I am absofrigginlutely friggin sick and friggin tired of free stuff!

[artwebster]

I hate that familiar email subject line - "Thank you Arthur - here's your free download"

Somebody somewhere has really got a bad case of the guru trots and are spraying effluent with gay abandon all over the internet.

Listen. If I have done nothing for you - DON'T thank me.
If you don't know me DON'T address me as Arthur
Most of all DON'T try to offload another friggin video or audio file of somebody I have never heard of taking too long to tell me how wonderful he/she is and how bad it used to was for them.

I am friggin sick of it. Every friggin wannabe marketer and his friggin clone is telling his buddy to send me his latest $97 product for frig all.

I get so much free stuff in my mail boxes that I could now have filled several hundred gigs with them all.

ENOUGH ALREADY!
Give them to somebody else!

Thank God for the mass delete key.

[Jesse Kemmerer]

Exactly. How dare they email you after you've opted in to their list...

Heathens.

[BrandonIM]

Yeah, but I'd have to agree with him.

[BrandonIM]

Jesse - People like to buy, they don't like to be sold. I still think some creativity and originality could go a long way.

[Jagged]

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Absofrigginlutely

[Bill Farnham]

Originally Posted by Jesse Kemmerer

Exactly. How dare they email you after you've opted in to their list...

Heathens.

I get these all the time from senders who I have never heard of, nor have I opted-in to anything remotely similar to.

There's a lot of email sharing/harvesting going on.

I just hit the spam/phishing button.

Life's too short to blow a blood vessel over these things...

KJ

[Bev Clement]

I agree with Art. It has nothing to do with being on someone's list.

There are a number of people who are doing this now, I get an email from them and they say, "Here is your free download link" or "Here is your download link" except I didn't buy from them recently.

Click the link and it is their affiliate link to the product, not the download link at all.

It is only free if you buy another product from them and then they will give you this one as a bonus.

It sucks, it's underhand, it's false advertising.

Why do I stay on their list? Because I bought something from them, and if I unsubscribe I lose access to the product I paid good money for, so I delete all their emails now.

Edit: I didn't mean about them using Art's name because he chose to put his name in their system

Sounds like Art wasn't complaining about being on someone's list, but more about the way his name is used.

[LarryC]

lol. I like some of the free stuff that's available, but it can be too much. I actually feel a sense of dread now when I see "free ebook" or "free video." My desktop is already overloaded with largely redundant material.

[ramone_johnny]

Lets blow something up.

[Jeremy Kelsall]

Art, have you even come across anything marketing related that you DO LIKE?

Seriously man, why bother?

From reading your posts - YOU LIKE NOTHING ABOUT MARKETING.

You don't like the people

You don't like the information

You don't like the methods

You don't like ANYTHING

[ForeignProfessor]

Originally Posted by artwebster

I hate that familiar email subject line - "Thank you Arthur - here's your free download"

...
Listen. If I have done nothing for you - DON'T thank me.
If you don't know me DON'T address me as Arthur

I hate being addressed by my given name by strangers too. I find it rude and invasive. I think that I'm somewhat of an exception though. I'm British, and about ten years ago I went to study in the US. Whilst I was there I had to open a bank account. A short time later I received a call from the bank which began along the lines of "Hi David, it's BANK here.."

I found it incredibly rude. I know, in retrospect, they were trying to be friendly, and perhaps N. American customers expect to be addressed in this way, but I personally found it invasive and rude. In the UK my bank has been calling me Mr. since I was about 14 years old, and that's the way I like it.
If you don't know me, don't use my given name. Please.

I'm on the list of several internet marketers now who use my given name to address me in the emails they send out to hundreds or thousands of people. I find it uncomfortable and overly friendly. I understand their motive; they're trying to build a relationship with me. However, for me, this is the wrong way to go about it. As I said above though, I strongly suspect I'm an exception, and other people probably do feel 'special' when you include their name in a reply. I'm just not one of them.

[chrisgarrett]

Originally Posted by ForeignProfessor

I hate being addressed by my given name by strangers too

Don't give them your name then

I routinely sign up to opt in forms using xxx as my name, or even an insult term.

Then when they email me it is all "Hi Dufusface, have I got a DEAL for YOU!?"

[Damien Roche]

You don't like being addressed by your first name by strangers? Wow, some people have a huge bargepole up their behinds.

[JohnMcCabe]

Originally Posted by Damien Roche

You don't like being addressed by your first name by strangers? Wow, some people have a huge bargepole up their behinds.

Damien, it wasn't that many years ago that parents taught their children to address all adults as Mr., Mrs., or Miss. Ms. had yet to be invented. Once reaching adulthood, one still addressed their elders/superiors by title unless given permission to use the person's first name.

What gets me is when total strangers take things one step further and use a diminutive form of my first name. The group of people allowed to call me Johnny is very small and very exclusive. I hate answering the phone and going through this:

Me: "Hello..."

Captain Gladhand: "Hi! May I speak to John McCabe, please?" (last name mispronounced)

Me: "You are speaking to him..."

Captain Gladhand: "Hey, Johnny, how are you doing? I just wanted to let you know you've been selected for something really special. Johnny, you can buy..."

[dial tone]

[Damien Roche]

Originally Posted by JohnMcCabe

Damien, it wasn't that many years ago that parents taught their children to address all adults as Mr., Mrs., or Miss. Ms. had yet to be invented. Once reaching adulthood, one still addressed their elders/superiors by title unless given permission to use the person's first name.

What gets me is when total strangers take things one step further and use a diminutive form of my first name. The group of people allowed to call me Johnny is very small and very exclusive. I hate answering the phone and going through this:

Me: "Hello..."

Captain Gladhand: "Hi! May I speak to John McCabe, please?" (last name mispronounced)

Me: "You are speaking to him..."

Captain Gladhand: "Hey, Johnny, how are you doing? I just wanted to let you know you've been selected for something really special. Johnny, you can buy..."

[dial tone]

I see where you're coming from. You're right, using 'nicknames' or, as you say, a diminutive form of your first name, feels too icky. But I'm not talking about nicknames and I'm not talking about cold calling.

I'm talking about people using your full name which you gave them when you said they could contact you. That needs to be made very clear here, you have filled in a form and entered your first name by request. You didn't have to do that, and you certainly have no ground to say "How the hell did you have the audacity to contact me and address me by my first name??".

Don't like it, don't opt in or use Mr Poleass.

It isn't an attack at anybody, just a general criticism on the attitude considering the context.

[CynCyn]

Originally Posted by chrisgarrett

Don't give them your name then

I routinely sign up to opt in forms using xxx as my name, or even an insult term.

Then when they email me it is all "Hi Dufusface, have I got a DEAL for YOU!?"

That's hilarious! I do the same. I use a variation of "FukUrHot" and whenever they address me, I chuckle to myself, and it doesn't bother me what they're trying to sell. Infact, I love looking through my email headlines.

"Here's your FRE.E Download, FukUrHot!" Why thank you...

[George Wright]

You have to admit though he sure is creating a brand. Brilliant.

George Wright

Originally Posted by Jeremy Kelsall

Art, have you even come across anything marketing related that you DO LIKE?

Seriously man, why bother?

From reading your posts - YOU LIKE NOTHING ABOUT MARKETING.

You don't like the people

You don't like the information

You don't like the methods

You don't like ANYTHING

[Pipinscott]

Originally Posted by ForeignProfessor

I hate being addressed by my given name by strangers too. I find it rude and invasive.

In the UK my bank has been calling me Mr. since I was about 14 years old, and that's the way I like it.
If you don't know me, don't use my given name. Please.

So how did you sign up on the opt in page? With your given name?

Autoresponders are stupid, you must tell them how you wish to be addressed.

Yeup Americans can be overly familiar most of the time...Damn us Americans living our culture in our country

@Ken - Nice post ...lol

@Art - This is why I do not subscribe to list at all... I do not want the junk, I do not care what the latest and greatest product is, I do not care who is launching what, I rather spend the time on my business.

If I want to buy something, then I will go looking for it... Just think if all those wannabe gurus had me as a sub they would all be broke and homeless ...LOL!!

James

[Ken]

If first name use bothers you fill in the forms asking for your name with "Mr. Lastname"
Problem solved.

[ramone_johnny]

Apparently George Clooney when staying in hotels, gives his lastname as "President". So that when any of the staff address him, they address him as "Good evening Mr. President"

[lakshaybehl]

And how is my autoresponder supposed to know if you are a Mr. or a Miss?

Come on guys... there are people who try to be friendly, then there are people who ARE friendly. And there's a difference.

-Lakshay

[Frank Donovan]

Talking of addressing strangers, I can't help recalling this clip...

YouTube - Monty Python's Flying Circus - It's the...

Seriously Art, I get the point; but such an OTT reaction to a problem that could easily be reduced by a straightforward opt-in list cull, suggests to me some diverted frustration from a more serious matter.

Maybe you should try to tackle the real cause of your annoyance.

Best,


Frank

[ForeignProfessor]

Originally Posted by Damien Roche

That needs to be made very clear here, you have filled in a form and entered your first name by request. You didn't have to do that, and you certainly have no ground to say "How the hell did you have the audacity to contact me and address me by my first name??".

Don't like it, don't opt in or use Mr Poleass.

Hey,

Not every one is an internet marketer. Not everyone knows that if they fill in their name in the box they're going to get emails addressed to their given name for the foreseeable future. Everyone who spends time on this board or other internet marketing boards knows this may happen, but the 'general public' do not. If you're only targetting internet marketers who know EXACTLY what's going to be coming into their inbox, then fair enough.

When I move house and get the gas company to change the billing to my name, or sign up for a new internet connection or any other day to day thing I inevitably give my full name. This doesn't mean I want them calling me by my given name, despite the fact I've given them the details.

Again, I will stress, I am weird, and possibly Arthur(sorry!) is too. It's not an issue for most internet marketers since probably 90% or more of the population don't care. I happen to, Artwebster happens to, and we're probably freaks or old fashioned or something. That's all.

[JohnMcCabe]

Originally Posted by Damien Roche

I see where you're coming from. You're right, using 'nicknames' or, as you say, a diminutive form of your first name, feels too icky. But I'm not talking about nicknames and I'm not talking about cold calling.

I'm talking about people using your full name which you gave them when you said they could contact you. That needs to be made very clear here, you have filled in a form and entered your first name by request. You didn't have to do that, and you certainly have no ground to say "How the hell did you have the audacity to contact me and address me by my first name??".

Don't like it, don't opt in or use Mr Poleass.

It isn't an attack at anybody, just a general criticism on the attitude considering the context.

I wasn't trying to argue with you, just point out that even though I filled in my name, it doesn't automatically establish permission to use (or abuse) it. It assumes a level of familiarity that does not exist in the majority of cases.

I'm guessing that calling Art Webster "Arthur" has the same effect as someone calling me "Johnny".

And you'd be surprised at how many list builders think my my first name is either Sir or My Lord...

Originally Posted by ramone_johnny

Apparently George Clooney when staying in hotels, gives his lastname as "President". So that when any of the staff address him, they address him as "Good evening Mr. President"

Governor Jesse "the Body" Ventura

Governor Arnold "Terminator" Schwarzenegger

President George Clooney? The first two are bad enough, the last one is the stuff of nightmares...

[Tsnyder]

Originally Posted by CynCyn

That's hilarious! I do the same. I use a variation of "FukUrHot" and whenever they address me, I chuckle to myself, and it doesn't bother me what they're trying to sell. Infact, I love looking through my email headlines.

"Here's your FRE.E Download, FukUrHot!" Why thank you...

That is hilarious!

Tsnyder

[Steven Wagenheim]

Art, um...well...oh gee...I don't (puzzled look )

Forget it...I got nuthin.

Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim

Art, um...well...oh gee...I don't (puzzled look )

Forget it...I got nuthin.

Yeah right! You'll be back ....

James

[BizzyUK]

The forced use of forenames in casual business transactions is disingenuous because it suggests a relationship, a degree of familiarity, that is in reality not there. It's NLP type BS, really, that doesn't fool anyone with an IQ over 50.

Don't call me Bob. I know you don't care a rat's arse about me, so just stick to business and call me "sir" or better still "your lord-master", bringer of all that is true, right and noble. This approach works for me anyway.

Now f*** off sirs and madams, I am busy.

Mickey D.

[DAS_Matt]

This thread truly amuses me.

[KimW]

Originally Posted by Damien Roche

You don't like being addressed by your first name by strangers? Wow, some people have a huge bargepole up their behinds.

Uh no dude,
there are many of us that were raised where the use of the first name was a privilege and/or a right of passage.
If I went from calling someone Mr so and so to calling him Bill, I did so whith the permission of Mr So and So.
"You don't have to call me so and so, just call me Bill".
It was a right that was earned , not given. It was and is a status leveler.
When we are calling each other by our first names, we are dealing with each other on the same level.

From your comment and your avatar I would guess that your a younger individual. I hate to generalize, because it isn't true of all young people, but from my own experience the younger generation doersn't understand the concept of manners.

Now, I don't have a bargepole up my behind, but what I do have is a good upbringing and manners.

[MikeAmbrosio]

Originally Posted by KimW

Uh no dude,
there are many of us that were raised where the use of the first name was a privilege and/or a right of passage.
If I went from calling someone Mr so and so to calling him Bill, I did so whith the permission of Mr So and So.
"You don't have to call me so and so, just call me Bill".
It was a right that was earned , not given. It was and is a status leveler.
When we are calling each other by our first names, we are dealing with each other on the same level.

It's not totally dead yet. This is what I taught my kids (ages from 6 - 21) and they all practice this.

From your comment and your avatar I would guess that your a younger individual. I hate to generalize, because it isn't true of all young people, but from my own experience the younger generation doersn't understand the concept of manners.

Like it or not, this is how they are being brought up. This is no excuse, but there are a lot more 2-working parent households than when you or I were kids. My mother was stay at home until I was 12. This is a side effect due to not being taught this by the baby sitter/day care workers. (I am generalizing, obviously). Add to that the adults that really don't care about the Mr. or Mrs. - there seems to be a lot more of them today.

Times have changed. We don't have to accept certain things in our own little worlds, but generally, there's not much you can do about the rest. Accept and move on.

Anyway, the first name shtick is simply a marketing tactic that has been taught and practiced for years. I was getting catalogs and junk mail in my mail box with my first name on them for YEARS before I got on the internet.

The reason it's so pronounced is because being marketers, we see it daily from everywhere.

@Art - stress kills. Especially trivial stress like this Is it worth it over being offered free downloads by strangers? Opt out, report spam if you never opted in. Move on. Easy.

[KimW]

Mike, a lot of what you say is true and very valid.(Of course, I'm reading into your post a lot of agreement with me )

Between my first wife and my second wife, I had physical custody of my three daughters for several years, and that is how they were brought up too.

Your right, times have changed, and a lot of places teach their employees to call customers by our first name. And I admit,I am old fashioned, I don't hesitate to tell someone to call me Mr so and so, not by my first name.

But again, that doesn't make myself or others like me have a bargeploe up our behind, it again means we were raised with manners.
The fact that people aren't teaching and therefore others are not learning them is to me, indicative of the sad state of the world.
Just my two cents.

[HeySal]

Originally Posted by ForeignProfessor

Hey,

Not every one is an internet marketer. Not everyone knows that if they fill in their name in the box they're going to get emails addressed to their given name for the foreseeable future. Everyone who spends time on this board or other internet marketing boards knows this may happen, but the 'general public' do not. If you're only targetting internet marketers who know EXACTLY what's going to be coming into their inbox, then fair enough.

When I move house and get the gas company to change the billing to my name, or sign up for a new internet connection or any other day to day thing I inevitably give my full name. This doesn't mean I want them calling me by my given name, despite the fact I've given them the details.

Again, I will stress, I am weird, and possibly Arthur(sorry!) is too. It's not an issue for most internet marketers since probably 90% or more of the population don't care. I happen to, Artwebster happens to, and we're probably freaks or old fashioned or something. That's all.

Actually, it is not an attempt at being too familiar which causes the use of the first name - it is custom. Here in US we don't run via class system at all - yes there are classes, but it is extremely rude over here to notice the difference in class other than in a few settings, such as an elderly person being addressed as Mr. or Mrs. or in business settings. For conversational level social intercourse, first names are the norm, and it is a norm that is rapidly permeating the business world as well. You in countries used to more formal discourse will soon find that first names are becoming norm over there, too - and can look to the Internet and multi-cultural exposure for the cause/blame. Anyhow, that is why auto responders pick up first name instead of the prefix and last name. It would appear very stilted to most Americans to receive an email addressed to Mr. or Ms. instead of Hey, Jerry. It would cause us as much discomfort being addressed too formally in a given situation as it does for you to be addressed less formally than you are accustomed to.

It's easy to imagine that this custom would drive people in societies which are more class differentiated a bit nuts - uncomfortable at the least. But do note - it is an auto-responder that is setting the salutation, not a person so they have no way of varying their salutations per culture. If you feel truly uncomfortable having your first name used converstationally -- instead of providing a first name to an autoresponder - put your chosen prefix -- understanding when you do, that the email might just read only
"Dear Mr."

It's getting to be a very small world - we have to start learning to be comfortable with such minute differences in cultural ways or we are all going to go friggen batty.

[JohnMcCabe]

Originally Posted by HeySal

It would cause us as much discomfort being addressed too formally in a given situation as it does for you to be addressed less formally than you are accustomed to.

Miss Sal, you have a point. It's quite possible to show complete scorn for another by exercising overly polite address. If you think of the stereotype French maitre' d, you'll understand just how insulting overly formal courtesy can be.

I've seen much more of the formal address done out of respect since I moved South (capital S). It just seems to be a more Southern thing.

[natscash]

You need to take a deep breath and relax. It's going to be OK...
Just get a new e-mail address and give it to close friends and family only. Then you will not get as much mail. Keep the e-mail address you have now for opt in purposes.

[Paul Myers]

Art,

Yeah, well, get over it, dude. If someone calls me "Mr Myers," I correct them, politely. (My Dad is still alive and well. As long as that's true, he is Mr Myers.) I don't come whining to 100,000+ people about it. You deal with the cultural norms of the people who are talking to you, as long as they're reasonably respectful.

If they called you "Artie," you'd have a legitimate beef. Otherwise, you're just bitching for the sake of bitching, and a lot of us are sick of it. If you don't like it, hang up, or delete the email.

John,

It's quite possible to show complete scorn for another by exercising overly polite address.

Amen. If I switch from referring to someone as "Art" to "Mr Webster," and it's not clearly a joke (or someone I just like messing with), that's a warning to them that I'm in formal "Don't screw with me on this" mode. (Unless I've been specifically asked not to use the familiar form.)

If I become excessively formal, that's rarely a good sign. The normal translation is, "I have the orbital nuclear death ray platform trained on your location, and you're about to join the choir invisibule. Go ahead. Make my day."

Now, for people I don't know well, "sir" or "ma'am" is just common courtesy. But if I know you, and it's not clear I'm joking, that's a nasty warning.


Paul

[artwebster]

Hey Jesse - Don't jump to usupported friggin conclusions.

How dare you be so crass as to suggest I would think about complaining about messages from lists that I have opted in to?

Anwswer by all means but don't make up your own friggin scenario!!!

[artwebster]

Hi, Jeremy,

Just because I don't go around kissing butts and saying how wonderful the good guys are doesn't disqualify me from making my feelings about the assinine idiots who can do no more than copy and paste clear - or does your subscription to the "this is an absolutely positively wonderful world in a benefiscent universe that I am so pleased to receive such generous largesse from" include a clause insisting upon knee jerk responses to anything that is positively negative?

The good guys out there don't need to be told they are good but the anal sphincters might not know that they are what they are. After all, many of them seem to be learning from one or two people who seem to have reputations of knowing what they are doing and, therefor, being worth copying.

[artwebster]

Hi, Paul,

Just because I complain does not reduce the value of my comments.

Imagine the world in print if every service provider posted the same advert as evre other service provider.

[Steven Wagenheim]

Originally Posted by artwebster

Hi, Jeremy,

Just because I don't go around kissing butts and saying how wonderful the good guys are doesn't disqualify me from making my feelings about the assinine idiots who can do no more than copy and paste clear - or does your subscription to the "this is an absolutely positively wonderful world in a benefiscent universe that I am so pleased to receive such generous largesse from" include a clause insisting upon knee jerk responses to anything that is positively negative?

The good guys out there don't need to be told they are good but the anal sphincters might not know that they are what they are. After all, many of them seem to be learning from one or two people who seem to have reputations of knowing what they are doing and, therefor, being worth copying.

Art, I think the problem is with your original post. You didn't make it clear
that you weren't talking about lists that you opted into but rather people
who were spamming you with garbage. We, in turn were lead to believe
that...

1. You opted into list
2. Were sent offers.
3. Got angry because of the offers sent.

That would have anybody scratching their heads as the simple solution is,
if you don't want to be sent offers, don't opt into lists. I don't. I can count
the number of lists I am on, on one hand. The spam I get? Off the wall
and drives me nuts. But there is only so much I can do about that. And
yes, I agree that there are people out there who are clueless.

Your post just wasn't very clear, which was why I originally didn't even
know how to respond to it. Now I do, unless I am still not understanding
your beef.

[artwebster]

I'm talking about people using your full name which you gave them when you said they could contact you. That needs to be made very clear here, you have filled in a form and entered your first name by request. You didn't have to do that, and you certainly have no ground to say "How the hell did you have the audacity to contact me and address me by my first name??".

Good point Damien - except none of the people I am complaining about has my permission to email me about anything. They have obviously collected my name and email address from my sites or from other comments on other blogs and forums

[MikeAmbrosio]

Originally Posted by artwebster

I'm talking about people using your full name which you gave them when you said they could contact you. That needs to be made very clear here, you have filled in a form and entered your first name by request. You didn't have to do that, and you certainly have no ground to say "How the hell did you have the audacity to contact me and address me by my first name??".

Good point Damien - except none of the people I am complaining about has my permission to email me about anything. They have obviously collected my name and email address from my sites or from other comments on other blogs and forums

Are you really getting that much email from lists you didn't opt in to?

Interesting. I have been in this niche for about 7 years and while I occasionally get email from people who I didn't sign up for, I can count those on one hand.

My guess is you opted in to probably one list who sold your info. But truthfully, I don't personally know any internet marketer who SELLS his list to other internet marketers. Not saying it doesn't happen - cause I am sure there's a couple out there who do. But by the way your OP and your follow ups sound you'd think it's happening to you daily. Or you're just real thin-skinned...

Funny, I once signed up to a "big name" marketers list ON line, and soon after that started receiving junk mail OFF line. I knew who it was and went back to the page I signed up to and sure enough - the disclaimer stated that I could be getting related offers, etc. So I had no call to bitch. It was in his terms. I just didn't read it

[artwebster]

Hi, Steven,

It was very silly of me to think that my blog post would be read and no implications drawn that were not in there.

The assumption that I would complain about emails from people to whose lists I had suscribed is both short sighted and deeply offensive.

No matter how many new email addresses I create they don't take long to be located and receive spam. Gmail seeems to have a particular vulnarability to being harvested.

I also find it strange that few people seem to understand that by making my feelings known and receiving supporting comments from other people - I am actually showing how NOT to do things.

I did receive one email from a stranger that I did not take offence at - the subject line was "You don't know me and I don't know you. My name is Peter . . ." It was the same rubbish email but time had been spent and effort expended to make it stand out.

That, I did like.

[artwebster]

Hi, Mike,

I receive about 500 emails a day and about 80% are promotional types of emails from people I have never heard of.

[MikeAmbrosio]

Originally Posted by artwebster

Hi, Mike,

I receive about 500 emails a day and about 80% are promotional types of emails from people I have never heard of.

You get a lot more than I do. And I actually subscribe to many lists

Gmail - the reason I switched to it a few years back is because it gets scraped WAY less than Hotmail or Yahoo. I did tests where I simply created new addresses on each. I did not post them or use them anywhere. Hotmail had spam in my box by the end of the second day. Yahoo within a week.

But I still get next to none in the Gmail box. I set these up well over a year ago too.

Maybe you just have bad luck

[Jeremy Kelsall]

Originally Posted by artwebster

Hi, Jeremy,

Just because I don't go around kissing butts and saying how wonderful the good guys are doesn't disqualify me from making my feelings about the assinine idiots who can do no more than copy and paste clear - or does your subscription to the "this is an absolutely positively wonderful world in a benefiscent universe that I am so pleased to receive such generous largesse from" include a clause insisting upon knee jerk responses to anything that is positively negative?

Art, I'm going to try to say this as respectfully as I can.

YOU ARE A NEGATIVE PERSON.

Look back through your own posts and point one out to me that was POSITIVE. You might have 1 or 2 hidden away somewhere, but 99.9% of your "thoughts and feelings" are negative.

Everyone isn't out to "get you". Quite frankly, I could care less who you like and don't like - It doesn't put any money in or take any money out of my pocket.

From some postings, it appears that you have enjoyed some success online/offline so, I guess what I don't get is, why the hell are you so Jaded?

I have a feeling that if the emails addressed you by Mr. or Sir your next posting would be:

"I'm sick and tired of people addressing me formally in emails"

I honestly believe that there isn't much anyone could do to satisfy you or keep you happy.

Originally Posted by artwebster

The good guys out there don't need to be told they are good but the anal sphincters might not know that they are what they are. After all, many of them seem to be learning from one or two people who seem to have reputations of knowing what they are doing and, therefor, being worth copying.

The good guys? According to you, anyone that addresses you by your first name in an annoyance and dirt bag. So, what should we refer to you as on the forum?

Lord?

Master?

How many people are using email marketing and not using their subscribers first name? I havn't run into any...

So, by your own criteria, there are no good guys, except for yourself of course...

Come down from your mountain and join us "regular" folks - the world is a refreshing place when you chill out.

[Steven Wagenheim]

Originally Posted by Jeremy Kelsall

Art, I'm going to try to say this as respectfully as I can.

YOU ARE A NEGATIVE PERSON.

Look back through your own posts and point one out to me that was POSITIVE. You might have 1 or 2 hidden away somewhere, but 99.9% of your "thoughts and feelings" are negative.

Everyone isn't out to "get you". Quite frankly, I could care less who you like and don't like - It doesn't put any money in or take any money out of my pocket.

From some postings, it appears that you have enjoyed some success online/offline so, I guess what I don't get is, why the hell are you so Jaded?

I have a feeling that if the emails addressed you by Mr. or Sir your next posting would be:

"I'm sick and tired of people addressing me formally in emails"

I honestly believe that there isn't much anyone could do to satisfy you or keep you happy.



The good guys? According to you, anyone that addresses you by your first name in an annoyance and dirt bag. So, what should we refer to you as on the forum?

Lord?

Master?

How many people are using email marketing and not using their subscribers first name? I havn't run into any...

So, by your own criteria, there are no good guys, except for yourself of course...

Come down from your mountain and join us "regular" folks - the world is a refreshing place when you chill out.

Thanks Jeremy...it had to be said.

I just didn't want to be the one to say it.

(Have gotten into enough trouble around here already)

[CDarklock]

Originally Posted by artwebster

I hate that familiar email subject line - "Thank you Arthur - here's your free download"

Agreed.

When you thank me for my purchase, and I didn't make a purchase, your email does indeed get opened... so I can find out who is buying things with my account!

And yes, I'm relieved to find you're just handing me a pitch. But that's rapidly replaced with "you bastard." It's the email equivalent of yelling "fire!" to make people leave the room; you yelled "fraud!" to make me open your email. You suck and I hate you.

[Gary Mitchell]

Some very emotional responses here. I have to agree to some degree, this free crap is getting out of hand-it's reminds me of graffiti -visual pollution.

We could just hit the spam/phishing button like someone else said or as Ramone Johnny (my favorite comment)

"Let's Blow Something Up!"

perhaps not, but that sums it up.