Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!sun-barr!texsun!texbell!vector!telecom-gateway From: optilink!cramer@ames.arc.nasa.gov (Clayton Cramer) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Why DA Costs Should Be Spread Among All Subscribers Message-ID: Date: 5 Sep 89 18:29:45 GMT Sender: news@vector.Dallas.TX.US Organization: Optilink Corporation, Petaluma, CA Lines: 39 Approved: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 348, message 1 of 10 In article , stiatl!john@gatech.edu (John DeArmond) writes: > goldstein@delni.enet.dec.com writes: # #I don't usually disagree with John, but I think he misses the point. # #Some folks abuse Directory Assistance. Badly. Some businesses used to # #use it (and still might, where it's free) as a means to verify credit # #cards on the cheap. # Fred, you and I are in agreement on this point. I simply disagree with # the concept that just because there are a few scumbags, we should punish # the whole population. That's as bad as the current media campaign to # ban a class of weapons because an insignificant number of scumbags abuse # the right. The phone company is more than capable of matching DA accesses # against calls made from a business. If the number of DA accesses is # disappropriate to the call loading, then charge them heavily for the # service, heavily enough to discourage further abuse. # John De Armond, WD4OQC | Manual? ... What manual ?!? This reminds of when the charge for directory assistance started in Los Angeles. A group calling itself "Campaign Against Utility Service Exploitation (CAUSE)" suddenly appeared, making the same claim -- that credit bureaus used DA a great deal, and that it was therefore more "fair" to charge for DA as a percent surcharge on the total phone bill -- even though per call DA charges would have hurt such DA abusers MORE than the surcharge on total calls. It was pretty obvious that the people running CAUSE were principally interested in creating a political base for populist/socialist rhetoric -- no one could be so stupid as to think that the total bill surcharge would be fairer than per call charges for DA (except the TV reporters, who are as intelligent as electric toasters). Clayton E. Cramer {pyramid,pixar,tekbspa}!optilink!cramer "No man is an island" is the beginning of the end of personal freedom. Disclaimer? You must be kidding! No company would hold opinions like mine!