Kablammo!

• I was in CVS earlier today when their unreasonably chipper Kodak photo-printer kiosk-machine thing told me to, and I quote, “share and enjoy” my pictures with others. I was reminded a little of this bizarre and hilarious poster.

  I suspect that in each case the guy who came up with the message did so with tongue firmly lodged in cheek, and the suit who approved the message did so without a trace of irony, thinking the message was entirely sincere.

• Entropy and information are closely related. The more possibilities that exist for the state of a system, the higher the entropy. Conversely, the more information you have about a system’s state, the lower the entropy–uncertainty is reduced.

  Assuming, for argument’s sake, that the mind is a system to which this is applicable, does that mean that the less you know about my state of mind, the more entropy I’m creating? Is the act of engaging in thought accelerating the heat death of the universe?

• We’ve all seen those goddamn “anti-drug” commercials; we all know how ridiculously preposterous and ineffective they are (answer: just as much as every other goddamn PSA out there). Yesterday, though, I saw one that really took the cake. “Just tell your parents you lost track of her because you were high,” the voiceover intoned while the camera slowly zoomed out while centered on a young child holding a balloon at an amusement park. “Responsibility: the anti-drug.”

  The message this ad appears to be sending is as follows: Are you a fuck-up, a burn-out, or a stoner? Get a girl pregnant and all of your problems will magically disappear because, after all, having children turns you into a wonderful person and magnificent parent. Hell, even Snoop Dogg chilled out after he had a kid. “Responsibility: the anti-drug”? What the fuck, I mean really. Having kids in an attempt to hold together a crumbling marriage is bad enough, but having kids in an attempt to kick a drug habit sounds absolutely unforgivable. How many stories like this is the “National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign” trying to cause?

I was going to say some other stuff too but I forgot what it was.

Song of the Moment: «Lampshade» — Kashmir

2 Comments

• Arne says:

  August 31, 2005 at 4:30

  I think that PSA was supposed to imply that the girl was “your” sister. You probably didn’t pick up on it since your relatives have a habit of leaving you alone in amusement parks, and you probably think that it’s normal by now…

  Reply
• Märt says:

  August 31, 2005 at 9:34

  So then the message it’s sending is more like this? Parents! Is one of your children a fuck-up, a burn-out, or an unrepentant alcoholic? Leave his younger sister in his care and both children are guaranteed to straighten up and fly right! It’ll make your life so much easier.

  Reply