Tire Balancing Alternative

Lead is banned in many states from being used for tire balancing. Not internal tire-balancing beads that are used on some 4x4 tires. Some ingenious Mexican's have found an all-natural alternate: 137 pounds of a particular herb.

My wife was recently interviewed as part of a background check for a neighbor that was applying for a job with the U.S. Border Patrol. According to National Defense magazine, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) aims to increase the number of border personnel to 20,000 by September. This is up from 12,000 in 2006. The objective was initiated two years ago by former President George W. Bush to inhibit cross-border smuggling and border jumping. Read more about this particular bust here.

For extra reading - check out "The 7 Most Ingenious (And Insane) Smuggling Techniques" article at digg.com. The "Human Captain's Chair" was my favorite. My least favorite was the "Cocaine Jesus" - a seven-pound molded statue in the shape of an idol. The elderly Mexican woman was paid $80 to transport the statue across the border. Estimated street value - $200,000.

American Success Story - Pius Nyamora

In 1994, while working as Manager of a Ritz Camera & One Hour Photo in suburban Detroit, I placed an ad in the local newspaper for a sales position. A man called in response to the advertisement - I marked his name in my Franklin Planner for the following day at noon ... Pius Nyamora.

The interview was unlike any other that I had ever had. Pius spoke more with his eyes than his voice. We didn’t discuss his qualifications – we discussed his story. His life’s journey. Where he had been and why, at the age of 44 year, he was sitting here seeking a job for near minimum wage.

Pius told of his writing and critical views of the oppressive Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi’s government. How, as editor and publisher of Society, Pius sought greater democratic accountability in the Kenyan government. He spoke of government oppression, of being unlawfully arrested for speaking out against Moi and the fire-bombing of his office. Of how he and his wife, Loyce were granted political asylum in the United States. But asylum doesn’t pay the bills.

Pius was struggling to make ends meet selling Kenyan curios they brought with them. It was obvious he needed a job. Explaining his qualifications to my superior was another matter. The Regional Manager, Chuck Crawford was somewhat skeptical of his sales ability, but gave me the choice none-the-less. I took it and hired Pius rather than the other candidates.

In my twenty-seven-year-old eyes Pius was a hero. He believed in democracy and often talked fondly of his homeland and people. Pius also believed in what many call the American dream. Ritz Camera declared bankruptcy this year, but Pius now has two master’s degrees, teaches at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, and is an expert in local and foreign policy, democracy, immigration and diversity issues.

The collective melting pot of America is stronger for giving Pius and his family domicile from the oppressive Moi government. Pius is a survivor and I am blessed for having known him and perhaps helping in the smallest way get established in the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave.

Barrel Monster Creator Seeks Freedom

Q. What is orange and white and makes you grin from ear to ear? A. The clownishly clever Barrel Monster creations of Joseph Carnevale. Carnavale, a 21-year old North Carolina State University student, is facing destruction of property and larceny charges related to his 10-foot street art creation. The construction company, Hamlin Associates, didn't want to press charges - and even relished the attention it drew to the company. Unfortunately the prosecuting attorney is not keen on dropping charges. Three sites have recently popped up on Facebook, as well as an AP story on YouTube. Groups are already commissioning work by Carnavale for added publicity. My favorite traffic cone creation by Carnavale is the barrel alligator. Fresh and clever to say the least.

If you don’t want to see anyone go to jail over the now infamous Barrel Monster, please call or send a letter to Wake County Prosecutor C. Colon Willoughby, Jr.

Tenth Prosecutorial District
State of North Carolina
8th Floor, Wake County Courthouse
Post Office Box 31
Raleigh, N.C. 27602-0031
telephone (919) 792-5000

Who needs airbags?

Wouldn't it be nice if all vehicles on the road had sensors and computers that could sense when another vehicle was going to pancake it in the next five seconds? A new Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility (PUMA) two-wheeled vehicle recently introduced by General Motors and Segway Inc have introduced a novel electric vehicle that literally depends on that premise.

Puma is small, lightweight and has minimal safety equipment. What it does have: two wheels, two seats and a brain. What it doesn't have: airbags and most traditional safety devices (they add too much weight).

Popular Mechanics articles and science fiction novels have proposed similar ideas for years - vehicles would drive themselves based on tracking technology (based today on GPS technology and a vast communications transponder network). Roaming deer, joggers and pedestrians would be safe from drowsy drivers and drunkards. Vehicles would communicate with each other and allow a regulated flow of traffic.

The PUMA prototype can reach speeds of up to 35 miles-per-hour and ventures up to 35 miles on a single charge thanks with its lithium-ion battery. The pod uses Segway's proprietary two-wheel balancing technology, along with dual-electric motors.

PUMA echoes of the Camper Lotus Personal Commuter concept of 2006. Similar technology was used on the battery-driven I-Bot Transporter back in 2000 and gasoline-powered gyroscopic Garavaglia Monowheel of 1904.

Kind of reminds me of doing wheelies and spins in the spare wheelchair at church when I was a kid (here's a kid I took under my wing). About the same time my parents upped our insurance policy.

Dieselicious!

I'd love to power up one of these in the backwoods near our home with biodiesel from the grease vat behind Qdoba. These bikes can crawl up just about anything without leaving much of a trace. Lots of torque, less noise, fuel efficiency and true two-wheel drive put this high on the wish-I-had-it-but-can't-afford-it list.

The early "Trail-Breaker" off-trail bikes had a catchy "Goes Anywhere" motto and "go everywhere ... do everything" catch phrase. (Side Note: Great motto - I worked on helping the Jeep® brand trademark the "Go Anywhere, Do Anything™" slogan a few years back while working at BBDO-Detroit. This is the bike for everyone but Superman - the MK3 brochure proudly stated, "Ride one and believe. The only thing it doesn't do is fly."

Turns out Rokon has been building diesel-powered 2WD bikes since 1999 when they produced 20 for special duty in Mexican mines. It was either a Lister or Petter engine. Another Scotish company is producing a diesel bike called the Ecorider.

The bodacious brute above was shown off at the Electric Vehicle Council of Ottowa in 2008.

Enjoy The Ride

Hugh Barton of Glue Audio sent this short animation to Dante Nagy, our art buyer at Organic. Glue worked with Santa Monica based King and Country to create a vibrant other-world, where a tired old Fiat 500 is rejuvenated and given new life.
Great execution - especially enjoyed the sound. According to Hugh it's been "ripping-up film festivals and was featured on Motionographer. I enjoyed looking at the boards almost as much as the finished product. Click here and enjoy a HQ version of "The Ride."

Sweaty interns for sale!

According to AdAge Crispin Porter & Bogusky (CP+B) has launched an eBay auction for their 40 interns - selling the talents for a three month period to the highest bidder. Highest bid so far is $4,250. All of the auction proceeds will go directly "to the hardest working people we know - the CP+B interns themselves" - perhaps so they can buy cots to set up at Crispin? The promise to bidders is "world-class advertising can be yours for only a fraction of the going rate." CP+B is a Miami-based ad shop (also in Boulder Colorado) known for buzz-oriented campaigns for Burger King, Mini Cooper and most recently Microsoft. Winning big awards for work is great, but sales are what counts in the end. The Miller Lite "Man Laws" campaign was flat from the start and failed to produce sales. The resurrected Orville Redenbacher campaign was just uber-creepy.

While in a strategy session in the Palms Resort in Las Vegas for Camp Organic, our internal empathy workshop, we were introduced to a truth that quantity matters. There is a distinct and measurable relationship between success and failure. According to the University of California Davis professor Dean Keith Simonton, the most creative people have the greatest number of failures because they generate the most ideas. Even lousy ideas are fertilizer for the creative process. The more ideas you generate the more original the ideas. Simonton writes in his book, Origins for Genius, "In fact, emperical studies have repeatedly shown that the single most powerful predictor of eminence within any creative domain is the sheer number of influential products an individual has given the world." This applies to musicians, scientists, sports athletes and creative ad agencies.

The size of the agency doesn't matter, but the volume of ideas used in the ideation process does. In this tight economy every penny counts so one way to maximize creative volume, and successful ideas, is by using interns. Crispin has managed to keep their idea pool pumping with a large pool of energetic interns. Fresh college grads looking to catch a break in the biz that are willing to work for minimum wage for the chance to score on a paying job.

Word on the Web is that Crispin interns are considered cheap slave labor where they work like dogs, are worked to the bone and are just one legitimate step away from being prostitutes. Others call it a sweat shop. Mr Bogusky said in an AdAge article, that "the interns only make minimum wage," so this auction may give the 40 interns some extra pocket change for the weekend. Extra money for the interns. Good PR. More ideas for the agency. The bigger deal for the interns is exposure and diversified work for their portfolio. In this sluggish market it could pay off in the end. For CP+B this could play out to be an even better deal. The eBay site states in its disclaimer, "The winning bidder will receive a creative presentation developed by our interns over a three month period, consisting of strategies, recommended brand positioning and concepts. No production services or finished advertising materials will be provided." The concept is brilliant. The auction serves as a tease to get prospective customers in the door for the real show. Lure in the hungry company with an idea that they can't refuse, then charge to finish the job and deliver it in the real world. AKA - the dangling carrot technique. Once they get a taste of Crispin they may want more.

GamerIntel wrote a blog on Dangling the Carrot for gameplay. The strategy has been used very successfully by game publishers to establish how many hours of gameplay you will get out of a title. The theory goes that the more time invested in playing a game, the more happy the player is. The game is deemed of more "value" to the customer. Unlocking different layers can keep gamers involved and raises the level of perceived value.

I helped develop the Jeep® 4x4 EVO2 game along with Terminal Reality back in 2001 to help launch the Wrangler Rubicon. Terminal Reality was co-founded in 1994 by ex-Microsoft employee Mark Randel). We strategically released different stages of the game in order to teach the gamer about the Wrangler and extend gameplay. First we introduced Jeep 101 - the basics and then proceeded to the Rubicon Trail with Silverton Pass. Each stage would include upgrades to the Wrangler Rubicon including Mopar accessories. These added capabilities allowed the gamer to accomplish difficult feats that could only be done in a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon. We also offered "cheat codes" to get to different levels. All this added value and lengthened the campaign right up to the Wrangler Rubicon launch date. The tease worked as the sale of more than 1,000 Rubicon's were directly attributed to the extended gameplay.

Taste the candy. While this method is nothing new, CP+B is using the tease and payoff play in a novel way - with an unbelievable offer (CP+B work for dirt cheap) and rewards (strategies, recommended brand positioning and concepts). It's all about the process and relationship building. Look at the eBay site again and you'll notice the reward is only available for "local pickup only." The customer will be expected to be engaged in the process. In CP+B's house. Undoubtedly the three month intense courting process will come to an abrupt end with the customer wanting more. Of course you can turn the page - if you sign a contract with CP+B. I'll be interested to see who actually takes the bait.

Some questions that naturally come up with this campaign: What other agency is going to want to use ideas created by Crispin Interns? What company is going to want to tout that they were so cheap they could only afford interns? What's to keep the interns from driving the bid up until the last few days? The latest bid is up to $5,100 - up $850 since I started writing this rant.