If there's one thing I love, it's a deal.

I noticed something at the supermarket for black friday. They're offering $20 or more if you buy $200 in gift cards. That includes your basic Visa and AmEx gift credit cards. Is there a catch? They seem to have rescinded the buyer fees too. I mean, I go through $200 in gas just commuting to work, so it's not as if I couldn't just buy $2000 of AmEx cards and pocket $200 and then just use those cards like I would anyway.

Or then, even better, go out and spend that $200 at Target and get another $20. Boo ya, $40 for free.

Just sayin...

It is Thanksgiving, so remember to be thankful for what you've got. Not least of all being that this century's Jimmy Carter signed a bill ostensibly written to be an economic stimulus when, in reality, the thing was just fifteen years of pork that the democrats failed to get included since they lost congress stuffed into one bill that was unread. Now it turns out that, golly gee, it's hurting job prospects because ...

Employers already are squeezed by tight credit, rising health care costs, wary consumers and a higher minimum wage. Now, the surging jobless rate is imposing another cost. It’s forcing higher state taxes on companies to pay for unemployment insurance claims.

Some employers say the extra costs make them less likely to hire. That could be a worrisome sign for the economic recovery, because small businesses create about 60 percent of new jobs. Other employers say they’ll cut or freeze pay.

Why are these costs going up now? Federal intervention, and especially federal law:

Federal law requires states to build up unemployment insurance trust funds in good times so they can pay benefits during downturns. The idea is to avoid having to raise taxes or cut benefits in a recession.

It just gets better. I guess we should consider each turkey we eat this Turkey Day to be one more job saved or created.