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Alabama Babies
Wow - this guy has some issues (totally NBR)
So, my mom always forwards the stupid emails - you know, the ones that could be totally de-bunked with a quick check of snopes or some other site. Well, she sent one yesterday, and one of the recipients crafted quite a long-winded response. I mean, don't get me wrong, they irritate the crap out of me, but I usually just respond with a link to correct her. Anyway, here is the email (some names taken out to protect the innocent):
Frank and friends,
First, do not click on the link you provided for "AT&T VERIFIES IT'S TRUE:" It took control of my computer and I had to reboot to regain control. My guess is that it was attempting to introduce a virus, and I hope my Symantec Endpoint Protection (a heavy duty anti-virus program) was good enough to defeat the attempt.
How is a republican (small "r") form of government ever going to work if intelligent people keep suspending skeptical judgement? The Area Code 809 scam in another example of how gullible we are getting to be. No, not because we fall for the Area Code 809 scam, but because we fall for the warning about it.
EVERYONE should have a shortcut on their computer desktop for Snopes.com (and TruthOrFiction.com, and FactCheck.org, and PolitiFact.com) if they want to have a fighting chance of sorting truth from lies and propaganda.
Here is what Snopes has to say about Area Code 809.
https://www.snopes.com/fraud/telephone/809.asp
I guess you did not bother to read the Snopes report available via the link provided by xxx. As a matter of fact I doubt that he bothered to read it either. He quotes the same Snopes link that I do, but his message says, "This is true!" He seems to believe, "If you call from the U.S., you will apparently be charged $2425 per-minute." Snopes actually says a few people might get clipped for "$25 to $100," which they can probably recover from their phone company.
It is a sad day, frequently repeated, when people use references to Snopes to dishonestly enhance their credibility - when Snopes actually debunks the content of the message in question. I am not saying that xxx did so, but I am saying that someone upstream in the propagation of this message did.
While you are about it, muse a moment about how many political emails you bought into just because they reinforced your hunches. What kind of a world are we going to live in if skilled propagandists can so easily manipulate our hunches into political "convictions"?
In particular, muse a moment about whether or not you think President Obama is a Socialist. While you are at it muse a moment about whether or not you thought President George W. Bush was really as stupid as his syntax would suggest. I maintain that neither point of view is justified and that it is dangerous to misjudge reality based on propaganda, much of which is extraordinarily clever.
Think of the amount of productive time that is wasted as probably at least 20% of the U.S. population (about 60 million people) sit in front of their computers reading about the Area Code 809 Scam and other bogus messages. Sure, we have time to waste, but collectively so much time is wasted that it should create some more sense of responsibility to end a chain of emails when we have no reason to believe that the message is valid and important.
That so many people buy into this bogus warning about Area Code 809 is not terribly important in itself, but the deterioration of critical, skeptical, thinking is serious.
Alan
Is it just me or is this guy an ass? I kind of feel like telling him he is one, but won't do it....
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Wow - this guy has some issues (totally NBR)
Exactly my thoughts!! I mean, I agree that the emails are annoying, but geesh! I just envision him as the kid in class always raising his hand to correct the teacher or because he just has to add his $0.02....
I get what he's saying in theory, but a simple response with links to the correct info would suffice, without sounding egotistical. It is scary what people will believe sometimes , and you might not like it, but you're not going to help if you offend them and respond in that manner.
It made me sick that people believed Obama to be a Muslim during the election, as an example of one of those emails-but when my mom got that one from a coworker and asked about it, I didn't patronize her or give a speech. I just told her it wasn't true.
TTC #2 since 4/09
Unexplained Secondary IF
*****************************
4 failed rounds of clomid ~ 4 failed IUIs ~ 1 m/c
2/3/11: IUI #5 - Femara/Follistim/Ovidrel/Crinone = BFP (2/14)!!!
Beta #1 (12dpiui): 53 Beta #2 (14dpiui): 203 Beta #3 (20dpiui): 3932 Beta #4 (28dpiui): 60,775
1st U/S (3/3): 2 sacs & yolks 2nd U/S (3/8) 2 heartbeats-TWINS!
Baby A:6w6d HR 131 Baby B:6w4d HR 124
TWINS!! EDD 10/25/2011
When I get chain emails that sound suspicious, I always go to snopes.com to check it out. If it is false, I ALWAYS write the sender of the email back with a link to snopes, just to let them know that the email is not true.
I think that is the way to do it - the emails that spread a bunch of untrue B.S. really bother me. I guess that's the journalist side of me, but I wish people would check their facts before hitting forward. If it is a political email, I ask the sender politely not to send me any more forwarded emails.
But, I just send the link. I don't shove it in their face or write a couple pages trying to make myself sound smart and egotistical. The guy does sound like he has too much time on his hands.
natural m/c and d&c at 10 weeks - 1/24/2014
DX w/ hetero C677t and A1298C MTHFR - 3/4/2014
I find his email mildy amusing actually. It's just soooooo long winded though. It sounds like he's pretty fed up with all the stupid emails....to the point of being irritating himself.
I'm sure if I'd received that email in response to something I'd sent, my e-feelings would have been hurt.....but then again, I never forward anything so I guess I don't have anything to worry about.
This said it for me!