“Your call is being recorded for quality assurance and training purposes.”
Great so then NO ONE should have a problem if I record the same calls for blog fodder!
Argh!
— 30 —
RANT: Since business now record all calls, so will I!
Thursday, July 30, 2026
Leave a Comment » | 
Ranting | Tagged: X-ray eyes | 
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Posted by reinkefj
RANT: MORE Bank of America stupidity
Wednesday, July 29, 2026Sure I’m going to type in 24 random characters, are you ^&$$%#^# kidding me!
*** begin quote ***
*** end quote ***
Bank of America has a shit show” running in “Human Resources”.
BOA HR RETIREE has cancelled by health coverage presumably because I moved to FL from NJ. Bear in mind I’ve moved from NJ 2 VA 2 NJ 2 NH 2 NJ, and never had a problem. One befuddled soul on a 3 hour conference call including 2 BOA HR, 2 UHC specialists, and me that my zip code 34787 wasn’t in the USA. P.S., I share the zip code with Disney Orlando. Argh!
And, BOA has sent “voluntary disenrollment” to UHC and CVS. Argh! FML!
— 30 —
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Posted by reinkefj
RANT: Member service advocates — > “go away”
Monday, July 27, 2026*** begin quote ***
Contact us
Help with your plan
Member service advocates are ready to answer your questions and provide helpful information.
Call 1-866-460-8856 to connect with a member service advocate.
TTY users, call 711
8 a.m. – 8 p.m.localtime: Monday – Friday
*** end quote ***
And what happens when <synonym for excrement> happens outside of those times?
On Friday, I spent THREE HOURS on a joint call with TWO people from UHS (Brenda was fantastic) and at least three different people at BOA.
If it wasn’t serious, (i.e., no medical insurance on 7/31), then it would have been a funny CATCH-22. At least twice, the BOA person said “not my department, call 1-800-EAT-SHIT” which when called routed right back to her. Argh!
Of course, there was no “supervisors” or “managers” available during this entire THREE hour call. (Hard to believe!)
Another interesting facet: my zip code 34787 is not recognized. I’m told that I am “not in the United States”. (The Governor of Florida might disagree!)
(NOTE: Many address selections on website put 34787 in OAKLAND; not WINTER GARDEN. Which I wouldn’t mind, if they would at least recognize that their lookup table might be wrong or incomplete. Of course, there is NEVER a way to contact a REAL human to get it fixed.)
So here I am on a Saturday night, in absolute frustration, with nothing to do but share with any readers, if I have any, my complete and utter disgust of technology, AI, and “Use Cases”.
“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” — attributed to Einstein
— 30 —
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: BOA, Customer Service, UHC | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
RANT: “Hanoi Jane” deserves her own special ‘ring” in Hell
Friday, July 3, 2026https://x.com/Ikennect/status/2059026118036881822?s=20
<<FROM TWITTER>>
<< EDITOR ADDED DATE 2026-05-26>>
I am Ken
@Ikennect
*** begin quote ***
Barbara Walters writes:
Unfortunately, many have forgotten and still countless others have never known how Ms. Fonda betrayed not only the idea of our country, but specific men who served and sacrificed during the Vietnam War.
The first part of this is from an F-4E pilot. The pilot’s name is Jerry Driscoll, a River Rat. In 1968, the former Commandant of the USAF Survival School was a POW in Ho LoPrison, the “Hanoi Hilton.”
Dragged from a stinking cesspit of a cell, cleaned, fed, and dressed in clean PJ’s, he was ordered to describe for a visiting American “peace activist” the “lenient and humane treatment” he’d received.
He spat at Ms. Fonda, was clubbed, and was dragged away. During the subsequent beating, he fell forward onto the camp commandant ‘s feet, which sent that officer berserk.
In 1978, the Air Force Colonel still suffered from double vision (which permanently ended his flying career) from the Commandant’s frenzied application of a wooden baton.
From 1963-65, Col. Larry Carrigan was in the 47FW/DO (F-4E’s). He spent 6 years in the “Hanoi Hilton”. . . The first three of which his family only knew he was “missing in action.” His wife lived on faith that he was still alive. His group, too, got the cleaned-up, fed and clothed routine in preparation for a “peace delegation” visit.
They, however, had time and devised a plan to get word to the world that they were alive and still survived.
Each man secreted a tiny piece of paper, with his Social Security Number on it, in the palm of his hand.
When paraded before Ms. Fonda and a cameraman, she walked the line, shaking each man’s hand and asking little encouraging snippets like: “Aren’t you sorry you bombed babies?” and “Are you grateful for the humane treatment from your benevolent captors?” Believing this HAD to be an act, they each palmed her their sliver of paper.
She took them all without missing a beat. . . At the end of the line and once the camera stopped rolling, to the shocked disbelief of the POWs, she turned to the officer in charge and handed him all the little pieces of paper…
Three men died from the subsequent beatings. Colonel Carrigan was almost number four but he survived, which is the only reason we know of her actions that day.
I was a civilian economic development adviser in Vietnam, and was captured by the North Vietnamese communists in South Vietnam in 1968, and held prisoner for over 5 years.
I spent 27 months in solitary confinement; one year in a cage in Cambodia; and one year in a ‘black box’ in Hanoi. My North Vietnamese captors deliberately poisoned and murdered a female missionary, a nurse in a leprosarium in Banme Thuot, South Vietnam, whom I buried in the jungle near the Cambodian border. At one time, I weighed only about 90 lbs. (My normal weight is 170 lbs.)
We were Jane Fonda’s “war criminals.”
When Jane Fonda was in Hanoi, I was asked by the camp communist political officer if I would be willing to meet with her. I said yes, for I wanted to tell her about the real treatment we POWs received. . . and how different it was from the treatment purported by the North Vietnamese, and parroted by her as “humane and lenient.”
Because of this, I spent three days on a rocky floor on my knees, with my arms outstretched with a large steel weight placed on my hands, and beaten with a bamboo cane.
I had the opportunity to meet with Jane Fonda soon after I was released. I asked her if she would be willing to debate me on TV. She never did answer me.
These first-hand experiences do not exemplify someone who should be honored as part of “100 Years of Great Women.” Lest we forget. . . “100 Years of Great Women” should never include a traitor whose hands are covered with the blood of so many patriots.
There are few things I have strong visceral reactions to, but Hanoi Jane’s participation in blatant treason, is one of them.
Please take the time to forward to as many people as you possibly can. It will eventually end up on her computer, and she needs to know that we will never forget
*** end quote ***
I’ve ranted about her before. This just reminds me of her treachery.
Why she was never prosecuted?
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: @Ikennect, Barbara Walters, Cambodia, Col. Larry Carrigan, Hanoi Hilton, Jane Fonda, North Vietnamese communists, South Vietnam | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
RANT: Online appointment schedules a slot that they don’t have.
Sunday, June 14, 2026Recently scheduled an oil change for my Chevy Truck.
Had some problem with the password entry.
(No, I don’t forget them. I use a password manger and Apple Passwords also saves them!)
Password reset TWICE?
Argh!
So I’m suitable annoyed but I get it entered. (Even had to put in the VIN. I bought it there. Their system should know it. Probably Claude AI (I call it Claudia), CHATGPT, Google, every data broker , and hacker all know it. Argh!
SO it’s booked.
TWO DAYS later, I get a call from a nice lady at the dealer saying the online system schedule me for a time that they don’t have available. And we rescheduled it a week later.
So, their online system schedules an appointment slot that they don’t have.
How dumb is that! Sigh! Yeah, AI and computers will rule the world. Not as long as Murphy’s Law is operable.
So how much of my TAE (ie., time, attention, effort, and dikw), my compute, as well as the dealer’s computing, and their receptionist’t TAE did this all cost?
I guess I should have done it the old fashioned way and just called in at the beginning.
So that’s what I’ll do from know on.
So the dealer’s computer “front door” is just a waste of their resources!
So much for AI wiping out humans’ jobs!
Sigh! Argh! Laugh!
— 30 —
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: Chevy | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
RANT: Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has opened a public comment period — go away!
Sunday, June 7, 2026Disney Asks The FCC To Exempt The View From Rules That News Organizations Must Follow
By Luke Bouma on May 24, 2026
*** begin quote ***
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has opened a public comment period on a petition filed by Disney-owned ABC stations requesting that the daytime talk show The View be officially recognized as a “bona fide news interview program,” exempting it from federal equal opportunity requirements for political candidates.
In a petition dated May 7, 2026, KTRK-TV, an ABC-owned station in Houston, Texas, along with parent company American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. (ABC), asked the FCC to declare that The View qualifies for the statutory exemption under Section 315 of the Communications Act. The show, co-hosted by figures including Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, Alyssa Farah Griffin, and Ana Navarro, has long operated under a 2002 FCC determination granting it this status.
Disney has filed a petition with the FCC asking the agency to declare that The View is exempt from the statutory equal opportunities requirements that would otherwise apply to broadcast shows.
The equal opportunities rule requires broadcast stations to provide comparable airtime to legally qualified candidates for public office if one candidate appears on their facilities. Exemptions exist for certain categories, including bona fide newscasts, news interviews, news documentaries, and on-the-spot coverage of news events. Proponents of the exemption argue it allows journalistic discretion in selecting guests based on newsworthiness rather than strict parity.
*** end quote ***
The Gooferment Federal Communications Commission should NOT be in the business of regulating speech. Just as Carr’s comments about CBS had a chilling effect on Steven Colbert’s future, it should steer clear of politics.
You might be to ignore the FCC in the technical regulation of the broadcast spectrum, BUT, (and there is always a BIG butt), I assert that the “invisible hand of the free market” would do it better, faster, and cheaper.
When it comes anywhere close to the First Amendment, then it should be shut down.
Let “We, The Sheeple” decide the economic fate of The View, news coverage, or anything else.
The “public ownership of the air ways” is slender excuse for socialism!
Argh!
— 30 —
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: @BrendanCarrFCC, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Ana Navarro, Brendan Carr, cordcuttersnews.com, Disney, FCC, Joy Behar, Luke Bouma, News Organizations, Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin, Whoopi Goldberg | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
RANT: Trump’s face on $250 bill may be a “Bridge Too Far”?
Wednesday, June 3, 2026Scott Bessent says it’s ‘fitting’ to put Trump’s face on $250 bill: ‘Great celebratory note’
Scott Bessent says it’s ‘fitting’ to put Trump’s face on $250 bill: ‘Great celebratory note’
By Ryan King
Published May 31, 2026, 2:58 p.m. ET
*** begin quote ***
WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent cheered on plans to imprint President Trump’s face on a $250 greenback, contending that his achievements make him worthy of such an honor.
Bessent argued that it was necessary for his department to craft a $250 bill with Trump’s face and signature on it so that the Treasury can be ready if pending legislation to that effect clears Congress.
“I think it’s fitting. President Trump is the president during our 250th anniversary,” Bessent told Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.”
*** end quote ***
I suspect that this will push the crazies in BOTH parties to be both overjoyed and outraged. Maybe some, both at the same time. This may finally convince some people that the 25th Amendment need to be re-engineered. Maybe an age cap of say 70 on elective Federal Gooferment office?
In Tom Woods Show episode #2764 with Doug Casey ❶, they make a strong case that: (1) politics attracts people who want to control other people; and (2) that DJT47 has all the characteristics of the worst criminal psychos.
While I am not sure about how bad or how good DJT47 is or is not, I am firmly in favor of an age cap for public office. And, maybe even a ban on familial linkages to prevent “ownership” of a Senate or House seat as well as families ties to Presidents.
Crazy (Cynical) Old Ferd
❶ Doug Casey: America Is Headed for Civil War | Tom Woods Show #2764
https://youtu.be/V70-DRncsTE?si=nm9R0tysfzThDei8
— 30 —
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: $250 bill, @ThomasEWoods, DJT47, Doug Casey, nypost.com, Ryan King, Scott Bessent, Tom Woods Show episode #2764 | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
RANT: To “turn the page” and see the next outrage
Tuesday, April 7, 2026FROM FACEBOOK
*** begin quote ***
FOX 13 News
Dozens of people who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol are suing the federal government, accusing responding officers of using excessive force.
The class-action lawsuit, filed in federal court in Florida, alleges U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department “indiscriminately” fired chemical munitions, pepper spray and other projectiles into a crowd gathered on the Capitol’s west side.
*** end quote ***
Generated some heat.
I responded:
*** begin quote ***
Everyone can sue about anything. It’s a real shame that everyone is trying to “win the lottery”.
I guess we will find out if it has merit. The lady who was shot and killed by the Capitol Police officer has a case. But others?
Remember that this was all a mess and we never found out all the facts (i.e., who opened the doors; why was there no extra security; the fake bombs at the DNC and RNC). Never mind the various Conspiracy Theories about why there was a riot to stop the objections to contested ballots, Georgia voter fraud, midnight mail in ballot dumps in the mid-west, etc. etc. etc.
Like most abuses, “We, The Sheeple” have no choice but to “turn the page” and see the next outrage. The undeclared war with Iran, the uninvestigated Epstein débâcle, the various financial frauds in Minnesota / California / New Jersey, unpaid TSA agents, as well as the perennial favorite issues — national debt, the unfunded liabilities, the deficit that Congress ignores, and “birthright citizenship”.
No wonder that people just have to move along and just get along with life. But at some point in time, like Bill Mahr says: “We need more people speaking out. This country is not overrun with rebels and free thinkers. It’s overrun with sheep and conformists.”
“If voting made any difference they wouldn’t let us do it.” — Emma Goldman ― often incorrectly attributed to American humorist Mark Twain ― but very very true imho!
TL;DR summary: There are so many “outrages” that ordinary people don’t have the attention span, time, energy, or will to focus on them all.
*** end quote ***
“Either way, I don’t give a damn what you think you are entitled to.” Colonel Jessep in A Few Good Men played by Jack Nicholson
Just turn the page in the Book of History and move on to the next disaster.
Dona Nobis Pacem
— 30 —
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: attention span, class-action lawsuit, Jan. 6 | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
RANT: Immigrant Households Take Government Welfare
Thursday, April 2, 2026Nearly Half of Immigrant Households Take Government Welfare, Census Data Shows
by Ben Kew Mar. 22, 2026 7:45 am
*** begin quote ***
Nearly half of households headed by immigrants in the United States receive welfare, according to a detailed analysis of Census Bureau data by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS).
*** end quote ***
“Birthright Citizenship” generates welfare benefits.
Back before the USA got “woke”, no one got “welfare”.
Seems like we need to end being a “nation of welfare farmers”. Some estimates are that this is the FOURTH GENERATION of this life style.
“I feel that it is terrible, that you see destruction all around you, and that you are moving toward disaster until and unless all of those welfare state conceptions have been reversed and rejected.— Rand
I’m not heartless. People have made decisions based on the current environment. So let’s reduce ALL welfare by 5% each year for 20 years. That’s plenty of time for EVERYONE to adapt.
Sorry if you thought you won some “money for life” lottery scratch-off but Gooferment “promises” are all lies. The politicians and bureaucrats are immoral, ineffective, and inefficient. As well as untrustworthy. Remember that when you vote next time.
Argh!
— 30 —
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: Ben Kew, thegatewaypundit.com | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
RANT: Three US service members killed
Monday, March 2, 2026Three US service members killed, 5 seriously wounded in Operation Epic Fury
By Patrick Reilly
Published March 1, 2026, 10:12 a.m. ET
*** begin quote ***
It’s not clear where the service members were killed.
Iran has attacked US bases across the Middle East in response to the strikes that wiped out much of the Iranian leadership — including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
*** end quote ***
I’m waiting for details.
I hope someone will supply a really <synonym for the act of procreation in real time> good reason why three souls had to die.
And, it better not be because Israel needs “leadership change” in Iran.
I’ve yet to see a bad guy “replaced” with a better guy.
Better the devil you know than the one you don’t.
The Israel lobby seems to dictate to the USA. That has to stop!
— 30 —
Leave a Comment » | Ranting | Tagged: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei., Iran, Israel lobby, nypost, Operation Epic Fury, Patrick Reilly | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj
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