R BRIAN PHILLIPS

If this were April 1st, I would have written this off as a prank story. What could possibly go wrong (http://bit.ly/2FmuVPU)?? You may have to register to view this story from Ad Age.

Other states take note: Legalizing marijuana isn’t the silver tax revenue bullet you think it is (see http://gazette.com/collateral-impact-the-unintended-consequences-of-the-legalization-of-pot/article/1621232?custom_click=rss). There are major costs associated with it, none-the-least of which include increased law enforcement and social services costs. The unintended consequences this article unveils, are just the tip of the iceberg.

The one thing email spammers and phone scammers can’t afford is to spend too much of their time trying to defraud someone. Now, there’s a chatbot that can keep someone going around in circles, and waste their time trying to “talk” to you. You might not get the satisfaction of actually listening in on the conversation, but you can be assured the spammer/scammer is wasting their time trying to convince the chatbot to hand over your bank information, or buy their service (check out Lenny, the chatbot that never lets a scammer off the phone, or Re:Scam, the chatbot that emails spammers back in an endless circle of responses to their requests . . . both links provide hilarious examples of what happens when the chatbot takes over for you).

The truth is out there: Pokemon isn’t just a game. This quote from a July 14, 2016 article in Fortune says it all:

“L’inizio Pizza Bar in Long Island City in New York claims its sales jumped 75% over the weekend by activating a ‘lure module’ feature that attracts virtual Pokemon characters to the store, thereby tempting in nearby players. The store’s manager spent $10 to have a dozen Pokemon characters placed in the location, according to a report in the New York Post.”

It’s both ingenious, and frightening, at the same time.

~ R. Brian Phillips

Just read these two articles, and you’ll discover that you really should question everything you read: Chocolate Leads to Weight Loss and Computer-Generated Fake Papers Are Being Published as Fact. Maybe we should augment Edgar Allan Poe’s famous “Believe nothing you hear, and only one half that you see” quote with “and question everything you read.” The information age seems to have only made it harder to separate the wheat from the chaff.

While not at all the focus of this video by Erik Qualman, it’s a great warning to married couples. Take extra precautions when using social media. Here’s the entire video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxpa4dNVd3c.

Something a little different, today: Sobering words I read this morning that should make us pause. “And if you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish. Like the nations that the Lord makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God.” (Deuteronomy 8:19-20 ESV)

Eons ago, I set up a Google account to use for spam and signing into sites. Getting rid of apps that are connected to it is laborious. If you’re trying to do the same, keep this in mind: Picasa is like a parasite you can’t get rid of, and you’ll need to remove photos associated with your Google account (go to https://picasaweb.google.com/home)!