Archive for November 11th, 2009

JILLIAN LOVEJOY LOWERY: My iPhone, one of my prized possessions, might just betray me. I’m referring to the seemingly-innocuous little sign-off that it attaches to my e-mails, the one that says “Sent from my iPhone.” There are times that I might not want the recipient of my e-mail to know that I’m somewhere other than my office or home – but my stupid iPhone rats me out.

HOWARD MEGDAL: Blackberry and IPhone, as is usually the case with for-profit conglomerate products, do its users an enormous favor by putting the disclaimer "Sent from my..." on the bottom of messages.

ZOË RICE: I’m not sure if it’s etiquette, or taste, or just plain common decency. But I think some Halloween costume effects are off-limits. Swastikas, for one. I’m never going to see a Halloween costume involving a swastika and think, “Oh, that works.” I don’t care if you’re dressed as Charles Manson or a zombie Nazi or a skinhead, whether ironically or as a spoof. If you wear a swastika–ever–you will offend. The same goes–and I saw it in action this past Halloween–for blackface.

STEPHON JOHNSON: The New York Yankees find themselves back on top of the baseball world with their latest World Series victory. But why does it feel like a huge chunk of New Yorkers could care less?

JESSICA BADER: I was ten years old when the Yankees won the World Series in 1996. While it wasn’t until the following season that baseball became a major interest of mine, I already identified myself as a Mets fan and couldn’t quite understand why most of my classmates weren’t. After all, we were in Queens, and the vast majority of us were born in 1986 – what more could be needed to cement one’s loyalties?