Our Valley Santa Clarita July/August 2016 | Page 9

How I Deal with
Telemarketing Calls
By Gary Morrison

R

iiiiing! 8:05 AM, and
the first unwanted call
of the day. At least
this time, they waited
until 8:00. Every day I get five
or more of these calls; Sundays included! Most of them
are from contractors offering
“free estimates.” The rest are
from professional fund raisers
allegedly representing some
charitable group such as firefighters and police. “Just $20
for the widows and orphans,”
they say. Yeah, right.
The contractor’s rep’s all use
the same spiel while, to my
cynical mind, I see them all

in one large warehouse sized
room, trading call lists among
themselves. To say they are
persistent would be an understatement. “We have a crew
working in your neighborhood and we would like to
stop by to give you an estimate on anything.” Being me,
I put the phone down and
go to my front door. I see no
working crew and go back to
the phone. “I didn’t see any
crew working outside,” I speak
into the phone. The rep usually replies, “Are you calling me a
liar?” To which I say, “Yes, I am.”
Generally, that would generate a hang up.
Another pitch goes, “We talk-

ed to you 6-8 months ago and
you were so nice and told us
to call back at a later date.” I
know this is a lie since I am
never nice to telemarketers
on the phone!
Often, they continue talking
no matter what you say. For
those callers I have purchased
a loud police type whistle. I
blow it as hard as I can into
the phone. I’ve found it to be
more effective than my usual
sarcastic insults.
The fund raisers are different.
When we contribute to their
“charity” the callers company
takes a percentage of what
we send. I always ask what
percentage of my donation
actually goes to the police or
firefighters. They are required
by law to answer that question. Often the charity gets
less than 20%. If you are so
inclined, you can look up the
charity on the WEB and make
a donation directly. I see no
reason to pay for that moron’s
time. Always ask the question.
These callers are all just “dialing for dollars”; all they have is
their time. If you can, waste as
much of their valuable time as
you can. Maybe they will have
to get a real job, like cleaning
the public restrooms at bus
and train stations!!

SUMMER FUN

FOR CHILDREN OF ALL AGES
By Mayor Pro Tem Dante Acosta

I

t’s summertime in Santa Clarita!
The days of backyard barbeques,
beach trips, swimming and fun
are upon us. Summertime o