Sunday, February 27, 2011

craiglist rants: part 1

southern cali is a terrific place to be a writer, especially if your interest includes ehow articles, hacked reposts, pot, and/or the adult entertainment industry. but seriously, there are a bunch of hard working copy writers out here. i'm one. 

freelancing can be really annoying, and craigslist.org can easily be consider a battle ground right on the front of the war between copy writers and the ever evolving industry, that seeks to supplant talent with tech and belief that "anyone", not only professionals, can do a "good enough" job for way less money. (kinda similar to the newspaper industry's push back against pro photographers with the advent and ease of digital camera technology that allows non photographers to take decent photos...)

anyway, whilst searchin' craigslist big ol' list for some freelance gigs, i would occasionally take a break for the hunt and read the over-inflated rantings of my fellow craigslisting warriors. 

this stuff is totally taser factory. i'm calling for a day of rage on the cl.org writing gigs page!

re: 3 Scoliosis Articles (The Gulag)
Date: 2010-03-11, 4:18PM PST
Reply to: gigs-w7rnx-1639877664@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

OK Skippy, lemme get your fabulous offer straight...

"3 articles (1,500-2,000 words each)
Scoliosis
Scoliosis Brace Treatments in Adults
Scoliosis Brace Treatments is Kids
$15 for each paper"

I'm no math whiz, but that's a small fraction of the legal minimum wage, and
requires research and expertise as well.

No thanks, we could do better in a slave-labor camp!

What kind of delusional ego-maniac are you to think that someone would take such an abusive
deal, and then look forward to "similar future work"?

Hope you can deal with the deluge of eager hopefuls who will beat a path to your door on this one.

Maybe your next "ghost-writtten assignment" should be something about mental patients on the
loose who want expert but free services for their money-making schemes?

Get your sorry ass off of CL...

Re: Freelance Journalists (anywhere)
Date: 2010-03-07, 9:06AM PST
Reply to: gigs-rxnvp-1632703539@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

Oh, yummy!

I get to go to all these events for FREE!
And you get to publish my reviews for FREE!
And I buy the gas for my car to get to these events for FREE - uh -- no.
And I get to ride the Metro for FRE - er, no.
And I get my gas and electric and phone and water and food and medical FREE because they all read my reviews! Oh... No?
With my reviews in all your publications, I get to be the most famous writer in... umm... Skid Row.

No thanks.
With such national circulation, $.25 per word is a minimum.

re: proofread/editor needed to work for dirt wages
Date: 2010-03-07, 8:01AM PST
Reply to: gigs-ytcan-1632613058@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

The Original Poster wrote:

"We are a small publishing company and are looking for proofreaders and copy editors that have book experience. Our company reformats book content for mobile platforms. All of our work is on a project basis and we pay $10 per hour. The ideal candidate will have an extensive knowledge of book production, copyediting, and relentless attention to detail. To be considered for this gig, please send your resume. "

You want to pay $2 more than minimum age for a white collar job?

Ehhhh.... lemme see...

No.

Internships, "writing partners", and other BS (on CL)
Date: 2010-03-05, 7:15PM PST
Reply to: gigs-we3vw-1630786970@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

Some motherfucker offered an "internship" of 3 months work with a $100 "stipend". A dollar a day? Abe Lincoln would be proud!

Gigs section is for short-term PAID employment, not a clearinghouse for free-labor scams.

These assholes keep posting about slave-labor interns or deferred-pay or "TBD" or "no pay at first" or "top performers might get more (unpaid) work later" or great exposure or "submissions for literary-journal contest"! FUCK YOU!

And the delusional unemployable hacks who want writing partners to sit at Starbucks with them and dream of hitting the bigtime...

If you're not offering employment then POST SOMEWHERE ELSE! Volunteers are people who read to patients at the convalescent hospital, NOT writers who donate free talent to your for-profit schemes. If you're making money or plan to make money from it, then PAY YOUR HELPERS!

I get so FUCKING tired of this shit sometimes!

Rite 4 pey! But naut MUCH pey! (scamsville)
Date: 2010-03-04, 5:01PM PST
Reply to: gigs-xkbfq-1629003763@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

"Tired of searching for writing jobs on Craigslist? Pay scale for each article is $3.50... word count is 250 - 300... two days to complete each piece... boy can those dollars add up!"

WOW, $3.50 FOR TWO DAYS WORK! THIRD-WORLD PAY RIGHT HERE IN THE USA!

THIS ASSHOLE HAS BEEN TWEAKING THESE SCAM-POSTS, TRYING TO MAKE DEATH-CAMP WAGES SOCIALLY ACCEPTABLE.

PLEASE KEEP FLAGGING THESE FUCKING RIPOFFS!

Those seeking free labor should post under "volunteers wanted".

re: Writer's Research Assistant (Santa Monica) (NO Free Work)
Date: 2010-03-04, 1:40PM PST
Reply to: gigs-8qevd-1628697452@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

Okay.. been awhile since I ranted...

Erin, bubby, shhhweeetheart, daaaahlink... you want someone to work for you for free?

WTF?

20 years ago when I would hire someone to help me with my writing projects, I used green stuff outta my back pocket to take care of business.

The green stuff still works wonders.

The internship thing is bullshit. Complete bullshit. You are a working pro. PAY YOUR WORKERS.

re: Writer Needed (Los Angeles)

Saturday, February 19, 2011

shane edge vs action stars: part tres

the latest installation of this series finds shane edge doing his best imitation of my best depiction of young doug masters (jason gedrick) from the first iron eagle movie (which is actually really good).

view the rest of the series at:

most def. louis gossett jr.'s best role ever.

Friday, February 4, 2011

The Bike Shelf...mount up.

Just when I was getting a little tired, enters the Bike Shelf by Bay Area designer/maker Knife and Saw (one Chris Brigham)! 
...Do I own this?
No. At least not yet. But I love it so much who knows....

Simple is Best.

Get the full pitch here:

(i borrowed a few photos...)

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

"SLO-MO" number three...

"SLO-MO" is a reoccurring collection of photocopied items found (or other acquired/created) by justin clifford rhody...who i write about often. 
i recently received the latest copy "number three. it's absolutely taser factory. maybe even more taser factory than taser factory..?.

while breathing and laughing thru the booklet, it dawned on me that jcr has also been slowly making my desk, office, and other parts of our crib an archive for the original documents contained therein via the mailman.

here's a scan of a favorite from the pages...

available from friends and relatives records...and i've personally encountered it (or other f&r materials) in neat store when least expected.