This isn’t news. This is America at it’s best.

Then, they figured they would quietly go ahead and take possession of that shiny new jet that they ordered a few years ago. Seating 15, it’s clear how a multinational corporation like Citibank couldn’t live without it.

When media exposure caused a public outcry, they stated that they couldn’t cancel the order because they’d be penalized. Also, hey, We ordered it years ago when we were successfully raking our customers over the coals. Finally, they wanted to let us know that they were selling two of their older luxury airliners to make way for this one. Just in cased you missed it, they have two jets that are serviceable. They just want the new one because everyone who is anyone has it.

Again, I have to say that this is hardly newsworthy. I just wanted to bring to light some of the posted comments over at the NYPost. They deserve some recognition.

From Craig:

IM NOT GOING TO PAY ANY MORE ON MY CARD let them sue me

Fantastic idea, Craig.  I’m sure it has nothing to do with the fact that you spent money you didn’t have and would like to asuage your guilt by pinning your lack of settlement on the big bad spenders.

Claire Straightens things up for us:

All this scandal mongering about airplanes and carpetsa just tells me that out journalissts can’t understand multi billion business. If I have a credit card balance or mortgagr or car loan, that does not mean that the bank can follow me around the grocery store and comment on what I buy. Oh look! She is buying filet, Shouldn’t we write in her contract that she can onlly have hot dogs?

So, a taxpayer bailout is no different from a mutually agreed upon loan by you and your lending office.  To reiterate, when you take out a loan to buy hot dogs with the intention of repaying the loan, you’re just like the bank that can’t stay afloat and needs your money to keep from collapsing.

They are one in the same.

Mary is just sick at our idiocy:

Just think of all the people gainfully employed by building all the parts needed for that jet. Just think of all the people gainfully employed in maintaining and servicing that jet. Just think of the highly skilled and trained pilots earning salaries flying that jet. Just think of all the taxes being generated off the purchase of this jet. Now just think of all these people out of work and on unemployment because idiots like you guys force the company NOT to buy this jet. And give the same headline to all the Obamaniacs from the left coast who flew THEIR private jets to his inauguration. But that’s OK, ’cause they’re Democrats and liberals, right? They can do no wrong. I can’t stand this media idiocy….

You are the reason that companies like Citigroup don’t stand a chance.  You.  Not them.  Fine, you go tell Bob the upholstery installer that he lost his contract on installing the interior on the jet.  I hope you’re all happy, you miserable pieces of shit.

Many comments bring to light that they’re getting rid of two planes and buying one, so in essence, they’re  making money for us.  They can’t afford not to do this!  Nobody seems to have mentioned keeping one plane and selling the other.  After all, they are sucking from the government’s teat.  Couldn’t they at least act like they’re trying to cut costs?

I guess they’ll just make it up in increased interest rates.

They state that they were following the “regulations” set forth by the FCC. If that is the case, then why is DirecTV, Tivo and every other DVR system able to record the same shows that WMC can not?

Aha, therein lies the rub. The reason is because there are no “regulations” prohibiting the recording of any media. The FCC and MPAA attempted to dictate what the hardware makers could allow their hardware to record with something called broadcast flags, but the courts said they were high.

Imagine that your local schools stated that you could not drop your kids off in any vehicle manufactured with a sunroof. This was because you could inadvertently fall out of the car if the earth’s gravity were to reverse in areas with a high concentration of ill behaved children. Although the courts stated they were morons for attempting to enforce something like this, GM produced cars for your region that, if equipped with a sunroof, refused to turn into any school entrance. When asked, GM states “it’s the law”.

What Microsoft is doing is just as lame as my attempt at an analogy.

Microsoft loves digital rights management. They pack it into anything they can; music services, media centers, personal audio devices. If they are able to fit the code into something, you can pretty much guarantee that it will be shipped with it. When asked though, their common response(after their initial refusal to respond at all) is that their hand was forced by the media providers. Just like now. These concrete rules and regulations that they absolutely must adhere to. These absolute laws that they are unable to circumvent.

If only there were an alternative.

Subject: CONGRATULATIONS!!! Your Email Has Won 1,000,000.00 GBP
From: Mr.Joseph Poon <lesliesmith@orange.net>

Reply-To: Mr.Joseph Poon <lesliesmith@orange.net>

Date: 12:33 AM
To: franktrevor_08@hotmail.com

Mr.Joseph Poon wrote:

Yahoo/Msn Lottery Incorporation
22 Garden Close, Stamford, Lincs, PE9 2YP,
London
United Kingdom.

Dear Winner,

We are pleased to inform you of the result of the
just concluded  draws held on the{20th Of April,
2008} by Yahoo/MSN  in conjunction with Myway.com and
I pod  Worldwide Promotion. Your email was among
the 20 Lucky winners who won £1,000,000.00{One Million
Great Britain Pounds} each in the Yahoo/MSN {Microsoft}
2008 Online Promo. This draw is being organized to
create and improve a larger awareness record for
internet users worldwide.

However the results were released on the {2nd Of April,
2008} and your email was attached to ticket number
(7PWYZ2008) and ballot number (BT: 12052008/20) The
online draws was conducted by a random selection of
email addresses from an exclusive list of 29,031,643
E-mail addresses of individuals and corporate bodies
picked by an advanced automated random computer search
from the internet. However, no tickets were sold but
all email addresses were assigned to different ticket
numbers for representation and privacy. 

The selection process was carried out through random
selection in our computerized email selection machine
(TOPAZ).This Lottery is approved by the British Gaming
Board and also licensed by the The International
Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR).This lottery
is the 3rd of its kind and we intend to sensitize the public. 

To begin the claim processing of your prize you are
to contact the Online Co-ordinator and provide him
with the following information’s as stated below, so
we can proceed with the verification and clearance
process of your file. 

1. Full Names : ...........................................
2. Residential Address : ...........................................
3. Phone Number :Mobile&Home.............................
4. Fax Number : ..........................................
5. Occupation : ..........................................
6. Sex : ..........................................
7. Age : ..........................................
8. Nationality :.....................
9.Ballot No. :.......................
10.Ticket No.:......................

Dr Frank Trevor
Online Co-ordinator.
Email:    franktrevor_08@hotmail.com 

*You are advised to forward these information’s as
soon as possible to enable us attend to your file.
This email is registered and sent only to a certified
Yahoo/MSN {Microsoft} promo winner. 

You are to keep this award strictly from public notice
until your claim has been processed and your money
remitted to you.  This is part of our security protocol
to avoid issues of friends or relatives trying to claim
a prize on the rightful winner's behalf.

Our special thanks and gratitude to Bill Gates and
associates. Accept our hearty congratulations once again.

Yours Faithfully,

Mrs. Roseline S. Rader
Head of Council/Verifications Dept.

I must say, I am absolutely flabbergasted. I never win ANYTHING! And now I find out that I’ve won 1 million GBP’s? Oh my gosh!!

I must admit that I wasn’t sure what a GBP was, so I looked it up, and was amazed that I’d be receiving 1 million of these babies:

Nintendo Game Boy Pocket

Holy cow! a million Game Boy Pockets? I don’t even know where I will put them all! I guess I could probably fit them in the house, but I’m not sure if I’ll have room to live in it afterwards. I guess I and the family could sleep in the car. To make sure that was a viable alternative, we practiced last night:

It seems both my wife and daughter have a lot of stuff that they can’t go without, even if we’re just in the driveway.

Hey, you know what? I’m not going to complain, I’m going to enjoy my great luck! While in preparation for my lucky windfall, I promise that I will not dwell on the following aspects of my notification email:

1) Microsoft is partnered with Apple and Yahoo for this drawing. Microsoft recently attempted a hostile takeover of Yahoo and was rebuffed. They have also been vocal enemies of Apple, maker of the I-Pod since the inception of both companies.

2) The head council that sent me the email has problems with spelling basic words. As well, the email contains more grammatical errors than the schoolwork that my six year old brings home.

3) The email was sent from Mr.Joseph Poon <lesliesmith@orange.net> and signed by Mrs. Roseline S. Rader. For added confusion, you actually mailed this email to franktrevor_08@hotmail.com. If you are as bad at counting as you are at spelling, I will help. You’re referencing four different people as the originator of the email.

I will just learn to blindly trust a drawing that can’t even tell me my name, and wait patiently for my one million Game Boys.

Thanks,
json