As a recipient of Rep. Chris Cannon's mass chain letter e-mail the other day, I read Lee Davidson's recent article on this topic with interest. I am glad others think Cannon stepped beneath even himself on this one.
I called his office to register my complaint to having been sent such spam and found something interesting. Although on his patriotlist.com Web site Cannon claims he respects privacy, I was informed that all it takes to be made a member of his pseudopyramid-chain-letter e-mail list (or scheme) is for someone to add your name and e-mail address, even without your consent.
As an avowed liberal, I have no idea how I got on the list. I lived in Provo until last August when I moved to Pennsylvania. I got on the list one of two ways: a "friend" put me on the list, or it was because I called Cannon's office to get some clarification on some statements he had made regarding the marriage tax penalty bill. I gave them several ways to contact me (including my e-mail address).
Interestingly even after two calls I never heard back from them. But I did end up on his stupid mailing list.
Thanks again for your article. I had hoped that the Deseret News would see through this facade of mass mailing for the sorry chain-letter that it is. Hopefully I will not be in for bad luck, having not forwarded it to 10 friends.
Randy Bennett
Huntingdon, Pa.