I enjoyed your note. You must be the local guru.
On rare occasion if the call appears to be from our nearby big city, if I'm expecting a call, I answer... but I agree with your comments. And I rarely answer calls (with the exception noted above) that I don't recognize. I figure that, if I should be talking to a caller, they will leave a message. I just have to keep track of the area code for Ottawa, ON because I AM expecting an important call from there this month or next.
Scammers and Con Artists are busy right now... trying to con honest people out of money so they can have a nice summer vacation. I don't tend to answer #'s I don't recognize and don't have a caller ID with a person's name. If they should talk to me, they will leave a message. Most scammers don't leave messages except the idiots who were telling people they were the IRS and about to sue the victim. THEY DID leave messages, but they were ALSO CAUGHT!