Robocalls are banned. Sort of.

The US Federal Trade Commission says there will be no more of those infuriating prerecorded telemarketing solicitations, known not so fondly as robocalls, unless you're so lonely you want them. Telemarketers, the government says, will now need written permission from the callee before setting the robots loose.

So, great, no more robocalls at dinnertime. Oh, wait. Except for the exceptions. Which include calls from charities, banks, politicians, insurers, phone companies, surveys--and, best of all, debt collection agencies.

Also permitted are telemarketing calls from actual humans--unless the phone number is on the National Do Not Call Registry. Find the Do Not Call registry here.