I spoke with air purifying experts across the country, but most represented a single brand. Others offered air filter “review sites” – but couldn’t be reached by phone or never returned my call.  Oddly enough, the “review” brands they “recommended” were also the brands they represented.

Clean Home Air for Kids

I chanced on Air-Purifiers-USA.biz at 2:30 in the morning during one of those frantic searches. I left a message, not really expecting a return call. I was about to purchase a machine I saw online. The price was reasonable, and there were many positive “reviews.” It was the wrong machine for my purposes – because it lacked the necessary strength carbon filters. But I had no way of knowing that at the time.

Barry Midwinter Air Purifiers USA

Barry Midwinter, president of Air Purifiers USA, responded early the following morning. It was a pleasure to speak with such a knowledgeable, yet soft-spoken person. He didn’t try to “sell” me a machine. Rather, he patiently explained the strengths and weaknesses of different types of machines.

As many of you know, I authored a book called Secondhand Smoke Crimes – attacking second-hand and third-hand smoke poisoning of adults, children and pets, explaining the health risks involved and your legal options for fighting back.  But while fighting chain-smoking bullies in your building, what can you do about cigarette smoke in your home? Call Barry Midwinter.

Barry entered the air purification business in 2001. Originally from Canada he’s a Chartered Accountant (CPA) and also has a Computer Science Degree. Prior to 2001 he worked in the Financial Services Industry as a financial advisor.

Allerair 5000

Inside Your Air Purifier

His wife, a family physician who presides over two medical clinics, suffers from allergies. They founded Air-Purification-USA.biz to help others breathe clean air. “We wanted to offer products that would be helpful to people. Air purifiers seemed a good choice.”

They launched their first site in 2002 and now have six air purification websites. “We encourage people to call us with questions,” Barry explained. “Our conversations with customers allows me to do a needs assessment. There are many different kinds of air purifiers.

“We want to match the correct air purifier to customer needs. When I speak with a customer I want to know what they will use the air purifier for. Allergies, tobacco smoke, odors, mold chemical sensitivity?

How large is the room where they will use the air purifier? Are they sensitive to noise? Their answers allows me to recommend the best fit for the customer.”

You can reach Barry at 1-800-868-0964. (We do not receive ANY affiliate income if you make a purchase.)

Barry deals with 6 different manufacturers. He feels that there are enough models among these manufacturers to meet almost every need. Some models are quieter than others. Some models focus on airborne particle removal. Others focus on airborne chemical removal. All rely on carbon – hepa technology. They do not provide air purifiers that use ozone for reasons explained during our interview.

Air Purifiers for Beauty Salons

His expertise ranges from the dangers of volcanic smog to cancer causing toxins in beauty salons – what every salon owner and customer should know about the beauty products used in these environments. Nail salons use a wide variety of toxic chemicals that can cause cancer, respiratory disease, disorders of the nervous and reproductive systems, and skin damage. Air purifiers can clean the air of these dangerous toxins, while reducing occupational exposures.

Volcanic Smog

Ultraviolet lamps are also available through several of the manufacturers they represent. The ultraviolet light sterilizes bacteria, mold viruses and mold spores.

Photo catalytic  Oxidation may be used in conjunction with Ultraviolet.  The process breaks molecular bonds reducing airborne chemicals to smaller safer compounds.

Ionizer purifiers use charged electrical surfaces to collect particles. These may produce trace amounts of ozone. Most ionizers produce less than 0.o5 parts per milling of ozone, an industry safe standard.

Listen to my interview with Barry Midwinter. Click the play button below.

Conversation with God

Man: God?

God: Yes?

Man: Can I ask you something?

God: Of course!

Man: What is for you a million years?

God: A second.

Man: And a million dollars?

God: A penny.

Man: God, Can you give me a penny?

God: Sure. Wait a second.

At Amazon.com, author reviews are a spectator sport – where any anonymous person can condemn a book, so long as the “reviewer” purchased a single item from Amazon. The only identification required is “location.” Purchase a can-opener, and you can puncture any work.

Burning Books & Authors

A writer might dedicate years to a manuscript, only to see it ripped apart overnight by a jealous competitor, zealot or a talentless nobody who takes out his/her frustration on both new and accomplished authors.

The reviewer is not required to read the book – much less to provide a balanced opinion. Positive reviews are often trumped by vile or vitriolic attacks.

Shouldn’t Amazon accord authors the right to remove incendiary “reviews” – and specifically so-called “reviews” that effectively call for burning the book?

Here’s what Amazon refers to as “objectionable material”:  Obscene or distasteful content; Profanity or spiteful remarks.

But if an anonymous reviewer trashes a book and/or the author – declares that the book is worthless, insists that no one should buy it – the review is  not considered objectionable. A new novel received three very positive reviews, followed by a review that scorched the writer, claimed the novel had no plot and declared that no one should waste their time reading the book. The reviewer was anonymous – except for their Amazon nickname – whereas the positive reviews were written by people of stature.  Just more bash and trash, courtesy of Amazon.

Complaints to Amazon’s Author Central – the great arbiter of reviewer content – are useless. Author Central is staffed by people called Mike M. or Adele H. Have they ever written – much less published – a book? What qualifies them to determine if words are objectionable or spiteful? Do they have literary degrees? Have they ever written or studied serious book reviews? Who are the people that Amazon gives the right of life and death over an authors work, reputation and livelihood? And if you don’t like their decision, too bad. There’s no higher authority or number you can call.

Murderers and criminals have the right of appeal, but not authors “convicted” on Amazon. Amazon has vastly improved its customer service for buyers, but there is no customer service for content providers.

One book received 150 blistering reviews within days of publication – before the book could even ship – orchestrated by a political group intent on destroying the author’s message and credibility.  Yet, it took nearly a year before the author could reach Amazon “management.” Finally, Amazon agreed to remove all reviews from the author’s page. But the damage to the writers reputation, spirit and income could not be undone.

An author friend who was similarly attacked complained to Amazon Central – only to received the canned response:  “The review does not violate Amazon guidelines.” The author responded: “If this is how Amazon responds to an author’s complaint, all authors are sitting ducks for the destruction of their reputation. You should be ashamed of your response. Amazon not only allows, but encourages the trashing of authors by anonymous scum.”

Senior Google officers were recently slapped with “jail time” by an Italian court for a YouTube video that violated the privacy rights of a handicapped child – even though they had nothing to do with the uploaded video in question. How long before Amazon is slapped with a class action suit by authors for destruction of their reputation, income and works? How long before authors demand the right to opt out of the Amazon jungle review frenzy?

Amazon should seriously consider revising its policy of allowing anonymous reviews. No professional objects to criticism, especially constructive criticism, and we all understand that not everyone loves every book. But blatantly false anonymous slurs are neither “reviews” nor in keeping with good business or good literary practice.

To your author rights!

Dr. Joyce Starr

Related Posts:

Advice for Aspiring Authors: Literary Agent Karen Gantz & Dr. Joyce Starr

So she had an idea of how to handle it.  She asked a neighbor, Mrs. Goodnest, if she would please follow him to school in the mornings, staying at a distance, so he probably wouldn’t notice her.  Mrs. Goodnest said that since she was up early with her toddler anyway, it would be a good way for them to get some exercise as well, so she agreed.

The next school day, Mrs. Goodnest and her little girl, Marcy, set out following behind Timmy as he walked to school with another neighbor boy he know.  She did this for the whole week.  As the boys walked and chatted, kicking stones and twigs, Timmy’s little friend noticed the same lady was following them as she seemed to do every day all week. Finally he said to Timmy, “Have you noticed that lady following us to school all week? Do you know her?”

Timmy nonchalantly replied, “Yeah, I know who she is.”

The friend said, “Well, who is she?”

That’s just Shirley Goodnest,” Timmy replied, “and her daughter Marcy.”

“Shirley Goodnest? Who the heck is she and why is she following us?”

Well,” Timmy replied, you see…

ARE YOU READY FOR THIS?

If you read this far, you can’t turn back now . . .

Ok, then,  here goes . . .

“Every night my Mom makes me say the 23rd Psalm with my prayers, ‘cuz she worries about me so much.  And in the Psalm, it says, ‘Shirley Goodnest and Marcy shall follow me all the days of my life’, so I guess I’ll just have to get used to it!”

(Special thanks  to Dr. David Goldenberg for this story!)

Enjoy your day!

“It would cost about $745 billion, slightly more than the size of the original 2008 bank bailout, to restore all underwater borrowers to the point where they were breaking even, according to First American.” – David Streitfield, NYT

Depending on exactly how much you owe, here are cons to consider:

Hanging On to Your Home

1. You have a history with your home – memories that can’t be replaced by new walls – and you can still afford to pay.
2. You have friends in the building or neighborhood. If emergency strikes, there’s a close neighbor you can call to rush you to the hospital, watch over your kids and feed your pet.
3. Your children love their neighborhood friends and school.
4. You can’t part from your pet, and your current building accepts pets.
5. The cost of a move (it could reach 4k  or more) – added to the new rental + deposits  – could throw you back into debt.
6. If you default, it will be difficult (albeit not impossible) to purchase a new home in the (near) future.  It might also be harder to qualify for a job and/or to purchase a car. While the distant future could be brighter, the here and now might be extremely painful.
7. Rental prices rise when you least expect it. Even worse, if you’re renting from an owner, the owner could sell at any time – throwing you right back into moving mode.
8. The stress of moving could make you sick. Plan to lose up to six months of your life in the process -  packing, unpacking and adjusting to your new home.
9. If you move to a condo or HOA  that’s facing severe financial problems – and thus the “great deal” – you could find yourself up against a Board that’s also out of control, along with a hostile “unneighborly” environment.
10. New “things.” Somehow old things never quite fit a new apartment. Little by little, the bills add up. Will you be required to paint and/or repair? Factor it in. A friend downsized from a condo that she owned to a less expensive rental unit. A few weeks after she moved in, water poured in from the unit upstairs. She’s now living with water damaged walls, toxic mold and long-term battles with several insurance companies.  Her former condo life looms like a distant dream.

Here are ten pros:

1. You can’t afford to continue paying. Full stop.  You have no choice.
2. Your family and friends argue that it’s the bank’s fault. They should never have loaned you the money in the first place.
3. You’re ready to downsize, don’t care how you live and want to use the money for your retirement.
4. The economy is likely to get worse before it gets better. Housing prices will fall further. Time is on your side.
5. You’re faced with an impossible choice. Pay for medication, your child’s college tuition, etc. versus your mortgage.
6. You applied for loan modification assistance from your bank, but they turned you down.
7. You’re not eligible for the government loan modification program and/or are unwilling to accept the terms.
8. Your condo or HOA is facing another major assessment. You can barely afford the mortgage, but not the mortgage + assessments. (A woman wrote to say that she has been borrowing against her credit cards to pay her assessments and is now deep in debt.)
9. You’re exhausted and sickened by the stress of dealing with your mortgage.
10. Your mortgage battles have destroyed any remaining emotional attachment to your home. Home has become a place that tortures your heart and makes it impossible to sleep at night.

Wild Card – Paying an attorney to stop the foreclosure:

“Ripoffs of homeowners have become so commonplace that state bar associations from Florida to Arizona are warning their members of the many ethical pitfalls awaiting those who exploit the mortgage crisis. The California State Bar launched a task force a year ago to examine thousands of homeowner complaints about foreclosure lawyers. Currently, the California Bar is investigating more than 400 attorneys who are suspected of ripping off thousands of homeowners across the country. The organization that licenses and disciplines California’s more than 250,000 lawyers already has suspended or obtained the resignations of 15 lawyers while disciplinary charges are pending.” ~ Paul Elias, Associated Press, as reported in the Washington Times, February 14. 2010.

Listen to my show below.  Share your experiences and views on this topic with our comment form.

To your home ~ Dr. Joyce Starr

Who Needs GPS?

He thought about the 30 year business he ran with 1800 employees, all without a Blackberry that played music, took videos, pictures and communicated with Facebook and Twitter.

He signed up under duress for Twitter and Facebook, so his seven kids, their spouses, 13 grandkids and 2 great grand kids could communicate with him in the modern way. He figured he could handle something as simple as Twitter with only 140 characters of space.

That was before one of his grand-kids hooked him up for Tweeter, Tweetree, Twhirl, Twitterfon, Tweetie and Twittererific, Tweetdeck, Twitpix and something that sends every message to his cell phone and every other program within the texting world.

His phone was beeping every three minutes with the details of everything except the jean sizes of the next generation. He was not ready to live like this. He keep his cell phone in the garage in his golf bag.

The kids bought him a GPS for his last birthday because they say he get lost every now and then going over to the grocery store or library. He keeps that in a box under his tool bench with the Blue tooth [it's red] phone he’s supposed to use when he drives. He wore it once and was standing in line at Barnes and Noble talking to his wife as everyone in the nearest 50 yards was glaring at him. Seems he had to take his hearing aid out to use it and he got a little loud.

The  GPS looked pretty smart on his dash board, but the lady inside was the most annoying, rudest person he had run into in a long time. Every 10 minutes, she would sarcastically say, “Re-calc-ul-ating” You would think that she could be nicer.. It was like she could barely tolerate him. She would let go with a deep sigh and then tell him to make a U-turn at the next light.

Then when he would make a right turn instead, it was not good.

When he gets really lost now, he calls his wife and tell her the name of the cross streets and while she is starting to develop the same tone as Gypsy, the GSP lady, at least she loves him.

To be perfectly frank, he is still trying to learn how to use the cordless phones in his house. He has had it for 4 years, but still has to dig under chair cushions and check bathrooms and the dirty laundry baskets when the phone rings.

The world is just getting too complex. They even mess him up every time he goes to the grocery store. You would think they could settle on something themselves, but this sudden “Paper or Plastic?” every time  he goes to check out just knocks him for a loop.

So he bought some of those cloth reusable bags to avoid looking confused but never remember to take them in with him.

Now he tosses it back to them. When they ask, “Paper or Plastic?” – he  just says, “Doesn’t matter to me. I am bi-sacksual…”

Then it’s their turn to stare with a blank look.

Global Hawk RQ-4!

Northrop Grumman’s unmanned Global Hawk is the most majestic, powerful, life-saving aircraft on earth – or in the stratosphere – with a wingspan slightly greater than a 757 cargo-liner! Rights Radio featured Northrop Grumman’s unmanned systems and Global Hawk in advance of the ComDef West 2010 Conference in San Diego.

Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems is a premier provider of manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile systems and advanced technologies critical to our national security. Established by IDEEA Inc. (Washington, D.C.), ComDef is a world-class military event. Show Date: January 28, 2010.

My guest is Edward A. Walby, director of business development for the High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Systems Enterprise. Mr. Walby joined the Northrop Grumman Global Hawk team in San Diego after retiring from the United States Air Force in October 2002, where he headed the Sensors and Platforms Division for all Air Force surveillance and reconnaissance systems.

Ed Walby - 150 U-2 Combat Hours

He has over 4,500 flight hours in various aircraft, with 150 in U-2 combat missions. A graduate of the Air War College, Air Command and Staff College, and the University of Southern California, Mr. Walby holds master’s degrees in aerospace engineering and strategic studies. His military awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Medal, the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star.

A STRATEGIC PLATFORM WITH TACTICAL CAPABILITY: The Global Hawk is revolutionizing disaster intervention, firefighting, hurricane assistance and homeland security.  It’s the first unmanned aircraft: to be given a green light to fly over US airspace; to track firefighting emergencies on US soil; to prepare for US hurricane  assistance; and the first unmanned aircraft to provide immediate pinpoint intelligence for a major international disaster like Haiti. There may be competitors on the horizon, but America’s very own Northrop Grumman has created the most mighty hawk of all.

Global Hawk Block10 Haiti Earthquake

Show Highlights: Ed Walby explains what the Global Hawk  can do, how the Global Hawk is different from all the other unmanned aircraft systems and how it compares to the manned U-2 spy plane. He discuss the deployment of Global Hawks  overseas and describes missions conducted abroad. What types of non-military, domestic missions have Global Hawk supported? How many Global Hawk versions exist and what are the differences between each of them?

What important milestones are in store for the Global Hawk and for Northrop Grumman’s other unmanned systems?

“A day after the earthquake in Haiti, the Air Force had a Global Hawk Block 10 ready to deploy in support of Haitian operations. We flew from California, parked over Haiti for 12 hours and landed in Maryland. We would have had to move the manned U2 to Florida. Manned aircraft can’t stay on station for so many hours. We didn’t have that capability before…

“The Air Force is going to produce 77 Global Hawks. It’s all about preparing for the battlefield and protecting and supporting the troops on the ground. Almost every image we take is as precise as possible. There is a great deal of calculation taken into to hitting only the target you need to hit and to reduce anything beyond that. You would be amazed at what lengths the military goes through to ensure that only the target that is sought after is taken out.”

SanDiego Global Hawk Fire Tracking

Listen to our show below!

Here’s an important update on Global Hawk disaster assessments in Haiti – 2/12/2010):

“Thanks to Global Hawk’s highly advanced sensors, which are capable of taking hundreds of images in a single mission, we’ve provided disaster assessments for various agencies to make real-time decisions,” said Gen. Bob Otto, commander of the 9th Reconnaissance Wing, Beale Air Force Base, Calif.  “The ability to fly 24-hour duration sorties meant the Global Hawk could support hundreds of ad-hoc requests while staying well clear of the relief workers and neighboring airports.  Truly, Global Hawk’s capabilities have proven invaluable to the worldwide humanitarian efforts in Haiti.”

On Jan. 13, a U.S. Air Force Block 10 Global Hawk was diverted by the 12th Reconnaissance Squadron at Beale Air Force Base from its trip en-route to support usual wartime operations in Afghanistan to assist in relief efforts after Haiti’s 7.0 magnitude earthquake on Jan. 12.  A Global Hawk took off from its main operating base at Beale Air Force Base, flew to Haiti, and provided 12 hours of coverage over the disaster area before landing at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Md.  Subsequent missions were launched from Maryland to provide 14 to 16 hours of persistent watch over Haiti before landing back at Patuxent River.

“Not only has Global Hawk helped determine the extent of damages and usability of Haiti’s infrastructure, it has also helped to find and recommend roadways and airfields accessible for delivering emergency supplies and rescuing injured and trapped people,” said George Guerra, Northrop Grumman vice president of high-altitude, long-endurance systems.  “We are committed to supporting the ongoing relief efforts in Haiti for as long as necessary to help rebuild the lives of those affected.”

The Global Hawk team collaborated with other agencies to assist in all aspects of recovery and relief.  Officials and analysts from U.S. Southern Command in Miami , the 548th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) Group from Beale Air Force Base, the 480th ISR Wing from Langley Air Force Base, and the Naval Air Systems Command Broad Area Maritime Surveillance Demonstration program from Patuxent River helped provide critically needed imagery and information.

Capable of flying at altitudes up to 60,000 feet for more than 32 hours at a time at speeds approaching 340 knots, Global Hawk is equipped with an integrated sensor suite, which includes synthetic aperture radar, electro-optical and infrared sensors. Global Hawk has supported previous humanitarian relief efforts, including the southern and northern California wildfires in 2007 and 2008, respectively, as well as Hurricane Ike in 2008.

To your security ~ Dr. Joyce Starr

Secondhand Smoke Abuse Against Women, Children, Pets. BUY NOW! Click the image to purchase the book.

• How children were poisoned and bleeding in their beds.
• How letters from doctors were ignored.
• How a condo board president and board smokers used their powers to retaliate against second-hand smoke victims.
• How property managers who smoke permitted and encouraged second hand smoke abuse against non-smokers.
• Stop smoking your neighbor’s unwanted smoke – how to fight back!

Nearly 300,000 children are exposed daily to secondhand smoke, including every child, newborn and fetus in the buildings described in this book. Second hand smoke causes or contributes to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.

Second hand smoke circulates through common areas air-conditioning and heating systems.

Tens of thousands of children, adults a contract cancer, heart disease, asthma (and related diseases) annually from secondhand smoke exposure.

Can your dog or cat contract cancer from secondhand smoke? YES!  Don’t let your pet be a victim.

Send a copy of this book to members of your board, your property manger, a partner who smokes – to  your doctor and to your vet. Click here to purchase.

Join our campaign to stop Secondhand Smoke Crimes in buildings, outdoor restaurants, parks and other public spaces where smoking is allowed – by supporting this book!

“You Need This Book,” says Radio Talk Show Host Faith Ranoli. “It’s a must read. Do not be held hostage by your neighbor’s secondhand smoke…learn what you can do to return your home to a healthy environment and to fight for your rights.”

It’s the FIRST book on second hand smoke that gives victims the tools to fight back. Help stop second hand smoke by spreading the word.

Click here to purchase.

CLICK THE PLAY BUTTON TO LISTEN:

How to publish on the Amazon Kindle and new e-readers?

The Skiff eReader

Amazon announced that eBooks outsold conventional books on Christmas Day.

At recent consumer electronics shows, two dozen companies introduced new e-readers – including the SKIFF eReader with an 11.5 inch screen that bends like a sheet of paper and is twice the size of the Sony eReader or Kindle.

Submitting your book to a particular eReader can be a complicated process – daunting for experienced, let alone aspiring authors. Proprietary submission formats and requirements vary. What works for one will not typically work for the other. Precise technical skills are often required for content and cover design.

According to a recent report,  digitization has exposed critical skill gaps in the publishing industry. Random House CEO. and Chairman Dame Gail Rebuck—a Skillset board member—stated: “It is important that the industry understands and moves with the market so the skills gap this report has identified does not continue to grow.”

How do authors move ahead when the industry itself is falling behind?

We’ve tested numerous platforms and will be testing more as they become available. Contact us for author coaching services, digital publishing education and production at Gantz & Starr and/or Rights University.

How to Listen: Click the Play Button Below.

Rights Radio financial guru Joe Stallard joins me in identifying ways to prevent or reduce exorbitant bank overdraft fees.The streaming replay is available below.

The Federal Reserve’s website has been hit with repeated complaints about unexpected overdraft fees, exorbitant overdraft fee rates and the reordering of debits to increase fees. Consumers complain about being raked over the coals and about the “reprioritizing” of their transactions.

The bottom line: We’re told that “bailout” banks have more cash stashed away then they did prior to the banking crisis – and your overdraft fees are only making them richer.

Discover key steps you can take to prevent exorbitant bank overdraft fees.

POST UPDATE: January 2010!

This show and post generated many comments and questions! I promised you an update and here it is:

1. Many banks provide instant overdraft protection and charge $39.00 every time you exceed your balance. A number of banks have “reportedly” agreed to limit how many times they will charge customers on a single day and also allow them to opt out of “instant” overdraft protection. Call your bank and ask about their policy. Get it in writing if possible. A bank that permits up to five overdrafts per day, but refuses to limit the number of times they can charge you should be avoided.
2. Best Choice! Ask for FREE overdraft protection. If they grant it, the bank is supposed to phone you and allow you a day or more to cover the short-fall at no charge. (Make sure they do both.) Alternatively, sign up for true overdraft protection linked to your savings account or credit card. You may still incur a fee, but it should be much lower.
3. The big problem arises when banks process your largest expense last on a given day, rather than in chronological order. The first check or charge might be $10.00, the second $20 and so on. No problem – no overdraft. But when the $450 check hits, you’re out $39 and in the red. The solution: Make sure that your bank processes your transactions in chronological order. (CNBC personal-finance expert Carment Wong Ulrich, author of “Generation Debt,” Parade, November 15, 2009.)
4. Use your debit card sparingly when you travel overseas or purchase online from a company located outside of the United States, because you can incur a 2 to 3 percent fee per transaction.
5. Choose a bank that requires little or no minimum and thus no penalty if your account falls below a certain level. Many banks provide free checking with no minimums for seniors and students.
6. Ask for a brochure or written statement re clearing out of state checks. Don’t assume that the check will clear in 24 hours. Banks only count business days versus calendar days so that they can use your money for free, (naturally).

To your empowerment!