comedy gold

This one via dash:

https://www.financialcryptography.com/mt/archives/000564.html

In case you were not aware, World Standards Day is coming up. This holiday, commemorating the first meeting of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), is supposed to "raise awareness of the importance of global standardization to the world economy and to promote its role in helping meet the needs of business, industry, government, and consumers worldwide." The topic of my undergrad thesis, IT standards have always been near and dear, so I wanted to plan a party. But when?

In Canada and Europe, it will be held on October 14, which is the date of the original meeting. In the US, it will be held on October 6 of this year. Last year, the US observance was on October 13, while in 2003 it was on September 30.

Yes, that's right. The date of World Standards Day is not standardized, and it appears to be the US and ANSI screwing things up.

"OMG! U R teh gr8test eva!"

So if you follow US politics, you'd know that dribbling joke of a president has nominated his personal lawyer and lickspittle for a lifetime seat on the US Supreme Court. Most people's reaction to this is somewhere between bemusement and rage - why would he do this? We get a partial answer today (nyt, bugmenot required):

"You are the best governor ever - deserving of great respect," Harriet E. Miers wrote to George W. Bush days after his 51st birthday in July 1997. She also found him "cool," said he and his wife, Laura, were "the greatest!" and told him: "Keep up the great work. Texas is blessed."

Ms. Miers, President Bush's personal lawyer and his selection for a Supreme Court seat, emerges as an unabashed fan in more than 2,000 pages of official correspondence and personal notes made public on Monday by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission in response to open-records requests.

...

A few days later, Ms. Miers wrote to thank the Bushes, saying, "Texas has a very popular governor and first lady!" She recalled a little girl who collected Mr. Bush's autograph and said, "I was struck by the tremendous impact you have on the children whose lives you touch."

The notes to Mr. Bush date from at least March 1995, around the time he named her to the lottery commission, the files show. On March 25, on the letterhead of her Dallas law firm, Locke Purnell Rain Harrell, Ms. Miers wrote to thank him "for taking the time to visit in the office and on the plane back - cool!"

"Keep up all the great work," she wrote. "The state is in great hands. Thanks also for yours and your family's personal sacrifice."

In October 1997, Ms. Miers sent Mr. Bush a flowery greeting card in thanks for a letter that he had written on her behalf. In it, she said of his daughters: "Hopefully Jenna and Barbara recognize that their parents are 'cool' - as do the rest of us."

She added, "All I hear is how great you and Laura are doing," and ended, "Texas is blessed."

Spot the differences between this and the parody blog. It's not easy.