Two phone calls in the last hour. One from Ann at Account Services, calling me for the five hundredth time to try to sell me another credit card, even though I have told them dozens of times to stop calling (along with hanging up on them, cursing them out, putting the dog on the phone, etc.). Then, almost immediately some lying bastard trying to tell me my PC is infected and he is from Windows to help me out.
What is wrong with these people? Why don’t they get an honest job somewhere and leave me alone? It’s not even satisfying to call them perfectly true and applicable names- they just call me again.
Solved this problem eons ago by unplugging the phone connected to my landline+internet connection. If people need me, they can call me on my cell. If they call my cell from a hidden number or a weird extension, they can fuck right off. And that seems to hold them for about a half an hour.
I’ve been cell-only for some time. When I got a job with a landline, I was shocked by what a Mad Max wasteland the landline world is these days. I’d say half the calls on that line are telemarketers (or robots). It’s insane.
Every night at the supper hour. That’s so crazy. Do they all work from five to nine?
I put our number on the don’t call list and that helps for while. Then there are all the people you have done business with in the past and they can call anyway.
Because once upon a time when we needed extra income I worked this damnable job I do have some sympathy for the human being ones on the line and try to jump in with a simple, “Sorry, no” and a hang up. Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.
I’ve amused myself a couple of times but don’t get much pleasure out of that. Did once have a fascinating and informative discussion with a nice young man in Australia. Now it’s a waste of my time and creativity.
When I don’t feel like getting up to answer I let the answering machine pick up.
Guess I can’t work up much rage over it either, but every now and then. . .
ETA: My husband picks up and then swears a blue streak at the robot calls. Then we have a stoopid laugh over it. One of these days he’s going to be sorry.
I bet the “Windows” guy had an Indian accent, didn’t he? That seems to be going around a lot these days. There’s been a thread just this week about it, its subject being something about having fun with a phone scammer. As I noted in that thread, the bastards called my house at almost midnight. “What is wrong with these people?” indeed. I wonder if the attempts at shaming some of the posters in the other thread talked about raised even the first dim glimpses of enlightenment for these sumbitches.
ETA: Ummm… not “shaming some of the posters in the other thread.” That sentence up there doesn’t read so well, does it? “Attempts at shaming the caller, as done by some of the other posters in the other thread,…”
We got a phone which verbally announces the caller id. It has been unexpectedly helpful. You can soon learn to identify where this crap is coming from and not even walk to the phone.
Our phone has a funny accent so when we heard Joel Free we know it is Toll Free and ignore it.
When the guy with the strong Indian accent who claimed to be called Joe called I cursed him out so hard his headset probably melted. But I like what others have done, which is ask if his parents know he is a criminal.
I bought my mom a call-blocker as a birthday present online for about $70.00 for a land-line . The number of calls tapered down from 4-to-5 a night M-Sat, down to maybe 1 or 3 a week.
The only problem I’ve had with it was how it responded was dependent on what type of phone service was offered. Had to send exchange it for the correct one.
Back when I had a land-line, for the entire duration of my living-on-my-own adult life I had an answering machine. My family and friends knew that I screened every call through it - I answered nothing. The machine answers, you start talking. If I’m home and I want to talk to you, I’ll hear it and pick up. If I’m home and can’t talk at the moment (never ever rushing out of the can or setting my cooking aside for the phone, thank you, or missing a critical scene in a movie or tv show!), I’ll call you back when I can. If I have no idea who you are, I’ll simply delete the call next time I walk by the machine.
As I always say, and this applies to my cell too;
The phone is a tool that exists for my convenience
When it stops being convenient,
I stop using it.
Hey, buddy, is this the address that ordered six cases of premium doggy treats and this here Dog Fancy Magazine “Hottest Bitches of 2014” calendar? Yeah–looks like it was all charged to this here VISA account you opened a couple weeks ago.
He’s already learned how to post on the SDMB - I wouldn’t put anything past him.
But it wasn’t him with the calendar - he lost interest in such things a year or so ago after a trip to the vet, if you catch my drift.
Although he hurt his paw and had to wear one of those plastic cones on his head so he wouldn’t lick it for the last week or so, so maybe he is getting revenge. (He really did not like his cone.)
I mostly get robocalls so I can’t even tell off the idiots. I’ve sent five emails to Glenn Beck’s idiot staffers telling them to stop robocalling me and no luck.
Actually this worked the opposite for me. I got a cell with the intent of using it only with my closest friends and family. What I didn’t know at the time was that everyone you call has access to your number.
And I got a sufficient number of marketing calls on it also. Gah.
I did shame a marketer earlier this week. Phone rings, I pick up and hear, “Cough, cough, cough.” Good one.
Ha ha, it is to laugh. I have both land line and 2 cell phones, and at least half of the solicitation calls I get come on my work cell phone. The only advantage is that I can swipe that little “no answer” thing and the call stops ringing.
Roddy
Makes me wish a telemarketer would call me…