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Snappy retorts to telemarketers

When my son was young, he was a huge Star Wars fan. So, trying to be a cool dad, I memorized Greedo's lines (his "Rodian" language) from the Mos Eisley cantina scene in the original 1977 Star Wars movie Episode IV - A New Hope. It's the scene where Greedo talks with Han Solo. I memorized the entire scene. So when a telemarketer calls, I immediately start speaking Greedo's lines as if that is the only language I speak. It stumps them every time, and I never hear from that telemarketer again. :cool:
 
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I don't get telemarketing calls (rarely do I even get calls from a number I don't recognize, at least on my personal phone) but I do get pig butchering scam texts. If I'm bored I like to string them along with absurd answers. At one point I'd been engaging with someone for a couple of hours when "she" asked me to get WhatsApp. Oh no, I said, I don't have that on my phone.

You can get it from the app store!

Ok, where is that? Is that like the T-Mobile store? We have one in town, but they closed at 5.

No, the app store on your phone!

I don't have an app store on my phone. There's an Albertson's next door, do you think they have it?


...and so on until the scammer finally got frustrated and stopped engaging.

I had a blast.
 
I just never answer a number my phone doesn't recognize. If it's something important, they can leave a message.

It may be fun to mess with callers, but then I think how awful it must be to have to earn a living that way.
I did it for a few months, selling affinity credit cards. It was weird, some were for the NRA and others were for a gay action network. The latter had me calling much more interesting people, and even a couple of somewhat famous musicians. However, I got fired. I just didn't feel right doing it, because the amount that went to the causes was so small. My dad was never so proud!
 
I once was getting the "your vehicle's warranty is about to expire" scam calls every day. So one day I decided to have some fun and pressed 1.

Guy picks up the phone and says, "Make and model of your vehicle?"

"What, you mean you don't know?"

"Don't know what?"

"The make and model of my vehicle. Your call says my warranty is about to expire. How do you know that and not know what kind of car I drive?"

<CLICK>

That was the end of that particular scammer.
 
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I was in a mood, and when a male telemarketer called, I asked, in my huskiest voice "What are you wearing?... (heavy breathing). I''m not wearing anything at all, and you sound so handsome...". It was clear that it squicked him out and felt just the teensiest bit bad... I never did it again (partly because now I don't answer calls from unknown numbers.

I also (back in the day) used to do the "I'm SO glad you called!" bit, going on and on about how my car kept breaking down and I really needed a warranty to pay for the repairs and what each of my friends and relatives said to me about it - not giving them a chance to say a word until they finally hung up.

Lastly I used to answer, say "can you please hold on a minute?" and then walk away from the phone to do something else.

Nowadays with robo-dialers all the fun has gone out of telemarketers. :laugh:
 
I'm getting calls from a mediccare/food benefits thing.

They always open with "we see your Medicare file has not been updated".

After about the 3rd call I asked them what was the name on the file. Then instead of answering the question they start on their diatribe.

If they really had my file pulled up they would know my name lol

Click !
 

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