Did you know it is a honor to receive a bill?

Received from an actual bill yesterday, my comments in italics:

"Reputation...it takes years to build up a good one, but a few careless deeds to destroy it."This must have come from a fortune cookie.  "It is an honor to receive a bill, for a bill is an indication that someone has faith in your honesty."  Seriously...it is an HONOR to receive a bill...and it has nothing to do with honesty, it has to do with goods and services rendered.  "Credit is the most priceless thing you have." Screw the children. "Money can be had by various means, but credit only comes from years of honesty and prompt meeting of bills when they are due."  So issuing credit is about honesty...not the drive to ensnare additional customers into accumulating debt that is difficult to repay.  And those of us with any debt are dishonest if we don't pay a bill on time...not just broke.

This takes some serious cahones...the hubs and I had quite a laugh reading this one.  My favorite is "it is an honor to receive a bill."  Gosh, I get to feel honored every day I get my mail.  Held in high esteem every time I pay these people most of what I earn.  Treasured by the creditors for my pristine character--or rejected because I'm a deceitful good-for-nothing--as if one's checking account balance is the sole measure of their worth.  The truly sad part is that they believe this type of letter will prompt me to send them a check.  I will and do pay my bills...but there are occasions--like when a mattress flies off the back of an evil white van and kills your car, that you are unable to make all commitments on time.  This has nothing to do with your character.  I shall send the following letter with my check:

Dear XXX,

Reputation does take years to build...ask the people who know me.  You don't know me or what I contribute to my family, my community or my planet.  Please don't lecture me about my character...you simply don't have enough information to make such a judgement.

In addition, when you make statements such as, "it is an honor to receive a bill," please understand that most Americans will get a good chuckle out of this, but do not and will not EVER feel "honored" when they receive a bill.  Your company never had "faith in (my) honesty," you just wanted my business.  I believe the financial services industry has sufficiently proven that not only do they typically not care about honesty, they quite enjoy the profits from whenever, however and whoever it comes from.--even if it breaks the world economy.

One last thing:  you say that "credit is the most priceless thing (I) have."  This is extemely sad.  I can name 100 people and 100 things and 100 places that are more important to me that my credit.  As a victim of identity theft, someone took my credit--which was not great, but improving and tore it to shreads.  And even though this has cost money and stress--it still does not qualify as greatly important to me. 

But, you wouldn't know that because you don't know me--you just want my hard-earned money.  So here it is--but please re-rewrite your truly pathetic letter.  I'm not sure who thought this was a good idea...but, you are sinking your own reputation when you make such absurd claims.

Sincerely,

Kristen Chapman Gibbons