Do Not Call list imperiled

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 12/5/4 | David Lazarus

[SmithL]

About 66 million Americans have signed up for the national Do Not Call Registry, resoundingly declaring their desire not to be bothered by telemarketers.

"It's been a wild success," acknowledged Allen Hile, a spokesman for the Federal Trade Commission in Washington.

So why mess with it?

That's what the FTC says it may do in response to a petition from Voice Mail Broadcasting Corp., a Southern California direct-marketing firm that specializes in blitzing consumers with prerecorded phone messages.

The company argues that the Federal Communications Commission allows such calls under certain circumstances, which is true, and that all it wants is for the two agencies overseeing the Do Not Call list to be in harmony -- and, not coincidentally, to unite in authorizing prerecorded calls.

Not so fast, say consumer advocates. If the FTC changes its guidelines, people could be deluged with the phone equivalent of spam.

"It literally could open the floodgates to unwanted telemarketing," said Chris Hoofnagle, associate director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a Washington advocacy group.

[proudofthesouth]

I agree with you on both points.

[SledgeCS]

I have been on the Colorado DoNotCall list since it was available... When one of these idiots call me now I do the following... I always sound interested but kinda stupid and ask for everything to be explained to me at least 3-4 times... I always try to get the call to last at least 30-45 minutes, which is real easy (ask questions, say things like "Really", WOW", "Ya kiddin me", "Why didn't I think of that", "Is this for real???")... I also try to get as much info as I can (Company name, address, city, state, Phone #)...

After as long as I can hold them on the line (and for some reason I cant find my wallet and then I try to find my Mom's wallet, ya can hear em drooling), I then inform them that I cant sign up for anything without talking to my friend... By this time I can burn an easy 30 min of the scums time, when I worked for MCI, I kept hearing from the Telemarketers Supe as I walked by was this "SIGN THEM UP OR HANG UP".

They make they money selling and hate to waste time so waste their time and then laugh as you hang up...

SLedgeCS

[Safrguns]

Anyone who supports the "Do not call" laws has no right at all to complain about government spending, because they are unable to give up their pork. I don't agree with this at all... Pork is useless spending... Especially useless spending of federal dollars for local projects which don't benefit all states. This is one federal program I was glad to see implemented, and if you want to call it pork, then I'm a big fat pig. SmithL, The only thing more irritating to me than a telemarketer is an automated telemarketer... you cannot abuse them, waste their time (like they waste mine), or hang up on them with any satisfaction that they won't call back again. Any idiot who lets this go through as a valid loop-hole around the do-not-call list is just asking to put the phone book companies out of business... Because that's my next move... to go unlisted.

[Awestruck]

alot like amway...snicker

[EGPWS]

alot like amway...snicker

LoL!!!

[Zack Attack]

The article is about allowing pre-recorded calls to customers on the DNC list.

DNC? Does this mean the DNC can't call you? If so, count me in. :o)

[Mark was here]

This makes absolutely NO sense at all.

What part about expanding the government is over your head?

[Mark was here]

This is one federal program I was glad to see implemented, and if you want to call it pork, then I'm a big fat pig.

This is why the dollar is headed to the dust bin. No one is willing to have the government down sized, and live with in it's means.

Just as the stock market went thru the dot com bust, so will the dollar, because it is only backed up by thin air.

Would you take an IOU from someone in bankruptcy? That is what the dollar is, The only way to halt the slide is to cut government spending.

I too find the calls a pain in the rear, but the collapse of the dollar will be worse, and who will be taking the blame?

Surely not those glad to see the government expand.

[Safrguns]

So the dollar is going to go bust because of the federal no-call list? Please! Don't get me wrong... I'm all for downsizing and the elimination of pork spending. I just don't think this program qualifies. 66 million people seem to agree.

[PistolPaknMama]

the change wouldn't result in a tsunami of unwanted telemarketing. It would instead allow consumers to stay in touch with favorite companies.

"People like getting messages, but it has to be a relevant message," Crowe said. "If there's a place where you like shopping, you'll probably want to know when they're having the biggest sale of the year."

These people are despicable. What part of "Do Not Call" don't they understand? If consumers want to stay in touch with favorite companies, surely they know where the company is located in their area. And if it's a "place where you like shopping" then probably you shop there enough to see the signs about the "biggest sale of the year."

Do Not Call means don't call my house -- ever! If I want to do business with you, I will come to your store or find you online. I pay for my phone line, I pay for the phones attached to those phone lines. They do not have my permission to convert my equipment to their business use.

[xm177e2]

"It literally could open the floodgates to unwanted telemarketing," said Chris Hoofnagle, associate director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a Washington advocacy group.

Somebody slap this guy. There are no "literal" "floodgates."

[69ConvertibleFirebird]

...I just hang up.

Every one else can hang up also.

That's just plain not true. My answering machine can't hang up. Then I have to sift through all of the harassing telemarketing calls each evening when I get home from work, trying to find the non-telemarketing calls. It wastes **my** time and money.

[PistolPaknMama]

that's my next move... to go unlisted

Doesn't matter. They have systems that place calls in sequence....444-1212 then 444-1213 then 444-1214.

[Safrguns]

Oh great!....
Well, thank God for caller id!

[Mark was here]

So the dollar is going to go bust because of the federal no-call list? Please!

Don't get me wrong... I'm all for downsizing and the elimination of pork spending. I just don't think this program qualifies. 66 million people seem to agree.

Of course this is not the straw that broke the camels back, but it is a piece of straw.

Why should any other special interest group fold, when they all feel equally if not more entitled?

This is no different than any other situation where the NOT IN MY BACKYARD folks come out for something in THE OTHER GUYS YARD.

[Mark was here]

That's just plain not true. My answering machine can't hang up. Then I have to sift through all of the harassing telemarketing calls each evening when I get home from work, trying to find the non-telemarketing calls. It wastes **my** time and money.

Try to hit the "Next" button.

I do not doubt for a second that telemarketers are a pain.

My objection is with people running to the Feds and asking for a bigger government.

[It's me]

That won't work. It's a recorded message.

[discostu]

One of the legitimate acts of government is to protect the property rights of citizens from other citizens who refuse to respect them. That's all the do not call list is, if the telemarketers had learned to take no for an answer everything would have been fine, but they wouldn't. It's no different than calling the cops because your neighbor won't stop throwing trash in your yard.

[69ConvertibleFirebird]

Try to hit the "Next" button.

First explain to me how this doesn't use my time and money to do so.

If someone/multiple people were to come to my door five times per evening, during dinner, where all I would have to do is open the door and say "next", yes, I would also insist that there be some kind of recourse for me to put a stop to this. No, I don't consider trespassing and/or private property laws to be BIG govt run amok either. If we repealed trespassing laws we would save a LOT of govt. money trying to enforce them.

[Constantine XIII]

Please put down the crackpipe. Gently there... :P