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Spam king lives large off others' e-mail troubles
The Detroit Freepress ^ | November 22, 2002 | Mike Wendland

Posted on 11/22/2002 9:33:39 AM PST by cebadams

Edited on 05/07/2004 7:12:47 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]

You might call it the house that spam built.

Alan Ralsky's brand new 8,000-square-foot luxury home near Halsted and Maple in West Bloomfield has been a busy place this month. Outside, landscapers worked against the November cold to get a sprinkler system installed before the ground freezes. Inside, painters prepared to hang wallpaper.


(Excerpt) Read more at freep.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Michigan
KEYWORDS: ralsky; spam
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To: cebadams
"Someone even left a package of what appeared to be dog feces."

Har!!

Hey,...you don't suppose they set the package on fire, rang the doorbell and ran way do you...?

21 posted on 11/22/2002 10:13:52 AM PST by martin gibson
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To: cebadams
Someone even left a package of what appeared to be dog feces

That's about how I feel about Ralsky.

22 posted on 11/22/2002 10:18:24 AM PST by stainlessbanner
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To: tscislaw
What makes the TV commercials (and bulk junk "snail" mail) more legitimate than bulk email?? Why should'nt Proctor and Gamble, Ford, and McDonalds' "get theirs"?

TV commercials pay for the programming. SPAM gives nothing back but headaches. The analogy that better suits your argument is the advertisements on web sites. They pay for the free content.

23 posted on 11/22/2002 10:24:48 AM PST by TrappedInLiberalHell
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To: cebadams
You can just have your computer on, connected to the Internet, reading e-mail or just idling and, bam, this program detects your presence and up pops the message on your screen, past firewalls, past anti-spam programs, past anything.
There are people in this world who have to be taken out. Osama bin Ladin is one ...
24 posted on 11/22/2002 10:25:09 AM PST by VadeRetro
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To: tscislaw
It's interesting to see people get fired up about this, yet they'll allow "unsolicted" commercials to bombard them while they watch TV. Nobody seems to get upset about that.

"Unsolicited" TV commercials cost me nothing. I can change the channel or cancel the cable service carrying them. Spam costs me time and money, costs my service provider time and money, and costs bandwidth providers time and money, out of pocket.

What makes the TV commercials (and bulk junk "snail" mail) more legitimate than bulk email?? Why should'nt Proctor and Gamble, Ford, and McDonalds' "get theirs"?

Because Procter and Gamble, Ford, etc. are paying the going market rate for their messages to be broadcast on TV channels. Spammers pay nothing but the stinking little dialup they use to inject their crap into open servers, if they even pay for that. Spammers expect the rest of us to subsidize their advertising costs, and that's theft and its wrong.

If you don't like commercials, turn off the TV...if you don't like bulk email, use filters.

If you don't like people taking money from your pockets, get stronger pockets. Right?

Now, having said all that, I will side with ISP's that are struggling with bandwidth overload because of bulk email.

That's big of you. And spammers are a good chunk of the reason they are struggling. Businesses who continually, involuntarily have product stolen from them go out of business at shocking rates.

25 posted on 11/22/2002 10:25:23 AM PST by strela
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To: cebadams
I went on vacation for 4 weeks and had nearly 700 emails when I got back. All but about 6 were spam. It's out of control to the point where my email address has been criminally hijacked beyond any point of usefulness.

I now have a new email address I give to friends, family and legitimate businesses that I hope to keep out of the hands of spammers.

26 posted on 11/22/2002 10:26:44 AM PST by tdadams
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To: AdA$tra
Agreed! However, if the advertisement includes a fax number, feel free to fax them a roll of toilet paper

Actually, it would be better to loop a piece of "black" paper through the FAX. Goodbye print cartridge(s)!

27 posted on 11/22/2002 10:28:25 AM PST by N. Theknow
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To: AdA$tra
"Git a rope!"

YEAH! We'll need a few ropes! I need a rope for all those dang commercials on MY television set. What gives them the right to interrupt my football games?! It's MY tv, I paid for it with MY money, I paid for my cable access so I can watch FOOTBALL!!!! Not commercials!

Hey... come to think of it, we need to hang those dang telemarketers too! Yeah, and then we can go after the jerks that put up those stupid billboards that I have to see everytime I drive down the highway! Amd then, we can........

28 posted on 11/22/2002 10:29:37 AM PST by Hatteras
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To: stainlessbanner
I hope somebody burns the damn house down, with his sorry ass in it. Vigilante action is the only thing that will stop spam.
29 posted on 11/22/2002 10:29:43 AM PST by hunter112
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To: cebadams
"There are probably about 150 major spammers who are responsible for 90 percent of all the spam everyone gets," said Linford. "Ralsky has been the biggest of them, and is certainly still in the top five."
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Only 150.... I'll bet there are millions of computer users who would contribute to a fund that would hunt these people down and keep throwing lawsuits at them. At least we could harass them like they do us everyday.
30 posted on 11/22/2002 10:32:29 AM PST by Route66
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To: cebadams
In the old days of New England they had a perfect punishment for spammers like this.

They were called "stocks".

The individual was placed about five foot of the ground in a horizontal position on a wooden platform. There were holes for his head, one for each arm, and one for each leg.

The public was then able to visit him at a time and place of their choosing and spit on him.
31 posted on 11/22/2002 10:33:19 AM PST by cgbg
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To: AdA$tra
I disagree. I have clicked the "Remove" link or sent replies to spammers with "Remove" or "Unsubscribe" in the subject line and spam hasn't just reduced. It has STOPPED! I don't get spam anymore.
32 posted on 11/22/2002 10:34:03 AM PST by PatriotGames
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To: Vicki
My husband and I have our own business and we left town for two days recently. When we came back my husband had 700 email messages and I had 300. Most of which were spam.

I have missed important messages because of spam. I can't comment further because I'm afraid of what I might say. Spam makes my blood boil.

I had a similar problem until I contacted my ISP (att.net) and complained. They said my account could be set up to go through Brightmail first but I had to check the box in my set-up. I went to the att.net website, logged into my account and checked the box. My spam went down 75% immediately.

You might want to check with your ISP if they have the same filter arrangemnet with Brightmail.

33 posted on 11/22/2002 10:38:17 AM PST by hattend
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To: jpl
If a web site ever insists on a valid e-mail addy for authentication purposes, get a temporary one for free from Yahoo or some similar provider.

Let me put in a plug for Yahoo... I used to have a Hotmail account. It got so much spam I lost the messages I wanted to keep due to bandwidth. So I switched to Yahoo and have not had a problem. Maybe 10% of my email is spam, and most of it goes straight into the bulk folder, to be deleted after 30 days automatically.

34 posted on 11/22/2002 10:41:55 AM PST by laurav
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To: cgbg
I'd vote for it ... public stocks seem perfect for spammers ... I have no sympathy for them ... 4-5 years ago a lot of people tried it ... then 99% wised up and knocked it off ...
35 posted on 11/22/2002 10:43:02 AM PST by Bobby777
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To: cebadams
I just recently met a lady who was a multimillionaire. Her husband and her opened up a warehouse and began selling items via magazine inserts. Now, they almost entirely make thier living off of dead celebrities die, i.e. Lady Di, Dale Earnhardt, John Wayne to name a few, they sell commerative plates, "exclusive" freshly minted coins, memorial videos, you name it. She said they bought 60,000 Dale Earnhardt commerative replica race cars for $20/ea. They sold each and everyone in less than two weeks at $279.95 (or 4 easy installments...)

The point I'm trying to make is that you probably could not name 3 people that you know personally who would pay $280.00 for a model race car to put up on thier shelf, but they are out there. The sheer numbers this guy is getting positive responses from "legitimize" his business. 250 million e-mails... That's huge. The only thing you can do is just delete it. Don't reply and don't answer those questions when you sign up with Yahoo or any other servers. When they ask you to check off your hobbies and "would you like to receive information regarding the best airline fares?" The answer is NO! It is "legitimate" places like these that the bulk e-mailers get their lists.

36 posted on 11/22/2002 10:54:29 AM PST by Hatteras
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To: cebadams
Go here: Mailwasher. (Will open in new window.)

You will need to know your SMTP Server Address BEFORE you attempt install. If you don't know what that means get a techie friend to help you or call your Internet Service Provider. There is a cure for spam. It's fun to sling spam back at the spammer. If there was any justice in this world, spammers would be chained to an oar.

37 posted on 11/22/2002 11:00:30 AM PST by LibKill
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To: tscislaw

It's interesting to see people get fired up about this, yet they'll allow "unsolicted" commercials to bombard them while they watch TV. Nobody seems to get upset about that.

What makes the TV commercials (and bulk junk "snail" mail) more legitimate than bulk email?? Why should'nt Proctor and Gamble, Ford, and McDonalds' "get theirs"?

Internet bandwidth is not a public resource like the electromagnetic spectrum (over-the-air TV signals) are. Furthermore, my Internet connection and my computer's processor cycles are (or should be) mine to choose what to do with and not be forced to download or deal with spam e-mail in any way. I do grant that the electric power used by the television whilst displaying adverts is a theft from me.

It's too bad this guy has got an unlisted telephone number. He should receive unsolicited taped sales pitches, at every phone he's at or near, constantly.

38 posted on 11/22/2002 11:07:20 AM PST by Chemist_Geek
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To: cebadams
Gee, I wonder what the zoning laws are in his "luxury" neighborhood? I wonder what the city would say about him running a business out of his house?

I wonder if they have a homeowners association in his "luxury" neighborhood? I wonder what they would say about him running a business out of his house?

Not that I'm suggesting anyone drop a dime on this guy.....
39 posted on 11/22/2002 11:16:17 AM PST by SpeakLittle_ThinkMuch
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To: LibKill
I found this article in the WSJ:

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,SB1037138679220447148,00.html

"She and three friends started Data Resource Consulting with $15,000 six months ago. Ms. Betterly quickly discovered that she could make a profit if she got as few as 100 responses for every 10 million messages sent for a client, and she figures her income will be $200,000 this year. She has a flexible schedule that allows her to enjoy her children and the 5,000-square-foot home, with a pool, that she shares with them and a roommate."

40 posted on 11/22/2002 11:58:03 AM PST by cebadams
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