Coupon Code

[Walt]

1) I think some posters are confusing morality with legality. These are not the same thing.

The way I look at it, any confusion doesn't matter because both are being violated. Claiming to belong to an organization that you aren't really a member of, is both immoral (lying) and illegal (fraud).

 

[Guest]

A few comments:
1) I think some posters are confusing morality with legality. These are not the same thing.

2) I would be perfectly willing to look the other way in some situations, saving $20 on a ticket means a lot more to some unfortunate people than it does to me.

3) I think it's up to the original poster to decide if the proposed action is morally justified. It has been pointed out that such action may not be the best way to ensure Amtrak's long-term viability. Let it rest at that.

Go look up the definition of fraudulent and come back to discuss morality versus legality. As my county's sheriff explained at a community meeting: "either you raise them or I will". Amtrak is already dealing with people who don't know how to behave in public. That is money wasted that could be put to other uses such as running trains or refurbishing them. The fraudulent use of coupon codes is little different than someone who fraudulently uses welfare, WIC vouchers or other forms of public assistance. Would you then say to those users, "it's up to the original poster to decide if the proposed action is morally justified". The real authority lies in Amtrak's ability to catch and prosecute someone who has taken the low road and face it, that's what you are trying to get around by using coupon codes unjustifiably. Bear in mind that the amount of money involved may escalate this "harmless" theft into a felony. Someone with experience in that field will have to jump in on that one.

Repeat after me: "Using coupon codes you are not entitled to is wrong." Sooner or later it may sink in.

 

[Guest]

I agree that it is wrong to use a code for a special group if you are not part of the group, but I still don't see anything wrong with using a code for travel to Boston on one portion of a roundtrip ticket from Boston to somewhere else. You have to call to get the discount and the agent on the phone agreed with me that it was using the spirit of the code if it was used on the portion traveling to Boston.
If Amtrak really wanted to cut down on fraudulent use of the codes they should make all of them only available for purchase over the phone, that way an agent can verify them.

How would an agent verify a membership card over the phone? ..... I'm not picking on your Boston trip. If you are within the terms of the discount, whatever that is, no problem. Instinct says that you were given a discount that was allowed or you are a very charming person. Just as one chain store found "discounts" being offered to friends of the cashier and prosecuted, I would think that Amtrak has some sort of internal check that scans the discounts being given by the phone agents for propriety. They could be risking their job to give you one to which you weren't entitled (if you indeed were not). An internal auditor worth their pay would find these anomalies. They certainly had a problem with an issue known as Alaska-gate and it was eventually caught.

I would think that Amtrak signs a formal agreement with the organizations with which it does discounts and spells out the terms there. It should include period of time, those entitled and so forth.

 

[Ryan]

I'm very much aware of the moderators having my IP address (and have been on here quite awhile) and am not concerned about them. It's going to stay as it is. It doesn't take just an IP address to identify someone from these boards in public. You are a little short-sighted in that belief.

What's short sighed about my beliefs? If you don't want to divulge personal details, don't. What's so hard about that?

Personally, I don't care. Neither do I care about "my posts totalling more than yours" nor how many miles my rides total. I've learned more in certain circumstances from the anonymous posters than some who are named. I do, however, share in common the long term survival of Amtrak.

Where did I mention anything about post counts or miles traveled? You're starting to put words in my mouth and I don't like that one bit.

You overvalued that opinion and since you're not the moderator, in plain English, you don't get to tell me or others how to participate on the board.

How is merely sating my opinion "overvaluing it"? Am I not just as entitled to hold and share an opinion as you are?

That's not your decision to make. It's mine and I think about what I'm sharing every time I post.

I'm not claiming to make that decision for you. You seem to be claiming that those of us that do stand behind our identity shouldn't be sharing some of the details that we do. Quite frankly, that's not YOUR decision to make either.

Your posts appears to be a smoke screen to encourage the fraudulent use of codes. Why don't you return to that subject?

What started as a polite discussion now has moved to legitimate heat with you, stranger. Who the **** are you tell me what it is I should or shouldn't discuss? If you didn't want your views on privacy discussed, you ought not have delved into them. When in my post did I indicate at all that I was encouraging fraud? I'll be standing by for your apology.
Moderater edit of one word, count to 10 please.

Sorry, GG-1 - I don't take kindly to having my integrity questioned, especially by someone unable to stand by their words. I'll count to 10 next time, promise.

 

[had8ley]

WOW !!! Why doesn't Mr./Ms. "Guest" register and take his/her licks like everyone else? You're starting to remind me of a computer stalker lashing out at the world. I'll be the first to admit that I have tirades but I do come down to earth once and a while for air and R and R. This is about AMTRAK; unfortunately you didn't see that and took it to the UNLIMITED level. Cool your heels and sit back and REGISTER !!!

 

[Guest]

Had8ley etal, (cool your hot head Had8ley)

...apparently, I am (taking my licks)...you dole them out to guests and the named . This topic is not about me or my posting habits (a smoke screen if you ask me since the topic is about Coupon Codes in an AU forum) but since that seems to be a concern (always a concern of mine) I found a link to a site about staying smart in your online habits. It appears that it is from the Australian (?) government. There is a link in there somewhere (if it doesn't automatically appear) about posting to social networking sites.

http://www.staysmartonline.gov.au/smart_tr...t?result_page=8

I would never feel comfortable sharing the amount of personal information under an id that many of you seem to do and find it odd that so many of you do when so much information on the web tells you that it isn't wise. That's just the way it is. I didn't make up the rules but I do pay attention to them. Within the last 3 months 1 family member has gone through identity theft and an elderly friend was robbed of her purse/cc/car at knifepoint and her life threatened. Her attacker killed another elderly woman the next day. Neither (elderly situations) probably had anything to do with the internet but this is the world in which we live.

If this were a site like Yahoo groups where entry was gained by special permission, it might be a different story, but this is a website available to anyone with internet access. That's a lot of people.

These seem to be issues that many of you have never considered. I do almost everytime I post. It's called discretion.

On T, in the next newspaper that contains manufacturers coupons read the fineprint carefully on a coupon. On some you'll find references to fraud in the instructions to a redeeming consumer and that's on a 50c coupon.

 

[RailFanLNK]

Man..never thought about all the info I have put out there. My girlfriend (or maybe its a boyfriend) and I reside in the US. It might be in Lincoln PA, or Lincoln IL. But its really not Lincoln NE. I work at the United States DHL Federal Parcel Post and I really don't ride the train that much, matter of fact, I haven't ever ridden Amtrak. I just like to talk about it. Just looked out my window and saw someone with an Amtrak t-shirt looking at my house with binoculars. Maybe I don't live in a house, it might be a mobile home....in Lincoln PA, in amongst the Amish...who ride trains. Just got a good look at the person watching my house/mobile home/condominium/motor home and the person is wearing a black hat, suspenders and has a beard but no mustache. Sure he didn't get my info from the internet cuz the Amish don't use the internet. Or do they? He just asked me if I wanted some candy...I'm hungry so I said "sure!" But maybe I didn't take him up on the offer. Maybe it was a woman poster from AU in a disguise? :lol: I found a red hat and purple shirt behind my front porch from a possible Redhatter that used the v851 code but how did they get from Oklahoma City to Lincoln NE....er Pennsylvania?

Guest, Guest Sal

 

[had8ley]

I have but one thing to add to your mystery status~LOSER~ and big time at that. Case closed and I hope our moderators would shut it down. Our "Guest" has overstepped his/her boundaries and is not adding but subtracting from the good of the site. AMEN !!!

 

[Bigval109]

Moving right along. I'm looking for a promo code to use for a free trip to somewhere to move away from this heated discussion. Promo codes help people like me travel more. Like most of you I love to ride the train. I usually spend my entire vacations riding somewhere Amtraks goes. My favorite promo code was the H570 which gave you a 25% discount. What was your favorite code? The promo code to die for was the one from Icelandic air where you could get 50% of the price of the sleeper, which was only for it's employees. Do I look Icelandic to you? Oh crap my skin is to dark. Oh well it was fun thinking about it.

 

[Ryan]

Neither (elderly situations) probably had anything to do with the internet but this is the world in which we live.

Precisely. Just a few weeks ago, someone broke into my truck and stole some stuff. Is it because I disclosed that I had that stuff on another forum site (easily located on Google) or is it because some scumbag picked a random suburban street to smash and grab a couple of windows?

Bad things happen regardless. The decision on how much to share online is a personal one, yet you continue to lecture on why your method is better. You do what works for you, let us do what works for us. I will concede that you have a bit of a point on this site, where we tend to discuss upcoming trips. It would be a relatively nontrivial exercise for someone to spend 5 minutes with Google and find my real name, and probably only slightly more trivial to find my address. Pair that with me saying here that I'm going to be traveling on train X from Y/ZZ to A/BB and you can assume that you've got an address that will be vacant for your thievery pleasure. Of course, that doesn't account for the fact that the house may not be empty, the alarm system or the neighbors, but there certainly is an element of added risk there that I'll keep in mind.

Still standing by for your apology on the whole "you condone fraud thing", since you kindly just disregarded my entire post.

 

[PetalumaLoco]

You know, if there is someone here that is looking to rip off vacant homes of travelers, it's probably a *guest*.