Aha! So now we see the true colours of the United Church of Canada! Imagine sticking people with SPAM snail mail when they sign up for the official church news rag. For shame. You would never find us Fellowship Baptists taking part in such a scam.

 match3... did you read the post right above yours?

The Observer is a separate entity from The United Church of Canada. Part of the reason for that is editorial integrity.

Having said that, I regularly check off the "please do not share my contact information with other companies" on my magazine subscriptions. Because I subscribe to The Observer through my congregation, I haven't had the chance to do that. I hope that The Observer is not selling (or giving away) my contact information without my explicit permission - since I have not been given the opportunity to opt out.

Christ's peace - r

which may  mean they don't have one. 

Ummmm, if you have a listed phone number in a phone book that includes addresses then your address and phone number are public info.  The only private info in that case is that you subscribe to a specific magazine.

But yeah, selling subscription lists is hardly unusual.  Annoying, yes, but not unusual.

And yet that's my true opinion of the magazine. And yes I've read more than a few copies.

From what experience would you be speaking? Myself I was baptized and thus saved in the United Church of Canada. I grew up in it, attending Sunday School, singing in choirs, reading Scripture, getting confirmed, participating in Family Cluster, etc. I have enough experience to speak on the United Church. Do you have on the Fellowship Baptist denomination?

Frog - I was going to give you the benefit of the doubt.  Now you admit to being rude and full of hate.  Yes, I am insulted and hurt by your remarks.   An apology is the only post that of yours that I will be replying to.

Unfortunately the Observer has updated it is website and the link for the subscription privacy policy is not available.

However if you subscribe on line the policy is as stated below

Privacy policy: Your personal information will be kept in strict confidence by The Observer, and will never be sold or shared with other parties or used to solicit you. The data collected here will be used only for administrative purposes by Observer staff:
 

I would suggest you contact the Observer directly and inform them of your concerns.

Address all correspondence to:
478 Huron Street
Toronto, Ontario M5R 2R3
(416) 960-8500
(416) 960-8477 Fax
Click here to contact us by e-mail

Canadian companies are ruled by the Privacy Act, however consumers should be aware that there are exceptions.

I would not trust your first instinct. As I said above, I am a client of this insurance company and have been for fifteen years. We went with them through my wife's medical professional association. Their rates have been excellent and their service exemplary. I would have no cause to believe there is anything inappropriate happening here.

Normally we receive exactly two mailings a year from Johnson/Unifund. That is less than we receive from Co-Operators, with which we also have insurance.

I have no idea why people are so reactive to such solicitations. Welcome to life in the 21st century. If it is of no interest to you, RECYCLE IT!  It is not an invasion of privacy nor a sign of the impending New World Order. It's a mail solicitation. I get more frequent ones and more annoying ones from hospitals that I do from this company.

Oh grow up. I was giving my critique of a popular magazine. Are you saying one must be positive about the periodical in question or one is being rude and hateful. What a laugh.

Well, you are writing rude things about  the United Church Observer, absent any facts.

An internet forum is exactly the right place to talk about this so people know what they may be getting into, especially if they are not given the opportunity to opt out because they subscribe through their congregations.  I was thinking of getting a subscription and will not be now.  I've managed to avoid addressed admail except from Jack Layton and plan on continuing to do so.  The magazine has the United Church's name on it so it is a representative of the Church whether it is run by the church or not.  I guess the United Church now has the reputation that it is willing to sell it's congregants info for a quick buck because of it.

Is that a problem?

Actually, I have emailed the Observer and gotten a reply, which I will not publish here, as that person doesn't know I would do that. I was offered to be removed from the list immediately by emailing my full address, which I did. I would suggest, everybody who has concerns to do so as well.

I find it understandable that the Observer is looking for more finances- it had been way to cheap all along (compared to other comercial magazins). I just feel that considering the amount of articles about environment and Empire in the Observer, they should rather asked the readers to pay more and publish the calculation  how much this would mean per subscription.