Spam poetry reaches new artistic heights

Crestfallen, thousand years waiting

By Lester Haines • Get more from this author

Posted in Spam, 17th June 2004 13:15 GMT

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It hasn't escaped our notice that spam tsunamists are in the habit of finishing their missives with random collections of (often highly esoteric) words as part of their ongoing battle against the spam filter.

But although these assemblages are designed purely to serve their dark masters' will, they occasionally transcend their mundane purpose and reach hitherto unprobed heights of poetic invention. Just ask Scott Goodfellow:

Dear Register,

A penile stimulating salesman just crept past our corporate spam filter (galling as it blocks legit emails every day) with the tried and tested vi_agra method. This also lulls spam filters to sleep with poetry written according to William Burrough's cut-up formula; to wit:

serge, crossbar in three, exorcist, but the doctor, ms, they probably have, lagrange, what has been.
sidle, chandeliers blazed under, fascicle, determined at once, crestfallen, prevent her from, skyline, thousand years waiting.

Rather good I thought.

Could the Reg not run a spam poetry competition? Or feature some of these unwitting gems in some way?

yours, a thousand years waiting, crestfallen

Scott

Lovely. Readers are invited to forward any other similar gems for a forthcoming round-up, tentatively titled Spam poetry: transcending the junk mail paradigm. You never know, we might even throw a couple of shirts about for really outstanding contributions. ®