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Entry bubble Who ya Gonna Call? Uncle Sam!

By: Colleen | May 21, 2008 | Category: Home and Family

Last week I got an e-mail from my mother. It was only a subject line and it read:phone

"CALL ME ON THE HOME PHONE WHEN YOU GET THIS—ASAP!!!"

With hundreds of traumatic scenarios running through my head, I called home. My mother picked up the phone and immediately said, "If I was to go to Myanmar, how much money could I take?"

"What!?" (To be honest, this is a very watered-down version of my actual reply.)

While I pride myself on my useless trivia knowledge (Paris Hilton's shoe size? 11! State dog of Pennsylvania? Great Dane!), this is not something I know off the top of my head. I listened while she explained that because of all that's going on in Myanmar, her boss was looking into going there to provide aid (my mom works for a non-profit that does international relief work).

I directed her to 1 (800) FED-INFO—the toll free number set up to answer all your questions about government information. When she called, she spoke directly with an agent who was able to use an FAQ database to answer all her questions—and my mom is the QUEEN of questions. She also reported how friendly and polite the agent was, which is always great to hear. For those who prefer the web, they also offer a live chat, available 8am-8pm Eastern Time.

So, if you have a question about your passport, how to contact your elected officials, or just want to know the state motto of Alaska, try giving Uncle Sam a call. No need to alert innocent family members, though.

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Comments (3):

blue comment bubble Posted by Bluehawk on May 21, 2008 at 01:17 PM EDT

You folks are amazing.

The mere thought of the whiff of the concept of the notion of the fleeting dream of actually HAVING such a clearinghouse up and functioning is, well, frankly... inconceivable.

When I was born, all new telephones were black, had dials, and not everybody had one.

Thanks for what you are doing! It does help.

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blue comment bubble Posted by Edmund on May 22, 2008 at 01:21 AM EDT

Nowadays everything is so simplified that one click to the website and you can find the necessary information. However, older folks do need some training on how to access the websites particularly those over 60 years old and staying in rural states.

They are probably the ones who had not appreciate the online efforts of what the Government have done from them.


Edmund
http://www.internet-empire.com

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blue comment bubble Posted by NICE UNCLE SAM on June 02, 2008 at 01:31 PM EDT

WHY I CALL UNCLE SAM REGULARLY I FEEL HE IS VERY SWEET AND VERY NICE RUMORS HAS IT THE UNCLE SAM SYMBOL IS ATTACHED TO SOME HEBREW MASONTRY OF THE ALMIGHTY GOD. YOU KNOW LIKE UNCLE SAM IS JEHOVAH.

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