sumir is the man

by adam on 07/06/2002 16:24:05 -0700

After a long time off, I've decided to once again commence writing for this site.  What brings me back so suddenly, you ask?  Well, I need to let everyone know that Sumir, the webmaster of Mediocre Minds, has been subverted and has joined the legion of darkness.  What, oh trustworthy Adam, is the legion of darkness you ask?  Well, no, it's not some religious cult or animal sacrificing group, it is rather a summer job.  Now, it may seem hypocritical for me to give to Sumir this much disrespect over a summer job, as I myself have held some fairly questionable positions, such as telemarketer, and currently salesperson at a large electronics superstore.

If Sumir had gotten a job along those lines, I would not be criticizing him.  Nay, I would probably instead just hit him in the head and take his money when he went unconscious.  Now not only do I need to do that, but I also need to bring his youthful indiscretions to the forefront.  Well, now I will cut to the chase.  Sumir has gotten a job working for pressplay, the organization funded by the crime-bosses at Sony and Universal who intend to charge for digital music.  Yes, it's true.  Rebellious, angsty, sometimes-hippie  tree-hugger (he must hug trees, he's a vegetarian) Sumir has gotten a job whose intention is to destroy the freedom of the Internet.

He will even freely admit that he is working for an evil corporation, but yet he considers to receive his money from them.  I believe he may too far gone into the depths of corporate America to ever be recovered.  Perhaps now he will simply mindlessly vote for George W. Bush over and over while talking about "those immigrants that steal jobs" and stuff.  Sumir's job isn't that evil, you say?  Well, I found, lying in the apartment, one of the orientation documents that Sumir received one of his first days on the job.  I'll let you judge for yourself.

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CONFIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM
DESTROY AFTER READING

To: New pressplay Team Member
From: pressplay Corporate
Re: Welcome to pressplay!

On behalf of the entire pressplay team, we'd like to welcome you SUMEER to the pressplay team.  By now you should have explored some of the offices and perhaps have had a chance to meet some of your fellow pressplay team members.

Here at pressplay it is our number one goal to ensure that all of our team members are happy and enjoy their workplace.  As such, we have just a few ground-rules we'd like to lay out in order that everyone is happy.

  1. Everyone has their own private work-space.  This includes a personal computer, as well as basic office supplies.  You are free to decorate your cubicle in many different styles.  However, you may not use posters from bands not under the Sony or Universal labels.  For a complete list of acceptable musical acts, see your supervisor.
     
  2. Everyone's privacy is to be respected.  As such, your computer will be yours and yours alone for the duration of your stay with us.  However, the following activities are prohibited and will result in termination: downloading music from sites other than pressplay, downloading any software illegally, using a web browser to view information on bands, movies, or theme parks not encompassed by the Sony and/or Universal labels, discussing with others any aspect of your job, and not reporting any person or site you know to be illegally hosting music.  There will be a $400 reward for bringing any illegal music holders to justice.
     
  3. Dress is casual.  We like our team members to be comfortable with whatever they're wearing, so as long as the dress is not indecent, it's okay.  There are certain exceptions however.  First, any clothing depicting a band that is a member of the Recording Artists' Coalition will not be tolerated, as well as any clothing that in any way depicts a competitor to Sony or Universal.
     
  4. If you see any team-mate engaging in any suspicious behavior, you are to report them immediately.  That is, if you think  you see them downloading any illegal content or any content of a competitor, you must report them, or you too will risk being fined and losing your job.
     
  5. Have fun!  Every week we have some new activities planned.  Events such as the 'Lars Ulrich Idolatry Hour' and the 'Shawn Fanning Effigy Burning' are a real hit with our teammates!  Of course these are optional, but going to these events shows that you are truly interested in stopping free Internet music and will help lift some of the natural suspicions that arise with our newer teammates.

We hope your stay will be a long one and that you enjoy everything you see here.  We must remind you, however, that nothing that you see or hear in this office is to leave it.  That includes all paper-work, such as this memorandum, which is to be destroyed as soon as you have completed reading it.  If suspicions have been aroused by any of your friends or family, we encourage you to visit the Human Resource department, where they will be sure to give you plenty of "decoy information" that will help deflect some of the negative attention this site has been given recently.

It's a pleasure to have you on board, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask your supervisor.  (Note: All conversations between you and your supervisor, as well as between you and any coworkers may be recorded.)

Cordially,

The pressplay Team
************************

There you have it.  The pressplay team is really intent upon keeping any information from the public, but luckily I have found this document.  I do believe Sumir may be put in harm's way if this is posted to the Internet, but it's a risk I'm willing to take to keep the Internet free.

You might think this is a hoax, but then I discovered some more information while accidentally digging through Sumir's garbage.  It appears to be a page from his daily planner that covers the days' events.

Monday, July 1, 2002

09:00 AM - Arrive work. Daily lylty oath.
09:15 AM - Poligraph [sic] test!  Rprt. Adam Vincent ?Russell? Kazaa users, illegal.
10:30 AM - Cffee brk.
10:45 AM - Watch vid. "Napster bad, Money Good"
11:30 AM - Tst. software - Spyware not reporting all instnces of mp3 files, fix that bug
01:45 PM - Lunch with Lars!
03:00 PM - Daily actvty. - CD bonfire: RAC members. No Doubt, Weezer, Don Henley, etc.
04:00 PM - Rsm. testing software, try to get promotion by offering more info on illegal actvts.
05:00 PM - HR - get more brochures to hand out.
06:00 PM - Arrive home; add banner ads for PP to MM.