Yes, I've seen the "I'm an idiot" t-shirt - in French of course. I've seen some other really bad ones, too. Last year on this university campus a girl was walking around with a t-shirt that clearly stated "lick my p***y." One of my colleagues, her teacher at the time, took it up himself to tell her what it meant. I'm not sure I would have had the gumption. Fortunately, though, she took it quite well and didn't wear the shirt again.

A few years back I came across an article that described how the same problem was popping up in stores all over China. One that I remember clearly was a situation where the produce manager in a large supermarket had asked a foreigner to help him by writing a sign in English that was to have said "Fresh Fruit." The foreigner had a sick but admittedly funny sense of humor; thus, the sign displayed in the fruit section for all to see read, "F**k the Fruit."

Other signs are just plain funny. Last year, at the Xi'an airport, I went looking for the hot water room so that I could mix some instant coffee and not have to pay a ridiculous price for a cup of coffee. Above the hot water dispenser was a sign that read, "Carefully scalds." I almost changed my mind about the coffee.