For whatever reason I was not motivated to post yesterday. I wanted to post, but I couldn't get myself to do it. What I wanted to do was to post a positive story about Arabs and/or Arab Americans and make that sort of a tradition on this anniversary, here at Alt Text.
When this idea was conceived I was thinking in these specific terms but wanted to change the way people thought of this day - a day now linked to a war that had nothing to do with Al Qaeda or making us safer. I wasn't looking to start a meme or actively market my idea, just post some positive news.
Reading Seth Godin's site today I came across his post about how we can market our way closer to an end to terrorism. In the post Seth writes how you cannot beat terrorism with guns and prisons - those consequences do little to affect the terrorist's mind and could do even more to fuel the creation of new terrorists. After all, terrorists are just people who subscribe to a particular idea - an idea that America and the West are immoral - heathens that are bent on destroying their culture and robbing them with the resources.
For all I know, we may never be able to eliminate terrorism and animosity towards us (especially as we are sitting atop the world in terms of wealth and consumption). But what we can do is try to create another idea that can combat those to which the terrorists subscribe.
We have not been very successful invading and bombing our way to changing minds but we do know how to market our ideas. The problem right now is that somewhere along the line, our leaders decided that the time for crafting this sort of idea, had passed and they have been busy reinforcing the old ideas that terrorists have of us.
We are already at a place in time where many people are fearful of expressing racist thoughts and that may eventually give way to the idea of racism finally disappearing. In the same way, maybe some day, the idea of attacking innocents as a means of affecting change an the idea that the Western countries only want to hold down and plunder the rest of the world may seem crazy. Unfortunately, for now, there are far too many people willing to do participate in the former and far too much truth to the latter. Even powerfully crafted and marketed ideas need to eventually mirror reality.
I know it is getting full when my dad says he is now firmly on the Barack Obamawagon*, but is anyone else worried about what GOP and other political detractors will do with Barack's surname?
A pair of newtv spots are now airing across the country extolling the virtues of, what else, carbon dioxide. Yes, the Competetive Enterprise Institute is back at the task of trying to confuse Americans about environmental issues, but focusing on the stuff we breathe out. How can something that people and animals, and the ocean, create be bad? (stupid ocean) And who would suffer if those mean scientists make us cut back on CO2 production? Our kids, our food, and especially our use of neon signage would, of course.
Maybe, just maybe, the CEI has other things in mind than making sure we can breathe without consequence. From their website:
The Competitive Enterprise Institute is a non-profit public policy organization dedicated to advancing the principles of free enterprise and limited government.
Translation: We believe corporations and profits are more important than individuals and health and safety.
But I am sure that isn't true, I mean their donor list surely should support the idea that the CEI is actually looking out for us right? (incidentally, if you are interested in a list of the most evil corporations this will also apply:
ExxonMobil, Amoco Foundation, Inc, Coca-Cola Company, CSX Corporation, Ford Motor Company, Philip Morris Companies, Inc., Pfizer Inc., Precision Valve Corporation, Texaco, Inc., American Petroleum Institute, Burlington Northern Railroad Co., Cigna Corporation, Dow Chemical, General Motors Corporation, IBM.
I can think of a lot of reasons the Bush administration should shy away from its recent mantra of personal choice. I am sure many women can too.
The idea of a global city is interesting to me. There aren't too many cities (45) that get the distinction. My hometown, Minneapolis manages to sneak into the lowest tier. I am sure the art and culture here have a lot to do with it, but having an international airport and the hub of a major carrier helps.
I do not think that corporations should have the same rights as actual human citizens. Further, I think we should revisit the pacts that corporations function under when granted such status from the states in which the incorporate. I am not proposing that the privilege of incorporation be granted solely to enable activities that benefit the public, such as construction of roads or canals, as was the case when corporations were first established. But wouldn't it be nice it they were at least neutral to the public's interests?
You'd think that things like disasters, or the purity of childhood, or even milk, let alone water or air, would be sacred. But no. Corporations have no built-in limits on what, who, or how much they can exploit for profit. [The Corporation]
The states used to impose certain conditions on those corporations that were granted (some of which remain on the books, though unused) like these:
Corporate charters (licenses to exist) were granted for a limited time and could be revoked promptly for violating laws.
Corporations could engage only in activities necessary to fulfill their chartered purpose.
Corporations could not own stock in other corporations nor own any property that was not essential to fulfilling their chartered purpose.
Corporations were often terminated if they exceeded their authority or caused public harm.
Owners and managers were responsible for criminal acts committed on the job.
Corporations could not make any political or charitable contributions nor spend money to influence law-making.
Through lobbying and paying off politicians over the years, corporations have rendered all of these laws (and more) obsolete and have effectively put themselves above the law - even those laws that apply to you and me. If you throw a McDonald's wrapper out the window of your car (I recommend neither eating McDonald's nor littering) you could get a fine of up to $700 but America's industry throws the equivalent of millions of wrappers into our air, water and land each day without consequence. And while we all (well most of us) pay income taxes like suckers, our "corporate citizens" often pay little or no income tax1.
The main problem is that corporations are treated as real persons according to some laws but not others. Furthermore, corporations do not have the same moral obligations that people do. The only lawful obligation a corporation has is to generate profit for its shareholders. If making money way your only motivation, how would your actions change? Even the most unscrupulous of people in business have at least a few other motivations. Most corporations corporate persons, do not share this with us.
Corporate personhood is the doctrine that corporations are considered to be individual persons in the eyes of the law. Corporate personhood is the most critical social and political issue of our time. It lies at the heart of campaign finance reform, labor abuse, deterioration of communities, destruction of the environment, and more. [PersonsInc]
Some corporations are beginning to see how their corporate actions are affecting the earth (it's people, societies, and environment) and are taking steps to ensure that our kids' kids will be able to enjoy a life such as ours. Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface, Inc, the world's largest carpet manufacturer (and maker of the very cool interface flor tiles) has identified the following "7 Fronts" on which to wage a war of change:
Eliminate Waste: Eliminating all forms of waste in every area of business;
Benign Emissions: Eliminating toxic substances from products, vehicles and facilities;
Renewable Energy: Operating facilities with renewable energy sources – solar, wind, landfill gas, biomass and low impact hydroelectric;
Closing the Loop: Redesigning processes and products to close the technical loop using recovered and bio-based materials;
Resource-Efficient Transportation: Transporting people and products efficiently to reduce waste and emissions;
Sensitizing Stakeholders: Creating a culture that integrates sustainability principles and improves people’s lives and livelihoods;
Redesign Commerce: Creating a new business model that demonstrates and supports the value of sustainability-based commerce;
Interface has even set up an entire website at interfacesustainability.com to outline its sustainability practices.
Since Rachel Carson's Silent Spring began to expose the abuses of the modern industrial system, there has been a growing awareness that profit at the expense of Earth--of individuals, society, and the environment--is unsustainable. - Ray Anderson, CEO, Interface, Inc.
There is far more that I could post now than I should post now, so I will end this post with a few links to some groups — actually a suprisingly large number of groups — taking up this, and related, issues. Here are a few:
1 - Even in the "over-taxed" state of Minnesota, there are plenty of large companies (3M, U.S. Bank, Target, General Mills to name a few) that legally pay less than a 5% effective tax rate by utilizing methods of tax reduction not available to "average citizens". See the story.
Passion of the Marketers - interesting article on the marketing of movies to conservative Christian groups. And it's not just about putting out movies like The Passion of the Christ and Chronicles of Narnia - Conservative Christains at 33% more likley to see R-rated films than their liberal counterparts.
Having cancelled my DirecTV service some months back and with the summer network schedule lull I have had a good deal of time away from the TV. Because shows like Lost, 24, and Arrested Development don't resume again until fall, there is nothing to watch, which is generally good, it being summer and all. This break has given me a chance to rediscover some of the great PBS programming that I have been neglecting. In addition to some excellent travel and cooking shows, and of course NOVA, there's the weekly news show: NOW - previously NOW with Bill Moyers - currently just Now.
Last week's show, NOW: The Design of Dissent was an interview with graphic designer Milton Glaser - famous for designing the I (heart) NY imagery, the buttons created for The Nation (and shown at right) and more. Amidst some political waxings, Glaser mostly discusses how graphic design can and does change people's perspectives.
That's the thing that makes you most crazy the idea of this passive acceptance of an authority. We thought we weren't that kind of people.
I think it's a rather simple-minded idea that if you examine government, those that have the least dissent are those that are most totalitarian. That is, in fact, the manifestation of dissent that defines democracy, (because) it means that there are oppositions to power that are freely expressed and that minority opinion is also considered to be worthwhile. Generally speaking, dissent comes out of a sense of fairness that something is wrong. Power is being used unfairly, and there has to be some manifestation or complaint about it.
I'll try not to quote the entire interview and instead encourage you to read the full interview transcript. I will mention however, that this is what I have always believed - that dissent does not equal disdain. On both a national level and in terms of jobs I have had, I always felt the greatest need to voice dissent, when I cared the most. It isn't worth arguing for thing A to improve, if you don't give a damn about thing A. It surprises me upon how many people this point is lost.
Some have (mis)characterized this illegal use of artwork as an homage. Nike's statement that the poster was made, not by Nike employees or creative advertising types but of actual skateboarders lends some credence to this notion. However, this is trickier than that. Regardless of who created Nike's promotional material, the facts of the matter remain unchanged - had this been Dischord Records using the Nike swoosh in homage to classic tennis shoes there would have been a team of Nike lawyers dispatched to Dischord's offices within minutes. Nike (rightly) must protect the investment it has made in building one of the most recognized marks in the world - and, although smaller and less recognizable (especially to those of us who aren't cool enough to be in the know) Minor Threat's album art represents their investment in branding themselves. To have that brand co-opted by a skatepunk on his website, for example, would be one thing, but to have a huge multinational corporation do it, brings about an entirely new set of issues.
This NY Times article isn't very interesting except that it clued me into this site by the Magazine Publishers of America (which they did NOT provide a link to of course - I hate that about the NY Times) that attempts to illustrate the future relevancy of the magazine format as it currently stands. Even if you don’t believe that it is interesting to look at the fun covers some of the publications have come up with to depict the future.
The headline of this post was something that Edward Tufte attributed to Steve Balmer's description of books at a recent seminar I attended (and will be writing about soon)
TiVo tests pop-up-style ads. That headline hit me like a ton of bricks considering I just made a substantial investment in the company this morning it the form of 2 new TiVo's.
I had hoped that they will get bought and weather the storm they are in, as it turns out this may be their tsunami and they aren't pulling through.
Pulling this type of crap (without even thoroughly testing it first) is a great way to piss people off. This could possibly work if it was unobtrusive and allowed people to actually get more information on the advertisers product if they chose but, unobtrusive these pop-ups are not. The first time I get one of these pop-ups and it interferes with anything I am doing, I am disconnecting the thing and hacking beyond recognition.
I want TiVo to succeed. I have been an evangelist for them. But this is not the way to make money. TiVo pull your heads out of your collective asses and figure out a way to sell a great service, with the greatest brand recognition (TiVo gets mentioned on Oprah almost weekly) in the sector to fat, lazy American? What is the problem here? It can't be that hard.
Mukluks are the new Uggs - a gross pop fashion reference inside a pop culture megaphone: The O.C.
Super Monkey Ball - these videos are part of a marketing campaign by Sega that I am buying into, hook, line, and sinker.
I urge you, no matter what party you hold allegience with, to sign the ACT Petition to the FCC urging them to "require proof of fact before airing political advertisements."
This morning (yesterday I guess) as I made my rounds on the web and came to Jason's site I was once again amazed at the amount of time that boy spends on his site. Now gainful employment has its perks, but the ability to post dozens of links and make several planned out posts has got to take a serious chunk out of your day. I would bet Jason spends 3-4 hours of time in his site or on other sites finding links for his site each day.
I may be wrong. Maybe Jason is some kind of webloggin' idiot-savant.
If he does spend that kind of time, however, we really ought to find a way for him to earn some cash. I started thinking about the idea of selling ad space as some weblogs are now doing but the idea seems to make me ill, plus it really clutters up an interface. Then there is the selling of the wares. Jason could sell T-Shirts and mugs, perhaps Silkscreen can become shareware?
Then it came to me — product placement. Maybe Jason could write about his walk home and how he got a craving for a Chalupa from Taco Bell. Perhaps he could tell the world that he just bought a new Trek mountain bike. Each time he would make one of these posts, even if the product is only mentioned in passing, Jason could make some dough. So why not take a little cash on the down-low for a quick word about a sponsor's product?
In fact, I suspect that this is already the case in the "blog community". I find it interesting that 95+% of the personal computing market consists of PC users, yet, I challenge you to find a non-Mac user on Jason's link list. Most of my friends in the web design/development industry have "switched" to Mac after being PC zealots.
Maybe this is not a coincidence? Maybe it is part of a grander, more sinister plot by Apple to "infiltrate" well-visited weblogs and buy their support with shiny new titanium iBooks and iPods — an elaborate campaign that uses the influence of culture creators at the grassroots level.
Another great ad has come forth and touched me like only a work of art could. The new Lance Armstrong Nike commercial is genius and is advertising at its best. It would be so very sweet to be a part of team that created that.
Jason has posted some thoughts in the past about "conversations via comments on his site (or any site for that matter regarding who "owns" them. By far the most commented on post here at Alt Text was one from August of last year about how the emo/indy/sweet band Modest Mouse could be "selling out" via, of all things, a minivan commercial.
There are nearly 50 comments on this thread (paling in comparison to Jason's Matrix thread but impressive nonetheless) with the last one being from yesterday. Like Jason I feel that the comments and ensuing discussion have been of a pretty high level and I am fascinated that people keep finding this post and find it interesting.
Now the question of course is do I think Modest mouse sold out? No — we all would have done the same thing in their shoes. Why can't a band be great and make some money? Why can't I get paid for what I do and love it? Well there are some things standing in the way but I am working on it.
Like everyone, I receive a lot of spam. I would estimate that I get 300 or so spam messages per day. Most of these are relating to drugs (both anti-depressants and anti-flaccidity), mortgages and refinancing, earning money quickly, and sex with farm animals. Run of the mill stuff right, but what about the people these messages are from — they have some of the most interesting names. Here a few choice examples:
Entrepreneur A. Sapsucker
Errol Belanger
Thrashing D. Specifically
Keely Apodaca
Mohamed Aldridge
Lucius G. Browbeat
Seician var'Kirekit
Remover T. Haltering
Phystor a'Gokirdia
Malika Lauralee
Ornamenting H. Song
...ads with trunk monkeys and disturbing chinchillas like these from Quiznos and Suburban Auto Group. Cutting through the clutter has never been so funny, or derivative, or low-budget.
I cannot believe that Northwest Airlines is rebranding themselves (or have been for several month I guess) - complete with a new bullshit logo! I have held up NWA's logo for years as an example of elegant simplicity. It says so much in such a small space; you have the N or W depending upon how you look at it and then the little arrow pointing, as if on a compass, in the North West direction. Beautiful. Now what they currently have is just horrendous.
Rooting Out Evil is sending a weapons inspection team to the United States to inspect the chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons produced and concealed by the Bush regime.
Reebok with their Terry Tate "Office Linbacker" spot. Be sure to check it out on the Reebok site as it is much longer and funnier. Best line? "You know your need to have a coversheet on your TPS Reports, Richard!"
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Today's Fun Fact: Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.
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This lightbulb has been burning for over 100 years. It is a handblown bulb with carbon filament with approximate wattage of 4 watts. It has been left to burn continuously in a firehouse as a nightlight over the fire trucks in Livermore, California. You can even view it on a live webcam.
My morning involved sub-zero temperatures and we still have no snow in Minnesota. I swear if we get blizzards in May I will be pissed. And I don't know what is fair about any of this.
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Most compelling spam yet?
I received a message today with subject "err what time do I pick ya up?" with the body of the message being:
Hey,
What time and terminal?
Will
I am sure (since this was not addressed to me) that this is just the latest, most clever way to get people to respond saying "I think you sent this to the wrong person" - basically praying on people's compassion to verify email addresses and add them to the next list of porn/mortgage banker spam.
This parody of the Apple Switch Ads pretty much sums up the last of my grudges against Apple computers. (that and they really stuck it to my family with the IIgs back in the day - $4000 for a computer that was only relevant for about 6 months. Bastards!)
Minnesota is set to be the battleground for one of the biggest election fights in state history. Senator Paul Wellstone is the primary target [Source: Cursor.org] for republican money and power. Oh yeah and there is a person (albeit a slimy one) running against him too: Norm Coleman. There are only a few politicians I despise more than Coleman. This man will do and say anything to get elected and he is just so damn fake.
Conversely there are few politicians I admire more than Paul Wellstone. Being a target isn't new to him. Many have sought to take his seat and all the republicans on the hill hate him, not only for his stances on the issues (usually very far to the left) but for the fact that he knows how to win on those issues. He has held up and successfully blocked very conservative legislation and through it all he does what he knows is right rather than what polls or big business money says he should do.
If you live in Minnesota, I encourage you to make sure your voter's registration is current and that you get out and vote for Paul this fall. Even if you think he is too far to the left on many issues (as I do) it doesn't matter because there are plenty of other politicians that have migrated towards the middle - too many if you ask me. I think our leaders should be strong and have ideas, rather than always cow tailing to the special interest groups with the loudest voices/deepest pockets.
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Ads.com is a poor man's Ad Critic but, if Ad Critic comes back and isn't free it may be the common man's only place to check out the latest commercials out there.
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I don't know why but it bothers me when friends of mine and/or people whom I work making websites with, do not have sites of their own or do not maintain them anymore (you know who you are). I am not sure why this bothers me - or at least I cannot pinpoint it. Maybe it's that they should be more excited about the medium they are helping to build or maybe it is that I think they are interesting and want to know more about them, or that I think others should be able to experience their humor and wit, or maybe I just need someone to link to when they send me something to post on Alt Text. Maybe it is a combination of all of these or something else entirely.
I think Mark and I are having a conversation here. Though I am not sure if he knows it. In his post on April 23rd, Mark gave a quote by Richard Dawkins that I mentioned far less eloquently in my post on the 20th. Here is the quote:
"Out of all of the [religious] sects in the world, we notice an uncanny coincidence: the overwhelming majority just happen to choose the one that their parents belong to. Not the sect that has the best evidence in its favour, the best miracles, the best moral code, the best cathedral, the best stained glass, the best music: when it comes to choosing from the smorgasbord of available religions, their potential virtues seem to count for nothing, compared to the matter of heredity. This is an unmistakable fact; nobody could seriously deny it. Yet people with full knowledge of the arbitrary nature of this heredity, somehow manage to go on believing in their religion, often with such fanaticism that they are prepared to murder people who follow a different one." - Richard Dawkins
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Fun Friday time killer:
If you haven't heard these Budweiser Real American Heroes Radio Spots you should go there now. Favorites? Mr. Really Bad Toupee Wearer, Mr. Pickled Pig's Feet Eater, Mr. Driving Range Ball Picker Upper, and of course Mr. Garden Gnome Maker.
First some Super Bowl comments: The game was good. The underdog won - I love that and there were a couple decent commercials (and no Pepsi and Britney weren't in any of them)
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My wife and I are moving forward on plans to build our first "real" house. Living in a townhouse the last 4 years has become a drag - with the militant association and all making sure our Christmas lights are down 10 days after the holiday and that we only have 1 wreath up at a time. We decided to build because we could really get what we want without a lot of waste. The homes they build nowadays are all so big. Some call them "starter castles" but I like McMansions myself. We found a great lot in the area we were interested in and are making an offer today. Wish me luck! (consequently this process is one of the primary reasons I have been so behind in posting to the site these past couple months. To compensate I plan on posting the status of this endeavor frequently - consider that a threat)
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I am equally excited about volunteering with the Big Brother Big Sister program. I go to meet my "little" tonight. This is something I have always wanted to do but have kept putting off. I love to teach and be there when people experience new things so this volunteering gig pays me something - maybe even something more than the kid gets out of it - although I hope he gets a lot as well.
What happened to AdCritic? They can't make enough money to pay for their massive hosting and bandwidth needs is what happened. I have a solution. Charge a membership fee of $2 per year and weed out the casual viewer. I would happily pay a small fee for such great content.
I am contemplating taking on some additional work in the coming months and also thinking about actually trying my hand at building up a content-oriented site. I know that is a very bad idea and has been proven not to work with solely ad revenue but I like the subject matter and have some "extra time" right now.
...if you don't want to hear anything else about the upcoming Lord of the Rings movie. But as it has premiered already in London, I thought I would summarize some of the initial feedback: this movie kicks ass!
But you can also take the word of the BBC if you would like.
I just had to post this as a response to those stupid-ass Burger King commercials. Sadly, I cannot take the credit nor give it as I do not know from whence this came:
Three drinks for the Burger Kings under the sky,
Seven burgers for the Dwarves who are stoned,
Ninety million consumers doomed to buy,
One cut for the Dark Lord, the franchise he owns.
In the land of Mordor where the Whoppers lie.
Onion ring to rule them all, onion ring to dine them,
Onion ring to bring them all and in the deep-fryer bind them
In the land of Mordor where the Whoppers lie.
I cannot believe I missed the 1-hour making of special on Sci-Fi.
Unrelated note: The Sci-Fi channel is showing Iron Teacher, which is along the vein of the Iron Chef show the Food Network puts on. They film it at the Exploratorium which you should visit if you live in or are planning to visit the San Francisco Bay Area.
[Source: Slashdot]
I am so over "IT" now, I am all about WHAT. I cannot tell you much - not much is yet known or is being released. It is rumored however that 0sil8 Heavy Industries has a technology, codenamed "Danza" that can "allow you to breath underwater", is "powered by water", and can convert saline into substance that can "help grow hair and retain the hair you have", among other abilities. I will keep you updated if I hear more.
Will "IT" finally be revealed? Did Diane Sawyer screw up? These stories and more on ABC's Monday December 3rd airing of Good Morning America. We can then find out if the owner of the following domains:
stirlingelectric.com
flywheels.com
flywheels.org
stirlingthermal.com
stirlingscooter.com
mystirlingscooter.com
is truly going to surprise us or give us what we are expecting, some sort of high efficiency self-transportation device based on a flywheel adaptation to the very old (but still very good) stirling engine.
This break has given me a chance to rediscover some of the great PBS programming that I have been neglecting. In addition to some excellent travel and cooking shows, and of course NOVA, there's the weekly news show: NOW - previously NOW with Bill Moyers - currently just Now.
My morning involved sub-zero temperatures and we still have no snow in Minnesota. I swear if we get blizzards in May I will be pissed. And I don't know what is fair about any of this.
