That's great. My sides hurt even more now....
Dilbert Newsletter 26.0 ------------------------
To: Dogbert's New Ruling Class (DNRC) From: Scott Adams (scottadams@aol.com) Date: October 1999
Highlights: ------------------------------------------------ - Crackpot Theory - True Tales of Induhviduals - Dilbert TV Show Premiere - New Night ------------------------------------------------
Here's a short newsletter mostly to tell you of the revised night of the Dilbert TV season premiere in the U.S.
DNRC Status -----------
As you know, after Dogbert conquers the planet, the people who subscribe to the Dilbert Newsletter will become Dogbert's New Ruling Class. Those who are not in the DNRC (the Induhviduals) will be our domestic servants. When that day comes, DNRC members can pick their own professions. I plan to become a crackpot.
Crackpot is an excellent job because the expectations are so low. No one ever tells crackpots that they should be doing more.
My particular field of crackpot expertise will be physics. I think it will be easy to blend in with the real physicists. In physics, lots of accepted theories make no sense and no one seems to care. Luckily I have unkempt hair and I wear glasses. Add those qualities to my complete lack of social skills and I'm practically a scientist already.
Did you know that if you got in a rocket ship and raced a beam of light, the light would always be faster than you by exactly the speed of light, no matter how fast you went? It sounds like a crackpot idea but it's Einstein's theory. Most scientists agree that Einstein is right even though it makes no sense.
Einstein also figured out that time is slower for things that move fast. In my ongoing quest to win the Nobel Prize without doing anything hard, I have developed a crackpot theory for why fast-moving things have slower time.
Crackpot theory:
Imagine an object moving between two points. The normal view is that the object occupies each and every position on its path until it reaches its destination. But the number of possible positions between any two points is infinite. Does it make sense that an object could occupy infinite positions in space in a finite period of time?
Let's say no, or else my crackpot theory falls apart.
Under my crackpot theory, objects actually disappear and then reappear along their path. They only seem to move because it happens so quickly. Slow objects pop into existence slightly ahead of their last position. Fast objects pop into existence far ahead of where they were last; that's what makes them seem fast. So for any given distance, the fast-moving objects pop into existence fewer times along the path, like a long-legged runner who needs fewer strides.
A fast-traveling clock, for example, would have less time in existence to tick. If you could see it whizzing past you, it would appear slow.
Obviously all of this popping in and out of existence would have to be happening so fast we can't notice or measure it.
It might seem impossible that objects pop in and out of existence. But physicists know that's exactly what happens in the super-tiny quantum world. Matter jumps in and out of existence continually. Although large objects don't play by the same rules as the quantum world, the squirrelliness of the tiny world makes you question what you really know about anything.
As with most of my theories, this one doesn't hold up to close scrutiny, but it's surprisingly resilient to casual criticism. Take your best shot. I won't be able to respond to all your e-mail telling me why my theory is wrong, but I'll read them all.
Pranks On Induhviduals ----------------------
Here's the best DNRC prank ever.
Report:
A co-worker of mine has SETI@home running on his computer. This is software, distributed by SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence), that will run on PCs as a screen saver and analyze chunks of data from a radio telescope looking for non-naturally occurring signals from outer space. The other day I copied the SETI analysis screen to Microsoft Paint and then edited it to contain a large alert message stating that ET signals had been discovered. I also drew in a button that he could use to "Notify SETI Immediately." I left this image on his screen with a "red alert" sound running in the background.
When he returned to his desk he was ecstatic to see that he had found ET life. He called another co-worker over to witness the historic moment. Then he clicked the button and discovered what I'd done.
He's now looking for an opportunity to slay me so this may be my last message to you.
MORE SPORTS FOR INDUHVIDUALS -----------------------------
This report from a DNRC operative describes another ideal sport for Induhviduals.
Report:
...I am glad to report there is a sport called Mexican Poker. This sport takes place in an arena where Induhviduals sit around a card table pretending to play poker while an angry bull charges the table, knocking them around and goring them! The last Induhvidual left sitting wins about $200.
End Report
Editor's note: I had not heard of this sport before but it has great potential. I hope plans are already underway to form a Pee Wee league.
True Tales From Corporate Life ------------------------------
A co-worker got up during a meeting and announced, "We haven't gotten very far collecting data, but since we had this presentation today, we made some assumptions, borrowed some information from another study, applied a cost for power that we know is wrong, and calculated costs anyway. None of the numbers are right but this will show you how it would work if we had real numbers, kind of..."
After explaining that she was going to spend the next half hour talking about what they would do if they had "real" data she slipped the bombshell in, "If these assumptions somehow proved to be correct then the cost of power production losses would be about $200 million... but until we have real numbers we won't really know."
We sat in stunned silence while she asked if there were any questions...
True Tales Of Induhviduals At Large -----------------------------------
Induhviduals continue to amuse us. Here are the latest reports from DNRC operatives:
Sighting ----------
I was at a store this morning. I overheard two employees talking. One woman said, "Hey, what's Dave's last name?"
The other said, "Dave who?"
Sighting ----------
I eat at a restaurant that has an ice cream sundae bar where customers can add their own toppings. Today I found TONGS in all three vats of syrup toppings. Upon complaining to my server, I found out her boss set up the bar that day because an employee was out sick.
Editor's note: Later the boss swept out the kitchen using only a sharp knife.
Sighting ----------
I went to the bagel shop and asked, "Can I have 3 bagels in 2 bags please?" The "clerk" said, "How many do you want in each bag?"
Editor's note: The correct answer to get a free bagel would have been 2.
Sighting ----------
A cashier at the store was on the phone talking with someone who apparently asked her to spell something. The cashier said, "That's 'B' as in...", looking around for an item that started with a 'B', she noticed her own name tag bearing the name BRENDA and continued, " 'B' as in BRENDA."
Waiting a moment for the person to write it down she continued on "That would be 'D' as in..." looking around again, she finished with "'D' as in bren-DA."
Sighting ----------
I was helping my Dad with a construction job when he decided we would need a truck to move all of the dirt and rocks we had dug out of the foundations. A rather brilliant construction worker came up with the idea that we should just, "Dig a hole and bury it."
Sighting ----------
Our city dump charges $15 per cubic yard. I took my old sofa to the dump. The Induhvidual in the little shack said, "That'll be $70." I protested that my little sofa wasn't nearly large enough to cost $70. He said, "Yeah, but the truck could hold much more."
There were charging me to throw away air.
After berating him and the next three levels of management I took the sofa home, sawed it into small pieces, put it out by the curb and had them take it away for free.
Editor's note: A new technology has been developed to eliminate exactly the problem described in that sighting. It's call eBay.
Sighting ----------
I told my dry cleaner that I would like the overnight service and asked how much more it would cost. She informed me that it was the same price as the four-day service. I just needed the "Express Bag."
She pulled out the Express Bag form, filled it out, attached it to the bag and handed it to me. She put my outfit on a rack behind her.
I asked her if the outfit didn't need to go into the bag. She said, "No, I will just put a note on it."
I walked out with my empty "Express Bag" and the form filled out in its entirety. I left behind the outfit to be cleaned. The outfit was cleaned as requested. I still have no idea what I am supposed to do with this bag.
Sighting ----------
One time when I was little, my dad was doing the laundry and he noticed that the basket in the washing machine wasn't spinning. He called the repairman to fix the machine. The repairman charged my dad $35 to let him know that the basket will not move if the lid is open.
DNRC Golden Child Found -----------------------
I'm not sure why the DNRC needs a Golden Child, but if we ever do, this report suggests we have found one.
Report:
We were in our car when my 2 1/2 year-old daughter requested that I play a song from a CD. Once it was finished she wanted to hear it again. I told her no, but she insisted. I asked her if she knew who the boss was. She replied, "I am the boss!" I corrected her by saying, "No, I am the boss." She answered by saying, "No, I am the boss. You are Dilbert."
Needless to say, I gave up at that point and played the song again.
Dogbert Answers My Mail -----------------------
In this section, Dogbert answers my mail. These are based on real e-mail to me.
Dear Dogbert,
A friend of mine interviewed for an engineering job and was asked, "If you could be any animal in the world, what would you choose and why?" He answered, "A German Shepherd because they are mild-mannered and loyal animals." He didn't get the job.
What is the right answer to this question?
Name Withheld
Dear Name Withheld,
The correct answer is "I would like to be a jackass who asks people what kind of animal they would be. It seems like easy work."
Sincerely,
Dogbert
Dear Mr. Adams,
Our son, Jason, has earned his Eagle rank in the Boy Scouts of America. I'm sure he would really appreciate a brief e-mail from you congratulating him on his success. We'd appreciate anything you might be able to say.
Jason's Dad
Dear Jason,
By now you probably figured out that the Boy Scouts is a dangerous cult. Your parents are part of the conspiracy. When your training is complete you will be picked up by an alien vessel and transported to a planet where fires can only be started by boys in green pants rubbing sticks together. Your only hope of staying on this planet is to use your knot-making skills to tie yourself to a large rock.
Oh, and congratulations.
Sincerely,
Dogbert
Dilbert TV Show ---------------
In the last newsletter I gave you the wrong season premiere date for the U.S. showing of the Dilbert TV show.
The correct season premiere night for the Dilbert TV show is November 2nd at 8 PM Eastern, 7 pm Central. It's moved to Tuesday nights, still on UPN. Mark your calendar now.
If you missed some of the episodes last season you'll see a few of them in that time slot before November 2nd.
Dilbert Fodder ---------------
What's bugging you about your job? Let me know and you might see it in a Dilbert comic, TV show or Newsletter. The best comic fodder involves workplace peeves, devious strategies, frustrations of dealing with others, conflicting objectives, unintended management consequences, and of course my favorite - idiot bosses. And I love True Tales of Induhviduals.
And if you're seeing any new management trends that need to be mocked, I can help. Send your suggestions to me at scottadams@aol.com. Short ones are better.
Dilbert Products
- Celebrate Halloween with Dilbert
The perfect Halloween disguises are now in the Dilbert Store: The Dilbert mask and candy tin - umstore.com  and the Pointy-Haired Boss wig - umstore.com 
Treat yourself to character-shaped Accomplish-Mints(TM), Improve-Mints(TM), Manage-Mints(TM) and Perform-Mints(TM), packaged in collectible tins. umstore.com 
Complete your party with the Dilbert party pack: umstore.com 
*** Special DNRC-only Offer!***
Complete your DNRC wardrobe: with any purchase of $50 or more in the Dilbert Store through 10/13/1999, get a FREE DNRC polo shirt! (Regular store freebies will be added if the order amount qualifies for them.)
This DNRC offer will not be announced in the Dilbert Store. To get it, you need to follow this DNRC-only link:
umstore.com 
How to Subscribe to the Dilbert Newsletter ------------------------------------------
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