Had a little accident with my oven a while back. The front glass got broken, and I went hunting around for a replacement part.
GE’s offering:
Are you out of your Vulcan mind? That’s extortion! Well, that was disheartening. Let’s see if we can find a competitor or aftermarket alternative.
Well, Sears PartsDirect did a little better, but a bit more searching came up with this:
Why a black sheet is so much less expensive than a white one is totally beyond me, but I ended up saving over $300.00 just by settling for a black front instead of a white one, and the contrast looks very good.
The Internet makes comparison shopping so much easier than it used to be. Back in the day, the Yellow Pages and a telephone was all we had, and one was limited to a very local search. I’m grateful for the miracle.
This beautiful ballad has long been one of my favorite songs of Ireland. I first fell in love with it as part of “Mary O’Hara’s ireland:”
Later, my wife introduced me to The High Kings, who performed an abridged but no less pleasing version:
There are numerous spellings of the lyrics out there, but I have chosen to use the one that appears on O’Hara’s recording.
Aréir is mé téarnamh um’ neoin
Ar an dtaobh thall den teóra ‘na mbím,
Do théarnaig an spéir-bhean im’ chómhair
D’fhág taomanach breóite lag sinn.
Do ghéilleas dá méin is dá cló,
Dá béal tanaí beó mhilis binn,
Do léimeas fé dhéin dul ‘na cómhair,
Is ar Éirinn ní n-eósfhainn cé hí.
Last night as I strolled abroad
On the far side of my farm
I was approached by a comely maiden
Who left me distraught and weak.
I was captivated by her demeanour and shapeliness
By her sensitive and delicate mouth,
I hastened to approach her
But for Ireland I’d not tell her name.
Dá ngéilleadh an spéir-bhean dom’ ghlór,
Siad ráidhte mo bheól a bheadh fíor;
Go deimhin duit go ndéanfainn a gnó
Do léirchur i gcóir is i gcrich.
Dó léighfinn go léir stair dom’ stór,
‘S ba mhéinn liom í thógaint dom chroí,
‘S do bhearfainn an chraobh dhi ina dóid,
Is ar Éirinn ní n-eósfhainn cé hí.
If only this maiden heeded my words,
What I’d tell her would be true.
Indeed I’d devote myself to her
And see to her welfare.
I would regale her with my story
And I longed to take her to my heart
Where I’d grant her pride of place
But for Ireland I’d not tell her name.
Tá spéir-bhruinneal mhaordha dheas óg
Ar an taobh thall de’n teóra ‘na mbím.
Tá féile ‘gus daonnacht is meóin
Is deise ró mhór ins an mhnaoi,
Tá folt lei a’ tuitim go feóir,
Go cocánach ómarach buí.
Tá lasadh ‘na leacain mar rós,
Is ar Éirinn ní n-eósfhainn cé hí.
There is a beautiful young maiden
On the far side of my farm
Generosity and kindness shine in her face
With the exceeding beauty of her countenance.
Her hair reaches to the ground
Sparkling like yellow gold;
Her cheeks blush like the rose
But for Ireland I’d not tell her name.
There are other versions out there, no less pretty; these two are my favorites.
From the website of the Boston Division of the FBI (this is the real McCoy):
Canadian Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Role in Telemarketing Fraud
U.S. Attorney’s Office, November 10, 2010
BOSTON, MA—A Montreal man was sentenced today in federal court in connection with his role in a long running telemarketing scheme that targeted victims in the United States and the United Kingdom.
MITCHELL KARACHINSKY, 59, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Patti B. Saris to 10 years’ imprisonment, to be followed by two years of supervised release. The court also ordered Karachinsky to pay restitution in the total amount of $1.624,750. Karachinsky pleaded guilty to telemarketing fraud on April 1, 2010.
At the earlier plea hearing, the prosecutor told the court that had the case proceeded to trial, the government’s evidence would have proven that Karachinsky participated in a fraudulent telemarketing ring operated from Montreal. Targeting elderly victims in the U.S., Karachinsky and others falsely represented that the call recipient had won a large money prize that could only be collected after the victim prepaid fees that needed to be mailed or wired to Canada. The money prizes were nonexistent and none of the victims of the scheme ever received any winnings. In total the scheme defrauded U.S. victims of more than $2.5 million. In December 2009 one of Karachinsky’s co-defendant, Gilles Maisonneuve, was also sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in this fraud.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz said, “Telemarketing fraud is a crime that targets members of some of our most vulnerable populations, including senior citizens. I am committed to the prosecution of these predators and dedicated to recovering as much money for victims of telemarketing fraud as possible.”
U.S. Attorney Ortiz and Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Federal Bureau of Investigation announced the sentencing today. The case was investigated by Project Colt, a cross border law enforcement telemarketing initiative based in Montreal including the participation of the FBI and other federal agencies and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lori J. Holik of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
I don’t mind doxxing this scumbag because the information presented here is a matter of public record, and this is the turdcasket who scammed my mother out of about $65,000.00 while she was still alive.
Ever since he was sentenced, we’ve been getting regular updates from the USDOJ Victim Notification system; the last one we got is as follows:
You have requested to receive notifications regarding MITCHELL KARACHINSKI, an inmate incarcerated at the Rivers Correctional Institution in Winton, NC. [snip] This notice is to inform you that MITCHELL KARACHINSKI will be released on April 22, 2015. Additionally, will release to the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement for possible deporation to Canada.
So it looks like Mr. Scumbag has served his time and is about to be released, with the hope that ICE sends his sorry ass back to Montreal where, it is to be hoped, he will face additional sanctions from the Canadian authorities.
The notification mentions restitution, but Mogg only knows where any funds for that would come from. At any rate, I am most grateful to the FBI and the RCMP for working together to put this piece of camel ejecta and his cronies behind bars for a goodly bit of time.
This Sam Nwa guy is working hard. A pity he doesn’t care to do anything but run an advance-fee fraud scam.
Subject: DHL COURIER SERVICE IMMEDIATE DELIVERY NOTIFICATION
From: Linda Williams <sarahkahls@gmail.com>
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
DIRECTOR DHL COURIER SERVICE.
TEL: +229 99935738
Dear Beneficiary,
I am writing to confirm the fact if you are (DEAD) or (ALIVE) and failure to reply back in the next 24hrs simply means what Mr Jude Betsy said was right that you are dead. Mr Jude Betsy has agreed to pay the needed charge fee valued of $50.00 dollars required for the Bond Stamp Duty Fee of your consignment box , but we have not gotten the money from him yet as we want to find out if you are DEAD or not, so if you are still (ALIVE) you are advice in your own best interest to reply back, The only money you will pay to our office here is just $50.00 for the paper works, Take note of this now, so we can stop further communication with Mr Jude Betsy and deliver the (Consignment Box) to your door step being the original benefactor of the $2.5 Million US Dollars. Be the reassurance that once we hear from you with this payment, i promise that your delivery will commence immediately without any further delay to hand over the consignment box to your designated address and do not miss this Good opportunity that you have to receive the consignment box at last for the pass effort that you are trying to get it receive to your home address this is an opportunity for you don’ t miss it is for you.
BELOW IS THE PAYMENT INFORMATION YOU WILL USE TO SEND THE $50.00 TO OUR CASHIER NAME THROUGH WESTERN UNION OR MONEY GRAM.
Receivers Name= = = Sam Nwa
Address:= = 12/1 Midombo Expressway Cotonou-Benin
Country= = = = = = Benin Republic
City= = = = = = = =Cotonou
Text question= = = =Who is father
Text answers= = = = God
Amount= = = = = = $50.00usd
MTCN Number= = = =?
You must send us the details provided by Western Union or money gram immediately you made the payment of $50 usd for us to receive it and commence for your delivery immediately.
The Lads from Cotonou have now switched from the carrot to the stick. I have not been forthcoming with their payments, so they’re threatening me with arrest by Interpol if I don’t pony up. Only $85.00. Of course, once I shell out, there’s still that chance that I could get my hands on $9,000,000.00 USD… but that’s completely legit.
INTERPOL SECTION 1
STATION CODE> 7101
POLICE CEL> 7011/FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION (FBI)
EMAIL: interpolgeneralofpoliceforce@gmail.com
URGENT NOTICE.
You have failed to comply with our directives .we have been waiting for your confirmation letter since may 14th 2014 as our director has already been notified about you to get this process completed yesterday and right now the warrant of arrest has been signed against you and it will be carried out in the next 72 hours as strictly signed by the FBI director.
We have investigated and found out that you didn’t have any idea when the fraudulent deal was committed with your information’s/identity and right now your ID is placed on our website as a wanted person and you will be announce in all the local channels that you are wanted by the FBI after 72 hours. As a good Christian and a honest man, i decided to see how i could be of help to you because i would not be happy to see you end up in jail and all your properties confiscated all because of your information’ which was used to carry out a fraudulent transactions, i called the EFCC and they directed me to a private attorney who could help you get this process done by securing a money laundry certificate document at the sum of $85 USD only and which will save you from this arrest and i believed that this process is cheaper for you.
You need to do everything possible within today and tomorrow to get this process done because our director has called to inform me that the warrant of arrest has been signed against you and once it has been approved, then the arrest will be carried out, and from our investigations we learn that you were the person that forwarded your id to one impostor/fraudsters last month when he had a deal with you about the transfer of some illegal funds into your bank account which is valued at the sum of $5,000,000.00 usd.
I pleaded on your behalf so that this agency could give you till 17/02/2015 being today so that you could get this process done because i learn that you were sent several e-mail without getting a response from you, please bear it in mind that this is the only way that i can be able to help you at this moment or you would have to face the law of the United State and its consequences.
You are advised to make the payment through Western Union money transfer with the below details to the attorney.
RECEIVER NAME: SAM NWA
COUNTRY: BENIN REPUBLIC
CITY: COTONOU
TEXT QUESTION: ONE
TEXT ANSWER: TWO
AMOUNT: $85 USD
SENDERS NAME?
MTCN?
Send the payment details to me which are senders name and address, MTCN number, text question and answer used and the amount sent. Make sure that you didn’t hesitate making the payment down to the agency today so that they could have the certificate endorsed, signed and stamped immediately without any further delay.
After all this process has been carried out, then we would have to proceed to the bank for the transfer of your compensation funds which is valued at the sum of $9,000,000.00 USD which was suppose to have been transferred to you all this while.
Note/ all the crimes agencies have been contacted on this regards and we would use your address which is stated above and you’re ID to trace you if you disregard this instructions again for the last time.
Thanks for your co-operation.
Thanks as i wait for your response
Sincerely yours,
Mr. Ronald Kenneth Noble (Interpol Secretary General)
United States
Take that headline with about a metric ton of salt.
Once upon a time, Islamic scholars made significant contributions to science, mathematics (algebra is an Arabic word), philosophy, medicine, and other fields.
Today? I’ll let you judge for yourself. Saudi preacher Bandar Al-Khaybari demonstrates that the earth does not revolve around itself, using deeply flawed logic, the absence of scientific understanding, and the Qur’an. Oh, and astronauts never landed on the moon, either.
If you don’t want to take the time to watch the video, here’s the transcript:
Someone is asking whether the Earth moves or whether it is fixed in place. Does it move or remain fixed? The Truth, as described by our scholars Imam Ibn Baz and Sheik Saleh Al-Fawzan, is that the Earth is fixed and does not move. This is in keeping with the Quranic text, and it makes sense as well. […]
There is ample Quranic evidence that it is the sun that revolves around the Earth. As for evidence based on reason… The (Westerners) present all kinds of theories, but we Muslims also have theories and brains.
First, let’s say that we go from here to Sharjah Airport and take a plane to China. Are you with me? Concentrate now. Let’s say that this is the Earth, and let’s assume that it is turning… If we take an international flight from Sharjah to China… You say that the Earth is turning, right? If the plane stopped in mid-air, wouldn’t China come to it? Am I right or not? If the Earth really does turn – China should come to the plane. Now, let’s assume that the Earth revolves the other way – the plane will never catch up with China no matter how long it flies. Since China is also revolving, you will never get there. Secondly, Allah talked about the (celestial) house frequented (by angels). This house is located in the seventh heaven. The Prophet Muhammad said that if it fell from the sky, it would fall on the Kaaba. But if the Earth revolves, it would not fall on the Kaaba. It would fall in the ocean or somewhere on dry land. This proves that the Earth is fixed in place. […]
The (Americans) say that they landed on the moon, but they never set foot or laid their eyes on it. They produced it all in Hollywood or I don’t know where. They said that they had gone to the moon and we just took their word for it.
Now, please don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that Muslims in general are stupid or scientifically ignorant, or that nothing good comes out of the middle east. But what we have here is the equivalent of letting Mike Huckabee or Pat Robertson teach K-12 science. This guy wears the robes of authority, he gets on television, he spouts this phenomenally ignorant nonsense, and millions of people believe him. This is not good for humanity.
To give equal time to another brand of fanaticism, I refer you to the Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky, a $27 million facility devoted to the concept of an earth that’s younger than 10,000 years old, and which contradicts science at every turn.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – science and faith don’t mix. I’m not against faith; I have a spiritual walk of my own. But I keep those beliefs separate and apart from the empirical evidence of the universe around me. We get in trouble when we try to make observable facts conform to religious belief, or vice-versa. You can’t shove one into the other’s box.
For myself, I liken our perception and knowledge of the universe around us to an Ames room:
In this common illusion, two people who change places in a room appear to change size drastically. Looking at them through a peephole destroys our sense of depth perception and allows the illusion to work:
The room is actually severely distorted.
For all we know from empirical observation about our environment – and we have learned a lot – I’m entirely convinced that we know next to nothing, and that we’re looking at our universe through a peephole. Were we to be able to see the “big picture,” a lot more things would make sense.
In the meantime, denying scientific reality makes a body look like a gibbering loon. Don’t do it. As for me, I do my best to live a good and productive life according to principles which I hold sacred and which inform my life, and gaze in wonder at the awesomeness and complexity of the world around me.
In the early 1970s I spent a year or so in Naples, Italy. While there I acquired a lot of lovely Italian LPs, but I had also brought some music with me from home to play on my portable cassette player. I would listen to these albums endlessly, and they became inextricably associated with my time there.
But time moved on, I moved back to the states, and over the years the two cassettes either wore out or were lost, and ultimately they faded from memory, leaving only an echo. Every now and then I would hear one of the pieces on the radio, but never had enough musical skill to identify them; it took me decades to locate all the pieces I had become so fond of, but finally the list came together and I could find the old track listings and identify the albums, with the additional bit of help that I recalled the albums were released by RCA.
I can no longer find images of the cassettes themselves, but the same albums were released either on LP or 8-track:
Thanks to the miracle of music streaming websites like Pandora and Grooveshark, I was finally able to re-assemble the albums in virtual format, and once again listen to these compilations; music being a powerful memory elicitor, these glorious pieces transport me back to the Naples of the early 70s.
The playlist:
Smetana – The Bartered Bride
Overture
Polka
Furiant
Liszt – Hungarian Rhapsody No. 1
Liszt – Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2
Dvorak – Scherzo Capriccioso, Op. 66
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6, “Pathétique”
The more time goes on, the more the Internet manages to capture and archive. While Google Books and Newspapers have been more or less given up on as projects, private enterprises are stepping in to pick up the slack; it is to be hoped that a compromise can be worked out between the exigencies of copyright and the importance of digital archival.
Saw this photo over at reddit and it really pulled at my heartstrings.
The oldest of the children in this photo by Dorothea Lange takes care of the others in her migrant family, most likely while the father is working in the fields. She is stunningly beautiful, but carries a heavy and unwanted load on her young shoulders.
Another image of the middle child, wearing a sack dress.
“Youngest little girl of motherless family.” Toppenish in the Yakima Valley of Washington State. August 1939. Photograph by Dorothea Lange. Seen at Shorpy.
Poverty of this nature still exists in our country, let alone the rest of the world, but these images are a stark reminder of a very difficult time for our nation.
Last week Radio Shack filed for bankruptcy, and the world I know will never be the same. HuffPo has a good read on why the company couldn’t survive in it’s current incarnation, and it may not be gone forever, but it won’t look the way it did in its heyday.
It used to be that you’d go down to the radio store for something like this:
And you’d encounter salespeople like this (Dilbert, from 1989):
RadioShack was once the playground of the inventor, the maker and the tinkerer. In the ’70s, Steve Wozniak—Apple’s co-founder—built a device to hack long-distance phone calling out of parts he bought at RadioShack. It was where amateur electronic engineers could pick up computer chips and build their own computers. (Quartz)
Tandy tried all sorts of things to expand its market share, things like Computer City (which lost $60 million for Tandy in 1996) and Incredible Universe, which lost $90 million; we had one of the latter in Utah before it closed in mid-1997.
Incredible Universe tried to be the big splash in electronics; according to Wikipedia,
A typical Incredible Universe was 185,000 square feet (17,200 m2) of sales floor and warehouse, stocking around 85,000 items.
The operation was conceived by former TandyCEOJohn Roach. Many internal corporate philosophies of Disneytheme parks were borrowed; in an Incredible Universe store, retail departments were ‘scenes,’ employees were ‘castmembers,’ uniforms were ‘costumes,’ and so forth.
The stores featured a large rotunda area with an actual stage where sales presentations, product demonstrations, or even occasional musical acts were performed, and various retail departments (software, music and video, and accessories) were accessible from this rotunda. Moving through the rotunda area would lead one to the main storefront where larger consumer electronics and computers were sold.
It included entertainment areas for kids, and a built-in McDonald’s; the sales staff all wore purple shirts and called themselves “grapes.” Below is a commercial for the enterprise, sadly potato quality but at least it gives you the idea:
Here’s the Utah press release:
At a press conference held today in Sandy, Tandy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John V. Roach and Sandy City Mayor Tom Dolan unveiled plans for the opening of the giant consumer electronics gigastore this fall at the corner of Interstate 15 and 110th Street. “Incredible Universe is an electronics and home appliance store unlike any other in the world. We have created the hottest new shopping concept in America today by combining incredible fun, an incredible selection and incredible first-class service that caters to the entire family,” said Roach.
With sales estimated at $80 million per year, Incredible Universe will provide a local economic boost by adding substantially to the area’s tax base and by creating more than 350 new jobs.
Incredible Universe is so unique that it is often referred to as the “show.” Unlike many stores, guests (or customers) are encouraged to play with the merchandise — more than 85,000 products under one roof.
Guests can also create their own music videos at the sing-along Karaoke studio to test their skills at Virtual Reality and other computerized games. Community groups are invited to perform in the store’s Rotunda, and local celebrities make special appearances.
While adults shop, small children can entertain themselves with electronic toys and games in a supervised children’s play area called KidzView. Or, the entire family can take a break from shopping at the McDonald’s restaurant located inside.
Leading-edge guests can visit three state-of-the-art Multimedia Rooms to experience the combination of personal computers, full motion video, and home theater in a home setting; video teleconferencing in an office or Board Room setting; and DSS (Digital Satellite System), the latest in home satellite technology.
The newest creation in the Universe is a multimedia “library” with more than 2,500 different CD-ROM software titles. Other features of the store include a Home Theater, a computer-equipped Kitchen Design Center, and a giant-screen video display.
The 85,000-plus products available at Incredible Universe include 342 different televisions, 72 video cassette recorders, 60 camcorders, 181 refrigerators, 83 washers and dryers, 575 home and personal audio products, 300 car stereo/mobile products, 48 personal computers, and more than 70,000 music and movie titles.
Incredible Universe gigastores are open in the metropolitan markets of Phoenix, Portland, Seattle, Sacramento, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Columbus, Dallas, and Arlington, Texas. In addition to the Salt Lake City market, other new locations planned for 1995 include the Denver, New York Metro, Indianapolis, Houston, and greater Washington, D.C., markets. Corporate headquarters are located in Fort Worth, Texas.
The concept was launched just as stores like Circuit City and Best Buy were rising in popularity, and ultimately the huge mega-stores couldn’t compete. Buildings were so large they found no buyers, and Tandy had to sell them for pennies on the dollar. Six of the 15 stores were acquired by Frye’s, and one in Texas became a community college building.
I was a longtime Radio Shack customer and watched the evolution with interest. There were times I asked myself how long the enterprise could survive, given what I saw happening to the offerings and the staff.
Radio Shack’s batteries were the cheap ones from China, but when you have three kids and a gazillion electronic toys, free batteries were always welcome. At one point we sprang for a bunch of rechargables and a charger, which probably saved a few quatloos in the long run.
Robie still sits on my dresser, eating quarters with gusto.
This is, effectively, a 3-band hearing aid. We inherited this one from someone else, but it works like a champ.
One of the most useful devices I’ve ever had around the house. I wish it did the little mercury ones (I have a voltmeter for that) but this still works.
Pocket “Simon.” Finally sold this one on eBay along with some other puzzles, but part of me wishes I had kept it just for the nostalgia value. But I’m sure my buyer is enjoying it.
There were countless other toys and gimmicks, as well as a pretty respectable combination turntable, dual cassette deck, CD player, and AM/FM stereo set we had for about 30 years; I just barely finished ripping my LP’s to digital format with it before it finally gave up the ghost.
Christmas time at Radio Shack was great in the 80s; there were countless fun gimmicks and toys, RC cars and trucks, and lots of things that kids would enjoy. As time went on, though, the offerings of this nature became slimmer and slimmer; cell phones became the dominant push, and everything else was secondary. According to the HuffPo article I referenced above,
RadioShack lost sight of who they were. Technology changed rapidly, but their gadgets did not, and many of them were rendered obsolete as smartphones came into the picture with apps that easily replaced them. They didn’t focus on the right things, and that led to fruitless attempts to become relevant once again.
Whether the company will survive in some form or other, or be acquired, or simply fade into oblivion, remains to be seen. For me, the most poignant image was not even real, but cleverly photoshopped – but it expressed in a single picture what I have been feeling over the last couple of weeks, as I digested the news of an old friend’s passing:
Another scam email from Benin, supposedly from the “IRS.” The English is horrible, the format is crude, and the criminals are getting more desperate. They used to ask for thousands of dollars as up-front fees, now they’re down to almost begging for pennies. But don’t be fooled – there are no funds, and anyone who bites is at risk to lose their entire life savings if they are gullible enough.
Subject: U.S Internal Revenue Service Department Internal Revenue Service
U.S Internal Revenue Service Department
Internal Revenue Service United States Department of the Treasury
Accessibility Skip to Top Navigation
2283 3rd Ave New York, NY 10035, United States
Greeting from IRS USA
We the Internal Revenue Service, believed that you received the previous message we sent to you, prior to your dealings with the U.S Custom Authority at (JFK) John F. Kennedy International Airport New York as regards to your over-due contract payment consignment trunk box worth $10,500.000.00 (Ten Million Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars only), which was endorsed in your favor and like we stated earlier, we have dully screened through this project as stipulated on our protocols of operation and have finally confirmed that your contract payment is 100% genuine and hitch free from all face and of which you have the lawful right to claim your fund without any further delay.
This is to bring to your notice that we have just been informed through secret source that the U.S Custom Authority at (JFK) John F. Kennedy International Airport New York are making arrangement to have your contract fund wired into the Bank account of Mrs. Jane Frederick, the lady that contacted them, earlier and presented some documentations evidencing your claim purported to have been signed personally by you for the release of your contract fund to her, since you have chose to ignore their messages and refuse to pay the required $155.00 for Custom Clearance Certificate C.C.C. charges as imposed, despite the advise we gave to you.
I want to personally assure you once again that you will have every course to smile and be happy upon conclusion of this project, as we will continue monitoring all your services with them at all level as well as your correspondence, until you have received your Metal Trunk Box accordingly, we are here to protect your interest and that is the reason why we are doing all we can to make sure all goes well. This is a huge amount of money which we don’t wish for you to lose.
We understand that the imposed fee might be too much for you to pay so to further make things easier for you, we have discussed with the U.S Custom Authority at (JFK) John F. Kennedy International Airport New York pleaded on your behalf for them to give you the grace of sending half of the charges which will be only $77.50.00 Us Dollar for now after which the Diplomatic Agent deliver your consignment trunk box to you then once you receive your fund, you can then pay the remaining balance of the fee.
All we want you to do right now is to send the half payment of the money with the name listed below so we can forward it to Benin Republic Customs authority to help us obtain the Custom Clearance Certificate C.C.C. and the diplomat will make the delivery to your home address tomorrow morning.
Description of Your Consignment box to be delivered:
Type:……CONSIGNMENT TRUNK BOX
Size:…../ 2:1 CM.
Weight:…5.6KG.
Color:…..BLACK BOX
Registration NO: #98952457
Serial #5267843156
Pin number…*****
Contact us right away and let me know when you will send half of the charges as we discussed with them to enable them route your fund to you with immediate effect. This is a life time opportunity and we will advise you to take advantage of it, before it will become too late for consideration.
Receiver’s Data/information to send the fee through Western Union or Money Gram directly to the officer Incharge in Benin Republic.
Receiver’s Name:::::::::::: Julius Chukuwma
City::::::::::::::::::::::: Cotonou
COUNTRY:::::::::::::::::::: Benin Repulic
Text Question:::::::::::::: GOD
Text Answer:::::::::::::::: BLESS
Amount::::::::::::::::::::: $77.50. 00
Sender’s Name::::::::::::::
Sender’s Address:::::::::::
MTCN#::::::::::::::::::::::
Also be informed that we came to an agreement with the U.S Custom Authority at (JFK) John F. Kennedy International Airport New York that you will be sending half of the fee, latest before the end of tomorrow so please we will advise that you send the fee right away because if you fail to do that, then they will have no other choice than to release your fund to Mrs. Jane Frederick who is ready to work with them, and am sure it will be a very great loss to you as we will not be able to help you then, hence your fund will be lost forever.
This is an official notification and we advise you treat it with utmost urgency, in your best interest.
Happy New Year and God bless you!!!
Yours Sincerely,
IRS Commissioner,
Dr. Graham Johnson Honnse
I post these mostly against the eventuality that someone who really doesn’t know what African scam letters are about might search the web for information about the “opportunity.”
Keep in mind that for these scams to succeed, the hope of riches must suppress any sense of morality the intended victim might have.
There is no money waiting for you in Africa.
Never send money to a stranger via Western Union or Money Card.
Playing in the World Game 