The Right Not to Be Annoyed

[Terri]

The Right Not to Be Annoyed

Doug Patton
GOPUSA
June 30, 2003

One of the drawbacks to having a column published from sea to shining sea each week is depending on the news of the day to spur my creative juices. Some weeks are so devoid of newsworthy items that it is like having a tooth yanked trying to squeeze out 600 to 700 words on any topic of interest, even to me. Other weeks are so chock full of news stories that make the blood boil that it is nearly impossible to choose just one on which to opine.

This last week was one of the latter. From the overreaching decisions handed down by our schizophrenic Supreme Court to the release of the sizzling, destined-to-be-bestseller, "Treason," by take-no-prisoners author Ann Coulter, the last week of June 2003 was a week in which a column a day could have been generated.

But by week's end, the story that caught my attention and reminded me once more why the Founders desired to see federal power severely limited when they put together the brilliant yet simple language of the U.S. Constitution, was the newly-created national "do-not-call" list.

The rest (http://www.gopusa.com/dougpatton/dp_0630.shtml)

[ALLEN L. WELLS]

http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif I USUALLY ENJOY READY DOUG PATTON, BUT ON THIS ONE I TAKE EXCEPTION TO WHAT HE THINKS. *RIGHT UP FRONT THIS IS MY POLICY - I DON'T BUY ANYTHING FROM A TELEMARKETER. *MR. PATTON SAYS THERE ARE SEVERAL OTHER SOLUTIONS AVAILABLE TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM - TELEZAPPERS AND CALLER I.D. *BOTH OF THESE RESOLUTIONS COST ME MONEY. *WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO PAY ANYTHING TO KEEP ME FROM BEING BUGGED BY PEOPLE TRYING TO SELL ME SOMETHING. *I DON'T CONSIDER THIS A RIGHT NOT TO BE ANNOYED. *I CONSIDER THIS AN INVASION OF MY PRIVACY. *I PAY FOR MY TELEPHONE SERVICE AND I DON'T CONSIDER THAT ANY UNSOLICITED BUSINESS HAS THE RIGHT TO USE A SERVICE THAT I PAY FOR. *IF I WANT SOMETHING THEY HAVE I WILL CALL THEM. *I DON'T FEEL BAD THAT MY ATTITUDE WILL EFFECT THOUSANDS OF JOBS. *THESE JOBS WERE CREATED AT THE EXPENSE OF MY PRIVACY AND TELEPHONE SERVICE. *NOTHING IS MORE AGGRAVATING THAN RECEIVING TELEMARKETING CALL WHILE YOU ARE TRYING TO EAT YOUR DINNER BY SOMEONE WHO DOESN'T SPEAK ENGLISH VERY WELL. *I HAVE THE SOLUTION FOR MR. PATTON'S PROBLEM - IF HE WANTS TO CONTINUE TO RECEIVE TELEMARKETER CALLS - NO PROBLEM - DO NOT SIGN UP FOR THE "DO NOT CALL" PROGRAM. *I ONLY HAVE ONE QUESTION FOR MR. PATTON - WHAT IS YOUR CONNECTION TO THE TELEMARKETING INDUSTRY?

[RightOnIt]

Allen, I agree with you completely. I consider myself very "pro-business," but I completely disagree with Patton's editorial. *He must have been a tele-marketer in a previous life. *I object to government intrusion, but this registry is not an example of it. * *I believe that citizens have the right not to be bothered by telemarketers. *If a salesman is not invited into your home, then he shouldn't be there-- and that includes being annoyed by unwanted telephone calls. All the government is doing is allowing citizens to prevent this intrusion. *I'm all for that!! And if the government started a registry to prevent internet spam, I would be for that too!!*http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/flag17.gif

[pRIMrose]

Quote[/b] ]Personally, I would rather be secure in my right not to be blown up by the terrorist cells that are under our noses and whose members can come and go freely across the thousands of miles of porous borders you don't seem willing to close, thank you very much. But hey, that's just me.

http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/peepwallA.gif I really have mixed emotions about this service. If I had to make a choice, the above mentioned would be top of the list.

On the other hand, I don't give a flying fig about whether telemarketers lose their jobs. Guess I'm just mean spirited. http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/devil.gif But there is some merit in having caller ID. I wish it was available in my area. Not just to identify telemarketers, but so I would know who is calling before I pick up the phone. I have an answering machine, but very rarely let it take my calls.

I've learned to "play the game" and kinda enjoy it when I get hold of a telemarketer. There are numerous ways to get rid of them. There is usually a delay when you answer and say "hello." That's a dead giveaway. So I wait till someone comes on and says something and just hang up. Sometimes I'll just keep saying "hello, hello, hello" ~ and then hang up. Every now and then I tell them that I'm just the maid "bridgette." But like Doug says, "that's just me." http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif I'm retired and have lots of time to play games. http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laff.gif

[Constitutional American]

Interesting perspective from Mr. Patton. I never thought of the "do not call list" as government intrusion.
Hmmm.... http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

In the interest of full-disclosure, I added my name to the list as soon as I could but I might be persuaded by the argument that this is unnecesary government oversight.
I see telemarketers as the equivalent of door-to-door salespeople. You can hang up the phone just as easily as you can slam the door.
Is it rude?
Who cares...

PRIMrose,
Quote[/b] ]Every now and then I tell them that I'm just the maid "bridgette."
http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif
I like to play games too RIM.
I work weekends, so my days off are Monday & Tuesday. Usually I let the answering machine screen my calls on those days but if I do anwer the phone I've been known to affect a cheesy accent & claim to be "hired help".
I'm sort of lucky in that I have a hard to pronounce last name so I can always tell when someone who doesn't know me is calling. *When they ask for "Mr. BlahBlahBlah" I can, in all honesty, tell them that no one with that name can be reached at this number. I'm not sure if they are somehow penalized for calling the wrong person, but they seem to be very apologetic when they assume that they've reached a "wrong number"
Perhaps that's the secret to getting off the list?

[FreeNdeed]

I'll admit I was happy about this "no call list" myself when I heard it on Fox. I hadn't considered that it was an intrusion by the govenment.(I'll have to think on this now of course) Although I won't add my name to it because I have no problem telling them no or simply hanging up the phone. I've had the pleasure of knowing a few telemarketers and the ones I've known could care less that they're disrupting whatever you're doing when they call. They also don't mind telling you a lie even when the truth would have served better. So I just imagine I'm speaking to one of these people and hit the hangup button on the phone. http://gopusa.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif