Howyadoin,
Ahhh… the benefits of having an Italian surname that is unpronounceable!
Them in Midwestern/Southern twang: “Good eevenin’ May I speak to Mr. P… P… Pa…”
Me: “CLICK… Dooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo” (is that how you spell a dial tone) 
-Rav
On a website formed to supposedly “battle ignorance,” I thought I could honestly share my opinions. I suppose not.
To those of you who backed me, I appreciate it very much.
And for the others, I have a few things to tell you:
Where I work, we ask when a more convient time to call is. We try not to schedule our callbacks during a dinner hour, or for when you may just be getting off work. We understand that your evenings are important to you.
I will agree that many telemarketers are too persistent. They seem not to listen when you tell them no. The reasoning for this, at least in my company, is because we WILL get in trouble if we don’t at least try to get one yes out of you. It’s something we can be fired for. I try to leave it at one no. If you tell me you’re not interested, I say ok thanks for your time. And therefore get reprimanded. But I don’t feel that it’s right to basically harass people who have already, very clearly, told me no. That is my personal standpoint.
For those of you who told me to quit and to find another job (some of you proving my point that people are mean), I would, I swear that I would, IF I could. However, if I leave this job I will 1-not graduate from HS on time. 2-will not be able to pay this month’s bills, and 3-will lose the respect of my friends and family who are hoping that I will, for once, keep a job. Also, it took me 6 months to find a job. The only other place that would hire me was Baskin Robbins, and only for minimum wage. AnonCoward can vouch for that. I admit that I am not a highly employable person. I have a strange schedule, and many many bills. Being young, most employers think I’m only trying to screw them out of more cash.
I think many of you missed the point I was trying to make though. I was, and am, upset at just how rude, how angry, how impolite people can be.
However, today I went into work with a new attitude towards it. Today I didn’t care when I was called a “fucking ho”. Reason being is this: Keep in mind what you say to us, because we DO have your address and telephone number in front of us. All of the people that were rude to me last night are now signed up for all sorts of solicitations, including Playboy.
So then, for lack of a better ending, bite me.
floha
What you did is possibly punishable by law, but even if it isn’t it is both: A) Highly contemptible. B) Grounds for immediate dismissal from any respetable company.
or if you don’t understand that: You could possibly be arrested, and what you did was beyond dumb. You should (and probably will) get fired over this.
To anyone else reading this thread, I have strong suspicions that floha is a troll, please do not judge telemarketers based on this pitiful individual’s portrayal of one. Trolls know people hate telemarketers.
If you worked for one of the offices I ran, you’d get fired and probably prosecuted. When you are given lists, you are not allowed to even copy the information for personal use. Most of the directories (In Canada, Coles,Lovell, Dunn & Bradstreet) are rentals. I don’t know how the laws are in the US, but in Canada, when we rented some directories, we had to sign rental agreements, and in these agreements it was made clear that the information contained in the directories was to be used for legitimate business purposes only. That any personal use was not permitted under the rental agreement and grounds for termination of said agreement. That any criminal or malicious use was to be prosecuted.
Basically put, on the odd chance you’re not a troll and you’re not just winding us up, you’re in a sh*tload of trouble when they catch you. Cut it out immediately, or you will probably end up with a criminal record and then, strange schedule or not, try to find a job.
You may not be, but I can generally make “people” like the OP cry. Every little bit helps.
Fenris
You can. You just got honest opinions back.
**
THERE IS NO CONVIENIENT TIME YOU DIPSTICK! NO PHONE SPAM IS EVER WELCOME.
**
So, for purely selfish reasons you’re taking a job which has no other purpose than annoying others, But hey, th’ money’s good? Why not just burgle houses?
**
As opposed to being a phone spammer where you’re trying to screw strangers out of their time AND cash? And possibly scam seniors via whatever particular phone-scam you personally perpetuate.
**
Then stop stealing from us you ignorant asshole. It’s MY phone. My time. My money. Get your fucking greedy paws off of it.
**
Congratulations. You have just admitted, on a public message board (where the IP addresses of each post are stored, I might add) that you’ve committed mail fraud (If you actually subcribed them, I’m pretty sure you did). You may also have committed theft (assuming that your innocent victims somehow get billed for this), certainly you’ve engaged in harrassment. Hopefully some of your victims will find out who did this and we’ll have a solution for both our problems: you won’t have to worry about stealing money any more and we won’t have to worry about you.
And once again we see the phone-monkey mindset "Hey, it’s convient for ME so who cares what it does to you.
**
I don’t put things that disgusting near my mouth.
Fenris
floha said:
Perhaps in my attempt to be thorough I was too long-winded and my message didn’t get through. Let me be brief. DO NOT CALL. EVER.
Apparently not, or you wouldn’t call.
Yes, I specifically mentioned that policy, and how it makes telemarketing that much more of a nuisance and destroys the very sense of politeness that you long for. If I politely say I’m not interested, I just get hassled some more. How does that make me want to be polite?
So you have issues. But you need to understand that the job you have chosen, for whatever reason, is fundamentally to harass people. If you are unable to quit at this time, for whatever reason, be aware that since the nature of your job is to annoy people you will have to put up with the effects, annoyed people letting you share their annoyance.
I would feel a whole lot more sympathy for you if you worked customer service, where the people were calling you.
No, I don’t think anyone missed your point, I just think most of us feel the rude, angry, and impolite responses are justified, or at least understandable.
Let’s see, you intrude on a person’s life by unwantedly calling them and thereby aggravating them, they respond because they are angry, so you then engage in criminal activity against them. What was that about complaining about people being rude and impolite?
k.os said:
So what if it is a knee-jerk reaction? Look, I am fully willing to concede you may be a decent person from a reputable company selling a valid product, and not some type of rip off artist trying to scam me. But the point is **I do not want to be called by sales people. EVER. ** How hard is it for telemarketers to understand that? Can they (the companies) not understand that we do not want this at all? But there is no way for me to keep it from happening. I can’t hang a sign on my phone that says “No soliciting”. Hell, if there were a list I could sign up for that would permanently ensure I never got another telemarketer call, I would gladly sign up right now. Where is that list, instead of all the lists of my name and phone number (or email address, but that’s another beef)? Personally, I think it is atrocious that I would have to take proactive action to get on a list to keep from being hassled, but I am willing to do so. Tell me how. Please.
If you really didn’t want us calling you, then you’d have an anonymous call block on your phone fuckface. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about us.
I called Southwestern Bell about this, but they were unable to sell me a call block for my phone fuckface because my phone isn’t equipped with one.
Apparently, the fuckface option is only available for phones used in the telemarketing and dial-a-whore industries.
Which are, of course, essentially identical. 
Floha, hon, listen for a minute.
Yes, nobody likes what telemarketers do. The telemarketer may well be Mother Teresa-like away from work, but when they cause dinner interruptus, favourite tv show interruptus, I really need to concentrate on what I’m doing interruptus and, Goddess forbid, coitus interruptus, the nicest response they’re going to get from me is, “Not interested, go away, don’t call back.”
The worst will involve several repetitions and permutations of the word “fuck”. As in, “Fuck off, you fucking fuckwit. Get fucked. After all, that’s what I was trying to do, and you fucking interrupted. Go the fuck away.”
Most jobs have bad sides; the fact that you’re going to be regarded as an interruption at best (and a pestilential sending from hell at worst) is part and parcel of being a telemarketer.[sup]1[/sup] Deal with it or change jobs.
As for:
Darlin’, why should I have to go to the trouble, expense and inconvenience of doing this in order to use a service, my phone, without harassment from you and yours? I pay for the damn phone line, I did that because I like hearing from friends and family, wherever they may be in the world; not to hear verbal spam.
In short, floha love, hon, dear one, you knew this was part of the job when you signed up, so quit your bitchin’ and suck it up. Or look for another job.
[sup]1[/sup]If, on the other hand, you didn’t realise that, just from personal experience, then you’re probably dumber than carpet lint, either wilfully or by nature, and I have no sympathy in either case.
Ooh! Ooh! She was rude!!!
Come on! This is a plea from another human - please don’t call anyone a “fuckface”! 
Boo hoo hoo. We are so crushed. Our feelings are so hurt.
“If you really didn’t want us to rob you, then you wouldn’t go out in public with your purse - asking for it to be snatched, fuckface.”
“If you really didn’t want to be raped, then you wouldn’t go out in public wearing a short skirt, fuckface.”
“If you really didn’t want your car rammed in from the side, then you wouldn’t go driving out on the streets, fuckface.”
Now, really.
You seem to think that it is some automatic thing that happens - if one owns a phone, one MUST want to get annoying, harrassing phone calls from idiots who are selling something. Not so. That’s NOT why we own phones. We don’t go buy a phone just to facilitate telemarketers. We are victims of the scourge of telemarketers, we NEVER “want” their attentions.
We reserve the right to not like telemarketers, to not respect the profession, and to not give a damn about your delicate feelings. Suck it up. Get a new job, or accept the fact that for that fat paycheck, you have to deal with the irate victims of your so-called “profession”. Because you sure as hell can’t have it both ways. You can’t get us to accept what you do. We can’t feel sorry for you when you suffer the predictable consequences of having a profession that is (in essense) that of merely pestering and annoying people all damned day. Not going to happen.
In my area, blocking numbers costs ME not the telemarketer…that’s a load of crap. Including the fact that it also interrupts legitimate business (say my insurance company or MY client) from getting a clean phone call. They have to state who they are or punch in the fucking number they are calling from in order for them to get a hold of me.
In my book, I should be able to call and be taken off any list that might be out there. I should not have to pay the phone co to get you telemarketers off my phone line, your company should pay, not me.
I want my privacy, I want people to leave me alone. Having people interrupt my life for the sake of selling me Super Sonice Tiddley Winks makes me want to scream and yell at the univited person on the other end of the line.
So, if you greet me with a “Hi is this so-and-so?” (and you completely butchered up my name which they all do) and I yell into the phone with the loudest voice I can muster to “Leave me the fuck alone, take me off your list or I will file a complaint with the FCC.” know that I did it out of respect for my privacy and the millions of people like me who don’t want your phone call.
Telemarketing, the evil industry of interloping and robbers.
I don’t mean to insensitive, BUT if you’re a telemarketer you’re going to get hung up on. That’s how this world works. No, I don’t want any fucking vinyl siding. No, I don’t want to change my long distance. No, I don’t want to take a survey.
“I have a butthole, too, but…”
:rolleyes:
Cervaise, I wasn’t around when you posted that rant linked earlier in this thread but, since you’ve dropped in here, may I just grovel at your feet for a moment? I do believe that was one of the best things I have ever read. You are obviously a leader in your field.
floha verbally accosted me with:
Wait a second - when did I insult you? I thought you were all for treating people as humans and ending rudeness? My my, how the tables turn.
No, I don’t have anonymous call blocking, because I actually do get calls from people I want to talk to (believe it or not), and some of them actually do come in anonymous or out of area. And anyway, Techchick kindly pointed out that I would have to pay extra for this service that would prevent me from getting calls that I want, which is the whole point of having a phone in the first place.
And what kind of logic is that? I have a phone and don’t have anonymous call block, so I must want telemarketing calls? The parallels have already been drawn artistically by yosemitebabe and Cervaise.
I have to say, you’re really making your case that telemarketers are decent people. :rolleyes:
To everyone else - I see a distinct pattern. Only 3 posts on all of SDMB, all three in this thread, which is a PIT thread devoted to treat telemarketers nice. Add to it the latest post is a verbal attack. I’m sensing troll. So that’s all I’ve got to say to this oxygen thief. I’ve made my case, and every sensible person is in agreement. This clown is worthless.
Floha, don’t let the doorknob hit you in the ass - it might get stuck.