Rejected Names from the National Zoo contest...

Stew, I share your zealous, mock outrage over the National Zoo's (U.S.) complete ripoff of the contest you started on this web site.

Having recently been to the National Zoo, I am especially troubled that they did not consult me in the design of the contest, although to be fair, I was there before you came up with the idea. Nonetheless, that's why these zoo people get the big bucks, to forsee the kind of zany ideas that people like us will derive from thinking about people like them.

I intend to write the National Zoo to set them straight (and also garner a meager amount of publicity for this blog.)

In the meantime, since this is nominally a comedy blog, here are some names I'm certain were rejected in the U.S. National Zoo's "Name the Baby Panda Contest."

• Zoom Zoom
• Wang Chung (an oldie but a goodie)
• Wo Fat
• Teddy Ruxspin
• Wang Wang
• Wayne Wang
• Fu Manchu
• Panda-monium
• Ding Ding
• Herbie
• Pootie Tang
• Ka-Ching Ka-Ching
• Gilbert
• Kung Pow (or Kung Pao)
• Flipper