How often do informers collect reward money?

Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports
1

Another well written staff report by GFactor. How often do informers collect reward money? I did not realize how often posted rewards go unpaid, nor how difficult it is to collect them.

I also wanted to add that Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. would make an awesome band name. :slight_smile:

2

Thanks. I just noticed that Slate’s Explainer has a related topic today: How do you get on the FBI’s Most Wanted list?

3

I also got to learn that “bupkis” is variably spelled. Google gives 18,700 results for bupkes, 22,300 for bupkiss, and 60,500 (minus the 22,300 that are contributed by bupkiss) with bupkis.

4

That alone is worth the price of admission, no? :smiley:

I looked it up in Merriam-Webster online and a couple of other places because I, too, found multiple spellings online:

And see, Jeremy Dauber, “The Joys of Yiddish: Bubkes, gelt, meshugenehs: the heritage of one of the world’s most expressive languages,” The Washington Post, Sunday, December 25, 2005; BW15: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/22/AR2005122201581.html

Random House apparently doesn’t recognize bubkes: “The word bupkiss, often also spelled bupkis, means, as you say, ‘absolutely nothing’. In negative constructions (for example, “He didn’t know bupkis”), it means ‘the least thing; anything at all’.” Penguin Random House. OTOH, my *Random House Unabridged Dictionary * (2d ed. 1993) has none of the spellings.

5

I have never seen in in English other than “bupkis”, but Yiddish has it *bubkes *AFAIK.

Good article Gfactor. :cool:

6

Excellent article indeed Gfactor. It was one of the more interesting reads on the board as of late.

It’s nice to know that if one ever decides to become a rat that they should (like most other things in life) get the details down in writing first. However since being a snitch is a rather dishonorable act in the first place, it’s even more interesting that even those on the side of the law see it as distasteful and have little regard for them as well. I guess it’s true, snitches only get stiches. :smiley:

7

Milhouse: …
Bart did it! That Bart right there!
Bart: [angry] Milhouse!
Lovejoy: Milhouse, you did the right thing. Bart, come with me for
punishment. [goes back for Milhouse] You too, snitchy.