Revolutionary Open Sarcasm Group Calls for Forcible Overthrow of SarcMark®

Online, March 8, 2010 (Newswire.com) - This January, a company called Sarcasm, Inc., released software that allows users to type a new patented "punctuation mark" at the end of sarcastic sentences. The company calls this new "punctuation mark" the SarcMark® and charges its users $1.99 for the luxury of using its patented symbol.

The SarcMark® is compatible with select programs on Windows operating systems and certain Blackberry models.

Now, a revolutionary group called Open Sarcasm has formed to decry the SarcMark® with the slogan "Sarcasm for the people." The group's manifesto (available at http://opensarcasm.org) points out the historic precedence of a sarcasm punctuation mark called Temherte Slaqî (¡) in Ethiopic language.

"The Temherte Slaqî looks like an upside-down exclamation mark," explains Carly Marksman, the group's director of linguistic research. "You may be familiar with this symbol, since it's used to introduce an exclamation in Spanish," Ms. Marksman continues. "At the end of a sentence, however, it indicates sarcasm."

The Open Sarcasm mark addresses many of the complaints voiced around the world in response to the release of the SarcMark®.

"Because it's used in Spanish, this symbol is already available in Unicode," says Open Sarcasm Director of Technology Fred Angler. "It can be transmitted as plain text and is compatible with any platform configuration."

The Open Sarcasm mark can even be typed on the iPhone by holding down the ! key to see the ¡ option in a pop-up menu. The SarcMark®, as of the time of this release, does not work on the iPhone.

Open Sarcasm's growing following has found another advantage to this standards-compliant punctuation for sarcasm: Because it does not rely on specific system configuration, Open Sarcasm users don't have to worry about whether or not the recipient of their sarcastic message has the proper software installed.

"Our followers can use Open Sarcasm with anyone and know that that the recipient will see the ¡ instead of a broken image," says Mr. Angler. "The SarcMark® requires both parties in a sarcastic exchange to have the same system configuration--a daunting prerequisite to smooth communication."

This easy-to-use and accessible alternative calls into question the motives of Sarcasm, Inc. The SarcMark® website claims to promote "Equal Rights for Sarcasm," a slogan eerily similar to that of the Open Sarcasm group.

As Open Sarcasm leadership explains in its manifesto, however, "by insisting that sarcasm be transmitted through their proprietary format, which is not compliant with the standards put forth by the World Wide Web Consortium and the Unicode Consortium, [Sarcasm, Inc., is] in fact segregating and discriminating against sarcasm. You can ask a question or make an exclamation for free, but for sarcasm, you will be charged!"

"We just want people everywhere to be able to clarify their sarcastic statements freely and easily," explains Ms. Marksman. "Sarcasmists of the world, unite!"

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Open Sarcasm is a global revolutionary movement driven by the abiding, fundamental belief that sarcasm must be free. Our goal is to free sarcasm from the capitalist chains of the SarcMark®. For interviews or further information, please contact [email protected].