No More Job For Cliff Claven

I think I  have  about 20 different email addresses on the different providers that I've abandoned over the years.

Some I create to be a different person (yeah, I've done it).

Some I create so that I can get free offers without divulging my private info.

Some I've created, used, and then had to abandon because of the spam that I started getting from EVERYONE.  You can imagine:  looking for a job, you leave a breadcrumb trail of your email addresses at EVERY job board and headhunter.  Eventually, they start sending you junk.

Oh, look at this job- you're not qualified, but do you know someone who is?

Oh, I "found" your resume and wouldn't you like to apply for this crap job that you haven't done in 10 years?

Look!  There's a great deal on erection disorder pills because some company that had your email address got or opened a virus.

I find it amazing, too, that when you mark mail as spam, you still end up getting emails from that sender.

Uhm, this is STILL spam.

It has gotten so bad over the years that I've just had to abandon email addresses- just don't use them anymore because they're so full of junk.

It's just too bad that you can't escape the same with your home address.  I've had friends, though, that had an interesting response to junk mail, particularly offers.  They send back the envelope with no information inside.  It ends up costing the company that sent it the postage, and they figured that it would eventually just piss them off.  I always thought that the companies would just double their junk mail- just to piss my friends off.

My solution, however, has been to refuse the mail.  As long as it's addressed to someone, not "Resident", then you can write "Refused- Return to Sender" on the outside of the envelope and remail it.  Then, you get the post office involved.  There are actually laws about junk mail (remember the original Miracle on 34th Street?)  They're just not usually enforced....until the post office gets irritated enough to do something about it.

It all might be a moot point soon, though- what are the package carriers going to do when we get transporter technology?  Will there be "US Postal Service Instant Transport" and "MicroSecond Instant Carrier"?  Just makes you wonder if these companies are helping or hindering transporter technology.  Perhaps they'll get manage to get their cut of the new technology since they missed out on faxes and email.  It does make me curious what types of junk mail I'll end up getting when transporter technology becomes a household tool, though.

Perhaps if there were better controls on the junk mail that we get to our addresses, the US Post Office wouldn't be in the situation that it's in now.