| Comment Number: | OL-113374 |
| Received: | 1/10/2005 11:07:44 AM |
| Organization: | Gerry Granite Works |
| Commenter: | Rebecca Gerry |
| State: | MA |
| Subject: | Trade Regulation Rule on Telemarketing Sales |
| Title: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Request for Comment |
| CFR Citation: | 16 CFR Part 310 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
Please do not weaken the Do Not Call list rules. Everyone I know hates the telemarketers including the recorded messages. Sometimes I have raced from a distant part of my house to the phone believing the call to be an important one only to find a telemarketer on the phone. Physically it is dangerouse, old people especially could trip and get hurt. The people of our country are full of pent up agression and anger due to the stress we face from our fast paced, demanding, intrusive, in-your-face competitive life style. As it stands now we are inundated and bombarded with thousands of advertisements every day, and the advertisers are always seeking some new and more creative way to annoy us with their "noise". The telemarketer intrusions add to this as they intrude upon our already scant home time. The FTC should consider our homes to be sacred ground, our safe havens, our places to relax and unwind, to recharge ourselves without being heckled. Still I get calls every Sunday night from telemarketers who are exempt from the current Do Not Call rules. These businesses are stupid if they think we will welcome their calls or give them money or our attention, on a Sunday night no less, if we are already on the Do Not Call List. Being on the list should be a clear enough indication that we will not be happy about their call. Let the advertisers send us a opt in form through the USPostal Service, if we don't respond they won't be wasting our time or theirs. Invading our personal space by telephone is no different than having a door-to-door sales person knock on your door even though you have a sign posted saying no solicitations. If the current rules are changed to weaken the Do Not Call list it will be one more reason adding fuel to the opinion so many of us have that our government has become so corrupted by money, political persuasion, and "the buddies club" that it is now a pathetic joke driven by the self interests of those who are working for it and elected or appointed to positions in it. A very sad state of affairs indeed. Someone has to step up to the plate and start drawing a line between what is fair and what is not fair to the rights of the people of this country. Capitalism out of control is going to alienate many people in the long run. Why would you make a Do Not Call list that is already weakened by the original "exceptions" and then change the rules to weaken it even more. This just feels like another government agency considering giving favors to its' big business buddies for the sake of making a buck. One last thing, I strongly feel a rule should be in place that clearly shows the name and working home phone number of the company CEO. What's fair is fair for all. I run a fifth generation family business, my name and phone number are clearly visible and available for anyone to call if they have an issue with me. I feel any business owner or company President, CEO, etc. should be forced to personally accept calls from those people who are subjected to the companys' marketing plan. This should be backed up by strong penalties if the company doesn't comply with this rule or circumvents it with someone other than the CEO live-and-in-person answering the phone. You and I both know that a rule such as that will never be created, but it should be, and I think you get my point.