Political calls

[Gurndigarn]

This isn't precisely about my work, but some of the other people on this website have done work similar to this, and I'm hoping someone has some experience that can help me.


I detest advertising. More than most people. When I'm listening to the radio, if a commercial comes on, the channel changes. And the more intrusive the advertising is, the more I hate it. To me, the worst form is telemarketing, and the height of the US federal government in my lifetime was the Do NOT Call Registry. Well, maybe helping the fall of the Soviet Union tops it, but it's still near the top.

The DNC list has one glaring flaw, though. The politicians left themselves a loophole. They're still allowed to call-- and they can use recorded messages, as well. :rant:

I seem to have gotten on one of the political party's "to call" list somehow. And I'm in what I expect will be a set of critical races. Well, critical to politicians in general; I'm a lot more relaxed than they are. Any idea how to get off this list? I left a quick note on their website that if I don't get off the list, I'm going to vote solidly for their opposition, for no other reason than their opposition hasn't bugged the hell out of me. And I will, too. But I would far prefer to do my voting in a more rational, less reactionary manner.

This was a long, roundabout way of getting to the question of: how do you get off a phone list when the only calls you seem to get are pre-recorded? Fairly ghastly preach-to-the-choir demogogary, too: practically bad enough to send me over to the other side, anyway, even though I've voted for this party more than the other one during my life.

[thegiraffe]

Easy answer:

Political calls do not count as soliciting, advertising, etc. There is no way to get off the list except to call/email the specific campaigns and request that you're no longer contacted. Depending on the size of the campaign, it may or may not work. They're pre-recorded, then the numbers are put into a database and the campaign pays an outside company to 'call' the numbers and record the message. If it's a local race, should be doable. State or nation-wide? Fat chance. You can hang up though. They're not soliciters - they shouldn't call back.

BTW - I know this b/c my dad was running for office this past year. I was super close to the campaign, so I'm quite well-versed in the laws/regulations/procedures etc.

[Tutorgal]

Call the campaign. That will stop the calls directly produced by that person's campaign offices. Unfortunately, it wont stop the ones from places like "friends of cousins of nextdoor neighbors of (whatever)," but it should help. They dont want to alienate potential voters.

Last election the candidates of a bunch of local positions in the same party advertised together. But they also advertised on their own. Someone made a mixup on the phone lists and people were getting called for the combo and for each of the three. I moved back home this year before grad school, so both my mom and I are registered to that party. So in about an hour I got 8 phonecalls. I called all 4 places, assured them I would be voting that party, and never got a call again.

[Crosshair]

I respond to the "big two" political parties asking for money by responding, "Not one cent until the border is secure." They don't have a responce for that. It's like you can hear their brains shorting out.:devil:

[AFpheonix]

Hmmm....I don't have a landline, and I'm registered Independent. Next to no political calls! Woohoo!

That, and I hardly if ever watch tv, and I listen to public radio mostly, so no advertising from there.
(however, they did run the latest debate between the contestants in the governer's race, so that was interesting to listen to)

[protege]

I don't like dealing with the political idiots either. So far, I haven't had any call me. Of course it helps that I don't have a home phone, and just use my cell. However, last year I was constantly getting emails from some candidate in the next district over. (In other words, someone I could *not* legally vote for.) After many messages telling them to remove me from their list--their "remove me" link didn't work--I'd had enough. I simply lost it, and fired off a nasty message. I went on to say that I couldn't vote for the guy because he wasn't my representative, and even if I could, I wouldn't...since he's obviously *not* listening to the voters. That did it--no more emails from them :D

[Banrion]

I don't get too many calls, the only ones I get are from the RNC, and I love getting voicemail from GWB!

[MadMike]

The DNC list has one glaring flaw, though. The politicians left themselves a loophole. They're still allowed to call-- and they can use recorded messages, as well. :rant:


That one pisses me off as well. If I don't want to listen to some stupid sales pitch, why the hell would I want to listen to some sleazy politician try to badger me into voting for him instead of the other sleazy politician?

Thanks to the wonderful product known as Caller ID, I've never had to listen to one of these, since I let the machine get it if I don't recognize the number, or if there is no number. If it's a friend or family member calling from a different place, they know to say, "It's so-and-so, if you're there, pick up."

I know I have received a few of these, though. I did a reverse lookup on some of the numbers, and one of them was listed as "Political call center." Most of these came thru while I was at work, but they got me when I was home the one day, and as luck would have it, I was on the computer. I still have it hooked up to the phone line even though I got rid of dialup almost 4 years ago, so I let the modem answer it and screech at them. :devil:

Earlier this week, one of those door-to-door political pushers came to the house while my son was home sick, and I was home trying to get rid of one of my damn migraines. I think I was in the shower, because I didn't hear the doorbell. My son said he saw the guy thru the window, and didn't answer the door because he didn't know the person, and it looked like he was probably selling something.

He left something on the door, for certain few candidates I despise, and would not vote for even if he was the only one running. If I didn't despise the one from the get-go, I'm pretty sure that the sleazy way he's running his campaign would have pushed me into voting for the other guy anyway. I'm not going to mention who he is or even the party I'm registered for, but anyone from PA probably knows who I'm talking about. (If you do, please don't post it. I'm not trying to stir up any kind of political argument.)

I'm guessing the reason he came by was because my wife and I both happen to be registered under that particular party. I almost wish I would have talked to the guy. I would have told him, "I'm not voting for those assholes! The only reason we're even registered under that party is so that we could vote against those assholes in the primary!"

[Cia]

I hate the computerized political messages because they capture your phone line. You hang up, pick the phone up, push the talk button and they are still there giving the spiel. :mad:

With Amendment C, Amendment E and Referred Law 6 on the ballot this year the political messages are getting worse and worse. :rant:

[Dreamstalker]

My cell phone somehow got on the Lyndon LaRouche calling list. The area code I've been getting calls from them from is 508, NM Student Loans is 505. The actual number is one digit off. I made the mistake of picking up the phone once (this was when NMSL was supposed to call). I got some spiel about a meeting downtown (which was the evening of the day I was scheduled to have a tooth extracted). Needless to say, I didn't go. I get a voicemail the next day asking why I hadn't shown up (how they could determine that, I do not know).

Can anyone figure out exactly what this guy's about? I can't :confused:

[MadMike]

I respond to the "big two" political parties asking for money by responding, "Not one cent until the border is secure." They don't have a responce for that. It's like you can hear their brains shorting out.:devil:

If any politician or political party ever asked me for money, I think my response, regardless of affiliation, would be, "Don't you assholes take enough of my money in taxes already?" Actually, I think my wife did that once, back when she was still living alone.

Seriously, I will never willingly give money to any politician. Why should I give anything to anyone who already has more money than I will ever see in my lifetime? I already pay enough taxes. Isn't it funny how if I run out of money, I have to learn to control my spending. But if they run out of money, they just take some more of mine? :burnup:

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I hate the computerized political messages because they capture your phone line. You hang up, pick the phone up, push the talk button and they are still there giving the spiel. :mad:

:rant:

You should know that those type of calls are all kinds of illegal under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Number one, I believe pre-recorded messages are illegal. And number two, I KNOW the kind that capture your line until they are done with it are, based on a law that was added to the TCPA after a woman was denied 911 access untill the pre-recorded message was done playing.

If a political puke has his dogs call you using this very illegal method, you should probably figure out how to go very public with it.

These types of people just don't get it. If you are on the do not call list, then clearly, you are not interested in receiving sales calls. Saying "Oh, well, we are a political office, so it's legal for us to fuck up your supper" does not change the fact that you will not appreciate calls from them. So WHY OH WHY OH WHY do they continue to call? I just do not get it! It's a sure-fire way to make someone mad at you. Why do it? How can they possibly think this will make them popular? (well, the answer is that "politicians are morons", but you know. It's rhetorical and all that.

Gurndigarn, you and I think alike. ;)

[powerboy]

If any politician or political party ever asked me for money, I think my response, regardless of affiliation, would be, "Don't you assholes take enough of my money in taxes already?" Actually, I think my wife did that once, back when she was still living alone.

Seriously, I will never willingly give money to any politician. Why should I give anything to anyone who already has more money than I will ever see in my lifetime? I already pay enough taxes. Isn't it funny how if I run out of money, I have to learn to control my spending. But if they run out of money, they just take some more of mine? :burnup:


I don't mind that much on paying taxes, I just wish that they weren't as much as they are. Hell I need the money more then they do. Hell I am making way less then part time. And they are taking more and more outta my taxes. Damn I really got to get unemployment.