My wife and I have a landline. It’s primary use appears to be as a conduit to allow telemarketers and robocallers to reach us. However, I am of a generation for whom a ringing landline once actually meant there was a human being trying to reach someone, so like Pavlov’s dog I react to a ringing phone. I drop whatever I’m doing and answer it, even though I know deep down that after I say a cheery hello I will hear dead air space for quite a while, until the tape starts playing or an Indian fellow will start telling me that he is calling to help me with a problem with my Windows computer.
Lately, Hillary’s disembodied voice has been calling on an at least daily basis. I say at least daily, because who knows how often she calls while I’m at work. What’s weird is that it’s always the same recording, and it seems like it starts mid-message. When it’s not Hillary, it’s one of her computer generated minions. Whenever I get these calls I wonder about my fellow Americans. My reaction to robocalls, no matter the source, is to resent the fact that a machine has interrupted some vital activity, such as writing on this blog. But one must assume that, on balance, they work, and there are people out there who actually listen to what Hillary or the other robots have to say. That is to say, Hillary gains more money or votes by these calls than she loses. That is a truly depressing thing to believe about my fellow Americans. But then, what’s even more depressing is that there are probably even more people who eagerly listen to recorded messages from the Donald.
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