Chain letter Net-iquette: worthy or worthless?
I got a chain letter the other day with this scary photo (shown below) attached. The chain letter told me that if I didn't send the letter and photo on to five people, this decomposing corpse would visit me in the night, get hit by a car, or some other accident would cause my untimely death.
I don't much believe in chain letters and other superstitions, so I thought I'd be the skeptic and see what happens if I don't send this email to five people. Note: If you can't find my article next week, assume I was hacked up by my nine-year old neighbour, or choked on my sushi.
Sometimes a chain letter can be fun; for instance, a few weeks ago I received a lottery ticket chain letter. All I had to do was send some $1 scratch tickets to four people, and tickets keep showing up in my mailbox. I've already won $2, and I can still expect to receive 13 more tickets. It's great.
Another chain letter I've gotten in the past is the panty chain letter. It is similar to the lottery ticket letter; you buy a few pairs of panties and send them to four of your friends. Then they do the same, and eventually you end up with 16 pairs of new underwear.
Sometimes a chain letter can be good, and by participating you can end up with some cool stuff, or a little extra cash in your pocket. But most of them, the thoughtless email chain letters that leave you no better than before you opened that email, are really pointless. I'm not one to get pissed off when I get them, but I also won't feed the monster — chain letters sent to me that threaten death and destruction go directly to the trash. Will I suffer a life of bad sex because of it? Maybe; but I doubt it. Will a little girl in Uganda get a heart transplant because I forwarded her plea to everyone I know? Absolutely not — unless I know an extremely rich and giving cardiologist.
MSN is not going to close your hotmail account if you don't forward that email.
Your wish will not come true if you send that email to 10 of your friends.
Bill Gates will not sing you Happy Birthday, you will not get a free iPod, and your secret crush will not fall madly for you.
You may, however, experience some nasty email replies from the 30 people that you sent the forwards to. You may be blocked from further MSN chats, and you may be demoted to Junk Mail status.
The photo above, while deliciously frightening, does not hold the power to kill you if you don't send it to everyone you went to high school with.
Or does it?
Just in case, you all better get five copies of the paper and give them to your friends within five days. Because if you don't, who knows what will happen? Apparently a 28 year-old English woman was killed by her lover after choosing to delete this email. Do you dare tempt fate? Screw with karma?
Email comments to overcaffinated@hotmail.com. But don't send chain letters or your hair will fall out and your love life will suffer for eight and a half years.
I don't much believe in chain letters and other superstitions, so I thought I'd be the skeptic and see what happens if I don't send this email to five people. Note: If you can't find my article next week, assume I was hacked up by my nine-year old neighbour, or choked on my sushi.
Sometimes a chain letter can be fun; for instance, a few weeks ago I received a lottery ticket chain letter. All I had to do was send some $1 scratch tickets to four people, and tickets keep showing up in my mailbox. I've already won $2, and I can still expect to receive 13 more tickets. It's great.
Another chain letter I've gotten in the past is the panty chain letter. It is similar to the lottery ticket letter; you buy a few pairs of panties and send them to four of your friends. Then they do the same, and eventually you end up with 16 pairs of new underwear.
Sometimes a chain letter can be good, and by participating you can end up with some cool stuff, or a little extra cash in your pocket. But most of them, the thoughtless email chain letters that leave you no better than before you opened that email, are really pointless. I'm not one to get pissed off when I get them, but I also won't feed the monster — chain letters sent to me that threaten death and destruction go directly to the trash. Will I suffer a life of bad sex because of it? Maybe; but I doubt it. Will a little girl in Uganda get a heart transplant because I forwarded her plea to everyone I know? Absolutely not — unless I know an extremely rich and giving cardiologist.
MSN is not going to close your hotmail account if you don't forward that email.
Your wish will not come true if you send that email to 10 of your friends.
Bill Gates will not sing you Happy Birthday, you will not get a free iPod, and your secret crush will not fall madly for you.
You may, however, experience some nasty email replies from the 30 people that you sent the forwards to. You may be blocked from further MSN chats, and you may be demoted to Junk Mail status.
The photo above, while deliciously frightening, does not hold the power to kill you if you don't send it to everyone you went to high school with.
Or does it?
Just in case, you all better get five copies of the paper and give them to your friends within five days. Because if you don't, who knows what will happen? Apparently a 28 year-old English woman was killed by her lover after choosing to delete this email. Do you dare tempt fate? Screw with karma?
Email comments to overcaffinated@hotmail.com. But don't send chain letters or your hair will fall out and your love life will suffer for eight and a half years.
