Is spam really a problem?

[Anonymous]

Wei Dai wrote:

> The way I see it, the problem with spam isn't that it takes too much
> effort to delete them, but that it discourages useful advertisement
> through email. Email could be a very efficient way for companies to send
> valuable information to potential customers, but the incentives are such
> that virtually all unsolicited commercial email are of very low value
> and are deleted without being read.

Those of us outside of the Microsoft Marketing Machine have a different
opinion.  Frankly, I do not want to make Bill Gates's latest advertising
gimmick any more 'efficient' nor do I want to be his 'potential customer'.
I have had just about enough crap from Microsoft, which is why I deleted
JunkOS version 95, and use Linux instead.

When I open up my email and find twenty pieces of spam, like most people
I start hitting the delete key.  Last week I got a call from a friend...
"Didn't you get my email?"  "uh... no..."