• I like the new theme, "Ontario", (e:paul) :) Ofcourse I am biased..[inlink]theecarey,91[/inlink]

• New class, International Management-Culture, Strategy and Behavior begins tomorrow. The text is a classic schoolbook, something I haven't seen since my undergraduate years. It will be just fine.. there are integrative cases at the end of each part. I have included one here for the business savvy and the curious. Its lengthy, but a good read. Well worth it.

Comments, questions, random thoughts.. all good.

• Not sure if I loved my dinner. I scrounged through the cupboards and found: diced tomatos, black eyed peas (beans?), green peas, turnip greens and tomato paste. Not sure where the canned turnip greens came from.. I have only eaten fresh. These had some seasoning in them as well. Anyway, I got out a pot, opened everything up, dumped it in the pot, added water and a few seasoning.. and voila! some random creation.. I ate it. It worked. I will bring leftovers to work tomorrow.

• I am looking forward to the weekend, as always. No exact plans, as of yet.. but I always manage to find something. I have a few ideas..

Whose going to Coles for Tears and Cheers ? :) And which one will you be?
How about after a few beers....?

• (e:pyrcedgrrl) is officially divorced. yay! congrats and all that good stuff. Not that she told ME.. haha.. Is the divorce party at peppermints? (not like we ever ever need an excuse!--but its always fun to come up with one-- "Sold the van? Lets go see strippers!") or are we just going to invite the boys over? -not Christian, though.. not since the "not entirely white tighty whiteys episode. But the others.. yeh..

• Work. hmm.. sometimes not chaotic enough. I love the craziness that other years brought. My Autistic kiddo that I work with has made amazing progress.. He used to literally kick my ass. Very dangerous to himself and others.. Not so much anymore. I really am not needed anymore. I did my job and worked myself out of a job in that regards. He is just amazing.. talking! eye contact! playfulness! affectionate! so many wonderful changes through time! However, through all of this, he is attatched to me. I love it...I mean, it is reinforcing on some level.. but overall, it isn't a good thing. I wont always be there..

• I need a day to catch up on everything. I will have a couple of days towards the end of the month, so thats when I will plan on it. Some stuff needs to be taken care of before all that. Ahhhhh! What I need to get done needs to be taken care of during regular business hours. Not helpful! It'll all work out.

• I had a bad dream last night. It bothered me all today, although I knew it was just a dream. It rehashed some feelings I thought I had gotten past. Silly me for thinking that. My fault.. I know where it stemmed from. yeesh. It isn't about me.

or was it. nah..

• I also had a dream about a friend that died last year. I want to find his brother.. not sure where to start.. he grew up in Wilson, so maybe one of these days I will drive over to his parents house. Wouldn't know what to say..

Last week I had some strange dreams as well.. What is with these dreams??

• I received an email from one of the band members of Insanity Wave. I was totally tickled by his message. They saw that I had written about them in a post here. Fun music.. from Spain.. good stuff. Here is a peer review:

• oh, and, Clive Owen, if you are reading this.. drop me a line ;)

later peeps!
Carey
__________________________________________________________


Snagged from International Management-Culture, Strategy and Behavior 6th edition pgs 77-79 Brief Integrative Case 1 Colgateâ??s Distasteful Toothpaste 79 Mcgraw Hill publications.. and all that citation goodness:

Colgates Distasteful Toothpaste

Colgate is a well-known consumer products company
based in New York. Its present products are in the areas of
household and personal care, which include laundry detergents
such as Ajax and Fab, health care products manufactured
for home health care, and specialty products such as
Hill pet food. The household products segment represents
approximately 75 percent of company revenues, while the
specialty segment accounts for less than 7 percent. Colgateâ??s
value has been set in excess of $5.6 billion. Through
both recessionary and recovery periods in the United
States, Colgate has always been advocated by investment
analysts as a good long-term stock.

Colgates domestic market share has been lagging for
several years. In the 1970s, when diversification seemed to
be the tool to hedge against risk and sustain profits, Colgate
bought companies in various industries, including kosher
hot dogs, tennis and golf equipment, and jewelry. However,
such extreme diversification diverted the companyâ??s attention
away from its key moneymaking products: soap, laundry
detergents, toothpaste, and other household products.
The product diversification strategy ended in 1984 when
Reuben Mark became CEO. At the young age of 45, he ordered
the sale of parts of the organization that deviated too
far from Colgateâ??s core competency of personal and household
products. He followed consultant Tom Petersâ??s prescription
for excellence: â??Stick to the knitting.â??

Colgates International Presence:
Colgate traditionally has had a strong presence overseas.
The company has operations in Australia, Latin America,
Canada, France, and Germany. International sales presently
represent one-half of Colgateâ??s total revenue. In the past,
Colgate always made a detailed analysis of each international
market for demand. For instance, its entry into South
America required an analysis of the type of product that
would be most successful based on the dental hygiene
needs of South American consumers. Because of this commitment
to local cultural differences, the company has the
number-one brand of toothpaste worldwide, Total.

To gain a strong share of the Asian market without having
to build its own production plant, Colgate bought a 50 percent
partnership in the Hawley and Hazel group in August 1985
for $50 million. One stipulation of this agreement was that
Colgate had no management prerogatives: Hawley and Hazel
maintained the right to make the major decisions in the organization.
This partnership turned out to be very lucrative for
Colgate, with double-digit millions in annual sales.

Enter the Distasteful Toothpaste:
Hawley and Hazel is a chemical products company based
in Hong Kong. The company was formed in the early part
of the twentieth century, and its only product of note, believe
it or not, was called â??Darkieâ?? toothpaste. Over the
years, this had been one of the popular brands in Asia and
had a dominant presence in markets such as Taiwan, Hong
Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand.

â??Darkieâ?? toothpaste goes back to the 1920s. The
founder of this product, on a visit to the United States,
loved Al Jolson, then a very popular black-faced entertainer
(i.e., a white person with black makeup on his face). The
founder decided to re-create the spirit of this character in
the form of a trademark logo for his toothpaste because of
the characterâ??s big smile and white teeth. When the founder
returned to Asia, he copyrighted the name â??Darkieâ?? to go
along with the logo. Since the 1920s, there has been strong
brand loyalty among Asians for this product. One housewife
in Taipei whose family used the product for years
remarked, The toothpaste featuring a Black man with a
toothy smile is an excellent advertisement."

The Backlash Against Colgate

"Darkie" toothpaste had been sold in Asia for about
65 years. After Colgate became partners with Hawley and
Hazel and its distasteful product, however, there was a
wave of dissatisfaction with the logo and name from U.S.
minorities and civil rights groups. There really has been no
definite source on how this issue was passed to U.S. action
groups and the media; however, a book entitled Soap
Opera: The Inside Story of Procter and Gamble places responsibility
in the hands of Procter & Gamble in an effort
to tarnish Colgateâ??s image and lower its market share.
The Americansâ?? irate response to â??Darkieâ?? was a surprise
to the Hawley and Hazel group. The product had always been
successful in their Asian markets, and there had been no complaints.
In fact, the success of â??Darkieâ?? had led the firm to
market a new product in Japan called â??Mouth Jazz,â?? which
had a similar logo. A spokesperson for Hawley and Hazel remarked,
â??There had been no problem before, you can tell by
the market share that it is quite well received in Asia.â??

ICCR, the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility,
started the fight against Colgate about 10 years ago when it
received a package of â??Darkieâ?? toothpaste from a consumer
in Thailand. ICCR is composed of institutional investors
that influence corporations through stock ownership. At the
time the movement against Colgateâ??s racially offensive
product started, three members of ICCR already owned a
small amount of stock in the company, and they filed a
shareholder petition against Colgate requesting a change in
the logo and name.
In a letter to Colgate, the ICCR executive director summarized
the position against the distasteful toothpaste as
follows:

Darkie toothpaste is a 60-year-old product sold widely in
Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan and other places in the Far
East. Its packaging includes a top-hatted and gleamingtoothed
smiling likeness of Al Jolson under the words
â??Darkieâ?? toothpaste. As you know, the term â??Darkieâ?? is
deeply offensive. We would hope that in this new association
with the Hawley and Hazel Chemical Company, that
immediate action will be taken to stop this productâ??s name
so that a U.S. company will not be associated with promoting
racial stereotypes in the Third World.

In response to this letter, R. G. S. Anderson, Colgateâ??s
director of corporate development, replied, â??No plans exist
or are being contemplated that would extend marketing and
sales efforts for the product in Colgate subsidiaries elsewhere
or beyond this Far East area.â?? Anderson then went
on to explain that Darkieâ??s founder was imitating Al Jolson
and that in the Chinese view, imitation was the â??highest
form of flattery.â?? The ICCR then informed Colgate that if
the logo was not changed, the organization would create a
media frenzy and help various civil rights action groups in
a possible boycott.

Because Colgate still refused to remove the logo, ICCR
did form a coalition with civil rights groups such as the
NAACP and the National Urban League to start protest
campaigns. The protest took many forms, including lobbying
at the state and local levels. At one point, after heavy
lobbying by the ICCR, the House of Representatives in
Pennsylvania passed a resolution urging Colgate to change
the name and logo. Similar resolutions had been proposed
in the U.S. Congress.

The pressures at home placed Colgate in a difficult position,
especially as it had no management rights in its
agreement with Hawley and Hazel. In the Asian market,
neither Colgate nor Hawley and Hazel had any knowledge
of consumer dissatisfaction because of racial offensiveness,
despite the fact that the local Chinese name for â??Darkieâ??
(pronounced hak ye nga goh) can be translated as â??Black
Man Toothpaste.â?? The logo seemed to enhance brand loyalty.
One Asian customer stated, â??I buy it because of the
Black manâ??s white teeth.â??

The demographics of the Asian market may help to
explain the productâ??s apparent acceptance. There are a
relatively small number of Africans, Indians, Pakistanis,
and Bangladeshis in the region; therefore, the number of
people who might be offended by the logo is low. Also,
some people of color did not seem disturbed by the name.
For example, when asked about the implications of
â??Darkieâ?? toothpaste, the secretary of the Indian Chamber
of Commerce noted, â??It doesnâ??t offend me, and Iâ??m sort of
dark-skinned.â??

Initially, Colgate had no intentions of forcing Hawley and
Hazel to change the product. R. G. S. Anderson issued
another formal statement to the ICCR as follows: â??Our
position . . . would be different if the product were sold in the
United States or in any Western English-speaking country;
which, as I have stated several times, will not happen.â??
Hawley and Hazel concurred with the stance. The alliance
was very fearful of a loss of market share and did not believe
that the complaints were issues relevant to Pacific Rim countries.
A spokesperson for the alliance referred to the protest
campaign as â??a U.S. issue.â?? The trade-off for revamping a
successful product was deemed to be too risky and costly.

Colgates Change of Heart:
The issue did not go away. As U.S. leaders in Congress began
to learn about this very offensive logo and name, the
pressure on Colgate mounted. Interestingly, however, the
value of Colgateâ??s stock increased throughout this period of
controversy. Wall Street seemed oblivious to the charges
against Colgate, and this was another reason why Colgate
took no action. Colgate management believed that an issue
about overseas products should not have a negative effect
on the companyâ??s domestic image. However, pressures
continued from groups such as the Congressional Black
Caucus, a strong political force. Colgate finally began to
waver, but because of its agreement with Hawley and
Hazel, it felt helpless. As one Colgate executive remarked,
â??One hates to let exogenous things drive your business, but
you sometimes have to be aware of them.â??
Colgate CEO Reuben Mark eventually became very distressed
over the situation. He was adamantly against racism
of any kind and had taken actions to exhibit his beliefs.
For instance, he and his wife had received recognition for
their involvement in a special program for disadvantaged
teenagers. He commented publicly about the situation as
follows: â??Itâ??s just offensive. The morally right thing dictates
that we must change. What we have to do is find a
way to change that is least damaging to the economic interests
of our partners.â?? He also publicly stated that Colgate
had been trying to change the package since 1985, when it
bought into the partnership.

Colgateâ??s Plan of Action to Repair the Damage

The protest campaign initiated by ICCR and carried further
by others definitely caused Colgateâ??s image to be tarnished
badly in the eyes not only of African Americans but of
all Americans. To get action, some members of the Congressional
Black Caucus (including Rep. John Conyers,
D-Mich.) even bypassed Colgate and tried to negotiate directly
with Hawley and Hazel. To try to repair the damage,
two years after ICCRâ??s initial inquiry, Colgate, in cooperation
with Hawley and Hazel, finally developed a plan to
78 Part 1 Environmental Foundation
change the product. In a letter to ICCR, CEO Mark stated,
â??I and Colgate share your concern that the caricature of a
minstrel in black-face on the package and the name
â??Darkieâ?? itself could be considered racially offensive.â?? Colgate
and Hawley and Hazel then proposed some specific
changes for the name and logo. Names considered included
Darlie, Darbie, Hawley, and Dakkie. The logo options included
a dark, nondescript silhouette and a well-dressed
black man. The alliances decided to test-market the options
among their Asian consumers; however, they refused to
change the Chinese name (â??Black Man Toothpasteâ??),
which is more used by their customers.

They decided that changes would be implemented over
the course of a year to maintain brand loyalty and avoid
advertising confusion with their customers. There was the
risk that loyal customers would not know if the modified
name/logo was still the same toothpaste that had proven itself
through the years. Altogether, the process would take
approximately three years, test marketing included. Colgate
also decided to pay for the entire change process,
abandoning their initial suggestion that the change be paid
for by Hawley and Hazel.

Colgate and Hawley and Hazel then made a worldwide
apology to all insulted groups. Although Hawley and Hazel
was slow to agree with the plan, a spokesperson emphasized
that racial stereotyping was against its policy. It also helped
that Hawley and Hazel would pay no money to make the
needed changes. They felt that the product was too strong to
change quickly; thus, three years was not too long to implement
the new logo and name fully into all Asian markets.
Further, they insisted that as part of the marketing campaign,
the product advertising use the following statement
in Chinese, â??Only the English name is being changed.
Black Man Toothpaste is still Black Man Toothpaste.â??
placed a ban on Darlie toothpaste because of the productâ??s
violation of Chinaâ??s trademark laws. Although the English
name change was implemented across all markets, the retained
Chinese name and logo still were deemed derogatory
by the Chinese, and the government banned the
product. Also, Eric Molobi, an African National Congress
representative, was outraged at the toothpasteâ??s logo on a
recent visit to the Pacific Rim. When asked if Darlie toothpaste
would be marketed in his country, the South African
representative replied, â??If this company found itself in
South Africa it would not be used. There would be a permanent
boycott.â??

Today, the name of Colgate cannot be found anywhere
on the packaging of what is now called Darlie toothpaste.
In a strategic move, Colgate has distanced itself completely
away from the controversial product. In the Thailand and
Indonesia health-products markets, Colgate even competes
against Darlie toothpaste with its own brand.



What do you think Colgate should have done to
handle the situation?

Do you see what I see?

Lake Ontario: Not a clear day, but you could get lost in the vastness of the water..

















Niagara River: On the edge of darkness..









WOOD! told ya I have pictures.. Have wood envy:















From last weekend (or week before) at (e:paul). (e:matthew) and (e:terrys)--Sugar Glider sweetness:







Master Joseph ("jo jo no beans")






and...
c'est moi!



the Y-Town Areopastale Unibomber..




Good night.. hump day is near!

Carey



"Of all the liars in the world, sometimes the worst are your own fears." Kipling

I walked along the tree lined edge that overlooks the Niagara river. Aroma of dirt, leaves and twigs permeated the cooling air. I inhaled deeply as I kicked through the brown crispy deteriorating remnants of fall, and mused to myself, "this is January?"

As the sun settled into a sky of pink and purple, I paused to sit on a bench facing the calm river. I never get bored looking at this. There is so much to see if you open your eyes and use your senses. Different times of the year bring a whole new view. Growing up, it was all taken for granted. Not anymore.

A golden retriever stopped for some attention. I obliged with a quick rub down. Satisfied, the dog ran to catch up with his jogging owner.

I got up to continue my walk and found myself in front of a maple tree. What I did next felt surprisingly normal, which in my realm of behavior, I guess it is. I touched the tree. I ran my finger tips then the length of my fingers horizontally along the bark. Instead of stopping as I began to walk past this gigantic tree, I continued around the trunk and closed my eyes all the while maintaining contact. What I first saw, smelled and felt was intensified when I closed my eyes. I went around the truck once like this then opened my eyes.

Then I looked at the tree, really looked at it. Have you ever done that?

I have a thing for wood.. yeh, I have pictures somewhere..

I eventually made it back to my car. Walking briskly sometimes jogging and whenever I could, jumped into a pile of leaves or jumped up onto anything that I could find. Feeling spunky and always feisty.. I enjoyed the dwindling sunshine and fresh air.

I spent the remaining daylight in the parking lot at Fort Niagara cleaning out my car, checking fluids and assessing car care supplies. I pulled out three bags of garbage, yikes! Then returned home to a dinner of steak, salad and lima beans. Yeh, I cook once in awhile.

Good night, sleep well..
Carey

I think I updated this entry four times.. trying to get rid of weird characters surrounding apostrophes. I wrote in Word first, so maybe it was something to do with that. Anyway, I realized a part of my post didn't make it in, hence another update.

A quick summary of my weekend:
Friday: Did not go to Happy Hour with work chums. I think I might need to next time around, whenever that is. I keep declining lately. That evening, (e:ladycroft) and I went to chill with friends.. Avantica, Manish and Bernard (a little birthday celebration). Awesome people.
Saturday: went for a super long walk, played outside, hiked around the Fort, walked along the beach. I elected to stay in that evening, for school reasons. Never again, haha. But I guess it was good, as I knew if I went out, I was going to be out all night. I just got over a cold, I didn't want to push it and screw myself for getting school work done.
Sunday: made my way to Spot. Enjoyed the company of (e:joshua) and (e:jason).. followed by (e:ladycroft) and (e:jenks). I left to stretch my legs.. took a walk down elmwood, stopped at Sahara Grill for Falafel and grape leaves to go. What a warmish night.. I could have kept on going.

I am not ready for this weekend to be over. Not at all.

I am ready for some new fun. Any ideas? Any takers?

The depth and degree of my interests have barely been touched upon here. I consider all topics open territory for consideration and discussion. I will research and write about anything and have many areas that I have either written an essay or a small blurb. However, I note that there is some, but not much evidence of that here.

I recall when I first joined (e:strip), that I was not sure if I would bring writing from other sites to this one. Primarily, politics, social issues and random life observations are the basis to my writing. On (e:strip) there has been some variation, but nothing like I have in the recent past. No reason really. Timing, efforts placed on course work and exploration of topics (yeh, the emo stuff-only recently explored) may have led me astray.

I get the itch to write on or add to the topics that float around here, especially recently, but I just haven't. Shame shame.

Tonight I will. (e:paul) made a post about Google's privacy policy. [inlink]paul,4152[/inlink] At other times as well. Not always Google, but other site privacy policies. Privacy rights and more specifically, the privacy policy of sites intrigue me. As with other topics, I have written nothing of privacy rights here, yet it is a source of endless fascination for me. Note that is a theme in my list of links.

Google's privacy policy is one that I have been following. The controversy surrounding privacy policies seemed to escalate with the introduction of Gmail. I became a beta tester two years ago, when just a select group of people were provided an invite (that people were selling on ebay, if I recall correctly-that I would have done if I had known that the invites were in demand-easy moola, dammit). Eventually the invites were provided to more and more people, although still not available to the public without Google initiating the invite. I believe that within the past six months it has become fully available to anyone. In the past year or so, I have kept articles on the ever growing Google and the organizational changes. making mental notes, joting down thoughts. As Gmail became bigger, Google began to get greedy.. and a bit nefarious, ironically.

See, I take pleasure in dissecting a topic and see where it leads me. I am open to the information I find and the story that I uncover. I seek no absolutes. As I always lead my discussions, the purpose is to challenge myself: learn and unlearn. That may be the only thing I hold strongly to. The following is written in a more typical Carey fashion and focuses on Google's Gmail. (Carey fashion = research, citation and verbage)


This report considers privacy issues faced by Googles email service, Gmail, a summary of assigned articles supplemented with additional relevant research and a brief write up of this writers opinion and experience with Gmail.

Google released its email product, Gmail in April 2004 to a select number of users. Gmail is a free web-based e-mail service that began by offering one-gigabyte (1000 megabytes) of e-mail storage to users, now, well over two-gigabytes. This is a significant amount of storage space considering that at the time of induction, most email services provide just 100-500 megabytes of storage. Due to this enormous amount of storage capacity and therefore increased competitive pressure, other web-based e-mail services have (or plan to) increase their storage offerings. For example, banner advertising supported Yahoo! has increased it storage capacity from 100 megabytes to 250 megabytes to 1000 megabytes.

Accessible through any browser, the user can send and retrieve email anywhere. Gmail provides the ability to search for specific messages. Messages do not need to be deleted to keep within storage boundaries; instead they can be archived for later retrieval. Using the same technology that Google uses as a search engine, Gmail provides quick retrieval of old incoming and outgoing email. The program automatically organizes successively related messages into conversational threads. This promotes easy following of content. As long as the account is maintained (used at least once every nine months) Google will store data indefinitely. Gmail's other distinctive features include a labeling system, a spam reporter and a system for filtering your mail as it comes into the users inbox.

To make Gmail profitable, Google will sell advertising and deliver it to targeted users. Gmail will often place a few highly relevant, text ads next to the message in an email. The company's software will analyze users' messages to determine advertising matches and will insert complimentary ads in email messages. Some have raised concerns about privacy issues, and the intrusiveness of the ads. Google founder, Larry Page insisted that there would "be strict safeguards in place to protect user information, and that the ads would not be annoying. Google founders claim that "although there will be some advertising within messages, the program will be free of more traditional advertising, such as banners or pop up ads".

Besides advertisement links, links to related web pages that the user may find of interest are also included in the Gmail format. These ads and links are displayed automatically using the same technology that powers Googles AdSense system. This system delivers targeted ads to thousands of sites across the web. Computers scan the text on a given page, perform a mathematical analysis on it and match it to ads in Googles extensive database. Only computers "read" the content of the users email. Google believes they are providing a great service to people and that the issues surrounding privacy are overblown.

Google initially came up with the Gmail concept to address the growing problem of email overload. E-mail overload is caused in part by the inability to search through email quickly and efficiently. Although there are other programs that tackle email overload with email client add-ons but, according to Google, they do not have the market presence to promote themselves in the same way that Google can.

"Gmail provides Google with an opportunity to enter a fresh market, currently dominated by other Internet companies. However even as the benefits of personalization were widely advocated, Web e-mail vendors have considered such a step to be very risky. Many operate under the assumption that highly targeted personalization based on e-mail content has the potential to infuriate users, who may not believe assurances that the automated ads do not violate their privacy"
It is the issue of privacy that has the public and multiple civil liberty groups actively concerned. Some of these issues and recommendations are outlined below:

• Gmail violates the privacy rights of non-subscribers. First, subscribers consent to "content extraction" and analysis of their email. Non-subscribers who email a Gmail user have "content extraction" performed on their email even though they have not consented to have their communications monitored, nor may they even be aware that their communications are being analyzed or that a profile is being compiled on them. Because the non-subscribers do not have the same knowledge and information provided to them as subscribers do, subsequently their privacy is at risk. Subscribers to Gmail also face risks to their privacy.

• According to the privacy policy, "We serve highly relevant ads and other information as part of the service using our unique content-targeting technology". While the advertisements and related links are relatively innocuous, it is the idea that it is the computerized scanning of email content that decides what links will be incorporated.

• Google Gmail maintains a back up system of all data. The privacy policy warns that messages, even if deleted, may still be stored in the system long after users have closed their account. It is unknown if this information would ever be retrieved, intentionally or unintentionally, and what harm could ensue.

• The unlimited period for data retention poses unnecessary risks of accidental information leakage and purposeful misuse. Google's policies on retaining data and correlating it between business units are problematic, lack clarity and are too broad in scope. Google should set clear limits on how long it will retain user account, e-mail and transactional data, and provide clear written policies about data sharing. Due to the nature of information that businesses send by email, ie; financial dealings, intellectual property, legal documentation etc, it is recommended that businesses do not use any free email service. It is not necessarily secure and may be vulnerable to hack intrusion.

"Don't be evil"
Google's mission is to "organize the world's information and make it universally useful and accessible. For many people, email contains valuable information that can be difficult to retrieve. Google created Gmail to help with that".

The privacy issues surrounding Googles Gmail is only a small part of the bigger worldwide picture. The same patent that Google uses for its Gmail, other sources could use the same. Advertisers are permitted to put targeted ads on emails based on content (patent 20040059712)! Technology and how people decide to use it and the errors that will occur cannot be controlled strictly through laws and governance. Responsibility, accountability and best practices of the user and inventor combine to uphold privacy. People can choose not to use a service if they feel their privacy is at risk. In regards to Googles Gmail, where the buy in factor is the large information storage capacity, there are alternatives; one just has to be able to find them. In this writers research, email services were found that had a comparable storage allotment, free of charge and did not employ content scanning. Three are provided as follows:

www.walla.com free, offers 1GB and no content scanning
www.spymac.com free or variable price range, 3+ GB, no content scanning
www.adventuremail.com free (after $2.00 activation fee), 2GB, no content scanning
www.yahoo.com free, 1GB

In the initial stages of research complilation, Gmail was available through invitation only. As a long term user of the Google search engine, this writer was targeted for beta testing and signed up for Gmail (initially for the purpose of research and now for some personal use). The layout of the system is easy to manipulate and the "Gmail notifye" allows messages to be viewed without opening a browser. With the questionable content scanning, this writer sent test messages to and from myself using Gmail and other email systems. Ads and related links did appear in some of the email. This writer forwarded a computer related web subscription from a yahoo account to the Gmail account, in which various links pertaining to computers were included. Personal test messages with a variety of "key words" were included to determine what text would be targeted. The last line had words related to trucks and cars. Ads and related links to car dealerships and SUV information were included. This writer went further into sending various levels of "inappropriate" messages, in which no ads or related links were included. This was a concern of mine and further research into Google provided information that the ads and links are "family friendly".

I have continued to use Gmail for personal use, although primarily for electronic subscriptions. It is disturbing to see the continued ad targets within the emails. I am currently using and am pleased with Yahoo! email system and its search engine. Although somewhat concerned about the privacy issues surrounding Gmail, I am more concerned with privacy issues that surround the use of intentional acts of breach of privacy (spy software used in business or personal use). Currently I do not provide anything of concern in my online use. However, as that changes, I will have to reconsider the free email platform. In the meantime, as more information becomes available, Gmail attains a critical mass, and updates its privacy policy, this writer will continue to evaluate the information.

What do you think, is Google Gmail as evil as the civil liberty groups are making it out to be?

Sources of research:
www.feeeds.com
www.google.com
www.google.gmail.com
www.gmailistoocreepy.com

www.googlewatch.org

It is officially Friday!

I should be in bed..

I am always pumped up after a night of class. Difficult to fall asleep. 7am will arrive shortly.

I never had a chance to study or review for my final exam that I just took. OY!

I wrote a quick paper on the fly. Not my best work, but I hammered it out.

I forgot to eat dinner.

I had begun a process of negotiation a couple of weeks ago. It began diplomatically, as a good class representative would do.. then I had to press a little, to aquire some feedback. Once that started, a rush of information, concern and questions arose. This is when I thought it best to create an open forum and discuss the issue collectively, as it affects everyone. It worked out well. I am in a cohort of amazingly bright-high caliber individuals. Good stuff. I am always learning from them.

I am feeling pretty damn good. I just have some sniffles. I could use sleep (I went to bed late last night and again tonight) but otherwise feel good. In a great mood today.. work was nice as well as class.. even though for the majority of the day I didn't feel well and that there is bad stuff going on at work.

I had a really odd dream last night.. ok, nothing new there.. but this one I took the time to jot a few things down this morning. I was barely awake as I scribbled a few words. It is a mess.. I really was still asleep while I wrote. What I can make out should be enough to jog the details from my brain. I'll work on that over the weekend.

I am delerious tired now.. my toes are frozen.. my tummy is grumbling, but I am too tired to care.

Good night.. sweet dreams.. be nice..

I hope you a fabulous Friday...
Carey