snuffy,
You are probably getting 'mail' from a 'friend' who is 1. using a PC and 2. has your addy in his address book. The PC is probably afflicted with a virus. Or he may have simply sent a cc message to someone else who added all those names to his list and that persons PC has the virus.
Of course, there is not much hope in getting people to use either better virus software or to stop using cc.
As for boycotting SPAMmers, I don't have any e-mail getting through that I don't already expect and/or approve. Most gets dumped by POPmonitor before I download it. Other get dumped by the filters in Eudora and get trashed there.
Not saying a boycott won't help. Especially if that is message actually reaches the companies. I just sent an e-mail to my cell phone provider about requiring the use of Flash on thier internet site. Another inappropriate use of technology, IMHO.
And I don't know how to 'boycott' the 'special' drug sellers, anyway. And local SPAMmers may not care any more about its negative impacts than those virtual ones!
Since an e-mail may cost only pennies (if that much!) it will always be profitable when only a very few people 'buy.' The only solution I see is to increase those costs (to the senders) in some way.
Jim C.