How To Deal With Junk Mail
Posted on May 23, 2007 – 10:05 am by admin
Can you believe the amount of junk mail you receive every day?
When I get home from work, I walk to the mailbox. I usually have a smile on my face and some pep in my step. I open the mailbox, and to my dismay, I discover a heaping pile of wasted paper.
A few months ago, I began renting a PO box from the local post office. I never put the address on anything and never used it. I was curious a few weeks later to see if there was anything in it. I walked into the post office and opened the PO box. The thing was jam packed full of more wasted paper. Needless to say, I am returning the key to the box.
On a trip to Home Depot earlier this week, I was listening to NPR (National Public Radio). As far as I am concerned, that is the only intelligent conversation on the air today. They were talking about the “National Do Not Call Registry.” I think the DJ’s words went something like this: “Back when you signed up for the Do Not Call list, I’m sure you didn’t realize that your actions were contributing to the clear cutting of forests to make paper for more junk mail.” Of course, that’s from my poor memory. They were talking about how much more junk mail there is now that companies can’t call so many people.
I was talking last night about how much junk mail I get. Do you know that I probably get about five credit card offers a week? Most of them are from the credit card company I already have a card with!!!
If you are getting fed up with this, like I am, what can you do about it? I found some pretty good websites that talk about it.
- Do-it-yourself: Stop junk mail, email and phone calls
- Stopping the junk mail tree killers
- Greendimes.com – Restore your sanity and our planet
Something really has to be done about this. Where we live, our recycling is picked up every two weeks. Every two weeks, we have an entire 32 gallon garbage can filled with paper and more that won’t fit. Every two weeks. I would say that 80% of this paper we didn’t ask for. That’s just crazy.
14 Responses to “How To Deal With Junk Mail”
By Kendra on May 23, 2007 | Reply
Hey- thanks for mentioning GreenDimes in your post, we really appreciate your taking the time to tell others about our service! Make sure to check the site from time to time and see what new ideas we are working on to make the world a better place. Thanks again for your post!
-Kendra
http://www.greendimes.com
By admin on May 23, 2007 | Reply
Not a problem Kendra. As I look at your site a little closer, I find your cause quite compelling. I think you may have a new customer.
By John on May 24, 2007 | Reply
Also, http://800notes.com/ is a good source to find out how to get rid of those callers who would not stop calling in spite of registering on all possible do not call lists.
By Ramsey Fahel on May 24, 2007 | Reply
Do Not Mail Opt-Out Law would be fair to everyone.
The proposed recent “Do not mail” is an Opt-Out law. Only those not desiring advertising mail need opt-out. Anyone desiring advertising mail can do nothing – and continue to receive it. Why deny those wishing to avoid advertising mail the power to do so?
I do not consider handling unwanted advertising placed against my will on my personal property to be a civic obligation!
The US Supreme Court said in the Rowan case in 1970, ““In today’s [1970] complex society we are inescapably captive audiences for many purposes, but a sufficient measure of individual autonomy must survive to permit every householder to exercise control over unwanted mail. To make the householder the exclusive and final judge of what will cross his threshold undoubtedly has the effect of impeding the flow of ideas, information, and arguments that, ideally, he should receive and consider. Today’s merchandising methods, the plethora of mass mailings subsidized by low postal rates, and the growth of the sale of large mailing lists as an industry in itself have changed the mailman from a carrier of primarily private communications, as he was in a more leisurely day, and have made him an adjunct of the mass mailer who sends unsolicited and often unwanted mail into every home. It places no strain on the doctrine of judicial notice to observe that whether measured by pieces or pounds, Everyman’s mail today is made up overwhelmingly of material he did not seek from persons he does not know. And all too often it is matter he finds offensive.â€
Furthermore, the Supreme Court said, “the mailer’s right to communicate is circumscribed only by an affirmative act of the addressee giving notice that he wishes no further mailings from that mailer.
To hold less would tend to license a form of trespass and would make hardly more sense than to say that a radio or television viewer may not twist the dial to cut off an offensive or boring communication and thus bar its entering his home. Nothing in the Constitution compels us to listen to or view any unwanted communication, whatever its merit; we see no basis for according the printed word or pictures a different or more preferred status because they are sent by mail.â€
We need a nationwide “Do Not Mail†law to create a one-stop, convenient place for homeowners to give senders the aforementioned affirmative notice that we do not want certain kinds of mail sent to our homes.
http://www.newdream.org/emails/ta19.html
Signed,
Ramsey A Fahel
By paul on May 24, 2007 | Reply
Most post offices have a junk mail recycling bin. That is where I start. I also make sure that if I fill out any one line forms, I am sure to check I do not want to receive promotional materials if asked. This is a sure fire way to get on mailing lists for all sorts of unneeded junk.
The bank credit card offers just keep coming. I get on average two a day. I have tried to get them to stop, but nobody is listening. I suppose if I had bad credit, they wouldn’t send me any. Or who knows, maybe they would.
By Peter Cooper Jr. on Jun 7, 2007 | Reply
You can also just Refuse the junk mail and let the post office worry about getting rid of it. Maybe it’ll eventually send them a message.
http://www.refuseyourmail.info/
By admin on Jun 7, 2007 | Reply
Thanks Peter.
This is good information. I didn’t know that you can give your junk mail back to the people who give it to you. Nice.
By Peter Cooper Jr. on Jun 7, 2007 | Reply
You’re very welcome. In general in life, you don’t have to accept “presents” that you don’t want.
By mandie on Sep 26, 2007 | Reply
Here’s a great way to ditch your junk mail. It’s free, and gives you helpful instructions. Junk mail isn’t just annoying, it’s a tree killer!
http://c3.newdream.org/campaigns/c3/register/8b1ca30a55ac2947851d6a218658a303/
By WJ on Dec 28, 2007 | Reply
Here’s another one for your list of junk mail things
http://www.dearbulkmailer.com/
By Mike Rylander on May 20, 2008 | Reply
Well… Here’s one way of looking at it…
By Tim Henry on May 23, 2008 | Reply
I use the services of Myjunktree and was able to stop most of the misc junk mail i was getting and all of the credit card offers even teh ones form my own bank. The also stopped all the weekly mailers I was getting and the best part they stopped the wasteful phone books I never used. It’s a great service check these guys out.
By Steve on Jul 15, 2008 | Reply
I use the site http://www.myjunktree.com and it has help me get rid about 90% of the junk mail. I found it to be a very easy site to use and it take no time at all to get the job done. They plant trees with each order and a big plus is that they can help stop the un-wanted telephone books also.