Find citations on Bloglines or Technorati. View blog reactions
This new-to-me service, Green Dimes, will drastically reduce the amount of junk [snail] mail your receive by diligently and comprehensively removing your name and address from lists large and small that are bought and sold by and to marketers. They automate much of the process, and when a signature is required send you a self-addressed stamped postcard to sign and send. They have a staff of 20 working full time to discover new lists to remove your from, while as the same time providing tools to ensure you still get catalogs and charity mail you desire.
By getting less mail you save some of the 100,000,000 trees consumed by the direct mail industry. Better yet, Green Dimes will plant trees each month in your name, helping to repair a bit of the damage already done.
Pretty good value proposition for only $4/month. Sign yourself up or send a gift membership to family and friends.
Subscribe to this blog.
Ara Pehlivanian March 13th, 2007 - 10:06 am
Very cool. Lookin’ into it now…
Nate Koechley March 13th, 2007 - 10:21 am
It’s US and Canada only at this point, but their FAQ says they’re looking at other markets too.
Bryce March 13th, 2007 - 10:24 am
Hey Nate — the wife and I have been members since.. like.. December of last year (and our junk mail was reaching epidemic proportions.) We noticed an almost-immediate dropoff in the worst of the junk, and we’ve been steadily feeding new offending catalogs into the system ever since. We’re truly down to just the mail we want to receive now (well. And Bills. Always the bills… sigh.) Click on my name for my Greendimes review.
Nate Koechley March 13th, 2007 - 10:36 am
Hey Bryce, thanks for the comment. Great to hear it really works!
thanks,
nate
Connor March 13th, 2007 - 1:52 pm
Awesome idea! I don’t get too much junk mail myself (thankfully), but I’m going to check it out anywho.
Ramsey Fahel March 14th, 2007 - 3:35 am
Do Not Mail Opt-Out Law would be fair to everyone.
The proposed recent “Do not mail” is an Opt-Out law. Only those not desiring advertising mail need opt-out. Anyone desiring advertising mail can do nothing - and continue to receive it. Why deny those wishing to avoid advertising mail the power to do so?
I do not consider handling unwanted advertising placed against my will on my personal property to be a civic obligation!
The US Supreme Court said in the Rowan case in 1970, ““In today’s [1970] complex society we are inescapably captive audiences for many purposes, but a sufficient measure of individual autonomy must survive to permit every householder to exercise control over unwanted mail. To make the householder the exclusive and final judge of what will cross his threshold undoubtedly has the effect of impeding the flow of ideas, information, and arguments that, ideally, he should receive and consider. Today’s merchandising methods, the plethora of mass mailings subsidized by low postal rates, and the growth of the sale of large mailing lists as an industry in itself have changed the mailman from a carrier of primarily private communications, as he was in a more leisurely day, and have made him an adjunct of the mass mailer who sends unsolicited and often unwanted mail into every home. It places no strain on the doctrine of judicial notice to observe that whether measured by pieces or pounds, Everyman’s mail today is made up overwhelmingly of material he did not seek from persons he does not know. And all too often it is matter he finds offensive.”
Furthermore, the Supreme Court said, “the mailer’s right to communicate is circumscribed only by an affirmative act of the addressee giving notice that he wishes no further mailings from that mailer.
To hold less would tend to license a form of trespass and would make hardly more sense than to say that a radio or television viewer may not twist the dial to cut off an offensive or boring communication and thus bar its entering his home. Nothing in the Constitution compels us to listen to or view any unwanted communication, whatever its merit; we see no basis for according the printed word or pictures a different or more preferred status because they are sent by mail.”
We need a nationwide “Do Not Mail” law to create a one-stop, convenient place for homeowners to give senders the aforementioned affirmative notice that we do not want certain kinds of mail sent to our homes.
http://www.newdream.org/emails/ta19.html
Signed,
Ramsey A Fahel
Jay Nelson October 31st, 2007 - 3:51 pm
There is a little-advertised means of stopping unwanted postal advertisements from reaching your mailbox. It is a law, and it is under the United States Postal Service (USPS)auspices.
This is the only method of stopping unwanted mail at its source where you do not have to pay money other than postage. And, it is the only method found to be nearly 100 percent effective.
Pursuant to federal law (Title 39 USC § 3008), a postal addressee who receives an unsolicited (or solicited) advertisement offering for sale matter that, in the addressee’s sole discretion, is “erotically arousing or sexually provocative,” may, by completing PS Form 1500, obtain a prohibitory order from the USPS directing the mailer of the advertisement to refrain from making further mailings to that addressee. The key phrase is highlighted. For example, if a pizza advertisement strikes you as sexually provocative, you can use the Prohibitory Order process to stop the mailings.
Should the mailer (vendor) continue sending mail after receiving the USPS Prohibitory Order, the USPS turns the matter over to the United States Department of Justice for prosecution. The U.S. Department of Justice is responsible for prosecuting violations of postal related laws.
While the law, the form and the USPS instructions for using the form were originally intended for sexually explicit and provocative mail, the U.S. Supreme Court, in its decision Rowan vs. U.S. Post Office Department, 397 U.S. 728 (1970) ruled that the law under Title 39 USC § 4009 (now 39 USC § 3008) includes all unwanted commercial mail. Thus, PS Form 1500 is no longer used just for sexually explicit or provocative mail - although it still reads as such.
Why the USPS or Congress has not changed the law, the form or the instructions to reflect the Supreme Court decision in the past 37 years is a another conundrum that may never be answered. There are powerful lobbyists both within and without the USPS who do not want any change.
Nevertheless, do not be intimidated or confused by the instructions, the form or the law.
If you have been receiving unwanted, commercial advertisements and you no longer want to receive them, simply click below, print out the form and instructions, fill in the form, sign it, and mail it to the U. S. Postal Service at the address shown below - along with the advertisement.
Shortly (experience indicates about 15 days after USPS receipt of the application), you will receive a letter advising you of the USPS action taken. Do not be confused by the letter’s wording - it all relates to sexual mail that you decided you did not want. Just think of your unwanted advertisements as sexually explicit mail.
Click here to obtain PS Form 1500 and the instructions for completion:
Action Steps:
Open the advertising envelope or wrapper (if there is one), take out all the contents and attach everything to the form. The USPS WILL NOT accept unopened envelopes or wrappers. Put all this into another envelope.
Send your PS Form 1500 and material directly to:
You may need a large envelope for this step.
It is suggested that you do not give the form to your postmaster, as advised in the USPS instructions as that office will only send it to the above address. Also, there have been reports that some Post Offices do not even know about the form or the process. And, do not advise your local mail carrier that you are trying to reduce your unwanted advertisements. Again, experience shows this to be a nonproductive move.
Mark your calendar about 15 days out from the date you mail your form to USPS. If you do not receive a response by the date you expect to receive it, start squawking. You can start here:
If you don’t get prompt service from these folks, report this directly to the Postmaster General at:
Postmaster General
U.S. Postal Service
475 L’Enfant Plaza, SW
Washington, DC 20260-1000
Tel. 202-268-2020 FAX: 202-268-5211
After you receive your copy of the USPS Prohibitory Order, mark your calendar again in accordance with the 30-day period explained in the letter. If, after the 30-day period, you receive mail that appears to have been sent in violation of the prohibitory order, open it and write clearly on the envelope and all its contents a statement that you received it and the date of receipt. For example, “I received this mailpiece on October 5, 2007.” Apply your signature below your statement. Include a photocopy of your prohibitory order, if possible, or a notation of the order number and send the mailpiece to the address noted in paragraph 2., above.
This process has worked numerous times with consistent success. The unwanted mail, in nearly all cases, will stop before you have to exercise step 4.
Important: Be courteous but firm in your letters and phone calls - where necessary. Inappropriate language and rage will not get you off home plate.
Once you have stopped the company from mailing advertisements to your address you may still receive the advertising for awhile. The reason is that mass (bulk) advertising coming through the post office is usually sorted by the company before the post office gets it, using mailing lists the mailer has with your address on it. The mailpiece will usually be addressed to “Resident”, “Occupant”, “Neighbor”, or similar generic name. The mail carrier just picks up the pile that has been presorted by street/area and just starts delivering it house to house without looking at the street address. If this happens, advise your postmaster (or your mail carrier) that your address has been deleted from the company’s mailing list and that you do not want any mail delivered to your address that does not have your name and street address on the envelope or the wrapper.
Additional information:
a. The USPS trashes all unwanted third class mail - now called “Standard Mail (A)” - that you mark “refused” or “return to sender.” Nearly all advertisements are third class/Standard Mail (A). So, this method of reducing waste in our environment is not an option. Keep in mind that USPS is not into environmental causes that reduce the generation of unwanted (junk) mail.
b. Use of the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) preference services to opt out of mailings is somewhat successful but not all advertisers belong to the DMA. Many of these nonmembers are the disreputable companies that you want to eliminate the most. Too, the DMA preference list is a blanket application. The mail customer may not want to stop all advertisements, just certain, select pieces of commercial advertising. The DMA charges $1.00 for this service; this service should be free.
c. The following is from Senator Carl Levin’s (D-MI) website - highlights were added:
“Unsolicited commercial mail can be not only irritating to many, but also extremely wasteful. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), over 44% of the junk mail we receive enters the waste stream before it has ever been opened or read. In fact, according to the EPA, junk mail produces over 4 million tons (that’s TONS) of solid waste every year. Many constituents have written or called me to complain about the amount of junk mail they receive. While eliminating junk mail entirely is not a simple task, there are ways to reduce the flow to your home.”
Note: One of Senator Levin’s tools to reduce junk mail is the method described herein.
Very Free November 20th, 2007 - 5:09 am
Jay Nelson’s info on the USPS Form 1500 might be useful to you, but it hasn’t been to me. You see, I’ve tried it, but it hasn’t worked. At least not against TWC (Time Warner Cable). More than 2 years ago I sent them request to remove my mailing address from their list, and they refused to do so. So I filled out the Form 1500 and sent it to the USPS. I received a prohibitory order against them from the USPS. For about a year the TWC flyers stopped.
Then at the beginning of this year (2007) they started up again., in violation of the prohibitory order. I sent the violation in as instructed with a copy of the proh order. The USPS sent me a second, new prohibitory order request to sign and send back!
The TWC mail continued. I received back the proh order, and I continued to send in the violations to the USPS, with copies of both proh orders.
In Sept I received a letter from the USPS with a notice that TWC was served a ‘complaint’ that they had violated the proh order. In other words, the USPS said to them, “You better not do that again.” I opened the letter and read it and said YES!! The USPS is finally going to do something about these SOBs who continue to violate the law!
Oh, no! I again received another piece of mail from TWC in Oct, in violation of the proh orders and the complaint. It is becoming very clear that TWC is ignoring the USPS, their orders, and their complaints. Perhaps TWC has plenty of corporate lawyers that they can throw at the USPS to stall any legal actions that may be brought against them? I again sent the TWC mail to the USPS along with the copies of the proh orders.
Last night I came home and opened another letter from the USPS, hoping that it would be a notice that they were taking TWC to court. Instead, I received another notice that they had sent TWC ANOTHER complaint! In other words, they said “You better not do that again” a second time!
At this point, it is abundantly clear that the USPS is 100% INeffective at stopping junk mail, and big companies can get away with violating the law with impunity. Judging from the past, I will probably continue to get flyers from these scumbags.,
I have been very successful with stopping flyers from other companies such as Penny Saver and Advo. I got on their website and reqwuested that my address be removed, or called them and asked. I still get an occasional bunch of flyers when the mail carrier goes on vacation and some inept substitute takes his place. But the prohibitory order has been the least effective of all. I beg to differ on Jay Nelson’s assertion that it is “100% effective”.
Jay Nelson March 23rd, 2008 - 3:18 pm
Sorry to hear “Very Free” is having problems. If anyone is having problems with the USPS Pricing and Classification office, he/she must go directly to the Postmaster General. Don’t waste any more time at that level. Remember, the USPS does not want this process to succeed so you must go to the top. Take it to your congressman, if necessary. If USPS thinks for one minute that you are going to stop pushing them, they won’t do anything. I have made it clear to the Pricing and Classification Office that their attempts at foot-dragging will not be tolerated. That is why I have been 100 percent successful.
Chris Ames April 16th, 2008 - 3:34 am
Here’s another good way to save the planet and offset your carbon emissions…
Plant a tree - co2balance can help you ethically minimise your carbon emissions and offset the unavoidable CO2 residue.