Commentary

We were delighted to see the article on the VISTA volunteers working for Montana Credit Unions for Community Development on issues like Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) and alternatives to payday lending in the Aug. 31 issue. VISTA Volunteers Jessica Baker and Ginny Summey shouldn't feel alone in their work with...

Perhaps no issue in recent years has galvanized the credit union community as much as the recent debate over credit union conversions. The well-publicized court battle between Community Credit Union of Plano, Texas, and NCUA has brought that debate front-and-center. Given that backdrop, I think it is appropriate that I...

The Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 (Medicare Part D) takes effect Jan. 1, 2006. It is a voluntary insurance plan created by Congress to help Medicare-eligible people pay for their prescriptions. Medicare recipients will choose their drug plan and pay a monthly premium. While aimed at...

Ever wonder why the fancy ATM in the lobby that you just upgraded for Triple DES doesn't do much more than the old machine it replaced? Ever wonder why the ATM in your state-of-the-art corporate headquarters still sends transactions to a third-party data center in Duluth, only to be routed...

Before pulling the plug completely on its struggling Oldsmobile division, the marketing wizards at General Motors mounted a campaign a few years back to attract younger drivers to its sagging Olds lineup. The now famous tagline, "This is not your father's Oldsmobile," no doubt will live on-long after the last...

Marv: Indeed, we do see this issue differently. On the surface, I agree that there appears to be as many opinions on the credit union philosophy as there are people, but I think when it comes to the core, just about everybody knows what that philosophy is. You talk about...

It is very clear to me that we see the issue of charter options very differently. Neither of us is likely to change the other's point of view. One of these days I would like to hear more detail about your definition of "credit union philosophy." It has been my...

Plastic card losses are escalating to unprecedented levels as criminals exploit the Internet, mail, ATMs, and retail merchants to pilfer plastic card information. There's been much publicity about the theft of debit and credit card information from databases retained in violation of card association rules at nationally known retailers including...