IS THIS AS DUMB AS IT SOUNDS?

New Service Would Charge E-Mail Senders
AOL and Yahoo! are going to introduce a new service for e-mail senders that would allow the senders' e-mails to bypass their spam filters for a fee of 1/4 to 1 cent each. The idea is that legitimate senders will no longer have to worry about their stuff getting caught, but spammers will not pay for their huge mailings. The senders must pledge to send only to people who have opted to receive their messages.

My first question is, why are the spam filters so bad that they screen out legitimate e-mails? So AOL and Yahoo! can charge senders to get around them? This whole thing smells like a protection racket! If I were a legitimate sender whose messages weren't getting through I'd raise the roof.

Next question: has anyone ever heard of an e-mail recipient complaining that he or she is not receiving these e-mails? I'm sure the e-mails that are getting caught are not individualized ones. They are mass advertisements. The senders may be more legitimate than the spammers, but the e-mails are still just mailbox clutter.

The whole thing is academic to me. I wrote (and continue to write) my own spam filter, and no one can bribe me to let their spam bypass it.

Well, I suppose if someone offered me $10 each I could be bought.