Category Archives: Social Folly

Work-at-home Scams

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Received today in my inbox an email from a cousin, with a link to this website: http://worldwide%5Bdash%5Dworkathomeblog.com/job%5Bdash%5Dreport/index.html (I have obfuscated the link so it’s not clickable, but left it intact in case you want to see what’s there.)

My cousin, of course, did not send me this email – her account was hacked.

Would you consider it safe and ethical to deal with a company that advertises in this fashion? No? Well, you’re not alone. Just have a look here and see what kind of tactics this company uses to extract hard-earned cash from the wallets of desperate people.

Red flag No. 2: Try to leave the page or close your browser and this is what you get:

Any website that uses this technique is highly suspect, and I would never do business with any enterprise that employes mousejacking or browser exploits of this nature.

These scams just keep reinventing themselves with different names, on different servers. As soon as the heat gets too intense, they change names, IP addresses, and off they go again. They have no product, benefit only the people who developed the scam, and effectively steal thousands of dollars a day from folks looking for a way out of their financial desperation.

Stay away from them, and warn your loved ones.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Racism the Way We See It

Posted on by The Old Wolf

A 1994 documentary, now approaching 20 years old, depicting how young Native Americans perceive racism. I would not be going out on a limb to say that the same film could be made today.

Racism exists. It cannot be denied, or covered up, or excused. It is tied to the same mechanism that drives bullying, in the family, the schoolyard, or the workplace. Racism rears its head when people deny their better nature and look for mechanisms to justify their behavior. It is fed by the “us vs. them” dichotomy.

In a world that works for everyone, with no one left out, there is no room for hatred or cruelty. Despite all our technological advances as a race (and here I mean the human race), in some ways we are still scrabbling about in the mud. If we are to reach the stars, these weak and foolish tendencies must be rooted out of the global psyche.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

The unvarnished truth.

Posted on by The Old Wolf

The most honest three and a half minutes of television, EVER… [NSFW for language]

Painful to watch, yet sublimely inspiring.

America is no longer the greatest country on earth. Some would argue that it never was, but that’s a pointless debate. The real point, the salient point, the point that is crying out to be heard is: we still could be. As a nation we have the resources, we have brilliant people who want to make a difference, and we have tenacity in the face of adversity.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Huffington Post reports:

“Detroit police told groundskeeper John Chevilott that he did the right thing by turning in a loaded handgun he found while mowing lawns earlier this month. But his employers at the Wayne County Department of Public Services felt differently and fired him for violating department policies.”

A Facebook page and a Change.Org petition have been formed to support Chevilott, in addition to his local union filing a grievance on his behalf; he had been with the department for 23 years and was two years away from being eligible for retirement.

Apparently, the Wayne County government is under official scrutiny because of alleged corruption, and the probe is widening. FBI Special Agent in Charge Andrew Arena was quoted by a local news channel as saying, “I think in nearly 24 years in the FBI, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything quite blossom like this, or this much information come to a head so quickly.”

One moral you could draw from this tale is that if you’re going to be a douchebag, don’t draw attention to yourself with obvious stupidity.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Dear Nutella™…

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Spett.le Ferrero,

I just received word that I am eligible to participate in the recently settled class-action lawsuit filed by Athena Hohenberg and her army of lawyers. While the prospect of getting a few bucks for nothing more than the effort of filing an electronic form is tempting, particularly in this economy, I respectfully decline to do so.

I regret that things went down this path. Corporate vigilance is important, but this lawsuit is a clear example of attorneys hungry for billable hours taking on what they see as a deep pocket, for no other reason than personal enrichment. To say that these leeches are concerned with public health is like saying that the fox is concerned with the welfare of the hens. I see nothing misleading in your contention that a bit of Nutella™ spread on a lovely slice of whole-grain bread is no less healthy than the same bread with honey, and perhaps even more so.

I’ve been loving Nutella™ since I discovered it in Europe decades ago, and I have probably bought at least a case of the stuff since 2008. I’ve enjoyed every bite, and you don’t owe me a dime.

Distinti saluti.

The Old Wolf has spoken.