Photo by Kevin Dooley / by CC BY 2.0

I got one of those boring policy updates from PayPal this week which I usually never bother to read, but this section was in bold and underlined, which drew my attention:

You will, with limited exception, be required to submit claims you have against PayPal to binding and final arbitration, unless you opt out of the Agreement to Arbitrate (Section 14.3) by December 1, 2012. Unless you opt out: (1) you will only be permitted to pursue claims against PayPal on an individual basis, not as a plaintiff or class member in any class or representative action or proceeding and (2) you will only be permitted to seek relief (including monetary, injunctive, and declaratory relief) on an individual basis.

This article at Citizen Vox explains what PayPal is doing in plain English. If you don’t opt out:

You can’t sue PayPal in court before a judge and/or jury. You have to go to binding arbitration where they will have the advantage.

You can’t join a class action suit. You have to [...]

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Twice a year my publisher sends me a royalty check. It’s always exciting, like getting a scratch-off lottery ticket that’s guaranteed to win. You just don’t know how much is waiting for you. It can vary by thousands of dollars from statement to statement, so I have no idea how much I’m going to get each time. I’m just glad I’ve been able to eek out a bit of a living from my writing and I never cease to be amazed by it. As a freelancer, I consider these checks to be like my Christmas bonus.

I am really grateful that my book Half-Assed: A Weight-Loss Memoir continues to sell even four and a half years after its initial publication. I watch what I spend my money on rather carefully, so it’s humbling to know someone (or multiple someones) decided my writing was worth their cash. If you’ve ever bought a copy of the book, thank you! I truly appreciate it. It does directly affect me and my ability to do things like fly home for [...]

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I debated whether to drive or fly to FitBloggin’ this weekend. (I suppose going by sea could have been an option if I owned a boat or a hovercraft or one of those duck boats, but I don’t.) According to Google Maps it is a 5hr 38min drive from Chapel Hill, NC to Baltimore, MD, which is about the upper limit of time I’m willing (or rather the headache is willing) to drive in a day. The flight from Raleigh to Baltimore is approximately 1 hour, but when you add in the time driving to the airport, parking, going through security, getting their early just in case, getting on the plane, getting off the plane, waiting for the curbside checked baggage to be unloaded at the gate because the overhead baggage compartment is too small on regional flights, and taking a shuttle to the hotel, I think OMG why would I ever want to fly? If I drive I can come and go when I want to, and I don’t have to wake up at [...]

• Continue reading "By land or by air? (Definitely not by sea)"