• by John Gaffney , September 19, 2002

That’s Right, Blame Marketing. The Kids Stuffing Their Faces Had Nothing To Do With It: The London Evening Standard says that extra large chocolate bars and mega-sized crisp packets are to blame for Britain's epidemic of child obesity. A leading dietician coined the term "supersizing" to describe big packets of sweets and junk food which are "aggressively marketed" at children.

Well, Shucks Mayor Kottsworth, Welcome To The 21st Century: After Sprint PCS signed on to be the official wireless carrier for the town of Push, Nevada, Mayor Denny Kottsworth said: "We are thrilled to welcome Sprint to the 'hot spot' of the Southwest, and we know the citizens of Push will be equally delighted to experience the clarity that only Sprint can offer. Not only can the people of Push hear me now, they can see me too, it's amazing and simple."

Don’t Tell Them About The Panic Button On Vivid.Com: A new survey says office workers are abusing new areas of the Internet. “Initially we saw the most abuse in pornography and gambling sites, now we are seeing more time spent on shopping and news sites," said Harold Kester, Chief Technology Officer of Websense Inc which conducted the survey.

Tito, Get Me A Tissue, Please: A message on Rosieo.com’s message board: “It just seems that Rosie has given up on us die hard fans. It is sad when you have that much money that you don't have to work for the good of the people. Without us, you would not be where you are today. I understood making the show was hard and wanting to be with the kids more but what about us? Good luck and I hope that you will remember us.”

Reader Riff Of The Week: After I suggested that the success of The Sopranos should spur more edgy content from the TV networks, reader Matt Segota wrote: “With all due respect, I resent your suggestion that network TV “push the envelope” after nine pm in the hope that it will recapture defectors to cable. Much of TV already has become a swamp of pre-pubescent toilet humor on shows that are created for adults, but often watched by kids. I personally feel that much in the same way that use of curse words in place of nouns and verbs serves as a crutch for the user, so too will pushing the TV envelope. As a parent and a citizen, I wish not to have network TV degenerate further into some kind of haven for cheap, dumbed-down programs, loaded with sex, violence, drugs and innuendo. I think if the networks wanted to they could come up with respectable, creative, challenging and thought provoking shows that could be well received by the masses.”