Why do I have to “Opt out” when I didn’t “Opt In”?

I think I have some problems with the way things work against the consumer around here. For instance; shouldn’t I have to “opt-in” to something before being given the option to “opt-out”. Isn’t that somehow back-wards? Take the “opt-out” phone list for example; if you don’t want companies, you have no interest in, calling you, then you have to sign up for the governments Do-Not-Call list at http://www.donotcall.gov/. That’s good for two years. I guess every sleazy business has the right to annoy us because we may not know that we need their products/services. 

If you don’t want to receive all those “unsolicited” credit card offers in the mail, then you have to go to http://www.optoutprescreen.com/ and “opt-out”. Now if they are “unsolicited”, meaning I didn’t ask for them, then why do I have to tell somebody I don’t want them?

Now, do you know anybody who actually likes junk mail?  Then why do they have a site at https://www.dmachoice.org/dma/member/regist.action, to “opt-out” of receiving piles of junk mail everyday?

Isn’t there a green movement to save the trees? A good way to do it would be to let everyone know, via TV commercials, that if they want to receive junk mail, credit card offers or untimely calls from weird businesses, then they should call a number and “opt-in”.

Another thing I have a problem with is “unsolicited” emails also referred to as “spam”. Why do I receive email everyday which give me an opportunity to “unsubscribe” to something I never “subscribed” to in the first place. There is a site at www.ftc.gov where you can report spam. You used to be able to send them the emails you considered “spam” and then they would investigate. The last time I did, I received an email telling me that their server had detected that spam had been sent from my account. Not wanting the cops at my door I gave up and now just delete the offending email.

If you are like me, you probably think that some things are working against us as consumers. Maybe the government should take another look at who they are supposed to be protecting when writing consumer protection laws.