No, this is not highbrow. Sue me. Two caveats: In spite of the "all of these are real companies" claim, several of these do not appear to be real sites, just amusing. Second, this is not original to me. CPS sent it to me in an email. He didn't make it up either. It's the internet, for heaven's sake.
All of these are legitimate companies that didn't spend quite enough time
considering how their online names might appear .... and be misread.
1. Who Represents is where you can find the name of the agent that
represents any celebrity. Their Web site is www.whorepresents.com
2 . Experts Exchange is a knowledge base where programmers can exchange advice and views at www.expertsexchange.com
3. Looking for a pen? Look no further than Pen Island at http://www.penisland.net (From their site: "We understand many customers want to test-drive before considering a larger order." I bet.)
4. Need a therapist? Try Therapist Finder at http://www.therapistfinder.com
5. There's the Italian Power Generator company, http://www.powergenitalia.com
6. And don't forget the Mole Station Native Nursery in New South Wales , www.molestationnursery.com. (Their motto: "What you need, when you need it." That's just nasty.)
7. If you're looking for IP computer software, there's always www.ipanywhere.com
8. The First Cumming Methodist Church Web site is www.cummingfirst.com (And how long
will they wait for the SECOND cumming?)
9. And the designers at Speed of Art await you at their wacky Web site, www.speedofart.com
UPDATE: A source, sort of. It's kind of old. Still, some of them made me laugh...
And, on that site one finds this: http://www.mofo.com/ A law firm. No, really.
And, for a variant on one of the biblical miracles....http://www.ipwine.com
And, if you are afraid of the running of the Bulls, do it for your lady friend:
http://www.goredforwomen.com/
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Dumbest Moments....
CNN did a nice job on its "101 Dumbest Business Moments"
Wal-Mart places 6 times in the top 101. Yikes.
In an attempt to put a smiley face on its tarnished image, Wal-Mart hires heavy-hitting public relations firm Edelman, which sets about using tactics derived from political races to reverse public perceptions of the giant retailer.
Dubbing its campaign "Candidate Wal-Mart," the firm trumpets all manner of new Wal-Mart initiatives: improved employee health-care benefits, higher starting pay levels, new stores in downtrodden neighborhoods, reasonably priced organic foods, and a flat $4 fee for hundreds of generic prescription drugs.
As a result, candidate Wal-Mart quickly becomes, well, the most popular politician since Spiro Agnew. By year's end Wal-Mart suffers its first quarterly profit drop in a decade, sees same-store sales decline in November's run-up to the crucial holiday shopping season, and suffers a series of public relations gaffes so stunning that it lands six spots in this year's edition of the 101 Dumbest Moments.
My own favorite? #6:
Bringing the ever-friendly spirit of its in-store greeters online, Walmart.com offers DVD shoppers helpful recommendations for films they might be interested in purchasing.
Customers looking at the Web site's product pages for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Planet of the Apes, for instance, are steered toward "similar items" such as Martin Luther King: I Have a Dream/Assassination of MLK and Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson. Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams says the company is "heartsick" over the incident but has "absolutely no evidence" that the connections were made intentionally.
ATSRTWT
Oh, and by the way, for you losers who spend money on stockbrokers...
(A grateful nod to TtWBWB)
Wal-Mart places 6 times in the top 101. Yikes.
In an attempt to put a smiley face on its tarnished image, Wal-Mart hires heavy-hitting public relations firm Edelman, which sets about using tactics derived from political races to reverse public perceptions of the giant retailer.
Dubbing its campaign "Candidate Wal-Mart," the firm trumpets all manner of new Wal-Mart initiatives: improved employee health-care benefits, higher starting pay levels, new stores in downtrodden neighborhoods, reasonably priced organic foods, and a flat $4 fee for hundreds of generic prescription drugs.
As a result, candidate Wal-Mart quickly becomes, well, the most popular politician since Spiro Agnew. By year's end Wal-Mart suffers its first quarterly profit drop in a decade, sees same-store sales decline in November's run-up to the crucial holiday shopping season, and suffers a series of public relations gaffes so stunning that it lands six spots in this year's edition of the 101 Dumbest Moments.
My own favorite? #6:
Bringing the ever-friendly spirit of its in-store greeters online, Walmart.com offers DVD shoppers helpful recommendations for films they might be interested in purchasing.
Customers looking at the Web site's product pages for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Planet of the Apes, for instance, are steered toward "similar items" such as Martin Luther King: I Have a Dream/Assassination of MLK and Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson. Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams says the company is "heartsick" over the incident but has "absolutely no evidence" that the connections were made intentionally.
ATSRTWT
Oh, and by the way, for you losers who spend money on stockbrokers...
(A grateful nod to TtWBWB)
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Snark Around The Clock
I rarely read the scabrous "American and Comparative Jobs" blog/comment fest.
The self-serving tone, and the nearly entirely uninformed content, makes it of little use for anyone who has a job, and more addictive than crack for those who do not.
But I ventured into the morass today, and encountered...well, pure joy. The level of snark has fallen past mere food fight, and now approximates zoo monkeys throwing their own excrement and then enthusiastically licking their hands.
On the other hand, there is a degree of self-awareness in the comments that makes it clear that the participants recognize this. I give people a LOT of credit for self-awareness.
Two quotes, for a hint of what it is like:
1. Anonymous said...
The Cornell Dept is the academic equivalent of an Amish community.
and then:
2. Anonymous said...
...For all the people disparaging the TAMU, Emory, and Davis's of the world...most of them wouldn't even sniff an interview at those places.
The conversation here reminds me too much of how my first and second year colleagues would talk in the computer lab. Interesting how their tune always changed once they hit the job market.
1/27/2007 5:21 AM
Anonymous said...
Seems like we have an omniscient poster here!
1/27/2007 5:26 AM
Anonymous said...
Reading all the snark on this blog reminds me of a line that Steve Martin used to pull out on hecklers: "Ah, yes, I can remember what it was like when I had my first beer..."
1/27/2007 5:47 AM
Anonymous said...
The point, 4:30, is that Cornell wouldn't have any serious placements in the last 20 years without Mebane doing the heavy lifting.
1/27/2007 6:16 AM
Anonymous said...
How can people rehash the same question again and again as though it's fresh meat?
1/27/2007 7:18 AM
Anonymous said...
7:18 - we are political scientists
Now, ain't THAT the truth!
The self-serving tone, and the nearly entirely uninformed content, makes it of little use for anyone who has a job, and more addictive than crack for those who do not.
But I ventured into the morass today, and encountered...well, pure joy. The level of snark has fallen past mere food fight, and now approximates zoo monkeys throwing their own excrement and then enthusiastically licking their hands.
On the other hand, there is a degree of self-awareness in the comments that makes it clear that the participants recognize this. I give people a LOT of credit for self-awareness.
Two quotes, for a hint of what it is like:
1. Anonymous said...
The Cornell Dept is the academic equivalent of an Amish community.
and then:
2. Anonymous said...
...For all the people disparaging the TAMU, Emory, and Davis's of the world...most of them wouldn't even sniff an interview at those places.
The conversation here reminds me too much of how my first and second year colleagues would talk in the computer lab. Interesting how their tune always changed once they hit the job market.
1/27/2007 5:21 AM
Anonymous said...
Seems like we have an omniscient poster here!
1/27/2007 5:26 AM
Anonymous said...
Reading all the snark on this blog reminds me of a line that Steve Martin used to pull out on hecklers: "Ah, yes, I can remember what it was like when I had my first beer..."
1/27/2007 5:47 AM
Anonymous said...
The point, 4:30, is that Cornell wouldn't have any serious placements in the last 20 years without Mebane doing the heavy lifting.
1/27/2007 6:16 AM
Anonymous said...
How can people rehash the same question again and again as though it's fresh meat?
1/27/2007 7:18 AM
Anonymous said...
7:18 - we are political scientists
Now, ain't THAT the truth!
The Road to Serfdom, Graphic Novel Version
Everyone in the world may already have seen this.
But here is a link to The Road to Serfdom.....
And props to Nick, who also has a sensible view of the job market, to match his (mostly) sensible views of everything else.
But here is a link to The Road to Serfdom.....
And props to Nick, who also has a sensible view of the job market, to match his (mostly) sensible views of everything else.
When Mimes Become Memes....
Maybe it's just because my wife and I saw "The Illusionist" last night.
But I enjoyed this illusion also.
But I enjoyed this illusion also.
The Bunny of Doom
There is a growing tradition of terrifying rabbits.
Jimmy Carter's attack rabbit, in the jon boat. (Photo above, credit here)
The Monty Python vicious "Rabbit of Caerbannog", armor piercing version.
And now, the bunny who attacks pythons...or at least a fair sized snake. The redneck chortling about
the scene as he films it could be any one of dozens of members of my extended
family.
(Nod to LM)
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Eyeball Soak, Please.....
A friend sent me the link to this calendar for the Bryan, Texas Water Services public works department. To get a "flavor" of the calendar's contents, do click on the "Flushdance" thumbnail (That would be Mr. March, I think)...
I don't want to say who this "friend" is, to protect his identity.
But he is a Mormon, Libertarian, elected official who once lived on a dairy farm under what is now the Jordanelle Reservoir.
I don't want to say who this "friend" is, to protect his identity.
But he is a Mormon, Libertarian, elected official who once lived on a dairy farm under what is now the Jordanelle Reservoir.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Attack....of the KILLER DECISIONS
"Well, no question, decisions have made things unstable."
-- President George W. Bush, in interview with 60 Minutes, 1/12/07, quoted here.
(nod to KL)
-- President George W. Bush, in interview with 60 Minutes, 1/12/07, quoted here.
(nod to KL)
Monday, January 15, 2007
Hammer of Truth
Why, oh WHY does Hammer of Truth lie dormant?
Check this.....
The site has been down for....seems like YEARS. And it still gets so many hits.
This isn't perfectionism. It's insanity.
I am sad....
Check this.....
The site has been down for....seems like YEARS. And it still gets so many hits.
This isn't perfectionism. It's insanity.
I am sad....
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Obesity Reduction and Health Promotion Act
"The well-intentioned desire of Congress to help the poor apparently will
not be restrained by the rules and principles of the free market that
otherwise do restrain American businesses and workers. Apparently Congress
can change the rules that otherwise affect the affairs of mankind. And so,
Mr. Speaker, I have asked my staff to draft a measure I call the Obesity
Reduction and Health Promotion Act. Since Congress will apparently not be
restrained by the laws and principles that naturally exist, I propose that
the force of gravity--by the force of Congress--be reduced by 10%. Mr.
Speaker, that will result in an immediate weight loss for every American."
-- Rep. Bill Sali (R-ID), during debate on minimum wage legislation on the
floor of the House
(Nod to KL)
not be restrained by the rules and principles of the free market that
otherwise do restrain American businesses and workers. Apparently Congress
can change the rules that otherwise affect the affairs of mankind. And so,
Mr. Speaker, I have asked my staff to draft a measure I call the Obesity
Reduction and Health Promotion Act. Since Congress will apparently not be
restrained by the laws and principles that naturally exist, I propose that
the force of gravity--by the force of Congress--be reduced by 10%. Mr.
Speaker, that will result in an immediate weight loss for every American."
-- Rep. Bill Sali (R-ID), during debate on minimum wage legislation on the
floor of the House
(Nod to KL)
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