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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!floyd!harpo!seismo!ut-sally!ut-ngp!werner
From: werner@ut-ngp.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.consumers
Subject: Sears, Radio Shack, Junk Calls
Message-ID: <347@ut-ngp.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 5-Mar-84 06:58:32 EST
Article-I.D.: ut-ngp.347
Posted: Mon Mar  5 06:58:32 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 6-Mar-84 02:35:52 EST
Organization: Comp. Center, Univ. of Texas at Austin
Lines: 46

D-CON-POWER		( what, me losing faith in RAID ? )

Sears:	I don't want to start a discussion on this, but ... I can't
	understand why anyone comparing prices would want to buy
	anything from them.  Not even the automotive department
	is competetive anymore.  And when Sears in Miami did not
	honor my tire guarantee, because it was from Texas and about
	to expire - there went my last reason for buying my auto-supplies
	from them !!!  As I was leaving the country the same night
	I had neither chance nor desire to fight this one, but I have
	not forgotten it !!!

	Still, getting a card to establish credit might be worth it.

Radio Shack:	Their prices are more than non-competetive - they are an
	outrage.  Buying anything there but a few odds and ends which are
	hard to get, or not worth the trip elsewhere, is a NONO for me.
	I buy their paper+plastic record sleeves, though, to protect my
	records, never having found them elsewhere (<$3 for 10).

	Their insistence of asking for the address EVERY TIME and refusing
	to take NO for an answer, is very annoying and I have given up on
	trying to modify their behavior.  Just another reason why I abhor
	buying anything there.

	BTW: The owner of Radio Shack has become STINKING rich in the few
	years he's been at it, and is now playing Texas politics in a very
	annoying way, meddling with education, etc.

Junk Calls:	We have seen nothing yet.  Just last week, there was an
	interview with reps from TI and DEC on CBS-Nightwatch, introducing
	DECTALK and TI's latest speech module. Especially DECTALK is targeting
	companies who would like to have DEC's little machine make lots
	of calls for them.  In 7 different voices, 3 male and female each,
	of different timbre to give the impression of different ages, plus
	the voice of a "darling" child,  this machine will intrude into our
	privacy.  It might be neccessary to await its impact before having
	a chance to pass some legislation about restricting its use,
	but if anyone is interested in trying to organize and execute
	the first steps into that direction, I am game.  Flaming here or
	elsewhere has its function of raising awareness, but for me, I am
	already going crazy every time one of those computer-voices starts
	talking to me - I need action.

	werner @ ut-ngp  { .UUCP or .ARPA }