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Better Than CNN / News Archives / Telemarketers |
I know what most of you are expecting...Jimm is going to have funny stories about things that have been done to telemarketers, or Jimm is going to talk about how much he hates them.
You're wrong.
You're at home after a long day...eating dinner, talking to your family, and watching television. Suddenly the phone rings. Who would be calling at this time? Is it grandma? Is it a neighbor? No, it's a telemarketer. Immediately when you hear their Southern accent, your blood boils. Your face turns red and steam shoots from your ears. Then, you calm down. You remember the funny story your friend or family member told you about the time a telemarketer called them. You decide to play a joke of your own...
About the time you're finding out you've been preapproved for a new credit card, you begin to yell at the telemarketer. Or, you simply hang up. There are many different ways to hang up on a telemarketer, most of them very clever. But is it necessary?
We have to understand that these people need to make a living just like any one of us. Sure, maybe it's not the best way, but in the South it's either telemarketing or living in the trailer park (in some cases, it's both).
And you may say, "Well, they could call at a time that is more convenient for me." Most people are at work or at least busy during the day. Around 5:00 P.M. is when a lot of people get home from work. It just also happens to be a time that a lot of people are eating.
I'm not saying it isn't fun to rip into the occasional telemarketer, but some people take it too far. Please, once in your lifetime, be courteous and at least pretend to listen to the telemarketer before hanging up without even considering what they have to offer. Is that too much to ask? If it is, then at least I tried.
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by Jimm McShane |
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