# Telemarketers deserve death... **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 30, 2003, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687 "2003-01-30T19:36:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![DarrenS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/977dab/32.png) [@DarrenS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarrenS)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/41 "2003-01-31T09:09:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Naz \* > \*\*With any luck, spam. šŸ™‚ \*\* Or those bastards at [fax.com](http://www.junkfax.org/fax/stories/Kirsch.html). Got 3 junk faxes from them just this week. Iā€™ll be celebrating if those assholes end up on the street begging for quarters. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/42 "2003-01-31T11:39:27Z")
I respect tabloid writers. Their job takes a lot of creativity. Plus, once in a very great while, they break a big story. ---
**Author:** ![In\_Conceivable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@In\_Conceivable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Conceivable)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/43 "2003-01-31T12:16:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kambuckta \* > \*\*[kambuckta opens can of worms] **Blowero** , maybe itā€™s just _American_ telemarketers who are incredibly abrasive, because I have never (either in my role as a telefundraiser or as a phone-owner who gets telemarketing calls) encountered people who: > > a) Hang up when the phone is answered\* > b) Refuse to take ā€˜Noā€™ for an answer\*\* > c) Interrupt when the customer is trying to speak\*\*\* > d) Leave messages on answering machines\*\*\*\* or > e)ā€¦ We donā€™t use ā€˜auto-diallingā€™ or recorded messages here anyway (or at least if we do, I have never come across it). [/can of worms] šŸ˜ƒ > > - The telemarketer may have allowed the phone to ring x number of times and assumed you were not at home, and thus your picking up the phone coincided with he/she disconnecting the dial. > \*\* a) happens me all the time. They have computers that dial a whole bunch of numbers at once. When I pick up the phone and say hello I hear a couple of clicks while the call is either routed to a free telemarketer or if no one is free it hangs up on me. It drives me nuts because they call back every night (at about the same time) until they call my house at the same time there is a free telemarketer. Only then can I ask to be put on the ā€œDo Not Callā€ list. ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/44 "2003-01-31T14:05:49Z")
Our telemarketing calls have diminished greatly since weā€™ve gotten rid of credit cards. But we still get at least one every other week or so. And you know, Iā€™ve found that it works perfectly to say, ā€œNo thank you, Iā€™m not interested [please put me on your ā€˜Do Not Call Listā€™]ā€, and then hang up the phone. Youā€™re being polite in what you say, and youā€™re not giving them the chance to ā€œnot take no for an answerā€. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/45 "2003-01-31T14:24:56Z")
**Sabbath** in my rational mind, I think that for the very offhand chance that they willl break a good story, we should keep 'em around, but on my they fall just below kiddie porn spammers and the guys who dragged King on my urge-to-killometer. The rage I fly into when I see their exploitative cover stories makes me lose my rationality and blame them for the crimes they report. Who killed the Kennedys, when after all it was you and me? I didnt cry when I heard about the Anthrax attacks. ---
**Author:** ![Dragon\_Ash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b3f665/32.png) [@Dragon\_Ash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragon_Ash)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/46 "2003-01-31T14:53:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Captain Amazing \* > \*\*Yeah, but do you get this worked up about junk mail, spam, or tv commercials? šŸ™‚ \*\* I can choose to not read emails - since I filter/file my emails pretty religiously (mostly auto, some manually), I just trash my in-box at the end of the day. Mails already taken care off, otherwise not-necessary emails, and any spam, poof; gone. TV commercials? Are you serious? a) TVs can be turned off. b) commercials are how we pay for otherwise free TV. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/47 "2003-01-31T14:56:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DarrenS \* > \*\*Or those bastards at [fax.com](http://www.junkfax.org/fax/stories/Kirsch.html). > > Got 3 junk faxes from them just this week. Iā€™ll be celebrating if those assholes end up on the street begging for quarters. \*\* Well, stuff like this will help that happen: [http://ftp.fcc.gov/cgb/news/080802junkfax.html](http://ftp.fcc.gov/cgb/news/080802junkfax.html) If you get unsolicited faxes, inform the FCC. Their customer service number is 1-888-CALLFCC (1-888-2255322) ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/48 "2003-01-31T15:15:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Dragon Ash \* > \*\* > Hey, jarbabyj, Iā€™m not dissing your sister as a person. I have a sister, and I would be seriously ticked if someone dissed her. I am saying that she canā€™t have it both ways. Either she understands that the decent money means she has to put up with some crap, or she gives up the decent money and does something else. > > \*\* She never complained. I donā€™t think I ever said she complained. She took shit, and Iā€™m complaining for her. šŸ™‚ She made a couple of friends there and paid the bills, and in fact was embarrassed beyond belief to tell people what her job was. Iā€™m just saying sheā€™s not an ā€˜unclefuckerā€™ or ā€˜lazyā€™ or ā€˜rudeā€™. She is a friendly, chit chatty person and often got in TROUBLE for letting people off the hook too easily. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/49 "2003-01-31T15:53:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Nocturne \* > \*\*Yeah, and the person who cuts in front of you in a grocery store line does too. And the driver of a scheduled bus that two minutes late. And if your child/spouse/friend is taking a long time to get ready to leave the house when youā€™ve already gotten ready. > > Now the dubious business practices I take issue with. But it really doesnā€™t take much of my time to tell someone, ā€œSorry, Iā€™m not interested,ā€ and hang up. Iā€™ll talk OVER them if I have to do so. But I am not going to start screaming and calling them horrible names, just as I would not scream and curse at the people mentioned above. I may ask them to change their behaviors politely, but I would try my best not to let it degrade into a fiery, shameful display of temper. > > Whatā€™s wrong with courtesy and treating human beings like human beings? \*\* The courtesy bit is what I want from the telemarketers. It is in no way courteous to call me and interrupt what I am doing. Nothing about what telemarketers do is courteous it is You donā€™t get made at the person who cuts in front of you at the super market and ask them to go the end of the line like other people? The bus driver is providing you with a service. Putting up with child/spouse/friends is what you have to do if you want the benefits of having childrens/souse/friends. The telemarketer is not in any way shape or form helping you at all just wasting your time. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/50 "2003-01-31T16:07:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Dragon Ash \* > \*\*I can choose to not read emails - since I filter/file my emails pretty religiously (mostly auto, some manually), I just trash my in-box at the end of the day. Mails already taken care off, otherwise not-necessary emails, and any spam, poof; gone. > > TV commercials? Are you serious? a) TVs can be turned off. b) commercials are how we pay for otherwise free TV. \*\* And you can choose not to answer your phone, or get caller ID and screen your calls. And phones can be turned off too. Look, I think telemarketers are annoying myself, and I hope they lose the lawsuit, but weā€™re not talking about the anti-christ here. ---
**Author:** ![airdisc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e19adc/32.png) [@airdisc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/airdisc)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/51 "2003-01-31T16:19:55Z")
I hate the telemarketing calls that are just recordings. Christ, if your goal is to sell me something, at least have the courtesy to use a REAL LIVE FUCKING HUMAN BEING. My dad got one of these recording calls with reverb. A big booming voice was used for the company name, and echos for what they wanted. I like to mess with telemarketers. Usually they like it too. Gives them a break from the abuse they deal with on a regular basis. Oh yes, and am I the only one who any mention of telemarketers reminds me instantly of Cervaiseā€™s classic thread? ---
**Author:** ![irkenDoom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c2a13f/32.png) [@irkenDoom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irkenDoom)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/52 "2003-01-31T18:57:55Z")
[Nope, youā€™re notā€¦](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=51270&highlight=cervaise+telemarketer) ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/53 "2003-01-31T19:28:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kambuckta \* > [kambuckta opens can of worms] **Blowero** , maybe itā€™s just _American_ telemarketers who are incredibly abrasive, because I have never (either in my role as a telefundraiser or as a phone-owner who gets telemarketing calls) encountered people who: Allow me to expound: > [@](#): > > a) Hang up when the phone is answered\* Actually, itā€™s not the _people_ who do that, itā€™s the machines. There are some companies that use the bizarre strategy of repeatedly calling until they get the answering machine, so that they can leave a message. There is one finance company that constantly leaves recorded messages that are poorly disguised to sound like a live person (sort of the same concept as those fake post-it notes stuck on mass mailings that are supposed to look hand-written). If you happen to be home, and answer these machines, they simply disconnect, and try back later. As **In Conceivable** pointed out, you know when you are getting such a call when the you answer the phone (almost always during the dinner hour) and get nothing but clicks on the other end. > [@](#): > > b) Refuse to take ā€˜Noā€™ for an answer\*\* I donā€™t know where you live, but you are lucky. In the U.S., many telemarketers are extremely aggressive. They obviously devote a lot of resources to figuring out how to ā€œmake the saleā€ at any cost. One particularly annoying strategy is to have the telemarketers read a scripted ā€œpitchā€ word for word without any pauses, making it impossible to politely say ā€œno, thank youā€. One literally has to hang up on these people. Another even more annoying device is for the telemarketer to make a forced and ham-handed attempt at small talk. ANYONE who calls and asks ā€œHow are you today?ā€ without first identifying themself is obviously trying to sell something. The whole point seems to be to try to take advantage of peopleā€™s natural inclination to try to be polite. They avoid the point of their call and try to ask you a lot of pointless questions, hoping that they can keep you on the phone, answering their questions because you will be too polite to hang up. And then when people donā€™t fall for this subterfuge, they have the gall to get upset. > [@](#): > > c) Interrupt when the customer is trying to speak\*\*\* Actually, itā€™s not so much that they interrupt, but that they just NEVER stop talking. I frequently have said ā€œNo, thank youā€ and hung up the phone, and can still hear the person talking as I put the receiver down. > [@](#): > > d) Leave messages on answering machines\*\*\*\* > \*\*\*\*Leaving messages on A/Mā€™s is absolutely pointless and we are not permitted to do it. Like, seriously, who in their right mind is going to return a call to a telemarketer??? TELL me about it. Itā€™s just stupid, but it doesnā€™t stop them from trying. I get 1 or 2 messages PER DAY on my machine from telemarketers. My answering machine has a toll-saver feature; if there are no new messages, it doesnā€™t pick up right away. Do you have any idea how annoying it is to call my machine and have to pay for the call, only to find out that the new message is some idiot wanting me to sign up for their credit card? > [@](#): > > or > e)ā€¦ We donā€™t use ā€˜auto-diallingā€™ or recorded messages here anyway (or at least if we do, I have never come across it). [/can of worms] šŸ˜ƒ Well they do it all the time here. So I guess you can see why people in the U.S. are so anxious to get the ā€œdonā€™t callā€ list enacted. By the way, Iā€™m not saying that ALL telemarketers do these things, but letā€™s just say that the bad guys have spoiled things for the good guys. And add me to the list of people who do not find mail solicitation or TV commercials NEARLY as offensive as telemarketing. I have found that neither my TV nor my mailbox make loud ringing noises when I am trying to eat dinner or take a nap. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/54 "2003-01-31T20:15:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by blowero \* > \*\*(sort of the same concept as those fake post-it notes stuck on mass mailings that are supposed to look hand-written). \*\* Speaking as a marketer who has both used telemarketers (and once ran such a department) and relied heavily on direct mailā€¦ The above works like the dickens. ---
**Author:** ![catsix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/55 "2003-01-31T20:19:16Z")
\ I never used to believe that anything in tabloids was true, until one day I saw a story in one of those tabloids (two words, one starts with N the other starts with E) about someone I actually knew. The story in there featured my _neighbor_, and every freaking word of it was accurate. It was regarding her affair when she was between 18 and 22 with a 70something businessman. I was shocked enough to realize that, well damn, some of those stories probably arenā€™t made up! \ ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/56 "2003-01-31T20:25:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Dragon Ash \* > \*\*TV commercials? Are you serious? a) TVs can be turned off. b) commercials are how we pay for otherwise free TV. \*\* c) ahhh, TiVo. ---
**Author:** ![Gazelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Gazelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gazelle)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/57 "2003-01-31T20:37:06Z")
I was a telemarketer for a month. We had just moved from an Air Force base in California to one in Delaware. It provided enough spending cash to float us while I interviewed for government jobs. When telemarketers call, I say, ā€œWeā€™re not interested. Take us off your list.ā€ The five words at the end are the key. And the law. Itā€™s amazing how few telemarketing calls we get, although October was a nightmareā€¦ because of political groups calling and asking for our vote. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/58 "2003-01-31T20:44:42Z")
And note, kidsā€¦ The ā€˜National Do Not Callā€™ list will NOT apply to political calls. No foolinā€™. You think those politicians are stupid? ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/59 "2003-01-31T20:49:42Z")
Iā€™d like to take this moment to say that I find people who think telemarketers deserve death, or even abuse, are whiny babies. Say ā€œNo, thank youā€ and hang up. Itā€™s not like they are breaking down your door, and they are not satanā€™s minions. Sheesh. ---
**Author:** ![unclviny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e274bd/32.png) [@unclviny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/unclviny)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687/60 "2003-01-31T20:59:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Captain Amazing \* > \*\*And you can choose not to answer your phone, or get caller ID and screen your calls. And phones can be turned off too. \*\* Please let me attempt to explain something to you, THAT IS MY!!! PHONE AND I!!! PAY THE BILL, MY TELEPHONE THAT I PAY FOR IS FOR MY USE, NOT SOME IDIOT TRYING TO PAWN SOME CRAP OFF ONTO ME, IF/WHEN THE TELEMARKETERS PAY MY PHONE BILL THEY CAN CALL ME ALL THEY WANT, UNTIL THEN THEY CAN ALL FUCK OFF!!!. unclviny [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/telemarketers-deserve-death/151687.md?page=4)