urbanmyths.com
Save Sesame Street! The National Endowment for the Arts e-mail myth
OK, we all support the arts, and most of us favor giving a few dollars to help struggling artists, even if it means some bad Mapplethorpe pictures wind up offending a few rednecks in Cincinnati...and to exploit the average educated person's appreciation of the arts, a litlle scare mail has been circulating to help save the NEA...for the last 4 years!
What was intended as a nice gesture by two former students at the University of Northern Colorado (and we thought all of Colorado was north) has ended up as the classic e-mail-that-just-won't die. It has circulated to millions of e-mail boxes since 1995. It got so bad that one of the students involved left the school before graduating. And the school is still getting mile-long petitions forwarded, many of them duplicates of the thousands already received.
It's gotten so bad the school has a link on it's homepage asking people to please stop sending the e-mail:
In 1995 two well-meaning but misguided students at UNC started an email petition regarding pending legislation that would affect the funding for PBS and NPR. They didn't mean to open a can of worms, but they did. The petition is still circulating on the Internet and has taken on a life of its own.
If you have received this petition, please delete it and advise anyone within hearing distance to do the same.
According to David Brumley, the Network Administrator at University of Northern Colorado: "In 1995, a couple of students wrote a letter and sent it out to support funding for PBS and NPR. This letter was not intended to be a hoax, but instead was only a misguided attempt by some students of ours to do some good. The students (one of whom has left the university since the posting) have been reprimanded." Maybe a good job in PR is in store for these two.
But wait...why are so many people still forwarding this e-mail? A cursory inspection reveals the flaws:
The e-mail asks you to return the list to two different e-mail addresses--neither of which is at the NEA!
Electronic signatures are useless--anyone can create a list of names.
The petition drive is fatally flawed: There is no organized system for collecting the signatures; it just keeps getting forwarded around until someone decides to send it back home--we're sure the NEA would be a bit more organized than this (i.e. a link to a web-based form)
No mention of a petition is to be found on the NEA website: arts.endow.gov
President Clinton has requested a $150 million budget for 2000, a 50% increase over 1999, and even the most conservative members in congress accept the need for some funding (watch C-Span more often if you don't know this already).
So what's goin' on? It's a meme, that's what. A thought contagion. It will never go away because too many people think they are being good, responsible people (vs. clueless spammers) by passing it along. Any appeal to ask people to stop forwarding this is useless. It will only disappear when the NEA does. What's more interesting from our end is the little game of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon that happens as the list gets longer. So forward this back to us if when you receive it and we'll keep a tally. Here's the e-mail:
PLEASE READ. IT IS URGENT>
NPR Morning Edition this morning, Nina Tottenberg
said that if the Supreme Court supports Congress, it is in
effect the end of NEA. Then, there's the question of
Congressional funding: Funding for NPR/NEA & PBS.
PBS, NPR (National Public Radio), and the arts are
facing major cutbacks in funding. In spite of the
efforts of each station to reduce spending costs and
streamline their services, some government officials believe that
the funding currently going to these programs is too
large a portion of funding for something which is seen as
not worthwhile.
Currently, taxes from the general public for PBS equal
$1.12 per person per year, and the National Endowment for the
Arts equals $.64 a year. A January 1995 CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll
indicated that 76% of Americans wish to keep funding for PBS,
third only to national defense and law enforcement as the most
valuable programs for federal funding.
Each year, the Senate and House Appropriations
committees each have 13 subcommittees with jurisdiction over many
programs and agencies. Each subcommittee passes the
appropriation bill.
The goal each year is to have each bill signed by the
beginning of the fiscal year, which is October 1.
The only way that our representatives can be aware of
the base of support for PBS and funding for these types
of programs is by making our voices heard.
Please add your name to this list and forward it to
friends who believe in what this stands for. This list will
be forwarded to the President of the United States, the
Vice President of the United States, and Congressional leaders.
This petition is being passed around the internet.
Please add your name to it so that funding can be
maintained for the NEA, NPR & PBS.
Please keep this petition rolling. Do not reply to
me. Please sign and forward to others to sign.
If you prefer not to sign please send to
the e-mail address indicated. This is being forwarded
to several people at once to add their names to the
petition.
It won't matter if many people receive the same list
as the names are being managed. This is for anyone who thinks
NPR/PBS is a worthwhile expenditure of $1.12/year of their taxes.
A petition follows.
If you wish to sign, please add your name to the bottom and
forward on to others. If not, please don't kill it -
send it to the e-mail address listed here:
wein2688@blue.univnorthco.edu or
kubi7975@blue.univnorthco.edu
If you happen to be the 150th, 200th, 250th etc. signer of this
petition, please forward a copy to:
wein2688@blue.univnorthco.edu
This way we can keep track of the lists and organize
them. Forward this to everyone you know, and help us to keep
these programs alive. Thank you.
NOTE: It is preferable that you SELECT the entirety of
this letter and then COPY it into a new outgoing message,
rather than simply forwarding it. In your new outgoing
message,add your name to the bottom of the list, then send it
on. Or if option is available, do a SEND AGAIN.
751) Frank Avruch,Newton, MA
752) Betty Avruch,Newton,MA
753) Thomas J. Cottle,BROOKLINE, MA
754) Kay Cottle, BROOKLINE, MA
755) LANE K. CONN, WEST NEWTON, MA
756) Sarah A. Conn, West Newton, MA
757) Patricia Morgan, Oregon City, OR
758) Lloyd Marbet, Boring, OR
759) Lynn Sims, Portland, OR
760) Will O'Bryan, Portland, OR
761) Rupert Kinnard
762) Tim Miller
763) W. James Richards, Knoxville, TN
764) Dale Goins, Knoxville, TN
765) Jane Carter, Columbus, OH
766) Arline McCarthy, Athens, OH
767) Cliff McCarthy, Athens, OH
768) Joyce Richardson, Athens, OH
769) Phil Richardson, Athens, OH
770) Becky Ramsay, Ellijay, GA
771) Christopher Rose, Chicago, IL
772) Gladys Chmiel, Brookfield, WI
773) Tony Clements, Milwaukee, WI
774) Gary Briggle,Mpls,MN
775) Wendy Lehr, Mpls,MN
776) Heather Lyn MacDonald, New York, NY
777) Constance McCord
778) Chelsea Clarke,Boca Raton, Fl
779) Jordan Clarke,New York, NY
780) Valerie Clarke, Boca Raton, FL
781) Randall Clarke, New York, NY
782) Dave Glasser, New York, NY
783) Lacy Blackledge, Cleveland, MS
784) Holly Sellers, Jackson, MS
785) Michael J. Trout, Montgomery, AL
786) Thomas L. Stephens, Montgomery, AL
787) David Edelman, Wilmington, DE
788) Robert Munsell, Wilmington, DE
789) Patrick Ashley, Wilmington, DE
790) Allison Barlow, Baltimore, MD
791) Tom Hoen, Baltimore, MD
792) Storrs Hoen, Brisbane, CA
793) Marc Bensadoun, Berkeley, CA
794) Jeremy Larner, NY, NY
795) Robert Charlton, Oakland, CA
796) Betsy Pollock, Venice, CA
797) Lisa Blok-Linson, Mar Vista, CA
798) Phil Linson, Mar Vista, CA
799) Joan Torres, Santa Fe, N.M.
800) Ben Young Mason, Santa Fe, NM
801) Melinda Block, Santa Fe, NM
802) Anthony Rippo, Snata Fe, NM
803) Donald Emery, San Francisco, CA
804) William D. Page, La Madera, NM
805) Claudia W. Page, La Madera, NM
806) Jamie Ross, Carson, NM
807) Sophia Abramovitz, Sausalito, CA
808) William Norton, Sausalito, CA
809) David Jenks, Morgan Hill, CA
810) Barbara Jenks, Morgan Hill, CA
811) Stephen Jenks, Portland, ME
812) Carolyn Jenks, Portland, ME
813) Barbara B. Bunker, Buffalo,NY
814) Pat Jurgens, Denver, CO
815) Judy Hawkins, Santa Barbara, CA
816) Paul Phillips, Santa Barbara, CA
817) Leah Spain, Saratoga, CA
818) Samara Gill, Carpinteria, CA
819) Andrea Billingiere, Ventura, CA
820) Genevieve Bonadonna, Montrose, NY
821) Lewis Westfall, Danbury, CT
822) Yvonne Markey, Danbury, CT
823) Robert D. Whittemore, New Milford, CT
824) Susan Kirschner, Portland, OR
825) Eve Callahan, Portland, OR
826) Natasha Myers, Portland, OR
827) Sherrill Myers, Seattle, WA
828) Paul S. Newman, Alamosa, CO
829) Daniel Guyette, Greeley, CO.
830) Charlotte Guyette, Greeley, CO.
831) Arthur Espinoza Jr., Denver, CO
832) Lorita Travaglia, Denver, CO
833) Frank Mariglia, New York, NY
834) Hal Spitzer, New York, NY
835) Jack Walters, New Albany, PA
836) Fred Strugatz, New Albany, PA
837) Jo Ann Lovell, Annapolis, MD
838) Mary Ellen McMillin, Annapolis, MD
839) Krista Edmonds, Albuquerque, NM
840) Ashley N. Kasprzak, Denver, CO
841) Robin M. Crane, Richmond, VA
842) Lloyd P. Morris, Richmond VA
843) Hilda F. Morris, Richmond VA
844) Jeb Bennett, Boulder, CO
845) Greg Casini, Denver, CO
846) E. Habegger, Boulder, CO
847) D. Morgan, Lafayette, CO
848) M.Rowland, Evansville, IN
849) S. Coleman, Brooklyn, NY
850) M Brackett, Lawndale, NC
851) Kim Miller, Atlanta, GA
852) Linda Ferguson, Roanoke VA
853) David Perry, Philadelphia, PA
854) Christine Perry, Philadelphia, PA
855) Liz Rader, Philadelphia PA
856) Christopher Kent, Morrisville, PA
857) Lynn E. Yost, Morrisville, PA
858) Sean McKinney, Lafayette Hill, PA
* 859) Larisa Hubbs, Gwynedd, PA
* 860) Rachel Hubbs, Jenkintown, PA
* 861) Lanie Meriwether, Philadelphia, PA
862) Sara Lauber, Philadelphia, PA
863) Andrea Allison-Williams, Phil., PA
864) Audrey Berger, New York, NY
865) Paul Guzzone, Brooklyn, NY
866) Alan Flatt, Berkeley, CA
867) Gary Rienzo, Emeryville, CA
868) Prema Kerollis, Washington, DC
869) DeLisa Ross, Silver Spring, MD
870) Jenifer Deal, Washington, DC
871) Anthony Angelini, Washington, DC
872) Ed Eaton, Adelphi, MD
873) Vanessa Eaton, Gaithersburg, MD
874) Linda Henry, Palo Alto, CA
875) Laura E. Dingler, Menlo Park, CA
876) Laurie Reynolds, Menlo Park, CA
877) Carolyn Doyle, San Francisco, CA
878) Philip Crawford, Oakland, CA
879) Francesca Crawford, Oakland, CA
880) Robin Crawford, CA
881) Howard Clinebell, Santa Barbara, CA
882) William F. Fore, Escondido, CA
883) Roy Lloyd, New York City
884) Elizabeth Krentz-Wee, New Canaan, CT
885) David Shifrin
886) Eliot Fisk, New York, NY
887) Daniel Phillips , New York , N.Y.
888) Tara O'Connor, New York, N.Y.
889) Judith Sherman, Bronx, N.Y.
890) Curtis Macomber, Bronx, N.Y.
891) James Sellars, Hartford, CT
892) Finn Byrhard, Hartford, CT
893) Jeffrey Krieger, Hartford, CT
894) Libby Van Cleve, New Haven, CT
895) Peter Standaart, Middletown, CT
896) William Land, Cleveland, OH
897) Palmer C. Swanson, Rock Falls, IL
898) Teresa Snow, Sterling, IL
899) Cynthia Kreutzer, Rock Falls, IL
900) Marlowe Hood, Sterling, IL
901) Mary C. Swanson, Rock Falls, IL
902) Catherine A. Smith, Montgomery, AL
903) Robert B. Patrick, Jr., Birmingham, AL
904) Lydia C. Patrick, Birmingham, AL
905) Tracey Norden, Birmingham, AL
906) Arleen Norden, Detroit, MI
907) Marti Alston, Detroti, MI
908) Priscilla Laws, Carlisle, PA
909) Kenneth Laws, Carlisle, PA
910) David R. Sokoloff, Eugene, OR
911) Kathy M. Sokoloff, Eugene, OR
912) Rudolph C. Hwa, Eugene, OR
913) Helen C. Hwa, Eugene, OR
914) Terence Hwa, San Diego, CA
915) Elaine Sheng, New York, NY
916) Rent This space: Your Ad Here! |
