Headlines----

 

American Express Business Finance Major Loss?

   ( Would one of the portfolio letters be “R”? )

  Commercial Money Center---Returns $1.2 Million to Date

     ePlus Records 24% Increase in Net Earnings for Third Quarter

            AGL&F May 1-3 Conference, Baltimore, Maryland

              UAEL/EAEL Joint Las Vegas Conference  Faux Pas

                NAELB brochure/registration Now Available

                   eMail Chain Letters. It’s All Perfectly Legal—NOT!

 

 

Special Report:  Repair Credit

 

                                       Where is Richard Baccaro?  Former Executive Vice-President of American Express Business Finance—joined First Sierra, 1998.

 

 

__________________________

 

American Express Business Finance Major Loss?

     ( Would one of the portfolio letters be “R”? )

 

 

 

A well informed source tells Leasing News that one of the portfolio’s sold to American Express by First Sierra has a loss of $16 million now.  This is getting large enough to be footnoted in the Security Exchange report.  Or will it be buried.  Stay tuned as we find out more. We hope to have the full story soon.

 

__________________________________________________________________

 

Commercial Money Center---Returns $1.2 Million to Date

 

Despite the controversy, Leasing News can personally testify that Bill Hansen has

done everything he said he would do in returning advance rental deposits and

also trying to fund the leasing pools.   He explained all of this in his

“Meet the Leasing News Maker.”

 

http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/CMC.htm

 

            “Kit, since everyone is working so hard on completing the pool, I am

giving the approximate figures, these numbers will be lower then the actual numbers, (but their close) The number of checks sent out is approximately 342+, for over $1,200,000. We have approximately 50+ checks more to be approved and sent out.”

 

Thank You

Bill Hanson

BillH@cmcca.com

__________________________________________________________________

 

### ################################# #####################

 

 

ePlus Records 24% Increase in Net Earnings for Third Quarter

 

  A leading provider of Web-based e-procurement, asset management, financing, leasing-----

 

HERNDON, Va.-- 

 

Earnings per share increases 11% to $0.20; Government

 

Financing Increases 152%

 

 

 

ePlus inc. (Nasdaq:PLUS), a leading provider of business process automation solutions and services, announces fully diluted GAAP earnings per share of $0.20 for its third quarter ending December 31, 2001, a 11% increase over the prior year's quarterly earnings per share of $0.18. Net earnings increased 24% to $2.1 million from $1.7 million the prior fiscal year, while revenues declined 24% to $55.8 million from $73.7 million.

 

For the nine months ending December 31, 2001, revenues declined 33% to $156.3 million from $234.5 million. Net earnings increased 4% to $6.5 million from $6.2 million, and fully diluted earnings per share increased 2% to $0.61 from $0.60.

 

Phillip G. Norton, chairman, president and chief executive officer said "September 11th had both positive and negative impact on financial results for the quarter. On a positive note, the government financing business was especially strong, with total volume increasing 152% to $71 million from a year ago. In the commercial market, sales of new equipment and e-commerce solutions continued to be lower than last year, as companies delayed technology refresh programs and deferred purchases."

 

"The diversity of our business units creates a good mix of revenues and sources of earnings, and strong cash flow. Combined with a strong balance sheet, our earnings stability enables us to invest in expanding ePlus' footprint, customer base, and technology - for example, the SourceOne acquisition has given us a much larger presence in California" continued Mr. Norton. "Our business process automation solution is the best answer for today's cost conscious and budget-constrained customer. The government market, which covers all of our business units -- equipment sales, financing, and software - is proving to be a great vertical market. We are focused on winning new customers, and we are successful."

 

The Company has extensive expertise in the government market, and has been financing municipal and federal government transactions for over 10 years. ePlus has multiple eProcurement customers, some of whom have been customers of the company for more than ten years.

 

Highlights for the Quarter

 

--  Expanded geographic footprint by opening regional sales

offices in several new markets, including California, Illinois

and Georgia. Hired an additional 15 new salesmen including 8

from the acquisition of SourceOne.

 

--  Announced the general availability of ePlus Content

Framework(SM), an open and fully extensible schema for the

creation and management of e-commerce-enabled product

catalogs.

 

--  Upgraded several long-term Procure+ customers such as World

Savings and Loan, Velocity Express, and Washington State Dept

of Labor and Industries.

 

--  Rolled out Procure+ MarketBuilder at Affordable Care to 150 of

its customers, with an annualized order volume of $1,375,000

after 6 months, and implemented EDI with primary supplier.

 

--  Provided functional enhancements to Procure+, including a

PCard Reconciliation Process, Advanced Document Approval

Options, Advanced Supplier Bid Response, Web-Enablement of

Warehouse Process Requisition Types, and support for lease

payment options.

 

--  Announced an agreement for a strategic business, marketing and

technology alliance to promote eProcurement solutions in

Canada with Upside Software Inc., an integrated

business-to-business (B2B) enterprise solution provider.

 

--  Announced Content+ (TM), a comprehensive suite of software and

outsourced services for advanced electronic catalog content

production and management.

 

--  Acquired SourceOne Computer Corporation, a technology sales

and services company located in Silicon Valley, the company's

first west coast acquisition, and began marketing e-commerce

solutions and products to SourceOne's customer base.

 

--  Rolled out Electronic Bill Payment and Presentment (EBPP)

functionality to customers.

 

Unless otherwise stated, the financial results presented in the text below are for the quarter ending December 31, 2001 as compared to the quarter ending December 31, 2000.

 

Financing Business Unit

 

Lease revenues increased 9% to $11.5 million from $10.6 million the same period the prior fiscal year as a result of increased remarketing activity and increased federal government financing volume. Sales of leased equipment increased 48% to $8.3 million from $5.6 million and total lease origination volume increased 64% to $98.4 million. Origination of government financings increased 152% from $28.0 million to $70.7 million and commercial lease origination decreased 14% from $32.1 million to $27.7 million.

 

The Company's total leased assets were $185 million as of December 31, 2001, as compared to $226 million on December 31, 2000. Interest and financing costs declined 35% to $2.6 million from $4.0 million as a result of lower interest rates and a smaller amount of leased assets and corresponding non-recourse debt on the balance sheet.

 

Technology Business Unit

 

Sales of equipment decreased 35% to $26.3 million, as compared to $40.4 million the same period the prior fiscal year, and increased 5% as compared to the prior sequential quarter ending September 30, 2001. The cost of equipment sales decreased 32% to $22.7 million from $33.2 million as compared to the same period the prior fiscal year, and the gross margin of equipment sold decreased from 17.9% to 13.9% as compared to the same period the prior fiscal year.

 

E-commerce Business Unit

 

In the company's e-commerce segment, ePlusSuite revenues decreased 31% to $1.2 million for the quarter as compared to $1.8 million for the same quarter in the prior fiscal year. The decrease is directly attributable to a 63% decline of sales of equipment in the segment and associated transaction fees. Net e-commerce revenues in the e-commerce segment decreased 64% from $4.6 million to $1.7 million, reflecting a decrease in sales of equipment. The company is continuing to transition customers from transaction-based pricing to subscription based pricing, which will also defer revenues.

 

Costs and Expenses

 

The Company reduced the number of retained technology consultants for the quarter, and as a result Professional and Other Fees decreased 14% to $623 thousand from $727 thousand the same period the prior fiscal year. Salaries and benefits increased 11% to $9.2 million from $8.3 million the same period the prior fiscal year as a result of an increase in the number of new employees from the SourceOne, ePlus Systems and ePlus Content acquisitions and an increase in the number of sales personnel, which was partially offset by reduced commissions on sales of equipment. General and Administrative expenses declined 24% to $2.8 million from $3.7 million the same period the prior fiscal year.

 

Balance Sheet

 

Cash was $42.7 million, including $12.8 million held for others, and the company had no borrowings outstanding under its line of credit. Goodwill increased by $2.4 million to $19.9 million as compared to September 30, 2001, attributable to the October 4, 2001 acquisition of SourceOne Systems.

 

Recourse notes payable was $3.8 million as of December 31, 2001, as the company repaid in full its short term line of credit. Non-recourse notes, which relate to the lease portfolio, was $138.6 million.

 

Stockholders' equity increased to $104.2 million on December 31, 2001 from $101.1 million on on September 30, 2001. This is attributable to issue of ePlus common shares with a value of $2.0 million (274,999 shares) for purchase of SourceOne Systems, and an increase in retained earnings of $2.14 million. The company repurchased 16,100 shares of treasury stock during the quarter at a cost $125,070 at an average share price of $7.77 per share.

 

 

About ePlus inc.

 

A leading provider of Web-based e-procurement, asset management, financing, leasing, sourcing, and eContent technology and services, ePlus delivers comprehensive and high-value business solutions. The ePlusSuite of products and services, including Procure+, Manage+, Finance+, Service+, Content+, and ePlusMarket, helps businesses around the world dynamically streamline, improve and gain management control. ePlus solutions integrate and automate each aspect of the supply chain process: from requisition to approval, fulfillment, financing and asset management, delivering the highest return on investment.

 

ePlus(TM), ePlusSuite(TM), Procure+(TM) , Manage+(TM) , Service+(TM), B14ZR(TM), OneSource(TM), OneReq(TM), CLG(TM) and MarketBuilder(TM) are trademarks of ePlus Inc. Finance+(SM) is a registered service mark of ePlus inc. ePlus Jumpstart(SM), and ePlus Content Framework(SM), are service marks applied for of ePlus.

 

Founded in 1990, the company is headquartered in Herndon, VA and has more than 30 locations in the US. For more information, visit our website at www.eplus.com, call 800-827-5711 or email to info@eplus.com.

#################### ###############################

 

     ( non-members are welcome )

 

 

May 1-3 Association of Government Leasing and Finance Spring Conference.

 

The 2002 AGL&F Spring Conference is fast approaching. We hope to see you in

May 1-3 at the Renaissance Harborplace in Baltimore, Maryland.

 

Registration materials will be out in early March but now is a great time to

make your travel arrangements. Please call the Renaissance Harborplace at

1-410-547-1200 and make your room reservations now.  Our rate is

$209.00/night (Single or Double) and please be sure to mention that you are

with the Association for Governmental Leasing and Finance Conference.

 

Due to the lack of a Saturday stay requirement and service by Southwest and

Amtrak, airfare to Baltimore (BWI) is one of the most cost effective

destinations.  With Baltimore's position among the metropolitan areas of the

east coast, we are expecting a larger than normal turnout for this

conference.  We recommend you reserve your room now.

 

In addition, we have negotiated an airfare discount with US Airways and US

Airways Shuttle for AGL&F Conference Attendees. The details are found below.

 

I look forward to seeing you as we get Back to Business in Baltimore for

this very important conference and networking opportunity.

 

  Much has changed since we convened a year ago for the Spring Conference in Chicago and I know many of you missed our very successful outing in Tucson for the Annual Conference this past November.

 

Please mark the dates and be sure to take advantage of your time now to make

your travel plans.  Again,  see you in Baltimore and please feel free to

contact me with any questions.

 

Cordially,

Graham Hauck

AGL&F Executive Director

 

US Airways has been designated as the official carrier for the attendees of

the AGL&F Annual Spring Conference, May 1-3, 2002 in Baltimore, MD (includes

 

National (DCA), Dulles (IAD) and BWI airports). Us Airways agrees to offer

an exclusive low fare for the attendees.  This special fare will offer a 5%

discount off First or Envoy Class and any published US Airways promotional

round trip fare.  A 10% Discount off unrestricted "Y" of B8us / B4US fares

will apply with 7 days advance reservations and ticketing required.  Plan

ahead and receive an additional 5% discount by ticketing 60 days or more

prior to departure.  These discounts are valid provided all rules and

restrictions are met and are applicable for travel from all points on US

Airways' route system.

 

Us Airways will also offer exclusive negotiated rates for attendees who are

unable to meet the restrictions of the promotional round trip fares.

Certain restrictions, including advance purchase requirements, may apply.

These special rates are applicable for travel from the Continental United

States.

 

The above discounts are not combinable with other discounts or promotions,

and are valid between April 28 - May 6, 2002.  Additional restrictions may

apply on international travel.

 

To obtain these discounts, you or your professional travel consultant must

call US Airways' Group and Meeting Reservation Office toll free at (877)

874-7687; 8:00AM - 9:30PM, Eastern Time.  Refer to Gold File No. 74172333.

 

For further information:

 

Jorie Lagerwey
Executive Assistant
mailto: greg.sale@msi-intl.comjlagerwey@aglif.com

 

__________________________________________________________________

 

UAEL/EAEL Joint Las Vegas Conference  Faux Pas

 

United Association of Equipment Leasing Joint Conference

   with the Eastern Association of Equipment Lessors

2002 Spring Education Conference

Brent Hall has put this together, and he has thought of the right

times for workshops and fun !!!!  Bring your wife or girl friend,

and cash as you can't win, unless you play!

Bet On America!

EAEL and UAEL Together Again!

Ceasars Palace

Las Vegas, Nevada

Online registration coming soon. Check back for details.

 

 

I wrote “bring your wife or girl friend...bring cash” to Las Vegas.  I thought it was “cute.” Normally I put in spouse or significant other, but to liven it up, I thought I

would be “bawdy” saying bring your girl friend to “LAS VEGAS”.   The women didn’t find it humorous:

 

 

Kit,

Since Bette Kerhoulas (2003 UAEL President) and I don't have a wife or

"girlfriend", should we not attend the UAEL/EAEL Conference?

 

Ginny Young

GinnyYoung@bravacapital.com

 

( yes, attend, but leave your husband at home, unless you think

  you will have more fun with him in Vegas. Kit 

 

P.S. Only kidding, Ginny. You can bring your husband. You brought

  him to New Orleans, remember? We all had dinner together.)

 

-------

 

Just to let you know regarding your promo for the Spring conference...there

are women in this industry...are we allowed to bring husbands and boyfriends

or are only the men allowed to bring wives and girlfriends?

 

Sincerely,

Deborah J. Monosson

President

BOSTON FINANCIAL & EQUITY CORPORATION

20 Overland Street

Boston MA 02215

617-267-2900 Tel

617-437-7601

http://www.bfec.com

 

 

Debbie---I added that as a "gag"  meaning wife or girlfriend

 

What I will do next time I do this is say...”    bring  your husband or boyfriend”

Maybe someone will then get the joke.

 

Kit---

 

Please explain the "joke" part to me...I have a good sense of humor even

regarding the sexes but I don’t' get that one at all..

 

If I don't get it and I regard myself as pretty astute, witty and educated I

am SURE the bulk of your readers took it to mean exactly what you wrote...if

you have daughters ask them what they think of it.

 

Sincerely,

Deborah J. Monosson

 

( I sent an e-mail to my daughter in Lamoille, Nevada  ( population 50 ), about 45

minutes out of Elko, Nevada ( population 5,000).  She has been to Reno a few

times, never to Las Vegas ( to Disneyland when she was younger ).  She thought

it was funny, but added, “ Dad, I know your sense of humor. Sometimes it

is pretty dumb.”

 

 She suggested I add,” Leave your kids at home.”  She said then it would be funny.

 

 

--- 

 

While I am sure that Brent is doing a terrific job, the conference that

you discussed in Leasing News is actually a joint conference: UAEL

Spring Educational / EAEL Annual Conference. Gordon Roberts is our

Conference Chair and Alison Pryor is working her fingers to the bone,

along with all of our support staff, to make this a great success

 

Steven B. Geller, CLP

Leasing Solutions LLC

20 Dike Drive

Wesley Hills, New York 10952

845-362-6106

fax 845-354-2803

cell 914-552-0842

www.leasingsolutionsllc.com

 

  ( Gee, I never got so much static over a “plug.”  I did headline it as a

joint conference. Gordon nor Alison have never contacted me about the conference, nor sent me anything on the event, and all the information I get is

from Joanie Dalton, exec. dir. at UAEL,  who sends me e-mails all the time, trying to promote events, calls me and is a regular “press agent.” I also spoke to Brent Hall.  I was really impressed with the plans, his enthusiasm, and the planning

behind the conference as he is allowing time for people to have fun.  I know Joe Woodley was also helping out, and he talked to me about it, looking for

a great speaker, the last I heard..  So I guess I am like the computer, what comes out is what has to first go in. I wasn’t slighting EAEL—in fact, I just reported

about the EAEL joint conference with the National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers. editor )

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

April 11 - 14, 2002

 

National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers 2002 Annual Convention

 

Caribe Royale Resort, Suites Hotel and Villas

Orlando, FL

 

Brochure and Registration Now available at:

 

http://www.leasingnews.org/PDFFiles/meeting_flyer.pdf

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Repair Credit

 

More response regarding the e-mail advertisements that they can

repair anyone’s credit ( many of these are gimmicks and some

outright misrepresentation )

 

May the lawyers forgive me here.

 

There are very strong federal laws governing the legitimate correction of

consumer credit bureau information. I believe, after having followed the

proper procedure, the bureau has 30 days to confirm, correct, or DELETE

any contested information contained in a consumer report. The best thing

you can do is to give your customer:

 

1.    A signed Reg. B Rejection Letter - so your customer can get a free copy

of their consumer credit report.

 

2.    The name, address and 800 number or website for each of the three

bureaus.

 

Also important to note:

 

1.    If your customer is currently past due on an obligation, DO NOT PAY IT

OFF!!! Bring the account current and continue to pay on time for 12-24 more

months. If the customer pays off and/or closes the account, the negative

information remains FROZEN IN TIME on the credit report for seven years. I'm

sure you've seen plenty of these.

 

2.    Do not follow the credit guru's advice to close all your unused credit

cards. Keep your balances low, but make very sure that you have at least 75%

(at least 4 times your balance) revolving credit available.

 

Although many reports contain errors, they are often insignificant and the

correct information is often irrelevant in trying to approve an application.

I have had some success with a divorced client who followed the right

channels, and had some negative information removed, simply because it was

so confusing that the credit bureau could not CONFIRM the information

contained in the report. This is perhaps the ONLY legitimate weapon in

removing negative credit information. You should read the FCRA for more

information. You can find it in several places on the web. There are several

sections governing the procedures that must be followed by credit reporting

agencies.

 

Doug Delack

ddelack@cox.net

Alternative Finance, Inc.

DDelack@USA.NET

 

---

 

 

 

The Fair Credit Reporting Act provides the strongest weapon for consumers wishing to correct errors on their credit report.  The government's Fair Credit Reporting Act Homepage is at http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fcrajump.htm

< http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fcrajump.htm >  .  That page contains

links to the actual statute as well as opinion letters and other information interpreting it.  You will probably find the link to "Educational Material" at the bottom of the page to be most useful.

 

If you are short on time, skip straight

ohttp://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/fcra.htm

< http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/fcra.htm >  .

This brochure summarizes consumer's rights under the Act.

 

Hope that helps,

 

Ken Weinberg

BERKOWITZ, LEFKOVITS, ISOM & KUSHNER

 Attn: Ken Weinberg

 SouthTrust Tower

 420 North 20th Street

 Birmingham, Alabama 35203-5202

 

 mailto:kweinberg@blik.com <mailto:kweinberg@blik.com >

 Direct Dial: 205.250.8344

 Fax: 205.322.8007

 www.leaselawyer.com

 www.blik.com

 

___  

 

TOP PRIORITIES:

 

Pay all bills on time, especially mortgage payment but including credit card bills, utilities, phone bills and even hospitals. Rent generally does not count in a credit rating.

 

Reduce amount of debt, especially as compared to total available credit limit from all sources. Don't max out credit cards.

 

Don't add to debt load; obtain new credit only when absolutely necessary.

 

OTHER TIPS:

 

Build a long credit history; a limited credit history can have a negative impact, even if the vast majority of the information is good.

 

Don't make several new credit applications in a short period of time. The score factors in the number of recent credit requests. This does not include regular monitoring by creditors or requests by creditors wanting to make ''prescreened'' offers.

 

Reduce number of credit accounts. Though it is good to have established credit accounts with good payment history, too many accounts reflects negatively.

Look at type of credit. Under some models, loans from finance companies can have a negative impact. But a mix of debt that goes beyond credit cards to include an auto or previous home loans can help.

 

Examine credit report for errors such as accounts marked as open that have been paid off and closed or false late-payment listings and have them corrected.

Sources: Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Reports

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

eMail Chain Letters. It’s All Perfectly Legal—NOT!

by Roy Mark

Paul K. Boiven -- aka Paul Bowen, aka Paul Boevein, aka Paul Bowvein, aka Paul Brown -- promised users up to an easy $46,000 in 60 days to participate in an e-mail chain letter. The e-mail advised readers to send $5 in cash to each of the four or five participants at the top of the list. It then told new recruits to place their own names at the top of the list and remove the name at the bottom.

In return for the $5, recruits received "reports" providing instructions about how to start their own chain letter schemes and recruit tens of thousands of others via spam.

It was all perfectly legal, Boiven contended. In the e-mail, he even urged readers with doubts to contact Eileen Harrington, Associate Director of the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Division of Marketing Practices.

In fact, many readers did just that. On Tuesday, the FTC said it had caught Boiven and six others in a sting operation. The seven werpetrators agreed to settle charges that they were spamming consumers with deceptive chain letters. Financial terms of the settlements were not disclosed.

In addition to Boiven, the Commission reached settlements with Chad and Megan Estenson of Warwick, N.D.; Fernando Pacheco of North Providence, R.I.; Arnold Larsen of Sarasota, Fla.; John Lutheran of San Diego, Calif.; and Dario Va of Weson, Fla. The FTC filed its case and the settlement in the federal court of each defendant's district.

The roundup is part of the Commission's renewed focus on stamping out fraudulent e-mail advertisers. Earlier this month, during the annual Privacy and Data Security Summit in Washington, D.C., FTC chiefs gave notice that the federal agency would begin brining suspected deceptive or fraudulent advertisers to task.

In September 2000, the FTC sent letters to 1,000 promoters of an e-mail Ponzi scheme, warning them that their activities were illegal and instructing them to cease, to return any money they had received by participating in the program, and to forward a copy of the FTC's warning letter to everyone they had e-mailed.

Thirteen months later, the FTC went back and searched online newsgroups and within the agency's junk e-mail database looking for the chain letter scam. The search found more than 2,000 participants in the chain letter, from almost 60 countries around the world. Working undercover, FTC investigators and paralegals contacted the scheme's promoters -- who they confirmed were continuing the scam, despite earlier warnings.

"This chain letter deceptively claims the program is legal and urges recruits who question its legitimacy to contact the FTC's Associate Director for Marketing Practices," Harrington said. "Well, I am the Associate Director for Marketing Practices, and these chain letters are illegal."

The FTC's settlement with the seven defendants included a permanent injunction barring them from promoting, selling or participating in any Ponzi scheme, in addition to forbidding misrepresentations about the potential earnings or rewards from any marketing scheme.

The injunction also bars misrepresentations about the legality of any program, and from providing others with the tools -- in this case, an e-mail template -- to make false or misleading statements. The defendants are also barred from selling or sharing lists of their recruits and making money from the scheme in the future.

Additionally, the settlements all contain record-keeping requirements to allow the Commission to monitor compliance.

In addition to the settlements, the FTC announced it would mail warning letters to more than 2,000 individuals still involved in the chain letter, using addresses culled from the FTC's unsolicited commercial e-mail database.

Consumers currently send unsolicited e-mail to the agency at a rate of approximately 15,000 e-mails a day, it said. (The FTC has a specific e-mail address, uce@ftc.gov, that it asks consumers to use in reporting and forwarding unwanted e-mail.) The FTC has collected more than eight million unsolicited commercial e-mail messages since 1998, it said.

"Almost everyone with an e-mail account gets spam," said FTC Chairman Timothy J. Muris. "It's intrusive, unwelcome, and annoying. Deceptive junk e-mail is also illegal. We want to send a message today: we're going after deceptive spam and the people who send it. We want it off the Net."

In addition cracking down on fraudulent e-mail advertisers, the agency also reiterated its plans for a public/private education effort, which it intends to launch in conjunction with Internet Service Provider trade associations, including the Washington Association of ISPs and the Texas ISP Association.

The Texas Association's 250 members and Washington Association's 30 members will publicize and disseminate consumer education materials developed by the FTC to warn consumers about illegal chain mail schemes, it said.

For ISPs, which shoulder much of the costs for delivering unwanted e-mail, the government's crackdown comes as good news.

Additionally, the same is true for legitimate e-mail marketers, who have to contend with the eroding effect that junk-filled inboxes have on consumers' willingness to open commercial e-mail. Several online marketing groups -- such as the Direct Marketing Association and the Responsible Electronic Communications Alliance -- have proposed guidelines to restrict e-mail marketing to companies that have tacit permission to send mail, or else have prior business relationships with their recipients.

Still, consumer advocates and not-for-profits like Mail Abuse Prevention Systems (MAPS) want to see the standard taken further: to an explicitly "opt-in" policy by marketers, rather than the "opt-out" policy now favored by the industry's major players.

Valentine’s Day  in America:  http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/feb14.html

 

 

---

History of St.  Valentine’s Day

  5th Century, Rome

          Mid February was traditionally the time of the Lupercian festival, an ode to the God of fertility and a celebration of sensual pleasure, a time to meet and court a prospective mate. In AD 496, Pope Gelasius outlawed the pagan festival. But he was clever to replace it with a similar celebration, although one deemed morally suitable. He needed a "lovers" saint to replace the pagan deity Lupercus.

The martyred Bishop Valentine was chosen as the patron saint of the new festival.

Saint Valentine had been beheaded for helping young lovers marry against the wishes of the mad emperor Claudius. Before execution, Valentine himself had fallen in love with his jailer's daughter. He signed his final note to her, "From Your Valentine", a phrase that has lasted through the centuries.