Breaking News: NBK Plagiarized My Blog
Yes, you heard the shocking news here first. The National Bank of
It all started on a slow Thursday afternoon. A colleague of mine approached me with NBK's juvenile friendly magazine, Yabeela. He flipped through the flimsy papers and revealed to me the doodle that I had made which went hand in hand with the article's review of the atrociously mysterious balloon hijab hoards of women and young girls have adopted on their little heads. At first, I was delighted. My cartoon, in a magazine. Then I thought, "Wait a minute. This is my cartoon. I don't see my signature or at least my blog's name or address let alone an email in my inbox asking for permission."
The second page of the piece i.e. the location
of the crime on p. 33
After spending two minutes thinking about my fifteen minutes of fame, my excitement was soon replaced with rage and heated intentions of waging war against a bank that deems itself to be the best bank of the goddamned Middle East.
Really? The best bank? Are you shitting me? See, when I think of NBK, I think of a tacky family business that has no sense of genuine professionalism or depth. It's just a mafia run by middle aged monopolists and a handful of blue-eyed, greasy-haired foreigners who are there for nothing but show and tell and talking their way into our out of a discussion with the help of a charming accent.
In any case, I'm flattered that whoever chose my sketch thought it was worth publishing. And you know what, I'm throwing in a little something for you, a gift. And don't worry, it's free so don't think about climbing up the rungs to ask for the green to make it legal for usage. Now, if you, NBK that is, want to jazz up your flyers, posters, brochures, website, whatever, I think the following might do you more than good to maintain that cool and up-to-date feel. Enjoy.
Empire of the Sun - Walking on a Dream
The Love Me Nots - You're Really Something
Beck - Gamma Ray
George McCrae - Rock Your Baby
Starland Vocal Band - Afternoon Delight
at 8:30 AM
17 Comments
That is deplorable... and it's coming from one of the most eminent companies. But then again it's Kuwait... that's what you bargained for.
Those are the kind of things that shun me from going back to work in Kuwait.
Nice sketch but it's a shame that your talent is wasted on drawing trivial cartoons of trivial men.
What made you publish this again?
i think theres a possibility they genuinely did not know it was your doodle. after all, it has been used everywhere from facebook groups to newspaper and magazine articles. maybe you should do like flickr people do, and put a reference to yourself right through the center of your work
where's a sketch of dabdoub?
Didn't you get it from Mark's blog? :p
http://www.248am.com/mark/kuwait/whats-in-her-hijab/
khaos: well it doesn't really make me not want to work here. it just makes so-called big corporations seem shoddy 7-elevens. trivial cartoon? not really. trivial men? well, i don't know about that. all i know is that some are particularly fugly.
purgatory: it's time.
rock a bye: well, if it was a student's magazine i would've brushed it off, mostly because young 'uns - in general that is - might not have a lot of copyright sense in them when compared to, let's say, the biggest and best bank of the MENA region?
pearls: kinda centered on the board because it was available on the website. including him would mean that i have to include three other peeps.
k: mehh...
Erz !!!
Tawni astaw3ib ina thats YOUR picture !!
Now i remember !!!
That pic has been circulating in emails, facebook groups....i saw it on a guys car for God's sake !!
O 6ol ilmoda ga3da agol i wonder who drew that....it seems so familiar !!
hmph !!!
sue the bastards! and make all the people who took loans and are now struggling to pay them happy. and no i am havent taken any loans, YET
So it's YOU who drew it!
It's been circulating around the net since the hideous trend started coming out.
So i guess they took it from the net, and they weren't deliberate about stealing it from you ;\
But i loved the sketch, mashalla you're talented.
okay, first of all that was HILAROUS!your the only blogger i know that can make me actually "laugh out loud"! and i loved how you called ya3gob ilmadri shino jacob, kinda reminded me of a certain nasty someone :P
i think they should pay you...
have your doodles registered and let it be Erzulie's trademark ;)
ooh Erzulie as everyone said before me
i have been seeing that pictures over and over in emails and on facebook and i smile every time i see it because i think to myself blogging is not such a small community as it used to be... so if I were them I will think twice before plagiarizing anything! but yet again hathi al kuwait 9al 3al al nebi :P
dr: On a guy's care? Where where lemme see!
traveleer: canceling my credit card bill would be a great compensation though...*nudges jacob*
ms loala: :)
fee: he doesn't look like a jacob though, more like "nasser" for some reason...don't know why that name fits more...anyway...
jelly: i guess so!
:O Ive seen in plenty of times :O Wow, you made it..? Mashalaa (a)
SUE THERE ***** OFFFFF!
wallah get 100,000 KD!
:P
That's it, I want to be you when I grow up!
You have made me laugh so hysterically, so much so that I have spilled my post futoor coffee all over myself...
Now that the hysterical ludicrousness of your situation has worn off a bit and my giggles have calmed down, a deep outrage for you has settled in. I know how I would feel if it were me. VIOLATED. It has nothing to do with money or my ego. SIGH. This is why I have stopped sharing so many of my PERSONALLY CONCOCTED baking recipes and food ideas (as guilty and as childishly silly as I feel about that - but I was sick and tired of everyone claiming my ideas as their own - as if it was some frigging competition, and playing these stupid games with my head - it was just the principle, you know? I'm no angel but I ALWAYS give proper credit as a matter of my own personal imperative)
So I took a closer look at your amazing drawings of the "Board". Aka the keepers of my money (NBK has all of mine - well, Bank of America has some too)
Damn oo mashallah 3laych sweetie, damn oo mashallah you're good. You never cease to amaze me. Never. I hope they do use them and I hope they pay you - IF THEY HAVE A SPECK OF PROFESSIONALISM OR DECENCY IN THEM after this one that is. I hope you said something to them.
And that was one SPUNKY move, that brilliant caricature... It would be funny to see that one all over cars and Facebook now wouldn't it...
Hats off to you dearest Erzuliya, She of the everlasting spunk and talent so magnificent. Hats off.
Erzulie,
saw the famous doodle somewhere else today.. Q8Stan, the infamous Video Blogger, used it as well. The moral of the story: TRADEMARKS AND COPYRIGHTS.
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