[palmer]

It's an "entitlement" if I pay for it!

You are entitled to what you pay for which is phone service that allows anyone to call you. If you want a better service, then you need to pay for it. Asking the government for it makes it an entitlement.

[DefCon]

You know what?
When enough people get irritated by a particular behavior
that some other people may consider is within their "rights",
then they expect and even insist that laws be written.

When enough people got irritated by cigarette smoke,
they insisted on laws that "limited" the "rights" of smokers.

Enough people got irritated by telemarketers, so
they insisted on laws that "limited" the "rights" of telemarketers.

My phone only rings now when it is family or friends
that is the way I like it and the way that I want it to be.
And I am in the majority.
So get used to it.
The battle is over.
And your side lost.

[HighWheeler]

" Asking the government for it makes it an entitlement."

Call it whatever term makes you feel important.

The government should just serve and protect as was originally in their charter. Protecting us by having a set of collectively beneficial laws that protect us from outside detrimental forces as we collectively see fit - to fund the miltary, police force, firefighters, public prosecutors, prisons, etc.

They protect us from thieves, arsonists, murderers, and now a bunch of huckster losers who insist on invading our privacy against the collective wishes of those who expressly don't want it invaded.

Well I personally hit back at these abject revolting jerks in their time and energy element and I think it's working great. My only regret is not seeing their puke faces when they realize they have been talking to an empty phone for the last few minutes.