example, it doesn't _hurt_ me to get targeted junk mail, but I find it unsettling that direct marketers know enough about me to send the 'right' mail. I see it this way; 'they' make decisions about me and initiate a relationship with me without my knowledge or consent. The relationship is artificial and uneven; 'they' know more about me than I know about 'them'.

An idea that I have never used, but was suggested to me by my father, goes like this: RING RING me: Hello ??: Mr. Peter Baumbach, I am calling from ICK inc. to offer you .. me: Excuse me, but I am busy right now. Could you give me your name and home phone number, and I will call you back later? ??: Huh? I can't give you my home number, that's private. me: But you know my name and number. This hardly seems fair.