From estephen@emf.emf.net Thu Jun  8 12:19:26 PDT 1995
Article: 6708 of alt.fan.cecil-adams
Path: emf.emf.net!emf.emf.net!estephen
From: estephen@emf.emf.net (E. Stephen Mack)
Newsgroups: alt.fan.cecil-adams
Subject: Re: Wanna Party?
Date: 7 Jun 1995 22:40:06 GMT
Organization: Winter Weather, Berkeley, CA
Lines: 42
Message-ID: <3r59s6$80p@emf.emf.net>
References: <3r3dbb$27bq@usenetp1.news.prodigy.com> <2z1exc$21qb@netnews.thimble.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: 205.149.0.20

ZPTS68B@prodigy.com (Peggy Jones) wrote:
>> Nerd girl seeks nerd guys.  ( Jill, Lisa, etc. )  1-800-770-6320.

R. T. Hayes (rth@thimble.com) wrote:
> Cecil, perhaps you can tell me.  Are all of these things
> scams or what?

Well, R.T., you're looking at gen-u-ine Spam.  Commercial junk.
Dross.  Noise.  Exploitation of the internet.  Same old, same old.
Examine the evidence:

First off, there's that 800 number.  So warm and personable, yet
convenient and cheap.  Scientific studies show that over 83% of scams
involve 800 numbers.  Plus it's a dead giveaway when you call up and
the first thing they do is ask for your credit card number.

Second, it's a Prodigy account.  As you know, these accounts are given
away by the truckload for promotional purposes.  You can't buy a modem
anymore without a free trial month with the dozen leading online
services.  So, it's an essential ingredient in the m.o. of a
spam-and-run operation.

Thirdly, "Jill" and "Lisa" and "Peggy" and "etc." would seem to
constitute a plural -- yet only one "girl" seeks the nerd guys.  I bet
it's Lisa, that saucy little minx.

Finally, Lisa seems to be seeking plural "guys" while you, R.T.,
constitute a singular geek guy.  I'm just betting that overall, you're
not going to find the substantive relationship that you seek.  Not for
less than $2.99 per minute anyway.

One interesting thing is that because we have here an 800 number, there
are no charges for setting an auto-dialler to keep on dialling, then
hanging up after a minute or so.  That way the spammers get charged and
you don't.  They have to pay their phone company for the connection but
don't get any income; they go broke, and stop wasting our time with
this crap.

__________________________________________________________________________
-- Zeigen (E. Stephen Mack)                               estephen@emf.net
        Zeigen's Dilemma Home Page: http://www.emf.net/~estephen/
                   Just WHO is that desperate, anyway?