Boing Boing: March 24, 2006 Archives

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March 24, 2006

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Justin Watt and ACLU win parody case

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 8:44 PM | permalink

200603242037

O'Reilly OPG web producer, Justin Watt, successfully defended himself against a laughable cease-and-desist sent to him from a creepy outfit called Exodus International, which promises to help gay people obtain “freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ.”

About three weeks ago Exodus International sent Justin the cease-and-desist for this image that parodies the lame billboards that Exodus International uses to advertise their hideous message.

The ACLU jumped to Justin's aid by sending Exodus International a mind-blowingly great letter explaining why Justin is well within his rights to make laughing stocks of the homophobic group. And Exodus International backed off. Here's a USA Today article about it.

And here's Justin's blog entry with a link to the ACLU letter. Way to go, Justin and the ACLU!
Link

Megaphone helmet on eBay

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 5:54 PM | permalink

Blogger 4749 510 1600 Helmet

How have I been able to exist this long without a 1950s megaphone helmet? eBay has two - get one for you and your significant other and take your arguments to a new level.
Link

EMI releases Brazilian DRM CDs that totally hose their customers

Posted by Cory Doctorow, March 24, 2006 1:40 PM | permalink

Brazilian mega-star Marisa Monte's new CDs from EMI ("Infinito Particular" and "Universo ao Meu Redor") come with DRM that can't be uninstalled, and requires you to "agree" to a contract that isn't published in Portuguese. Even if you disagree, the malware is installed. The DRM blocks you from playing the CD on Linux and MacOS, and from loading it onto an iPod. This, just as the Brazilian government has launched a Computers for All initiative to distribute 1,000,000 Linux PCs, seems particularly contemptuous of the Brazilian people. Ronaldo sez,

When you insert the CD in your computer, it automatically opens a window with the "License Agreement" of the CD. This is a very large contract in Portuguese, but it is very difficult to read. The agreement is opened in window programmed in flash, so it is impossible to cut and paste the text into another program. In some computers, when you try to scroll down the contract using the arrows, the text slides completely out of control, making it impossible to read.
After taking some time to read the agreement, the first thing that called my attention is that the text says that a full copy of the contract is available at the address "www.emimusic.info/". That is NOT TRUE. If you go to the "Brazil" link at the page, there is no copy of the agreement whatsoever at the website, contrary to what the agreement itself expressly says.
The text of the agreement says that the CD will install software in your computer in order to make the cd playable. However, it says that the user must acknowledge the fact that "certain files and folders might remain in your computer even after the user removes the digital content, the software and/or the player".
Additionally, it says the following: "This contract has been originally drafted in English. The user waives any and all rights that he or she might have under the laws of his or her own country or province, in regard of this contract drafted in any other language".
Finally, my favorite part. There are two buttons below the agreement. The first reads "Accept the Agreement" the second reads "Reject it". After reading all the above, I decided to reject it, and pressed the "reject" button. Immediately a screen with the word "Initializing" appeared, the proprietary software was installed, and the music started to play in my computer using the proprietary EMI player, as if I had "accepted" the whole thing.

(Thanks, Ronaldo!)

Update: Of course, if you want to get this music without infecting your PC, there's always ISOHunt -- thanks, Christopher!

Update 2: Before you click on ISOHunt, read this, from Malke: "IsoHunt tries to install Winfixer on a Windows machine. Since I know you use an Apple and I use Linux, it wouldn't affect us, but even here on Linux using Firefox with popup control, I got three popup window attempts to install Winfixer on my machine. Winfixer is really nasty malware (I do computer tech support/repair for a living and that's how I know about this) and will seriously mess up Windows users' machines."

Update 3: Clarification: it's not ISOHunt that hs the malware, it's some of the search results on the ISOHunt page.

Altoids case made from old iPod shuffle

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 12:25 PM | permalink

Picture 13-1

Courtney, a graphics artist, like to use Altoid cases to hold extra X-Acto blades. But now where do the Altoid mints go? Why, inside a gutted iPod shuffle. Instructables has the instructions for making one of your own.
Link

Walt Disney film about venereal diseases

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 12:08 PM | permalink

Disney VD cartoon

Amid says: "Somebody has posted on Google Video a copy of the super-rare 1973 Disney film VD ATTACK PLAN, which is all about venereal disease protection. Who ever said Disney cartoons and condoms don't mix!

"I also mentioned it on CartoonBrew today."
Link

posted in:

What if? Pierce Bush interviewed in Iraq

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 11:49 AM | permalink

Pierce Bush in Iraq

vaporlock says: "You had some stuff on your site today that mentions Pierce Bush, [the 19-year-old who supports his uncle George W. Bush's war in Iraq yet bafflingly hasn't signed up to fight for democracy in Iraq]. I made a video and posted it on youtube were I took the interview of Pierce and placed him in Iraq, thus making the interview that much more watchable. Check out the video and post it if you like."
Link

Favorite this! ( 1 )

Major retailers offer on-site inkjet refills

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 10:46 AM | permalink

Chicago Tribune reports on how large retailers such as OfficeMax and Walgreens are offering on-premises ink-jet cartridge refilling services. Hewlett-Packard is pretending not to care, but the article says printer supplies account for about 70 of HP's printer business profits, and that 15-20 percent of the supply business has already moved to third-party refillers.

"I'm of the opinion it's just ink," said Sean Lowry, a senior vice president for Pacor Mortgage in Chicago, whose company is hooked on the service. "An average cartridge for a good printer or copier is $100. If you're using six or seven machines at the office, that's a lot of money."

Link (via Make Blog)

Ten-Year-Old Robot Punk Rock prodigy

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 10:26 AM | permalink

Boing Boing reader Jesse says,

My 10-year-old brother Brendan (now known as "Eddy Demon") is the frontman, lead guitarist, and principal songwriter for a punk rock band called "Total Annihilation." One of his best lyrics (in my book) is:
"You say cool, I say hot! / Together we made a robot!"
Anyway, they just released an EP, which features some originals (like "Rock and Roll on a Friday"), and some covers (like Iggy Pop's "I Wanna Be Your Dog"). They even have a creation myth:
Long ago there lived a demon by the name of Rock.Rock was inventing a plan to take over the world.After 2,000 years he had finally invented a plan.Rock created a style of music which he called Rock'N'Roll.The only thing Rock needed now was minnios to help him complete his plan to take over the world.

Link. The robot kid sounds kick-ass.

Statue of nude Britney Spears giving birth

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 10:15 AM | permalink

"Monument to Pro-Life: The Birth of Sean Preston" is a life size statue by artist Daniel Edwards. It will be unveiled at Capla Kesting Fine Art in Brooklyn on April 7.

“Monument to Pro-Life: The Birth of Sean Preston,” believed Pro-Life’s first monument to the ‘act of giving birth,’ is purportedly an idealized depiction of Britney in delivery. Natural aspects of Spears’ pregnancy, like lactiferous breasts and protruding naval, compliment a posterior view that depicts widened hips for birthing and reveals the crowning of baby Sean’s head.

Link (via PCL Linkdump)

Update: Here's a podcast interview with Daniel Edwards.

Fresh children arrive from space to replace roboticized Earthlings

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 10:11 AM | permalink

Well that's a relief. As the photo here clearly proves, a fresh crop of children have finally landed from outer space, to replace the hordes of Earth-children forcibly assimilated into robot consciousness. Link to "recycled cardboard rocket playhouse." (Thanks, Gary Grainger)

Previously:
- Random jpeg of cuteness: robot kid
- More evidence robots devouring our kids
- Earth-children's robot resistance marches on

Fake titles for Neil Bush's software company, Ignite! Learning

Posted by Mark Frauenfelder, March 24, 2006 9:53 AM | permalink

On March 23, 2006, I wrote about Neil Bush's educational software company, Ignite! Learning, and about the company's shady investors, which include scions of the Chinese ruling class, United Arab Emirate royalty, and a Russian gazillionaire wanted on criminal charges for allegedly plotting to overthrow Boris Vladimir Putin. Neil's mother, Barbara Bush, is also a big beleiver in Neil's company -- her donation to the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund was specifically earmarked for her son's company. (Here's a Houstin Chronicle article with more details.)

I asked readers to send in their suggestions for Ignite! software titles, were they to reflect the behavior and philosophy of Neil Bush and his investors. The suggestions were great, and I've posted some of my favorites below.

At the end of this entry, I'm running two emails sent in by people defending Ignite!. One is from a guy who is friends with Ignite! employees, who he describes as "distinctly kind and gentle individuals." The other email is from an actual employee of Ignite! who wishes to remain anonymous.

But first, here is my favorite entry, from Bob's:

Well, to promote traditional values, Ignite! would, of course, release different games for boys and girls. . .
For the girls:
Explora the Whora - As Explora, travel around the world knocking on hotel room doors looking for relatives of the rich and powerful. Maximum possible points for each round are based on the hotel guest’s family’s wealth and influence. Get friendly with the guest as quickly as possible, then collect points by extracting marriage proposals and/or blackmail payouts! Teaches young women how to move up in neo-conservative America and patriarchal societies around the world.
For the boys:
ShockAndAwecracy - As president G. W. Booyah, dress up in your flight suit and jump in to the cockpit of your NewWorldReorderer machine! Just press buttons to select countries from a map of the world, sending bombs and troops to spread democracy and freedom! Maximize your score by spending as much borrowed money as possible. Score extra points for enriching your friends with no-bid contracts to rebuild what you have destroyed (no rebuilding required). Teaches boys how to make friends and influence people.

Here, in no particular order, are the runners-up:

Continue reading Fake titles for Neil Bush's software company, Ignite! Learning.

Principles for Network Neutrality from USC Annenberg

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 9:13 AM | permalink

Snip from statement on the USC Annenberg website:

In February the Annenberg Center for Communication at the University of Southern California invited a group of senior communication experts from industry, academia, and consumer groups to discuss how to begin to bridge differences over the issue of network neutrality. In cordial, off-the-record discussions several key principles began to emerge that we believe could serve as a base from which detailed discussions might proceed. We have continued to fine-tune these ideas over the past month. Not all participants are completely comfortable with every principle. But, we all believe that these Principles may help anchor the current debate and may help advance the conversation. We wish to place them on the record so that interested parties and the public can continue the process of reaching agreement on this important issue.

Here is the list of principles, released by Annenberg Center for Communication Executive Director Jonathan Aronson and Senior Fellow Simon Wilkie, a former FCC chief economist:

The Annenberg Center Principles for Network Neutrality
The goal of the Annenberg Center Principles for Network Neutrality is to provide a simple, clear set of guidelines addressing the public Internet markets for broadband access.
1. Operators and Customers Both Should Win: It is important to encourage network infrastructure investment by enabling operators to benefit from their investments. It also is important to ensure that customers have the option of unrestricted access to services and content on the global public Internet.

Continue reading Principles for Network Neutrality from USC Annenberg.

Cryptozoology museums

Posted by David Pescovitz, March 24, 2006 9:03 AM | permalink

At Cryptomundo, Loren Coleman surveys several cryptozoology museums throughout the world. From the post:

Artist John Frick of Cumberland, Maryland, stands under his creation, a Mothman replica that hangs from the ceiling of the Mothman Museum in Point Pleasant, West Virginia...

What cryptozoology and Bigfoot museums would you recommend to other Cryptomundo readers from your journeys and readings? (please post comments at Cryptomundo--ed.)

Link

Vlog interview with Bruce Sterling

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 8:51 AM | permalink

Bruce Sterling looks a bit like a younger, healthier Johnny Cash in this vlog interview with Minnesota Stories vlogger Chuck Olsen, (director of Blogumentary). Earlier this week, the esteemed Mr. Sterling took a break from novel-writing in Belgrade to appear in conversation with "relational aesthetics" artist Rirkrit Tiravanija at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN. They spoke of shoes and spimes, and for a spell, all was right with the world. Link to more info. Also, the Tiravanija / Sterling talk will be here shortly: Link. (Thanks, Paul Schmelzer and Chuck Olsen)

Brian Jungen's sculptures from everyday objects

Posted by David Pescovitz, March 24, 2006 8:51 AM | permalink

Nikemask

BB pal Kirsten Anderson of Seattle's Roq La Rue gallery points us to the excellent work of Brian Jungen, a Vancouver artist who transforms everyday objects into very different forms. Seen here, Nike shoes and human hair reborn in the form of a Northwest Coast Indian mask. The piece is titled "Prototype for New Understanding #16 (2004). In another work, he assembled a multitude of the ubiquitous white plastic chairs into a whale skeleton.
Link

Rebar's prankster life

Posted by David Pescovitz, March 24, 2006 8:39 AM | permalink

Last year, I posted about San Francisco art group Rebar's urban prank where they converted a downtown parking space into a public park for a day. The cover story in this week's issue of SF Weekly is a wonderful chronicle of Rebar's secret history and method behind the delightful madness. From the article:

As part of its spring 2003 "property" issue, the quarterly arts magazine Cabinet had bought half an acre in the middle of nowhere on eBay and dubbed it "Cabinetlandia." The editors offered readers 3-square-foot plots of the undevelopable desert at a penny apiece in a bizarre avant-garde statement of the illogic of ownership and the very idea of property. When (Matthew) Passmore proposed the equally bizarre idea of building a library on the site — every town needs a library, after all – the editors approved, doubting he'd ever actually go through with it.

Even to Passmore, the whole thing did seem a little ridiculous. He wasn't really an artist – six months before, he had still been a corporate lawyer. But it was too late to turn back. He and his friends had invested hours and hours planning the project, and Cabinet had already entrusted them with funds to buy materials. Passmore wasn't sure whether the library would be a "piece of art" or a project without much meaning, but he found the idea of bringing a slice of industrialized America into the wide-open Wild West very, very funny. So he lugged a filing cabinet and a few tools out of the minivan and left them on the ground. Then he drove half an hour back to the motel in Deming, the closest town to Cabinetlandia, and waited.

That afternoon, Passmore's high school buddy Jed Olson, a doctor living in Denver, arrived in his truck. Two more friends, Judson Holt, a litigation consultant, and John Bela, a landscape architect, flew from San Francisco to El Paso and met at the Deming motel. They drove over to Cabinetlandia and started digging...

When they'd finished, a crescent mound rose from the desert floor, flanked by solar-powered lights. A filing cabinet within the small hill housed the entire archive of Cabinet, waiting for anyone who might visit Cabinetlandia and want to borrow a copy. The crew gathered their equipment and planted a wooden sign that said "LIBRARY" into the ground, then started the long journey home.

Link (Thanks, Ken Goldberg!)

Bizarre three-faced doll head

Posted by David Pescovitz, March 24, 2006 8:27 AM | permalink

This surreal three-faced bisque doll head, a German antique, is up for auction on eBay right now. Current bid is GBP 21.99. From the item description:

very more beautifully and well received

three faces head

very more rarely three faces head, approx. around 1900, without damage. no tears or jumps, crying width unit a face with glass eyes, a laughing face with glass eyes, and a sleeping face
2, 8 inch

Link (Thanks, Michael-Anne Rauback!)

worldblogcenter.com: lying turdmongers

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 8:26 AM | permalink

BoingBoing reader Darren Rowse just pointed us to a shady site called World Blog Center, which touts itself as "prestigious virtual real estate location in which blogs from a variety of industry sectors are housed." I prefer to think of them as lying assholes, because they're claiming that BoingBoing is a "tenant," and exploiting the BoingBoing logo and name without our permission in their press releases, on their website, and -- according to folks they've hit up for cash -- in spam emailings soliciting paid membership.

On Darren's blog, a worldblogcenter.com spokesperson named Amja lied that BoingBoing gave them permission and asked to be a part of their dishonest scheme -- we did not. Snip:

Every single company we have listed in our news section has taken up space, and we have the emails to prove it. The latest company is Business Week Online who came on board today.

At the time, BoingBoing was listed in their news section. We did not consent to this, by email or otherwise. We've asked them to remove our name from their press re-lie-leases (BoingBoing.net is the first word in 9 copies distributed through various online press release services), we've asked them to remove our name from their site. They have failed to do so.

On their website, they claim, "The World Blog Center is PRESTIGIOUS. It is EXCLUSIVE and you could say ELITIST... you can't simply BUY your way in." Well, for the record, BoingBoing didn't. Link to more on Darren's blog.

Update: Here's their domain registration info (Thanks, John Battelle!)

Domain Name: WORLDBLOGCENTER.COM
Registrar: GO DADDY SOFTWARE, INC.
Whois Server: whois.godaddy.com
Referral URL: http://registrar.godaddy.com
Name Server: NS2.INTERMEDIA.NET
Name Server: NS3.INTERMEDIA.NET
Status: REGISTRAR-LOCK
Updated Date: 11-mar-2006
Creation Date: 09-dec-2005
Expiration Date: 09-dec-2006

Reader Comment: Mongo says,

Check out their Twin Towers-reminiscent logo. So not only are the "people" (innocent until proven otherwise, right?) behind the site unethical, they are overtly exploitative. Someone call Scumbags Anonymous for these losers!

Reader Comment: littlestar_43 reminds us,

They're really ripping off milliondollarhomepage.com.

New Internet Backbone map for North America

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 8:09 AM | permalink

CIO.com just published a swank new detail map of the North American Internet backbone -- 134,855 routers are represented, each color-coded to indicate which provider 0wns it. Information Aesthetics blog explains:

Red is Verizon, blue AT&T, yellow Qwest, green is other backbone players like Level 3 & Sprint Nextel, black is the entire cable industry put togethe, & gray is everyone else, from small telecommunications companies to large international players who only have a small presence in the U.S.

Link to PDF (1.1MB) , and link to related post on CIO.com blog.

On his blog, USC Annenberg Center for Communications scholar Kazys Varnelis adds,

CIO Senior Writer Ben Worthen, who produced the map with Bill Cheswick of Lumeta suggests that what it tells us is that the debate on net neutrality needs to be understood not only in terms of the last mile, but also in terms of the backbone. The players are increasingly the same.

(Thanks, Dan Lurie and Kazys Varnelis!)

Survey: Sometimes you can fly without ID, TSA security lax

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 7:43 AM | permalink

A survey conducted by three privacy activists -- including EFF cofounder John Gilmore -- showed that TSA agents frequently fail to enforce the agency's rule that travelers must present government-issued ID at US airport security checkpoints. Snip from GovExec story:

Many of the travelers responding to the survey had forgotten their identification or it was stolen, or their driver's licenses had expired. Many of those who recounted their experiences at the airports said TSA screeners subjected them to extra security checks but allowed them to board the aircraft.
Other travelers were allowed to board planes after showing several forms of non-government identification, such as credit cards or school ID cards.
The survey was undertaken by a group of three activists calling themselves "The Identity Project." They are concerned about the inefficient and overly intrusive security policies implemented by the government.

Link (Thanks, Bill Scannell)

NY photog held for hours by police over flag photo

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 7:33 AM | permalink

Thomas Hawk says,

Having been the subject of unwarranted police background checks and being detained when shooting in the streets of Oakland myself, I was dismayed to read about this guy, Ben Hider, who was detained by police for two hours, searched, forced to empty his pockets and frisked. His crime? Taking photos of the flags out in front of the courthouse. Although he was issued an apology this is just unacceptable behavior on the part of the police. Photography is not a crime.

Link to ABC News story from White Plains, NY. Here is Ben Hider's MySpace page. Looks like this is the photograph that got him in trouble.

Reader comment: Ryan says,

In response to the man who was hassled by police taking pictures of the (public!) courthouse...this link is to an attorney's page whic has a nice PDF that states a photographer's rights. I keep a reduced one in my wallet in the case I am ever confronted, which seems like it may be sooner than later these days. Here's the PDF link.

Report: MySpace banned in UAE, like BoingBoing, presumably with SmartFilter

Posted by Xeni Jardin, March 24, 2006 7:27 AM | permalink

A friend of BoingBoing who is currently working in the United Arab Emirates reports that attempts to reach the popular social networking site MySpace using a terrestrial broadband connection are blocked. Sources tell us that the filtering system at use here is "SmartFilter," produced by the American censorware company Secure Computing.

The would-be MySpace user in the UAE reports:

They give a pretty interesting screen message saying that it is blocked because it is inconsistent with their religious, moral and cultural values. I took a screen shot if you are interested. Also, Google seems to strip out all ads on their site here.

Earlier, our readers in the UAE reported that the state-run ISP in that country was also blocking BoingBoing.net, with the help of SmartFilter: Link.

Previously:
- Distributed BoingBoing, for those blocked by censorware
- SmartFilter, BoingBoing, and Adult Baby - Diaper Lovers.
- Xeni's NYT op-ed: Exporting Censorship
- More on SmartFilter blocking BoingBoing and other popular sites.

Reader Comment: Arthur Magill says,

I'm wondering if SmartFilter blocks BBC News, for displaying gratuitous nudity? This BBC News link points to photos of sculptures by Auguste Rodin, highlighting a forthcoming exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. Blocking a major news site like the BBC would be pretty serious. I'm not filtered here, so I can't check. If any of your readers could check, I'd like to know what the BBC would have to say. If it isn't filtered, I'd like to know why Secure Computing will make some exceptions and not others? I must be reading too much BoingBoing, because I keep wanting to shout at the world for being wrong. Keep up the good work.

Rant transcript from Game Developers' Conference

Posted by Cory Doctorow, March 24, 2006 5:01 AM | permalink

For the second year running, Alice from the Wonderland blog has taken incredibly detailed notes from the "Game Developers' Rant" at the Game Developers' Conference (this year in San Jose, CA). The Rant is a panel where a bunch of luminaries from the gaming world get together and foam at the mouth, hurling obscenities and pearls of wisdom from the stage. Alice captured some real mind-blowers from this year:

Frank Lantz: Why does the phrase 'the player will be able to go anywhere and do anything' sound like nails on a chalkboard to me? It's based on a very naive and unsophisticated understanding of how simulation, how representation works. You have a thing, a part of the world, and you have a simulation of that. There's a gap in between, the gap is made up by all the differences, the way that this is not this.. the immersive fallacy is this idea that computer simulation allows us to close this gap and makes these things identical. But this gap is an essential part of how this representation works, this gap is where the magic happens.
Let's say a bear is attacking a friend of yours and is about to kill him. The word 'bear' will warn your friend. The word 'bear' would not be better if it had teeth and could kill you! The same thing is true of the bear mask that the tribal priest puts on, or the bears on the wall of the cave, and of the game 'Bear'. Statues wouldn't be better if they could move. Model airplanes would not be better if they were the same size as airplanes! By the same token, if you think about it, the incredible sense of freedom created by GTA is created by carefully limiting the actions of the player.

Link

Union Pacific threatens to sue painters, model railroaders over TM

Posted by Cory Doctorow, March 24, 2006 4:49 AM | permalink

The Union Pacific Railroad has gone trademark crazy. They're threatening to sue anyone who puts a Union Pacific logo on a model railroad, photographers who take pictures of Union Pacific trains, and even painters who paint pictures of Union Pacific trains. Model railroaders, photographers, and painters are freaking out, natch. Link to Trains.com thread, Union Pacific licensing program (Thanks, Robin!)

Melbourne's graffiti scene killed by Commonwealth Games

Posted by Cory Doctorow, March 24, 2006 4:38 AM | permalink

ACB sez, "Stencil artist Banksy has written an article for the Guardian on the war on graffiti and street art in Melbourne, Australia, until now one of the world's epicentres of street art, where the government has adopted a Giuliani-esque zero-tolerance policy to sanitise the city for the Commonwealth Games. In his article, Banksy points out that one of the places where evidence of Melbourne's unique, and now destroyed, street-art scene survives is in digitised photographs on the Web. Given that Australia has recently banned a video game involving graffiti and is considering a national internet firewall, one wonders whether such sites will remain accessible from within Australia for very long." Link (Thanks, ACB!)

US frequent flier programs deliver less and less

Posted by Cory Doctorow, March 24, 2006 4:35 AM | permalink

The New York Times covers the steady erosion of frequent-flier programs. People who fly tens of thousands of miles per year on one airline or another get less and less for their loyalty.

US travelers don't know how good they have it. I've flown about 280,000 miles on British Airways since June 2004, but I get practically nothing for my trouble -- faster checkin and a lounge to use, but I've never managed to redeem my miles for upgrades, never managed to get a ticket on miles, not even when I book a year in advance. What's more, when BA loses my luggage, I get no help at all, and BA customer service on the phone is often rude enough to make me want to just cancel my trip.

With upgrades scarcer, there are still some benefits to elite-status programs, like getting first dibs on booking such choice seats as aisle seats toward the front of coach or exit row seats with extra legroom. But that, too, is fading.
Then last week, Northwest Airlines, in what it called a test program, started charging an extra fee, $15 for each leg of a flight, to reserve choice coach seats. Anyone can reserve them.
The reaction on Flyertalk.com was swift. You alienate your most loyal fliers "when you start taking away preferred seating," one Northwest Platinum Elite member wrote in a letter to a Northwest executive, adding that he would be taking his business elsewhere.

Link (via Consumerist)

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March 24, 2006

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