Episodes
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with John Berlau of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, who discusses the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's proposed rule that would cap the amount of overdraft fees financial institutions can charge customers. He also talks about the data breach at the Bureau that affected personal files of 256,000 consumers..
Published 05/18/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Herb Weisbaum, contributing editor at Consumers’ Checkbook Magazine, who discusses wiping personal data off devices before recycling them, the questions to ask before joining a gym and the move to limit high overdraft fees charged by banks.
Published 05/18/24
Host Shirley Rooker talks to John Berlau. The author of "George Washington, Entrepreneur" explores the greatness and intellect of our first president and his ventures into whiskey making and mule breeding as well as his vision about flight. He also discusses Washington's partnership with his wife Martha and her importance to his success.
Published 05/12/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Bruce McClary of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, who discusses the special needs of military and the many frauds targeting other consumers. He describes how the debt relief promised may only increase the debt load, how promises to erase credit card debt may backfire and other scams that trap consumers.
Published 05/04/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Mike McCartin of Joseph W. McCartin Insurance to discuss the facts behind rising car insurance rates and ways to save money on auto insurance, some of which may surprise you.
Published 04/27/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Adam Andrzejewski, founder of OpenTheBooks.com, who introduces Benjamin, a bot that allows consumers to discover how their tax dollars are being spent. Our national debt is over $36 trillion. Where is the money going? Find out. Pay Benjamin a visit!
Published 04/20/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Bruce McClary of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, who discusses the special needs of military and the many frauds targeting other consumers. He describes how the debt relief promised may only increase the debt load, how promises to erase credit card debt may backfire and other scams that trap consumers.
Published 04/13/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Daniel Turner, the founder of Power the Future, who discusses how the drive to eliminate the use of fossil fuels could affect production of thousands of items we depend on, including medical devices, medication, clothing, cars, computers and cell phones.
Published 04/06/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Christie Matherne, editor at Wallethub, to discuss the reasons Maryland has the dubious honor of having the highest mortgage levels in the country. She also outlines ways to help deal with inflation, credit card debt and type budgets.
Published 03/30/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Joe Hemsley, a private wealth advisor, about the many ways we can save money or make the most of our investments.
Published 03/23/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Mark Jamison of the American Enterprise Institute, who says government regulation of what we see on social media is a threat to democracy.
Published 03/16/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Rick Berman, president of RBB Strategies, who describes how some charities are spending very small amounts of donations on their mission of helping veterans. He also talks about the move to use aluminum instead of plastic containers. And the health concerns about the element being absorbed by the human body.
Published 03/09/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with John Berlau of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, who discusses the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's proposed rule that would cap the amount of overdraft fees financial institutions can charge customers. He also talks about the data breach at the Bureau that affected personal files of 256,000 consumers..
Published 03/02/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Herb Weisbaum, contributing editor at Consumers’ Checkbook Magazine, who discusses wiping personal data off devices before recycling them, the questions to ask before joining a gym and the move to limit high overdraft fees charged by banks.
Published 02/24/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Tom Gordon, the executive director of Responsive Law, who discusses actions being taken to make the legal system more accessible and affordable to consumers. In addition, he describes the need to raise the dollar amount for cases in small claims court.
Published 02/17/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with WalletHub's Cassie Happe, who discusses a study on the most dangerous cities in the country and some of the factors that contribute to the ratings. While homicides have seen a small decline, other crimes have risen steeply. 
Published 02/10/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Mike McCartin of Joseph W. McCartin Insurance to discusses travel insurance, ways to save on your auto insurance and the importance of reading the fine print.
Published 02/03/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Debra Berlyn, the executive director of the Project to Get Older Adults onLine (Project GOAL), about what the latest consumer electronics show in Las Vegas has to offer the cyber-savvy senior citizen.
Published 01/27/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Tom Gordon of Responsive Law, who discusses the push for better and more affordable access to the legal system. He outlines things that are positive in this direction as well as barriers being erected by some in the legal community. In addition, a recent study found that our country ranks very low on consumer accessibility to the civil legal system.
Published 01/20/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Christie Matherne, an editor at Wallethub, to discuss a Federal Reserve report that found credit card debt increased by $1.27 trillion in 2023, a 6 % increase over the previous year.
Published 01/13/24
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Daniel Turner, the founder of Power the Future, who discusses how the drive to eliminate the use of fossil fuels could affect production of thousands of items we depend on, such as medical devices, medication, clothing, cars, computers, cell phones, etc.
Published 01/06/24
Host Shirley Rooker talks with Kevin Brasler of Checkbook Magazine, who discusses the difficulties facing homeowners trying to remodel their homes, including shortages of supplies and workers. He also talks about the importance of finding a good electrician.
Published 12/30/23
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Ben Lieberman, senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. He discusses the push to make household products such as air conditioners and washing machines more energy efficient and the negative effects on the cost, performance and endurance of these products.
Published 12/23/23
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Debra Berlyn, the executive director of The Project to Get Older Adults onLine (GOAL), about innovations at the The Consumer Electronics Show (CES), that could make life simpler for consumers, particularly for seniors who are not entirely comfortable with the latest technology.
Published 12/16/23
Host Shirley Rooker speaks with Wayne Crews of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, who discusses the tens of thousands of federal regulations which cost $1.939 trillion annually. The guest offers reforms designed to get control of the spiraling number of regulations. 
Published 12/09/23