United Breaks Guitars

How to turn bad customer service into a public relations disaster:

Step 1: Break folk singer Dave Carroll’s guitar.
Step 2: Give Dave the run around for 9 months before finally telling him to get stuffed.
Step 3: Leave Dave so frustrated that he writes song called “United Breaks Guitars”, records it and then produces a music video that he posts on YouTube on July 6, 2009:

1.4 million views and counting later United is apologizing and offering to make things right.

Background Dave’s story here and here (including United’s response).

Bottom line Dave Carroll’s story should be a lesson for every organization large and small… Social media is a game changer that can turn bad customer service into a PR disaster that can be far more costly than making things right in the first place.

I’d love to give United a hearty at-a-boy for offering to do the right thing but I don’t believe for a minute they’d be offering to make things right if they didn’t have a major PR disaster on their hands.

H/T: Alex Eckelberry.

Doctor Likens George Tiller’s Killing to Martin Luther King’s

This may just be single stupidest thing ever said by anyone anywhere:

Dr. LeRoy Carhart, one of the nation’s few providers of late-term abortions, called on the federal government to treat as hate crimes all activities by “anti-choice domestic terrorists,” compared the slain Dr. George Tiller to Martin Luther King and said planting crosses was equivalent to actions by the Ku Klux Klan.

“This is the equivalent of Martin Luther King being assassinated,” Dr. Carhart said of the May 31 slaying of one of America’s best-known late-term abortion providers. “This is the equivalent of Pearl Harbor, the sinking of the Lusitania and any other major historic event where we’ve tolerated the intolerable for too long.”

Dr. Kings niece, Dr. Alveda King, pastoral associate of Priests for Life, said in a statement that Carhart’s remarks “offensive beyond belief”:

“For LeRoy Carhart to mention the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who worked through peaceful and non-violent means, in the same breath with that of George Tiller, whose work ended peace and brought violence to babies in the womb, is offensive beyond belief,” said Dr. King.  “The analogy is just wrong.”

“Dr. Carhart also speaks of hate crimes,” added Dr. King.  “I would simply ask him, is it not hateful to regard an entire class of people as non-human because they’re unwanted?”

That pretty much covers it.

Dr. King was a peaceful man who believed in equal dignity for everyone. George Tiller was a man who dedicated his life to taking the lives of innocents. They could not be more different in act or deed.

Make no mistake Dr. Tiller’s murder was the detestable act of a detestable man and it can not be excused or justified in any way. But comparing Dr. Tiller’s murder to the assassination of Martin Luther King is indescribably offensive.

Dead People Get Stimulus Checks???

Ever the model of inefficiency and incompetence the Federal Government is apparently sending dead people stimulus checks.

Stupidity: FDA Calls Cheerios a Drug

This is a joke right… The FDA can’t be serious about this?

From AFP:

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Popular US breakfast cereal Cheerios is a drug, at least if the claims made on the label by its manufacturer General Mills are anything to go by, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said.

“Based on claims made on your product’s label, we have determined that your Cheerios Toasted Whole Grain Oat Cereal is promoted for conditions that cause it to be a drug,” the FDA said in a letter to General Mills which was posted on the federal agency’s website Tuesday.

Cheerios labels claim that eating the cereal can help lower bad cholesterol, a risk factor for coronary heart disease, by four percent in six weeks.

Citing a clinical study, the product labels also claim that eating two servings a day of Cheerios helps to reduce bad cholesterol when eaten as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, the FDA letter says.

Those claims indicate that Cheerios — said by General Mills to be the best-selling cereal in the United States — is intended to be used to lower cholesterol and prevent, lessen or treat the disease hypercholesterolemia, and to treat and prevent coronary heart disease.

(sigh)

Of all the things the FDA could be doing to ensure that our food supply is safe this is what they chose to focus on?

Idiots.

John McCain: 9-11 Hijackers Entered U.S. From Canada

Oh jeez… First it was Janet Napolitano now it’s John McCain repeating a the highly dubious claim that the 9-11 hijackers entered the United Sates through Canada:

What’s up with Arizona politicians?

Arizona Sen. John McCain made the dubious claim Friday that Sept. 11 hijackers entered the United States through Canada — just days after Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, the former governor of Arizona, said the same thing.

Napolitano retracted her claim on Thursday after Canadian officials chided her for the remark, calling it an unfortunate misconception. Napolitano admitted Thursday that she made a mistake — since the 9/11 Commission concluded that the hijackers entered the U.S. from overseas.

But when asked about the gaffe on FOX News Friday, McCain said: “Well, some of the 9/11 hijackers did come through Canada, as you know.”

This drew an instant retort from the Canadian embassy, which re-issued Canadian Ambassador Michael Wilson’s public comments from Tuesday, in which he said:

“Unfortunately, misconceptions arise on something as fundamental as where the 9/11 terrorists came from. As the 9/11 Commission reported in July 2004, all of the 9/11 terrorists arrived in the U.S. from outside North America. They flew to major U.S. airports. They entered the U.S. with documents issued to them by the U.S. government. No 9/11 terrorists came from Canada.”

Idiot, Senator you might want to review the 9-11 commission report… The 9/11 hijackers DID NOT enter this country through Canada. They entered the country directly from overseas with documents issued by the U.S. Government.

Got it? Good.

Are You a Rightwing Extremist?

There’s been a great deal of buzz on conservative blogs and talk radio about this Department of Homeland Security report on rightwing extremism. I’m not going spend a lot of time deconstructing the report or pointing out it’s faults, Moe Lane, Michelle Malkin, Ed Morrissey & Roger Hedgecock have already done that.

The report provides no specific information on potential threats, instead it relies on broad generalities to paint roughly half the country as kooks (emphasis mine):

(U) Rightwing extremism in the United States can be broadly divided into those groups, movements, and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.

If you follow DHS’ logic Texas Governor Rick Perry is an extremist for backing legislation affirming Texas’ 10th amendment rights:

You can read the text of the bill here.

The bottom line here is that DHS is using overly broad generalities that effectively, even if unintentionally, lump mainstream grassroots conservatives together with extremists. Believing in traditional Constitutional principles like states rights does not make someone an extremist… Advocating the violent overthrow of the government does!

Update

AJ Strata has an interesting post on the DHS report (be sure to read Colin’s comment)… For the most part I agree with him, I disagree with his characterization of Michelle Malkin’s comments though. Yes, Michelle tends to use hyperbole to make her point, her point though is basically the same as mine or AJ’s:

This report isn’t a particularly useful intelligence assessment; it provides no new information or specifics on potential threats, and worse still it uses overly broad generalities that effectively, even if unintentionally, lump mainstream conservatives in with extremists.

Related

• Watch Out For Those Crazy Right Wingers! – John Hinderaker
• Federal agency warns of radicals on right – Washington Times

Suspended Teen Headed Back to School

A quick update on a story from earlier this week… Marie Morrow, a 17-year-old senior at Cherokee Trail High School in Aurora, CO is head back to school.

Morrow was suspend on Feb. 5 after other students observed prop rifles used by her Young Marines drill team in her Dodge Durango which was parked at the Aurora high school campus and alerted school officials.

Cherry Creek Superintendent Mary Chesley ruled Friday that Morrow could return next Wednesday. Students will be off Monday for President’s Day and Tuesday for a teacher in-service day.

Morrow won’t be in class until Friday. The senior plans to visit the Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, N.Y., which she hopes to attend after graduation.

Her case got plenty of attention from the mainstream media and talk radio.

“I stayed positive throughout the whole thing,” she said. “It was mainly dealing with the media, doing interviews and all that stuff. I miss everything about school right now.”

She was bounced from Cherokee Trail on Feb. 5 after officials, alerted by other students, found prop rifles in her Dodge Durango parked at the Aurora high school campus.

Morrow, commander of the Douglas County Young Marines drill team, kept them in her vehicle because her drill team is preparing for an April 18 competition at the Air Force Academy.

The length of her expulsion was the six days she already has been out of school.

“They gave her time served,” said her mother, Jenifer McGrew. “We are thrilled this whole entire ordeal is over. It’s been a crazy week.”

The school district’s decision came a day after Morrow’s expulsion hearing, by an independent hearing officer. During the hearing, Morrow was praised by Cherry Creek Schools officials, Parker’s mayor and retired military personnel as a bright, focused and highly responsible student who simply forgot she left the prop guns in her vehicle.

But a “zero-tolerance” state law requires expulsion of any student seen with a “dangerous weapon” on school grounds or at school events unless the student has permission. Under the law, dangerous weapons include facsimiles that could be mistaken for real ones. Read the rest…

These ham-fisted zero tolerance, zero intelligence, zero commonsense laws have to go there was no reason for Morrow to be suspended much less expelled.

Stupidity Run Amok: Teacher Placed On Leave For Facebook Photo

I’m slowly working my way through the stories that I bookmarked over the weekend… Most of them aren’t blog worthy but this one:

Teacher placed on leave for questionable Facebook posting

BEAVER DAM (WKOW) — Beaver Dam school officials placed a middle school teacher on administrative leave after discovering a photograph of the teacher with a gun on the teacher’s Facebook page.

In the photo, teacher Betsy Ramsdale is training a rifle at the camera.

Ramsdale emailed 27 News in response to our inquiries saying she “removed the photo immediately” and that she is not “interested in any controversy.”   Ramsdale did not comment on her motivation for posting the photo.

Schools superintendent Donald Childs told 27 News he is unaware of any sinister intent on the teacher’s part and said the use of the photo “appears to be poor judgment.”

Childs said the Facebook photo was brought to the attention of school district officials by a concerned staff member at Beaver Dam Middle School.

Pisses me off to no end.

Did Ms. Ramsdale do anything illegal or immoral? No! Did she encourage her students to do anything illegal or immoral? No! All she did was post a photograph of herself with a rifle on her personal Facebook page… Something she has constitutionally protected right to do.

The only “sinister intent” I see here is that public officials have chosen to destroy a Ms. Ramsdale’s good name and career because she was publicly identified as a gun owner.

David Codrea has the photo and commentary at Examiner.com.

On a related note Nicki Fellenzer at The Liberty Zone points out the story of 17 year old Colorado high school student who is facing expulsion because she had drill team rifles in her car. The rifles — props really are made of plastic, wood and duct tape.

A local school district has suspended a member of the Young Marines youth leadership group after students saw drill props in her vehicle.

Marie Morrow, a 17-year-old senior at Cherokee Trail High School in Aurora, is serving a 10-day suspension. Her punishment could be extended at an expulsion hearing later this month.

Morrow is a student leader in the Douglas County Young Marines, a group dedicated to teaching leadership and life skills.

Cherry Creek Schools suspended Morrow after other students reported seeing guns inside her SUV, which was parked outside school while she was in class.

The school also called police, who seized the three drill team guns made of wood, plastic and duct tape. Police told Morrow to claim them in time for her after-school drill practice off-campus.

School administrators, however, were less understanding. The guns were declared “authentic representations of genuine weapons,” triggering a mandatory expulsion statute in state law.

These brain dead Zero tolerance, Zero intelligence policies have to end… These policies aren’t about protecting students they’re about giving public officials the cover to ruin young woman’s life over what should have been a non-event.