[size=8pt][size=8pt][/size][/size]You might ask why we talk about Nigerian 419 fraud rather than Mexican 386 fraud.  Good question.  You see in 1947, the internet service in Mexico was really lousy.  I think they must have been on dial-up.  Anyway the internet service was so lousy that they actually ran the scam using snail-mail.  Even with stamps at three cents, the costs would add up.  You had to really qualify your prospects as they say in marketing  so it was only a select few that were solicited rather than just about everybody.

The Response
I seem to have struck a nerve.  There has been quite a bit of commentary on my piece, which is an indication of how bad the maligning of Nigerians has been.  It is bad enough that when someone mentions internet fraud, the next thing that pops into people’s minds is Nigeria.  What is much worse is that when someone mentions Nigeria, the next thing that pops into many people’s minds is internet fraud.  I recall being in a cab with a friend of mine.  We started chatting with the driver who mentioned he was from Nigeria.  Right away my friend starts talking about 419. 
Chika Uwazie,A Nigerian talks about the need for Nigerians to do positive branding, which is what gave me an idea.

The Idea
So here is my idea.  Make lists of 419 reasons to like Nigeria and Nigerians.  Do not even mention that the list is in any way a response to internet fraud.  Do not say anything about internet  fraud.  If enough people do this and it might not really be that many, then when someone puts “Nigeria 419″ into a search engine he or she will be swamped with positive messages about Nigeria.  My woeful ignorance will probably make my own attempt in this regard quite unsatisfactory, but stay tuned for the next part of the series.

About Comments
You may be reading this on a site other than forbes.com.  Go ahead and comment, but your comment will probably spread further if you then log onto Forbes and leave a comment there.  I never delete comments except for obvious spam.  I almost always call out comments that disagree with me.  If you want to mock me, do it on Forbes.  I will definitely call out your comment and may make it the subject of a future post.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/peterjreilly/2011/08/28/419-reasons-to-like-nigeria-and-nigerians-part-1/

not romantic

very romantic

, crickets,

This romantic post of your is as boring as hell. I can't believe I read thru this piece of shit

^^^
You read through? You try oooo

Yes bro I wanted to see the end of his novel

419

The article has been edited\summarised.Note that,this is not a romance story but an article.I didn't know the right place to post it,so I posted the article on the romance section as it is one of the most visited sections.