" Nickel and Dime " : The way of american Business

"They charged my account 18 $!!" said my husband as he read the mail for that day.
"Why?" I asked .
"Some late charges.But I paid on time,I don't understand" he replied.
This conversation was like deja vu .Since I came to US overcharges or hidden costs or wrongful penalties on the bills were a way of life.Since Chetan (hubby) keeps close tabs on his bills and scrutinizes ever detail,we have caught these practices at least 10 -12 times before and know what should be the next step.
Call the customer service and get it fixed.The companies are as efficient at reverting the charges as they are at putting them in.The same drill every-time,we call and question,they answer,try to stall ,apologies and then finally remove the charges.
One grows tired of such ridiculous tact tics and wonders if they think people are morons.

Later on when I thought about it in detail it became clear to me and felt like sharing it with all of you,so that we can safeguard ourself from such malpractices.Since we are all honest people,making an honest living legally without coning or misusing the law,we are entitled to our hard earned money for us and our families.

Lets take an example of a big bank. Consider they overcharge 20,000 people spread all over the country with a 10 $ fee in the same month. Half of these people realize and call and get their 10$ back.Rest either procrastinate or don't get time or don't even realize or feel 10$ is not just worth it or hang up since it takes too much time to get through to the customer service. SO the Bank get 10,000 * 10 = 100,000$ for no reason. Now if the public realizes and takes them to court or media ,the big bank just apologizes or calls it computer glitch.Though there are laws to protect public from such practices,how many times are these practices caught?
This is an simplified example on a small scale and a corporations  obviously work in a more sophisticated manner than this. But the effect is still the same,we get Charged!!

Another real life example.A purchase was made for renovation work in a home form a famous construction material store.The store had a 1 year no payment no interest scheme if one got their credit card. Every time a purchase was made the customer verbally confirmed if the scheme was still valid for that purchase and every time the answer was "yes".This continued over a period of 20-25 days.Now the customer gets bills every month and is relaxed that he had 1 year to make the payment.Suddenly 6 months into it a 800$ interest @ 30% on the original amount is applied.Its shocking!! Then the phone calls start,every time he gives the same explanation and they say its been fixed and the next week another phone call for the same reason.Its frustrating!! So he goes to the store and after been shuttles between 3-4 people he finally get the reason why this is happening. When the purchases were make the store made a mistake and did not include certain part of the purchase in the offer and hence the problem was created.Now the manager asks the customer to pay that much money and he will waive the interest.But in principle its wrong and the customer does not budge.Finally the manager fixes his mistake. What if the customer would have been intimidated and paid the money he does not owe for the next 6 months or worse also paid the interest too? The gist is, if you know you are right ,then don't be intimidated,hold your ground.

So I urge all of you to please pick up that phone and get your money back,even it the just 1$.In fact we should make a call even if we are at fault and ask of a pardon and reversal  if possible.After all they have other fees and charges that they are taking openly,so why should we let go of our money, if we can save it. This is not just for banks,but any institution which offers credit..Specially us Indians are very new to the whole credit system so be careful and vigilant.Don't pay the bill blindly.Read it,study,understand ,talk to someone if you don't,ask a lot of questions,try to get them to waive fees you think are unfair.Only when you feel satisfied and comfortable make the payment.

Its after all its our money and we are entitled to every last penny.

Marry the Rapist !!!

Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan on Sunday called for respecting "the wishes of a rape victim to marry the rapist"

How many Hindi movies have we seen when a character gets raped and then the circumstances are made such that she invariable marries the rapist and during the course of the movie he dramatically realizes his mistake and changes into a good person,almost like a Phoenix rising from Ashes.

Wake up people,it does not happen in real life. People don't change their personality so drastically, and past is most of the time a good measure of a person's character.Specially if the offences is so repulsively disgusting.
How could a girls safety and happiness be guaranteed if we push her to marry the one man she has the most danger from?

There are very few things in life which  are clearly black and white and this,according to me,is one of them.
How can a victim of rape choose with her own free will to marry her own rapist? Will it not remind her of her torture over and over again,it would be like the rape lasted for her entire life.
First of all, will a raped women,living in India, have a free will? Secondly, is she emotionally & mentally ready to make such a decision? Lastly,as a society should we condone such a practice?

Even if the Above statement,by Balkrishnan is taken out of context, it is pathetic that  a Chief Justice would make such a careless choice of words.Social circumstances should not dictate law,Law should be free of any religious & social dictation.

In our society there are so many practices that are inhuman and wrong but socially accepted, since they make sense and serve the purpose of few.Hence there is a legal system to stop such offences.Its due to this legal system that we are able to bring Sati practice to justice,even if the women had consented.
According to the above argument of Balkrishnan, Sati should be also allowed if the women wants to burn with their husbands,that way no one will trouble her later and the police and judicial system will not have to protect them.Another quick fix for our honorable Chief Justice. What say Sir?