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

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AMAZON; Delivery failure — I no longer believe their “promised” delivery dates — Just go away messages

Thursday, May 14, 2026

<<FROM AMZON>>
<< EDITOR ADDED DATE 2026-05May-06>>
Whole Foods Market
Hi Ferdinand,We ran into an issue and had to cancel your order. We understand how frustrating this can be, and we’re truly sorry.Rest assured, we’re issuing a refund for any charges immediately. Please note that it may take 3-5 days for your financial institution to make the funds available in your account.We know you needed your groceries and we’d like to get them to you as fast as possible.
 
Click below to re-order your items at the next available window.

Order Details: 112-6732028-9401016

Delivery Location: NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ
Delivery Window: Tuesday, May 5, 2026, 9:00 PM – 11:00 PM (Doorstep Delivery)
, please visit Help.Take care,Whole Foods Market

# – # – # – # – # 

Well that <synonym for what a vacuum cleaner does>!

I was going to send them a nasty gram but “no-reply@amazon.com”!  Which <synonym for having produced urine output> me off even more.

What do you do “if you need further assistance” when you get a web page FAQ or some AI chatbot? 

<<LONG STRING OF PROFANITY>>

FROM TBBT:

*** begin quote ***

Howard: “Go away.”

Sheldon: “Huh. It can’t be a coincidence. There must be some causal link I’m missing.”

*** end quote ***

Yet, every body seems to want me to spend my time, attention, effort, and dikw ❶ to answer their dumb survey questions.

‘I’M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I’M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE!’ I want you to get up right now, sit up, go to your windows, open them and stick your head out and yell – ‘I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!’ Things have got to change. But first, you’ve gotta get mad!… You’ve got to say, ‘I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!’ Then we’ll figure out what to do about the depression and the inflation and the oil crisis. But first get up out of your chairs, open the window, stick your head out, and yell, and say it: [screaming at the top of his lungs] “I’M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I’M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE!” — the character Howard Beale played by Peter Finch in the movie Network (1976)

Being ignored can trigger deep emotional pain because it threatens your basic need for connection and belonging. BUT, (and there is always a BIG butt), it is just RUDE.

Some cognitive reframing can also be helpful. 

In this case, the corporation has lost my “goodwill” and I no longer believe their “promised” delivery date.

At the very least, AMAZON should have told me WHY they had to cancel the order and deliver it tomoorow at no charge with a sincere apology.

Like that’s ever going to happen.

Argh!

“Please do not reply to this message. This is an automatically generated notification.”

To me, translates to:

Howard: “Go away.”
Sheldon: “Huh. It can’t be a coincidence. There must be some causal link I’m missing.”

I’m sure I didn’t agree to be sent “worthless” messages that clutter my inbox, divert my attention, waste my time, and cost me extra effort.  That not to mention innumerable electrons globally transmitted and stored in countless places. Argh!

Guilty parties — “Do not reply to this message, as replies go to an unmonitored mailbox.” — Optum, AT&T, UHC, EZPASS, … … … … <more coming as I see them, Argh!>

 

# – # – # – # – #

❶ dikw (i.e., data, information, knowledge, wisdom) Data is the elemental atom of the paradigm. Information is data in context. Knowledge is actionable information. Wisdom is knowing the implications of knowledge. 

— 30 —

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ConspiracyTheories: Could the NYPD have the UHC assassination all wrong?

Sunday, December 8, 2024

https://petermcculloughmd.substack.com/p/is-the-nypd-looking-for-the-wrong?publication_id=1119676&post_id=152760792&isFreemail=true&r=3snn7d&triedRedirect=true

Is the NYPD Looking for the Wrong Guy?
Musings about red herrings and a possible doppelgänger in murder of Brian Thompson
John Leake
Dec 07, 2024

*** begin quote ***

When I saw this, it immediately reminded me of the tail of a White-tailed deer. When I was a boy, my dad told me that if you are watching or hunting White-tail bucks, it’s important NOT to focus too much on their white tails when they run away. Your eye gets padlocked on the tail, but then the fleeing deer will tuck it, and you will lose sight of him. Better to focus on the entire animal as he runs away.

I would like to preface the following by stating that I am merely musing. As a true crime writer, I often begin with a hunch and muse about it for a few days. Acquiring more data will either enable me to develop the hunch into a plausible theory or to dismiss it as mere fantasy.

*** and ***

Reviewing the timeline, I wonder how the NYPD went about connecting the young man who checked into the hostel on Nov. 24 with the murder of Brian Thompson on Dec. 4. Can detectives be sure the guy who checked into the hostel is the same guy who shot Thompson?

Did they track the movements of his cell phone—a cell phone he purportedly ditched in an alley a couple of blocks from the murder scene? NOTE: the fact that the killer ditched his cell phone makes me wonder if it is a red herring—that is, I wonder if he wanted the cell phone to be found.

Reviewing the above timeline, I wonder about the critical period between 5:30, when the suspect left the hostel, and 6:44, when the suspect shot Brian Thompson. Again, can the NYPD be sure that the guy who stayed in the hostel on the Upper West Side is the same guy who shot Thompson? If so, how? By Chief Kenny’s own admission, there is a gap in their video surveillance of the suspect between him leaving the hostel at 5:30 and purportedly arriving at the Hilton at 5:41.

*** end quote ***

I think this fellow is onto something.

And, remember that what the “authorities” say publicly may or may not be “true”, what they are really thinking, or all the “facts” they have.  

I give his musing about the phone as a key fact that can’t be overlooked.  Killers maybe crazy but they are rarely stupid.  He made sure that the authorities saw him making calls and dropped it maybe to be found?

All these red herrings and possibly a doppelgänger have all the makings of a good Conspiracy Theory!  Too soon to tell but definitely a possibility,

—30—

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