GlOBAL WARMING

Is there even a chance that the L in Banksy's statement on GlOBAL WARMING is uppercase underwater?

I seriously doubt it.

I DON'T BELIEVE IN GlOBAL WARMING ... BUT THE lOWERCASE L APOCALYPSE IS DEFINITELY UPON US.

lESUS CHRIST!

Gary Chapman, one of the keenest observers in the lowercase L business, makes his comeback with a real money shot.  Upon reading the news, "Vatican misspells Jesus on Pope Francis commemorative coins: Embarrassing gaffe sees Latin inscription call the Christian Messiah 'Lesus'", you might wonder why a typographical error involving an uppercase L, apparently substituted for a J, would qualify for this website.  Only the most experienced lowercase L hunters would recognize that this ungodly gaffe likely occurred when a maladroit minter saw Jesus's name written in Latin, IESVS or Iesus, and misinterpreted the uppercase i to be a lowercase L.

I blame the IllVMINATI for this, and all lowercase L dissent.

BAlANCED DiET

Fellow ROI (that's Roi, not R-Zero-lowercase L) Community member Shai Davis pointed out these unbalanced words of wisdom on the popular 9GAG photo blog.  Does this count as a true example of lowercase L, Shai asks, even though the sentence contains only lowercase L's and lowercase i's, besides the other uppercase letters?  YES! Especially since those lowercase L's are in different words than the lowercase i's.

While it may be true that A BAlANCED DiET iS A GlASS OF WiNE iN EACH HAND, our disturbed scribe at (I think) Café ONS should also note that a balanced sentence contains appropriately capitalized L's and i's, especially when used in the context of all uppercase letters.  Perhaps our bibulous scribbler already had a glass of wine in each hand while writing this sign.

I think collaboration earns Shai an ROI Micro Grant!

Join the lIBRARY

Adrian Bailey (@dadge) submitted the first #lowercaseL via Twitter today.  This story from BBC News explains:

An edit to graffiti on a wall in County Tyrone has become a Twitter hit. 

The graffiti, which was sprayed on a small building in Strabane, originally said 'Join the IRA'. 

An unknown person with a spray can changed it to 'Join the lIBRARY.' 

A photograph of the edited graffiti was tweeted by teacher and writer Brian McGilloway.

If the graffiti artist ever takes claim, will he be ridiculed for the embarrassing use of a lowercase L, or just defacing property?

Purim SPIEl

In celebration of the Jewish holiday, Purim, Rabbi Matt brought a gragger to shul that he bought from a street vendor in PUERTO VAllARTA, Mexico years ago. Today, for the first time, he noticed a particular deficiency in the uppercase L department.  We cannot be silent when it comes to lowercase L misuse, it's time to make some noise about this important issue!

And Happy Purim!

lIVE IN PEACE

There is a serious problem in the Middle East right now.  No, I'm not talking about the recent flareup of violence between Gaza and Israel.  I'm talking about the proliferation of lowercase L's in countries that do not  even use a Latin-derived alphabet system.  While young Yousef Abusabha of Palestine may be READY TO lIVE IN PEACE, I have my doubts this day will come soon, as long as lowercase L's inexplicably make their way into otherwise entirely uppercase sentences with CAPS LOCK ON.

I have a feeling Yousef is probably learning English at this school.

Thank you, lowercase L reader, GAl, for this exemplary find.

ISlAM

Look, my friends, even this guy put some effort into correcting an obviously former lowercase L by squeezing a little uppercase action into ISlAM.  If he can do it, despite his Engrish, and in the wake of an attack on the US Embassy in Libya, there's no excuse why we can't, too.

UlTIMATE Catch of the Day

It took me a while to find the lowercase L in this photo.  This ad for a HealthGuard mattress may offer THE UlTIMATE PROTECTION AGAINST DUSTMITES, MICROBES & ALLERGIES, but it apparently does not offer one lick of protection against lowercase L infestation. Thanks to Gary C. for this fantastic Catch of the Day!

AlEX is Stoned

Mark St. John discovered this roadside spelling of AlEX in Christchurch, New Zealand. I almost would have forgiven the lowercase L as a result of a possible pebble shortage, until I noticed the pile in the background.

I wonder if the guy who built this lowercase Stonehenge has ever visited New York?

Fair thee CHIGWEll

Naomi said this about this lowercase L sign above, found Down Under (I know, confusing, but you must look up to see it):

I spotted this sign on the side of the Brooker Highway in Hobart, Australia. About a month after I snapped this pic someone crashed into the sign and it was removed forever. I have no idea what FCM stands for but Chigwell is the name of a suburb.

A quick Google Search turned up a Facebook Fan Page for FCM CHIGWEll, which stands for Fresh Central Markets and Fresh Country Markets.  Just look at that unnecessarily serifed uppercase i, those extra lines at the top and bottom of the i could have been used to make both L's uppercase!  Apparently the use of the double lowercase L hasn't helped business much — according to their website, FCM are currently in voluntary liquidation.

PROUD SlUT

Megan M. of Cleveland, Ohio, was proud to discover this PROUD "SlUT" in the BBC News article, Why is the word 'SlUT' so powerful? I was almost going to take this female empowering movement seriously, until they screwed up with the lowercase L.

"There’s a girl who’s not afraid to be herself. Siuts unite! No need to hide it! Just embrace it. The haters are just jealous." — Megan M.

GlOBAL Traveller

In the spirit of Cory Arcangel's "Sorry I Haven't Posted" blog, cataloguing lazy bloggers' posts in which they apologize for not blogging ... SORRY I HAVEN'T POSTED!  My only excuse is that I've been busy trying to make a living as an artist, travelling, and being sued over my cartoons in New Mexico ... long story, I'll save it for another time.

Anyway, I have a backlog of your lowercase L's that need to be shared with the world, if we are ever going to blow the lid off this worldwide capital conspiracy.

So to restart, here's one of my own. I noticed this late-edition lowercase L on the Open Space Technology bulletin board at the ROI Summit 2011 for Jewish innovation in Jerusalem this summer.  Fellow conference attendee Shelby snapped this photo for me, "IS THERE A NEED FOR GlOBAL JEWISH UNIT?"  (I'm assuming that was meant to be UNITY, based on the punny topic header which I can just make out as JEWNITY ... and the fact that a Global Jewish Unit is HIGHLY unnecessary). This GlOBAL disaster may be a result of post-haste afterthought, but there's still no excuse.

Except INSANITY.

LATIN SCHOOl in PAlESTINE

Is this a "crunch case", in which the sign maker had space for all but a final uppercase L and had to resort to the lowercase?  This LATIN TAYBEH SECONDARY SCHOOl in Ramallah, Palestine, knows about uppercase L's, as in LATIN, so this lowercase L was probably the result of poor planning.  If the English portion had been assembled right to left, as the Arabic portion of the sign, the sign maker may have had to resort to a lowercase S.

This street signage can probably be found nearby.

SlOBBER

If you look close enough it's not so much a lowercase L as it is a slim uppercase L, but from far away the little L foot disappears, so we'll let this Chinglish pass.  Discovered by Michael A. on NY Times, we can all take comfort in the fact that SMART NOSHERY MAKES YOU SlOBBER.

PlEASE SCAN OUT

Justin explains that this PlEASE SCAN OUT sign can be found at the Coronet Peak ski field in New Zealand, as you leave the gear hire section.  Upon noting the variety of fashion colours, Justin asked, in his own words, "Why? WHY!!???"  While I cannot answer the question "why", I can certainly say "why not": the inclusion of a lowercase L has nothing to do with a shortage of space on the top line.

OIl VEY!

Tragedy strikes again.  CNN iReporter and U.S. Marine Corp photographer, Abby Burtener Manuel, snapped this photo on Grand Isle, Louisiana as Gulf residents mourn oil disaster in the wake of the BP spill.  At the rate of 40,000 barrels of oil leaking per day, it's no surprise that residents lack the will to capitalize the L's on their makeshift signs.

It seems this sign is somewhat of a tourist attraction.  Lowercase L reader Adam G reports the same sighting in the New York Times, and Adam "Oil" Wells submits the same screenshot as seen on the BBC!

WEllSY wrote:

Watching the BBC this evening, the saucy Fiona Bruce introduces a piece about Barack Obama visiting the US coastlines hit by the BP oil slick .

I was horrified. Not by the oil coated turtles or sticky sea birds but the warning sign, "BEACH ClOSED". Environmental disaster indeed.

By the way, the lack of posts lately is because I'm getting married.

MAIN BlD

JUlIA had this to say in the wake of destruction:

I live on Tutuila, the main island of American Samoa. My island was hit by a tsunami last September. One of the villages that was hit the hardest is Poloa. I spent Saturday at the beach there and spotted this lowercase L on the side of the school. It looks like MAIN BID, but it's supposed to be short for building. The other buildings at the school were labeled too, but not with lowercase L's!

It is a tragedy. So many innocent people, misled to believe there might be a "Main Bid", but finding no bids at all, main, secondary, or even tertiary. Dreams washed away like so many legs of neglected uppercase L's. God help us.

EXClUSIVE

Now we're talking.  This sign for EXClUSIVe PARKING is a prime example of a misleading lowercase L.  Submitted by the Glatfelter Co-op, discovered near Manuel Antonio National Park while on vacation in Costa Rica, the lowercase L is exactly the same height as the uppercase i's and other uppercase letters, making it somewhat confusing to read.  Bonus points for the EXClUSIVe lowercase e.

MIlKSHAKES

Adam Wells with the lowercase L's! Known for his photographic fabrications and more relevant receipts, the special effects wizard had this to say about his recent find:

This one's not cut and dry William, as there are a few offenders in there and a mish-mash of upper and lower. But I still find them guilty as charged...

MIlKSHaKeS
avaiLaBLe all aFTERNOON

The sign in question is located outside the overpriced yet thoroughly satisfying Greedies Cafe in Isleworth, West London. It may fall foul of your strict rules and regulations, but thought you should cast your eye across it.

Mazeltov on your engagement by the way, lovely news.

All the best,

Adam.

These milkshakes certainly would not bring me to the yard.

CHIllI

Iwan from Caernarfon reports to lowercaseL with this QUADRUPLE-l Tale of Wales:

Was having a pint on Saturday at one my favourite local pubs, Y Bachgen Du in Caernarfon (in north Wales), when I noticed their exciting new menu on the wall.

Had been drinking all day to celebrate Wales winnning the Triple Crown in the 6 Nations rugby tournament... so I took a snap to make sure they really were selling CHIllI (with steamed rice).

Wasn't brave enough to try any - I fancied a saiad myself, but as you can see they only did salads. Ended up having some chips. Very nice they were too.

Nice try, ye olde Tafarn, but the dotted uppercase i's don't help. I expect this sort of nonsense from CHIlE, but from WAlES? Seriously, you are tarnishing the reputation of the BlACK BOY INN.