Things to Think About

Sweepstakes

Private Sector

A few years ago, Kraft Foods arranged for a sweepstake contest to promote their new "Ready-to-Roll" product line.

However, through a "computer glitch," they printed 500,000 winning tickets instead of just one.

Over 21,000 people claimed the prize and it cost Kraft millions of dollars to correct the mistake.

But they did get a lot of publicity for their new food line.  (Not Food Lion, you dodo, Joe!)

Government

Also, a few years ago, one of our ex-presidents arranged for a sweepstakes company to put out this EMAIL to millions of people:

"Contribute any amount RIGHT NOW to be automatically entered in a contest.  The winner will be invited to eat lunch in New Orleans with the President!"

I'm sure you have guessed by now:  The prize was never awarded.

Mystery

A team of technicians at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City has been trying to identify one of the items painted into Henri Matisse' 1911 painting L'Atelia Rouge (The Red Studio.)

It is supposed to be an accurate representation of items stuck to the artist's studio wall.  One of the objects has been a mystery.  Hundreds of people have suggested that the object looks like a security camera (1911?), a condom, a door knob and lots of other things.  To me, it looks like an electrical wall outlet.

Take a look and see what you think.  Looking at the painting, it is the rectangular-shaped object on the far right side.

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