A Show That Makes G4 Not Suck.
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G4, the television network for gamers, really sucks. Unlike other networks such as Oxygen and Fox that suck because they always have and always will be horrible TV networks, G4 is an even worse kind of suck. G4 is the worst because of what is was, what is is, and what it could be.
In a not so distant past, G4 was known as Tech TV and it had good programming and personalities. I used to watch shows like The Screen Savers and Call For Help every day. People like Leo Laporte and Martin Sargent made these shows interesting and entertaining to watch. But then, for some reason, something changed. The good shows were replaced by horribly amateurish, graphically overloaded, juvenile talk shows that focused more on the hostess’s breasts than actual content. Everything became about video games and stupid internet videos. Most of the old talent moved to other internet networks like Revision3 and Twit.tv where they still create good shows to this day.
By far, the worst part about G4 is the countless hours of shitty syndicated Japanese game shows the network uses to fill airtime because they have nothing else to play. Now, asking G4 to replace shows like Ninja Warrior and Unbeatable Banzuke with good programming is out of the question, because we know they can’t. However, we could ask them if they are going to be playing these shows, to at least get a little creative with them. Make them hold attention for more than 3 minutes. The perfect solution:
Imagine a show that builds on both Japanese game shows and Celebrity Death Match’s success. Celebrities take place of the regular people in these ridiculous challenges and you have yourself a winning formula. Leo Laporte would rock on the bucking bull, and Paris Hilton would be a blast to watch trying to make it up the impossible wall. And there would never be enough time for Matt Damon.
I guarantee that G4’s ratings would skyrocket, and it would replenish some hope in the network that so many of us have lost. Now the only obstacle is to get celebrities to want to participate, but that shouldn’t be too hard. Who wouldn’t want to compete in a challenge where you run away from boulders and get fire extinguishers sprayed in your face? I know I would.
Nigerian Letter Scams and Pets. Online Fraud Increases in 2007, and How They Did It.
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According to a report released on Thursday by the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), monetary damages caused by online fraud were up 20 percent in 2007. The total amount of damages reported added up to over $239 million, with a median* loss of an astonishing $680 per complaint. This is an increase of the $199 million caused in 2006.
The IC3, a law enforcement agency which works closely with the FBI, receives and processes complaints dealing with auction fraud, non-delivery, credit card fraud, spam, intrusion, identity theft and child pornography. The report includes some interesting findings:
Perpetrators are predominantly male (75.8%) with half of them coming from California, Florida, New York, Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Georgia. The majority of perpetrators come from the United States, with a significant number coming from Europe and Nigeria.
Perpetrators do not seem to be sexist with thier targets, although maybe they should be. Only 57 percent of the complainants were male. However, Male complainants lost considerably more money than females, with a ratio of $1.67 to every $1.00 lost by females. This could be accredited to online spending habits or the types of schemes used against victims. Age also seems to have little or no relevance to victims. Although the stereotypical online fraud victim is a grandma helpless in the ways of the internet, the study shows that you are just as likely to become a victim whether you are 23 or 85.
*Although the median loss for victims was $680 dollars, the mean loss was $2,529. This is because nearly half of complaints received dealt with monetary loss less than $1,000 but 12 percent reported loss of over $5,000. Certain incidents reported losses even larger. The biggest losers in 2007 were victims of investment fraud, with a median loss of $3,547.
Yes, Nigerian letter scams did really well in 2007 - 6.4 percent of total reported loss came from those tricky African scammers, with an average $1,922 dollars lost per incident. Can’t believe people fall for it? Apparently so, and when they fall, they fall hard.
As one might expect, online fraud increases dramatically during the holiday season. In 2005, the number of complaints received between the months of October and December increased to 30,000 compared to the rather steady 17,000 of previous months.
The report also includes some interesting descriptions of the more popular scams used throughout the year. A large amount of them, interestingly enough, dealt with the online pet trade.
When the fraudsters target pet sellers, the fraudster agrees to buy the pet and sends a bad check for more than the amount asked by the seller. They explain that the extra payment is for someone who will be taking care of the pet temporarily, and to wire the amount of extra money to a bank account. If the scam is successful, the seller wires the money before the check is cleared, and the fraudster makes off with the cash before the check is found out to be fake. Tricky buggers.
Romance scam was rampant in 2007. Online dating sites proved to be fruitful hunting grounds for scammers. First, the fraudster browses the site looking for potential targets. Once contact is made, he attempts to gain trust through… romantic gestures. Included in these gestures is a burning desire to meet the person, but they explain that they do not have enough money to make the trip. The scam is successful when the victim agrees to send money to pay for the transport. Then, of course, some unforeseen event occurs that prevents the fraudster with following through with the visit, the dating site account is deleted and they are never heard from again. Not only is the victim out of the money for transport, but they are in danger of shorting out computer keyboards with excessive amounts of tears.
Obviously, scammers love to play on other’s hearts and emotions. Another prominent scam is the Adoption Fraud, or Charity Fraud, in which large amounts of email are sent to email addresses (spam) with subjects such as “URGENT HELP NEEDED” They then of course, ask for donations for causes such as helping orphans, buying medicine for ill people, or saving the rain forest. Sometimes, they even pose as representatives from real oranizations such as the British Association for Adoption and Fostering (BAFF).
So how are people supposed to defend themselves against these vicious attacks on even the most benevolent human impulses? Stay informed, and don’t believe everything you read. If you really have trouble sorting through what is legit and what is a scam, you can check out websites like www.lookstoogoodtobetrue.com or the IC3 website for the facts.
Great Online Radio Stations
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Getting sick of listening to the same songs from you library over and over? Try listening to on-line radio from your favourite music player. It can turn you onto new music as well as freeing you from your old boring mp3s. There are hundreds of radio stations on the net, and the majority of them are commercial free! And because there are no commercials, the stations are free to play whatever they want! You will find some great non-mainstream music on some of these stations as well as the hits. The best places to find radio stations would be NullSoft’s Shoutcast: www.shoutcast.com There you will find tons of unique radio stations from all around the world My favourites are:
Groove Salad Awesome ambient radio station based out of San Francisco. Good coding music.
Radio Paradise A super relaxing eclectic rock station. Some good stuff that I’ve never heard before as well as some good classics.
The BuzzFM If you are into alternative rock, you will LOVE this station. The play list is straight hits, but it does get repetitive sometimes.
Once you start listening to online radio, you will never go back. I swear.
Next Time Bird, Pay More Attention
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We heard a great “BANG!” while going over the days lecture in spanish class. When we left the room, this is what we found:
and closer:
That must have hurt!
Worst Prescription Drug Ads
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We’ve all seen those pharmaceutical ads on tv that are smiles, laughter and sunny skies. But what can be unsettling are those words the narrator spits out usually in the last few seconds of the commercial. The prescription drug industry is one of the most profitable in the world. It seems like drug companies come out with a new cure for a disease every month, and people rush in like crack addicts for rocks. What is surprising is that everyone seems to ignore the warning about how dangerous they are, even though we are bombarded with warning nearly every night while we watch TV. Some of these warnings are straight ridiculous, making you wonder why anyone would take the drug in the first place. Others, have the ability to make you laugh out loud, which is a better cure than any they are selling. Here are three of the craziest drug ads on tv.
Mirapex.
This one is by far the most ridiculous drug commercial I have ever seen. First of all, the disease its supposed to cure, RLS or Restless Leg Syndrome, seems like something a guy in the PR department of Pfizer made up. The ad states that if “you have an uncontrollable urge to move” maybe Mirapex is right for you. Uncontrollable urge to move? Damn that pesky biped body that was built to walk! Maybe those uncontrollable urges have something to do with not using your legs and whoever gets them should, lets think, go for a walk? But wait, the ad keeps getting better. It tells you that using Mirapex may cause serious side effects like falling asleep during normal activities, such as driving. Right. If you thought that was bad, the narrator goes on to tell you to “call your doctor if you experience increased gambling, sexual or other intense urges.” What the hell? Increased gambling urges? Actually, on a second thought this drug sounds like it might be kinda fun…
Youtube link to TV ad.
Celebrex.
This 2 minute ad is made up entirely of a blue background, relaxing music and scrolling text that takes the form of people, dogs and bushes. And you expect that with an ad made entirely from text, the words should be convincing you to buy the drug. Apparently not. Instead, we find words like “abdominal pain” “serious skin reactions” and “internal bleeding.” No, these are not the ailments celebrex is curing, but instead nasty side effects that may occur from taking the drug. In fact, the narrator goes on a long rant about how the risk of heart attack is the same for most pain medications, including celebrex. Hmm, that makes me feel a lot better.
Youtube link to TV ad
Cialis.
For men who can’t get it up. But is it really worth the risk of a permanent erection? Or vision loss? Considering how much spam I get in my inbox for
it someone must be buying it.
Youtune link to TV ad
Ugliest Dogs and Cats in the World
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Now one should not be so shallow as to judge someone by how they look. We all know that the appearance has little to do with personality, so thats why we don’t laugh at ugly people (at least in public). Animals are a little different. Its ok to laugh at a dog if half its teeth are missing on one side so its tongue is permanently hanging out, right? Even if you don’t agree, here are some damn ugly pets to laugh at.
Lets start off with a classic. This has got to be one of the most hideous forms of life I have ever seen.
**Edit: Video is in spanish because the original english one was taken down.
Meet sam, runner up for the world’s ugliest dog alive (but I hope not for long)
Not even the pearl necklace or professional lighting could help this poor best:
Not exactly ugly in the same way as the others. Rat or dog? You decide.
Ok so thats enough of picking on the dogs. Cats can be just as horrendous if not worse! The thing about ugly cats, its almost as if they know how ugly they are, and get all defensive and pissy about it. Or maybe thats just my imagination.
Lets start if off with a video again. No, its not ET thats actually a cat. Yes.
He wants BLOOD!
All I can say is, thats one nasty mug.
This one is actually quite seductive.
And finally, a cat so fat he makes the woman look skinny!
Hopefully you all had a good laugh. Unless one of these pets were yours. If so, I’m sorry.
Welcome to Boring, Oregon
&& [ Bizzare, Entertainment ] && 0 comments
f you thought your town was boring, imagine living in a town where EVERYTHING is boring!
Boring Oregon has a pretty dull road sign.
I thought it was implied that offices were boring?
Who would want to go to this tavern?
Here is the local fire dept:
I used to think my school was bad…
Everyone hop on the exciting bus to Boring, Oregon!
I hope you enjoyed these images! I found them in a photography book by Martin Purr published by Phaidon Press Lmt. Ny, Ny.
I Was Raised on Animal Cruelty
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Milo and Otis was a popular flick int he late 80’s that starred a puppy and a kitten as the film’s main characters. They go on a series of adventures that include fording rivers, jumping off cliffs and falling into death pits. Unlike the computer animated films of today, Milo and Otis was filmed using all real animals. And I emphasize the “s” at the end of animals. Rumors have it that the filmmakers may have gone through as many as 27 tabby kittens and several pug dogs. The movie was originally created in Japan by director Masanori Hata and it wasn’t until later that it was released in the Unites Stats. Because there was no such thing as laws forbidding Animal Cruelty in Japan during the 80s the film became a huge hit without much controversy.
As you can see from this extremely poor quality YouTube video, that cat was lucky to survive. Unfortunately, many of its predecessors on the set were not so lucky. This excerpt was taken from the more censored American version; in the original the scene is extended to show the cat trying to climb up onto the rocks after falling from the cliff while getting pounded by waves.
Because of the lack of special effects technology at that time during the 1980s, there is no way these scenes can be fake.
Now I understand that times have changed and with them our views on animal cruelty, and I’m not pointing any fingers here or saying that anyone who likes the movie is an evil kitten killer (but you are). I simply find it an interesting study in the history of film making.
Cool Jail Wall Graffiti
&& [ Bizzare ] && 0 comments
Imagine yourself in a jail cell. You don’t have much to do except stare at the gray walls and maybe read a book for days on end. So why not decorate the place a little? Thats what some of these inmates have done. Most jail cell graffiti is nonsense gang symbols and “Jesus Saves” messages but every once and while someone comes up with something creative. Just hope you never have to see them personally.
So here is your typical jail cell with graffiti written all over it:
This chilling piece gives us some advice:
This writing was possible done by the jailer, to give his inmates hope.
Must have been the gamblin type:
Some incredible artistry:
And of course, you have the guys that are just so happy to be getting out:
Roman?
Even in the most oppressive of places, creativity manages to display itself on these jail house walls.
Classic AOL You've Got Mail .wav
&& [ Technology ] && 18 comments
I was wandering around on the internet, and decided it would be fun to try and get a really old version of AOL running on my new Vista laptop. Well I never got one of those old version to work, but I did manage install one and all the wav files that came along with it. The one that brings back so many memories, GOTMAIL.WAV, well I had to keep that one. I now use it as my new mail notification sounds in Mozilla Thunderbird. Brings me joy every time I get a new piece of mail. Thanks AOL! You can download the .wav file Here