LizaWasHere

Apparently I haven’t complained about the obnoxious, truth-challenged, spamming, stripper-education company called Miss Pole, here on my blog.

They spam women students at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee.

Don’t get me wrong. If you want to strip, strip.

This is about spamming, and particularly about what is so wrong about spamming women students with the message that instead of studying, we should really be taking our clothes off for money. Or exercise. (Hey! There’s a gym at the university.)

It is also about the refusal to stop spamming, and then stopping, and then starting up again.

And about claiming that your mailing list is a double opt-in to someone who has been actively asking you to remove them from your list since July 2010.

It goes like this:

Roughly once a month since I first got an email address with a top level domain ending in .edu, I get a spam message from customercare@misspole.com . They are a localish business, pitching stripper pole dancing classes to women students.

I began asking around, and indeed, other women students were getting the same unsolicited commerical email messages. Spam.

My first attempt to contact them by email bounced.

Then I called their Kenosha telephone number and left a voice message, including my email address, asking to be removed from their mailing list.

No luck.

I tried emailing them again. I complained to the UWM IT department, who told me how to filter the messages into my junk mail folder. (Thanks guys, already had that one down. I want the spammers to stop spamming everyone, not just to find a self-help solution.)

I complained on their Facebook page, and mine. (Hmm, but strangely my comments on their Facebook page seem to have been removed. I wonder how that happened.)

Eventually, they responded to my complaints on Facebook, through Facebook messaging.

Interestingly enough, the response on Facebook suggests that they don’t only spam women students at UWM, but also women students at UW – Madison.

That was in July.

I tried the “Do Not Contact” link in their messages, AGAIN.

I didn’t get any spam from them in August. I thought it worked.

When the fall semester began again, so did the Miss Pole spam. But I was busy, and it was going into my junk folder, so I ignored it.

Until this morning. When it quit going into my junk folder.

They sent a message that almost seemed to imply they were owning up to their spamming practices, what with the subject line reading: “Who the, what the, huh? Oh, Miss Pole. Wait… Who’s that?”

I responded to the email with this message:

Dear Miss Pole,

There is clearly something very wrong with your “unsubscribe” technology. After repeated emails and phone calls, and my complaining on your Facebook page, you insisted that you removed me from your email list.

Indeed, I enjoyed several lovely months free from porn spam at this educational email address.

Then the fall semester began. And I began getting your inappropriate spam messages again.

You do realize that under the federal CAN SPAM law, every unsolicited email message you send exposes you to a $10,000 fine, right? If UWM chose to file a claim against you, your liability would be $10,000 for EACH MESSAGE (meaning all of the thousands of UWM students you invite to learn to be strippers), repeated for EACH MONTH. For messages to me alone, you are legally liable for roughly $100,000.

Please stop spamming me. And the rest of the women at UWM who are trying to get an education, not trying to learn how to be strippers.

Since their list seemed impossible to leave, I didn’t expect it to work, and I also posted it as a note on Facebook.

Imagine my surprise when I got a response this morning!

Liza,

Subscription removals/do not contacts are managed by iContact. Our strippers in training are not well versed in computers, technology, spamming laws, or ‘do not contact’ button clicking. Therefore, a mean spirited email isn’t as effective as utilizing the ‘do not contact’ functionality.

This is a double opt-in email list and it appears that you (1) opted in and (2) have never unsubscribed or requested do not contact status.

Please feel free to file a complaint with iContact , ph: (919) 968-3996, and they should be able to assist.

My apologies,

Patricia

The bold type there is my emphasis.

My head exploded when I read that, and I realized I needed to share here.

But first, I would go try the iContact opt-out form. Take a look:

“UW Milwaukee Fall 2010″ as the list name? Does that sound like a list that was harvested, or one that is “double opt-in” to you?

After taking the screen shot, I clicked — again — the Add me to your “Do Not Contact” list.

Of course, the Spring semester has just begun, so I imagine that I’ll be hearing from my new best friend just as usual next month.

Jill comes back on Friday!

We’ve all survived 22 days without her, although I fully admit that just this morning I thought of yet one more thing that is so much easier when there are 2 parents helping kids get ready to go in the morning. (Someone else can run around turning all of the lights off as you attempt to hustle children out of the front door.)

They’ve been an exciting 22 days. I started my Ph.D program, got invited to be on a panel at Blogalicious 2010 (a week from Saturday!) and to be a keynote speaker at OCLC and Library Journal’s online symposium on The Ethics of Innovation, and had an academic paper accepted as part of the UWM School of Information Studies Student Research Day program.

Noah has had an exciting 22 days, batting about 50% on accident-free overnights, about 98% on daily meltdowns, and shooting vigorously forward towards reading. It remains too slow to be fluid, but he sounds out nearly everything when he’s in the mood: food packages, street signs, books, tags, toys….

Josie is ever more articulate, especially when imitating Noah’s meltdowns. She greets the day by telling me “Walk away,” then crying if I step 3 feet from her, or by shouting, “No talk me!” Just like her big brother in his most frustrated moments.

Fortunately, those moments pass.

This morning, after those moments passed, Josie dressed herself.

Then undressed herself.

Then dressed herself again. In different clothes.

She left for school wearing 2 pair of pajama pants, a pajama top, mismatched socks, and sparkley sneakers. She selected all of those items and actually put the pants on entirely on her own, and the shirt, socks, and shoes with only minimal assistance. I surreptitiously brought a sweatshirt to school in case it was cold, since the teachers were more likely to get her into it than I was.

Grandma, just out of curiosity, how old was Aunt Anna when she started caring passionately about her clothes?

22 days down, 2 more to go.