As I was sitting in my living room staring at my Christmas tree the other day, for some reason, my mind turned to a possible way for householders who don't want JW's to call on them to get them to stop once and for all. I'm not sure whether it would work or not.
Now, we know that putting oneself on the "Do Not Call" list doesn't work, because they will continue to call at least once a year to determine whether the householder's "circumstances have changed".
Then I thought about a system some people have developed to stop telemarketer calls. It goes like this: You get a mailing address from the telemarketer who calls you. You then send a certified letter to that address demanding that no further calls be made to your number. You state that any future calls received will be billed to the company at the rate of, say $500 per call (or whatever amount you want, but keep it under your local limit for small claims court). You further state in your letter that any calls made to your number by the company's representatives after the date of their receipt of the letter (the date they sign the certified mail receipt) will be taken as acceptance of the terms in the letter. Add a statement saying something to the effect that you are prepared to resort to legal means, if necessary, to enforce the terms set forth in the letter.
Now, heres the kicker: I have read of at least a few cases where people have used the above system, and, when further calls were received, have sued successfully for the fee specified.
I wonder whether a system like this might work with regard to calls by JW's? A person might send a letter to their local Kingdom Hall (perhaps with a cc to the WTS) stating that they no longer wish to be called upon by Jehovah's Witnesses. Similarly to the above, they would cite a large fee for any future calls at their home, and include a statement that any visits made after the date of the letter's receipt would be taken as agreement to the terms. To be completely fair, they might wish to include a specific statement to the effect that inquiries about any future change in circumstances should be made by mail only, as any in-person calls by Jehovah's Witnesses will be billed for.
Of course, follow-through would be important. If you were to send such a letter, it would be important, if the JW's did call again in the future, that you actually sent them a bill for the visit, and followed through with legal action against the congregation if they did not pay. If the case were won, it would set an important precedent. It would then be possible, at least within the local community, to publicize the method, allowing as many people to use it as possible. Possibly, even standardized forms and letters could be created. There would be at least the potential to stop the work almost entirely in that area. If nothing else, field service would become a total hassle, since the publishers would have to be extremely careful wherever they went not to call on anyone who had sent a letter.
Im really not sure how well this would work, from a legal standpoint. As I said, I have heard of cases where systems like this have worked against telemarketers. With JW's, I dont know. The courts might view it differently because of the religious issues involved. Also, different jurisdictions might issue different rulings on the matter. Its also likely that the WTS would ship in their legal eagles to make sure things went their way. But if it worked, the effect on the recruiting work of JW's could be profound.
What do you think?
Edited by - NeonMadman on 26 December 2002 11:11:55