Junk mail? Maybe this will help?

[perc-o-prince]

Whenever I get junk mail that has a pre-paid return envelope in it, I take a scrap bolt or several washers (large ones I get when I'm at the transfer station), roll them in a piece of paper so they don't float around, seal them in the return envelope and pop them in the mailbox. The senders seem to think junk-mailing me is a pretty cheap way of potentially getting another customer, but it turns out to be just the opposite when they have to pay for these heavy, thick (needs to be more than 1/4") items that they have to pay package rate to have returned to them. Maybe if enough people do it, more of the junk maul will stop.

Or, maybe I'm just pipe-dreaming!

Chuck

 

[wayupnorth]

Thats a great idea! I Dont want another credit card but they just keep sending me these APPLY NOW letters several times a week to get lots of air miles (I dont fly) or transfer other balances for a low APR (I never carry over a balance) and I definitely will do that next time, making it as heavy with junk as possible. Unfortunately, the poor mailing room will open them but if enough people do it, it may get to the way overpaid CEO. Now if someone can figure out how to get the Credit Card Services daily robo-calls with an urgent message to stop. As they pay no attention to the feds do not call list.

 

[danemodsandy]

Yep!

Forget our enemies abroad for a minute - I want Homeland Security to hunt down Rachael with Card Services!

 

[wayupnorth]

And every time

Rachael has a different number she called from with an "Urgent Message". Its useless to report them to the FCC and telling the foreign guy that cant speak english when you press 9 to F*** off doesnt work either, probably makes it worse.

 

[wiskybill]

I don't have a huge dislike of junk mail. I can look at it
when I have the time or not at all. You can send me most
anything in the mail, just DON'T call me on the phone.

And yes, Rachael is on my list too. Lucky for me though, she
has not yet found my cell number, now that I no longer use
a landline.

 

[blackstone]

Not everyone hates junk mail.

In fact, she loves it.

 

[lotsosudz]

Junk Mail

My father would take all his junk mail, save the one that had the prepaid envelope, and cram a bunch of the junk into it, and then send it back to them. That way, not only did they pay for their mail, but every other junk senders.
Hugs
David

 

[tolivac]

Love that "Doggy" paper shredder!!!Great for really SENSITIVE items-once it goes thru THAT shredder the message will NEVER be reconstructed!

 

[rp2813]

Knock on compressed sawdust . . .

We haven't heard from Rachael for quite some time.  I wonder if they're using a different recording now.  We still get regular calls for the same thing, but not from Rachael.

 

The Do-Not-Call list has become a joke.  The robo-callers have a few ways to prevent their calls from being traced.  The FCC even held a contest to try and find a solution to the Rachael plague.  I thought maybe somebody had won, but it sounds like Rachael is still at it.

 

The NSA could track down the sources of these calls in a matter of hours, but if they're originating off shore, there's little that can be done about them. 

 

What annoys me more is the ballsy types who are calling from within the country, even within my own state, or from an adjacent Area Code.  The Feds should go after those people and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law.

 

We used to have a V-Tech phone that could be set to play the three-tone "not in service" sound whenever we or our machine  answered a call.  It was a little unnerving to legitimate callers, but when robo calls hear that tone, they remove the dialed number from their list.  It worked like a charm before the Do-Not-Call list existed.  I wish we still had it.

 

I like the idea of weighing down the postage paid return envelopes but I wonder if they'd even be delivered, considering that a flimsy letter envelope isn't likely a USPS approved form of packaging, perhaps not even if it's covered entirely with clear packing tape.

 

 

 

[polkanut]

I had 2 calls from Card Services yesterday.  When the first showed up on the caller id it said it was from Albany, GA, and the 2nd one from San Diego, CA.  When I politely (for a change) asked to be removed from their calling list the witch on the other end gave me a huge serving of attitude.  I told her to nicely f%$k off.

 

[wringer]

My family

has been returning these postage paid junkies to the sender for years. We all do it. We put as much of the contents of the original envelope in the return one and hope they enjoy it as much as we do. On the other hand, I have a friend who is a mail man and he says that the junk mail is the biggest thing keeping the USPS open. He gladly picks up the return envelopes when I attach them to my mailbox for outgoing mail. I love it. I also know I am warped and at some point in my life was abused LOL.

Jim

 

[gus]

@ Fred,
Beautiful, lovely dog! Gus

 

[perc-o-prince]

Its useless to report them to the FCC

This is why I hit them where it hurts- their wallet! The weight of what I send is bad enough, but there's a surcharge for the thickness.

I'm wondering- If I wrap a cinder block in kraft paper, like a grocery bag, and tape the return envelope to it, will the PO take it? Hmmmmm- I'm gonna have to check that out!!

Chuck

BTW- re: Card Services calls... I've had them call saying they're from Visa/MasterCard calling about my card from (name 4 banks). I ask them which bank's card they're referring to. They answer that they're not from the bank, but from Visa/MasterCard (using that terminology). So, I string them along a little more and ask which card they're calling about. They say it's the Visa or MasterCard from (name 4 banks). I let them know I have at least two cards from those banks, and that they need to tell me which one they're calling about. They won't be specific. I remind them that Visa and MasterCard are competing companies and that if they were truly calling about one of my cards they'd know exactly which card they were calling about and the bank that issued it.

If I have the time, I carry this out to ad nauseum. Had one caller on the line for almost 5 minutes before he realized I was yanking his chain and told me to F*** off! Yes, he actually said that!

I do love it when I have the time!!! Gotta stuff another couple of envelopes now though!

Chuck

 

[blackstone]

Thanks, Gus. Bailey is our Scottish Terrier. Her favorite time of the day is when she is looking out the front window and sees the mailman coming and hears the mail slot. There usually is some type of junk mail to give her.

 

[golittlesport]

Ever think of just telling them to take your name off the list instead of sending them anonymous hardware? That might produce better results.

Hardcopy mail doesn't bother me, advertising and spam emails are more a pain in the behind. But in the scheme of things, I really don't have the time to worry and fret about either. Life goes on and is good.

 

[davey7]

One of my friends does that too - he takes the return label to a huge envelope and covers it with tape and sends it postage due. He's not on many lists now.