THE IRONY HASN'T ESCAPED US

We realize that businesses need to tout their specialty in order to thrive and grow. But a pitch we saw today from Consolidated Credit.org gave us pause. In it, the credit-counseling service advises people to shop early and often [italics ours] in order to save money. Ummm, what? “The experts at Consolidated Credit Counseling Services advise to get in holiday gear now to save money and avoid stress. End of summer specials and back to school sales can be a great time to buy holiday gifts to put away until December,” they claim. Hmmm, maybe. But then there was this, in their “Tips” section: “Shop the day after a holiday. Holidays such as Valentines Day, Christmas, Halloween, and Easter generally mark everything down 50% the next day in order to clear their shelves. This is a great time to stock up on candy, books, and stuffed animals.” Yeah, because that’s what everyone secretly wants: Year-old candy.