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ST. LOUIS NEWS TODAY - Sunday, October 2, 2005
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Cardinal Baseball Fans Say Thanks for the Memories
Everet Brown, of Dittmer, MO, was among thousands of Cardinals Baseball fans who enjoyed the Parade-a-Palazooa along Market Street prior to the last regular season game at Busch Memorial Stadium.
"Lou", "Lou" shouted fans as Baseball Hall of Fame inductee and former St. Louis Cardinals "Running Redbird" Lou Brock rode past the crowd.
Cardinals fans showed their support near Busch Memorial Stadium which will be torn down following the playoffs.
Members of the Bodacious RedHatters sported their best hats for the parade which began at Union Station at 9:30 a.m. and traveled down Market Street to Kiener Plaza for a free party.
The crowd cheered loudly for the rain-drenched baseball fans on the DeCamp Junction of Staunton, IL unit.
The Staunton, IL High School Marching Band was one of over 70 units in the Parade-a-Palazooa sponsored by KMOX and US Cellular.
Shopper's Delight at Best of Missouri Market
Shoppers at the Best of Missouri Market were delighted to find thousands of handmade products by Missouri vendors who set up booths under large tents on the parking lots at Missouri Botanical Garden, October 1 - 2.
Astist Neil Chasko, of Creekside Shoppe, with Sue and John Brown, of Chesterfield, who bought one of the unique handmade rustic birdhouses for their garden.
Virlene Reichert and Joan Bailey, of St. Louis, purchased pottery pieces from Ken Russell Pottery to add to their collection for a kitchen renovation.
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CEO of the American Red Cross St. Louis Deployed to Baton Rouge
ST. LOUIS, (PRNewswire), October 2, 2005 - Joseph C. White, CEO of the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter, will deploy to Baton Rouge to serve as Organization Administrator for Red Cross Disaster Relief Headquarters for Louisiana. Mr. White is serving as one of seven administrators managing Red Cross relief efforts across Louisiana.
Over the past five weeks, Mr. White has led hurricane relief operations here in St. Louis. The St. Louis Area Chapter has operated two service centers for evacuees since August 31.
To date, over 5,102 people who made their way to St. Louis from affected areas have met with Red Cross caseworkers; Red Cross has provided shelter, food, clothing, prescription medication, mental health counseling and more based upon individual needs. Direct aid disbursed through the St. Louis Area Chapter now exceeds $1.45 million.
In the wake of a natural disaster of unprecedented scope, the American Red Cross is setting records in the quantity and agility of its response. This all-out effort to meet the emergency needs of more than two million survivors directly affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita comes at a cost: The Red Cross has spent or committed more than $1.21 billion to date and expects the operation to top the $2 billion mark.
The Red Cross is spending nearly $35 million a day just on financial assistance to meet the emergency needs of families. As of today, the Red Cross has raised $1.125 billion in gifts and pledges, of which approximately $856 million has been received. The Red Cross is at the point where money is being spent faster than donations are coming in.
"We are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of support from our donors. In the face of unimaginable devastation, we were able to provide unprecedented levels of immediate emergency services, thanks to the public's generosity," said Marsha J. Evans, President and CEO of the American Red Cross. "But we still have a long road ahead. The next 30 days will be just as critical as the past 30 days.
American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. You can help the victims of the recent hurricanes and thousands of other disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need.
Call 1-800-HELP NOW or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting http://www.redcross.org/. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster, please do so at the time of your donation.
Merchants Seek Significant Reform
of Credit Card Fee System
ST. LOUIS, (PRNewswire), September 30, 2005 - Four major merchant associations filed an antitrust, class-action lawsuit alleging that Visa, MasterCard, Bank of America, Citibank, Bank One, Chase Manhattan Bank, J.P. Morgan, Chase, Fleet Bank, Capital One, and other banks are engaging in collusive practices by setting credit card interchange fees at supracompetitive levels.
The suit's plaintiffs -- the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS), the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) and the National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA) -- represent hundreds of thousands of drug stores, convenience stores and food stores across the United States that accept Visa and MasterCard as a form of payment.
In the United States, interchange is the largest component of credit card fees and has a significant impact on American consumers, who are affected by interchange rates that are among the highest in the world. Interchange rates cost the average American household approximately $232 a year in 2004.
When consumers purchase goods or services with a credit card, the payment is processed through the merchant's bank and the bank that issued the consumer the credit card. The issuing bank charges the merchant's bank a fee to process the transaction. The merchant's bank then adds its own fee for processing the transaction, and passes on both of these fees -- collectively known as interchange -- to the merchant.
"The credit card interchange system serves as a hidden tax, both on merchants and consumers, and raises the costs of all products regardless of the form of tender," said Hank Armour, CEO of the National Association of Convenience Stores. "And these credit card interchange fees have rapidly increased over the past several years, despite efforts by individual convenience stores to control these costs or make the competitive market work."
Interchange fees are meant to cover the cost of processing a credit card transaction and the risk taken by the issuing bank that the credit will not be repaid. However, the plaintiffs say that both fraud costs and the cost of processing are steadily decreasing, while U.S. interchange rates continue to increase. Interchange fees are substantially higher in the United States than almost any other industrialized country. Other countries have taken action to address the market problem created by these monopolies. Recent changes in Australia and countries in Europe, for example, have decreased rates from about 0.95 percent to about 0.55 percent.
"Credit card interchange fees are the third-largest expense for many chain drug stores after rent and the cost of labor," said Craig Fuller, CEO of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores. "These costs have skyrocketed over the past years even though the costs of credit card transactions for the banks have fallen. NACDS weighed many options in dealing with this issue and decided to seek litigation only after careful deliberations, with the ultimate recognition that it was necessary for the long-term reform of the system," added Fuller.
The suit's plaintiffs added they would seek damages and injunctive relief to stop the alleged anticompetitive practices of banks and credit card companies.
St. Louis' Diabetes Health May Be In Jeopardy
ST. LOUIS, (PRNewswire), September 30, 2005 - New data has revealed that from 2003 to 2004, approximately three out of four (over 70%) type 2 diabetics in St. Louis who were analyzed in a recent study were not in control of their blood sugar -- failing to meet the A1C goal of 6.5% or less, according to the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists' (AACE's) "State of Diabetes in America" Report.
Calling St. Louis residents into action, a proclamation declaring October 3rd through 7th "Diabetes Control Week," has been issued by Mayor Francis Slay. In addition, a statewide resolution sponsored by State Sen. Maida Coleman (D), has been issued by the members of the Missouri Senate 93rd General Assembly observing "Diabetes Control Week."
Approximately 301,000 people in Missouri are diagnosed with diabetes. Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes, accounts for 90 to 95% of all diagnosed diabetes cases. The A1C test, typically taken in a healthcare professional's office, measures a person's average blood sugar levels over the previous two to three months. It complements the daily blood sugar monitoring that type 2 diabetics conduct on their own. AACE recommends an A1C target level of 6.5% or less to ensure good diabetes management. This is important since every 1% increase above 6% elevates a person's risk of serious - and potentially life-threatening - diabetes-related complications, such as stroke, heart attack and loss of limbs.
"Type 2 diabetes is of urgent concern and these Report findings must serve as a wake-up call that more needs to be done to help manage A1C levels to less than 6.5%. We need to provide diabetic patients in St. Louis and Missouri with the knowledge, correct tools and encouragement to take control in order to delay or prevent diabetes-related complications that can be disabling or life threatening," said diabetes specialist, Dr. Charles Kilo, Sr., Professor of Clinical Medicine at Washington University School of Medicine and Chairman of the Kilo Diabetes & Vascular Research Foundation.
Kilo continued, "Diabetes is killing one American every three minutes and every thirty seconds a new case of diabetes is diagnosed. The total cost of diabetes is also staggering. The current diabetes epidemic is a major medical and budgetary crisis -- accelerated by increasing rates of obesity and lack of physical activity -- and continues despite major medical advances and available tools including diabetic meal plans, exercise and walking programs, blood sugar monitoring meters, oral medications and/or insulin."
AACE is urging St. Louis residents with type 2 diabetes to join others in taking an "oath" to better manage their diabetes. For more information and to receive a free diabetes-friendly cookbook and brochure, residents can visit www.stateofdiabetes.com or call (800) 704-4694.
"This week is an important week for all people of St. Louis. Type 2 diabetes is a serious health concern for many of our neighbors and loved ones -- but the good news is that we can do something about it," said Mayor Slay. "I urge all people affected by type 2 diabetes in St. Louis to take action during "Diabetes Control Week" by striving for lower A1C levels. The message is clear -- residents of St. Louis need to better control their blood sugar levels."
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