Daily Annoyances

[Mr. Pancake]

Aim for the smoke Larry!

[Frank Lee]

Daily annoyance: Telemarketing calls from the "credit card repair" scam. W... T... F.... is up with that?!? They've been at it for at least a decade. It was probably them that inspired the "Do Not Call" list, which I'm on, yet they call anyway. I don't even have a freekin' credit card. If nobody responded to them they would dry up and blow away right? Well there must be 100,000,000 retards that HAVE responded and so they are still at it. You can remind them you are on the DNC list- they hang up on you. You can ask for their number- they hang up on you. You can ask for the boss- they hang up on you. Basically if you ask any legitimate question, they hang up on you. Yah, mmm hmm, I'm going to give my card number (if I had one) to an outfit that won't identify themselves in any way, shape or form... well it seems 100,000,000 idiots would. You can file complaints with BBB, attorneys general, and whoever... to no avail. Don't even expect a response.

I did mess with one a while back- SECOND call I got that day from them- pretended to sound like a real doofus and strung the guy along for a good long while "hang on, I'm looking for my card", and so on. After that they've stopped calling... for now.

What I find interesting is that we have the wherewithall, the technology, and the budget to have guys sitting in the midwest operating drones that blow away people on the other side of the globe, yet we are powerless against scammers.

Reminds me of the email spam for meds- they did catch that little xxxxer, he was from Minnesota too. I hope he is enjoying his prison stay which I'm sure is not long enough.

[Thymeclock]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

Daily annoyance: Telemarketing calls from the "credit card repair" scam. W... T... F.... is up with that?!? They've been at it for at least a decade.

Of course. Our country has been virtually bankrupt for that amount of time; and since the boobocracy (AKA the consumers upon which our entire economy is based) takes its cues from our political leaders, what did you expect with continued, unlimited deficit spending by government? Would you expect financial prudence from the masses?

It was probably them that inspired the "Do Not Call" list, which I'm on, yet they call anyway. I don't even have a freekin' credit card. If nobody responded to them they would dry up and blow away right? Well there must be 100,000,000 retards that HAVE responded and so they are still at it. You can remind them you are on the DNC list- they hang up on you. You can ask for their number- they hang up on you. You can ask for the boss- they hang up on you. Basically if you ask any legitimate question, they hang up on you. Yah, mmm hmm, I'm going to give my card number (if I had one) to an outfit that won't identify themselves in any way, shape or form... well it seems 100,000,000 idiots would. You can file complaints with BBB, attorneys general, and whoever... to no avail. Don't even expect a response.

You need to learn how to play them to get the information to pass on to the Do Not Call list. First, you know it's a solicitation call before they say anything anyway, because you can hear all the other 'boiler room' solicitors blabbing away in the background. Then, they usually mispronounce your name, because they are in India or some other foreign land and not native English speakers. When they announce their company's name, ask them to repeat it, so you can write it down. Then, feign interest and ask for their phone number. If they are reluctant to provide it, tell them you can't hear them well (considering that most cell phone communication is of abysmally poor quality, this is entirely credible) or that you can't understand their accent (also a virtual certainty). Say "Excuse me, I can't understand." Saying "I'm interested and I want to call you back, can I please have your number?" usually does the trick. Write it down. Then report them to the Do Not Call list. It's most effective if you have that information.

(Now that Frank and I are good buddies, I wanted to help him in any way I could.)

[Frank Lee]

I did say they hang up on you if you ask for their number, and they do.

[Thymeclock]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

I did say they hang up on you if you ask for their number, and they do.

Some do, but if you play along and feign interest that you want to call them back, often they will tell you their number.

I remember one where I got the guy's name, company name and phone number. Then I asked him if he knew that I'm on the Do Not Call list. Of course he hung up in a hurry.

If you've done business with the company they are exempt from the DNC list, as are charities and politicians. Our local newspaper sometimes solicits business that way. They called me once asking for my father who had been deceased for years. When I told the rep that delivery would be difficult he asked why. I told him that it would be hard for someone who is dead to appreciate their newspaper. Dead silence. (And I could barely keep from laughing out loud.) I have never before heard a salesman struck speechless for a full half minute!

Keep reporting them anyway. You have nothing to lose by doing it.

[Arragonis]

Sort of related. I have 2 complaints ongoing.

No. 1 is home phone / broadband. Home phone is hissing, buzzing and beeping. Broadband is slower than doing morse code between two tin cans connected by string. So I call BT who agree to send an engineer. Except if its a problem on my side they want to charge £130, if not its free. Hmmm.

No. 2 is the hotel in Paris which I want a refund for. It was disgusting and EasyJet seemingly are ignoring my complaint. So I am about to ask Mastercard to take the complaint over - under UK law the contract is between MC and EasyJet, and I suspect MC have better lawyers than I have

Marketing - we moved here 5+ years ago and we still get mail for the previous owners. Mrs A used to work in the marketing database industry and regulations say that marketing databases should be 'cleaned' (e.g. No Calling opt-outers removed, people who have moved marked etc.) every 2-3 years. So obviously they aren't.

As for cold callers I find the "oh, hang on - I've just made a cuppa" and then leaving them hanging for 2-3 hours works just fine.

[Cd]

I have a 4G smart-phone from Sprint. I am at the center of three 4G towers all within 3500 ft of where i live. The closest is under 2,110 ft from my door, yet my signal drops down to 5 kilobits per second several times a day.
When I am in an area that is a higher income neighborhood, my signal goes up to 7Mbs. This is my second EVO phone thorough them, and i'm sure the problem is not the phone ( s )
Sprint sent me a signal booster about the size of a toaster. Not only does it look ugly with all of the extra wires hanging out, it also consumes around 30 watts extra...and

Here is my daily annoyance : The thing must be plugged into a working internet connection to provide signal to the phone.

How does this make sense ? To browse the internet on my phone, I must first get online by turning on my modem which is connected to my laptop ??

[Arragonis]

Marketing - went to a compare website yesterday, ticked the "do not call option" - phone has not stopped since...

[Joenavy85]

Originally Posted by Cd

I have a 4G smart-phone from Sprint. I am at the center of three 4G towers all within 3500 ft of where i live. The closest is under 2,110 ft from my door, yet my signal drops down to 5 kilobits per second several times a day.
When I am in an area that is a higher income neighborhood, my signal goes up to 7Mbs. This is my second EVO phone thorough them, and i'm sure the problem is not the phone ( s )
Sprint sent me a signal booster about the size of a toaster. Not only does it look ugly with all of the extra wires hanging out, it also consumes around 30 watts extra...and

Here is my daily annoyance : The thing must be plugged into a working internet connection to provide signal to the phone.

How does this make sense ? To browse the internet on my phone, I must first get online by turning on my modem which is connected to my laptop ??

I'll just state that there is a reason I don't have sprint for my Cell Service.

[RH77]

Originally Posted by larrybuck

Once in a while though; three people will stand in a circle blocking the path in an area of wide flat grass right next to them. From 70 yards away, you can see that one of them sees you coming. But they won't interupt the conversation to warn the others, so at the last second, chaos wins. I don't mind going by on the grass, but when I'm going down the right side of the path/trail; I think it should be obvious to all what my intended routing is!! It's like they don't have a clue!

Just yell "ON YOUR RIGHT!" like you're on a bike, and the person paying the least attention may clear the way.

Same at airports. People stand in the middle of the terminal chatting like it's their private lounge or something. I often try to take the "ramming speed" approach, even with luggage in-tow. If eye contact is made (with a little hint of crazy) most people will move a bit. It's not a bit deal, unless it means missing the connection and getting stuck somewhere overnight.

It's just a lack of courtesy for others in both situations. Same on the road. I have a policy of staying out of others' way when driving, the best I can -- my FE could be better, but there would be lots angry people out there (not my ultimate goal). Don't get me started on the lack of respect for the Hybrid -- it's like an invisibility cloak.

RH77