Spam Hysteria

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Let me start this article by stating I am ...
... spam and that it is the worst possible way to get ...
out. Various groups have been trying to stop ...
it was first used on Let me start this article by stating I am vehemently opposedto spam and that it is the worst possible way to get yourmessage out. Various groups have been trying to stop spamsince it was first used on the internet.
However, how can westop or outlaw something which has never been clearlydefined.I have been unable to find a universally accepted, fits-alldefinition of spam. There are many ideas about spam and justwhat it really is.
In my opinion it is receivingunsolicited email (email which you have not opted toreceive). Even this definition must be applied judiciouslyand with a certain amount of common sense.For example, a dear friend could forward an email which youfind offensive.
Should you be in a bad mood, you couldreport your friend for spam (and also the originator of theemail your friend forwarded, even though it was not theoriginator's intent for you to receive this unsolicitedemail). In this situation the originator (who is innocentof wrongdoing) and your friend will most likely lose theirISP and web host provider simply because you are having abad day.
Is this fair?More and more ezine publishers and article writers are beingaccused of spam and forced to fight their ISPs and web hostproviders. Many of these spam complaints are totallyunfounded.
In some cases it is because a person forgot theysubscribed to the ezine and when they receive it they saythey have been spammed. In other cases the person haswritten an article which was published in an ezine accusedof spamming.
Here all the advertisers and the articlewriters are accused of spam and lose their ISPs and web hostproviders.These advertisers and article writers did not commit theoffense of spamming. They were accused by association.Most articles written for the internet are free forpublication, which means anyone can use them as long as thearticles and resource boxes remain intact.
Unless thewriter is being paid for the article, there is no way ofknowing when, how or by whom the article will be published.The truly unfair method currently used to fight spamconsiders everyone accused of spam to be automaticallyguilty. The great majority of ISPs and web host providersshut you down without a second thought when you are accusedof spam.You are not given a chance to prove your innocence.
Guiltyor not, you are shut down. For most of those trying to makea profit on the internet, this is a sword hanging over theirheads.
Every time they write an article for publication orsend out an ezine they are taking the chance of beingunfairly accused of spamming.No ezine publisher or writer in their right mind would everconsider the use of spam. Their livelihood depends on theirezines and articles, so why would they use something whichwould destroy that source of income?Those who use spam as the method of getting theiradvertisements out should be stopped.
But not by taking allthe innocent people down with them.True spam is usually fairly easy to spot. There is a bogusreturn address consisting of nonsensical numbers andletters, either no way is provided to remove yourself fromthe list or a bogus address is provided as a means ofremoving yourself from the list, there is a footer in themessage which contains a supposed act of the United StatesCongress defining spam, or other such obvious items.99.9% of the ezines I have read have a clear and easy way tounsubscribe.
Should you use the link and find you have notbeen unsubscribed, it is possible you subscribed usinganother email address which is being forwarded to yourcurrent address. The ezine publisher cannot unsubscribe youwithout the original address from which you subscribed.If you are really upset by spam, why not concentrate onthose who are truly guilty of spamming, and not theinnocents.
Use your efforts to punish the guilty instead ofindiscriminately crying spam every time a piece of emailhits your inbox.As an ezine publisher I get a great deal of spam in myinboxes. Rather than waste my precious time trying to trackspammers down or reporting them to Spam Cop, I use my deletebutton.
It is efficient and deadly. The spam is gone assoon as I hit delete.One of the truly great characteristics of the internet isits use for the free exchange of information.
This freedomis being seriously challenged by those who believe in theindiscriminate use of Spam Cop or other such anti-spamorganizations.I can't speak for you, but I get a great deal ofinformation, education and entertainment from the manyezines to which I subscribe. It would be a severe loss ifthey all quit publishing because of the fear of false spamaccusals shutting them down.In conclusion, spam should be stopped.
However, it must bestopped with common sense and discrimination, not with avigilante mentality. Being accused of spamming is one of therare instances in current human history where you areconsidered guilty until proven innocent.Whatever happened to the concept of innocent until provenguilty?Should anyone out there in cyberspace have a universallyacceptable definition of spam and a means of fairly andjudiciously enforcing it, I am extremely interested in yourviewpoints.
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