Welcome to the April Fool’s Day edition of the Money Hacks Carnival here at Ask Mr. Credit Card.com!

If this is your first time visiting us, please grab our free RSS feed and take a look around – we’re glad you’re here.

Since it’s April Fool’s day, I thought it would be fun to take a look at some famous April Fool’s Jokes throughout history.

There are the jesters, the jokesters, and the tricksters that brought their own quirky brand of entertainment to the public.

So sit back, grab a cup of coffee, and enjoy!

The “Taco” Liberty Bell

In 1996 Taco Bell announced that it had purchased the Liberty Bell. They were going to re-name it the “Taco Liberty Bell!” Hundreds of outraged citizens called to complain before Taco Bell announced a few hours later that it was all a joke.

The best part of the entire incident though, is actually credited to White House press secretary Mike McCurry. When asked about the Liberty Bell incident, he quipped, “We’ve also sold the Lincoln Memorial. It will now be called the Ford Lincoln Mercury Memorial!”

• VC presents The Penny Daily: Why You Need To Invest Now posted at The Penny Daily.
• Fine-Tuned Finances presents Five Ways to Get Cheap and Free Microsoft Software posted at Fine-Tuned Finances.
• Ray presents Investment Club-Learning About Investing posted at Financial Highway.
• Sharyce Arciaga presents How To Use Blog Sites To Increase Traffic To Your Blog posted at Internet Marketing Articles.

• Lisa Spinelli presents Ford CEO Takes Compensation Cut. But are the Vehicles Better? | Greener Pastures: Personal Finance posted at Greener Pastures.
• Nate Desmond presents 7 Ways to Save Money on College Transportation posted at Clever Dude.
• Jorge presents How to Build Your Emergency Fund Fast posted at Independent Minded.
• FIRE Finance presents FREE TaxACT Software Download posted at FIRE Finance.

• Ishanbansal presents Does it really makes sense to a Hybrid Car? posted at Save Few Bucks.
• Verna Morris presents Top 25 ETF Tweeples Worth a Follow on Twitter posted at ETFdb.
• Michael Haltman presents Pop The Economic Pimple While The Cancer Runs Wild posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator.
• Investing School presents Realized and Unrealized Gains and Losses posted at Investing School.
• WC Porter presents Should The AIG Bonuses Be Taken Away Or Not? posted at WiseBread.

• Manshu presents Greater Fool Theory and Keynes Beauty Contest | OneMint posted at OneMint.
• Kelly Sonora presents Day Trading.Edu: 50 Free Open Courseware Classes for Investors and Day Traders posted at Forex.Edu.
• D4L presents Early Warning Signs of a Dividend Cut posted at Dividends Value.
• Jay Green presents Remote Computer Maintenance: RCM posted at Remote Computer Maintenance.
• JC presents Saving Money on Food in College posted at 6Bubbles – Grad School, Money, Life.

Nixon for President?

In 1992 comedian Rich Little went on NPR and impersonated Richard Nixon. He announced his intent to campaign for the presidency. His campaign slogan was “I didn’t do anything wrong, and I won’t do it again!”

The hoax was revealed in the second half of the radio show, but not before they received call after call from listeners expressing their outrage.

• The Investor presents How stop loss investing can save you money posted at Monevator.
• Bank Champ presents High Yield Reward Checking Accounts posted at Bank Champ.
• J. Money presents Can’t use a competitor’s coupon? (Don’t tell my mom.) posted at Budgets are Sexy..

• Jeff Rose presents 5 Tests To Claim a Dependent On Your Tax Return posted at Jeff Rose.
• TNB presents Investing In Certificate Of Deposits posted at Understanding Certificate of Deposits.
• ifvat presents Junk Silver Coins – How to Purchase Silver Bullion Under Spot | ifvat.com posted at ifvat.
• Megan presents Baby, that’s a big emergency fund you’ve got there posted at Counting My Pennies.
• Retirehappy presents Earning $20,000 Equals Half Million Dollar Nest Egg posted at My Retirement Blog.

• Kim Staudenraus presents The Default Clause posted at Tranquility Financial Visioning.
• Dan presents Is it Ethical to Re-Lock your Mortgage Deal when Rates Drop? posted at Darwin’s Finance.
• bp presents Are you above the golden arches? posted at www.OneChanceToLive.com.
• Leave Debt Behind presents Working with a Non Profit Debt Consolidation Company posted at Leave Debt Behind.
• MoneyNing presents Inheriting Generations of Frugal Living posted at Personal Finance Blog by Money Ning.

• Nicki presents Reintroducing Bartering posted at Domestic Cents.
• The Hoss presents AIG Retention Bonus Scandal posted at Hoss Cents Free Financial Money Magazine.
• Asgreen presents A Busy Life posted at Always the Planner.
• Abigail presents Are we too optimistic? posted at i pick up pennies.
• Mark Foo presents Personal Development Blog | A Practical System to Managing Your Money – The Big Dreamer posted at The Big Dreamer.

A Whopper In Each Hand?

In 1998 Burger King announced that it would be releasing a special “Left Handed” Whopper, in an attempt to market to the 32 million left-handed Americans.

The Left-Handed Whopper included all the same things that the standard Right-Handed Whopper featured. However, the condiments were rotated 180 degrees for the benefit of eating with your left hand.

The next day Burger King revealed the hoax. According to their report, thousands of customers requested a left-handed whopper, while still more began requesting right-handed Whoppers too!

• Wren Caulfield presents Tweet for Cash? posted at True Adventures in Money Hacking.
• ChristianPF presents Dave Ramsey on saving money for college posted at Money in the Bible | Christian Personal Finance Blog.
• Jeremy presents Credit cards: Downfall or savior of NYC cabbies? posted at Taking Charge.
• Aryn presents How to Set up a Garden Share Day posted at Sound Money Matters.
• Peter presents Accountability: Sometimes You Need Someone To Slap You On The Back Of Your Head posted at Bible Money Matters.

• Steve Faber presents Cheap Car Insurance for a Young Driver – How to Get It posted at How to Get Cheap Car Insurance.
• Nicholas Powiull presents Conscious Flex: How to Live Your Passion (How I Became a Fulltime Blogger) posted at Conscious Flex.
• Steve presents How to Invest with Lending Club posted at Personal Finance Start-Up Blog.
• etrades presents Why Buy Silver Bullion? posted at eTrades.
• The Financial Blogger presents Man, I Think we Failed as Financial Advisers! posted at The Financial Blogger.

• John Hunter presents California Unemployment Rate Climbs to 10.5 Percent posted at Curious Cat Investing and Economics Blog.
• vh presents Staying solvent in penury posted at Funny about Money.
• Jeff@StretchyDollar presents Jury Duty and You posted at StretchyDollar.
• Shaun Connell presents 5 Financial Tips for Right Now posted at Free Financial Advice.

• LAL presents 50% Cut in budget? posted at LivingAlmostLarge.
• Silicon Valley Blogger presents FNBO Direct: Best Online Savings Account, ETrade Bank Interest Rate Below 3% APY posted at The Digerati Life.
• Alvaro Fernandez presents Change Your Environment, Change Yourself posted at SharpBrains: Your Window into the Brain Fitness Revolution.
• Jordan presents Use Twitter To Make Money For Yourself/Business posted at Jordan’s Internet Marketing Guide.
• FFB presents What Is A Ponzi Scheme – In Simple Terms posted at Free From Broke.

An Anti-Gravity April Fool’s Joke

In 1976 astronomer Patrick Moore publicly announced that there would be a once-in a lifetime astronomical event. Apparently, the planet Pluto would pass behind Jupiter for a few moments, and create a gravitational anomaly here on Earth. Moore told people that if they jumped in the air at exactly the right moment, they would experience the effects of reduced gravity.

The feedback was tremendous. Hundreds of people called the BBC and reported feelings of weightlessness, and one woman even claimed that she and her friends flew around the room!

• George presents Consistent Cash Creators with High Normalized Earnings Yield posted at Fat Pitch Financials.
• The Smarter Wallet presents Investing In The Stock Market? Rules To Help You Sleep At Night posted at The Smarter Wallet.
• pfincome presents Recession in America – Long Distant Families posted at Passive Family Income.
• MBR presents Is Your Certificate of Deposit Safe? posted at Monitor Bank Rates.
• RC presents From the Economic Stimulus Plan- 529 Funds Can be Used for Computers, Software, and Peripherals posted at Think Your Way to Wealth.

• Madison presents ShareBuilder $70 – $90 Sign Up Bonus for Costco Members posted at My Dollar Plan.
• Jason presents Identify Your Underwater Financial Volcanoes posted at MyMoneyMinute.
• Barry Wright III presents Fashion Mathematics: The Value of Mixing and Matching posted at 3stylelife.
• Jorge presents Book Review: Designing Your Child?s Financial Future (Part 1) posted at Independent Minded.
• Lisa Spinelli presents How Have Your Retirement Plans Changed? posted at Greener Pastures: Personal Finance.

• Little People Wealth presents Ten Money Saving Tips for Gardeners! posted at Little People Wealth.
• Sun presents Lending Club Introduces Self-Directed IRA in Peer-to-Peer Lending posted at Earn More Invest Wisely at The Sun’s Financial Diary.
• Kate Kashman presents How to Opt-Out posted at The Paycheck Chronicles.
• Miss Thrifty presents Cath Kidston Wallpaper – The Thrifty Version! posted at Miss Thrifty.
• PT presents Borrowing from the 401K: The Best of a Bad Situation posted at Prime Time Money.

• nickel presents How to Save Money on Groceries – Reduce Your Grocery Bill posted at fivecentnickel.com.
• Miss M presents Lending Club – Funding My First Loans posted at M is for Money.
• Money Tipper presents File Taxes Early to Save on Filing Fees posted at Money Tipper.
• DR presents Debt Cures by Kevin Trudeau–Do his “secrets” really work? posted at The Dough Roller.
• Andum presents Buying Glasses Online – PD & Fitting Height posted at Wealth Itself.

A Virgin UFO In London

In 1989 thousands of motorists in London looked up to see a a UFO hovering above them! The UFO finally landed just outside of London and the police were called to the scene. When the responding policeman approached the craft it opened up, and a silver figure climbed out. When the policeman saw the figure, he ran from the scene!

It was later revealed that the craft was actually a weather balloon, custom designed to look like a UFO. Who was the silver figure? It turned out to be Richard Branson, the chairman of Virgin Records.

• kathryn presents Budget Money with Irregular Paychecks posted at Out of Debt – Christian Finances and Debt Help.
• Homemaker Barbi (Danelle Ice) presents 5 Surefire Ways to Recession Proof Your Job posted at Homemaker Barbi.
• Wenchypoo presents Omnibus Obama Tax Avoidance Tip Sheet and Small Loophole Collection posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo’s Mental Wastebasket.
• Hank presents Buying Only American Goods Costs You Money – Buy The Best! posted at Own The Dollar.
• Dividend Tree presents Positioning for Index-Based Investments posted at Dividend Tree.

• mortgager presents Second Hand Endowment Policies posted at Endowment Life Insurance Policy �.
• Independent Beginnings presents How I Made Selling on Ebay Work posted at IndependentBeginnings.com.
• Tiffany Colter presents We are tired of talk posted at The Balanced Life.
• Sam Carterson presents Checking Accounts posted at Personal Finance.
• My Life ROI presents How Are People Tricked by These MLM/Ponzi Schemes? posted at My Life ROI, Getting the Best Return On Life.

• TStrump presents Executive Compensation posted at The Strump – Financial Blog.
• Matthew Paulson presents Personal Finance Tips from the Bible posted at Fine-Tuned Finances.
• Diego Cervantes presents The Mutual Fund Toolbox: Top 50 Blogs, Portfolio Tools, and More posted at Bankling.
• ifvat presents The Beginner’s Guide to Stock Market Investing Risk Tolerance posted at ifvat.
• vsocorp presents Step 1 For Creation Profitable Busines: Determine The Kind Of Business by VSO posted at VSO Corp: Business Success, Business Strategy, Logica Uspeha.

• Winson Yeung presents Fastest Way To Build A Huge Targeted Opt-In List – Free Giveaway posted at Best Online Affiliate Marketing Blog.
• Baker presents Reader Question: Quick Ways To Raise Credit posted at Man Vs. Debt.
• The David presents Are Savers Dooming the Economy? No!!! posted at Pimp Your Finances.
• Kelsey presents Legitimate Paid Surveys posted at Cash To Spend – Online Paid Surveys.
• etrades presents Basic Guidelines On Investing In Penny Stock That Matters posted at eTrades.

The Loch Ness Monster Is Real!

In 1972 a huge unidentified carcass was discovered in the Loch. Supposedly it weighed a ton and a half! Scientists quickly went to the Loch and retrieved the corpse for study. Early reports called it the “Son of Nessie”

Things took a wrong turn though, when police chased down the scientist’s van and confiscated the carcass. They then took it to a nearby research facility for study.

It was eventually revealed that it was the body of an elephant seal, and not in fact, Nessie’s baby. But how did it get there?

It turns out that John Shields, a Flamingo Park employee, was responsible. The elephant seal died a week before the incident. Shields padded it’s cheeks, shaved it’s whiskers, froze it for a week, and them dumped it in the Loch. He intended it as an April Fool’s joke on his scientist friends, but the entire incident was blown far, far out of proportion. It was even picked up by some mainstream media that reported the Loch Ness Monster had indeed been found.

• Dana presents The Economics Behind Work | Investoralist posted at Investoralist.
• Jim DeSantis presents Free eBook – Credit Rescue! posted at Emotions and Credit at On Line Tribune.
• Zachary Scheidt presents Credit Card Investments – Still Substantial Risk posted at ZachStocks.
• Wojciech Kulicki presents Book Review: The Skinny on Credit Cards by Jim Randel posted at Fiscal Fizzle.

• CreditCardAssist.com presents Building Good Credit With Secured Credit Cards posted at CreditCardAssist.com.
• Debt Freedom Fighter presents Why Do I Only Qualify for Low Limit Credit Cards? posted at Discover Debt Freedom.