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"Do you hate your job" was an advertisement that was issued by the Chicago Reader and other alternative newspapers in response to the claim by the Asian American Journalists Association that Asian-American journalists were underrepresented in the press on both the executive and journalistic levels. The Asian American Journalists Association felt that other minorities such as African-Americans were underrepresented in the press as well.The Washington City Paper is also an alternative style newspaper.

Yellow capital text above and below "COAL" which is in a neon-light kind of font with letters in red, green, blue, red, on a brown background.

Westfalia-Lunen is a German-based hard coal mining equipment manufacturing company. The products are marketed by Mining Progress Inc. Westfalia-Lunen is the predecessor of Caterpillar which is an American heavy equipment manufacturing company. In 1993, Westfalia-Lunen introduced the first and only mine-worthy plow control system. Westfalia-Lunen and Mining Progress Inc. distributed wearable memorabilia including stickers and pinback buttons in the 1970s supporting coal mining efforts as an effort to highlight the positive impact of coal on jobs and the economy. 

Indigo text and Reebok logo within basketball outline on a coral background.

Reebok’s “The Pump” was a line of high-top basketball shoes released on November 24, 1989.  At the time of release, The Pump cost $170, the highest priced sneaker on the market by $70.  The model quickly became popular in the 1990s.  The artist Gary Simmons immortalized the shoe in his 1991 piece titled “Pump It Up”, featuring bronzed Reebok sneakers on a plexiglass shelf.

Red bar stool behind cut-out black letters on an eggshell background.

ELF Miniatures is a British company that specializes in making dollhouse furniture and other miniatures such as cars. Most of their items are produced on a 1:12 scale, while others are produced using other scales such a 1:24 scale. ELF manufactures scaled-down versions of kitchen, dining room, and bedroom furniture including barstools, sofas, and beds.

A laughing clown outlined in black surrounded by black text on a yellow background.  

Howard’s Trophy Shop is located in San Fernando, California. It provides custom engraved plaques and trophies.

A yellow oil container bearing the Chevrolet label is outlined in red on a yellow background with red text on the upper right and a red stripe on the bottom left.

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Massachusetts General Hospital Utility Multi-Programming System (MUMPS) is a data management programming language developed in 1966 at Massachusetts General Hospital by Digital Equipment Corporation. The software is noted for its “built-in” database, and its access through variable input rather than queries or sequences. It was designed for the healthcare industry, specifically for admissions and laboratory testing reports, and is still used in the medical field today. Digital Equipment Corporation was a highly successful computer company that ran from 1957-1998.

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Toyota Motor Corporation is a Japanese motor vehicle manufacturer that was founded in 1937. They are currently headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi in Japan. Toyota is a current top 5 seller of vehicles in the United States.

Build quality is a term for how well the car is manufactured. Factors that influence build quality include how many repairs it needs, cost and ease of maintenance, comfort, interior noise, aerodynamic drive, miles per gallon of gasoline, and more. Although a car may look aesthetically pleasing on the exterior, which may initially interest a buyer, what keeps buyers satisfied for longer periods of ownership is a good build quality.

Many American consumers look for things that are manufactured in America to consider the quality of them by seeing the build and how things are made. In many American vehicle factories, the production has a layer of transparency to the public seeing what is going on by offering tours or promoting upcoming changes. With foreign manufacturers, the in-person build quality experience is more difficult for the American public to see. Beginning in the 1980s, Honda and Toyota started manufacturing certain parts in America to win over the American audience with a "Made in America" seal of approval on their vehicles.

Lowercase, typewriter font, right-aligned, first four words in blue and last word in red, to the right of gold type division logo on a white background.

A typographer is someone who specializes in the art of typography. The ATF (American Type Founders) was an amalgamation of 23 type foundries in the United States created in 1892. It represented about 85% of all type manufactured in the U.S. and until its dissolution in 1993 it was the most important type foundry in the country.

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Motobécane, founded in 1923, was a French manufacturer of motorcycles, bicycles, motorized bicycles, and mopeds. The company’s name was derived from two French slang terms: “moto” (for motorcycle) and “bécane” (for bicycle). After World War II, when demand for efficient and inexpensive transportation soared, Motobécane introduced an early moped called the Mobylette. Motobécane also took over production of the the VeloSoleX moped brand 1974.

Moped production increased in the 1970s due to the energy crisis and inflation. The Solex 4600 (known as “The Horse”) was introduced to the United States by Motobécane in 1974 and was noted for its fuel economy of 218 miles/gallon. Motobécane declared bankruptcy in 1981 and was purchased by Yamaha. Renamed MBK, the company produces scooters for the European market. The Motobécane brand name is currently used by a U.S. company that imports bicycles manufactured in Taiwan. Vintage Motobécane mopeds are still popular among moped enthusiasts.

Moped madness. (1977, July 4). Time, 110(1), 72.