It was bound to happen sooner or later.
The crappy “P” word that most bloggers get hit with from time to time. You know, that word that means that content you have thought about, slaved over, and typity, typity, typed until your typer was sore was taken and put forth as someone else’s work and glory.
Yup.
PLAGIARISM.
I woke up today to information that my post on blogging jealousy had been copied, cut, tweaked slightly and pasted on the site of Miss Maria Francesca Ditas Chantal Cristina Molina Szabo. (You can all call her, Mia. Or “Coffee Girl”. )
See a staggering similarity?
Some people are of the mind, “I am not going to send you to their site because I don’t want to give them traffic.” Which is a fine attitude to have, but frankly, I could care less about that. Go if you want and say hi to Maria “Mia” Szabo. Don’t send death threats or anything, and if you do chastise her, your comments won’t see the light of day as they are all moderated. I would hurry, though. I fired off a comment demanding that she take it down.
If she doesn’t?
Lorelle has EXCELLENT ideas for going after someones ass when they steal content. And girlfriend left plenty of information (which I have copied and saved) to find her. Dude, don’t piss me off, people. I am the most lovable person on the planet until you cross THAT line. Then? I turn into a monster of rage and storming death that flings her unteathered bosoms and wrath at lame gas station attendants while wearing pajamas and a fugly hairdo. (For the record on this post? Judy still sucks. Just in case you were wondering.)
The immature part of me wants to egg her car and toilet paper her house. Hopefully, I will calm down and realize I am 33 instead of 12 and refrain from doing so. Heh.
Seriously though, it makes me feel more than a little upset that this person has a lecture and a Creative Commons button right at the tip top of her page chastising people about stealing content!
And apparently, she is going to be a lawyer.
Balls of brass, this one has.
Let me get something straight: I NEVER MIND PEOPLE WHO REPUBLISH MY WORK WITH PERMISSION, CREDIT AND LINKS ATTACHED. I also never mind people who “Copy” an idea. I have a post and they want to take the ball and run with it, too. That is beyond flattering.
Also? When I first started blogging and was clueless about the internet I didn’t understand intellectual property in regards to photos and art clips. I was stealing without meaning to. Once I learned? I try damn hard to never, ever do it. However, I have known since the age of 5 that copying other peoples written work and passing it off as your own is wrong, wrong, wrogity wrong.
THIS?
Is theft.
Pure and simple.
No if’s and’s or but’s about it.
I hate that my words have been taken and bastardized.
I almost feel like I have caught someone trying on my underwear.
It’s an icky feeling, people.
ICKY.
**UPDATE**
A reader sent this to me. Apparently all of mianeedscoffee’s accounts also link to this public bulletin about dating scam artist. The emails listed coordinate with the email information she used on this blog and so does the photo.
Seems Mia Szabo (Also known as Mia Szabo-Bautista)was a loan officer in Las Vegas who ripped off $75,000 from at least 4 people. She has also taken to posing as a representative for a consulting company lately. Color me totally not surprised.
http://www.stop-scammers.com/scammer.asp?id=4023
She has a new blog: http://diaryofaretailtherapist.blogspot.com/. Invitation only. Comments closed. Go, figure. Also, her married name may now be Maria Szasbo Bergman and may be living in New York. I have no idea if this is true, nothing can be counted as truth when it comes to her, it seems. She may be faking her entire marriage on the internet for all I know.
I get emails from her victims almost every month. One victim was from SCOTLAND.
One of the saddest, sickest things I’ve ever seen.
How goes the Mia Files? I SOOOO want to be there in court and see her jaw drop when she sees all of us. Hmm…I wonder if I can add flight fees to her case…lol. She kept threatening ME that she would stick me with ALL legal fees should it come to that.
@Scott, I am truly sorry that you got mixed up with her as well. She’s a heartless person indeed.
Like you my “friendship” with her started on Myspace, then we both made the leap to facebook. She allowed me to read her blogs (errr..the blogs she stole from others)–even wanted me to be a guest writer on her page! I don’t even blog…
She is a pretty damn good actress, acting all sweet and nice…NEVER would I have guessed that she’s the exact opposite of what portrays. My own personal ordeal with her is over, I’m willing to bet she scammed another person to pay me back–
If we all band together, Mia will go down in a ball of flames, and by the sounds of things, there won’t be anyone to bail her ass out.
Heads up her mariabergman@collector.org email is still active. I just got a cancelled paypal request this morning, stating SHE cancelled it, not paypal.
The lovely Mia’s Birthday is July 3. I say we bombard her with texts…what a spectacular way to spend her “special day” with hate texts. Childish I know….
Haha … I like the way you think. I second that!
Diane….I remember when she was supposedly selling purses, too. I know people will probably think that my husband & I are crazy for sending her that money, but why in the world would we expect to be scammed by a friend from High school?! She even offered to throw in tickets for our kids as an “anniversary present” for us. He talked to her on the phone & everything.
Oh, and her new blog is: TheMainLineStartsHere.blogspot.com
OMG!! YES!!! She said that if I sent it via Western Union and the like, that she would throw in a wallet.
THEN…..after me getting the price wrong or her changing it (thought it was one price, then she said I owed a ‘balance’) she said she’d throw in sunglasses and some other item for “free”.
I waited 9 weeks to get a partial “refund”, and still waiting for the “balance”, that I don’t think I’ll ever see.
Did you ever get your money back? I’m shocked that she would do this to you, a childhood friend. Then again…I saw a post about her taking a childhood friend of 6 figures…may have been on here.
Forget to mention….once she was going to throw the other items in for “free” I got suspicious. I’d bet the bags were either never hers, fakes, or just claim it got lost in the mail and we’d be SOL.