Arizona Beagle Rescue was contacted last week by an organization that rescues and rehabilitates mill dogs, and tries to educate the general public about puppy mills. Apparently 100 dogs were given up under an agreement with a puppy mill owner in Missouri, who has about 500 dogs in her possession. Missouri doesn't have any beagle rescue organizations, so AZBR was able to find volunteers to drive and pick up 25 beagles and 3 beagle-mixes at a meeting point in New Mexico.

So far, all our new beagle residents have received pillows, beds and blankets (most of them have only lived inside wire crates), been bathed, clipped, seen by a vet, and provided medication for any problems diagnosed. They will be spayed and neutered and then moved into foster homes until permanent, loving families can be found.

Arizona Beagle Rescue operates solely on donations and does not operate a shelter. A statewide network of volunteers open their homes and hearts to provide foster care for rescued dogs until qualified, loving forever homes are found. As of Sunday, they still need foster homes for about half the puppy mill beagles. You can read the entire story of the beagle puppy mill and the people who saved these 28 dogs at the AZBR web site. Have you ever considered fostering a beagle?

Residents of Arizona who receive monthly Social Security checks are now being offered a free service by the Social Security Administration. It is called Direct Express. It is a debit card that will be automatically loaded with your monthly benefit instead of you receiving a check in the mail. Here are ten things you should know about Direct Express.

1. The Direct Express Card is not a credit card. It is a debit card. It works like a stored-money card. Social Security will send recipients a card. Once per month Social Security will electronically add your monthly benefit amount to the card. The person to whom it is issued can then use it, just like a debit card, anywhere that accepts MasterCard.
2. The point of the card is twofold. It removes the burden of requiring a checking account for people who receive social Security. That can be costly, and many people can't afford the bank fees. The other benefit is that by allowing the government to not mail as many paper checks, they are hoping to reduce fraud associated with those checks.
3. Sign up for the Direct Express Social Security Card is optional. If you are happy about the way you are receiving your Social Security payments today, you don't have to sign up.
4. There are no sign-up fees, monthly fees, or overdraft fees for the service. No credit check takes place.
5. When you receive the card, you have to activate it and select a PIN (personal identification number). This allows you to make inquiries in the future regarding the balance of the card.
6. Your money is automatically deposited to your card account on your payment day each month.
7. People can use the Direct Express Social Security Card at an ATM to receive cash, but only once without a fee, and only if you use one of their network ATMs. Use the card in a ATM more than once per month, and you'll be charged. I found quite a few network ATMs in our area. You can use your zip code to look for one near you here. If there aren't any network ATMs near you, then you can still get cash by getting cash back after buying something at a retailer, just like any debit card, or by going to a bank that handles MasterCard and requesting cash from the card.
8. You can receive statements, text messages, phone alerts, a replacement cards if you lose one, etc. but all those services have fees. It is possible, however, to use the card totally fee-free by utilizing the toll-free 24/7 customer service line, by using the card to make your purchases like gas, groceries, and movies, and by obtaining cash as mentioned in number 7, above.
9. If you are currently receiving Social Security or Supplemental Security Income benefits, just call the Direct Express® card enrollment center toll free at 1-877-212-9991 or visit www.USDirectExpress.com
10. If you have signed up, tried it for a few months, and decide you don't like it, you can always go back to receiving your payments the way you did before.

Want to know more or sign up? Here's the official web site.

You Might Also Be Interested In....

• What's a Debit Card?
• Beware of Identity Theft
• How To Select a PIN

Jake's Corner is a real place. It's off Route 87, the Beeline Highway. That's the road that most of us in the Phoenix area use to get to Payson. Just take a break at the rest stop at the Route 188 cut-off and keep going. If you decide to go, it would probably take about an hour and a half.

If you don't want to drive, you can just see a new film, Jake's Corner. It is is an independent, low-budget movie filmed entirely in the area spotlighted by the film and in Phoenix. It has a couple of famous names associated with it. Jeff Santo, son of Chicago Cubs ballplayer Ron Santo, wrote and directed the film.

Dan Majerle, former Phoenix Suns basketball player and owner of Majerle's Sports Grill, was one of the producers. B.J. Thomas, of Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head fame, is in the movie and sings on the soundtrack.

I attended the red carpet premiere of the film last night. This family movie centers around Johnny Dunn (played by Richard Tyson), a former pro athlete, that withdraws to Jake's Corner after a family tragedy. He and a group of quirky local characters lead slow, seemingly pointless and sheltered lives.

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In November 2008 voters in Arizona will address Proposition 101, sponsored by Medical Choice for Arizona.

Passage of this proposition would result in an amendment to the Arizona Constitution stating that no law shall be passed that restrict's a person's freedom of choice of private health care systems or private plans, and that no one shall be penalized for opting not to participate in any particular health care system, plan or coverage.

Click on "Read more" to see a synopsis of the pros and cons and find more information about this ballot measure.

Will you vote in favor of Proposition 101?

1) Yes, Arizona's Constitution should include a provision that protects a person's right to make their own health care choices without paying a fee or penalty.
2) No, there may come a time when some form of universal medical insurance becomes necessary.

View Poll Results

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