Telemarketing gone wrong

On USAtoday we see that Government is just as powerless as we are when it comes to Telemarketers

You're not the only one. The federal government has decided to put its own secret Homeland Security hotline to the nation's 50 governors on the federal Do Not Call Registry, according to Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner.

The move came after a complaint Thursday by Minner, who said that when her line rings, chances are it's not an emergency but an unwanted intrusion. "Every time that phone rings, it's telemarketers," she said in Washington.

Minner keeps the secret homeland defense hotline in her office. Governors have them for instant communication with Washington in case of a major emergency. Minner says that when her line rings, it's someone offering a time-share condominium or the latest deal on long-distance phone service.

"I wonder about the security of that line," Minner said.

She said other governors have reported similar interruptions, such as the caller who chirps, "Hello! Are you satisfied with your long-distance service provider?"

Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle reported getting a similar call in 2003. The caller jangled nerves and the phone just as U.S. troops were launching ground combat in Iraq.