Reviewing the “junk” or “spam” that comes into this blog…

 

Every so often instead of just trashing the entries that Akismet builds up during the course of the say, I take a quick review of where this stuff is coming from. Since I average about 9,500 of these bothersome bits a month, reviewing them is pretty much a waste of time, but it tells me what some people out in the blogosphere are trying to do.

Would you believe that this costs $1500.00?

For the most part they are trying to get free advertising posted as comments to blog entries. Last year the big pushers were porn sites, but this year I am swamped by women’s accessories – primarily Gucci leather products (mostly handbags) and various brands of ladies’ shoes.

Who do these people think this blog serves? Why do they think I’ll post this stuff?

I’d like to think the posters are wasting their time, but since I am sure this garbage is being put out by some kind of automatic list pushed across the web, I doubt that they are taking up anyone’s time at all.

Thankfully, Akismet has a great memory for spammers and removes them immediately. I recommend it highly.

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A personal note – I’m living in considerable fear…

Yesterday I had another seizure like the dozen or so I’ve had in the past three years. As I mentioned at the time of the accident 4 weeks ago that left me with broken ribs and shoulder blade and collarbone (and sent me to the hospital for close to a week), my fall down the stairs was caused by one of these seizures. My car accident which took away my right to drive was the result of another seizure four weeks before that.

The worst part of these seizures is that after blacking out (and falling or actually carrying out some activities), I remember nothing until I come out of it… maybe a few minutes later, but occasionally a much longer time. Those who have experienced seeing me in such a state have confirmed that I talk to them and often do things… something I have never had a memory of.

My fear now is that these seizures may start coming more frequently. I’ve been through a large number of medical tests with no results. One doctor thinks it might be epilepsy and a couple of weeks ago had me watch out and see if new seizures happened, even with prescribed medication. I’ll have to call her today and tell her it has happened… not something I look forward to.

Elly is afraid that I’ll have one while she is at work and that I will fall and hurt myself with ho one around. I fear that, too… but I’ve got to go on living somehow.

Actually, this blog is one of the things that keeps me going and for that I thank the several hundred readers who view it every day. Sorry I’ve spoken about it now… I’ll try to lay off in the future.

– Bill

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Boy, I’m sick of Spam…

Akismet, the spam removal software that’s put up by WordPress for bloggers using their program, is very efficient in removing comments that are meaningless, or advertising, or just inappropriate.

However, I check all spam comments to make sure no legitimate comments have been accidentally taken out ( less than 1% of them… pretty good record). Usually it only takes me a minute or less to run down the list and check them, but in the last couple of days I have taken the most outrageous comments and checked where they are coming from.

Here is the result of my review:

I have been exploring for a little bit for any high-quality articles or weblog posts on this kind of space . Exploring in Yahoo I eventually stumbled upon this website. Studying this information So i am glad to show that I have a very good uncanny feeling I discovered exactly what I needed. I so much definitely will make certain to don’t fail to remember this web site and give it a look on a continuing basis.
– incomprehensible porn page from Poland

—

How-do-you-do, just needed you to learn I have added your internet site to my Google bookmarks as a result of your extraordinary blog layout. But severely, I feel your internet site has one of the freshest concept I’ve found. It truly helps make studying your blog a lot much easier. – someone whose site is selling an exercise machine

—

Should a {brand-new|fresh} article becomes available or if perhaps any changes happen on your site, I would be interested in reading a lot more and finding out how to make good usage of those approaches you discuss.  – someone selling a weight loss program

—

That is the someway instruction that are supposed to be shared around the internet. Terrific paintings! Shame on the search engines for not positioning this put up higher! Come on over and talk over with my web page . Thanks in advance =)  – Russian news page which seems to be giving news about prostitutes and miracle bras.

—

hi!,I like your writing so much! share we communicate more about your post on AOL? I require an expert on this area to solve my problem. May be that’s you! Looking forward to see you. – an electronic typesetter in the czech republic

—

Just want to say your article is as amazing. The clarity in your post is just nice and i can assume you’re an expert on this subject. Well with your permission let me to grab your feed to keep updated with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please continue the rewarding work. – from a site dealing with premature ejaculation cures.

—

The vacation delivers on offer are : believed a selection of some with the most selected and additionally budget-friendly global. Any of these lodgings tend to be very used along units may accented by means of pretty shoreline supplying crystal-clear turbulent waters, concurrent with the Ocean. hotels packages.  – site selling wine

—

you are my inhalation , I own few blogs and rarely run out from to brand : (. – phone company in the czech republic

—

the written content on this publish is really one particular of the top substance that We have at any time arrive throughout. I adore your submit, I will are available back again to examine for new posts. – from somewhere in China

 

I’m not sure why anyone reading these comments would print them. So why do these idiots waste their time posting them?

Only $300 left to raise for July…

… and I’m counting on your help!

Support this blog with $5.00 or more and get “Bill’s Modern Diner,” a great image font, e-mailed to you immediately.

So many of you have been following this blog since 2004 that I feel like a member of a huge web community.

I have enjoyed bringing you The Cartoon or Cartoons of the Week, the Quotes, The Muybridge Backgrounds, the Political and Arts News, the Blogrolls to the best sites in America and beyond… They are all a joy to put together. Often we get the breaking political stories before you see them anywhere else. And our wide open communication channels with readers can’t be beat.

Well, once again, I need YOUR help to keep it going. I’m hoping you will make a small contribution, by PayPal or credit/debit card,in support of Under The LobsterScope. You’d be amazed at how much $5.00 can do to help me bring more and more to these pages. And it is probably the LOWEST contribution asked by any publication… interactive or not.

And for a contribution of $5.00 (or MORE) you will receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Modern Diner (I send you the True Type versions for both Macs and PCs by email). It’s great for illustrating Menus and Ads, or just as a illustrated point set for blog posts. I regularly sell this font for $29.95. (See the Sample Below.)

You should know, however, that even a contribution of only $1.00 adds to the ability of this blog to find things for your benefit. By clicking on the DONATE button below, you tell me that Under The LobsterScope makes a difference in your time on the web.

Thanks,

– Bill

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Did you think I was kidding? I really NEED your support…

… and I’m willing to make it worth your while:

Support this blog with $5.00 or more and get “Bill’s Modern Diner,” a great image font, e-mailed to you immediately.

So many of you have been following this blog since 2004 that I feel like a member of a huge web community.

I have enjoyed bringing you The Cartoon or Cartoons of the Week, the Quotes, The Muybridge Backgrounds, the Political and Arts News, the Blogrolls to the best sites in America and beyond… They are all a joy to put together. Often we get the breaking political stories before you see them anywhere else. And our wide open communication channels with readers can’t be beat.

Well, once again, I need YOUR help to keep it going. I’m hoping you will make a small contribution, by PayPal or credit/debit card,in support of Under The LobsterScope. You’d be amazed at how much $5.00 can do to help me bring more and more to these pages. And it is probably the LOWEST contribution asked by any publication… interactive or not.

And for a contribution of $5.00 (or MORE) you will receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Modern Diner (I send you the True Type versions for both Macs and PCs by email). It’s great for illustrating Menus and Ads, or just as a illustrated point set for blog posts.  I regularly sell this font for $29.95. (See the Sample Below.)

You should know, however, that even a contribution of only $1.00 adds to the ability of this blog to find things for your benefit. By clicking on the DONATE button below, you tell me that Under The LobsterScope makes a difference in your time on the web.

Thanks,

– Bill

 

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Under The LobsterScope Podcast should be available next Tuesday…

It’s going to be a half hour long every Tuesday Morning at 10 AM and will feature extra comments on things that are in the blog, interviews with some of my friends and subject figures, perhaps some music like you are not hearing anywhere else.

I’ll be putting out more info… most likely on Monday night… so you can tune in live if you want to (and call in if you feel like it), but it will also be available for you to download at any time after the live broadcast.

I imagine things can go wrong the first time out, but we’ll play it by ear and, hopefully, by the second or third week we’ll feel like we’ve been doing it for years.

– Bill

The Spam Writers are getting out of hand… I’m sick of them.

The hardest part of maintaining a blog, aside from writing, posting and promoting articles to various search engines, has got to be keeping spam out of the Comments. I use a great piece of software called Akismet which does a very good job of sending all spam comments to a page where I can review them (occasionally, about .005% of the time, it makes an error and labels a perfectly good comment as spam, and I have to reclaim it) and then, in one pass, I delete them all without really reading them.

My list of potential removables that I have primed Akismet for are any comments which are really not concerned with the post being commented on, but which are actually pieces of advertising in disguise… tricks to get people to go to their web sites for commercial reasons. These try to look like real comments, but, oddly enough, the texts of each one is a copy of another I’ve already seen… it’s like one robot is writing all these in quantity to my site and, I would imagine, many others.

Here are a couple of samples:

I was incredibly pleased to derive this website. I wanted to thanks for your time for this great read!! I as a matter of fact enjoying every small bit of it and I have you bookmarked to take a look at new stuff you blog post.

—

Thanks for honestly using permissible grammar. Approximately all sites were absolute gibberish. Astounding website & writing skills. You my friend have Talent! I just StumbledUpon this. Not bad. I’ll give it a thumbs up.

—

I enjoy reading a post that makes people think. Some genuinely exquisite posts on this internet site , thanks for contribution. Also, thanks for allowing me to comment!

—

I wanted to thank you for this great read!! I right on enjoying every limited bit of it. I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you post.

That last one is my favorite. “Every limited bit of it.”

One of the things the spam blocking software does is show you the URL you would go to if you happened to click on the comment to see more from the person who is “incredibly pleased to derive this website.” The sites they would take you to sell all kinds of things: motorcycles, South American real estate, jewelry… and penis enlargement programs!

Today I eliminated over 60 spam messages which led to penis enlargement programs… at least half of them to the same user’s site, posted at comments on virtually every post I’ve put on this blog in the past two years. Some were even comments on ILLUSTRATIONS within posts (like the Web Poppers that I use in articles like this.)

While I am happy that these are kept away from my readers, I am very tired of seeing them pop up for elimination. I imagine other bloggers have similar problems. I could avoid much of this by limiting comments to approved subscribers… or by eliminating comments all together. Neither of these things do I want to do. I have always enjoyed the on line “conversations” one gets into with legitimate readers and I don’t want to change my policy.

It would be much better if these creeps heeded the anti-spam warnings I put near the top of my right column. Or maybe they would realize that their post like “Your well thought out ideas upon new approaches on this subject matter were insightful and an excellent help to us. Thank you for having time to write down these things as well as sharing your ideas” never shows up on Under The LobsterScope.

But they persist.

If any of them are reading this post, LAY OFF! Go comment on someone else’s page… perhaps one of those dating sites or a nice religion post. Or maybe a politician’s campaign website. You won’t get posted here.

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Defending a Blog from Spam…

Since I put it in 3 years ago, my spam preventing software, Akismet, has kept 9,454 people from getting their comments or pingbacks on Under the LobsterScope. It’s accuracy rate has been 98.31%, and of the 1.69% it has removed by accident, I have been able to check through them and put them all back. This is a pretty good record and I’m very happy with Akismet.

For the most part, the spammers we have intercepted were people trying to use comment areas for free advertising. Obviously, they ignore the warning I put at the top of column 2 of the blog. I am glad to promote much advertising, but not for free and not in the comments. And since it is easy to get ahold of me, I’m surprised that none of these yoyos do it.

I also cut out sex sites, comments on politics which don’t take a fair and honest look at either side ( I quickly cut comments that use expletives to describe most politicians and especially Democrats and Liberals… although I have been known to apply this protection to Conservatives as well) and comments that have nothing to do with the post it is commenting on.

All in all, it has not effected the 356,000+ readers who have visited  Under The LobsterScope over the same period… many of whom have left comments that often educated me on various issues, and for that I am grateful.

– Bill

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I’ve added the No Labels website to my Blogroll List under Reform Agenda…

I had to think about this, but I finally thought this was worth keeping an eye on. So I’ve added http://nolabels.org the No Labels site to my list. Now, if this should turn into a real political movement it will stay on. If it dribbles out or gets co-opted by either the Right or the Left I’ll think about removing it.

 

– Bill

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Picked this up from Op Ed News…

As a blogger, I find this particularly displeasing (and a violation of Freedom of the Press and Freedom of Speech).

This is the opening couple of paragraphs, but the rest is worth reading (and responding to):

clipped from www.opednews.com Boycott Philly? Why Philadelphia’s Licensing and Taxing of Blogs is Creeping Fascism By Darren Wolfe (about the author) The recent decision by the City of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania to require a Business Privilege License ($50 a year or lifetime cost of $300) of blogs and that the blogs be taxed on any profits has generated a well deserved outcry from free marketers across the country. Many have invoked Chief Justice John Marshall’s famous words, “The power to tax involves the power to destroy.” They are right, this will be the end of independent blogging in Philadelphia and around the world when this spreads across countries. The tax is actually the least of the threats to blogging the city is creating. The major threat is the licensing. Once the precedent is established that blogs can be licensed the government’s control of the blogosphere will grow in small increments until it can shut us all down by simply requiring and then denying said license.

Read the rest HERE.

Please support Under The LobsterScope (your $5.00 makes a real difference!)

And if you do drop $5.00 or more into the kitty, you get Bill’s FIRST PICTURE FONT for free:

BILL’S DINGBATS (worth $29.00).

Just make a donation of $5.00 or more and I will send you this font (partial sample below) which is not available ANYWHERE ELSE.

I need your help, folks. Since 2004 I have been bringing you Under The LobsterScope totally free-of-charge and have avoided advertising or “blog begging” or any of the other methods of scavenging that blog writers are prone to. Unfortunately, this has had to change…just a little… to keep this information for progressives, liberals and others coming.

Even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

As I said, all contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Very First Picture Font, Bill’s Dingbats, that I created 22 years ago (I send you the versions for both Macs and PCs, plus a handy keyboard chart). This offer will end on August 31st!

I appreciate those of you who have come on board over the last few days and hope more will join in. And for those of you $5 Plus donors who received our last three Free Fonts: Bill’s Universal Symbols, Bill’s Cast O’Characters and Bill’s Century Marks, you know what a good deal this is.

So please click on the “Donate” button below:

Thanks,
Bill T.

Sorry to have been off all day…

I was faced with a dead power supply on my computer this morning. Right now it is very late in the evening and I am borrowing my wife’s computer (which has none of my passwords built in) to get this message up.

As soon as Amazon delivers my new battery (hopefully by Monday) I’ll be ready to move again.

Meanwhile, I’ll borrow this machine when possible.

I need your help to keep the LobsterScope going… and I’ll make it worth your while.

If you support us with at least $5.00 you get a FREE PICTURE FONT:

Bill’s Universal Symbols (worth $29.95).

Just make a donation of $5.00 or more and I will send you this font (partial sample below) which is not available ANYWHERE ELSE.

I REALLY need your help, folks. Since 2004 I have been bringing you Under The LobsterScope totally free-of-charge and have avoided advertising or “blog begging” or any of the other methods of scavenging that blog writers are prone to. Unfortunately, this has had to change…just a little… to keep this information for progressives, liberals and others coming.

Even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

All contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Universal Symbols (I send you the versions for both Macs and PCs, plus a handy keyboard chart). As I said, I regularly sell this font for $29.95.

This offer is for a very limited time.

I appreciate those of you who have come on board over the last few days and hope more will join in. And for those of you $5 Plus donors who received our last two Free Fonts, Bill’s Cast O’Characters and Bill’s Century Marks, you know what a good deal this is.

So please click on the “Donate” button below:

Thanks,
Bill T.

Last Week to get a This Free Font for supporting Under The LobsterScope…

April 30th is fast approaching and if you send $5.00 or more to support Under The LobsterScope by that date, you will get the regularly priced at $29.00 font, Bill’s Century Marks for FREE.  After the 3oth this font goes back on sale at the UTF Type Foundry site and you will have to pay full price for it.

Unlike many other blogs that ask for a few bucks, I send you a free, quality picture font (see Sample below) immediately after your donation of $5.00 or more… this offer is not available ANYWHERE ELSE.

Look, even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

All contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Century Marks in versions for BOTH Macs and PC, plus a handy keyboard chart.

In May, I will be putting Bill’s Century Marks back in the “for sale only” and I will make a new font available. Over the past few months many of you have come on board with an average donation of $10.00 and were sent our previous Free Font, Bill’s Cast O’Characters… I hope you are enjoying it.

So please click on the “Donate” button below, help us out with $5.00 or more, and get Bill’s Century Marks for FREE:

Thanks,
Bill T.

I have accidently upset my job hunting…

Lately I have been spending my afternoons in the Mellow Moods cafe in Shepherdstown, which is the Best WiFi location in town and doing my job search with coffee. I run into all kinds of people while doing this, so I started carrying my camera with me. Behold one of the results:

The other day I secured a job interview opportunity while nursing my coffee along at this downtown location. Exciting.

I never got there… the night before last, while Elly was at a teacher’s conference in Baltimore for a couple of days, I was changing  the battery in a smoke detector (ceiling location of course) when I lost my balance and fell off the second step of the ladder, bumping my side on a corner wall when I hit the ground.

This has left me with an awful pain when I cough or breathe or walk, so I started in on a program of painkillers and a heating pad alternating with ice. This morning I felt about 30% better, but still not in great shape… so I had to reschedule my interview for two days from now. Hopefully, if I stay relatively still (despite dog walking, dog feeding, etc.) for those days I wil get to about a 60% recovery feeling (I’ve had aches and pains from falling before) and will be able to do the interview.

Meanwhile I haven’t felt that interested in sitting and typing into the blog… when I feel better I’ll be back t my 5 or so posts per day.

Help me keep Under The LobsterScope going…

…and get a FREE PICTURE FONT:

Bill’s Century Marks (worth $29.95).

Just make a donation of $5.00 or more and I will send you this font (partial sample below) which is not available ANYWHERE ELSE.

Yup, it’s my weekly pitch to get your support for this blog… and unlike many other blogs that ask for a few bucks, I send you a free picture font for every donation of $5.00 or more. I don’t know other blogs that do anything like that.

Even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

All contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Century Marks (I send you the versions for both Macs and PCs, plus a handy keyboard chart). As I said, I regularly sell this font for $29.95.

This offer is for a very limited time.
Over the past few months many of you have come on board with an average donation of $10.00 and were sent and for those of you $5 Plus donors who received our last Free Font, Bill’s Cast O’Characters, I hope you are enjoying it. I know it is a picture font I use all the time.

So please click on the “Donate” button below:

Thanks,
Bill T.

Help me keep Under The LobsterScope going…

…and get a FREE PICTURE FONT:

Bill’s Century Marks (worth $29.95).

Just make a donation of $5.00 or more and I will send you this font (partial sample below) which is not available ANYWHERE ELSE.

For the last six years I have been bringing you Under The LobsterScope totally free-of-charge and have avoided advertising or “blog begging” or any of the other methods of scavenging that blog writers are prone to. Unfortunately, this has had to change…just a little… to keep this information for progressives, liberals and others coming.

Even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

All contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Century Marks (I send you the versions for both Macs and PCs, plus a handy keyboard chart). As I said, I regularly sell this font for $29.95.

This offer is for a very limited time.
Over the past few months many of you have come on board with an average donation of $10.00 and were sent and for those of you $5 Plus donors who received our last Free Font, Bill’s Cast O’Characters, I hope you are enjoying it. I know it is a picture font I use all the time.

So please click on the “Donate” button below:

Thanks,
Bill T.

Help Me Keep Under The LobsterScope Going…

…and get a FREE PICTURE FONT:

Bill’s Century Marks (worth $29.95).

Just make a donation of $5.00 or more and I will send you this font (partial sample below) which is not available ANYWHERE ELSE.

I need your help, folks. Since 2004 I have been bringing you Under The LobsterScope totally free-of-charge and have avoided advertising or “blog begging” or any of the other methods of scavenging that blog writers are prone to. Unfortunately, this has had to change…just a little… to keep this information for progressives, liberals and others coming.

Even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

All contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Century Marks (I send you the versions for both Macs and PCs, plus a handy keyboard chart). As I said, I regularly sell this font for $29.95.

This offer is for a very limited time.
Over the past few months many of you have come on board with an average donation of $10.00 and were sent and for those of you $5 Plus donors who received our last Free Font, Bill’s Cast O’Characters, I hope you are enjoying it. I know it is a picture font I use all the time.

So please click on the “Donate” button below:

Thanks,
Bill T.

February 28: Last Day to get Bill’s Cast O’ Characters for FREE with donation to this blog…

Bill’s Cast O’Characters Font (worth $29.95) is Free when you support Under The LobsterScope with a donation of $5.00 or more.Today (February 28) Only!

We have had a record number of donors in February… but we need more.

Since 2004 I have been bringing you Under The LobsterScope totally free-of-charge and have avoided advertising or “blog begging” or any of the other methods of scavenging that blog writers are prone to. Unfortunately, this has had to change…just a little… to keep this information for progressives, liberals and others coming.

Even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more…and gets you the free font.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

All contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Cast O’ Characters (I send you the True Type versions for both Macs and PCs). As I said, I regularly sell this font for $29.95.

Tomorrow (March 1) the offer for this font will be over (I’ll be putting up another one) and Cast O’Characters will go back to its Regular For Sale Price only.

I appreciate those of you who have come on board over the last few days and hope more will join in. And for those of you $5 Plus donors, I hope you are enjoying Bill’s Cast O’Characters. I know it is a picture font I use all the time.

UPDATE!  UPDATE!  UPDATE!

It is now March 1 and Bill’s Cast O’ Characters is no longer available for Free (You may purchase it for $29.95 – drop me an e-mail and I’ll tell you how.)

Starting today, the Free Font is Bill’s Century Marks, a unique picture font which you can’t get anywhere else. It is yours FREE with a donation of $5.00 or more.

Here’s a small sample:

So please click on the “Donate” button below:

Thanks,
Bill T.

Only 6 Days Left…

…to get Bill’s Cast O’Characters Font (worth $29.95) for Free when you support Under The LobsterScope with a donation of $5.00 or more.

I need your help, folks. Since 2004 I have been bringing you Under The LobsterScope totally free-of-charge and have avoided advertising or “blog begging” or any of the other methods of scavenging that blog writers are prone to. Unfortunately, this has had to change…just a little… to keep this information for progressives, liberals and others coming.

Even a small donation of $1 or $2 would help (although $5 helps a whole lot more.) The amount is up to you. We accept contributions through PayPal and the credit/debit cards shown below.

All contributors of $5.00 or more receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Cast O’ Characters (I send you the True Type versions for both Macs and PCs). As I said, I regularly sell this font for $29.95.

On March 1st the offer for this font will be over (I’ll be putting up another one) and Cast O’Characters will go back to its For Sale Price only.

I appreciate those of you who have come on board over the last few days and hope more will join in. And for those of you $5 Plus donors, I hope you are enjoying Bill’s Cast O’Characters. I know it is a picture font I use all the time.

So please click on the “Donate” button below:

Thanks,
Bill T.

A Reward for the Supporters of Under The LobsterScope

So many of you have been following this blog since 2004 that I feel like a member of a huge web community.

I have enjoyed bringing you The Cartoon or Cartoons of the Week (this week’s pair on the recent Supreme Court decision are particularly poignant), the Quotes, the Political and Arts News, the Blogrolls to the best sites in America and beyond… They are all a joy to put together. Often we get the breaking political stories before you see them anywhere else. And our wide open communication channels with readers can’t be beat.

Well, I need YOUR help to keep it going. I’m hoping you will make a small contribution, by PayPal or credit/debit card,  in support of Under The LobsterScope. You’d be amazed at how much $5.00 can do to help me bring more and more to these pages. And it is probably the LOWEST annual subscription fee you will make to any publication… interactive or not.

And for a contribution of $5.00 or more you will receive a copy of my Picture Font, Bill’s Cast O’ Characters (I send you the True Type versions for both Macs and PCs by email). I regularly sell this font for $29.95. Sample Below:

You should know, however, that even a contribution of $1.00 adds to the ability of this unemployed blogger to find things for your benefit. By clicking on the DONATE button below, you tell me that Under The LobsterScope makes a difference in your time on the web.

Thanks,

– Bill T.

Turns out I’m not the only unemployed marketing guy that has turned to blogging…

I discovered a blog yesterday which made me feel like my world was just a little bigger than it is. Jobless And Less – The Blog for the Employmentally Challenged is the site run by one Norm Elrod of Jackson Hts, NY (a place where I once lived during my five or so years in NYC), who adds:

After 4 layoffs in 9 years, I’m an expert at being unemployed. This unemployment blog talks about my experiences with layoffs, unemployment and the job search. What could be more fun than that?

Well, I’ve had three layoffs from jobs over the last 9 years myself and I’m still sitting here looking for work Now I have someone else to review… it will give me a chance to measure my own strides. It would be even better if Elrod was in his sixties… but he’s npt. He’s a young guy. I guess we’re all in the same boat.

Anyway… I’ve added Jobless And Less to the blogroll. Go have a look.

…and now a Commercial from Bill

Hi. You are one of over 128,000 readers have come to this blog since I started it in 2004. I spend hours every day seeking out information and putting up three or four posts for your entertainment and amusement, and I’d like to keep it up.

So I’m hoping you will see your way to making a small contribution, by PayPal or credit/debit card to support Under The LobsterScope. You’d be amazed at how much $5.00 can do to help me bring more and more to these pages.

If you can see your way to sending a dollar or more, please click on the DONATE button below. My appreciation will be overwhelming!

Thanks,

– Bill T.

I’ll be away most of the day…

I’m driving my grandson Milo to the Baltimore airport so he can get a flight back to Connecticut and, since he is 7 years old (I think… that shows what a grandpa brain I have), he has to be accompanied right up to the gate.

I don’t know when I’ll have the chance to post today, so keep your eye on the news and e-mail me anything you want to talk about (btchakir@gmail.com) and this evening everything will be brought up to date.

Meanwhile… don’t give up on the Public Option, no matter what you hear. We need to make sure that the Insurance companies don’t overwhelm everything.

Ever since the original Under The LobsterScope at Blogspot was destroyed…

…apparently by a Google Robot Search, folks have been asking me if there is any way to see some of the original aticles.

Try going here:
http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/feed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Funderthelobsterscope.blogspot.com%2Ffeeds%2Fposts%2Fdefault and see if that works… I just saw a bunch of the last month’s articles there.
-Bill