Satiric Misspelling - Currency Signs Replacing Similar Letters

Currency Signs Replacing Similar Letters

The dollar sign ($) can be inserted in the place of the letter "S", the euro sign (€) in place of "E", the yen (¥) sign in place of "Y", the won (₩) sign in place of "W", or the pound (£) sign in place of "L" to indicate plutocracy, greed, corruption, or the perceived immoral, unethical, or pathological accumulation of money. For example:

• Bu$h (George W. Bush, George Herbert Walker Bush, or any member of the Bush family),
• E$$o / €$$o (Esso or Exxon Mobil): used by the UK-based Stop Esso campaign encouraging people to boycott Esso, in protest against Esso's opposition to the Kyoto Protocol
• "Green Chri$tma$", a song by Stan Freberg, satirizing over-commercialization of Christmas
• Micro$oft, M$, M$FT (Microsoft): used to emphasize the allegation that Microsoft has business practices that focus on making money rather than producing good products or looking after the end user's needs and interests. Microsoft was found to have violated United States anti-trust law by taking unfair advantage of its monopoly position by giving Internet Explorer away for free to anyone who purchased a Windows or Macintosh computer and pre-installing it on Windows computers so that you can use the internet right out of the box. See also: Criticism of Microsoft. A relevant misspelling is had in Microsoft's founder's name, Bill Gate$, and another relevant misspelling in the current CEO's name, $teve Ba££mer.
• App£e, (Apple Inc.): used in a similar way as Micro$oft, but with the Apple company. Relates to the allegation that the company charges high prices for their products. Also criticized for taking advantage of loyal customers and upgrading products annually for an expensive price. Similarly, $teve Job$ is used for the company's former chief executive just like "Bill Gate$" is used for Microsoft's former chief executive. See also Criticism of Apple Inc. for a full list.
• Co$, or $cientology (Church of Scientology): used by opponents to the Church of Scientology to imply that the religion is founded solely on financial rather than spiritual motives.
• Ru$$ia (Russia): used in reference to perceived corruption in the country.
• Uncle $am (Uncle Sam)
• United $tates, United $tate$, U$, U$A (United States).
• Wa$hington (Washington).
• kla$$ (class) used to draw attention to the belief that American citizens are widely and unfairly ranked solely on terms of their material wealth
• Lar$ Used by critics of Lars Ulrich after he and Metallica sued and ultimately closed down Napster.
• Orac£e (Oracle Corporation): Used by critics of Oracle Corporation after they acquired Sun Microsystems and their habit of being a patent troll (used in a similar way as M$ and App£e). "£arry €££i$on" is also used to insult Oracle Corporation in a similar way as "Bill Gate$".
• ￦indo￦$ (Microsoft Windows): used for critics of Microsoft Windows in a similar way as Micro$oft (see also Criticism of Microsoft Windows).
• G$$gle
• $ocialism (Socialism): Critics have pointed out that the idea of socialism has been exploited for profit, by politicians, corporations and artists. In particular as a criticism of Michael Moore.

• $on¥
• Ke$ha: Pop music artist.

A recent related usage is replacing "E" with the Euro sign ("€") as in "I€€€" (used by critics of the copyright policy of the IEEE), "€$$O", "€urope", and "€C" (used by critics of the European Commission who accuse it of involvement in bribery and corruption).