online to be sure to correctly spell annualcreditreport.com, or link to it from the FTC's website to avoid being misdirected to other websites that offer supposedly free reports,but only with the purchase of other products. While consumers may be offered additional products or services while on the authorized website, they are not required to make a purchase to receive their free annual credit reports.

For more information on free annual credit reports, read Your Access to Free Credit Reports.