Jerry Schwartz (1:142/928) wrote to Michiel van der Vlist at 22:51 on 18 Dec 2002:

 JS> I don't have a clue what Steven pays. He lives in Canada, not the
 JS> USA; and he lives in a place that is more remote than you or I can
 JS> imagine. (Look it up on a map.)

I may be in the boonies but we do have jet service and a good highway.

 JS> Phone bills of hundreds of dollars a month are not that distant a
 JS> memory to me, either.

I try to forget.:->

 JS> True, but it's a flat rate regardless of the number or duration of
 JS> calls. This isn't true in all areas, even in the USA. Some areas
 JS> have metered calling, and calls in excess of your contract cost
 JS> dearly.

One can argue that one pays for the local calls in the cost of subscribing
to the telephone service but we all pay to have a telephone.  However, once
I have my service, there is no charge for any calls within the calling area
other than calls to directory assistance or to the operator.

In the result, Michiel's base telephone charges may be lower but once he
makes X number of calls, he will have paid more for his service.
  
Take care,

Steven Horn (steven_a_horn{at}yahoo.ca)
Moderator, ALASKA_CHAT 
--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+