Postal spam protection

Paul McNamara points out that Comcast wants to collect a fee to remove you from its postal junk mail list.

Rule number one of getting off marketing lists: do not jump through any hoops that marketing weenies want you to jump through.

In the case of postal junk mail, there's a Big Hammer you can reach for. You can actually make it a federal crime for the advertiser to spam you again. No fooling.

All you have to do is tell the Postal Service that in your judgment, the mail is "erotically arousing or sexually provocative" by applying for a Prohibitory Order on USPS Form 1500 (PDF). You have to include the original mail piece with the Form 1500 when you turn it in at the post office.

The Post Office can't deny your application because the mail isn't erotic to the postmaster—you just have to say that it's erotic to you. I'm still wondering if I can say that fake "invoices" from domain name registrars are a turn-on for me, but cable TV? That's pr0n city, man. Should be no problem doing a Form 1500 on that.

More on database marketing rudeness, effectiveness, and the future: podcast interview with Doc Searls.