A quick lesson for Barnes the Boss

Barnes "The Boss"  really enjoyed stepping on the throttle pedal whenever he got on the highway. His exquisite blue Aston Martin was an engineering marvel and had little to no regard for speed limits.

It so happened that on one of these speedy drives, Barnes the Boss saw a mechanic walking next to the highway, trying unsuccessfully to hitch a ride. He thought for a moment that he should pull over and offer the exhausted man a lift, but he quickly reminded himself that no greasy overalls were going to spoil the plush interior of his Aston Martin. Barnes the Boss stuck his head out of the window and shouted, "So long grease monkey, unfortunately offering you a ride will not benefit me in any way but it will cost me in terms of time and money at the carwash!" He then sped off into the concrete jungle.

It was exactly two kilometres later that Barnes the Boss felt the Aston Martin begin to stall and lose traction. It eventually came to a stand still and would not start. A stunnned Barnes was at a loss of audible words though in his mind, he swore at the car for causing him such embarassment. Who had ever heard of an Aston Martin breaking down on the highway?

Barnes the Boss had his stress compounded by the fact that he was very far away from an Aston Martin workshop, so getting assistance was going to be a difficult task.  He opened the hood of the Aston Martin to try to figure out what the problem was. Suddenly his mind flashed back to the mechanic that he had passed along the way and had been rude to. Regrettably, he wished that he had not seen a  grease monkey of no value, but a human being that was not too inferior to ride in his car.  Maybe, just maybe, he would be getting help if he had not been an arrogant jerk.

As he looked over his shoulder in exasperation, he spotted the tall blue overall-clad figure of the mechanic approaching him. His face lit up as he anticipated assistance. He greeted the artisan with an embarassed grin and begged him for help. He apologized for his uncalled for verbal vomit, but the mechanic kept walking and said that an Aston Martin could only be fixed by someone who specialised in that brand of sports car: "Sorry, I am not trained to work on that brand of car. Call an expert."

As the mechanic strode away and eventually got a lift, Barnes the Boss glanced at the bag that the mechanic was carrying. It had on it, the famous wings that made up the Aston Martin logo.

Suddenly Barnes didn't feel like the boss that he had always thought he was. School was out already, the life lesson having been quickly learnt.

The Takealot Mother's Day what-what scam

I was not going to say anything but the burden has been so heavy on my heart since last week that I cannot be silent any longer. Two Sundays ago, I had an influx of messages from several of my Whatsapp contacts inviting me to click on a very shady looking web link. I did not cooperate in that regard but I am told this link which went viral, was exactly what I warned it was - a scam! Please may my beloved friends who entertained the scam, help me to understand a few things 😊

I come in peace when I ask, "where did you all get truck loads of guts to click on a link as dodgy (shady doesn't quite cut it)  as www.wp20.ru ? I need some of that bravado! 🤔😀

On second thoughts, you do not have to answer that one. Let's settle it by saying that it's me who is not brave or adventurous enough! However, do help me to understand this other question.

 Once you had clicked on that heinous link (more suitable adjectival descriptions now come to mind), and you saw that takealot.com was said to be running a promotion, did you not remember that the company is named by its URL, takealot.com ?! Shouldn't this have automatically alerted you that if the web page that you were on was not takealot.com then you were not on Takealot but on a fake page and therefore on dangerous territory? 😳

Well that question above might also be difficult to answer, so let's leave it as well. Let me ask something less complicated. Have you ever heard of a big and reputable company running a marketing campaign that is not found on their official website and is not found on radio or television, but only exists on forwarded Whatsapp messages? Is it logical that they would need one to forward a link to several contacts as a condition to qualify for a gift? Next time, mark that as an obvious red flag that someone wants your cellphone number and the numbers of your contacts for the purpose of selling that information to marketing people or else for hacking and/or pishing purposes! 

Fine, let me drop those complicated questions too. Here are two simple ones. Do you know that there is no such thing as a "free lunch," and that such offers of "free" gifts must be avoided? If you do not know,  you may read my other post on Facebook on this same issue. 

Ah well it seems there is going to be a challenge in getting the most basic responses, so let's scrap the whole idea of questions. I will just leave you with a tip: If another message is sent with a similar looking URL, or claiming that you stand to win freebies, walk away. Actually, don't walk but run! Run for dear life as fast as your legs can carry you!

Adventures of Johnny John and a bribe hungry Johannesburg traffic cop (Part II)

Good readers, those of you who read yesterday's Part I of The adventures of Johnny John and a bribe hungry Johannesburg traffic cop are probably keen to know what became of Johnny John, the unfortunate motorist who was busted in chaotic Jozi traffic by a Johannesburg Metro Police officer for driving on a lane reserved for buses.


We read about how the officer confiscated Johnny John's licence and demanded a bribe if he was to spare Johnny from a hefty fine and / or arrest. We read of how Johnny John gave in to the demand, pretended to fetch the money from his car (yet he had it in his pocket), paid the bribe and got his licence back. Soon after bribing the officer, Johnny John asked for a refund of his money. Many of you are wondering if Johnny John had a can of spinach tucked away somewhere which he gulped away so as to get a new burst of courage or if his conscience settled for a fine and / or arrest. What is going on in Johnny John's mind and how will the officer react to this unexpected twist of events? I shall not keep you in suspense any longer. Remember to share the link to to this story with other motorists on your social networks.


"What was that young man, what did you just say to me?" bellowed the traffic officer. Johnny John could have sworn at that very moment that the cop's face was turning purple and little bubbles of foam were oozing out of the mouth. With a straight face and calm voice Johnny John repeated, "Please may I have the money that I have just bribed you with, I am somewhat in a rush and I need to go." Johnny John checked his cellphone, as if to confirm the time. Just then an sms tone pierced the electric atmosphere and Johnny John's attention was diverted back to the cellphone. When he looked up, the officer was making his way out of the vehicle, ticket book in one hand and handcuffs in the other. " Ever spend Christmas in a jail cell? Not only am I going to make sure that you spend the rest of the festive season locked up, I am going to make sure that a large portion of your bonus goes into the city's coffers. You should have just given me what I asked for, that was a small price to pay in contrast to what you are about to pay, you little swine!"


Johnny John thought of reminding him that according to Pigspotter and his 30thousand Twitter followers, traffic cops were the swine. He however decided against triggering a possibly violent physical attack. He asked if the officer wouldn't love to read the SMS that he had just recieved. Puzzled, the officer glanced at Johnny John's cellphone and saw a delivery report. "That sir is the delivery report of an MMS that I have just sent to a friend of mine. You see when I said I was going to collect money from my car, I was actually going to send this MMS. It is a voice recording of you demanding a bribe from me. The time that you saw me fiddling with my phone, it was not really because I was nervous, I was ensuring that I record every single bit of your evil deed. If you really have to charge me for using the bus lane, go ahead and issue me with a traffic fine, do not fund raise for your Christmas party at my expense. Oh by the way, I know you just want to grab my cellphone and smash it the ground, that is why I have sent an MMS to my friend who is currently next to his computer, waiting to post it on You Tube, Twitter and Facebook, as well as email it to the Independent Complaints Directorate and your superiors. I am going to make a celebrity out of you yet, officer dearest."


The rest is history. Needless to say, Johnny John got his refund and declined an offer of an additional "refund." The traffic officer traced Johnny John through his car registration number and since then has been making regular calls to Johnny John to ask if he needs help with renewing his driver's licence, car registration or anything else traffic related. He says he really would like to help Jonny John because he knows how long the queues at the traffic department offices can become. Johnny John has said several times that he does not need anything from him, that his justice has been served, all is forgotten and the officer should relax. It seems though that he is likely to be on the apologetic officer's speed dial list for a long time to come!

The internet doesn't forget

Last year, while presenting to a group of young people in Wesselsbron in the Free State, I did a simple illustration to demonstrate the practicality of the saying, The internet does not forget and to stress the need to exercise care when we post online.

I whisked out a memory stick and shared my PC screen onto a larger screen so that they could see me transferring some pictures and documents to it. I erased all the newly saved files, leaving the USB device at zero megabytes of storage and then boldly declared that I could retrieve the deleted files. True to my inward prediction, someone shouted, "Not so fast, please format that USB stick!" I could see the gleeful expressions on their faces as I silently complied under their intense scrutiny. Those looks clearly said, "Let's see you recover them now Mr Internet-does-not-forget!"

I then scanned the USB device with some simple recovery software. It was set to deep scanning mode and so took a while to scan and that turned out to be a real test of patience  for my young audience. As the magnifying glass rotated in what seemed like endless repetitions on the projected screen, it became increasingly convincing to the lads and lasses that whatever I was trying to do was not going to work. However, after this "eternity," of waiting, the files were eventually recovered, leaving many a mouth agape! It was an amusing moment for me as at that point I had established the right context for me to go ahead and drive three key points home:

 1) Deleting something from your cellphone, tablet, computer or other device,  does not necessarily mean that you have also erased copies that might still remain on either the hard storage or on the cloud.  If a mere memory stick can withstand the brutalities of deletion and formatting, what more of information that has been saved and at times replicated across unknown and remote servers scattered all over the globe?

2) Deleting those nudes or other inappropriate social media posts, does not guarantee that screenshots were not taken and shared unknown to yourself or that your friends have not shared your post across different social network platforms e.g from Tik Tok to Twitter, then to Facebook. The more your content is shared to third party social networks  (owned by different companies with different storage points), the less ownership and control you have on your content.

3) Always remember that social media companies do not really delete what you post. What we consider as deletion, is not really removal of your content on their side, but more of restricting it's public visibility. In the terms and conditions of many social networks, they state that they do not take responsibility for residual copies of deleted content 

Indeed the internet does not forget and that is something that we should never forget. My youthful audience certainly will not be forgetting this sound truth anytime soon! 

Overcome technophobia and normalise technophilia

 

A few years ago, I was part of a Whatsapp group meeting where a vote was taken and a decision was made online about an important organisational issue (hooray for hand and thumb emojis! ✋👍👎🙋). There was opposition to the meeting's outcome by some who felt that a Whatsapp meeting was an abomination. These people lobbied for the resolutions made at that meeting to be declared null and void, even though it was accepted that convening a physical meeting had been unsuccessful. 

Fast forward to four or so years later and online meetings are here to stay. In a post-Covid-19 world, the convenience and cost saving benefits of online meetings that many have now experienced, will render this method of meeting popular for a long time to come. 

Some former technophobes have had their moments of repentance and have since happily embraced the convenience that comes with digital communication. I belong to yet another organisation whose members are located in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Botswana, The United Kingdom and the United States. Since its inception in 2018, those members of this organisation who are based in Africa, have met in a physical setup only once and the rest of the meetings have been cyber engagements. Over the past two years, our group video calling platforms have varied from Skype, to WeChat and Zoom and currently, Microsoft Teams is the medium of choice. The good old Whatsapp group, needless to say, is still in the picture for text and voice notes.

Does this mean that virtual meetings, especially in this Covid-19 era, have sent physical meetings to the proverbial trash can of history? Not at all! There are many limitations to online meetings and some things are best tackled in face to face encounters, but there remains no doubt that meeting online has become much more popular, while physical meetings have declined in prevalence.  Not only have meetings gone digital, so have university graduations, church services, parliamentary sittings and other proceedings that we never suspected would evolve so quickly.

Technophobia, which is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as, “the fear of using technological devices, such as computers,” certainly has no place in these times of the, “new normal.” The fear of engaging in virtual meetings is mainly driven by a lack of knowledge and unfounded suspicions towards anything new. If we are able to operate our cellphones, decoders and other household gadgets with relative ease, we should be able to operate most of the gadgets and applications that have arrived and have become comfortable in our world. For you to also get comfy, all you need to do is ask a friend, colleague or family member for a crash course and also remember that YouTube tutorials are always at your service. Let us normalise responsible and wise Technophilia (embracing of new technology) when it comes to meetings.

Do we need to splash our romances on social media?

Seeing as social media behaviour is on my radar screen of late, let me take this opportunity to present another trend that is now rife on social media. This is the incessant splashing of lovey-dovey posts about one’s undying love for their partner as a way of showing just how high the levels of romance are in a relationship.

The question tends to come up; does the world at large need you to tell them after every two minutes, just how much you love your husband, boyfriend, wife or girlfriend? Is that not for your partner to hear and for the rest of the world to observe and note without being told? While I certainly do not see anything wrong with the occasional appreciation post, it does become over the top at times.

It has been said that such voluminous outbursts are a desperate attempt to paint a false picture of blissful romance where it does not exist, or if it exists, to exaggerate its potency, leaving us with a much inflated picture of the relationship. There is sometimes a fear (especially when it comes to new relationships) that if things go wrong, those pictures and declarations of love will  lurk around cyberspace long after the relationship has ceased to exist.

Another school of thought however sees this behaviour as a commendable sign of commitment. It is viewed as a bold declaration of not being ashamed of your partner and a reaffirmation to them that you are willing to shout out your endless love from the rooftops. This opinion deems it necessary to post endless Instagram photos of yourself smooching or tightly embracing your soul mate as a way of marking off your territory and deterring anyone who might want to encroach that territory.  It  says one must not be negative and anticipate a failed relationship when things are at their rosiest.

Whatever your point of view is, I think it is important to realise that the line of demarcation does become somewhat blurry at a certain point and motives for daily public displays and expressions cannot be simply categorised into the two spaces mentioned above.  

At the end of the day, even if we sometimes question the genuineness of relationships that are continuously splashed on social media, we have to live and let live and wish the parties involved the best of wishes. 

The danger of liking "Likes" to the extreme

   
So you have received over two hundred comments and countless likes for your latest posting on Facebook? Surely that means you have finally arrived in the world of celebdom, right? Wrong! In case you were not aware of it, there is a still a long way to go before you can begin to even sniff that ever elusive celebrity status.

It is always sad to observe people attempting to derive their sense of self-worth and self-esteem from social networks. Clicking the “Like” button on your post might mean that I like or relate to your post, but it does not necessarily mean that I like you and will be asking for your autograph when I meet you next. At times, I might like, share or retweet your post because others are doing so and I feel compelled to follow suit.  The possible reasons are so many that it really does not make sense for one to allow an over-inflated ego to carry him or her into the undesirable realms of vanity.

Remember that social media is another world and that world is poles apart from the earth that we dwell in.  What you see on your screen is not always what you get in the real world. Not all your online “friends” or “followers” are real friends; you do not even know some of them personally, for crying out loud! What we all need to do as we surf the web and get connected with each other on the various networks, is to always have a sound thinking head on our shoulders and firm feet on the ground. 

Put in simple terms, let us value real life interactions more than we value cyber encounters. If that is not done, we are in serious danger of losing true loved ones as we endeavour to accrue empty virtual relationships.  

The practice of -isms must fall

The furore that is currently making headlines over South African president, Jacob Zuma’s autonomous and shocking decision to fire Nhlanhla Nene as finance minister and replace him with an unknown, David van Rooyen, has made me do some thinking.  Linked to that fiasco is the public outrage that has been unleashed on Zuma, namely the #ZumaMustFall campaign and that too, got me thinking hard.

What is there to think about, one might wonder?  This is an obvious case of the evil forces of cronyism and favouritism taking centre stage in government and an indication of clear abuse of presidential power. It is therefore no wonder that many folk are hot and bothered in the collar. Well the thoughts that are churning in my head have to do with wondering just how much of cronyism, favouritism, nepotism, racism, tribalism and other “ -isms” are out there.  We often attribute these undesirable practices to government departments and government officials.

Do not be hoodwinked though to think for a minute that the private sector is clean of such ills. It is not a lie to state that some of the most corrupt and underhanded dealings and deeds are found in the private sector, in small companies, large corporations, as well as NGOs (who on paper are the embodiment of transparency).  What Zuma did to Nene, is what scores of corrupt and power hungry managers and employers do every day in the corporate and non-governmental worlds. They hire and fire willy-nilly, based on discriminatory “-isms” without considering qualifications, competence, experience and other factors that are in the interests of the organisation.

Huge sums are diverted to the personal coffers of company administrators at the expense of shareholder’s dividends. Other millions are rerouted away from the tax man through complex tax evasion tricks masterminded by accounting wizards. Price fixing cartels are created by industrial giants to eat away at the consumer’s pocket. Workers are exploited and abused and yet they continue to toil in silence for fear of losing their jobs.

Why then is it that we hear mostly about the incompetence and mismanagement of President Zuma and his government officials and very little of what happens in the private sector? The answer lies in the number of stakeholders. A company manager probably has to account only to the board of the company and to a lesser extent, the shareholders and unions. This number is very small in comparison to the millions that have a say in the affairs of government by virtue of being tax payers. If a company is headed by its owner, accountability can be close to non-existent. Unlike the voting populace that has strength in numbers and can easily march to the Union Buildings, employees of private concerns are often overcome by the fear that they can be easily replaced or victimised if they dare voice any dissent publicly.

Unions are not always able to expose and fight against these evil practices. Perpetrators of  unethical “-isms” often go scot free as a result of these challenges. This should not be the case, and I personally believe that anyone who heads an entity, be it a charity, an NGO, a government department or country for that matter, should always be made to account for his or her actions of governance. Even where it may seem as if there are few or no available options of redress, remember that there are always options. At times just exposing bad governance is enough to keep it in check. The practice of “-isms” must fall and everyone has a duty to stand up and play their part in this noble and necessary fight.

Snake eating church - My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge

Just when we thought we had heard it all when news spread not so long ago that “Prophet”Lesego Daniel of Pretoria was making members of his congregation eat grass and drink petrol as part of worship, along comes his crony, “Prophet” Penuel Mnguni with his diabolical gospel that requires congregants to consume live snakes which apparently will turn into chocolate in their mouths!

Who or what is churning out these false prophets (Yes I said it) and how are they able to convince people to participate in such grossly cultish acts in the name of Christianity? I believe and state without reservation that this is the work of he that is mentioned in Revelation 12:9 as “that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world…” No wonder a snake was chosen out of all the creatures, Mnguni is glorifying the symbol of his master! Our Lord summed it all up when he lamented through the Prophet Hosea that “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” (Hosea 4:6)

It is tempting to reach a conclusive judgement that the followers of these cult leaders are greater nincompoops than the “prophets” themselves and deserve whatever comes their way because they should know better. It is a fact though, that in this world where people are looking for divine solutions to the many earthly problems that befall them, it is possible to be caught up in such situations if one is not well grounded in reading the scriptures. Biblical prophecy warns us that in the last days, false prophets and false will be many, some will perform great miracles and through them, the ancient serpent will mislead God’s people just as he did in Eden (Jeremiah 14:14; Mark 13:22).

The only solution for the erstwhile Christian to survive these torrid times is to pray without ceasing and study the word of God carefully under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Never rely solely on someone else’s knowledge of the Bible. We need to read for ourselves! It is also of utmost importance for those who have read and understood the real word of God to evangelise and study the Bible with those that have not yet read for themselves. It is not a sign of unfaithfulness or lack of faith to cross check in the scriptures, what your pastor or priest preaches to you. Within the Bible lies the litmus test that will reveal the level of truth coming out of their mouths. Remember the Berean Jews who we are told in Acts 17 checked if the gospel of Paul and Silas was true? It is of utmost importance to do that without becoming overly sceptic of course.

I urge all truth loving believers of the Bible to take a stand against these evil men who are dragging the name of God in the mud. Let us stand up and allow God to use us to preach the true word of God. Nothing less is expected of us.

The Great Commission (Matthew 28: 16-20)

(Also in Mark 16:14-18)

Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted. And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Who will win the Uber taxi war in South Africa?

     

The way that the taxi hailing app, Uber, has been received so far in South Africa by the taxi industry seems to be in line with the resistance experienced in France, the UK, the USA and many other countries. The meter taxi operators in the South African cities of Johannesburg and Cape Town are up in arms with Uber and are not having any of this “new-fangled nonsense” in their backyard. 

Just as the Luddite movement in early nineteenth century Britain reacted to the Industrial Revolution's ushering in of new machines in the factories (Violent protests and mass destruction of the new technology), we see similar patterns of response taking place today.

To a certain extent, it is understandable that when one’s livelihood is at stake, extreme measures are taken to defend it. There is need for a reality check, however. While the traditional taxi operators in Johannesburg, Cape Town and elsewhere in the world where Uber has entered have the support of government and the unions in their hostility towards Uber, the hard truth is that the growth of any technology that is efficient and cost effective to stakeholders, cannot be inhibited. The fact that this phone app has grown to a 41 billion dollar business empire is proof enough that it is here to stay and if current players want to stay relevant, they need to catch up with the times and see how they can align themselves with the evolving and technologically driven business world.

Uber itself has attacted competitors worldwide such as Lyft, Didi Kuaidi and Google who have come up with their own versions of ride sharing and e-transportation services. We need to kiss goodbye the romantic images of waving down a yellow cab on the sidewalks of New York or whistling for its black equivalent in the streets of London. Soon, the practice of having to unsuccessfully negotiate the hefty fares of cab operators at Johannesburg’s park station will be over. The frustration of phoning taxi companies and waiting for ages for a taxi to arrive will soon be history too.

Despite a few negative incidents, mobile apps such as Uber are generally offering faster, cheaper, safer and more reliable ways of securing a taxi ride. Features such as driver ratings by passengers mean that the old adage “The customer is king,” might just get a breath of fresh air. With time, we should see the Ubers of this world transforming not just the meter taxi industry of South Africa, but also it's notorious commuter minibus taxi (“Kombi”) counterpart.

We can easily predict what the reaction of the lot at the infamous Noord Street taxi rank will be; rowdy and violent.  Years ago, many traditional shop owners in the townships of South Africa when faced with competition from Asian immigrants who set up more competitive shops in the townships, chose to react by burning and looting the competitors’ shops and harming them physically. They however failed to reign in on the Asians who have now dominated the township retail industry. Had the local shop owners opted to find ways of becoming more competitive and emulating the methods of the new market players, many would still be in business today. 

Violence and intimidation are therefore not solutions when confronted by a business threat. Both the meter taxi and “Kombi” operators need to become proactive by studying the competitor’s business model and poising themselves to fit into the emerging scheme of things. Passengers will also have to come on board eventually as the momentum builds up towards techno-based transportation.

One hopes that as the “App Revolution” continues to unravel in many spheres of our lives, we will witness solutions that bring better services in clinics, hospitals, municipal offices, government departments and a host of other places where service delivery to the public is currently overpriced and totally lacking in quality.

Dear Markham Store

Unsolicited Markhams Store Card

Dear Markham Store

When beginning this post, I was tempted to title it: An open letter to the overzealous Markham marketing department. I then thought twice and discarded that heading because of the negative connotations that the term, “Open Letter,” has acquired of late.

In South Africa, a trend has developed within the last year or two, whereby public figures rush to the tabloids to attack their rivals and adversaries through these so-called open letters.  I do not want to go that route and begin a war of words with you on the blogosphere, akin to the recent Ntsiki Mazwai – Fikile Mbalula madness. Such letters are in very bad taste and this letter is certainly not written in bad taste and should not be painted with the same brush as the spate of nasty open letters that are being splashed in the press.

Before I get to the nitty-gritty of this correspondence, may I humbly request that you pass on the contents of this letter to your clothing retail buddies at Truworths Man. If possible, may you please also pass it on to other companies like Direct Axis and Vodacom, who use the same ambush tactics that you use. I will be drafting similar letters to them soon, but it will not hurt for you put them in the picture so that when my letters arrive, a foundation will already have been laid.

Please note, Markham store, that I value your position as a leading player in the retail of men’s clothing in South Africa.  That however does not mean that I am doing cartwheels to celebrate the card that you sent to me in the post. Apparently I can use that card to activate a pre-approved Markhams account. I am flattered that you have done some checking up on me and have concluded that I am credible and worthy of being one of your account holders.   

Do take note as well, that whenever I have bought something from one of your outlets, it has always been for cash. This is not to be taken personally; the truth is that I have never in my life bought clothing on credit and I do not intend to do so anytime soon.  Sending me plastic cards with my name printed on them, is only useful to me in keeping my bank cards snug and firmly fitted in the card compartment of my wallet.

I hope that you understand my unwillingness to fall victim to the avaricious whims that you and hordes of other retailers seem to develop during this festive time of the year. It is sad that when one buys a newspaper during the Christmas season, there are more pages of advertisements to be read than there are of news. I am sure that you have found other people who are more amenable to your marketing gimmicks. 

Be rest assured that you will continue to make a killing without the paltry instalments that you would have fleeced from me, had I taken you up on your offer. I am certainly not awash with funds. That is why in the few instances where I have had to apply for credit, I have declined to have my personal details added to the National Consumer Database. Someone, somewhere obviously ignored my wishes but now might be a good time for my wishes to be respected by you and your other cronies. 

I trust that you will consider the contents of this letter and I look forward to continuing as a cash paying customer in the future.

Regards

Far from gullible consumer 

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