# 'Tis the season to be ranty - December Minirants **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 1, 2014, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028 "2014-12-01T14:11:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/221 "2014-12-16T02:15:44Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > I can’t believe the assholes are STILL trying to run that Microsoft scam. Doesn’t everybody with Internet connections know about this by now? “Technical Support” has been trying to call me for the past couple of weeks and I haven’t answered until today. > > “Hello?” > (surprised voice) “Oh! Hello?” > “Hello.” > (heavily accented voice) “Hello, my name is Raji. I am calling from technical support from Microsoft.” > “Really? Well, this should be entertaining!” > “Um. . .yes. There is a technical problem with your computer.” > “Really? Well, the only problem here is that you’re a fucking scammer; so go fuck yourself!” > > Then hung up. Looked over at me wife, who was looking at me with a rather shocked face. I explained the scam, so we’re good. > [@Finagle](#): > > Last one who called me, I told him that I had no Windows computers and that he should be ashamed of himself. He called me a m\*\*\*\*\*-f\*\*\*\*\* and hung up. I guess it must be stressful knowing that you’re earning a living doing stuff that makes creatures that suck algae off of rocks feel superior. I’ve told one of them that there wasn’t anything wrong with my computer, and that he should be ashamed of himself. What would his mother think of him? I got a couple of seconds of silence, then he hung up. ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/222 "2014-12-16T04:13:34Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > …at least as far as we’re concerned. > > So long, New York Times Sunday paper subscription. The announced increase to $9 a week has gone well past the point of ridiculousness. I will miss some things about the paper, including the irony of seeing Times news stories and op-eds wailing about income equality, while it simultaneously covers every possible non-event in the Hamptons and runs Patek Philippe watch ads aimed at the super-rich and their wretched snotty offspring. > > Who needs you, when we’ve got access to the Cleveland Plain Dealer? 🆒 It is only fifteen bucks online per month but still I agree with you. They come across as lunatics sometimes. The constant adds about stuff you’d need to be a one-precenter to afford and the income inequality screeds are ridiculously jarring. They sound so tone deaf sometimes. I think it’s the legacy of former mayor Bloomberg. He was like that. So rich you could barely imagine it and yet nattering on about the need to serve the poor. I live in the New York city area and all he’s done is make it harder than ever for anyone making under 200k to afford the area. > [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > We have to move. We can no longer afford our rented house since my SO lost her job 6 months ago. We need to move in a couple of weeks and we have not found the new place yet. My credit rating has taken a serious hit in the last year, especially the last 6 months. Hers sucks. We have 2 elderly dogs and need to be on the first floor. This narrows the list of possibilities signifigantly. > > And thought of packing up the entire house, getting the truck and enough people to help in such a short time makes me want to sit in the corner and cry. I am so sorry. That sucks so much. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/223 "2014-12-16T04:55:17Z")
> [@ENugent](#): > > They’re not from Microsoft, they’re from “Windows.” At least yours admitted to being Raji - mine is usually “John” or “Robert,” in a very heavily accented voice. Last time, I had the good fortune to have a Microsoft employee in the house, so I asked him if he wanted to take it (no dice). Then I told the scammer, “I do not have a Windows computer, you do not work at ‘Windows’, and your name is not John,” and hung up on him. We got a twofer! I also got the IRS call awhile ago, from a real 202 area code number. I didn’t answer it, since it always says “unknown caller”, but they actually left a freaking message saying things like “IRS” and “fraud” and “have your lawyer call” and “do not ignore this call” and “we will contact local authorities if we don’t hear from you.” But they apparently couldn’t figure out how to make the call look like it was coming from a government agency. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/224 "2014-12-16T05:28:20Z")
I spent most of the day out doing Christmas shopping. You can tell that I spend most of my days off of my feet, as now I have brutal shin splits, just from walking around all day. I hate my shins (I also hate myself for procrastinating on replacing my shoes for so long, but I at least fixed that already…) ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/225 "2014-12-16T06:01:22Z")
Those scammers from “Microsoft” actually nearly got me a couple months ago. I cannot believe how stupid I was. Luckily they didnt get any money from my but I did allow some access to my computer. From what I can tell the best thing to do is to play them along for as long as you can which ties up their time so they cannot be scamming someone else. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/226 "2014-12-16T06:49:56Z")
I want a Windows scammer!! They never call me. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/227 "2014-12-16T13:42:35Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > Those scammers from “Microsoft” actually nearly got me a couple months ago. I cannot believe how stupid I was. Luckily they didnt get any money from my but I did allow some access to my computer. I know you said it was a couple of months ago, but I hope you took the usual precautions (change ALL passwords, run virus scans, etc.) Just because nothing untoward has happened YET doesn’t mean nothing will. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/228 "2014-12-16T15:43:29Z")
They called my mother. She told them “oh! OK, I’ll tell my daughter!” and hung up. And the next time we talked, which was yesterday, she told me she’d had a call from Microsoft telling her there was a problem with her computer and that they’d said it was running slowly because it had a virus. I said “well, since I’m coming for Christmas, I’ll be doing the usual cleanup I do every visit.” She said good. I’ve got her trained to the point of jumping on my brothers with both feet if either of them try to install anything in her computers without my previous authorization. The scammers have a toughie there… ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/229 "2014-12-16T17:29:53Z")
This is less of a “rant,” and more of a thing that just makes me kind of sad. A friend of mine is pregnant, but unfortunately, I can’t feel too happy for her. She doesn’t seem to have a lot of luck with pregnancies. She’s been pregnant 7 times, but only has two kids. I hope things will go all right this time. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/230 "2014-12-16T18:03:19Z")
I’m thinking the best response to the IRS scam is to ask “What’s my name?” If they supposedly know there is fraud on your account, then they surely would know who you are. If for some reason they know your name, my next question would be “Who’s the Director of the IRS nowadays?” ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/231 "2014-12-16T18:20:06Z")
Not really a rant or complaint, more of a “_Holy shit was that funny!_” moment. Walking through the skyway this morning on my way to work. As we cross one street, I come up behind this guy towing a very large orange hard-shell suitcase. big enough to hide bodies in. We get most of the way through the next building. People all around but everyone is silent and just moving along, when suddenly, in a very very VERY loud voice… _“HOOKED ON PHONICS! CHRONIC!”_ Startled people it was so sudden and so loud. Probably a good thing I was now ahead of him, because I was choking laughing so hard. We get most of the way through the next skyway when… _“SOAP!”_ \ _“I SEE IT!!”_ Silence through the next building, where I turned off. ---
**Author:** ![MissTake](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misstake/32/3189_2.png) [@MissTake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissTake)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/232 "2014-12-16T18:27:37Z")
Oh, how I miss the downtown skyways. Always interesting people there. The best were between the Government Center and the Pillsbury Building. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/233 "2014-12-16T18:58:00Z")
> [@ENugent](#): > > They’re not from Microsoft, they’re from “Windows.” At least yours admitted to being Raji - mine is usually “John” or “Robert,” in a very heavily accented voice. Last time, I had the good fortune to have a Microsoft employee in the house, so I asked him if he wanted to take it (no dice). Then I told the scammer, “I do not have a Windows computer, you do not work at ‘Windows’, and your name is not John,” and hung up on him. The “Windows” scammer who called my house for a while couldn’t remember what his name was supposed to be. “Hello, my name is (lengthy pause) Nick, and I’m from Windows…” To be fair, his name did change every time. Maybe he was consulting a list. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/234 "2014-12-16T19:04:54Z")
Some vile and disgusting piece of excrement masquerading as a human being spat a wad of chewing tobacco on the driver’s side window of my car. Where’s that barfy smiley? ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/235 "2014-12-16T19:16:36Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > The “Windows” scammer who called my house for a while couldn’t remember what his name was supposed to be. “Hello, my name is (lengthy pause) Nick, and I’m from Windows…” To be fair, his name did change every time. Maybe he was consulting a list. Then respond with a different name every time. “Hello, my name is (lengthy pause) Nick, and I’m from Windows…” “Hi Bob” A few seconds later “Look, Frank…” Then “I dunno, Alfred” ---
**Author:** ![slalexan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@slalexan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slalexan)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/236 "2014-12-16T21:41:09Z")
Today has really sucked. I got in a car accident just moments away from work. I had to wait for the police for an hour to come. My car is done. And the other driver dleant have insurance. I’m stuck in an “everything sucks” kind of mood and now we have to go buy a new car. Everything really sucks. Also my ankle hurts. ---
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/237 "2014-12-16T22:37:23Z")
Today, the Chipotle near my house ran out of. . .wait for it. . .burritos. More specifically, they had no tortillas. At 12:30. I don’t know how they’re planning to get through the rest of the day. I would ask how the hell a burrito place runs out of burritos, but I once stopped at a Pizza Hut Express that was out of pizza. They gave me a hot dog instead. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/238 "2014-12-16T23:12:18Z")
Hot dogs are sketchy enough. But a _Pizza Hut_ hot dog? Wait … why did they even have them on hand? Did the manager just split his lunch with you or something? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2014, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/239 "2014-12-16T23:16:58Z")
I would very much like it if all the stupid people would vanish from my life for an extended period of time. Perhaps place them on a deserted island and they can learn some selfless responsibility for a change. ---
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2014, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028/240 "2014-12-17T00:05:45Z")
I never get the Windows scammers. Lately, it’s lovely folks who want to “give” me a “free” state-of-the-art home security system. Tonight was especially nice, because Joe from XYZ Home Security asked me whether I had a home security system. I was able to pleasantly answer that yes, I did: two cops and a K9 in residence. “I’mnotbuying.Pleasedon’tcallback.Byeeee!” In other news, the Princess has a job! Yesterday, he was given an ultimatum: have a job by the end of the week, or move out. He left the house at 1:00 pm, and was back before 4:00, employed. He also hates it when his mom and I are right, and that he would HAVE to get off his butt and go apply, not just put in on-line applications. Besides, I changed the wifi password last night, and told him that he can’t have it until I see some evidence of industry on his part. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tis-the-season-to-be-ranty-december-minirants/706028.md?page=13)