Finally –I knew it would happen one day, and California is the one to lead the way! Kudos to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit for realizing consumers need protection against companies who make us agree to all their terms and conditions –without any say, or negotiation of those –by clicking “Accept” before we can use a site or piece of software, as well as those who unilaterally post changes on their website after we have already agreed to certain terms. Typically, many of the agreements consumers sign have a stipulation providing that the consumer agrees to the terms and conditions posted on that company’s website, which are subject to change from time to time. Or, perhaps they use language that binds one to the “then current” terms. Then current? That could be anything they choose to make up on a whim at any given moment and stick out there on their website! For years, we’ve been at the mercy of these click through agreements and changing terms on websites, which are 99.9% of the time so very one-sided. And guess whose side? I’ll give you a hint –it’s not the consumers’.

A new and exciting precedent was set at the ruling of Joe Douglas, class action suit, against Talk America for terms and conditions posted on their website without the knowledge of the consumer. In addition, there have been rulings where the courts have chosen not to enforce one-sided mandatory arbitration clauses, such as in Gatton vs T-Mobile. Read the summary at the links below to see the direction the case law is moving on these.

http://www.gripe2ed.com/scoop/story/2007/7/30/0347/26052

http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20070729165004428

Don’t forget to visit Sensible Life Magazine. The new issue is coming soon!

This is my dream. A vacation spa. My dream would be for someone to create a virtual reality spa that would allow me to visit far away places, while never leaving the comfort of my home town. Even though vacations are much needed to get away from work and take breaks from our busy home lives, so often we come back from them feeling more stressed than before we left. If I could drive 20 minutes away to a spa where I could be massaged and pampered for the day, then slip on headgear that would allow me to take a virtual reality tour of a vacation destination, I would do that in a heartbeat as opposed to booking a flight, packing, boarding the dogs, etc. And the ultimate vacation experience would work with video feed following guided tours through buildings, or even do a pre-recorded ocean experience of a snorkeling tour that would provide me with an underwater snorkel/head set that I could take into a pool and float around until my skin shrivels.

For those of you not convinced this would be a viable business, let me illustrate the effect visual images have on a person (and especially those combined with music). Just click on the links below, view and relax.

http://www.link4u.com/vacation.htm

for other virtual vacations, visit:

http://www.virtualgifts4u.com/sendvp.htm

Still not convinced? Think of it in these terms –no flights, hotels, no rental car, no maps, no passports, no boarding animals, no worries, and for the busiest of us, minimal time away from work and home. And the best part- if you, your spouse, and your children couldn’t agree on a destination, you could all pick different ones to experience!

Sensible Life Magazine has actually spoken to some different companies about developing this idea, but so far, none have been able to grasp the reality of something like this. With the growing number of parents who decide to spend their vacation days doing things for kids’ sports, camps, and other school activities, such a spa could be just the quick, but relaxing, getaway that mom and dad needs. Anyone interested in this? I have additional thoughts on how this can pay for itself. Contact us through this blog, or at www.sensiblelife.com.

I noticed some articles (ex: The Post Chronicle) about an internet e-mail hoax depicting a missing girl and asking the recipient to forward to everyone they know. It’s not surprising to me that this e-mail circulated far and wide. I cannot count the number of times I referred e-mailers to Hoaxbusters and Snopes to see if they were being scammed on those e-mails going around with urban legends, missing kids, and weird crimes. Guess what? They STILL do mass forwarding of those things! I’m not sure if it’s just that they don’t take the time to look, or if fear prompts them to quickly pass these on to everyone they know. Apparently, Ashley Flores e-mail has circulated enough over the last year to cause some pretty good hype in the media about hoaxes such as this. It’s sad that people are not prone to investigate first. Occasionally, I get an e-mail from someone locally that reports a crime, or something weird that happened to them, but I still do not pass that on without verifying the authenticity. I would encourage e-mailers to do the same before using up the bandwith sending the false alarm junk around to everyone.

Coming soon: the next issue of Sensible Life will be out in August. Keep checking with us, or if you’d like to be placed on a routing list to receive notices of new issues, e-mail editor@sensiblelife.com.