Consumer Advocacy Blogs You Should Know About

In today's world of recalls, shady CEOs, outsourced customer service and general disrespect for your dollar attitude, I think it's nice to have a few people looking out for you. Here's a couple of my favorite customer advocacy blogs, which I recommend checking on a quasi-regular basis.

Gawker Media's Consumerist

the U.S. Public Interest Research Groups has a good site and blog

WashingtonPost.com's The Checkout by Annys Shin

And Joe Consumer, which I have no idea of who runs it

TV Feud continues? Wayne Brady created Stephen Colbert?

You Decide

Stewart vs. Colbert vs. O'Brien Fight Video! Genius!

Last night I witnessed what I believe was the best post strike TV! Without their writers the collective late night talk show hosts Conan O'Brien, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert brought to a head their recent feud regarding "who created" Republican Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. I know there will be many haters, naysayers and ne'erdowell who will complain that it was just a giant waste of time. To them I say it was a giant funny waste of time! Now make sure yo have 25 min and 58 sec to laugh, or you could play them all at once.

It started last night on The Daily Show



It continued on The Colbert Report



And it concluded on Late Night with Conan O'Brien with not only the inevitable brawl but a special message from Mike Huckabee

Election 08 Pools, or Polls or Somthing!?

With every national election the question arises, do pools matter? I think it depends on where you live, whereas living in Florida I would really need a pool to beat the heat. For these who live in Alaska, I don't think pools matter, I mean isn't it usually below freezing there? Oh.. Wait.. Polls! Oh now I see, well I have no idea, but if you think they do check out this cool Poll tracker from USAToday.com HERE.


If your like me and you like pools more than polls check here's a couple of canidate pools!

First is Hilliary's pool


And here is Mitt's Pool!

At least I'm told via the internet (which never lies) I've never been to either,
But remember my Presidential hopefuls, Palaba's Posts has yet to endorse anyone!

If you have any pics of the candidates pools, please send them to PalabasPosts@Gmail.com

David Simon apologises to the City of Baltimore and tells of a confrontation with O'Malley

In a "web extra editorial" (sounds like a blog to me) Today on Baltimoremagazine.net, David Simon tells of a short standoff between him and then Mayor Martin O'Malley. Simon speaks of some regret if he had damaged the city's reputation, stating "We put our town’s shit in the street. And for that and that alone we ask apology for the premeditated trespass: Sorry for that."

Read it in his words HERE

For more on O'Malley check HERE or HERE

I will say as a native West Baltimorean (I say I'm a Baltimoron, but don't use the term if your not from Baltimore) I want to say thank you. I know David Simon reads many a blog but I'm not arrogant enough to suggest he reads this one, but none the less I want to say Thanks. Thanks for validating us people in a city with problems, but people none the less. When I was 12 years old I would walk up to the 7-11 at the corner of Edmonson and Swan to buy my comic books, often I would be greeted by a man who introduced himself only to me as Iceman. Iceman would walk with me whenever he saw me in the "Village" to protect me warding away "vendors" trying to sell me a bootleg or women who claimed to "know my moma" wanting me to give them my cash then they could buy my soda or bag of chips with their Independence Card (or food stamps I can't remember which it was at the time). Iceman would for some reason call me Julio, I guess it ran along the lines of him trying to protect me, see I have a dangerous condition for a 12 year old in Edmonson Village, I was, and still am a short, fat, white guy. When I saw the Wire for the first time I, like most Baltimoreans felt validated, mostly because we can't even get people in our own state, let alone the country to even pretend to care. The Wire if nothing else acknowledges our presence and struggle as a city to deal with modern day problems using twenty year old methods. I will always be a knucklehead from Baldimore who thanks David Simon, if for nothing else then using a little sun light to disinfect our dirty laundry.

Digg your self into a hole!

The ever popular, ultra cool, super web savvy Digg has come under some fire for not being nearly as democratic as it claims. Now in all fairness I may be bitter because we here at Palaba's Posts have never been "Dugg" (I'd do it myself but that just seems dirty) But according to prisonplanet.com the web's unofficial "hey look at this" app is blocking or rather burying Diggs about Ron Paul. I'm no political pundit, heck I'm not even a political blogger, but this seems more like big brother than "internet democracy" to me.

Check out the original story HERE

Arnold says NO to drugs...leaves are ok!

Everyone's favorite homicidal robot from the future disguised as the Governor of California sat down for an interview with the British GQ. When the Govenator told the Brit mag. he hadn't take drugs, they cited the 1977 documentary "Pumping Iron" which supposedly (I haven't seen it) shows Cali's Repub. Gov. smoking a joint. He responded with "That is not a drug. It's a leaf." He assured British readers "My drug was pumping iron, trust me."

He goes on to list former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, South African President Nelson Mandela, Presidents John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev among the greatest leaders in history. When asked about America's current President George W. Bush, Schwarzenegger said "I would say that I was ... very fond of his father. I worked for President Bush Sr., and he was a great man."

Ouch! I wonder if Ben Stiller ever gets that?

Don't take my word for it, check it out at:

BBC News UK

The Washington Post

The AP
Fox News

(Still Having) Trouble, finding a canidate to back? Here's Some (More) help!

Ok I found another of those fun "Candidate Match" games. This one is a little nicer looking flash based with a fancy slide rule, for which issues mens more or less to you. There are 11 questions spanning the topics of the Iraq War, Immigration, Health care, Same Sex Marriage, Tax Reform, Global Warming and Experience. USA Today did a real god job on this one, but hey that's why they make the big bucks. I still was not happy with all the possible answers to their policy questions, for question 11 I really wanted a don't care option, but that's why it's A GAME and should not be used to actually pick your candidate. For me it picked Republican Sam Brownback as my number 1 choice. Which I thought was odd, but but I digress, till after the primaries since I'm neither a registered Republican or a registered Democrat. S0 Have fun and let us know who "the media" is telling you to vote for.

The Link is Here

Trouble, finding a canidate to back? Here's Some help!

Trouble, finding a candidate to back? Here's Some help!

I know That the race for the White House started early this year. But Here’s a tool to help you find out which candidate best matches your issues. For anyone who needs to be told this is just for fun, well it's just for fun. As always I say when picking a candidate please do your research , and please remember the Internet, no mater how many sites you visit only counts as 1 resource.

Oh and remember, there is no such thing as “throwing your vote away.” That’s just what the people with the power want you to believe, so they have some control over who you vote for.

-P