Elderly Amish Man Caught on Film With Prostitute, Blackmailed
When a 75-year-old Amish widower slept with a prostitute, he -- we feel certain -- felt pretty bad about it the next morning. As if that guilt weren't enough for the old man, the prostitute and her boyfriend demanded $67,000 from him, claiming that they had filmed the scene with wall-mounted cameras and would upload the recording to the Internet. The pair was later arrested and, we can only imagine, the Amish man abhorred technology more than ever.
Bank Robber Gets Away With the Help of Craiglist
In October, a bank robber -- wearing a safety vest, blue shirt, face mask and goggles -- eluded police with the help of Craiglist. Just outside the bank, while the robbery was in progress, stood a group of men who were responding to a Craiglist day labor opportunity. As the advertisement required, they were all wearing safety vests, blue shirts, face masks and goggles.
Nude New Zealander Arrested After Responding to Fake Sexy Text Message
Late in 2007, a Wellington, New Zealand man received a racy text message from two anonymous "ladies," giving him only an address and a request that he show up naked. Well, he indeed showed up naked... at the home of one appalled, unsuspecting New Zealander. Both the nude Romeo and the sadistic texter were arrested, though neither were prosecuted.
Fake Craiglist Ad Costs Man Most of What He Owns
Last Spring, a post appeared on an Oregon Craigslist board stating that the owner of a specific house was leaving all of his worldly possessions (still in said house) to whoever wanted them. When homeowner Robert Salisbury rushed home -- on a tip from a woman suspicious about the offer of a free horse -- he found his house being ransacked by 30 strangers. We suggest he take that horse and collect some vengeance Clint Eastwood-style.
17-Year-Old Jailed for Stealing Virtual 'Furniture'
When a 17-year-old Dutch boy hacked into several accounts on the Second Life-style site 'Habbo' in 2007, the the law got involved. The boy was discovered to have stolen $5,800 worth of virtual furniture and knick-knacks. Apparently, crime -- whether actual or virtual -- does not pay.
Phishers Going After Your Phones in New 'Vishing' Trend
Over the past year, sneaky spammers have begun to forsake the worn-out territory of e-mail in favor of cell phones' fertile frontier. The result? "Vishing." Get it? Voice mail phishing. It might be more ominous if it didn't sound like a James Bond villain saying, "Wishing."
Burglars Break Into Restaurant, Steal HDTV, Leave Money / Food Behind
Around Halloween of last year, a truckload of thieves drove into -- that's right, into -- a Pennsylvania Mexican restaurant, where they -- apparently uninterested in the cash register -- stole a mid-grade 47-inch HDTV and fled the scene. We've all heard about how this generation is lacking in ambition, but this generation's thieves, too?
Yesterday's announcement of a price drop to $399 for the eight-gigabyte iPhone probably put a big smile on the faces of anyone who couldn't afford the original $600 price tag. But if you were one of those people who paid $599 or -- gasp -- more on eBay, you probably have a rather different expression on your face. But here some good news: Today, Steve Jobs announced that his company would offer a $100 Apple Store credit to any jilted early adopter. 
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
baybaykid said 2:22PM on 9-07-2007
Apple hit us in the pocket now it is time for us to hit them back by boycotting them
Boycott Apple
Boycott Apple
Boycott Apple
Boycott Apple
Boycott Apple
Reply
Stacia said 2:33PM on 9-07-2007
bullcrap! I can't believe they are offering ANYTHING to these spoiled brat customers. I don't own anything apple. Seeing what pushovers they are, I guess I should!!!!!!
Reply
Matt said 2:52PM on 9-07-2007
If you used a credit card that has price protection your are safe. Go for the $200 and get the $100 at the apple store!!!
Reply
Jim said 2:57PM on 9-07-2007
I seen too many crybabies around lying on their back kicking their feet up in air. Big Deal. Grow Up.
Reply
Brian said 3:04PM on 9-07-2007
It's just a fact of life if you buy something when first hits the market you're gonna pay more. I remember in late eighties Atari 200 was reduced to 50 bucks. I didn't expect a refund for price differnce to what I had paid. I have a Razr I got it after it had been out for a while but price is even lower today for me to look for compensation for my previous purchase is crazy.
Reply
Brian said 3:06PM on 9-07-2007
It's just a fact of life if you buy something when first hits the
market you're gonna pay more. I remember in late eighties Atari 200
was reduced to 50 bucks. I didn't expect a refund for price
differnce to what I had paid. I have a Razr I got it after it had
been out for a while but price is even lower today for me to look for
compensation for my previous purchase is crazy.
Reply
serprizeserprize said 3:07PM on 9-07-2007
WOW! Shocking! The price on a new gadget went down. The big question is why is anyone surprised by this? Geez. Knew it would happen and that's why I waited. DUH!? Name one thing that hasn't gone down in price once the initial craze died down? HELLOOOOO?
Reply
serprizeserprize said 3:10PM on 9-07-2007
There are thousands of Americans that would like a refund on their Real Estate right about now!
Reply
sweetdreamz1181 said 3:40PM on 9-07-2007
this should be a suprise to anyone. When an item first comes out the price is sky high then it drops... it happens with everything.. i bought a $1000 camera and now i can buy it for $200!
Reply
roger said 3:41PM on 9-07-2007
Everyone who bought one when they first came out were boasting about there purchase and now they are crying. It's common knowledge that whenever any new electronic product comes out they drop in price soon after. You paid for the "bragging rights", so what?
Reply
amanda said 3:45PM on 9-07-2007
Ok stop with the crybaby comments.....they reduced the price by 34% in like 10 weeks....tell me when you bought a product that discounted that much that fast. If it would have been 5-6 months down the road I wouldn't have blinked but $200 is a lot of money and loyal Apple users felt betrayed.
Reply
dave bowers said 3:52PM on 9-07-2007
Stop crying. Apple really should have just kept taking the money. Poor business move to take a top selling product and treat it like a commodity.
Reply
smarteepantz said 4:02PM on 9-07-2007
While I can (sorta) appreciate early-adopters obsessive need to buy everything cutting edge the second it comes out, I much rather prefer buying second or third generation. I know that more of the bugs will be worked out, the capabilities are often much greater and the usability is typically higher. I bought a second-gen Mini, then a Nano Red (which, I believe is a fourth-gen) and have no intention of buying an iPhone for at least a year (probably, by then, a fifth-gen). Besides, Apple comes out with next gen so quickly, it's kind of tough to place faith that they're putting out the best possible product for the buck (exhibit a: the recent announcement of the iPod/Nano redesign...less than a year after the previous redesign).
Reply
roger said 4:23PM on 9-07-2007
I am not being critical of people being disappointed but it's possible that the reason the price has dropped so much is because the mass market isn't going to pay $599 and maybe Apple does'nt want to sit on a lot of inventory?
Reply
oliviahaimani said 4:23PM on 9-07-2007
If you have that much money to spend on a phone, then $200 should not be a lot of money to you. If it is, you need to be working on getting your priorities straight and learning to manage your money better.
Reply
Jason said 4:40PM on 9-07-2007
Here's the deal. 6 years ago when the X-box came out, the price tag was $500. less than 3 months later, it was dropped to $300. No one even batted an eye at the price drop or stomped their feet for Microsoft to give refunds. It's called pricing your product based on the market demand. EVERY BUSINESS DOES IT, and I think Steve Jobs is not making the right decision in offering a refund...Apple will lose much respect on this decision. 1 for ticking off the "loyal apple customers", and 2 in the business world for setting a precedent of offering refunds when the price drops after the introduction of a new product.
Bottom line is I didn't run out & buy an iPhone when they came out, because I knew the price would drop. Common sense tells you that...beyond common sense PAST EXPERIENCE tells you that (unless you've NEVER bought ANYTHING in your life, which I doubt). Personally I'm going to wait until AT&T/Cingular offers them as an upgrade option instead of even paying the full $399 they're priced at now. See how that works? That's using your noodle...
Reply
ditdotdee said 4:52PM on 9-07-2007
I do think that people who are saying "stick it" to those that purchased the high priced phone are being cruel. I wasn't trilled to hear the price drop so much so fast. Maybe the day after thanksgiving would have been more appropriate to drop price. It did leave a sour taste in my mouth hearing price dropped so much so fast.
True, I'd suck it but also true that it would taint my relationship with apple products. The $100 rebate is excellent. Keep in mind we are not getting money but rather ability to buy something else from apple. Too bad last week I spent $70 in the apple store expanding my service plan on the iphone to two years....I only hope that I can buy itune gift cards from the store to use in itunes or I really have no use at this time for the $100 rebate. I'll use it to pay the full song price to get a 30 second clip of ringtunes....
Reply
TriGun6187 said 4:55PM on 9-07-2007
look its called business, apple shoudnt pay anything pay to those who payed $600, wat apple did was genius in my opinion, they created so much hype they decided to put it at $600 and pplz bought it, it went according to their plan, and when the craze is down, they lower the price, so they can increase the amount of buyers plus making more money, cuz the rate of pplz buying iphones has probably increased since price are down, its genius, Apple deserves getting a medal, for well organized business plan.
Reply
billyb said 5:14PM on 9-07-2007
The refund is extreme generosity. People who always want to be the first to own something are willing to pay more. They even stand in line to do it. So, why the refund? People wait to buy a new car because those that aren't sold right away are usually discounted. It's the American way. Apple might start a dangerous precedent with their refund.
Reply
Ron said 5:37PM on 9-07-2007
Well that is better than what General Motors did in 2003. I bought a new Envoy in Sep 03, shortly thereafter they lowered the price by, I think $3000. They did not send me a check, a coupon, nothing, nada, nil. When I brought it up to my salesman when I was looking at another car for my daughter, the attitude was FU.
Reply