Category Archives: Computers

Lighthouse International: Yet another 2+ years of mailings after the first removal request

I just sent the following email message to Mark G. Ackermann, the President and CEO of Lighthouse International: Dear Mr. Ackermann, I am taking the unusual step of writing to you because my efforts to get this issue resolved “through channels” for over two years have failed. In a nutshell, I have asked Lighthouse International… Read More: Lighthouse International: Yet another 2+ years of mailings after the… »

Bye bye Comcast, hello RCN!

In response to my recent letter to Comcast, I received a call from a friendly woman named Nancy in Comcast’s New England executive customer care office. The call went pretty much how I expected. She had read my letter and understood what I was upset about, but she let me vent at her about the… Read More: Bye bye Comcast, hello RCN! »

Hey, Congressman Robert Wexler: In the EU, this would be ILLEGAL!

November 21, 2009 Congressman Robert Wexler 2241 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Fax: (202) 225-5974 Dear Congressman Wexler, In May 2008, a letter from you to one of your supporters was forwarded to the Jews for Obama listserv with the introduction, “As you all know, Congressman Wexler has been a strong Obama supporter… Read More: Hey, Congressman Robert Wexler: In the EU, this would be… »

Bye bye Chase!

Recall my recent letter to Chase, which ended: As I see it, you have three options for what to do now: You can throw my letter in the trash. Result: I close my Chase account and get a new card from someone else. You can send me a useless, boilerplate response that does not address… Read More: Bye bye Chase! »

The Consumerist jumps the shark

I’ve been subscribed to The Consumerist since Continental lost my daughter last summer and The Consumerist picked up the story. I was impressed by their reach and by the quality of stories that they ran. Unfortunately, two or three months after I started reading them, the quality seemed to start going down. There were a… Read More: The Consumerist jumps the shark »

Incessant spamming by Honda and Honda Village

[You can read the whole series of Honda Village postings here.] November 17, 2009 American Honda Motor Company, Incorporated Honda Automobile Customer Service Fax: (310) 783-3023 To whom it may concern: HONDA HAS BEEN SPAMMING US FOR TWO YEARS DESPITE OUR REPEATED REQUESTS FOR YOU TO STOP. This is completely unacceptable. You need to make… Read More: Incessant spamming by Honda and Honda Village »

How to lower your phone + internet cost from $80 per month to $50 per month: buy your own cable modem and kick Comcast to the curb

Comcast was charging me $95 per month for internet and phone service. That was too much. I got them to lower it to $75 per month, but I had to pay extra for all non-local and long-distance calls. That was still too much. They raised the equipment charge for my cable modem from $3 to… Read More: How to lower your phone + internet cost from $80… »

American Foundation for the Blind (AFB): Lying, unrepentant spammers

My wife and I have supported literally hundreds of charitable organizations over the years. I donate on-line whenever possible, which means that many of these organizations have my email address. The vast majority of them are smart and reputable enough not to send me bulk email I didn’t agree to receive, or at worst to… Read More: American Foundation for the Blind (AFB): Lying, unrepentant spammers »

Comcast sneaks in back-door rate increase by increasing “equipment charge”

UPDATE: If you would like to help me call attention to this, Comcast’s most recent attempt to cheat its customers, please Digg this article. In a classic Gotcha Capitalism strategy, Comcast in Boston has just informed their VoIP and Internet customers that they are raising their monthly rate by $2 without actually admitting they’re doing… Read More: Comcast sneaks in back-door rate increase by increasing “equipment charge” »

American Express has a definition of “electronically” I haven’t heard before

I recently received a letter from American Express confirming that I’d enrolled in online bill payment. I received the letter on paper, in an envelope, with a stamp on it, in the mailbox on my porch. The final sentence of the letter, all the way at the bottom, below the signature, reads as follows: You… Read More: American Express has a definition of “electronically” I haven’t heard… »