OBAMA IS NOT IN THE HOUSE

We alter our habit of only posting back-and-forth correspondence when an unusually funny or interesting letter comes along.


From: "Senator Obama Barack." <obamabarack@fsmail.net>
Reply-To: obamabarack@virgilio.it
To: Lonslo Tossov (boy did "Senator Obama" pick the wrong person to scam! and we'll be hearing more from Agent Tossov)
Subject: Divine Assignment.
Date: Thu, 17 Mar 2005
Received: from ok62311.com ([212.60.67.76])
Dear Friend,

Calvary greetings to you and your family.

I am Barack Obama the newly elected American Senator from the Republic of Kenya.

I know that this will come to you as a big surprise to get my mail.

I was advised by my spiritual advisor to give a benevolent gift to a an unfamiliar fellow in my country. So i have serched deeply for your email on the net.

Please if you are from Kenya simply email me with your identity as soon as possible.

It is a divine assignment that must be fulfilled in a short while.

God bless you as i wait for your humble response.

Regard's,

Obama Barack.

Note: This must be very confidentail.


Analysis

After we picked ourselves up off the floor and dried our eyes, we visited AfriNIC: www.afrinic.net.

AfriNIC is the newest of the Regional Internet Registries, and is bit by bit assuming management chores for IP addresses in Africa shared up to now between RIPE (www.ripe.net - Europe and Africa) and ARIN (www.arin.net - North America, Caribbean or parts thereof, and parts of Africa).

Here's is part of what what AfriNIC told us (after it picked itself up off the floor and dried its eyes):

% This is the AfriNIC Whois server.

inetnum: 212.60.67.0 - 212.60.68.223
netname: QANET
descr: Quantum Associates Company Limited
descr: Internet Service Provider
country: GM
admin-c: MJ944-AFRINIC
tech-c: YT61-AFRINIC
status: ASSIGNED PA
mnt-by: GAMTEL-MNTNER
changed: ebandeh@gamtel.gm 19981110
changed: hostmaster@afrinic.net 20050205
remarks: data has been transferred from RIPE Whois Database 20050221
source: AFRINIC

Hahahahah! (oh wait that's us, not AfriNIC)

GAMTEL is in The Gambia. (Why THE Gambia? Dunno. Why not?) This ISP apparently operates out of Serrekunda, The Gambia. This doesn't mean the Lad is Gambian. Might be, might not be. Gambia is close to Nigeria. Lads from Lagos are known to set up shop in nearby countries.


Discussion

OK if you're not American this may be obscure - why are we (still) laughing so hard?

The real Barack Obama is a first-term senator from the state of Illinois. (Like Nigeria, the USA is a nation of federated states. Each state sends two senators to the national Senate.)

You can see his web page here: http://obama.senate.gov/

His photo makes him look like he's about 20, but he's in his 40s - he taught law and served in the Illinois (state) Senate. He is considered a rising star in the Democratic Party.

A few other points:
He was born in the USA (why THE USA? Dunno. Why not?) - not Kenya - his father was from Kenya.
We kind of think he can spell. It's something people who make Harvard Law Review can kind of do.
He is not the Senator from Kenya. But you knew that.

He will need a sense of humor, since apparently the Lads are going to let a thousand "Obamas" bloom.


Further reading

BTW, here is what some Kenyans have told us about how Lads have scammed them:

THE MASK COMES OFF (KENYA)

SCAMMED IN KENYA