8/22/05 UPDATE: For the latest on the Herb Chambers matter, click here.

Just to keep you in the loop on my Herb Chambers Infiniti dispute, here’s the update. I sent along a “30 day letter” and copied some consumer advocates and a couple members of the Nissan / Infiniti management team in Gardena. I will keep you all in the loop on the response, if any. The duct tape part is the most fun.

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February 18, 2005

Herb Chambers
The Herb Chambers Companies / Herb Chambers Infiniti
1198 Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, MA 02222

VIA FEDEX 7904 3200 0048

Dear Mr. Chambers:

I have tried diligently over the past three months to solve this matter directly with your service manager, Paul Dineen. The only response I have received to my letters of November 24th and November 29th was a forwarded e-mail from Mr. Dineen that had been authored by your Mr. Forero and entitled “letter from Ted”. While no solution was proposed, some of my key concerns were not addressed, and it contained several factual errors, the sequence of events was essentially verified by Mr. Forero’s letter. I responded to Mr. Dineen on January 5, 2005 asking him to propose a solution. He ignored me. I wrote again on January 12 with the same request. Again, I was ignored. Finally, I wrote on January 27th and was ignored a third time. Therefore, you have left me no choice but to pursue remedies under the law.

Under the provisions of Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 93A, Section 9, I hereby make written demand for relief as outlined therein.

On or about the weeks of July 19th, September 13th and September 20th, 2004, the following unfair and deceptive acts occurred:

- Employees, agents, or representatives of Herb Chambers Infiniti represented that unnecessary repairs were needed in order to make the automobile operational;
- Employees, agents, or representatives of Herb Chambers Infiniti represented that unneeded repairs were necessary in order to pass the emissions component of Massachusetts State Inspection;
- Employees, agents, or representatives of Herb Chambers Infiniti represented that the vehicle was adequately repaired & test driven and ready for delivery when it was not…
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I saw Kaufman’s “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” last night.

In a nutshell, it may be the wisest and most beautiful exploration of romantic love I’ve ever seen in popular filmmaking. If movies were like this, I’d watch a lot more of them.

Worth it more than once.

The bunny is honest and he’s hurt.

Earlier today in an e-mail thread with some folks I (dismissively) used Juvenal’s famous phrase in response to a piece about the Super Bowl parade:

“Duas tantum rex anxius optat, panem et circenses.”

(”The people long anxiously for two things, bread and circuses.”)

This was not an insult against sports fans, nor sports in general. I think that there is a very legitimate place in life for joy, fun, competition, and even public spectacle. The grace and power of the Olympics and other great sporting traditions stand in support of this. Many athletes are great citizens (many are not) - many sports fans are, too. I will, however, concede that I have found it odd to come from a place that’s very civic-minded to one more sports-focused.

My comment was intended to reflect my dismay at how easy it is to rally a few hundred thousand people (or more) to celebrate something that has no direct impact on their lives, yet it is nearly impossible to rally even a few hundred people to take action on social issues that do directly impact them. When I walk around on a Sunday and every single human being I talk to wants to know if I know “the score”, or if I “saw that play” - it worries me, but only in comparison. I do not walk around on a day when the State is considering an important piece of legislation, or even on Election Day, and encounter the same levels of engagement and interpersonal inquiry. So, the things that bind us seem disproportionately circusy. It’s often perfectly acceptable to argue about sports, or ‘The Bachelorette’, but not public policy. The former two being fun and circusy, and the latter being (often) very serious business. Should they not at least command equal time?

Not only was Juvenal right, but I fear Aldous Huxley was, too.

I don’t believe there is a conscious conspiracy - we make these choices daily, they are not made against us. And we do so at our own peril. It is not just sports - it is entertainment, it is the odd subcultures around a lot of popular music, it is blind consumption, etc. As I told a colleague today, I think that going to a John Kerry rally and holding a sign and screaming at Bush supporters is every bit as “circusy” as going to a ball game - I realize there is equal merit (or lack thereof).

Because, there needs to be lots of room in life for love, fun, joy, relaxation, creativity, passion, mystery, mindlessness. These are the things that illuminate our spirit and help fuel the seriousness and responsibility and civic engagement when it’s right and proper. What I was trying to say is that our world, our nation-state, is in serious serious trouble, and our collective national social energy is, on many levels, being misspent. The things that bring us together may ironically and sadly be the ones that ultimately break us to bits.

So, sports fans - I’m not picking on you. I’m picking on all of us.

Well, I had to re-install Windows XP on both of my computers - a full re-build for both systems. Everything was, of course, backed up - and it was one of those “optional” deals - one thing finally pushed me over the edge on one of my computers so I just rebuilt both of them with a handful of new parts (retiring or handing down a few others).

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