Bulk mail is something nobody likes to receive... (and depending on the circumstances and the area it comes from or goes to, it might even be illegal) so this is the one thing that makes the monks reluctant to answer.

What makes you say this? I take it you generalize all bulk e-mail and degrade it to "spam" (which a lot of people don't like to receive, correct). There are however mailing lists to which people subscribe. I don't think everybody on a mailing list dislikes receiving those e-mails. Please don't confuse bulk e-mail with UBE (Unsolicited Bulk E-Mail).