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Those little fees sure do add up. Airlines across the county have been changing customers extra for all sorts of services, from checking bags to changing reservations, and it's paying off handsomely for them. Last year, U.S. airlines took in more than $7.8 billion in fees from passengers, according to the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics. And those fees are rising quickly. In the last three months of 2009, the airlines charged passengers $1.9 billion in extra fees, up a whopping 18.3 percent from the same period the prior year. And there are signs that things are only...

China's retailers fight hard to keep market share Last Updated(Beijing Time):2008-12-27 11:17 At first, Chinese retailers were baffled: How could the sales of microwave ovens run so wild (50 percent growth year-on-year), while other goods were seeing such sluggish sales? It took a Harvard-educated economist to tell them of a historical equivalent - at times of famine, when all goods were sold at a discount, the price of potatoes would rise to a point higher than ever. The astonishing sale of microwave ovens reflects a move by consumers back to home cooking instead of eating out in order to save...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14, 2008 – Military families have long used the U.S. Postal Service’s flat-rate shipping boxes to send care packages around the globe. Beginning March 3, they’ll get a price break. The discount applies only to the new “Priority Mail Large Flat-Rate Box,” which normally carries a $12.95 price tag for shipping. However, when the 12-by-12-by-5.5-inch box is sent to an AFO or FPO address, a $2 discount applies, dropping the cost to $10.95. “This is the first time the Postal Service has offered a special price for our armed forces serving overseas,” said Postmaster General John Potter....

WASHINGTON, DC (AFPN) -- Planning to send a care package to a military service member serving abroad? Send it after March 3 to take advantage of a new flat-rate box from the Postal Service that is 50 percent larger and delivered for $10.95 to an APO/FPO address -- $2 less than for domestic destinations. "This is the first time the Postal Service has offered a special price for our armed forces serving overseas," said Postmaster Gen. John Potter. "We're proud that family and friends will be able to use this new larger-sized box to send much appreciated packages from home to our dedicated troops overseas."...

This is my first Vanity. And I apologise.Anyway... I was watching Castro's latest video tape, and noticed Greenspan's book. On the upper right hand corner of the book cover, there was a 30% discount from Barnes & Noble.Cheapstake.....

As many as 6 million Californians would benefit from legislation sent Wednesday to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that would impose mandatory prescription drug discounts. Schwarzenegger has said he will sign the bill, the result of negotiations between his staff and the Legislature's Democratic leadership. "With prescription drug costs contributing to more than 8 percent of health care inflation, this is a critical step in addressing access to affordable health care," Schwarzenegger said in a statement. The bill, by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, passed a final Assembly vote 42-28, with lawmakers sticking to party lines. "This is an opportunity to...

SACRAMENTO Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will propose a new plan Saturday requiring drug companies to give discounts to low-income residents within five years or face state sanctions, Health and Human Services Secretary Kim Belshe said Friday. The plan is similar to Democratic proposals the governor has rejected in the past. Under the new proposal, drug companies would have five years to offer discounts to people who earn less than three times the federal poverty level, or about $60,000 a year for a family of four. Companies that do not cooperate could be cut out of the state's Medi-Cal program, which provides...

BERLIN - German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's outgoing government has agreed to sell two submarines to Israel for a deeply discounted price, German news magazines reported on Saturday. Der Spiegel and Focus magazines said the two Dolphin class submarines would be built in Kiel for a total of about one billion euros (e1.17 billion) and the federal government, leaving office on Tuesday, would pick up one-third of the cost. After the Gulf War in the early 1990s Germany gave two Dolphin class submarines to the Israel's navy, which then bought a third for a fraction of the price. Schroeder's Social Democrat-Greens...

SACRAMENTO – Voters favor the two rival prescription drug discount initiatives on the Nov. 8 special-election ballot, but neither has the majority support needed for approval, according to the latest Field Poll. The survey shows more support for Proposition 78, the one sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry, than for Proposition 79, backed by unions and consumer groups. Proposition 78 is favored 49 percent to 31 percent, while Proposition 79 is supported 42 percent to 34 percent. The survey also found that voters are split on another ballot measure, Proposition 73, which would require girls under 18 seeking an abortion to...

JUST AS congressional support is building for lifting the ban on importing discount drugs from Canada comes word from north of the border that American buyers may be cut off. Politicians here say Canadian authorities are being muscled by the pharmaceutical industry, seeking to block discount products from competing in bulk with products it can often sell at full retail price in this country. That may well be, but piggybacking onto Canadian price controls was never more than a short-term solution for hefty pharmaceutical costs in the United States. The reluctance of Canadian officials to jeopardize their nation's access to...

Riding a wave of publicity generated by its “You pay what we pay, GM Employee Discount for everyone” incentives campaign, General Motors reported a 41% year-over-year increase in vehicle sales for the month of June. GM dealers in the United States sold 558,092 cars and trucks last month, including what the company says is an “all-time industry record” for truck sales – 382,601, up 68%. Full size GM pickups sales were up 102%. The incentives program, which offered buyers the opportunity to pay the same price on vehicles that GM employees pay, appears to have had less of an impact...

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2005 – A major home-improvement chain is offering Memorial Day discounts to all active-duty and reserve-component troops, retired military personnel, veterans, and their families. The 10-percent-off offer is good on purchases up to $2,000 for a maximum discount of $200 between May 26-30 at Home Depot stores, Home Depot Floor stores, Home Depot Landscape Supply stores and Expo Design Center locations. "This discount is our way of saying 'thanks' to the brave men and women of our armed forces," said Bob Nardelli, the chain's chairman, president and chief executive officer. "The Home Depot has an ongoing commitment...

Germans on the dole are being offered a 20 per cent discount at brothels. Germans on the dole are being offered a 20 per cent discount at brothels. People looking for the discount sex just need to show their unemployment benefit card to qualify for the reductions. Brothel manager Silvia Rau who runs the Villa Bijou bar in Dresden said that the previous average number of 150 guests per week has sunk to 80 in recent months. She hopes that the new policy will bring back the customers and also provide them with some comfort in "difficult times". According to...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan to provide prescription drug discounts to the uninsured "provides a reasonable starting point," the Legislative Analyst's Office said Thursday, but the report suggests stiffening his voluntary approach with drug manufacturers. Lawmakers should add an automatic trigger replacing Schwarzenegger's voluntary rebate proposal with mandatory incentives if drug makers fail to keep promises to cut prices significantly, the analyst said. That alternative would likely bring consumers larger discounts on more drugs, but result in a lengthy court challenge, the analyst said. A Schwarzenegger spokeswoman praised the report for recognizing that the administration is offering "the...

New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) has long been rumored as desperately seeking the democratic nomination for president in 2008. And while many political observers fully expect the power hungry former First Lady to hit the campaign trail within only a few months of being re-elected as a US Senator in 2006, US News & World report claims to have a confirmation of sorts. From USNews.Com's Washington Whispers: Hillary's in… You don't have to take it from us about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton 's desire to run for president. Her brothers, Hugh and Tony Rodham, say it's true. Friends...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

On Monday, December 8, 2003, President Bush signed into law a Medicare prescription drug benefits package designed to help American seniors pay for their medications. This month, the Kerry campaign released a TV ad attacking President Bush’s Medicare record stating, “The very next day George Bush imposes the biggest Medicare premium increase in history while prescription drug costs still skyrocket.” There are several problems with this ad, namely that fact that 1) Kerry skipped the December 8 vote and 2) Kerry voted to support the increase in Medicare premiums that he now criticizes. The Kerry campaign offers no specifics on...

Easy commute for delegates: Local pols opt for posh downtown digs By David R. Guarino Friday, June 25, 2004 As commuters sweat through convention gridlock, area pols and delegates - many who live within a few miles of the FleetCenter - will be living it up in posh, traffic-free serenity at their own downtown hotel. Nearly 140 delegates, led by the state's top pols, reserved rooms at the Fairmont Copley Plaza by today's deadline - including several congressmen, state constitutional officers and dozens of state lawmakers, the Herald has learned. Two-thirds of the delegates live within 30 miles of the...

Hello All, Was just at a downtown Philadelphia Border's Book. Bill Clinton's new book (My Life) now is now at 30% discount for pre-orders. Is this something new to boost the "openning day" sales?

<p>WASHINGTON -- If Congress is unable to agree on a Medicare prescription drug bill this year -- as is increasingly likely -- members contend that there could be a small consolation prize for millions of retired citizens. That would be a government-promoted prescription drug discount card, which could be used at thousands of drug stores across the country, as well as mail-order houses selling drugs in quantity at cut rates.</p>