>
> It's probably best to write to the president using good old pen and paper.
> I have written to my state senators and congressmen in the past year or
> so using paper ... and only one state senator's office replied.
>
> Please read the following news report from the online newsletter
> NewsScan. http://www.newsscan.com . It's an excellent daily
> newletter mostly about technology. I've been reading it for years.
>
> Sajjad
>
> WASHINGTON FLOODED WITH E-MAIL
>
> U.S. lawmakers last year received 80 million e-mail messages from
> constituents and special-interest groups, most of which were routinely
> ignored, according to new study by the Congress Online Project. The number
> of e-mail messages to Congress has more than doubled in two years, says
> the group, with senators receiving as many as 55,000 messages per month.
> And while millions of the messages originate from constituents concerned
> about Medicare reform, tax cuts and other issues, the study attributed the
> e-mail explosion in large part to advocacy groups and corporations that
> increasingly use the Internet to lobby lawmakers day and night,
> overloading congressional computers and staff. "Rather than enhancing
> democracy--as so many hoped--e-mail has heightened tensions and public
> disgruntlement with Congress," says the report. "A growing number of
> citizens are increasingly frustrated by what they perceive to be Congress'
> lack of responsiveness to e-mail. At the same time, Congress is frustrated
> by what it perceives to be e-citizens' lack of understanding of how
> Congress works." The study urges grassroots lobbyists to adopt a "code of
> conduct" to curb mass e-mailings to lawmakers and also suggests the
> federal government to provide lawmakers with additional resources so they
> can buy new software and hire staff to answer electronic messages.
> According to the study, it could cost each office $50,000 or more for
> hardware and software. (Reuters/CNet 18 Mar 2001)
>
> http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-5173083.html?tag=lh
>
>
>
>
>
>
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