Infinite Pig Theorem

Bueno pues las Olimpiadas ya terminaron. Ésto es una buena noticia dado que Raquel ya me dejará desvelarme en las noches otra vez viendo capítulos viejos de Sex and the City y Will & Grace que pasan siempre en CBS (o una de esas televisoras secundarias) a la medianoche. Sin embargo, hay algo que me gustaría comentar al respecto de las olimpiadas.

Ésta fue la primera vez que viví un evento de tal envergadura (qué palabra tan soez) fuera de casa, fuera de México. Me di cuenta de que a algunos gringos sí les importa representar a su país dignamente  y no traerle medallas al presidente, si no llevárselas a su casa y llenar de orgullo a su familia. Aquí no se andan con mamadas de que se vanaglorien por las medallas que sacan, los medios de televisión no los maman, simplemente se alegran de que diariamente haya hasta decenas de medallas de oro. Tienen mejores cosas que engrandecer, como por ejemplo, Michael Phelps y compañía. Si yo fuera gringo me llenaría de orgullo ver a mi país ganando en muchas competencias, luchando el mismo nivel que los mejores del mundo de otros países. Si fuera gringo o si fuera cualquier otra cosa (menos chino), en todo caso.

Ésta fue la primera vez que veo cómo es la transmisión por televisión de unos JO diferente a como lo hace Televisa o TV Azteca. Aquí no hay compayitos, ni güiri-güiris, ni “el color”, ni dan importancia a los turistas nacionales que se dieron la vuelta para allá viéndolos nada más haciendo el ridículo frente a un imbécil al cual no podría importarle menos. No pasan a la gente afuera de las sedes embriagándose. No les interesa ser “el primer medio en el mundo en llegar a China”, como Televisa hizo teniendo a un pelado allá desde hace como tres años. Sí hay varios reportajes previos, pero no son de cómo Chonita, que es campeona en caminata de la Magdalena Mixhuca, tiene que guisar y mandar a la escuela a sus once hijos, luego irse a trabajar de taxista y en las noches entrena en las canchas del deportivo donde hay un sólo farol funcionando. Los reportajes son de un cabrón que fue a la guerra en Irak, le mutilaron las piernas y ahora se prepara para competir en los paralímpicos y seguir representando a su país con orgullo. Quiero ver cuándo, en primer lugar, alguien es lo suficientemente patriota en México para irse a la guerra con otro país. Y estoy hablando de un gringo que quiere a su país, no cualquier paisanito hecho gringo y mandado a la guerra a la de agüevo. Puedes estar a favor o en contra de la guerra en Irak, pero no es un juego de niñetes ir y poner tu culo para que lo balaceen. Y así hay varios.

En los primeros días, entrevistaron a Bush en el estudio de NBC (igual, no importa si eres pro- o anti-), y cambiándole a Galavisión (que es la mierda de Televisa en Estados Unidos) entrevistaban a Carlos Hermosillo. Los medios aquí se enfocaban en darle la mayor cobertura a Michael Phelps, sus ocho medallas, y cómo iba a encomendarse a su mamá y su hermana. Al ver Azteca América, veo que los comentaristas lloran (sí, lloran) por la primera medalla de oro en Beijing. Al competir Phelps, pasan imágenes del estadio de los Baltimore Ravens lleno hasta su madre para que todos los vecinos de Phelps vean la competencia. En México pasan la típica escena de la familia del competidor en su sala, sus ocho hermanos, sus siete hijos, su dieciséis tíos y la mamá al borde del llanto por ver al hijo llegar en vigesimo-séptimo lugar.

Vaya, las transmisiones en México son una mamada. Es puro atole con el dedo y sí, a final de cuentas, puro entretenimiento chaquetero.

I’ve enjoyed reading Sarah Hatter’s (from 37signals) blog post about phone support. I can’t say anything else that I totally agree about it, and I’d like to share my own experience.

Recently, I bought a ticket for my mom to come to visit us in New York. She finally couldn’t do it for the dates we had picked so I had to cancel the airline ticket that I had already paid in Orbitz. I did this through their website, I saw how much of penalties it’d be, and it wasn’t too much, so I accepted without too many other alternatives. Basically, from the total cost of the ticket, I’d have to take a small penalty fee for Orbitz and big one for the airline. The rest wouldn’t be reimbursed but could be used as credit for another reservation, for the same passenger, of course. None of those tickets are transferrable, which yes, it’s OK, it was just a delay of dates on the trip. Now, she is able to come again in a couple of months, so I tried to find a way to use that remaining credit to make a new reservation. I couldn’t. After spending a lot of minutes (I should be an idiot, I guess) trying to find their phone number on the website, I called. A nice lady with a very weird accent for me answered, I tried to explain the issue and she was very gentle and told me that I had to do the reservation by phone. I asked if there wasn’t any way that I could do the reservation online myself. She said no. I asked how come. She said that in order for me to use that credit I had to do it by phone. She started asking me the preferred days for traveling, whether at morning or at night, etc. All of this was OK, but it was very, very difficult for me to understand what she was saying sometimes, and most of the times I was embarrased to ask her to say things again and again. It was very, very difficult and frustrating to do this over phone for me. I apologized, thanked her and hung up. I couldn’t do it.

This could have been easily solved over an online interface or over email (they already have my freaking credit card numbers!). I’ve been mostly happy with Orbitz and after all they are not guilty on having me as their customer, one that cannot speak to nice ladies with very weird accents, but it’d be easier for everybody to not leave phone support as the last resource for solving an issue. I still have to call and claim my unused credit. I’ve been avoiding it, both because I still want to find the energy and patience and because I’m waiting for next payroll

Paralelly, having spent a couple of weeks with the family in Mexico City I remembered how annoying phone calls to people’s houses from companies are. All of us at my family place are economically actives. Because of this, a lot of companies, credit card companies, banks, inssurance companies, etc, annoy at any time offering their products. I almost had forgotten it since my phone activity is not too active here. Those fucking companies (or the representatives rather) call, introduce themselves and start talking saying that you’ve won an special thing, bonus, award for your records’ activities, whatever. This is so impersonal, so cold, so bitter, tacky and so stupidly impolite and annoying that I’ve reached the point on saying nothing at all but hanging up immediately. Some other times I interrupt saying I was busy, how they dare calling with all their bullcrap without asking me a single question on whether I can or want to receive the call. This is incredibly annoying and find it very unpleasent and impolite. What, as customer, I have to do? Avoid connections with those companies, they don’t deserve my attention, they had lost it. I should only maintain a private cell phone for family and friends and try to not give that number to any kind of company.

Die phone support, die!

Machu, what you posted recently made me recall how some local friends told me were treated upon check-in at Oaxtepec, where DebConf6 was happening. It was maybe four or five persons, including myself, treated with arrogance, indifference and rudeness when there were issues (or say, situations) with the rooms or something, by that Argentinian woman, who was the nice representative of the Orga team with the local venue.

UPDATE: Edited. Only posting bullshit now that I know about after madduck’s reply.