Last month’s Fake Ad asked readers to tell politicians to stop telemarketers’ tactics. Of course, being a Fake Ad, it asked people to accomplish that by calling an expensive pay-per-call phone number.

Carol Mousigian was one of 174 clever Fake Adders who spotted the ad on p. 76. “The Fake Ad for the survey to stop telemarketers has got to rank at the very top of the absurd-o-meter,” Mousigian wrote. “Very unsubtle.”

Many entrants found the ad too easy to spot. “Oy vey–this was vey too obvious!” wrote Howell’s Emily Brown (who might be the first person from Howell to use the phrase “oy vey”). “Just looking at the name of the previous winner, you knew right away the ad would have something to do with a POLL ANSwer. On the other hand, the ad nicely demonstrates the very thing it’s protesting: The dubious phone fees are typical of the tricks played by telemarketers!”

Richard Norman was drawn as our winner. He’s taking his gift certificate to Cardamom.

To enter this month’s contest, find the fake ad in the July issue, identify by name and page number, and follow the instructions in the box at the bottom of the Back Page. The fake ad always contains the name of last month’s winner in some form.