High Risk Personal Loans - Financial Favor For Your Cash Disputes

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:High Risk Personal Loans - Financial Favor For Your Cash DisputesBy Christian PhelpsIntroduction:Bad credit is hard to get clear off and with this accessing cash from external source is quite difficult. Keeping this fact in mind, high risk personal loans have been crafted for the people going through from adverse records and are in need of

High Risk Personal Loans - A Gift For the Loan Seekers

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:High Risk Personal Loans - A Gift For the Loan SeekersBy Christian PhelpsThe universal phenomenon is that you will gain more if you take grater risk. But, have you ever heard of a situation where one is taking risk and the other one is having the benefits? This is possible in case of high risk personal loans. These loans are given by the lenders

The Neighborhood Retail Alliance on Kingsbridge and a living wage

Over at The Neighborhood Retail Alliance, there's some discussion about the Kingsbridge Armory project and the coalition's demand for a living wage. They point out that this is not just about ensuring that local residents can get good jobs and benefit from the development; it's also about safeguarding the local economy and ensuring that taxpayer dollars aren't used to subsidize big business:

That being said, the demand for a living wage remains as a compelling component of any subsidized retail development. In our view, it is always problematic to use tax payer dollars to incentivize new retail projects; since the end result is usually the shifting of retail sales from existing mom and pop stores to national chains, And, as Stacy Mitchel's seminal work in this area underscores, this kind of policy results in a net loss to the locality.

Put simply, local dollars re-circulate at a much more productive rate that those of national chains headquartered elsewhere. Therefore, if we are going to subsidize chain stores that cannibalize existing neighborhood retailers, the least we can insist on is that these entering retail outlets pay the locals at a proper living wage. Anything less is simply cheating both the neighborhoods and the tax payers in general.

Appelbaum gets it right: "I don't buy that assumption," said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. "It's not a matter of whether it's going to be profitable, but the size of the profit they will make." Living wage advocates point to the $40 million in city taxpayer money subsidizing the armory project in the form of tax breaks and city-funded repairs. "If they are taking from government," said Appelbaum, "they have to give back to the community."

For more on Stacy Mitchell's research supporting local business, visit the New Rules.

High Risk Personal Loans - Getting the Best Deal

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:High Risk Personal Loans - Getting the Best DealBy Paul RJ WilsonHigh risk personal loans are loans that are given to people that are considered unlikely to pay back the loan. Someone who has an extremely poor credit rating, a judgment against them, or a bankruptcy is an example of what banks call high risk.High risk personal loans are short

High Risk Personal Loan - A Reward For the Borrowers

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:High Risk Personal Loan - A Reward For the BorrowersBy Christian PhelpsRisk is the seed of reward. The more risk you take, the greater reward in turn you will get. But in case of the High risk personal loans, the risk is of the lender and the reward is for the borrowers. It is because of the reason that you are given such loans by the lenders

Some New York City news

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. last week received an extension [see correction below] for submitting his recommendation concerning the approval of the Kingsbridge Armory redevelopment so that he can give Related Cos. time to accept a draft CBA. The proposed agreement was drafted by the Kingsbridge Armory Redevelopment Alliance, Diaz, Community Board 7, and local elected officials.

Update and correction 08-27-09: The news that Diaz was granted an extension was not completely accurate. While he does have a de facto extension, Diaz is apparently "being considered non-compliant for not making a recommendation by the land review process' built-in Tuesday, August 25 deadline." Although the influence of community boards and borough presidents during the ULURP process is sometimes described as practically nonexistant (see here, calling ULURP a "horse and pony show"), Diaz is confident that the planning commission will take his opinion into account if no CBA is signed by the real deadline, September, 9. The Bronx News Network has also learned that the CBA includes a living wage requirement, which may throw a wrench in the CBA's gears, as Related Cos. has stated flat out that it will not agree to increased wages

In the first democratic party debates for New York City Comptroller, the candidates weighed in on the Yankee Stadium CBA-like agreement. Melinda Katz raised concerns about the enforceability of CBAs and suggested that the city should develop a standardized method for reviewing stadium developments. David Weprin declared that he would use the Comptroller's audit powers to hold the Yankees and the New York City Economic Development Corp. to the commitments made in the CBA. John Liu also promised to review the Yankee Stadium CBA "intensively," and David Yassky explained that he would pursue fewer large scale developments and seek to use the city's economic development programs to provide the types of amenities that communities in each of the five boroughs need, such as parks and schools.

Passport Denied When Parent Owes Support Arrears

You are a non-custodial parent planning a vacation to Cancun with your kids. Your passport has lapsed and you apply for a new one, along with your children. Instead of receiving your passport, you get a letter from the Secretary of State denying your applications. Why?

Because you owe more than $2500 in child support, and because the custodial parent must assent to the passports for the kids. Child support enforcement has had a federal component for several years now.

Back in 2001, the U.S. government mandated that states align their child support accounts with state-wide computer programs. In Michigan, all county Friends of the Court have implemented the Michigan Child Support Enforcement System (MiCSES). MiCSES then certifies the support owed and reports those in arrears over $2500 to the Office of Child Support Enforcement, which is under the U.S. Dept of Health & Human Services (DHS). Next, DHS notifies the State Department which denies the passport application.

Also, in cases of divorce or custody disputes, both parents must execute passport applications for children under age 14 pursuant to the federal Two Parent Consent Law passed back in July 2001.

Once you are on the State Department's list, you do not automatically come off, even when the arrears are paid. Eventually, your passport will lapse and you will be unable to get a new one without a hassle. In addition, you may be stopped at the boarder unable to leave or re-enter the country. If this occurs, the DHS has summarized the steps you should take on its useful website: http://tinyurl.com/mdael3.

The MiCSES state-wide computer program has several automatic enforcement components in addition to passport denial. The computer automatically reports certified arrears to the U.S. Treasury and the State of Michigan for tax refund intercepts. Arrears are also automatically reported to credit bureaus.

If you are owed child support, or want to address an arrearage, contact our law office to discuss your options.

Law Firms Going Paperless, Slowly

Slowly but surely. That cliche best describes the pace at which area law firms are eliminating the paper clutter from their law offices.

As Southeast Michigan touts innovations such as "Automation Alley", the sluggish pace of paper elimination is frustrating to many legal practitioners. Colorado and a handful of other states already have state-wide paperless court systems. The federal courts have been paperless for years. In Oakland County, however, only a few judges have electronic filing as an e-pilot program. Fortunately, the experiment seems to be working.

In March 2003, Judge Joan E. Young, then the chief judge of the Oakland Circuit's family court, offered a standing-room-only presentation on the timeline for the court's so-called e-filing system. The audience consisted of attorney members of the Oakland County Bar Association, and courthouse staffers. In her presentation, Judge Young cautiously predicted that e-filing would be in place, in some form, by the end of 2004. She warned, however, that budget issues, tech contracts and other variables could slow the process.

Judge Young's timeline proved accurate and her concerns, well-founded. A partial implementation of the e-filing system took root in late 2004, with several circuit judges actively participating in the e-filing system. After lengthily budget debates, Oakland County hired a different IT contractor than the federal court's outstanding PACER system. The WIZNET system, selected by the Oakland County courts, works very well. Unlike PACER, however, users "pay per use" when accessing documents. PACER is free.

During the past 18-months, law firms have attempted to close the technology gap, and get their offices on board with e-filing. Despite court-ordered e-filing requirements, problems persist.

While a simple matter to transmit a basic pleading via email to the court and parties, complicated exhibits in a variety of sizes and shapes pose challenges. Also, some tribunals (such as case evaluators and mediators) will not accept e-filings. Some attorneys have not upgraded their Adobe Acrobat programs, essential for e-filing compatibility. Other attorneys cling to hard-copy files as a form of legal security blanket. Still other attorneys, incredibly, do not have computers. Many insurance defense attorneys refuse to sign stipulated orders with an agreed upon electronic protocol for filing pleadings and transmitting documents.

Perhaps the biggest frustration for attorneys is they have to maintain both file media, paper and electronic, while they wait for the "standard of care" to catch-up. This wastes effort and savages efficiency.

Despite these challenges, some cutting-edge practitioners are rising to the occasion. The paperless-file is not a trend but rather, reality. Law firms can eliminate wasteful consumption of paper and cut the costs of processing, storing and eventually eliminating paper files.

The flow of information comes ever-faster in the modern law office. Attorneys can manage this information much better if they do not have to worry about old-fashioned paper.

Personal Loans - High Risk - Worth it Or Not?

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:Personal Loans - High Risk - Worth it Or Not?By Johathan PopeHigh risk personal loans may seem like a foolish idea. There has been a lot of talk about how damaging these types of loans can be and how they can put you into deeper debt. The truth is that many people end up in a situation where they need a quick loan and a high risk personal loan

High Risk Personal Loans - How to Avoid High Risk Personal Loans

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:High Risk Personal Loans - How to Avoid High Risk Personal LoansBy Emeka EzidiegwuA high risk personal loan is a loan given to someone who lenders consider to be particularly unlikely to pay back the loan - somebody with extremely poor credit or a person who has just declared bankruptcy or has a county court judgment against them, for example. A

Avail a High Risk Personal Loan For a Chance to Improve Credit Score

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:Avail a High Risk Personal Loan For a Chance to Improve Credit ScoreBy Rick GoldfellerGetting a loan today is common thing among financially troubled people. Borrowing money is easier and accessible to everybody. There are lots of credit unions and other financial institutions offering different kinds of services to people who are in dire need

High Risk Personal Loans - Ready Financial Help in Spite of Bad Credit

Social BookmarkingHigh Risk Personal Loans Presents:High Risk Personal Loans - Ready Financial Help in Spite of Bad CreditBy Christian PhelpsHigh living standards coupled with increasing cost and expectations of the family members force an individual to take several loans to meet his requirements. Mismanagement of his financial resources and default in repayments earn him bad credit record. In

Oakland Sheriff's Marine Division Downsizing

You had to see this coming. In this era of government funding shortfalls, and given Brooks Patterson's ever watchful budgetary eye, the Oakland County Sheriff's Marine Division takes a funding hit.

Watercraft enthusiasts using Oakland County's many navigable lakes have all seen the Sheriff's white runabouts (with blue flashing stem-light) patrolling the county waterways on busy weekends and holidays. These units have probably kept a dampener on serious drunk driving by watercraft operators.

Such patrols will be eliminated after this season, according to the Sheriff's Department. This cutback does not mean the end of the Marine Division. But now, townships and municipalities will have to contract with the Sheriff if their waterway(s) are to be patrolled by the Marine Division.

The Macomb and Wayne County Sheriff Marine Divisions have international waterways to patrol as part of their mission. They both work with the U.S. Coast Guard and now, Homeland Security. In Oakland County, however, the primary focus of the Sheriff's Marine Division is safe boating. That goal has been achieved by enforcing the drunk driving laws on the lakes.

One of the challenges to this enforcement is the patchwork of local ordinances governing alcohol on the various lakes. Some Oakland County lakes, like Orchard Lake, prohibit alcohol. Many others, however, not only allow alcohol, the boat driver can have a beverage in his lap while operating the vessel.

Now, with the removal of most Oakland County Marine Division patrols, our waterways may become more dangerous, as some boaters (by nature, out there to have a good time) elect to imbibe more alcohol.

If you've recently been ticketed by one of the Oakland County Sheriff's Marine patrols, and would like to discuss your options, give us a call.

The Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market CBA

** This is an updated (and improved) posting. Contact me here to obtain archived posts. **

Project Overview

The 2006 CBA concerning the Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market involves the redevelopment of a market center originally built in the 1920s. Throughout its history, the market housed a variety of small local vendors, and in the 1990s it became known for its ethnic food products. But in its older years, the “market became mired in endless litigation with city attorneys pushing the landlord for repairs.” To some, the area had become blighted.

A shot of the old Terminal Market, included in Charles V. Bagli, Developer Buys Faded Market in the Bronx, N.Y. Times, Apr. 3, 2004.

The Related Companies acquired a lease for the property in 2004 and shortly thereafter began discussions about redeveloping the property with the New York City Economic Development Corporation and the Bronx Overall Development Corporation. The Related Cos. received approval for its Gateway Center mall development project on February 1, 2006, with almost unanimous support from the city council. Covering both the market site and the adjacent Bronx House of Detention site, the new Gateway Center will have about 1 million square feet of retail space, with one of the original buildings being preserved and rehabilitated. The second phase of the project will include a new hotel, and the development will eventually be complemented by a public waterfront park. Supporters of the project see a bright future:

By all accounts, the redevelopment of the Bronx Terminal Market should contribute to the resurgence of the Bronx and the revitalization of the immediate neighborhood. The Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market should be a powerful magnet that should encourage other businesses to invest and should also provide a modern, attractive, environmentally-friendly design that should beautify the area.

The Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market CBA

A CBA for the project was signed on February 1, 2006 (unsearchable final copy, searchable execution copy). Adolfo Carrion, the Bronx Borough President at the time, was instrumental in completing the agreement. (Mr. Carrion is now the Director of the White House Office of Urban Affairs Policy.) The CBA includes a variety of benefits:

Business Development

• 10% contracting goal for MBE/WBE firms (p. 27)
• 25% contracting goal for Bronx-based professional businesses (p. 27)
• 35% goal for post-construction purchasing and service contracts for Bronx-based professional businesses (p. 27)
• goal to maximize construction purchases from Bronx-based suppliers (p. 26)
• technical and financial mentoring for Bronx-based and MBE/WBE businesses, including outreach, monthly “Meet the Construction Manager” meetings, and “workshops to assist and educate businesses in preparing loan applications, understanding underwriting criteria and training in basic financial management” (pp. 27-28)
• 18,000 square feet of retail space set aside for existing small and local businesses (p. 29)

Local Hiring & Job Training

• 25% local hiring goal for positions controlled by Related Cos. (p. 20)
• a local hiring program open (but not required) for project contractors and tenants (pp. 14-15)
• on-site space for the "Fast Track Unit," which was set up to provide recruitment and prescreening services (p. 16)
• a commitment to commercially reasonable efforts to use union labor (p. 23)
• a training and preapprenticeship program for construction jobs, providing recruitment, training (classroom and hands-on), case management, job placements, and stipends and support services for local residents in the program (childcare planning, help with transportation, legal counseling) (pp. 25-26)
• a commitment to maximize the number of living wage jobs provided by Related Cos., and to educate contractors and tenants about the benefits of providing living wages (p. 30)

Environmental Provisions

• goal for all of the new buildings and major renovations to be eligible for LEED Silver certification (p. 31)
• particulate emission monitoring, with the aid of the New York City Dept. of Environmental Protection (p. 33)
• waste management implemented in accordance with LEED guidelines (p. 33)
• rodent control (p. 33)
• dust management (pp. 33-34)

Other Provisions

• an agreement not to lease space to a Wal-Mart (p. 34)
• pedestrian scale design features (street trees, lighting, wide sidewalks, etc.) (pp. 32-33, 35)
• a requirement that any lease to a "warehouse shopping club" be conditioned on its agreement to accept food stamps (p.34)
• funding to provide 2,000 half price memberships to any "warehouse shopping club" for low income families for 5 years (p. 34)
• 3,500 square feet set aside for childcare services, to be leased at 35% below market rent (p. 35)
• space for Community Board 4's district office and meeting area (p. 36)
• $3 million for the business development, local hiring and job training programs (pp. 28-29)

A project rendering showing wide sidewalks, street trees (although transparent), and other pedestrian amenities.

Reaction to the CBA

The Gateway Center CBA has been faulted on a number of grounds.

Most importantly, the negotiation process did not truly involve any grassroots community organizations. Although eighteen groups representing various interests were selected by the Borough President to participate in a CBA "taskforce," they were given only about a month to prepare a draft CBA and were not given any assistance in the process. Evidently, this resulted in many of the community groups having little influence in the actual negotiations. When the organizations received copies of the completed CBA, only three of them signed the agreement, while at least seven refused to do so. The Neighborhood Retail Alliance explained a number of other problems with the negotiation process:

Normally CBAs are negotiated prior to the land use review process so that community coalitions can have leverage over developers. The opposite occurred with the Gateway CBA. Brainstorming for the document only began in November after City Planning Certification, Community Board approval, and the Borough President’s “Yes” vote. The agreement was finalized two days prior to the City Council’s approval.
....
Unknown to the participants, representatives from Related were in the room while the taskforce brainstormed

The taskforce never negotiated directly with Related. Final negotiations occurred between Bronx elected officials and the developer. For this reason the final CBA is a very watered down version of what the community asked for.

Most of the City Council never had the chance to read the CBA. The final copy was sent to the Council the morning of the project’s approval.

A second problem is that the developer will only be fined $60,000 for violating the CBA, with a cap of $600,000 on the amount of fines that can ever be assessed. Aside from the weakness of this penalty provision, CBA proponents have generally recommended that contracts provide for specific enforcement, rather than money damages. As explained by Julian Gross of Good Jobs First (now at the Community Benefits Law Center) in Community Benefits Agreements: Making Development Projects Accountable:

Community groups entering into CBAs can and should have the ability to enforce CBAs against the developer in court. While most contracts have some provisions for recovery of money damages against a party violating the agreement, community groups will generally be more concerned with ensuring that promised benefits are in fact provided. Community groups should therefore ensure that CBAs recognize the right to ask for a court order requiring the developer to honor commitments contained in the CBA.

Other criticisms have been voiced because the amount of retail space reserved for local retailers makes up only a minimal portion of the mall’s square footage (18,000 square feet out of 1 million in the entire development, or about 2%), and because the contracting, hiring and living wage goals are only enforceable as to the positions controlled by Related Cos. The developer's contractors and the Gateway Center's eventual tenants will not be bound by any provisions in the CBA. Moreover, the CBA expires in 2015 (CBA, p. 36), and there is no guarantee that another CBA will be negotiated in relation to the project's second phase.

Implementation

The Gateway Center is scheduled to open in late 2009, but parts of the CBA have already been implemented.

The City University of New York reported in 2007 that it had received $175,000 from the developer to provide pre-apprenticeship training to Bronx residents.

The first store at the Gateway Center, a Home Depot, opened in May, 2009. Of the 200 jobs, 75% were awarded to Bronx residents. Almost 40% of the project's contracts went to Bronx-based businesses, and more than 10% went to MBE/WBE firms, so Related Cos. met and exceeded the aspirational goals contained in the CBA. Mayor Bloomberg announced that 90% of the project space was leased, with tenants including BJ's, Best Buy, Target, Bed Bath and Beyond, Marshall's, Raymour & Flanagan, Staples and Toys 'R Us. "The Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market will make the Bronx a more attractive environment for businesses that will have a positive impact on the borough", Bloomberg said.

No Wal-Marts allowed. Photo credit interloafer, who notes that it was taken on March 21, 2009.

In July, 2009, the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation was accused of diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars from the CBA fund set up by Related Cos. A suit has been filed against the agency by the CBA administrator, but the agency denies any wrongdoing and claims that the lawsuit is completely frivolous. [Updated Sep. 2, 2009] Ruben Diaz, the current Bronx Borough President, called for an investigation and full accounting. In September, 2009, he declared that the BOEDC had properly handled the funds, despite the failure to formally account for about $1.6 million. Most of that money apparently went toward payroll expenses for the employees running the Fast Track program.

Better news came in August, 2009, when the Gateway Center's BJ's Wholesale Club announced that it would hold a lottery to distribute the 2,000 reduced price memberships called for in the CBA. The discounted annual memberships are only available for low income Bronx residents, and winners of the lottery will be able to buy them for $20 instead of $45. The lottery application and guidelines are available here.

The Gateway Center has also posted useful information about promised CBA benefits on its website, including ads seeking a childcare provider to rent space at below market rates and information about financial programs available to local firms. Typically, job openings are also posted.

Links & News

• Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market Community Benefits Agreement
  
• Official site of the Gateway Center
• New York City Economic Development Corporation Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market website
• PlanNYC project website
• Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market
• Joe Lamport, Market plans clear first hurdle, Highbridge Horizon, Sep. 2005 (describing the development approval process)
• Charles V. Bagli, Developer Buys Faded Market in the Bronx, N.Y. Times, Apr. 3, 2004
• The Neighborhood Retail Alliance, Bronx Terminal Market / EDC Disgrace, Jul. 12, 2005
• Charles V. Bagli & Robin Shulman, Transforming Bronx Terminal Market, but at a Steep Price, N.Y. Times, Oct. 24, 2005
• Official Press Release, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg Applauds City Council on Approving Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market, Feb. 1, 2006
• The Neighborhood Retail Alliance, CBA Nonsense, Feb. 8, 2006
  
• International Facility Management Association, Gateway Center at the Bronx Terminal Market Approved by City Council (undated) (describing the CBA and stating that the development will "contribute to the resurgence of the Bronx by generating approximately $21 million in annual tax revenue...")
• Heather Haddon, Terminal Market Deal Criticized, Norwood News, Feb. 23, 2006 (criticizing the CBA negotiation process)
• CUNY Newswire, BCC PROJECT H.I.R.E. Receives $175,000 For Gateway Mall Building Trades Training Program, May 21, 2007
• Real Estate Weekly, Cash boost for Bronx trades training program, May 30, 2007
• Jason Sheftell, South Bronx Communities benefit from public, private funds, N.Y. Daily News, Nov. 29, 2007
• The Neighborhood Retail Alliance, Related and Community Benefits, June 25, 2008
• Mega Mall To Come To The South Bronx, NY1 News, Aug. 12, 2008 (with video)
  
• Anna Phillips and Sara Vogel, NYC Grows, Communities Divide, Columbia Spectator, Nov. 30, 2008 (discussing the history and controversy surrounding the Terminal Market redevelopment)
• Curbed New York, Wheel of Misfortune: Major Bronx & Brooklyn Parks Edition, Jan. 28, 2009 (reporting (without citation) that "One park at the Bronx Terminal Market is, uh, $79 million over budget at this point.")
• Good Jobs New York, Subsidies going to the Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market (undated) (quoting $133.93 million as the total amount of New York City subsidies going toward the project)
  
• Official Press Release, Mayor Bloomberg Joins the Home Depot and Related Companies to Open First Store in $500 Million Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market and Welcome First 200 Employees, Apr. 23, 2009
• Daniel Beekman, H' Depot Opens at Gateway, N.Y. Post, May 1, 2009
• Terry Pristin, Squeezing Big-Box Retailing Into Small City Spaces, N.Y. Times, June 11, 2008
• James Kelly, Conway Stores takes space at Related's Gateway Center, The Real Deal, June 24, 2009
• Alex Ulam, Mall City, Architect's Newspaper, July 9, 2009
• Bill Egbert, Bronx borough president Ruben Diaz Jr. seeks probe in mishandling of Gateway Center Mall funds, N.Y. Daily News, Jul. 15, 2009
• Retail Traffic, Related's Bronx Gateway to Alter New York's Retail Landscape, Aug. 11, 2009 (with video)

Divorce in the NFL

Maximum temptation; continuous travel; lots of money. These are just some of the factors that contribute to the excessive divorce-rate among players in the NFL.

There are no solid statistics, but an unofficial poll along with anecdotal evidence puts the divorce-rate for NFL players at 70% according to a recent NYT article; significantly higher than the overall divorce-rate of about 50%.

Another statistic, perhaps correlated to the high rate of divorce among players, is that within two-years of their retirement, a shocking 78% of these NFL players are bankrupt, unemployed or divorced. There are good reasons for this.

Among professional athletes, football players have a rough row to hoe. They suffer more physical pain on average than in other sports due to the aggressive high-speed nature of their game. They have the shortest average career among all pro athletes; three and a half seasons according to the Players' Association. Contracts for the average player, while lucrative, are usually non-guaranteed and contain significant injury clauses. These stressors can transfer to the player's marriage.

The recent shooting death of one of the league's preeminent quarterbacks, Steve McNair, brings to a head the significance of an NFL player's retirement. McNair was widely perceived as the consummate family man. Married, but killed by his girlfriend, he is one player who sadly will not be adding to the NFL divorce-rate.

Most of us would blame McNair for his own fate. Some insiders, on the other hand, point to several factors that increase the toxicity of marriages among NFL players: rampant infidelity, the "trophy-wife" concept, women who target professional athletes, player entourages that tend to suppress the intimacy required if a marriage is to work.

Perhaps most significant is the painful transition of the athlete from the gridiron to retirement. Issues of self-worth come into play among a group of macho athletes not used to focused self-awareness and who have a seemingly genetic resistance to counseling.

Mothers, don't let your girls grow-up to be NFL wives...

Prescription Privacy Rights

When we fill a prescription, most of us believe that action, along with our identity, is private. In fact, the name and dosage of the drug, the prescribing physician, and your own name and social security number become a commodity bought and sold in the medical data-mining industry.

A little-known provision buried in February's federal stimulus legislation, however, now requires pharmacy benefit managers, bankers, and medical claim processors to comply with Federal privacy and security regs. The new law is being fitted with federal regulations designed to give private rights some teeth; and violations a real bite.

Both Walgreens and CVS have been defending recent litigation claiming violations of patients' rights to privacy relative to their medical prescriptions. These corporate defendants have asserted that the information sold either has been encrypted or "de-identified"; a process where the patient's name is removed from the rest of the data.

In addition, the data-mining industry asserts that de-identified health data is critical for medical as well as for quality assurance measures such as tracking the side effects of drugs. The problem is manifest when computer-savy lawbreakers "re-identify" the data by cross-referencing several databases to link one's identity to one's roster of prescriptions. Once repackaged in this manner, the data becomes a valuable commodity in the medical data industry.

Another portion of the stimulus package of note to this post is the $20 billion incentive for physicians to digitize their records over the next five-years. Companies such as Google, Microsoft and WebMD all stand to gain from the information processing aspects of this digital push. Both WebMD and Microsoft acknowledge that the new Federal privacy rules apply to their companies. Google asserts, on the other hand, that its users are subject only to their privacy policy which is agreed to as a precondition to logging on.

Thus, the stage is set for a clash between the proponents of national medical database digitization and our basic right to privacy. The recent high-profile case of Farah Fawcett brought attention to the problem posed by data thieves. Ms Fawcett's cancer treatment records were illegally obtained and sold to the media.
While the digitization and transfer of data are now crucial to the health industry, strict privacy safeguards are needed. The question is, will they be enforced?