Playing With Skammers/Con Men

This girl isn't bad:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=LoZ_cvdjfsA#t=153


I used to love keeping them on the line for as long as possible.

I'd ask them a lot more questions than they liked.

 

I mostly just get telemarketing, sometimes if they ask for the home owner I say "just wait, I'll get him" then leave the phone on the desk for a while to waste their time.

 

Haha, funny. Can I ask where your from....total evasion of question....I just hope this wasn't one of those calls where they charge the recipient and absurd amount of money for the call...Piggy Bank...haha.

 

Best one was when the scammers called telling me they worked at Microsoft and that my computer had sent out signals saying that it "was infected" and they could fix it. It goes through this long procedure and every time he told me to do something I would say:

"Where's that key? I don't see it."

At one point I explained to him that I was handicapped and had a special keyboard that didn't have the usual keys.

I tortured the fool for 15 minutes before he wised up and realized I knew it was a scam.

 

Somewhere around the year 2000, somebody phoned me, claiming to represent Microsoft, and wanting to collect fees for using computers in my non-existent business. I wasn't as smart as to waste his time, but I did tell him that I, like Microsoft, never sell my name, address, or phone number. I only lease them. He had not paid the leasing fee to use my phone number, so he must be the person stealing the use of other people's property.

Kind of lame, but it was the best I could do on short notice.

 

I've heard of that scam before! Good one though, these people really need to learn, but unfortunately they usually get in touch with older people who are still a bit insecure about their electronics. Maybe one day a whipper snapper will scam the crap out of them.

 

Watch that "older people" comment. Younger ones get scammed a lot. We would see more of those getting scammed if we allowed those discussions here. This board has members of the "older people" category.

 

Everyone except one is older than someone.

 

Old people should be banned.

 

Physical age is not the point. I think people are old when they don't want to learn anything new, complain about young people and only want to talk about how much better the "good old days" were. So, from that point of view, I agree with Metalmann's comment - expecially since he claims to be retired and should know as well as any of the more 'experienced' members.

 

On the flip side, I hear more of the younger crowd complaining about the "older" folks. This typically occurs in over unity schemes, when they don't know the promulgated instructions, when understanding a process or theory is lacking and even when opinions differ. This is my opinion of over fifteen years of participation in various nntp newsgroups, forums and bulletin boards. I'm down to reading four discussions daily plus a few more occasionally.

Reading and comprehension solves some of the problems observed with both sides ... young and old.

I've seen more complaints when those who only know the contemporary definition of a word don't break out the dictionary to understand the writers context in the sentence. They would rather call the writer names then increase their vocabulary.

 

I don't see much connection between the three ideas there. I identify with the middle idea. I can find more negative things to say about my generation in general than positive things. But I love learning new things, and I don't have any "good 'ol days" to reminisce about. I consider myself "old," mentally. Or maybe just old fashioned.

 

In the mid 80s, when I was going to teach the equipment portion of the Loran-C Engineering course, I was elated to work with the computers CAD programs. That technology did not filter down to the enlisted "A" schools at that time. The Master Chief at the EE branch and I were in a lab and I kept saying ... where was this in the late 70s when I was using my drafting table and typewriter to write the course I was teaching.

Tools certainly have improved. I've lugged around a Tektronics 525 oscilloscope before, and would love to have had the DSO capability of today ... back then.

Of course, they haven't made a solid state version of this 23 3/8ths inch tall triode tube .... 275 ampere cathode current ... water cooled, 21.5 kV Ep ... twelve in push-pull parallel (six pairs) produced over 2 MegaWatts.

 

The next generation probably isn't as bad as the impression we get from the ones that are so stupid that our heads feel like they are going to explode.

At least, that's what I pray for.

 

Interesting.

Do you consider yourself "old" mentally because you enjoy learning
new things ? Do you feel like that is not the norm with your age group these days ?

 

True. I saw a young man wearing a "Keep it Reel" t-shirt. There was no graphics identifying what "reel" was, and the subsequent internet search had the phrase, but had graphics clarifying "reel". I figured the young man thought he was "keeping it real", but didn't catch the misspelling. Of course that could be the point of a conversation starter ... especially if some hot babe stopped and talked to him.

First impressions count.

 

Yes, I feel that way (of course not applicable to ALL, but most). But that's only one of many grievances with my generation that I could list. On the flip side though, I hold the preceding generation(s) responsible for a large number of the bullet points.

 

Let me tell you an old family story.

My grandmother said, "I have watched generations of men work themselves into an early grave on this farm, and three years after they die, the land has returned to nature, and it's as if they were never here."

When I was 4 years old, I asked my mother if the cars would make all the air stinky. She said it was impossible. There is too much air to do that.

This is a personal glimpse about why, only two generations ago, people believed that humans were too insignificant to have any serious effect on this planet. Now we know the truth. You can't dig a billion years worth of carbon out of the crust of the Earth, and burn it, and not cause a change.

It wasn't malice, it was experience. In 1900, people had thousands of years of history that said they were about equal to insects compared to the whole planet, and they believed it. Now, the population is so distant from being able to grow their own food, and the greed for money is so entrenched, that I can only see it run off the end like a freight train that doesn't know the bridge is out.

Sorry about the stupidity. It seemed like the right thing to do at the moment.

 

I always told people that we are destroying the Earth by, "Turning it inside out".

Just think about all the items/minerals/water/oil, etc., that is removed on a daily basis.

That could be why new Cancers spring up every few years. And, all other ailments. And, sinkholes.

We still do not have a good way to dispose of all the Nuclear, and other poisonous, chemical concoctions; in this day/age of high tech.

Read em and weep.

But, we sure as hell know how to kill off the "youngins"; in order to build this Mighty Empire. All for a few barrels of oil, and building a house of cards......