QUESTION: Due the nature of my position, I am required to pick up all the phone calls that I receive (even the ones that my caller ID identifies as, “Scam Likely.”) Most of these calls are spam calls and waste my time. If I answer the spam caller and tell him that I am not interested in whatever he is selling, he is undeterred and just calls me back later with something else that I am not interested in.
I do know, however, that these spam callers have buttons on their call consoles that they can press to quickly and efficiently place me on their “Do Not Call” list. However, when I ask to be placed on this list, I am often ignored. So here is my question. If the spam caller is led to believe that I have completely lost my mind, I am confident that he will place me on his “Do Not Call” list. Accordingly, next time I get a spam call, can I respond to the caller using the voice of an elderly person and ask, “Do you have red jello? I like red jello. Can you bring me some?” Indeed, I have used this tactic before, and it has proven to be very effective - I get put on the list, and never receive calls from the spam caller again. However, someone suggested that this tactic may not be permitted because one may be telling a lie or engaging in deceit (Genaivas Daas). What do you think?
ANSWER: To begin with, something tells me that you may enjoy this ruse a bit too much. Rabbeinu Yonah writes that smiling at a falsehood (Sheker) does not emanate from a good character trait (Middah). One should find Sheker distasteful because it is far from the Middos of Hashem. On the other hand, if you are involved in a Mitzvah and this spam caller is wasting your time, you can use your tactic, because it is not really lying in the literal sense, i.e. you said that you liked red jello which is not a lie assuming you really do like red jello.
