Black E-mailed

Edit: New images added and some editing 8-16-2011

There are some things you ought to know. This old cowboy (well, cowboy at heart) is a caring sort. Sometimes I'm dreadful at showing it, and I get thoughtless or maybe even selfish at times. But I try to be compassionate.
Some of us take exception to being blackmailed with e-mail "forward this if you care" messages, and also the "share this and you'll be blessed" stuff. Do not want!
Pixabay.com / Cornfreak
Lately, I've been getting blackmailed by e-mail (hence the title of this piece). No, the sender doesn't intend any harm. These are the letters that say, "I've been thinking of you. You're one of my many friends and I'm sending this to show I care", etc. (It often has a cute poem and pictures of teddy bears or something.) The blackmail part is at the end: "Send this to everyone you know and care about, especially the one who sent this to you. If you don't send this on, then you are evil, lonely, heartless, and will burn in Hell."

The same threat comes in some of those useless petition letters that have good intentions, but demean your character if you don't participate by forwarding it. This kind of nonsense is also on social media.
I have news for you: I don't send those back to the sender. Why? Because it's a lousy test of love and loyalty, and I don't cotton to being tested like that. Worse, if you're measuring how much you're cared about by how many e-mails you get back, I think there's something wrong in your cabeza. If I like the message I received, I'll trim it up by taking out the "FW: FW: FW: MESSAGE ATTACHED" clutter and the hundred other names on the recipients list, and I'll also take out the threat (or condition) at the end. Sometimes I'll leave on a suggestion that people "pass this on", though.

Another "threat" is the promise that, if I send this to a certain number of people, I'll receive blessings or a miracle. Uh, yeah, sure. Ain't buying that, neither. Copy, edit, and paste time, if I like it.
But if you send me something that requires sending back, don't set yourself up for disappointment if I don't comply and clutter up bandwidth. And don't think I don't care because of my lack of response.

 You may want to save the URL for this message and send it to people who send you those black e-mail messages. Just a thought.
  

Comments

Anonymous said…
Beautifully put...I never thought to take out the pass this on or else parts...Keep up the good work Bob.
11/15/2007 05:51:00 PM
Anonymous said…
Hey 005 i see this was heralded by that email about MADD that i sent ye, sorry to hit you off so hard with that, i kinda liked the Poem; Rhyme, whatevayecallit but i also dont like the pass this on or else part, just thought i'd let yet know!

BTW: Missin ye on Monday here!! =D

Nutt
11/19/2007 01:32:00 PM
Bob Sorensen said…
Actually, I'd been hit with a number of those emotional blackmail things. Some of them were much stronger. And, like I wrote, many had the "you're not my friend if you don't send this back" lines. So, I trim them.
11/19/2007 01:38:00 PM
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