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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!ihnp4!qantel!hplabs!tektronix!uw-beaver!fluke!inc
From: inc@fluke.UUCP (Ensign Benson, Time Cadet)
Newsgroups: net.bizarre
Subject: Re: Those little colored stickers on mail
Message-ID: <659@tpvax.fluke.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 30-Jul-85 17:43:41 EDT
Article-I.D.: tpvax.659
Posted: Tue Jul 30 17:43:41 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 3-Aug-85 02:58:51 EDT
References: <151@brl-tgr.ARPA> <2466@ut-sally.UUCP> <3481@cornell.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: The Digital Circus, Sector R
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>> Those are actually micro-miniature UHF radio transmitters, and they're
>> used as bugging devices.
 
>  Oh yeah? I heard from an insider (A major distributer for Spamway)
>  that they're really scratch-and-sniff cyanide stickers distributed by
>  an elite group of guerrilla businessmen.

All these theories are interesting, but those little colored dots actually
have three main purposes:

    1) They were started up by the post office to prepare everyone for the
84-digit Zip Code. Rather than requiring all of us to memorize a whole bunch
of long numbers, the PO thought it would be a nice gesture to let us have
different hues to indicate different Zip Codes. Later this month, water color
sets will be distributed nationally, coinciding with CBS News' National
Color Blindness Test, to be aired Sunday, August 25 at 7:30 pm WST. Check local
listings for time and charges.

    2) They presented a convenient topic for the creators of net.bizarre to
kick things off with . Therefore, NETBIZPIRG (net.bizarre Public Interest
Research Group) lobbied for 3 years, with expenses running into the
*hundreds*, to convince Congress to make it a capital offense for
first-class mailers to send any piece of mail without the 84-digit hue code
sticker. Those suckers got on the bandwagon fast!

    3)


Nice to have a group I can relate to! See you there --






-- 
			       Ensign Benson
			       -Time  Cadet-
 
    _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-The Digital Circus, Sector R-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_