Have you ever wondered what is the modus operandi for writers at Yahoo! Shine? Do you wonder how they can get paid for work that isn’t up to the standards of a high school newspaper? What was the writer thinking when she decided that M.O. was the abbreviation for Missouri?
Actually, M.O. isn’t even the abbreviation for modus operandi, which is MO without the periods. If you follow Associated Press style, you use Mo. (and not the postal abbreviation MO) as the abbreviation for Missouri.
Fact-checking also isn’t part of her work habits. I can’t overlook the “lutes slippers,” which were actually called “lotus slippers.” Nor can I ignore the fact that they did not have high heels:
Foot pedals are devices that you operate with your foot, like the pedal on a sewing machine. The writer is actually describing Foot Petals, a trademark of a product that fits into shoes.
So, what was the writer’s MO when composing this? Write anything. Right or wrong. But definitely wrong.
February 7, 2013 at 7:48 pm
God. I’ve seen train wrecks that were less of a train wreck than Yahoo!
I’m dumbfounded.
February 7, 2013 at 8:30 pm
I share your dumbfoundedness. There’s just no way to explain this.
February 8, 2013 at 5:51 pm
Fact checking is for sissies. Anyone can report facts (though it wold seem that few do), but it takes real talent – genius even – to report fantasy.
PS: Calling them “lotus slippers” must surely have been one of the greatest PR (or is that P. R. or p. r.?) campaigns in history. It makes today’s women’s shoes (“they don’t hurt if they’re pretty”) look like plush bunny slippers by comparison: “Here, put these on when you’re 6 and don’t ever take them off, They’l hurt like hell,and make it impossible for you to ever walk naturally, but they’re called “lotus slippers” – how can you not like that? And they’ll make the men think you’re incredibly beautiful”.
February 8, 2013 at 11:06 pm
I just now see the connection between “lotus slippers” and Foot Petals. You just have to convince the gals that if they’re somehow related to flowers, they’re good for you.
February 8, 2013 at 11:18 pm
Yahoo writers are known for their creative use of the language and for their ability to indulge in fantasy and still get paid.