Spam: we all get 'em! It's become its own form of communication. I don't know about you, but I often wonder..."Where did this come from?" as I am hitting the delete button. Well, I'll tell you. So instead of getting frustrated with spam today, let's have a fun and creative investigation of the phenomenon we call SPAM. At the end, I have a fun little survey for you.
According to Wikipedia, it is widely believed that the term SPAM began with a TV sketch on the BBC's Monty Python's Flying Circus depicting a cafe where all the items involved SPAM lunchmeat. This was a reference to rationing during WWII when canned SPAM was about the only thing widely available in England. In the 1980's, the word SPAM was used in chatrooms often referring to the Monty Python skit and there were some early spammers who would frequently post quotes from Monty Python as a tactic to stop newcomers from chatting. Later on, the technique of multiple posts became known as spam and is now defined as unsolicited bulk email.
Spam as we know it has many forms. It is best known as ads for Viagra and Rolex but it can appear as a sales letter, a long lost friend, a request for help, a solicitation from Nigeria from a deposed king's daughter who is asking you to keep money for her because she has nobody else in the world to turn to for help, Dr. Seuss wannabee nonsense words and even completely blank emails!
According to information compiled by Spam-Filter-Review.com, E-mail spam for 2006 can be broken down as follows.
E-Mail Spam by Category
Products
25%
Financial
20%
Adult
19%
Scams
9%
Health
7%
Internet
7%
Leisure
6%
Spiritual
4%
Other
3%
Now living in the United States as I do, and knowing that most every country speaks English as well as their own native language, I never expected my spam to come in any other form but English! However, over the last several months, I have been receiving a large amount of spam in various languages. Since the second most popular language in the world is Spanish, you would expect to see most of your spam in English and Spanish, but you'd be wrong!
In terms of volume of spam: According to Sophos, the major sources of spam in the first quarter of 2008 (January to March) were:
The United States (the origin of 15.4% of spam messages, down from 21.3% in Q4)
Russia (7.4%, down from 8.3%)
Turkey (5.9%, up from 3.8%)
China (5.5%, up from 4.2%)
Brazil (4.3%, up from 4.0%)
Russian spam? Yes Russian spam! In fact, in the last several weeks, the most of the spam I get is in RUSSIAN! My daughter is away at college studying Russian and European history and in her first year of Russian this year. I can't wait for her to come home for Thanksgiving to tell me what this spam is selling! lol
Spam has recently changed from annoying emails you receive about topics and products you have no interest in to frustrating emails in languages you don't even understand! So here's my fun survey for you today. As you go through your own personal SPAM, can you even read it?
Come share what language most of YOUR spam comes in?
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
They say no two snowflakes are the same as no two people are the same. This video shows God's amazing attention to detail. If the snowflakes are this complex and unique, imagine the care He put into each of His children!
What appears the same on the outside
White and fresh and clean
Hidden inside delicate patterns
Of each one yet unseen
-JoJo Tabares
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
Several controversial speeches of historic proportion took place in the past few days. Who won and who lost from a communication standpoint? I'll go through them one at a time and give you my opinions.
The Biden/Palin debate that took place on Thursday night was viewed by an historic 69 MILLION people! That's more than any other VP debate and I think they said only 2nd to any presidential debate. Over all I think both Joe Biden and Sarah Palin did pretty well. Each in different ways.
Sarah Palin was most probably the reason they all tuned in. Some wanted to see her fail and others were rooting for her to win the debate. She held her own quite nicely and endeared herself to the American people. After a few horrid interviews, even many Republicans, didn't think she would do so well.
Perhaps the expectations were low as I reported one pundit had predicted or perhaps she just was more in her element. Sarah Palin seems to do well in more public settings where she is able to answer without being edited or where both political parties have to answer the same issues. She doesn't (or at least hasn't) done so well one on one against the mainstream liberal media Gotcha Inquisitions.
I watched the aftermath where all the Fox News pundits were saying she won the debate by a large margin. Some of their polls showed her winning the debate by over 80%! I think not. What she won was the hearts of the American people. She had some great points but she missed several opportunities to answer some of Joe Biden's issues.
CNN and the mainstream media reported that she did very badly, but their polls showed Biden won the debate by a much smaller majority.
Both Democrats and Republicans felt that Sarah Palin did very well. I don't think the honest ones thought she decidedly won, but they all agreed that she was by far the best communicator of the four. And she is. She spoke directly into the camera and to the American people with steady and unwavering eye contact and that smile for which she is known so well.
Joe Biden was expected to do well and, after thirty some odd years in politics, he should. I thought he made some great points which Palin left unanswered. Some pundits, including Republican pundits have said he won the debate. They might be right on substance. He steadily attacked her, the Bush administration and McCain. He was able to get some issues in that Palin either left unanswered by choice or had no opportunity to do so.
Biden did master the art of answering several objections lobbed at him by Palin even when he didn't have time during that question. He artfully came back to the issue at a later time in the debate.
Biden did endear himself to the American people during the debate when he shared that he had been a single father and that he knew too, how the American people feel. In fact, he got visibly choked up. He isn't known for this and so it was quite surprising and I think worked well for him. I believe it was most sincere.
Though he did get MANY more details and statistics in during the debate there is a raging controversy on his truthfulness. He said several things that I know were patently untrue. One was that Obama never said he would sit down with foreign leaders like Akmadenijad without preconditions. I heard him say it and so did many other Americans. I haven't been around the senate as long as Biden so I'd have to look up each issue.
Sean Hannity played a clip of all of the times in which he said Biden lied just during the debate with Sarah Palin that night. There were many! You could spend some time looking each up, but most people won't. Whether or not you are an Obama supporter, if you catch someone in a lie, their credibility is now in question. I think this does him a great disservice with swing voters who had heard the same statements as I did and know Biden was wrong on those.
Over all though, I think Biden did a great job as a debater. He is well trained as he has been in the public eye for many many years now. This was the issue I felt Sarah Palin had to overcome with a debate with Biden. As I said, they both did well in different areas.
Frank Luntz did a wiring up of some Independent voters who watched the debate and electronically showed their agreement or disagreement as they watched in real time. He reported that there was only one time during the debate where Sarah Palin's numbers went down. That was the time where she talked about going to the soccer games and talking to the Soccer moms about financial issues. There were several times during the debate where Biden's numbers went down.
I include O'Reilly in here as a speech because instead of respectfully interviewing Barney Frank, he MADE the interview into a debate and actually more of a shouting match. Which is interesting when you consider that he had blasted Katie Curic for unfairly treating Sarah Palin!
I don't agree with almost anything Barney Frank says, but I did agree with something he said during this interview. He said that O'Reilly was ranting and not allowing him to speak. This was true! O'Reilly was disrespectful and shouted over Frank for almost the entire interview. In fact, I felt Barney Frank did a fabulous job of conducting himself during this tirade! For the most part, Frank appeared to keep his cool and would not back down. This is what wins a debate!
I felt Barney Frank won that debate and Bill O'Reilly came off looking like the attacker. You may vehemently disagree with someone, but shouting them down rarely wins the argument! Judge for yourself:
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
Some times it's the simple questions that trip you up. The people asking are sure it's a simple question, but for you, it's not so simple. So sometimes you have to ask why they are asking in order to answer them correctly. It seems an odd thing to them-asking for clarification of such a simple question, but...well...here's what I mean:
Where are you from? It's a simple question. Where are you from? Should have a simple answer. Where are you from? "I'm from Joisey. You from Joisey?" (OK I'm not from Jersey) Where AM I from? Well, that question can be a little complicated to answer if you're me.
I was born in Colorado, but I only lived there for two weeks so I really wouldn't say I was from Colorado. I spent most of my early childhood in New York. I even spent five years in one house (big stuff for my family back then), but I left New York back in the mid 70's so, aside from my New York accent which comes out when I'm mad, I wouldn't say I was from New York.
If you mean where do I live now, the answer is Arizona. If the question is where did I just move from, I'd have to say California.
Though I spent over 30 years in the HollyWeird State, I don't identify myself with California enough to call it "home". I'd be hard pressed to profess a "home town" in California since in that thirty years I have lived in a total of about nine towns.
Where are you from? Sometimes I'm from the United States. Sometimes I'm from Art of Eloquence. And occasionally I'm in the state of confusion. Just depends on who asking and why...
Where are YOU from?
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
I thought McCain started off slow as he usually does. Though he is slow of speech and dull of voice he did build somewhat and had several points that I would call his. He isn't much on style but I thought he was pretty good on substance by the middle and at the end.
Obama started off MUCH better than did McCain. He usually presents a much more confident and youthful strength in his speech. McCain usually sounds like an tired old man. But there were several times when his confidence was noticeably shaken and occasionally had no solid answers for the arrows McCain was slinging his way. I thought the many times when McCain said "You don't seem to understand..." were very effective.
I thought McCain was the decided winner of the debate but I doubt seriously that anything either party said has turned the tide on the other.
Meanwhile tomorrow is the much anticipated debate between VP hopefuls Sarah Palin (R) and Joe Biden (D). I must say that I have been disappointed in Sarah Palin's recent interviews other than the few she did with sympathetic interviewers such as Sean Hannity. Her halo seemed to tarnish until I ran across this article: by Frank J. Ranelli, opinion editorial writer, a research author and critic.
Here's the upshot:
"Sarah Palin’s recent abysmal interviews are a canard. She is not the vapid, seemingly naïve and inexperienced candidate we have been led to believe. The bar of expectation has been deliberately lowered so low that once in front of the debate lectern, she will stun Biden with her slick, pat answers, leaving him flustered and trampled by the hockey mom turned-governor from Alaska."
What? He isn't suggesting she orchestrated this!
"Sarah Palin is sandbagging. She is intentionally appearing inept, and at times, outright vacuous and bungling. But she is downplaying and misrepresenting her political skill, guile and debating ability in order to deceive the Obama camp. This was an outright calculated, premeditated ploy in order to lull Sen. Joe Biden into a false sense of security. All of Palin’s botched interviews were done with wily aforethought – they were red herrings and glib stagecraft to hustle Biden."
Yeah! That's what I thought too! Who would do such a thing? It's not believable! But this is politics, my friends, and here is why he thinks so:
"I have recently watched several video clips from her debates, when she ran for Governor of Alaska in 2006, and she is far more adroit, astute, and shrewd during these debates than recent interviews suggest. In fact, she is a cunning, clever, and crafty woman who knows how to disarm people with her charm and then coldly go in for the kill shot."
No kiddin? I must admit I was surprised that I had sized her up as a fairly accomplished speaker, but then I just figured she was good when she wasn't being hit with questions for which she hadn't thoroughly thought through her answers. And being interviewed by the liberal media would fluster any conservative especially one who wasn't used to answering these types of questions. But maybe that's just what she WANTED me to think!
I must admit I am not all that politically saavy! I'm an honest Jo...Jo. And I don't really "think tricky". I'm not cut out for politics. I guess I'll have to turn down those offers to run for Emporer of the World. ;D
How do you think she'll do? Watch the debate. Come back and tell me what YOU think.
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
Art of Eloquence is turning six years old next month and today we kick off a month of creative communication fun with our Birthday Bash Drawing and three hour online episode of Grace Talk Soup. FIMM is just so sweet that he wanted to express his birthday greetings.
From: The Desk of Foot in Mouth Man
To: Art of Eloquence Staff
Subject: Birthdays
Dear JoJo,
I'm writing because I just wanted to express my sincere and excited greeting wishes for having spent the last 72 months of time in pursuit of helping other people to spend their time in developing the creative lessons that show how extremely important it is to study the fine and important art of talking to other people so that they are able to understand you the way you had intended that they understand the things you say but not in a way that was either rude such as when someone doesn't think to have the capacity to say things with gentleness of heart or in a way that is quietly confusing causing other's brains to melt down as they try to figure out what on earth you just said on that paper there or computer when you type things in that make no sense.
Yours very sincerely truly with love and in our Lord,
FIMM
TRANSLATION: (for those of you who don't speak FIMM)
Happy Sixth Birthday Art of Eloquence!
How many more feet can FIMM fit in his mouth? Tune in next week to find out!
============================================= Don't be a FIMMpersonator! Click here to read through the FIMM Archives and to view FIMM's video!
Check out Art of Eloquence to learn communication skills the FUN way!
=============================================
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
Malia Russle from Homeschooling911.com has a daughter who took this beautiful photograph. She is in a contest to win $1000. You can vote for her picture here and you can post her picture on your blog. She may not win first prize and the $1000 but she could win Most Virtual for having her picture posted all over blogland!
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
Art of Eloquence is going to be 6 years old in November!
To celebrate we are having an online party and YOU'RE INVITED!
In addition, we are giving away 6 prize packages worth over $200 each during our Annual Online Birthday Bash show on Grace Talk Soup! Mark your calendar for all the fun!
YOU'RE INVITED!
What: Birthday Bash Celebration Where: Grace Talk Soup! When: November 6th from 8am-11am PST
Admission: FREE! Events: Three hours of seminars, workshops and contests where you could win prizes!
* Seminar: What's Learning Skills got to do with Communication anyway?
* Where's FIMM Scavenger Hunt
* Name That Sound Contest for the kids!
* Email Communication Workshop
* Finale and announcement of our 6 Birthday Bash Prize Package Winners!
For more information on how to enter and what you could win, check the Art of Eloquence website on October 1st!
From JoJo'sPurple Crayon...
Where's FIMM? Did you find himm this week? Where's FIMM? Come find the only Foot in Mouth Man picture that is different from all the rest. Email what he looks like and where you found himm to fimm@artofeloquence.com and you could win a free Art of Eloquence eProduct of your choice!
Several months ago, I was in my car listening to a Christian radio station when the DJ asked about clutter in your purse. I thought it was an interesting commentary on your PURSEonality so I posed the question to my Grace Talk Soup listeners: What is the craziest thing you have in your purse? I received several answers including a metronome, a tape measure and diapers!
I'm a PURSE-A-Haulic and found this topic fascinating, especially since it revealed something about what your purse communicates about you. I couldn't resist so I had a quiz on this blog about what type of purse you all preferred. It wa so much fun that when I found a purse quiz online today, I thought I'd post it:
My problem was that I have sooo many purses that the quiz answers varried depending upon what purse I had in mind when I took the quiz. So I got to thinking and came up with another quiz that might be more revealing about what your purse says about you:
