Randy Cassingham's Blog

Posted by Paul - Erie, PA on April 11, 2009:

Randy mentioned that there were some replies here I might find interesting. He was right. All of them are, which doesn't surprise me. I've found True readers tend to be among the more thoughtful groups I've encountered online.

A few comments...

Ted - Nope. I don't discuss my political views in the newsletter. That's not what people sign on for. I did a series on the marketing lessons to be had from observing political campaigns and, despite it topping out at 35 pages, there wasn't a clue in it about my preferred candidate. And, as Randy knows, I had a very strong preference.

I try to make people think, but it's not my job (or desire) to control where that ends up taking them.

Leonard - You may have some habits in common with The Kid, but you're not him. That person wouldn't have responded the way you did here.

Marc - Yes, I am very judgemental. So are you. So are we all.

Making judgements is something we have to do to operate effectively in the world. The trick is to try not to judge beyond your reasonable odds of accuracy, and to avoid harming people where you might be wrong.

I didn't name the guy, or give his email address. Other than some private embarrassment, my comments could not possibly have done him, or anyone else, any harm.

Consider: The vast majority of the people who went to that subscription page got there because someone recommended that they sign up for the newsletter and get the book. They knew what they were going to be asked before they ever clicked the link. I've just re-read the email to which this gentleman was responding, and he is no exception. He knew the price before he went to the page.

He also knew the way this works. The book is "free," in the sense of not having a monetary price tag attached. If he's not willing to pay the price in effort of reading, he shouldn't bother in the first place.

There's a working unsubscribe link in the email which contains the download URL. Based on the source of the referral, this guy could easily have been sure that would be the case, as he'd know that my list host - Aweber - always includes that, and it always works.

Hundreds of people have signed up, gotten the book, and immediately unsubscribed. No big deal. I didn't slam those people, since some of them probably had legitimate reasons for their choices.

I don't hold people hostage.

Given those circumstances, I suspect that you'd have simply decided whether you were willing to pay the asked price and, if so, for how long, and then taken action based on that decision.

This man was delivering a message. I rejected it, and the thinking behind it.

Your objection to the way some people use the data collected through opt-in forms is entirely valid. I've gone off on more than a few tirades about such abuses myself. It seems to me that you hate the risk you associate with the form, rather than the fact of having to use it to get something you want. That's a very different objection than the one voiced by The Kid.

That rant served a useful purpose and accomplished the desired end, without directly or unjustly harming anyone. I'll take that outcome any day of the week.

Tom - The phrase actually pre-dates Heinlein's book, but that's where I first encountered it, too.

rewinn - That was one of the more important parts of the piece, and you're the only person to comment on it so far, anywhere.

Fear not. Liberals are hardly the sole purveyors of warm and fuzzy, humanitarian sounding stupidities. Nor are such things the bulk of their - or any other - serious political philosophy.

One of the things that disturbs me most about modern society is that we've gotten so addled by the constant demands on our attention that we've become easily, and often cheerfully, polarized. Showing respect for an honest and intelligent disagreement seems to have been lost as a requirement for being taken seriously.

Posted by Phil, San Antonio, TX, USA on April 13, 2009:

@Tom:

There are folks who post "Wanted" ads on CL like this:

"Wanted, iPhone, new in box preferred, only willing to pay $100"

Or folks who post the same on Freecycle but wanting a brand new item for nothing.

I have nothing against either of these systems. I have contributed to FC as well as received, and I watch the wanted posts on CL to see if I might have something Someone else is needing. It just rips me that there are people who "need" brand new and/or high dollar items but are not willing to pay the price. Sure, you might have a student who needs a laptop to get through school, but not a Dell Adamo!

Posted by Chris (Melbourne, AU) on April 13, 2009:

Hey, this guy has a nice idea. I think the next time I subscribe to something, I'll use the name "Will switch to RSS feed". (Unless they don't _have_ an RSS feed, in which case that's not really an appropriate way to ask them to add one.) Or maybe I'll use the name "Lord Delpus" just so he has a laugh.

Posted by Samuel, California on April 14, 2009:

A minor correction for David in Los Angeles. Without dwelling on the creative valuation of monies issued by central banks in Europe or here and, thus, the relative costs of health care, education or other services or questioning the intelligence of supporting a system that has governmental taxation at the core of these services, I would just like to point out one thing that David overlooked. The United States pays for the largest military in the world. We provide defensive and offensive capabilities for most of the world's people. All those wonderful services or benefits that Europeans or other peoples have the luxury to provide to their citizens comes at a price that we Americans pay by taking off from them both the necessary burden of realistic self defense and the imposition of offensive military expenditures by aggressive and expansionistic leaders like those they had to fund in the past. The last time America enjoyed an abundance of wealth and general prosperity was prior to the first world war, prior to that century when we began to shoulder the burdens and expenses of other people who did not, have not and will not ever pay taxes to us to cover those costs. Even so we carried them for a century. The answer is not to emulate people who have only been able to provide basic education or medical care when the serious costs were paid by someone else, but to stop paying them to be safe and free and bring our military and our treasury back home where it will once more be more than enough to go around for the people who actually pay to provide for services.

Posted by Allan, Rancho Cucamonga on April 14, 2009:

Hmm, Randy... In response to "Marc, MA" on April 11, you explained that some people put in "fuck you" where it asks, "(Optional) Where did you hear of us?" There are situations in life where rude talk is entirely appropriate; this, of course, is not one of them.

If this is done when people sign up for the newsletter, I hope what happens is this: go ahead and add them to the mailing list, but use "fuck you" as the plaintext name. At the bottom of their copy of TRUE it would say,

  This copy sent to: Fuck you [Yourname@yourISP.com]

My guess is that this is NOT what happens... but it would be poetic justice! If anybody ever asked why your newsletter includes those words, you could explain, "somehow that's what was automatically processed; perhaps you typed that as your name when you signed up?"

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It is actually fairly typical to include the person's name (when they enter it) in such situations, but I don't do that, as you may have noticed. Even if I did, though, it still wouldn't show: they put such messages in the block "(Optional) Where did you hear about us?", which of course is a different matter entirely. But yes, it's an amusing thought! -rc

Posted by Carly, Rhode Island on April 14, 2009:

Thank you for posting this. I just got into this very subject with another blogger who was upset that a free service was turning to paid advertising for support. Silly me to assume that all bloggers are mature people who can gracefully handle a commenter having a differing opinion. This blogger, when confronted with the concept of TANSTAAFL, chose to lash out and call me some pretty nasty names, all without being able to intelligently dispute a single one of my points. I know I shouldn't let such things get to me, but I have not been able to put it out of my head for days. I think now that I've read this, maybe I'll start to feel better.

And from now on I will only comment with differing opinions on blogs where I know the writer is intelligent enough to debate cleanly and maturely. :-\

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Hey! I resemble that remark! You ...you ...you... you THINKER, you! Sorry, but that just had to be said. -rc

Posted by Charlie, Ann Arbor, MI on April 16, 2009:

I read the whole article, looked up the definition of "e-mail opt-in", and still can't understand what is wrong with the guy. Is he so desperate for something free that he must participate in something that he "hates"? If so, what a miserable human being.

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I think you hit the nail right on the head, Charlie. -rc

Posted by Jon, Ohio on April 20, 2009:

What a coincidence that I just ran into the guy he is describing last week (I really wish they would stop making that guy)! I provide a free shopping cart internet application on my website for which I receive dozens of compliments a week and thank-you notes for putting in the time to make it available. The application has about 6 years of work into it, and, as with anything, it's not perfect and maybe never will be-- it won't fit the needs of everyone. I am constantly working to improve on it and add to it, and most people that download it understand that and appreciate it. While I give it away free, I do not provide free support. So if someone wants support they have to pay for a license, which is reasonably priced, or they can sign up for low-cost hosting. Basically, I leave it up to the community to provide financial support for the continued development of the software and leave it open for other programmers to contribute to it.

This guy never bought a license, and he didn't sign up for hosting either. I never heard anything out of the guy and didn't even know he existed...until last week. I was reading a post on another forum and saw someone asking about my software. This guy decided that he was so unsatisfied with the free software, so upset by the fact that he had to put some effort into making it work for his needs, and so unhappy that it took a few days for another user to respond to him on a free forum the community provides, that he just had to rant about it. He told everyone who read his rant they should avoid my software at all costs, basically because he had to spend a few months of his time getting it up to his standards. Worse yet, this leech never bothered to share his changes/improvements with the community. All the community got in return for him downloading the software was a public display of his idiocy.

As I read this I laughed as Paul described this guy to the letter. I am definitely subscribing to this newsletter right now! Thanks Randy for sharing! :-)

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You're most welcome. And I appreciate that you simply wanted to share the story, rather than use it as a vehicle to link to your cart. So I will: CF Shopkart. -rc

Posted by Rose, Las Vegas on April 25, 2009:

They are everywhere sadly.

I am not in business, online or off, having come to this link thru Randy's This is True site but I still recognized your idiot as some of my idiots.

In my off time I have taken part in and run online RPG and story telling sites (since late 90s). Basically the site Owner or assigned storytellers set up scenarios and the players create personas from imagination (when we're lucky) or from books (not too bad) and movies (ummm right) to react to them. Its Grown-up cops and robbers, cowboys and indians, lets pretend. No problem, I LOVE to write, to create fun events for the various groups to go thru. I however have serious medical conditions which means I sometimes have to take a day, -occasionally- more than one day, off. I am VERY up front about this happening, and no one has to post replies with me I always have an assistant storyteller doing a different story line so no on has to be waiting on me. I try to make up for it with descriptive posts, 500+ words most of the time, after all when not in so much pain that only morphine will handle it I adore writing, finding the right word for the right mood, and happily find most people enjoy writing with me.

Have you guessed the punch line yet?

Not only does that idiot you mentioned have the nerve to bitch that I haven't answered in a 'reasonable' amount of time (one, lets call her a female, not my first word choice, had the nerve to complain TWO HOURS after she answered me) but they are almost always the ones who themselves hold up the entire storyline for days, then they post 'two liners'; at its worse literally a sentence, double return and a second sentence which THEY call two paragraphs.

I've even had lookie-lous (there to read not role play) have the gall to complain, their mistake. NOW I banned anyone who hasn't joined a story line within a week of joining the group; luckily I am not in business, and been around since late 90s in gaming community so my rep is fairly safe, and, thankfully, complaints outside the community aren't something I need to worry about like the business community.

There will always be people who think 'free lunch' is their inalienable right. And maybe its only my age and looming 'grouchy old lady' years, but it seems like there are far more of them than when I was growing up.