I'VE BEEN AWAY FROM the HumbleDollar community for a while. Jiab and I are working on a new book about media literacy, examining the effects of social media influencers on youth consumerism. It will teach kids about responsible web use and how to avoid the traps of the online world. I’ve learned a lot myself, including lessons that apply both online and IRL, short for “in real life.” As part of our research, one of the seedier, more adult corners of the internet I’ve explored is the scam solicitations that come to just about every user of social media. All platforms have their cyber-pirates hunting for vulnerable prey. Let me recount my encounters on Instagram as representative of the type. Most scammers begin with an innocuous hello and some questions about my location and job. I usually say I’m in Atlanta—rather than my real Texas home—just to obscure the trail a bit. The profiles almost always seem to show photos of provocative young women. A Google image search shows that the same pictures are used in a variety of accounts. After the intros comes the flattery. When asked for a pic, I send one of a famous actor about my age. This often elicits, “You’re so hot, I want to party with you.” Then comes the pitch, such as asking for gas money so she can come to my house. Some tell me they’re multi-millionaires who want to share their good fortune by giving me money. As a teacher, I’m both amused and a bit irked that these scammers don’t do better homework preparation: A woman in Los Angeles told me she could drive to my Atlanta home “in just a couple of hours” if I spotted her gas money. A Phoenix woman confirmed that she saw September’s surprise snowfall there, telling me it was beautiful. The surprise is it hasn’t snowed there in decades. When I told one inquirer that I lived in Atlanta, Georgia, she enthusiastically said she was nearby in Batumi—a city located in the Republic of Georgia. All this is amusing until you consider that people really are taken in by these scams. The Federal Trade Commission said consumers reported $770 million in social-media-originated fraud losses to the agency in 2021. Bear in mind that’s what was reported. The FTC estimates that only about 5% of fraud victims report the matter to a government agency, often because of embarrassment. Scammers succeed because they know our three vulnerabilities: We let emotion get ahead of rational thought. Scammers try to catch people in a weak moment. Most people won’t respond to flattery or attention out of the blue. But it’s a numbers game. Somewhere out there are lonely people for whom kind words and compliments make them lower their guard. Some victims have been lured into sending intimate pictures and videos later used to blackmail them. Desperation and worry over debts can silence our brain’s warnings that the “can’t-lose'' money opportunity is a trap. An online “financial advisor” lists tips for when you’re behind on the rent. Several include playing online games that “pay” you—but also encourage you to pay them to increase your odds of winning. [xyz-ihs snippet="Mobile-Subscribe"] Many online brokerage firms are nothing more than investment platforms controlled by scammers. A victim’s account seems to show positive earnings at first, but that’s just to get the victim to increase his or her investment before it’s all pulled out. Other times, goods privately sold online go undelivered. It remains a rule that if a deal appears too good to be true, it probably is. We forget that information is the key that opens the vaults. I have been told that I’m owed money or that a generous person wants to give me some. I just need to share my PayPal, Venmo or other electronic payment information so the deposit can be made. People who have done so find themselves locked out of their account or with money withdrawn. Sometimes there’s not much gone, so the account holder doesn’t notice, but small sums are subtracted regularly. A fake lottery winner sent me “her” information sheet to fill out, so she could share some of her newfound wealth with me. The form was clearly copied from the internet, still bearing the Publishers Clearing House watermark. Had I sent it in, my identity and all my account information would have been in the hands of a scammer. We can be tricked into lowering our guard. Clicking links sent to us by people we don’t know—and even people we do—is like going down a dark alley. A phishing link or SMiShing text can open up your computer to being attacked by malware, your data stolen or your computer held for ransom. Beware of emails purportedly from major companies such as Amazon, Apple and Facebook. Real companies never directly email you to ask for your account information. Upon examination, you may notice a slight misspelling or other problems with the sending email address that'll be a clue it’s not from the actual company. These scams use the same sales techniques employed in real life—by door-to-door salesmen or phone solicitors—just adapted for the internet. Scammers gain false trust, get marks to lower their guard and then take advantage. Online may be a new world to many. But as explorers warned long ago on the maps they created, here there be monsters. Jim Wasserman is a former business litigation attorney who taught economics and humanities for 20 years. He's the author of a three-book series on how to teach elementary, middle and high school students about behavioral economics and media literacy. He's also authored several educational children's books. Jim lives in Texas with his wife and fellow HumbleDollar contributor, Jiab. They have a book that examines the impact of social media influencers on youth consumerism and identity development coming out in 2023. Check out Jim's earlier articles. [xyz-ihs snippet="Donate"]

WHEN YOU’RE STUCK in traffic, have you ever idly wished for another lane to ease the congestion? Not long ago, I listened to a podcast about the eternal problem of highway congestion in Texas, especially in the Dallas-Houston-San Antonio triangle. The expert said that our fundamental problem is that planners think of traffic as a liquid, so their answer to flow problems is always to “build a bigger pipeline”—meaning more highways. Traffic, however, behaves less like a liquid and more like a gas. It expands to fill whatever space is available. If you build more highways, more people will come to use them. More development will follow, and soon there will be even more congestion, not less. The expert advocated that we stop expanding highways and instead invest in shared infrastructure, such as high-speed trains. The highway paradox (more gets you less) is similar to John Lim's recent piece about wealth. Higher income and wealth often don’t lead to increased happiness. It’s because of hedonic adaptation—greater levels of consumption quickly become our new normal. No matter how big a house we buy, we soon crowd it with new possessions, and then wish we had an even bigger place. One solution may lie in the sharing economy. When our sons were growing up, our family of four tried to share space and possessions rather than loading ourselves down with more stuff. We created one family workroom where I—a teacher—would grade and our sons would do their homework. This saved space, while also creating connections when we’d take a break to chat and laugh together. The best keepsakes were the collective memories of those shared experiences within the family rather than more stuff. [xyz-ihs snippet="Mobile-Subscribe"] Similarly, we should strive to make more use of shared public spaces that we already fund with our taxes. Municipal amenities provide us with better facilities at a lower cost than an individual family can obtain and with lower impact on the environment, plus using these facilities can trim a family’s discretionary expenses without cutting down on the fun. As water is getting scarce, the cost of keeping up our swimming pool was rising. On top of that, pools don't increase home value much and may, in the future, actually be a deterrent to buyers. We opted to fill in our pool and create a great new yard. Now we swim in city pools or creeks, or in the lakes and swimming holes in nearby state parks. There’s a free municipal fountain park less than a quarter mile away, and a full city waterpark—with three giant water slides—within two miles. We’re also fans of the local municipal tennis center. It provides just as much playing time, and at a much lower cost, than the country club we once belonged to. The tennis center has pros, drills and leagues. Being a tennis fanatic, I found a great group of guys to play with, and we have been a competitive USTA team now for 15 years. There are other shared municipal resources that are great for families—and their budgets—in our area. Consider: Public libraries are a treasure trove of entertainment, with most of the treasure (books and videos) accessible online. Hiking trails and nature preserves are a reliable and renewable source of family adventure and exercise. A nearby park has become a gathering place for family cookouts, group exercise and just general hanging around. The cookout pavilion and surrounding grassy area is a popular birthday party site—and perfect for very junior Olympic games. Of course, you don’t have to give up all private enjoyments for shared public ones. Just find a couple that work for you—like my tennis center and swim park examples—and start incorporating them into your life. We still have a car, but we take public transportation when we can. Sometimes that even allows us to zip past those infernal backups on the highway. Jim Wasserman is a former business litigation attorney who taught economics and humanities for 20 years. He's the author of a three-book series on how to teach elementary, middle and high school students about behavioral economics and media literacy. He has authored several educational children's books, including "Summa," a children's story for multiracial, multi-ethnic and multicultural families. Jim lives in Texas with his wife and fellow HumbleDollar contributor, Jiab. Together, they are currently working on a book, “Your Third Life: Reflections on Finding Our Way by Taking the Long Route.” Check out Jim's earlier articles. [xyz-ihs snippet="Donate"]

TO BORROW FROM the movie Casablanca, we are all "shocked, shocked” at the college admissions scandal recently uncovered by the FBI. We are seemingly united in condemning the extremes that these wealthy—and sometimes famous—parents went to, as they sought college admission for their children. We’re talking fraudulent inclusion on sports teams, submitting fake standardized test scores and outright bribery. But the idea of parents gaming the system for their child’s benefit is nothing new to those of us in high school education. Over the past several years, the “helicopter parents”—those hovering and monitoring their child’s every step—have given way to “steamroller parents,” who actively intervene to make sure the road to success is smoothly paved and even guaranteed for their scion (while bolstering their own reputation as successful parents). I’ve seen a wide range of liberties taken in college applications over the years, some egregious, some minor offenses that we now just shrug at and say, “It’s part of the system.” Parents have been securing untimed and alternate testing for their children when it isn’t needed, giving them an advantage over kids who take exams under standard conditions. Parents encourage their children to lie and apply for college entrance based on a major that increases their chances of admission, and then later switch. And, of course, people will condemn “affirmative action” admissions programs, demanding that they be “merit based.” Meanwhile, they ignore the fact that the most common non-merit entrance qualification is a child who wisely chose to be born into a family that had alumni and thus is a “legacy.” As a parent, I understand the desire to give your children every advantage, including help getting into the best possible college. But as an economics teacher and as someone who has watched what this gamification does to young people, I caution parents that they aren’t doing a complete cost/benefit analysis in going to such lengths—and the result is often poor, ill-informed decisions. The benefits aren't worth it. Many people are enamored with going to “the right college.” But that just doesn’t matter as much as ability. Make a list of the people you admire based on achievement—and then list which college they went to. In many cases, you won’t know and, for the rest, the list is likely varied. Even attending a well-known school often has less impact than you might imagine. In many fields, such as business or law, having local connections from going to an in-state school proves more valuable than having an Ivy League name on the diploma. Quality education is about a teacher igniting the fire within a student. Sometimes, that’s easier to do in a small classroom in a small school, rather than in a large, impersonal lecture hall in a stately building. The costs are too great. Let’s be clear: When parents have their child fake his or her interests, activities, abilities or game the system in some other way, that child doesn’t get into college. Instead, the fake persona does. That student now has to either assume that persona—giving up his or her true self and knowing all advancement is built on a lie—or else have the lie come crashing down later. And, believe me, children get the message that they, as they truly are, are not good enough. They play along because they are powerless. But I have seen them be frustrated, cry and get eaten up by the realization that, when it counts, their parents insist that “success” requires them to not be true to themselves, despite what they have been told by teachers, school counselors and even their parents. It is the essential, summative lesson on choosing between core values and getting ahead. There’s also the opportunity cost of having your child face rejection, realize the world doesn’t end and then find a “Plan B.” In a world where people lament the lack of grit in our young and their inability to figure out a “work-around,” perhaps the greatest lesson of the college experience is bypassed by parents who wants to make it easy “just this once.” So where do we draw the line? That’s for every parent to decide. Certainly, parents should have a vision of what success looks like for their children, and even encourage and nudge their children toward it. But just like wise investing requires us to be flexible in our goals and the path to those goals, we should be flexible and broadminded in conceiving of our children’s “success” and the path that leads to it. And that’s the objective, isn’t it? Ultimately, it isn’t the parents’ path. Instead, it’s our children’s, so we should let them own it—along with something more valuable than success: happiness in knowing they achieved what they did by being themselves. Jim Wasserman is a former business litigation attorney who taught economics and humanities for 20 years. His previous articles were Five Mistakes, Spoonful of Advice and Under the Influence. Jim’s three-book series on teaching behavioral economics and media literacy,  Media, Marketing, and Me, is being published in 2019. Jim lives in Granada, Spain, with his wife and fellow HumbleDollar contributor, Jiab. Together, they write a blog on retirement, finance and living abroad at YourThirdLife.com. [xyz-ihs snippet="Donate"]

IT’S PROPERTY TAX time. Amid the holiday mail from friends, many of us get notices of payments due from our friendly local tax assessor. No one likes getting taxed. But in many places, property taxes make up a huge part of the funding for public education. What always surprises and irks me are those who say the tax is unfair because they don't “use” the public schools. One neighbor says he has no children. Another says his children go to a private school. They contend they derive no benefit from the taxation. It pains me every year to address this complaint, but let me say it again: We’re all getting a good deal. What you get from public education is not only the betterment of people in your community, but also many problems avoided. That nameless store clerk you shop from? He was trained by his schooling to show up every day and work through challenges. That great, or even small, innovation that makes your life so much easier, even though you might not even notice? It was designed by someone whose passion for innovation was ignited by a great class. Even the lost kid—who without guidance might have fallen into crime against your property or even your person—contributes positively, thanks to a coach or program at his school that taught him discipline and self-respect, and gave him a vision of a better path. The fact is, if each of us had to pay every time public education helped or bettered our lives, directly or indirectly, we couldn’t afford it. Public education was born out of a 19th century idea that, when the community is bettered as a whole, we all live better. That idea still works. Of course, the school system could be improved in many ways. But the answer is not cutting off funding. If you want to make sure your tax payments generate a better return on investment, do what you do with your other funds: Stay involved and monitor performance. I’m not talking about showing up at school board meetings and demanding your favorite bugbear be excised from curriculums. Rather, try volunteering at your local school. Share your expertise or just lend a helping hand. Even consider getting involved in school policy. School boards across the country suffer from a lack of candidates willing to do the hard work of sustained administration. People criticize public schools, yet don’t bother to vote in school board elections. It’s easy to be a booing fan in the cheap seats. Try stepping into the arena.

MY FATHER-IN-LAW was an avid tennis player and an astute coach. The first time he observed me play, he commented on how I—a soccer player growing up—had good speed and quick reactions. I had a terrible swing, however. As he put it, “You can get to any ball. You have no idea what to do when you get there.” He was correct. To this day, what looks like a great shot is often actually a mishit off my racquet frame. It still counts, so I coined a phrase for such shots: WOOFs, short for winners off of frame. Truth be told, many of my successes have been WOOFs. I’ll be in the right place and just lucky enough to connect with an opportunity. I happened to watch a Kansas City Chiefs game one Sunday, and then successfully interviewed the next day with a law firm that represented the team—something I didn’t know beforehand. Years later, I was asked by a prestigious school to teach a class—on the spot—about the Cuban Missile Crisis. I happened to see that the students were reading Frankenstein in English class. I used my own ancient remembrance of the novel to discuss the theme of disastrously losing control of technology. That lesson led to 20 years of teaching at the school. I’ve had investment tips fall into my lap. Serendipitous encounters have often led to writing topics. Most valuable of all, I stumbled upon a certain woman’s profile in the early days of online dating. She was so cheap—and remains so—that she only kept the profile up a short time during the dating site’s free, introductory period. Some awkward courting later, I WOOFed my way into a great life partner. A common adage is that luck happens when preparation meets opportunity. I wonder how much of that preparation is unintentional. I was never a great soccer player. But it helped me to pick up tennis later in life, and tennis was essential to getting a certain cheap woman to marry me, not to mention connecting with some business and social partners. We need to appreciate the WOOFs of life, and be humble in the face of our good fortune. Often, the difference between successful and unsuccessful is the flying fickle finger of fate, rather than pure talent or whether a person is somehow worthy. Andrew Carnegie’s first break came when he worked as a messenger boy in a telegraph office. Reputedly, he could understand Morse code by ear without having to write it down. This not only impressed his boss, but also it meant he could get the inside financial scoop if he was in the right place. On the other hand, a talented friend of our son missed admission to a prestigious music school because a cello string broke during his audition. We should never discount an experience—good or bad—as useless. Rather, we should hoard our experiences. What can we take away from them? Since we can’t know which parts may help later in life, how do we learn as much as possible from our experiences? Our son’s friend found a successful career as an investment advisor—because he made a good impression during the job interview by discussing music. Often, “being in the right place” is a facet of privilege. Wealth buys broad exposure to both preparation and opportunity, especially when we’re young. It also gives people free time to have more experiences that might later be helpful. Yes, we shouldn’t waste money because it can help us in the future. The same holds for experiences. We shouldn’t waste them—because we never know when they might come in handy.

IT’S HARD TO IMAGINE writing about gifts when the perfect essay on the topic already exists. I can’t improve on Emerson’s sentiment that expensive but impersonal presents are not gifts but “apologies for gifts” or that the true gift is “a portion of thyself.” Still, I’m dismayed by the reaction to news that supply chain woes may negatively affect gift availability this holiday season. Naturally, retailers are worried. Some media outlets are reporting the lack of toys and other gifts in apocalyptic fashion, as though the absence of gifts could spoil, ruin or even completely derail the holiday celebrations. Consumerism is nothing new when it comes to holidays. But it seems that many now feel that gifts are the most important element of the holidays and perhaps the sole reason we come together. It’s as if many folks imagine the holidays were first created for gift exchange, rather than a commemoration from which gift-giving then evolved. For all of us, there’s one gift that’s always available to give: expressing appreciation for family and friends. For many of us, we already have the good fortune to possess the greatest of material goods: enough. That’s a crucial notion to keep in mind, especially if we celebrate the holidays with children, who will eagerly consume the values being served. To that end, please allow me—ironically, of course—to suggest one more item for your shopping list: A book that would make a great gift this season. Enough Stuff is about a village that every year goes on a crazed shopping spree—until a visitor tells them that they can’t seem to get enough. Unfamiliar with the word or idea, the villagers go on a mad frenzy to find and get enough, whatever it is. The story is an early reader book for ages six to 10. It’s filled with wordplay that, I like to think, makes it a fun family read. Yes, I’m the author. But let me assure you: I’m making nothing on this. All proceeds from 2021’s sales will go to an organization here in Dallas focused on refugee assistance and relief—in other words, helping those who don’t have enough.