(Written for Prof. Casciotti’s Public Budgeting/Finance [GOVT356] class at George Mason University.)
Introduction
Balancing a budget is, arguably, one of the most important things that any fiscal body can do. Whether it be within a household, a small business, a worldwide corporation, a government agency, or an entire government it’s always a good thing to spend within your means and bring in as much money as you spend, if not more.
There’s a lot of talk about rights lately, what with the war and with all the protesting. “I have the right to protest!” “The great thing about America is that I have a right to dissent!” “We don’t have the right to invade Iraq.” “It’s the right thing to do.” Et cetera.
Some ripoff artists in California calling themselves ConsumerInfo.com stole $79.95 from me, and I discovered after a quick web search that I wasn’t alone. So I whipped up a parody of their website to have a little fun at their expense (I deserve it for almost $80). Check out the Better Business Bureau link, and then at the bottom there’s a link to a lot of consumer complaints about them on the RipOffReport. Made in 2003.
In the last three years at George Mason University, I’ve noticed they’re just a bunch of money hungry fools more intent on swindling me than anything else. So I figured, what better target for my first website parody!? It’s only the front page (none of the links go anywhere), but it should be good for a laugh—especially to you GMU people. Made in 2003.
‘Joke Website: George Mason Univerity, Corp.’ is a parody of the George Mason University web site as it appeared in 2003, and is thus protected under the fair-use provisions of copyright law. GMU claims a copyright on the original work, however as a state institution its copyright is unenforceable (if even legal in the first place).
As most of the readers are well aware, I am in favor of the upcoming war in Iraq. I believe firmly and strongly that Saddam Hussein—the Butcher of Baghdad, as he is called in many circles—is as worthy of removal from power as Slobodan Milosevic was under the Clinton administration, or any other maniacal dictator has been through history. That said, I do not expect nor demand that persons with opposing views see things my way. Anybody who has followed my message-board discussions with Sly will know I value open debate between opposing sides.
Scott Bradford is a writer and technologist who has been putting his opinions online since 1995. He believes in three inviolable human rights: life, liberty, and property. He is a Catholic Christian who worships the trinitarian God described in the Nicene Creed. Scott is a husband, nerd, pet lover, and AMC/Jeep enthusiast with a B.S. degree in public administration from George Mason University.
