Laptop...No etiquette @ Cedars Sinai! Mr. Manners scorns nosey-parkers! Get a life!

What dreary unfulfilled lives they must lead.

Of course - I am referring to cafe hogs who gang up on electrical outlets in order to charge their pricey state-of-the-Art gizmos (of the kind President Obama warned us about) - without any consideration for the rest of the patrons pining for a spark of the vital stuff.

If that weren't uncooth enough, nurses on duty breezed in to my hospital room at whim (under the guise of tidying up) and surreptiously cranked their heads this way 'n that in order to peruse my musings on the computer screen.

I was always taught that this kind of conduct was rude and insulting and an outright iinvasion of privacy.

One perky nurse by the unlikely name of Rosetta strode into the bathroom while I was on the toilet and went about her business.

Miss, if you want some kinky thrills, saunter over to one of the sleaze-bag Hotels on Sunset, and book a room there.

No freebies at Cedars-Sinai.

The fact that Ms. Congeniality was totally oblivious to her glaring  inappropriate conduct underscored what a classless low-life woman (I use the term loosely) is.

Did it never occur to this fast-talking gal from Georgia that a man (Don't know about the ladies) would prefer a little privacy when they're comfortably ensconced on the throne in the bathroom of their home?

Later, the same empty-headed hospital employee, maneuvered herself next to my laptop in order to take note of the data I was keying into my laptop for publication on the Internet.

Fed up, I subtly lowered the lid of the computer to get the message across -  and likewise - block her view.

She must have cheese for brains.

After departing for a few moments, she found some worthless excuse to return to my hospital room - at which poiint - she continued with her disturbing behavior.

It's evident to me now, the nurse has serious psychological problems, which need therapy.

You're not in Kansas anymore, Miss.

Wake up and smell the pampers!

http://www.thetattler.biz

Best Buy...deceptive business practises! Defective products! Incompetent Geek Squad!

Lady Gaga used as lure by unscrupulous retailers!

Many of you probably recall the long lines at Best Buy on boxing day as penny-wise bargain hunters braved the elements to be the first to snap up discounted electronic products - laptop computers - in particular.

Unfortunately, a handful of consumers are grumbling now in the aftermath, for good reason.

In restrospect, it appears that Best Buy engaged in deceptive business practices, sold defective products, and hood-winked a trusting public in general.

For example, when customers snatched up discounted computers at three or four hundred bucks, they weren't aware that what they were buying was a shell of a PC, and that there would be additional greenbacks to fork out in the near future to maintain installed programs.

For starters, Microsoft Word was installed as a trial version, and not a keeper.

On each occasion a user opened up the software a message informed the startled individual that there were only twenty-five sessions available before the hapless victim would be required to buy a license at considerable cost to facilitate use of the program in the future.

In fact, as it turned out, a handful of the installed programs were offered up at purchase with the same provisio - but get this - Best Buy did not disclose that all-important detail at the point of sale.

Shoppers were also shaking their heads at check-out when it came time to purchase their computer.

A clerk at the cash register noted before ringing the item up that the laptops were installed with a security feature.

When the buyer uttered "okay" - after assuming that "security" meant  there was a lock or tracer on the product (it turned out to be a simple anti-virus packet) - they were shocked to learn that the feature not only cost $100.00 - but also required special servicing at the Geek Squad counter!

One consumer was anxious to  zip off to pack for a week-end get-a-way - and so - opted to pass on the software item.

Gotcha!

Opting out of the security feature also required a trek over to the Best Buy nerd experts so that the program could be deleted from the "guts" of the computer.

I don't know about you, but when I purchase a computer, I expect to be the first (and only) individual to ceremoniously log on to what amounts to a very pricey personal belonging.

But, the mind-boggling "fraud" doesn't end there!

When one intelligent computer-savvy buyer chose to acceept the sealed package - as is - and pay cash, his nose went a little out-of-whack when the annoying salesman tried to get him to fork over  his credit card for a scan.

"I'm paying cash," the startled gentleman hissed at him.

The response was unbelievable.

"We need to swipe the card so that when the anti-virus license is up for renewal a year from now (!) we can charge your account automatically."

Did they ask the consumer if he wanted to renew?

No, of course not!

The angry customer was so annoyed, he told the salesman to cancel the anti-virus protection.

Not one to lose a sale, the clerk was quick on the uptake.

"Okay, I'll delete the anti-virus program on the laptop, and install one that doesn't require a license renewal at the end of the year," he stated with smug satisfaction.

Even still, the disgruntled shopper was forced to wait a half-an-hour until that task was completed.

Customers need to be forewarned, too, to double-check the packing box and contents before leaving the retail outlet.

When Best Buy "nerds" effect the installation changes, they snatch up the original recovery CD's shipped from the manufacturer with the new laptop,  and substitute them for copies they've handwritten labels on.

Tacky!
Meanwhile, when the excited laptop owner aforementioned got home, he could have kicked himself for even stepping inside the door of Best Buy, in view of what transpired later.

Shortly,  after he logged on to the Internet, the laptop went to blue screen and crashed.

Uh-huh!

The geek squad at Best Buy damaged the computer before it even left the store!

The moral of the story?

Shop somewhere else, even if Lady Gaga appears in the store for photo ops, in the future.

In the final analysis, Best Buy has been deceitfully trading on the pop star's name and reputation, to lure potential victims in the door.

http://www.julianayrs.com

Los Angeles...too many foreigners? Angry homeless man expresses his angst...

The other day - a male (white mid-40's) - approached me for spare change on the street in upscale West Los Angeles.

Suddenly, without warning, he started into an angry rant.

"There are too many foreigners in Los Angeles," he griped with a bitter tone in his voice.

"The Latino immigrants are hogging all the work."

I surmised at this juncture, that a large percentage of the jobs he was referring to, were probably menial task low-paying posts of not much interest to educated white folks with specialized work skills.

"I'd take one of those jobs. I'm homeless and I need the cash."

"They hate us.," he barked out angrily.

"Why is that?"

I argued that it was probably because - as Paris Hilton would say - "wrinkly old white dudes " - have been in control of the power structure in the United States for the past couple of centuries.

"It's natural for them to resent us," I guess.

When I reflected on the plight of this homeless man later, I recalled that in my travels around the country the past year or so, there appeared to be a growing number of white males in the 40-50 age range - in Las Vegas, San Francisco, and major cities back East - out-of-work and on the streets.

How was it that the fortunes of these men had so tragically reversed?

Was it due to the introduction of computers (and subsequent automation) , the prevailing trend towards cheap non-union labor, or the influx of a wave of immigrants descending on these shores hungry for work at any cost?

No one seems to care.

The media - indeed, political activists and the government, too - have been inclined to put the big focus these days on immigrants and their rights and/or issues pertaining to racism because Blacks allege they have been victims of discrimination.

No wonder, there is a growing outcry from disgruntled Anglo-Saxons, who swear they are being short-changed, too.

I am reminded of the Ron Paul movement during the election.

Although Paul's followers were somewhat extremist in their views about immigrants - and trends that threatened foundations this great Nation were built on - some of their idealogies (and outspoken alarmist views) have not fallen on deaf ears.

A less strident (more realistic) posse of of White Americans have taken a cue and are now standing up and demanding to be heard.

"The Latinos and the Blacks are the ones that are racist."

So, with an eye to the future, grass roots oganizations are springing up in a bold-faced effort to protect the interests of White Americans around the country - with the ultimate aim of holding on to their stake in the American dream - too.

Amen!

http://www.julianayrs.com