Thanks, I’ve signed the petition.
BTW, I don’t think it will help all that much, since a lot of unwanted calls come from overseas call centres, and they don’t seem to be able to stop that.
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I don’t consider the Salvos to be “good people”. And how am I to know they are who they say they are?
I don’t want ANYONE knocking on my door begging , selling, or touting!
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Like any religious institution, some parts are good, some are bad.
I suggest that you search the media releases at http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/media-centre/media-releases for ‘Salvation Army’. It may change your view of just how good the organization as a whole is. This is not to say that there aren’t some excellent people within the organization.
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I agree, this is not 20 characters, so I HEARTILY agree.
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Maybe another forum would be more suited to some of the posts above regarding the Salvation Army and the LGBT . I did not sign on to this forum to drag the tenet of someones belief system through the dirt . I thought this was a consumer forum . As for the LGBT , which a link in a post refers to , they will have their own time , own place , own history at a time that has not yet come . Their will be stories , songs , poems and multi media coverage of their struggle . But not now and certainly not in the Choice Consumer forum . There are other forums available online to discuss those issues .
In case you are wondering , no , I’m not a member of the Salvation Army .
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The questions of morality and the emotional responses are so intrinsic to this discussion - feelings of pressure, guilt, questions about the representatives that you end up dealing with, legalities and so on are all factors to consider. With that said, we don’t want this topic to go too far off track about specific charities either (we can start a new topic thread for this if needed).
We know this is a sensitive discussion area, and we appreciate all the comments so far. Huge thanks to everyone who has taken the time to share their experience.
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Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha, like it, refreshing, though not quite original. A bit of humour can be good for us, well that’s what the ex-sperts say. Ex been an unknown quantity and a spert been a drip under pressure, also not quite original. Have a good day. 
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Heh, I have no signs (just saw it online and thought it funny/apt). Luckily I don’t need signs at the moment as we live in a dingy 120yr old miners cottage at the edge of a village. Funnily enough, no-one bothers us. 
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We are lucky enough to have a front door with security screen where we can see out but “they” can’t see in. Doorbell rings we generally look out & have a 2 point checklist. If we don’t recognise them & don’t like the look of them we … ignore them 
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@margaret.rouse I agree totally! Overseas callers whether for charities or scammers are a problem locally at present. As for door-knockers, electricity/gas/phone company representatives rival charities locally. I am concerned about the vulnerable people in our community, particularly for those with memory loss or those who have less understanding of what they’re signing up for.
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Well said vax2000, well said.
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Yes, what @kathryng76 said.
My sister-in-law brought her mother home and cared for her during the early and middle stages of dementia. She popped out to the shops for a quick visit one day and came home to find a stranger in the house chatting to her mother, a door knocker that her mother had already given money to. Her mother thought she must know (but just couldn’t remember) this person, and so she gave them quite a lot of money when they asked and insisted they come in for a cuppa.
My sister-in-law put a ‘Do Not Knock’ sign on the front door after that, and thankfully it was respected and there were no further incidents, and of course there were conversations about whether they could really leave her alone after that. But you can imagine, they were really wondering how they were going to manage this, with aged care agency staff visiting regularly and my sister-in-law working part time.
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We had a “do not knock” sign on the door - I had to take it down because I found that couriers and parcel deliverers would leave a card in the letterbox claiming that I was not home when they tried to deliver. I buy quite a bit of stuff on line and the constant trips to the post office were annoying. Now that the “do not knock” sign is gone I no longer have the problem. Luckily we don’t get a lot of cold callers at the door (or on the phone) - when we do I tell them I have already spent my charity budget for the month/year.
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I am particularly annoyed at charities or organisations once they have obtained you contact details persist in contacting you after you have donated seeking additional donations.
I have arranged a number of memorial donations to a number of charities on memorial websites for family or friends or made a cash donation at the funeral, and once the charity has access to my contact details have persisted on multiple occasions seeking further support. Especially around Christmas receiving cards and mailing labels in exchange for further contributions.
Now I donate cash only, or bank cheque and send anonymously. I can appreciate the strain some of the charities and ‘not for profit’ agencies have in funding their good works, but they would be best served in not putting off those who are already supporting them.
I often think an annual contribution to a philanthropic foundation to support your choice of “not for profit” agencies or preferred causes might be a better way to approach community fund raising. It might reduce the overall cost of administrative overheads associated with fund raising, ensure the bona fides of the agencies and their proposals given there is such an overlap of “not for profit” causes. How many donate without the knowledge of how the donation will be used? Would this make a difference on which “not for profit” received your support?
In the past I have had the responsibility of making a number of contributions to ‘not for profit’ agencies on behalf of my employer. Prior to approving the payments, I was required to review the spending of the previous year’s grants. It soon became apparent in some circumstances, the funding was not being used as represented in their submission.
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Our Video Production Manager @DarrinBaker has left a rant on Youtube about junk mail that followers of this thread might enjoy.
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My phone numbers are all on the Do Not Call Register (DNCR). I have stickers on either side of my letterbox. And still, people continue to seek to invade my home and waste my time!
Yes, charities - along with politicians (what a surprise!) - are legally exempted from the rules of polite social intercourse.
I have taken to explaining to callers that while they might be exempt from the law, perhaps they should consider why people choose to be on the DNCR. My explanation has included the damage they are doing their cause by ignoring the DNCR, and an instruction that my name be taken off their ‘lists’. They always say they will remove me from future calls.
I signed but was amused by the Choice petition against nuisance calls. People are saying that they are sick of nuisance calls, and the box is still automatically ticked that says “Send me updates on this issue and others from CHOICE”. That is, I am signing a petition saying ‘stop bothering me’ and the petition option defaults to ‘we will bother you about this and future petitions regarding botherment’. While this is presumably a feature of the petition platform, it does seem somewhat incongruous.
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I love this idea and I will give it a go.
I have found the perfect way to get rid of religious callers like the Jehovah’s Witness and Mormons. As I am gay I have hung a rainbow flag and bunting across my veerandah in full view of the street. I never receive their visits any more.
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My sign says:
Under the law we can, and we do, say no to entry to our property for unsolicited marketeering, promotion, vending, trading or selling. You have come too far onto our property. Leave quietly and immediately, or have the details of yourself and your employer taken.
I especially included the term “promotion” because of the door knockers trying to promote a charity or a religion or a …
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Unfortunately you cannot bar survey people and political marketeers - by law.
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