Thanks to some text message-savvy grandchildren, North Carolina drivers whose license plates have the potentially offensive "WTF" letter combination can replace the tags for free.
The News & Observer of Raleigh reported Tuesday the state Division of Motor Vehicles has notified nearly 10,000 holders of license plates with the letter combination. Officials learned last year the common acronym stands for a vulgar phrase in e-mail and cell phone text messages.
But this week, the DMV officials got another surprise when they learned the same letters appeared on the agency's own Web site on a sample personalized plate.
"I can't believe it," DMV Commissioner Bill Gore said Monday when told about the online glitch. "Obviously, I didn't know it was there."
Officials are working to remove the sample plate.
The "WTF-5505" used on the Web site's sample plate was the first random letter combination available when DMV switched from blue- to red-lettered plates, officials said. DMV spokeswoman Marge Howell received a sample plate WTF-5506 to use as a prop for news stories about the switch.
A 60-year-old technology teacher from Fayetteville complained about the plate last July after her teenage grandchildren clued her in.
OMFG! There's always some stupid kid who has to screw things up for everybody by telling.
I, for one, feel much better knowing that I or my children won't have to be exposed to potentially vulgar acronyms.
oh, man, I so would have requested that for a plate.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you could get a vanity plate with just WTF on it.
ReplyDeleteSrsly, they learned about it *last year*? What rocks have they been living under?
ReplyDelete::facepalm::
Too bad Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is too long. ::g::
So I have to wonder, how many people would it take calling up and complaining about the prefix 2ZB, which of course means nothing, and going on about how it's such a sick and depraved acronym to get them to outlaw it?
ReplyDeleteAre ZOMG, LOL, and ROFL still acceptable? What about the old-school ROTFLMAO?
ReplyDeleteI wish I could have one of these plates.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if RTFM is still okay? And I wonder how slim the license plate stacks have gotten because of socalled offensive words and such?
What about people who have plates with that combination and don't WANT to trade them in? Will they now be subject to tickets for having an obscene license plate?
ReplyDeleteLMAO. I want one. Expect to see them on eBay soon.
ReplyDeleteI tried once to get: BAD DRVR
Denied.