Increased political recorded messages?

[Linkmeister]

Has anyone else been receiving lots of these? I've gotten at least three from Cam Cavasso, several from Bainum and Hanneman, and I just got one from Dan Inouye (I'm so proud!) urging me to vote for Kerry and my local state representative.

[Glen Miyashiro]

I've gotten two Cam Cavasso recorded messages in the past couple of weeks. Boy, are they annoying. If I was an undecided voter, Cam would lose my vote for using such a humbug tactic.

[mel]

This subject came up late yesterday afternoon on Mike Buck's KHVH radio show. My suggestion: 1. Disconnect your answering machine or voice mail. 2. You own your answering machine and pay for your cell phone voice messaging. This is your media. Change your message greeting to indicate to callers that any form of advertising left on your device is billable at $XX rate per message. If someone or something leaves a message, note where the message came from, make a copy of both your outgoing and the incoming message (on a cheap cassette tape or MP3 file conversion if possible) and send it (like a tearsheet) to the campaign organization with a bill. If they refuse to pay, you can then file a complaint with the campaign spending commission.

It's a radical idea but may be worth trying. If everyone did this, political telemarketers would think twice about infesting voice mail with their pitches.

[Linkmeister]

Mel, that's indeed a radical idea. In my case, it hasn't risen to the point of aggravation yet. I don't remember it happening in any election year prior to this one, so I was curious if others had had similar calls, that's all.

[craigwatanabe]

I just put the phone down and let the recording continue while I walk away. When I decide to come back I just hang it up as if nobody was there. I do the same thing with live telemarketers who just don't understand the word "no" I treat them like a recording and walk away.

Once my wife was asked by a telemarketer if she'd like to switch long distance carriers she replied with a classic answer, "ummm I'm sorry I don't have a phone", and then she hangs up.

[Mocha]

I received a Kerry one and a Dan Inouye one asking for a Kerry vote. What I can't stand is that the message goes on and on...in an emergency how would I use the phone...is there anyway to "hang it up" before it ends? :mad:

[pzarquon]

Charles Memminger at the Star-Bulletin writes what a lot of us are thinking:
Candidates have a phone call hang-up (http://starbulletin.com/2004/10/21/features/memminger.html)The only thing you can do when you get a computer-generated, digital message phone call from a candidate is to slam the phone down. And, in my case, promise not to vote for whichever candidate utilizes this form of technological harassment the most. In the primary election, I actually was favoring one mayoral candidate until I got one too many taped phone calls urging me to vote for the guy.If both Bainum and Hanneman are using phone spam, though, who are we supposed to vote for?

[mel]

There's one canidate who runs in every race in every election....

"Blank vote."

[mel]

BTW, I hate it when the national GOP party phone calls me at the wee hours in the morning. They did the last election and I told them off. They acted as if they were the local GOP, but at that time, I knew several people in the local office and those people were not local. I hate phone marketers of all types.

[craigwatanabe]

Once this lady from NYC called my home phone at 3am HST thinking my number was the Kahala Manderin Hotel. After three times calling back, the third time she blurted out, "can't you just connect me to the front desk?" I told her to hold...I paused...then in a cheerful voice at 3:30am I took her reservation for an ocean view at our special first time visitor rate of $100 per night. I even gave her a confirmation number. Boy was she happy and I managed to squeak in another three hours of sleep before the alarm clock woke me up for work.

Yeah she probably got stung when she arrived but dammit, she deserved it! No regrets and I'm probably going to hell for that but what the heck as a republican I'm voting for Kerry just to see him follow thru on his rhetoric so I'll be going to hell anyway may as well go in style. :D

[Linkmeister]

I've had a couple more of these. Yesterday I had one from Cavasso; it asked if I supported him, and when I said "no" it switched to a recording of his voice telling me I would by Tuesday, because he was the pro-family, pro-this, pro-that candidate. Cam should work on his tone; he sounded almost threatening.

Then just now I got one for President. It was the push-button variety: "press one for support Kerry; press two for leaning Kerry" etc.

[Mocha]

This week from Monday it's been really busy with the phone calls...even if I pick up the phone after the recorder goes on...there's no one to take my answer to the poll in question! :confused:

[Vanguard]

BTW, I hate it when the national GOP party phone calls me at the wee hours in the morning. They did the last election and I told them off. They acted as if they were the local GOP, but at that time, I knew several people in the local office and those people were not local. I hate phone marketers of all types.

http://frank.harvard.edu/~jason/thoughts/seinfeld.jpg

Caller: "Hi. Would you be interested in switching over to TMI Long Distance service?"
Seinfeld: "Oh, gee, I can't talk right now. Why don't you give me your home number and I'll call you later."
Caller: "Uh, sorry, we're not allowed to do that."
Seinfeld: "Oh, I guess you don't want people calling you at home."
Caller: "No."
Seinfeld: "Well, now you know how I feel." (*click*)

[Linkmeister]

I've really hit the big time now. I just got one from the Gov inviting me to the party Sunday night to see Cheney, and then...Rudy Giulani called me! He wants me to vote for Bush! Oh dear, oh dear, what shall I do? :D

[pzarquon]

My wife's home all day, so she gets more than her fair share. I'm actually curious to know who's behind the various robodials, but she usually hangs up before the message gets that far. She did get the mysterious Lingle-Bainum message (http://starbulletin.com/2004/10/30/news/story4.html)... and agrees, whoever it is does sound a lot like Lingle.

I got one today by a former chief justice or something that vehementy decried the Mrs. Bainum smear campaign. It was done so badly, I half suspect it was actually a Hanneman call intended to spur interest in said smear. :p

The ones coming from the Mainland are the most annoying... but so far, we've been lucky that they at least adjust their calling schedule for our time zone. If my phone rings with a robodial at 3 a.m., heads are gonna roll!

[pzarquon]

The Star-Bulletin today has a good overview of the boom in automated campaign telemarketing (http://starbulletin.com/2004/10/31/news/story3.html).Both [Jennifer] Sabas and [Brennon] Morioka agree that political telemarketing, also called "robocalling," is somewhat effective and very cheap. Sabas put the cost at less than 15 cent a call, while Morioka calculated to cost around 5.5 to 7.5 cents per call. "So far the response has been very positive," reports Morioka, adding that "it has become a quick and effective way to get out a fast message."

[Linkmeister]

I just got one from General Wes Clark. I'll take him over Giuliani anyday. ;)

[helen]

I had two from Wes Clark on Sunday.

In any event I will be glad when Tuesday is finally over, no more of these calls.

[Linkmeister]

I don't know what lists I'm on, but I've gotten a couple for Blake Oshiro (House District 33...my Rep.), and today I got one from Senator McCain for Jerry Coffee (running against Oshiro) and...(drumroll, please...)

One from George W. Bush himself tonight!

[helen]

I got from Maui which was plugging the democtrats and the one from Bush himself. Well at least it's was equal time but I had to laugh at the end of Bush's one that said:

Paid for Bush-Chency 04, Inc.

[Linkmeister]

I got from Maui which was plugging the democtrats and the one from Bush himself. Well at least it's was equal time but I had to laugh at the end of Bush's one that said:

Paid for Bush-Chency 04, Inc.

Yeah, INC was a bit of a surprise, huh?

[pzarquon]

So far tonight, four calls in a two-hour period, including the Bush ad. Had my kids not been in the room, my wife would've railed back at the recording with language that would've made a sailor blush.

[Glen Miyashiro]

Two calls this evening, one from George W Bush, and one from "your friend Rob from the union". I hung up on both.

[Linkmeister]

Alright! I just got the best one of all...Bill Clinton! It was even personalized (state-ized?), asking me to vote Democratic in Hawai'i. My mother is turning green with envy. :D

[Linkmeister]

They haven't quit. I just found the Gubernator on my answering machine, calling to "buck me up" to go vote for Bush. ;)

[helen]

Yeah I hung up on Arnold. Sorry but it's a moot point, I already voted!!!

[Glen Miyashiro]

I just got a Bush-Cheney recorded call imporing me to go to the polls before they close. But... they've been closed for 12 minutes already. Who's scheduling these calls anyway?

[pzarquon]

I know what you mean. We got a robocall at 6:10 p.m. To be fair, I think the poll location we went to was still open, but still... by this point, you'd think everyone would've pulled the plug and hoped for the best.

[helen]

Actually I got a live person this afternoon, even claiming to talk to someone else first, then correctly herself and asked for me by name to go to vote for somebody (I think it was Kerry)

I told her it was moot point, I had already voted.