Major Distributor, Mini Rant

I'm becoming very upset with one of our major distributors. I won't use the name, but suffice it to say, they're one of the biggest national distributors, and one of the three biggies in NYC. Two weeks in a row, they messed up my order, and while it isn't the first time, it is becoming more frequent.

This week, I asked them to pick up their most recent mistake (they delivered a 2000 Rioja Riserva instead of the 2003 regular, and the cost difference is astronomical), and said it was because they delivered the wrong wine.

The return invoice says "ordered wrong," which means they made it MY FAULT THAT THEY SCREWED UP!

I'm really sick of dealing with these people, and I really wish we didn't have to order so much wine from them. Either the orderboard workers are morons, the shippers are morons, or the warehouse workers are morons, on a regular basis.

Another example: A while back, when I received the order, one of the boxes was damp. I checked the bottles briefly, but I didn't see any obvious evidence of breakage. As I was putting out the wine, however, I had the side of one finger split open by a broken bottle FROM A DIFFERENT BOX. They had deliberately hidden where the broken bottle was so they wouldn't have to pay for it. So not only are we out the money for the bottle (luckily it was one of our most inexpensive, only costs us $3.00/bottle), but I ended up with a nice gash in one finger.

They can get away with all this crap because they're so huge, and because they carry most of the wines that people demand. If one of the smaller distributors carried on the way they do, they'd be out of business before the first complaint started coming in. If I could get away with not ordering from them, I'd probably recommend that we stop carrying their wines.

Nanny-Statism strikes again

I found this article on Fox News, though I imagine it's discussed elsewhere, about London attempting to protect people from themselves again.

Go ahead and read the article. I'll wait.

Done?

HOW STUPID DO YOU HAVE TO BE TO WALK INTO A LAMPPOST WHILE TYPING A TEXT MESSAGE?!

I text more than I should, mainly because I need a new phone, as my battery is shot. But I have never walked into a lamppost because of typing out a message or dialing a phone number. I've walked into scaffolding posts because I was caught up in a conversation with a friend walking next to me, but I've never been so distracted by my phone that I would do something so patently stupid.

How about, instead of protecting people from themselves, you let them walk into the posts so they learn some common sense?

Ach. I give up. People will always be stupid, and politicians will always try to protect them from their own stupidity.

Hypocracy

Wow, so I really shouldn't say I'm so tired of arguing, then start an argument with someone.

I'm a hypocritical idiot. As usual.

I am tired of arguing though. I'm even more tired of people trying to shut me up because I don't agree with them. And I have a headache for the ages. And no more coffee. So I'm going to take myself off now, and do paperwork.

From Crackle: Penn Says - Disagreeing Doesn't Make You Evil

Vitriol

It's odd...in all my years of on-and-off blogging, I've always had one thing common to all my sites - a healthy dose of vitriol and bile. Suddenly, I find it unsatisfying to get into arguments over points that, in the end, are just my opinion vs. theirs. I'm not a relativist, but I do believe that people hold their opinions dear, use them to define themselves, and become very, very scared if someone challenges those ideas. I could quote a hundred sources, obscure and well-known, and my opponent(s) in the debate will just counter with ideas that support what they say. It is rare to find the person who can debate with a truly open mind. As a result, I find myself, lately, associating only with those who share my opinions, or those who really are willing to listen and adjust what they believe based on my arguments.

I'm not sure anyone will actually read this. There are so many blogs out there these days, and I'm just one of...well, not counting the splogs and marketing failures, let's say millions. Maybe not. I don't really know, but that isn't the point here. I need a space where I'm not confronted with vitriol and hatred just for trying to open people's minds or challenging what they believe.

I guess I'm a skeptic in the Classical sense...believing nothing till it is proven to me, and assuming that even if it's been proven, it hasn't really been proven. Perhaps, in some ways, this is a bad thing. It keeps me from just sitting back and enjoying what life hands me.

Though if life handed me something more than lemons, maybe I wouldn't have to spend so much energy making lemonade. No, I'm not being negative. I'm actually quite enthused about life right now, and things do seem to be going my way for once. Though I'm fairly convinced it's just a mischievous sprite or god deciding to keep me off-balance by making things go well.

See? Skeptic.

I guess I can go from here into a bit about my comment policy (not that I expect any, I don't think people will be reading this often): I reserve the right to delete any comments that are hateful, bigoted, violent, or spam. If they are threatening, I may report them to authorities for appropriate action. I also reserve the right to edit your comment if you're an idiot, and tag you as an idiot for future readers to learn from. Don't be an idiot.

I guess I should throw a disclaimer in as well.

My opinions and thoughts are my own, and do not represent the company I work for, nor my co-workers, nor my friends and family. Hell, I think most of them would disagree with what I have to say. I am not paid for this (yet) and receive no monies or other compensation for reviewing books, wine, or other products, though I wouldn't turn down compensation either. Please note that all writings here belong to me (unless otherwise noted) and my permission MUST be received before re-posting anything in large part or in it's entirety, unless you are just responding and need to quote relevant sections. If I find any of my writings being reproduced without my name attached, I will take whatever action necessary.

There we go. I think that does it.