“I have the fun of making outbound calls to offer people a public service and collect payment if people desire it.”

Oh so you’re a telemarketer.

Nope. I only sell services that people previously requested, though it is often months earlier. (As I suggested, it's a government job.) Sales is just one of the things tacked onto my job description over the years.

And to further crush that cynicism: most people are overjoyed when I call them.

Oh so you’re a telemarketer.

Not everyone who makes outbound calls is a telemarketer.

The healthcare company I work for has a whole department of very nice people who make outbound calls to offer free health and nutrition classes to poor people.

Yes, they're free. As an employee I am also required to take one of the classes each year, so I know what they entail. Yes, they cost our company money. No, they're not sponsored by some corporation or ad company, and no we don't sell people's information on (HIPAA and all that).

The real world isn't a tech bubble cage fight.