from E-d-u-p-a-g-e 03/17/94

[David Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

EVERYONE'S NIGHTMARE
An error in a computer message has cost Chilean taxpayers at least $207
million, when a futures trader accidentally typed "buy" instead of "sell."
One politician bemoaned the typo, saying, "Among the great scoundrels and
fools of Chilean history, there will be a place for Mr. Davila -- and his
computer." It's gotten so bad, there's now a new verb making the rounds:
davilar, loosely translated to mean "to botch things up miserably." (Wall
Street Journal 3/16/94 A1)


CONSERVATIVES RALLY ELECTRONICALLY
Conservatives have latched onto computer networking as a means of
communicating their message and maintaining cohesion. Although the
Democratic party started using a computer forum to dispense information
before the GOP did, a democratic activist asserts that conservatives are
"definitely" ahead of liberal groups on using the mechanism effectively.
(Wall Street Journal 3/16/94 A1)