Bunches. And heaps and wads. Especially the people I go to church with. But I tell you, sometimes you wish they didn't have your e-mail address.
Just got a forwarded request to put my name on a petition. The folks who sent it are nice, well-meaning folks, who are just now discovering this Internet thing, and I'm sure they probably feel very strongly about the subject of the item they passed along. Which just happened to be all them there illegals a'gittin' all our Social Security. Or, as the e-mail stated it "social security."
But come on, folks--no one cares about e-mailed petitions, because they don't work, and they don't work because no one cares about them. MOST ESPECIALLY when the text I'm supposed to agree to seems to have been prepared by a lobotomized spider monkey.
If you want to make a difference, call the person or send a hand-written letter.
And when you do send a real letter, use the proper forms of address for the type of office that person holds. Realize that the plural of a term such as "illegal" is not "illegal's." And such things as Senate and Congress and House of Representatives and Social Security are supposed to be capitalized. And verbs are supposed to agree with their subjects. And sentences are composed of a subject and a verb. And that sentences should be polite, and respectful, and crafted to actually make a substantive point, rather than read like some sort of polecat manifesto.
Thank goodness for the delete button.
Posted by Terry Oglesby at June 8, 2006 04:22 PMJustin has gotten on a few e-mail forward lists from old family friends. They send him things that are so far off on the right-wing whacko, conspiracy theory side, that he gets a bit embarrassed to see them arrive. On the other hand, he also feels like he can't tell these folks to knock it off. He's too nice. Me? I tell them to leave me alone. Sometimes. Except when I'm too nice and just quietly delete everything they send or add them to my spam list.
Posted by: Jordana at June 8, 2006 04:50 PMAt least my email isn't as clogged with such things as Reba's.
I tell you what, those women at church can't seem to pass up an opportunity to forward 3-year-old rumors and pleas to help little kids buy bone marrow transplants using aluminum can rings.
Posted by: Terry Oglesby at June 8, 2006 04:56 PM