Brand Ng

About a Horse That Fled

Over the holidays, my parents relayed this little gem.  It's a short Chinese parable:

A farmer had one of his horses flee.  For weeks, he lamented his bad luck.  But by the end of the month, the horse returned, leading a whole herd of horses back to the farmer.  So instead of owning a single horse, he now had many.

The moral of the story: Who's to say that misfortunes are misfortunes?  Who's to say it wasn't good luck?

So as 2008 draws to a close, and as we collectively experience the most challenging environment seen in quite some time, who's to say this period of time hasn't all been good luck?

Happy New Year!  I'm optimistic that our greatest days still lie ahead.

Is Taleb Right About the Weather As Well?

December 2008 will be "remembered" in the Pacific Northwest for a winter blizzard, deemed unexpected by the media while breaking 40-year records in some parts.  Here in Vancouver, a little bit of snow can halt all traffic.  With up to 30 inches on the ground, the city was shut down.  TV news reports claim that there are only a few dozen snow plows for the city: we were unprepared even though we've had a few other major snowstorms in the last 20 years. 

As climate change increases the severity and frequency of atypical weather, will we collectively take a more risk-adverse view?  Will we learn some of the lessons espoused by the Black Swan in financial markets (that severe events happen more often than we think)? Or will we, in the future, simply accept the consequences and perhaps, if taken to the extreme, live with what would be thought of today as an unusually rigorous defiance of the elements? I'll provide updates the next time I see a major snowfall in Vancouver.

Though frankly, I'll be shocked if it ever snows like this again.

Help me decide which logo to use for BrandNg.com

So the contest at LogoTournament is over.  I think the variety was pretty good--with some funny options--even though I'm not sure I found the perfect logo.

In any case, I'm opening it up to the floor: What do you think?

You can view all of the remaining logos at http://logotournament.com/index.php?module=contest_view&id=560.  Refer to the # below each logo, on the left hand side.

MySpace and the invention of crime

If you're an internet user (and I have it on good authority that you are), you need to know about this under-reported cyberbullying case because it affects you in broad, unintended ways.

You may have heard about Lori Drew, a scumbag/overly active parent who used MySpace to befriend and then bully Megan Meier, a 13 year old girl.  Meier was a nemesis of Drew's teenage daugher. 

Lori Drew pretended to be a 16-year old boy interested in Meier.  Possibly as a result of some of Drew's carefully crafted, malicious messages, Meier committed suicide in October, 2006.  To be fair, Drew has since been found Not Guilty of intent to injure. 

Now it's natural for all of us, me included, to want to send Drew (and other various cronies who shared her fake MySpace account) to prison.  But what Drew did, in itself, was not a crime when she committed the act.  That's NOT the outrage, however, since internet harassment is now against the law in MO and since federal prosecutors still decided to go after her.  What's causing problems is that the Feds charged Drew under the auspices of a Federal anti-hacking statute.  They argued that Drew was committing a FEDERAL CRIME simply by violating MySpace's Terms of Service. 

So why should last week's guilty ruling concern you, assuming it is not overturned?  Two big reasons:

1. The first reason is that any website will now be able to write federal law.  Anyone will be able to create arbitrary Terms of Service which are not subject to the legislative process, but can be used to prosecute you in federal court.  In fact, it's the website owner that defines what is a violation of its terms of service.  Or so says a laundry list of legal scholars who submitted an amicus brief via the EFF. 
2. The second reason is that you now owe me $75 or you're going to jail.  Check my Terms of Service, sucker!

Attention K-Mart shoppers: You are ruining the moral fabric of American society.

Embedded in this public Thanksgiving love letter written by "P.C. Richard" (and his son) to their 2,700 employees is a nasty little note to retailers open on Thanksgiving Day:

"It is our opinion that retailers who choose to open on Thanksgiving Day show no respect to their employees and families, and are in total disrespect of family values in the United States of America."

(You can see a close up of the full page ad by clicking on it).

As early as 1991, K-mart opened its doors on Thanksgiving--the first major retailer to do so.  But the struggling retailer became more aggressive with its Turkey Day advertising about 5 years ago, clearly unable to wrestle the hearts and wallets of Black Friday shoppers from the likes of Best Buy, Toys R Us, Walmart, Macy's or basically anyone.  K-mart wanted to claim Thanksgiving Day for itself.

Eight and a half trillion dollars of bailout money later, more and more companies are opening their doors and preventing their employees from eating vast amounts of candied yams and gravy.

In an always-on, ever-available world, the last few pillars of respite from commerce are crumbling.  I'm all for keeping Thanksgiving and Christmas Day closed for brick and mortar retailers.  I mean, can't you live without a dazzling crystal keychain, etched with a photo of your favorite person or pet for just a single day? 

But PC Richard needs to stop whining.  This "guiding light" for retail ethics of the United States of America wants other retailers to stop disrespecting their employees and families.  Yet what's problematic about its stance is how it celebrates American veterans: with MASSIVE BLOWOUT SALES, STOREWIDE SAVINGS, and ZERO PERCENT INTEREST ON ALL BBQS AND AIRCONDITIONERS.

So PC Richard, while you're pondering whether or not it's a good idea to publish a full-page ad chiding the practices of your fellow discount retailers, how about closing shop on the upcoming Martin Luther King Day, to show respect for a true American hero?  Though I guess, in retailing, nothing says respect like offering 12 months no interest on HDTVs.

In the meantime, I think I'll head over to B&H Photo, with Chick-Fil-a sandwich in hand, companies that actually live by their code, not just rant about it.  Unfortunately, their hours of operation will probably prevent me from doing so.