I was requested to look for information by an acquaintance about their rights, towards a nameless collection agency. In May of 2001, Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Consumer Affairs ratified a harmonization initiative that will enable all provinces and territories to implement a common list of prohibited collection practices.

Amplify’d from www.ic.gc.ca

Harmonized List of Prohibited Collection Practices

In May of 2001, Federal, Provincial and Territorial Ministers Responsible for Consumer Affairs ratified a harmonization initiative that will enable all provinces and territories to implement a common list of prohibited collection practices. This consistent approach to the collection practices of companies, that are now often doing business in multiple jurisdictions, will ensure clarity for consumers, the industry and regulators. The practices discussed included such issues as excessive pressure, disclosure and privacy. In April 2003, the CMC Working Group on collection agencies agreed upon a revision to the harmonized list.

1. Harassment

No [collection agency] shall communicate or attempt to communicate with the debtor, any member of the debtor's family or household, any relative, neighbour, friend or acquaintance of the debtor, or the debtor's employer, by any means, in such a manner or with such frequency as to constitute harassment, including:

the use of threatening, profane, intimidating or coercive language; the use of undue, excessive or unreasonable pressure; threatening to publish or publishing a debtor's failure to pay.

2. Who May Be Contacted

Except for the sole purpose of locating the debtor's address or telephone number, no [collection agency] shall contact or attempt to contact any member of the debtor's family or household, or any relative, neighbour, friend or acquaintance of the debtor unless: the person contacted has guaranteed to pay the debt and is being contacted in respect of that guarantee; or the debtor has requested the collection agency to discuss the debt with that person A [collection agency] may contact a debtor's employer on one occasion only and then only for the purpose of confirming the debtor's employment, business title and business address, unless otherwise authorized in writing by the debtor. 1

3. Location Where Debtor May Be Contacted

Subject to subsection (2), a [collection agency] may not contact a debtor at the debtor's place of employment unless, the [collection agency] does not have the home address or phone number for the debtor, in which case verbal contact at the debtor's place of employment, for the sole purpose of requesting the debtor's home phone number or address, is permitted. attempts by the [collection agency] to contact the debtor at their home phone number have not resulted in contact with the debtor, in which case a single verbal attempt to contact the debtor at their place of employment is permitted. A collection agency may contact the debtor at the debtor's place of employment with authorization from the debtor to do so.

4. Time Of Calls

Except on the request of the person being contacted, no [collection agency] shall make a telephone call or personal call to the debtor, any member of the debtor's family or household, any relative, neighbour, friend or acquaintance of the debtor, or the debtor's employer or surety:

on a Sunday 2, other than between the hours of 1 PM and 5 PM 1; on a statutory holiday; or on any other day except between the hours of 7 AM and 9 PM, local time for the person being contacted. 1

5. Cost Of Communication

No [collection agency] shall communicate or attempt to communicate with a person for the purpose of collecting, negotiating or demanding payment of a debt by a means that enables the charges or costs of the communication to be payable by that person.

6. Threatening Action For Which There Is No Lawful Authority

No [collection agency] shall directly or indirectly threaten or state an intention to proceed with any legal action:

for which the [collection agency] does not have the written authority of the creditor; or for which there is no lawful authority.

7. False And Misleading Information

No [collection agency] shall:

give, directly or indirectly, by implication or otherwise, any false or misleading information; misrepresent the purpose of a communication with any person, or the identity of the [collection agency] and creditor.

8. Disclosure

No [collection agency] shall: attempt to collect payment of a debt from a debtor until the debtor has been notified by means of a private written communication, or a reasonable attempt has been made to notify the debtor by means of a private written communication, of the name of the creditor with whom the debt was incurred, the balance owing on the account, and the identity and authority of the person making the demand in respect of the collection of the debt; communicate or attempt to communicate with a debtor, by any means, with respect to the collection of a debt without indicating the name of the creditor with whom the debt was incurred, the balance owing on the account, and the [collection agency's] registered name and authority to make the demand; commence or continue an action for the recovery of a debt in the name of the [collection agency] as plaintiff unless such debt has been assigned to the collection agency in good faith by written instrument for valuable consideration and notice of such assignment has been given to the debtor; commence a legal proceeding where there has been an assignment with respect to the collection of a debt, or recommend to a creditor that a legal proceeding be commenced, unless the [collection agency] first gives notice to the debtor that the collection agency or the collector intends to commence the proceeding or recommend that a proceeding be commenced.

A [collection agency] may not initiate any verbal contact with a debtor until 5 days after the written communication mentioned in clause (1)(a) has been sent to the debtor.

Where upon being contacted by a [collection agency] a debtor states he or she has not received the written communication required by clause (1)(a), the [collection agency] shall send the information required in clause (1)(a) to the debtor at an address provided by the debtor.

9. Collecting More Than Is Owed

Notwithstanding any agreement to the contrary between a debtor and a creditor, any charges made or incurred by a collection agency or made or incurred by a creditor in employing a collection agency to collect the debt shall be deemed not to be a part of the amount owing by the debtor and shall not be recoverable by the creditor or by the collection agency acting on behalf of the creditor.

10. No Waiving Of Rights

Any waiver or release given of the rights, benefits or protection provided pursuant to the Act or regulations is void.

11. Money Is Owing

No [collection agency] shall:

collect or attempt to collect money from a person who is not liable for the debt; or where the person has informed the [collection agency] that the person is not the debtor, continue to communicate with that person unless the [collection agency] first takes all reasonable precautions to ensure that the person is in fact the debtor.

12. How To Contact

No [collection agency] shall continue to communicate with a debtor:

other than in writing, when the debtor has notified the [collection agency] in writing to communicate in writing only and has provided an address at which the debtor may be contacted; other than through the debtor's legal advisor when the debtor has notified the [collection agency] in writing to communicate only with the debtor's legal advisor and has provided an address for the legal advisor; or where the debtor has notified the creditor [and the collection agency] by registered mail that the debt is in dispute and that the debtor would like the creditor to take the matter to court.

13. Misrepresentation — Official Documents

No [collection agency] shall use, without lawful authority, any summons, notice, demand, or other document that suggests or implies a connection with any court within or outside of Canada. Read more at www.ic.gc.ca

 

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Sign the petition legislation will invade law-abiding Canadians

The government is trying to ram through an anti-Internet set of electronic surveillance laws that will invade your privacy and cost you money. The plan is to force every phone and Internet provider to surrender our personal information to “authorities” without a warrant.

Amplify’d from www.b3socialmarketing.com

Sign the petition at http://StopSpying.ca The government is trying to ram through an anti-Internet set of electronic surveillance laws that will invade your privacy and cost you money. The plan is to force every phone and Internet provider to surrender our personal information to “authorities” without a warrant. This bizarre legislation will create Internet surveillance that is: Warrantless: A range of “authorities” will have the ability to invade the private lives of law-abiding Canadians and our families using wired Internet and mobile devices, without a warrant or any justification. Invasive and Dangerous: The laws leave our personal and financial information less secure and more susceptible to cybercrime. Costly: Internet services providers may be forced to install millions of dollars worth of spying technology and the cost will be passed down to YOU. If enough of us speak out now the government will have no choice but to stop this mandatory online spying scheme. Sign the petition now, and forward it to everyone you know. Directed by Jeremy Brown www.rattlesnakefilms.ca Read more at www.b3socialmarketing.com

 

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Managing the Work-Life Balance

Eric Owen has the type of schedule many small business owners can probably relate to.

Amplify’d from www.lowes.ca

Managing the Work-Life Balance

By Erin Golden

Eric Owen has the type of schedule many small business owners can probably relate to.

The Ottawa, Ont.-based general contractor, who owns The Better Living Solutions Group, is usually awake by 5 a.m. By 6 or 7 a.m., he’s already taking calls from his crew and customers—and from there, things get even more hectic. He’s on the move all day, skipping from job sites to suppliers to customers, before finally getting back home around 8 or 9 p.m.

And somewhere in between all of that, the rest of his life happens—talking to his wife, shuttling the kids to soccer practice, doing chores around the house, etc. Giving everything the attention it deserves, and figuring out when to set work aside, is a challenge, to say the least.

“You get to a point where the kids are saying, ‘You’re never home for dinner,’” he says. “You get to the point where you have to start saying no to clients and start making more time for the family.”

Striking a good work-life balance can be a particular challenge for people in the trades, says Ted Mallett, vice president and chief economist for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. Builders, electricians and plumbers, he notes, have unpredictable schedules. And that doesn’t take into account the 24/7 workload that comes with running your own business.

But experts say making work a priority—rather than the priority—in your day-to-day life can be crucial to the success of your business. Here’s how to get started:

Get organized

Even with small stuff, a little planning can go a long way. An hour spent sorting through disorganized paperwork is an hour that could have been spent playing a game with the kids or sweating it out at the gym.

Mallett suggests taking a close look at the administrative side of your business. If you’re doing your billing or inventory by hand, consider investing in a computer program that might speed up the work. If you find yourself taking multiple trips to pick up supplies, try to sort out your needs sooner, so you can get everything in one stop.

“Invest in a system of some sort,” he says. “Systematizing these kinds of things certainly helps a great deal. You’re reducing your time spent away from the job site.”

Plus, you’re increasing your chances of getting home a little sooner.

Make technology work for you

Smart phones, tablets and laptops can help you stay in touch with clients, suppliers, friends and family, but they also make it more difficult to separate work from home.

Make sure you’re using tech tools to your advantage. To save time, program devices with shortcuts, put your customers on speed dial or map out the quickest route to a job site before you leave the garage.

But it’s also important to know when to turn it all off.

Donald Robichaud, president and owner of Ottawa, Ont.-based Floodlight Business Solutions Group, helps small and midsized businesses, including several in the trades, with business development. He says not being able to put away the phone or let an hour pass without checking for new e-mail messages means business owners aren’t really running their business—they’re letting the business run them.

“Technology allows us to do things faster,” he says. “But if we don’t already know how to schedule our time, then technology just adds to the total burden.”

Don’t be afraid to delegate

Remember, doing everything yourself isn’t the only way to get things done right.

“We are all human beings, and we all have specialties,” Robichaud says. “We need to understand our strengths, and bring people in who have other skill sets.”

For Owen, that approach has been key to being able to set aside time for himself and his family. Within his company, he’s found a person he knows he can depend on to keep things running smoothly when he’s away.

“I know when I go somewhere, the projects I leave will be done properly,” he says. Read more at www.lowes.ca

 

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iPhone Field Agent app — Get paid to spy?

A NEW iPhone app is paying shoppers to provide retailers with in-store intelligence such as staff performance and competitor pricing.

Amplify’d from www.smh.com.au

A NEW iPhone app is paying shoppers to provide retailers with in-store intelligence such as staff performance and competitor pricing.

The Field Agent app, which was launched in Australia in September, is the latest weapon being used by retailers to crowd-source in-store spies to help give them a competitive edge.

Companies simply list the job they need done on the app - whether it's to take a photo of a counter display or to check the price of a certain product. Shoppers then select a job in their area and once the job is completed - in about five to 15 minutes - they are paid anywhere between $4 and $20.

The Field Agent app is retailers' latest weapon.

Penny McConnell of Hudsons Coffee, which has 64 stores across the country, used the app to help monitor the national roll-out of a recent promotion, which offered a $2 bagel with any coffee purchase.

''We basically wanted to see if our stores were displaying the correct marketing material for the promotion and if the staff were actually offering customers the deal,'' Ms McConnell said.

She said she would have not been able to assess the store compliance of the promotion as effectively or as cheaply using traditional mystery shopping services or her own staff.

''The major benefit for us is having eyes on the ground in our stores without having to be there. Basically, we get to see what's happening in our stores at all times throughout the day.''

Steve Haas, a research officer who has so far carried out half a dozen jobs on the free Field Agent app, says it is an easy way to earn extra money. The app has a GPS function that enables users to choose jobs close to where they are.

''The other day I was in the city so I tapped in and saw there was a job just around the corner. I popped into the store, took a photo, answered a couple of simple questions and sent it through. It was done in about five minutes.''

Kate Gorman, of Field Agent, said companies were using it for a variety of purposes - to check that certain products were on shelves, particular items had been discounted in accordance with a promotion, or that staff were meeting certain customer service standards.

The app was launched in the United States about a year ago and now has more than 100,000 users. ''In the US, all the major brands … are using it as a crowdsourcing tool to utilise all the people that are already out … shopping,'' said Ms Gorman. Read more at www.smh.com.au

 

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Researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder carrying out an excavation of a Maya village in El Salvador have uncovered an ancient road. Researchers say it could have been used to escape from the town following a volcanic eruption.

Amplify’d from www.digitaljournal.com

Researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder carrying out an excavation of a Maya village in El Salvador have uncovered an ancient road. Researchers say it could have been used to escape from the town following a volcanic eruption.

Colorado researchers discover ancient Maya road

+

The white road, which seems to lead to and from the town, is called a "sacbe", and researchers describe the town as being "frozen in time by a blanket of ash”. The Maya village was covered by volcanic ash 1,400 years ago, according to researchers.

The white road measures approximately 6 feet across and was formed by volcanic ash from an earlier eruption, according to Professor Payson Sheets of CU-Bolder; Sheets discovered the ancient farming village, which is known as Ceren, in 1978.

The village of Ceren was previously evacuated after a first volcanic eruption. Some time later, when the village had been repopulated, another eruption, this time from the Loma Caldera volcano covered the village in layers of white ash, cinders and lava bombs. Radiocarbon data suggest the second volcanic eruption happened in approximately A.D. 630. Professor Sheets says that he believes the eruption hit the village at approximately 7.00pm on an August evening as the villagers gathered for a ceremony, and that the recently discovered road may have been used by villagers to flee the volcanic ash which came from the Loma Caldera volcano.

Commenting in a press release, Professor Sheets said:

excavations

"It would have been a footrace. I think it is very likely we will find bodies as we follow the sacbe southward in future excavations." To date, no human remains have been found at the village."

"How far they might have gotten, I don't know."

"And we've found no evidence of anyone going back to their houses, gathering up valuables, and fleeing, because all the household doors were tied shut. We think people may have left the plaza and run south, possibly on the sacbe, because the danger was to the north."

"We know there was a celebration going on when the eruption hit."

the

The sacbe was discovered when the team were digging a test pit through 17 feet of volcanic ash. It had canals of water running on either side of it and the uncovering of the road is significant as researchers say that it “is the first ever discovered at a Maya archaeology site that was built without bordering paving stones”. The sacbe seems to lead to two Ceren ceremonial structures which stand less than 100 feet away; the buildings were uncovered by researchers in 1991 by a team led by Professor Sheets.

Commenting on the discovery in a press release press release, Professor Sheets said:

generally

"Until our discovery, these roads were only known from the Yucatan area in Mexico and all were built with stone linings, which generally preserved well.”

"Until our discovery, these roads were only known from the Yucatan area in Mexico and all were built with stone linings, which generally preserved well.”

ground

"It took the unusual preservation at Ceren to tell us the Maya also made them without stone. I'd like to say we saw some anomaly in the ground-penetrating radar data that guided us to the Ceren sacbe, but that was not the case. This was a complete surprise."

"It took the unusual preservation at Ceren to tell us the Maya also made them without stone. I'd like to say we saw some anomaly in the ground-penetrating radar data that guided us to the Ceren sacbe, but that was not the case. This was a complete surprise."

In a copy of a report forward to me from Professor Sheets, it is explained that the latest season of research, which began in June 2011, is part of the Maya Agricultural Project. The project first started in 2007 and aimed to uncover a greater understanding of how agriculture worked in the ancient village.

The sacbe is just one of many discoveries that the researcher team have discovered. The excavation has also uncovered 12 buildings which included living quarters, religious buildings and a community sauna. Read more at www.digitaljournal.com

 

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Free Texts Pose Threat to Carriers

URL:  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/10/technology/paying-to-...

At a time when e-mail and many other forms of electronic communication are essentially free, wireless carriers are still charging as much as 20 cents to send a text message to a phone, and another 20 cents to receive it.

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Is She Alive, We Think So,Do Our Kids Need Her...

This is a non-commercial attempt to highlight the fact that world leaders, irresponsible corporates and mindless ‘consumers’ are combining to destroy life on earth. It is dedicated to all who died fighting for the planet and those whose lives are on the line today. The cut was put together by Vivek Chauhan, a young film maker, together with naturalists working with the Sanctuary Asia network (www.sanctuaryasia.com).

Content credit: The principal source for the footage was Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s incredible film HOME http://www.homethemovie.org/ . The music was by Armand Amar. Thank you too Greenpeace and http://timescapes.org/

Amplify’d from www.b3socialmarketing.com

See more at www.b3socialmarketing.com

 

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