Action Man The Vetrans

Have you ever wondered what happens to the veterans who serve our country after they finish their service? It can be a tale of wonder surprises, or it can be tales of woe. Today's Warped site takes a look at some of our vets after they are put out to pasture. WARNING: This site pulls no punches. The images and stories featured on our site are honest and brutal. The webmasters do not apologize. For what they show is the reality of life for Action Man and G.I. Joe after the toy box lid was closed for the last time...

The name of the site is Action Man The Veterans. The purpose of this site is to provide support and recognition for all of those who fought through the numerous campaigns of the 1960's, 70's, and early 80's. In recent years, the Original Action Men havea become the world's forgotten heroes. No longer on active duty, they have found themselves shamefully neglected and rejected. Forced to survive in hostile conditions with no support or care, they now live with little dignity and few prospects.

But the future need not be bleak. With your help, this site can provide those unsung heroes with the opportunity to rediscover their self worth, self respect, the ability to contribute once more and a voice so that their stories can finally be heard. You can read about Peter, Tom, Jim and Bud, and how their lives were forever changed by their actions in defense of our country. You read about some of the missing in action heroes, and what is being done to locate them. This site has some great tongue-in-cheek humor, which is why we give it a 7.5 rating on our scale of 10. Be sure to sign the guest book.

http://www.geocities.com/actionmanveterans/

The Salem New Age Center

Personal development is, well, personal. Some find themselves in church, some find themselves in their work. Some find themselves in a more self-destructive way, with drugs and alcohol. However one finds oneself can be either rewarding or detrimental. Today's Warped site is one that provides another avenue for self realization.

The site is called The Salem New Age Center. The New Age movement means different things to different people. However, most all New Age topics have one basic underlying theme. That theme is personal spiritual development. Every day there are thousands upon thousands of people around the world who are waking up to the knowledge, understanding and realization of who they really are, where they came from, and why they are here. This collective transformation of individuals can be described as the New Age movement. As a whole, the New Age movement is dynamic, rapidly-growing, and gaining momentum. The New Age movement provides the framework and the tools to assist people with their own personal growth and spiritual development.

If you are lost, and trying to be found, this site may offer you some solace. On the other hand, it may be a total turn off. You have to make that choice yourself. Warped rating on this site is a solid 7 out of 10.

http://www.salemctr.com/newage.html

Bonehead of the Day Award

This is the award giving season. Time for the Golden Globes, the SAGs, the Razzies, and, of course, the Oscars. There is one award that is given but I'm not sure when. It is the Darwin Award, named for the man who put forth the concept of the survival of the fittest. It is for people or events who aren't very fit. Today's Warped award site is in that same vein, but is original in it's own way.

The site is the Bonehead of the Day Award. Each day the authors bestow an award to a group or individual for a boneheaded action. This site is great for starting off your day. Your coworkers and friends will appreciate the uplifted mood you carry around with you each morning because you read the day's award! (Or maybe not.) All stories are authenticated to a mainstream reliable news source, such as AP, UPI, and Reuters. You do not get Internet mass mailing originated stories. Each day there are weird news extras too.

Here is an example:

There's the story of a Ford dealership in Tonawanda New York for giving away a customer's car to a thief. This story was reported in the Buffalo News. Stephen Gandel left his red Mercury Sable at the dealership for service. During the afternoon, a repair technician entered the waiting room and saw a man who looked like he was waiting for something. So the technician asks him if he's waiting for the red Sable. When the man said he was the technician handed him the keys. The car, later found, had some two-thousand dollars damage done to it which the dealer says they'll repair for free.

Needless to say there are other stories just as interesting as this one. The site isn't as dark as the Darwin Awards ones, since it deal with stupidity. Still, if you want to see just how bad someone's day is going, check this out. Warped site rating is 7.5 out of 10.0.

http://bonehead.oddballs.com/

You Tube

One of the most interesting and fun features of the Internet is how much information is available if you know where to look. The technology has made it even easier to see that information many forms. One of the coolest things is watching clips from television shows that I grew up watching as a kid. Not sitcoms or dramas, but variety shows such as The Hollywood Palace and The Smothers Brothers, just to name a few. Where does one go to see those, you ask? Click on and you'll see.

The name of the site is You Tube. Now this site is widely known for being open and anyone who wants to can post just about anything. That is what makes it so interesting to watch. My wife hates it when I start watching it, because it means about three hours at the keyboard. Just type the name of a group or a group, and then just be amazed at how many times they pop up. Where else can you catch clips from Dick Clark's "Where the Action Is", The Beach Boys singing with Jack Benny and Andy Williams, ABBA jamming with Olivia Newton-John and Andy Kim, and The Monkees really playing in concert. There is so much nostalgia here that you will stay here for hours. You want to see the opening of "The Banana Splits" Saturday morning show, or the Archies singing "Sugar, Sugar"? It's here.

The legalities of what is being posted here are still being debated, but until those issues are resolved, this is one place to turn on the lava lamps, and just hang out for some nostalgic fun. Warped rating on this site is 9.0 out of 10.0.

http://youtube.com/

CompUSA: How Not To Handle a Tuboing Customer

Customer service in major corporations can be important. If you give someone bad service, then word of mouth will get around, and before long it will cost sales, and affect the bottom line. So the big companies try to provide quality service, and most of the time they succeed. However, as today's Warped site shows, some companies just don't give a rip!

This site tells the story of Rob Levandowski and his attempts to purchase a 22" Apple Cinema Display from CompUSA. Now this baby cost a cool $2600.00 and you would think that anyone selling this item would ensure the highest quality of service, considering what their customers are spending. Wrong!! Throughout this story, I am sure that you will be able to relate to the Mr. Levandowski's experiences in one way or another. I can. It is crazy to see that companies treat people like they do and still survive in the business world.

So read the story and be educated about dealing with large corporations. After all, a sellers worst nightmare is an educated consumer. Warped rating on this site is 7.0.

http://www.macwhiz.com/articles/compusa.html

Michael Larson, Game Show Legend

One of the big scandals of the 1950's was the game show scandal featuring the show Twenty-One. It was the subject of the Robert Redford directed film "Quiz Show". The chance to win money illegally was too great a temptation in the battle for television ratings. But have you ever heard about the event from the 1980's rivaled the one from the 1950's? You haven't? Well then read on.

The name of the site is Michael Larson, Game Show Legend. This is the story of how one man used his intelligence and powers of observation to win on the game show "Press Your Luck". I don't want to give away too much of the story, but by carefully watching the show, and the patterns of the lights, Mr. Larson came to realize the he could beat the house in this game. The site tells the story in depth, and it is quite interesting. It is comparable to going to Vegas or Reno and counting the cards at 21 - it takes the chance out of the game of chance.

While it worked for Mr. Larson, it probably would not work today. Can you see Howie Mandell tipping off the contestant which suitcase contained the $1,000,000.00? I don't think so. So just enjoy the shows, and this site, which we give a warped rating of 7.5.

http://gscentral.net/larsen.htm

Anagram Genius

One of the top movies last year was based on Dan Brown's novel "The Da Vinci Code", starring Tom Hanks. One of the central parts to the movie and the book were the puzzles that Robert Langon had to solve. They were complicated and required some brain power to solve. How did Mr. Brown create those puzzles you probably asked? If you're curious, he used the subject of today's Warped site.

The name of the site is Anagram Genius. For those of you who are not familiar with them, an anagram is a word puzzles that takes the letters from a name or place or phrase, and rearranges them into a phrase that is related to the original term. For example, "Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart" can be arranged into "a famous waltz German waltz God". Pretty cool, huh?

This site is dedicated to those types of puzzles. There is a program, the same one that Dan Brown used to create the ones in the book, that is available here. There is a cost involved, but if you're into these puzzles (or if you're working with Robert Langdon to solve a world wide mystery), it is well worth it. There is a mailing list, a member's club, and other interesting and fun things to do here.

This is not the most warped site we've covered, but I have found the people who like to do puzzles are passionate about them, and anagrams can be both educational and mentally stimulating. Warped site rating is 6.5.

http://www.anagramgenius.com/

PeanutButter Lovers

One of the first biographies I ever read was about George Washington Carver. I was amazed at how much work he had done, and how many different uses he found for the lowly peanut. The best use I have ever found for peanut butter involves two pieces of bread and a jar of jelly (it has to be jelly 'cause jam don't shake like that). It also ties in with today's Warped site.

The name of the site is PeanutButter Lovers.com. It is a site that is dedicated to this form of food. It is dedicated to all those who love peanut butter. Check out the favorite recipes or post your own in the recipe section, participate in their latest contest, find out how peanuts are grown and made into peanut butter, or see how peanut butter stacks up nutritionally. But first, you might want to make yourself a peanut butter sandwich. This site has been known to induce serious peanut butter cravings (I'm on my way for one right now, but not the same size as the one Elvis had in the '70's.)

So get out the bread and jelly, and a cool glass of milk to go along with it. That alone will get this site a 7.5 rating. But then I've always been a sucker of food.

http://www.peanutbutterlovers.com/