Shoplifting: Beware of Consequences

Our posting today starts with a special word -- Kleptomaniac -- people who feel compelled to steal at any opportunity. According to an estimate, every year US retailers lose about 10 billions due to shoplifting. The ratailers, of course, make sure that the amount is extracted from average consumers like you and us through higher prices for their merchandise.

People steal things that they want to have but cannot afford like fancy cosmetics or apparels or the latest CD/DVD or things that they are forbidden to purchase like cigarettes. Some do this just out of fun. However, survey says that majority (about two-third) of shoplifters resort to this simply because they see the opportunity of doing that, even though they were not predetermined when they entered the shop.

Some retailers like Walmart take quite tough stand about this. Many retailers keep plain-cloth security people in aisles and exit. Walmart, for example, charges a high amount from the arrested person irrespective of the outcome of the court. The high cost of the procedures in court and complexity of expunging the act from the criminal record may take peace away from the arrested person's mind. So, never get into such a temptation and make your friends and family members, and young people, in particular, aware of this. One evening's temptation may haunt them and their career for a long time.

Memorial Day Travel Tips

Many of you will start your travel today for the Memorial day weekend. Here are a few advanced tips ... just in time before you start your well-deserved break from work:

Know what you can carry
It's worthwhile going through the website of the Transport Security Administration (TSA) and getting familiar with the new security procedure in order to avoid your frustrations after arriving at the airport. In particular, it's important to go through the list of prohibited items (click here) and make sure what you can and can't carry in your carry-ons.

Get the traffic report
Find out what's happening at the airport on fly.faa.gov, which lists real-time flight delays. For security lines, check out waittime.tsa.dhs.gov, which lists security line wait times by hour for any terminal at any U.S. airport.

Park online.
Airport parking lots fill up fast during holidays. Book a spot early at parknflynetwork.com . Most lots give a 10 to 25 percent discount to online bookers.

Surf for free
Before you leave the house, find free airport Wi-Fi hotspots at wififreespot.com/airport.html so you can easily get online during long flight delays and spend some quality time.

Beware of Identity Theft While You Travel

Many of you would be travelling to enjoy the Memorial Day weekend. Here we are giving a few tips that you must consider in these days of identity theft and other kinds of frauds:

Interact with trustworthy companies only for your travel needs. If you're not sure about a company's reputation, check it out with the Better business Bureau ( BBB) or the Attorney General's office in the state in which it's based.

Leave your Social Security Number at home. Don't pack any ID that has your number on it. If it's on your medical insurance card, or other document you must have, keep the card very secure.

Be telephone Smart. Don't give out your credit card number over.

Tame the Internet. Don't feel obligated to fill in every part of a website form. If you can't access the site without providing personal information--such as a home address, your age, or your credit card number -- go to another site.

Pay by credit card. Not only does this protect you financially-- if you don't get travel product you were promised, you can request that the charges can be removed -- it also protects your identity better than payment by check or debit card.

Prune your wallet. You don't need all your credit cards on a trip. Take just two. Leave one Locked in the hotel safe and carry the other in a front pocket, secured with Velcro or some other pick-pocket-deterring fastener. Also, don't bring checks or a checkbook with you

Educate yourself. To learn about the latest scams, check out the Identity Theft Resource Center's website at www.idtheftcenter.org or call the center at (858) 693-7935.

Use passwords. Protect your cell phone, PDA, and laptop computer with passwords. If the objects are lost or stolen, your data will remain hidden.

Gas Prices All Time High

Road travel in the forthcoming Memorial Day weekend could be more expensive, as AAA announced today that gasoline prices hit an all-time high, $3.22 a gallon. According to AAA, since May 4, the average price for a gallon of gas has been above $3. In the last month, it has jumped 13%. Many experts predict prices will climb higher during the busy summer driving season. But others do not expect a supply shortage and predict prices will soon stabilize.

Here are a few websites which may come to your use for finding gas prices in your area:

-- Find out which gas station in your town has the best fuel prices by searching the handy state-by-state list at GasBuddy.com .

-- You may find the lowest gas prices in your neighborhood by visiting GasPriceWatch.com .

-- You can use AAA's fuelcostcalculator.com to find out the cost of making a trip by putting information about your starting point and destination.

Resources: Skin Care

Summer is slowly spreading its presence all over the country. Everybody loves the warmth of the sun, but when you leave your skin unprotected from from its damaging rays, you're playing with fire. So, as you are planning to pack for a summer vacation, make sure you include the following: sun-protective clothing, a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses and sunscreen with sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. Plan your itinerary to avoid direct sun exposure from 10 am to 4 pm.

Also, become familiar with all moles and blemishes on your skin so you can identify any changes. A changing, new or unsightly mole may require medical attention. Be familiar with symptoms and preventive measures of skin cancer from the following resources:

Skin Cancer Foundation (800) SKIN-490

American Cancer Society (800) ACS-2345

American Academy of Dermatology (866) 503-SKIN

If you are doubtful about your moles and blemishes, you may go for a skin cancer screening. A useful listing of all public skin cancer screening locations can be found in this Skin Cancer Screening Map .

Also, you may wear specialized dresses for protection from sun. Coolibar.com, SolarEclipse.com, SunPrecautions.com, SunProtectiveClothing.com are some of the leading companies in the business of sun protective clothing.

USCIS Reaches Year 2008 Limit for Cap-Exempt H-1B

United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that it has received enough H-1B petitions from foreign nationals who received graduate education in the U.S. to meet the Fiscal Year 2008 congressionally mandated exemption limit of 20,000. The final receipt date for these exempt H-1B petitions was April 30, 2007.

US Businesses use the H-1B program to recruit foreign workers in speciality occupation that require theoretical or technical expertise in speciality fields, like scientists, engineers or computer programmers.

All H-1B petitions that requested the exemption and were received on April 30 will be subjected to a computer generated random selection process. All filings not selected in this process will be rejected and returned to the petitioner, along with the filing fee(s), as long as that petition is not eligible for another H-1B cap exemption. All H-1B petitions requesting this exemption for FY 2008 that were or will be received on or after May 1, 2007 will be rejected by USCIS and returned to the petitioner, along with the filing fee(s), as long as that petition is not eligible for another H-1B cap exemption.

Note that the earliest one may file a petition for either a cap-subject FY 2009 H-1B employee or a cap-exempt petitioner, for a start date of October 1, 2008, will be April 1, 2008. Until then, you will not be able to submit any H-1B petitions for cap-subject petitioners or this particular cap-exempt category of petitioner.

USCIS will, however, continue to accept and adjudicate petitions for current H-1B workers in the following cases: o To change the terms of employment for a current H-1B worker. o To extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker can remain in the United States. o To allow a current H-1B worker to change employers. o To allow a current H-1B worker to work, at the same time, in a second H-1B position.

Quicker Expiration of Airline Miles

If you are a member of airline mileage programs, be warned: Without account activity, you could lose those miles you've worked so hard to accumulate.

Low-cost carriers like Southwest and Jet Blue tend to have programs that expire miles after a set period of time. They simply nullify those points after a year, if you do not use those and there's nothing you can do about it. Most major carriers, however, will let you keep your miles indefinitely — provided your account remains active. But, as of January, several airlines started imposing new, quicker expiration dates in place for miles:

Delta SkyMiles expire after two years of account inactivity, instead of three.

United Airlines Mileage Plus miles expire after just 18 months of account inactivity. Previously, they expired if you hadn't added new miles to your account balance within three years.

U.S. Airways Dividend Miles expire after 18 months of account inactivity. Before the January change was put in place, consumers had three years.

Each major airline has dozens of ways to earn or redeem miles and keep accounts active. For all your options, visit the frequent-flier section of the airline's web site.