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mrphI've just received this:
"I haven't checked this out yet, but sounds despicable.
Wonderful, isn't it? There were about 400 names on it when it reached me - and no link to the bonsai kitten site was included in the mail.
People are stupid. And gullible. Not only is the petition a hoax, but Bonsai Kitten is obviously a hoax. And, for my money, a fairly harmless one - although I'm seemingly in the minority on this, as a poll on (iirc) www.urbanlegends.com found that 60% of respondents felt it "encouraged animal cruelty".
One day, when I'm feeling evil and organised, I'll launch a similar petition - but ask people to add their email address as well as their name ("so that they know it's a real petition, and we haven't just made up names", maybe?). Then I'll have a list of people who are confirmed as stupid and gullible, which can be sold to spammers for good money (sales patter: "all of these addresses belong to people who were stupid enough to fall for this. Just think how easy it'll be to sell them things via spam - this is real top quality data, guys and girls...") or used for any number of other scams...
Who knows, possibly someone has already done exactly this. If so, I salute them. :)
"I haven't checked this out yet, but sounds despicable.
PLEASE READ.
FOR EVERYONE WHO LOVES ANIMALS
A site that we were able to shut last year has returned. We have to try to shut it down again! A Japanese man in New York breeds and sells kittens that are called BONSAI CATS. That would sound cute, if it weren't kittens that were put in to little bottles after being given a muscle relaxant and then locked up for the rest of their lives!!
The cats are fed through a straw and have a small tube for their faeces. The skeleton of the cat will take on the form of the bottle as the kitten grows. The cats never get the opportunity to move. They are used as original and exclusive souvenirs. These are the latest trends in New York, China, Indonesia and New Zealand. If you think you can handle it, click the address below and have a look at the methods being used to put these little kittens into bottles. This petition needs 500 names, so please put your one name on it!!
Copy the text into a new email and put your name on the bottom, then send it to everyone you know.
If you notice that there are 500 names on the list, please send it to: [ hotmail address snipped]
Wonderful, isn't it? There were about 400 names on it when it reached me - and no link to the bonsai kitten site was included in the mail.
People are stupid. And gullible. Not only is the petition a hoax, but Bonsai Kitten is obviously a hoax. And, for my money, a fairly harmless one - although I'm seemingly in the minority on this, as a poll on (iirc) www.urbanlegends.com found that 60% of respondents felt it "encouraged animal cruelty".
One day, when I'm feeling evil and organised, I'll launch a similar petition - but ask people to add their email address as well as their name ("so that they know it's a real petition, and we haven't just made up names", maybe?). Then I'll have a list of people who are confirmed as stupid and gullible, which can be sold to spammers for good money (sales patter: "all of these addresses belong to people who were stupid enough to fall for this. Just think how easy it'll be to sell them things via spam - this is real top quality data, guys and girls...") or used for any number of other scams...
Who knows, possibly someone has already done exactly this. If so, I salute them. :)
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Aha!
Date: 2002-12-21 04:32 pm (UTC)Thank you.
I now assume that the person who sent out the bonsai kitten petition originally was doing exactly this.
This thought allows me to view the world in a much more favourable light than I did five minutes ago.
Re: Aha!
Date: 2002-12-21 04:39 pm (UTC)I'm quite prepared to believe that they did it purely for fun (and likewise for the "rename 'The Twin Towers' - Tolkein's just tastelessly cashing in on 9/11!" petition) but they're only taking names, not email addresses, so there's not much scope for using it as an idiot locator.
Well, ok, that's not strictly true - I guess everyone who's received it can locate one idiot, as listed in the
From:header, but still...Re: Aha!
Date: 2002-12-21 04:43 pm (UTC)Really I'm just trying to convince myself that I don't need to despair of humanity yet.
Re: Aha!
Date: 2002-12-21 04:48 pm (UTC)Personally, I recommend the occasional killing spree. Very therapeutic.
Killing spree
Date: 2002-12-21 05:05 pm (UTC)Then all you have to do is to sit back and watch the merriment.
Re: Killing spree
Date: 2002-12-21 05:45 pm (UTC)~eek~
Re: Killing spree
Date: 2002-12-21 06:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2002-12-22 07:26 pm (UTC)Absolutely stunningly brilliant idea.
no subject
Date: 2002-12-22 07:33 pm (UTC)[It doesn't seem to be bonsaiboyfriend.com and google's not being much help...]
Maybe the petition won, and they took it down for cruelty to blokes, or something? :)