The Fourth Celebrity Dead in Less Then a Week

First it was Ed MacMahon, then Farrah Fawcett, then the biggest one of them all Michael Jackson. Now television infomercial pitchman Billy Mays is said to be dead.

New York Daily News:

Spirited TV pitchman Billy Mays was found dead at his Tampa home earlier this morning, police said.

Mays, 50, lent his trademark booming voice to infomercials for products like OxiClean and Orange Glo.

His wife, Deborah Mays, found him at their home Sunday morning, the Associated Press reported. Tampa police said there were no signs of a break in or foul play.

An autopsy will be done by Monday afternoon to determine the cause of death.

Internet + Recession= Return to the barter system?

Reportedly the volume of barter ads has doubled on Craig’s List.

On a national level, the increase in barter ads equals the international statistics, rising 100 percent in the last 12 months. Cook blamed the economy for some of the rise in Craigslist traffic.

“Obviously, in the face of financial hardship,” she explained, “people are finding creative ways to get what they want.”

Cook said statistics for the Akron/Canton Craigslist site, which she called “relatively new,” have increased even more dramatically.

“There has been a 450 percent increase in For Sale postings and an 800 percent increase in Barter postings over the last 12 months,” she said. “Obviously, the site’s popularity is growing rapidly, much of it tied to the economy, I’m sure.”

Sham Wow Guy arrested for Giving Prostitute the Sham Pow

A little late to this one, but last month it was revealed that the guy in the “Sham Wow “, As Seen on TV infomercials was arrested in February in Miami, after a fight with a prostitute. Both sustained injuries.

SOUTH BEACH, Fla., March 28 (UPI) — Vince Shlomi, the TV pitchman for the ShamWow product group, assaulted a suspected prostitute at a hotel in South Beach, Fla., police allege.

The Smoking Gun reported Friday that Shlomi, 44, was arrested by South Beach police and charged with a felony battery charge for allegedly punching 26-year-old Sasha Harris several times at the Setai Hotel.

Shlomi allegedly confessed to police he paid Harris $1,000 for sexual intercourse, but was forced to hit her after she bit his tongue as they were kissing.

The spokesman for ShamWow absorbent towels and Slap Chop food choppers allegedly told police he repeatedly punched Harris during the Feb. 7 incident in an attempt to make her release his tongue.

Now the Smoking Gun has released photos of both of them following the altercation.

80s Moment of the Week: "Swatches"

Nothing screams 80s like a swatch. Except for someone actually, literally screaming 80s.

Obama Nativity Figure Big Seller in Naples, Italy

President Elect Barack Obama may claim that he wasn’t born in a manger, but a whole lot of nativity scenes this year will claim he was at least there as a wise man. Ultra conservative talk show host and tin foil hat enthusiast Sean Hannity meanwhile is likely trying to tie this all in with Bill Ayers somehow. Could we be hearing about questionable associations between Obama, Ayers, and the Baby Jesus?

Reuters:

But beyond the thousands of angel, sheep, Mary and Joseph figures filling market stalls before Christmas, craftsmen say Obama has become a top seller.

“The ones we are selling the most of are those of Barack Obama, America’s new president, along with his wife Michelle,” said craftsman Genny Di Virgilio.

Tradition requires that the nativity scene be built up over time until Christmas Eve, when baby Jesus is put in the manger as the very last element of the display.

National Buy Nothing Day

You can put off buying that Chia Pet for at least a day.

Consume less, today is National Buy Nothing Day. Tomorrow will be International Buy Nothing Day. This is no longer merely a moral issue of restraining our materialistic ways, but by using restraint and not purchasing anything for just a day or two (especially amidst the Black Friday Madness) we can take the chance to repair our own personal finances.

Some Things Never Change

Its been a few months, but it appears that yet another product made in China is being recalled. This time the Dirt Devil Vaccum power brush. Some 987,000 of these are affected by the recall. (H/T to Tammy Bruce for this story).

A plastic atachment can come unatached from the vaccum and pose a risk to users of the device. twelve injuries, minor lacirations to either: eyes, skin, or thumb have been amongst the 140 cases of this happening have been documented by ITT Floor Care which manufactures the Dirt Devil Vaccum power brush.

80s Moment of the Week

80s Moment of the Week- Colgate TV Commercial

End Times and E-mail

A number of Evangelical Christians have coined an idea that allows an e-mail to be sent after the rapture occurs, containing banking information and other data to non-believers.

Supposedly the company, youvebeenleftbehind.com was started in about 1999. The e-mails will be sent after six consecutive days of not being logged into by at least three of the five people who operate the site. So they better not go on vacation together and forget to log in.

All I know is that when (and if) the rapture comes there will be a hell of alot of laundry left behind by believers who are whisked up to heaven. That means free clothes! But according to those experts on the rapture, that free Hawaiian shirt from the guy who suddenly vanished while standing beside you may be the last bit of joy you ever get, for what follows is almost literally seven years of Hell on earth.

So, this seems to me just another way to taunt those sinners and non-believers left behind after you have been accepted into heaven.

Wired:

For just $40 a year, believers can arrange for up to 62 people to get a final message exactly six days after the Rapture, that day when — according to Christian end times dogma — Christians will be swept up to heaven, while doubters are left behind to suffer seven years of Tribulation under a global government headed by the Antichrist.

“You’ve Been Left Behind gives you one last opportunity to reach your lost family and friends for Christ,” reads the website, which is purportedly run “by Christians, for Christians.” The domain name is registered through an anonymous proxy service, presumably to protect the proprietors from the Forces of Darkness, and not because they’re up to anything shady.

The e-mails will be triggered when three of the site’s five Christian staffers “scattered around the U.S.” fail to log in for six days in a row — a system that incorporates a nice margin of safety, should two of the proprietors turn out to be unrepentant sinners or atheists.

Users can also upload up to 150 megabytes of documents, which will be protected by an unidentified encryption algorithm until the Rapture, then released to up to 12 nonbelievers of your choice. The site recommends that you use that storage to house sensitive financial information.

MY TAKE: I wonder how most of these e-mails start. ‘Hey I was taken by the rapture and you godless heathens were left behind. Ha Ha! Now here is how I want my stuff dived up.’ But of course since this will be hell on earth, several points. your things will probably be stolen before any of your loved ones can receive the instructions, people will be engaging in greed fueled feuding over who got more and ‘I want that’ etc to follow your wishes. Besides, in the event of the sky being consumed by fire, chaos, and the likely riots that will probably ensue most possessions (including computers) will likely be stolen and missing already. Not to mention who is gonna check your e-mail during the rapture, everyone knows that you check your text messages.

But if the rapture does come hell on earth will most likely include the worst and slowest dial-up Internet available. Now that is hell.

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