Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Idiots on the Phone
One program I never tire of is This American Life on NPR from WBEZ in Chicago. In truth I listen to the podcast edition, I listen to lots of podcasts of radio shows which is better than remembering when the shows are actually on the radio.
This week's This American Life was Episode #253 The Middle of Nowhere. The episode description was:
I don't know, that's pretty vague. Still, an interesting idea to do a radio show about.
The first "act" of this episode was interesting, about the Pacific island of Naru and the pluses and minuses of being as remote as it is. Interesting stories, international intrigue, I was so pleased to have listened to this very interesting report.
It was the second "act," starting at about the 34 minute mark (really,you should listen) that made an impact on me. It was the story of a woman who works at This American Life who had an issue with her phone service and spent 10 months trying to clear it up. It was a problem that would never have been rectified if This American Life didn't do a story on it. It's the story of the phone company's "Genius Silo in Iowa" that doesn't have any phones in it, phone companies that can't initiate a conference call and some guy named "Chuck Carter."
Hilarious and infuriating at the same time, more so because I've been in exactly the same place with AOL, Cigna Teldrug, Bresnan Communications and The Casper Star-Tribune/Jones Boys Telemarketing.
When these companies get you on the phone, they can tell you anything, they can lie to you and you have no recourse. They want you to just give up. They want to baffle you into dropping whatever you complaint is.
Some of us won't.
Ever.
BOJ
...currently waiting for [Nameless Company] and Cigna Teldrug to return calls to me...
This week's This American Life was Episode #253 The Middle of Nowhere. The episode description was:
Stories from faraway, hard-to-get-to places, where all rules are off, nefarious things happen because no one's looking, and there's no one to appeal to.
I don't know, that's pretty vague. Still, an interesting idea to do a radio show about.
The first "act" of this episode was interesting, about the Pacific island of Naru and the pluses and minuses of being as remote as it is. Interesting stories, international intrigue, I was so pleased to have listened to this very interesting report.
It was the second "act," starting at about the 34 minute mark (really,you should listen) that made an impact on me. It was the story of a woman who works at This American Life who had an issue with her phone service and spent 10 months trying to clear it up. It was a problem that would never have been rectified if This American Life didn't do a story on it. It's the story of the phone company's "Genius Silo in Iowa" that doesn't have any phones in it, phone companies that can't initiate a conference call and some guy named "Chuck Carter."
Hilarious and infuriating at the same time, more so because I've been in exactly the same place with AOL, Cigna Teldrug, Bresnan Communications and The Casper Star-Tribune/Jones Boys Telemarketing.
When these companies get you on the phone, they can tell you anything, they can lie to you and you have no recourse. They want you to just give up. They want to baffle you into dropping whatever you complaint is.
Some of us won't.
Ever.
BOJ
...currently waiting for [Nameless Company] and Cigna Teldrug to return calls to me...
Labels: Mega-Bitch Wednesday
# posted by Blind Orange Julius @ 11:59 AM 
Comments:
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Does the act about the MCI also remind you of my ongoing battle with Cingular and my $1100 bill? It's still there 4 1/2 months later.
Dear BOJ
Your name proceeds you. You seem to be stabbing at corperations in general. However It would be nice to know if you have actually ever worked for one of the mentioned componies! Can you truely say you understand there values without this experience?
From Food for Thought
Your name proceeds you. You seem to be stabbing at corperations in general. However It would be nice to know if you have actually ever worked for one of the mentioned componies! Can you truely say you understand there values without this experience?
From Food for Thought
# posted by 
: 7:19 AM
: 7:19 AM
I'm not really sure what you're driving at. Have I worked for one of the mentioned companies? What does that matter? My dealings with the companies has ranged from poor (at best) to infuriating. If I try to talk to one of them on the phone, there is no accountability. They can tell you anything, they can lie to you on the phone and you can't do anything about it. Not a thing. They hold all the cards.
For the record, I have worked for many large corporations, the world's largest corporation in particular. I know a little bit about what I'm talking about.
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For the record, I have worked for many large corporations, the world's largest corporation in particular. I know a little bit about what I'm talking about.
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