Posted on 07/15/2010 3:40:10 PM PDT by JoeProBono
FORT WORTH, Texas- A Texas woman said her father receives so much junk mail that his house is full of letters and on a recent day he received 96 pieces of mail.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported the Fort Worth woman and her 81-year-old father, whose names were not released by the newspaper, said the man's house is littered with junk mail, including a 3 1/2-foot pile of letters on his breakfast table.
The woman said her father, who received 96 pieces of junk mail Monday alone, gives about $2,500 a year to various charities and began receiving junk mail in amounts too large to fit through his mail slot about a year ago.
The daughter said she has been mailing the companies to ask them to take her father off their mailing lists, but the process has been slow.
"How many others is this happening to?" the daughter asked. "This isn't right. Our seniors shouldn't be treated this way."
I concur. I have given to a lot of different charities, political advocacy groups, and candidates over the years.
The deluge of solicitations I receive every time I open my mailbox is startling to say the least.
No good deed goes unpunished, I guess.
^^^
Many of these groups sell or rent their mailing lists and make good money on it.
They become obsessed.
It's a sin.
They think they have to save the world.
But it's just pissin' on a forest fire.
Wasting what little time they have left to enjoy themselves.
Wow. You’re fiendish. :p
Have you seen what they charge for stuff? That’s why. I never buy anything from them, it’s waaaaay too expensive.
charities sell mailing lists
I got pretty nasty with PBS some years back when I realized they sell subscriber’s mailing lists. Course that was before I realized how far off base they are with their “newscasts”. My letter did stop their mailings to me. Now if I can just convince AARP to get off my back. They are better than they used to be but they resurface once or twice a year.
This is a male version of my MIL. She thrived on junk mail. It was the highlight of her life. She had one of those neighborhood mail boxes, which created a mess for the poor delivery person, since she would only pick up her mail once a week. The mail would fill her box, our box, then at least one of the large boxes, sometimes two. I am sure that many times the other neighbors wouldn’t be able to get their mail or packages due to the habits of my MIL.
Unfortunately for us her mail is now sent to our address. She is now in a home and we are responsible for her bills. The past year or so it has dwindled down, but at first it was overwhelming.
This is a male version of my MIL. She thrived on junk mail. It was the highlight of her life. She had one of those neighborhood mail boxes, which created a mess for the poor delivery person, since she would only pick up her mail once a week. The mail would fill her box, our box, then at least one of the large boxes, sometimes two. I am sure that many times the other neighbors wouldn’t be able to get their mail or packages due to the habits of my MIL.
Unfortunately for us her mail is now sent to our address. She is now in a home and we are responsible for her bills. The past year or so it has dwindled down, but at first it was overwhelming.
Install a wood stove, free winter heat, problem solved.
If you are 81 or a caregiver, you're not a very perceptive one. I hope you're neither! LOL!
I thought non-profits don’t pay for postage.
“I thought non-profits don’t pay for postage.”
They get a special rate:
http://pe.usps.com/businessmail101/misc/nonprofitQualifications.htm
I can’t tell exactly what it is, but it’s less.
An enterprising person could offer a service where they intercept the mail, sort out the junk and deliver what the recipient wants.
Take all the junk mail and ground it up into presto logs to use for fuel for heating in the winter.
I know of some people that deliberately try to get as much junk mail as they can, especially big catalogs and they do indeed use it for heating up here in Alaska. All one needs is to rent a concrete grout mixer for a day or two, soak all your paper beforehand until its basically mush and then pour it into some molds and let it dry.
The really good way is to compress it into cylinders and squeeze all the water out. But any way about it as long as junk mail is free I have no problem getting a whole lot, it burns quite well.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.