Update on PayPal, an Aside and an Apology
Good morning, Wealthy Affiliate friends, enjoy reading my shorter, but not sweeter, post.
Last week in my latest article, Google and the Semantic Web, I mentioned PayPal to be one of the latest corporations announcing repercussions against persons writing anything the little demon content crawler judges judge to be improper, or so-called "misleading information".
As it turns out, happily for us, they reversed that decision almost immediately, claiming it to be an error in which they had no part. Really?
In the October 12-18 issue of the Epoch Times, Jeffrey A Tucker writes:
PayPal on October 8 sent out an update to its terms of use, or acceptable use policy (AUP), that included a shocking addition. It reserved the right to confiscate $2,500 from people's accounts if they spread "misinformation."
The outcry against PayPal was so loud and so fast, they reversed the new policy a day later, saying it was a mistake.
Tucker goes on to say:
". . . surely PayPal doesn't expect that anyone on the planet really believes the claim that this was an 'error.'
He says this because a company as large as PayPal would have had layers and layers of legal restrictions to overcome before ever putting out an AUP such as this, especially with the intention to confiscate funds from it customers' accounts.
Some large accounts in the UK were banned (and I assume fined $2,500). Twitter blew up globally over the news and PayPal was quick to react, restoring the UK accounts, and removing the offending policy from its AUP.
This reminds me of Canada's government recently blocking the bank accounts of truck drivers and their families for attempting a peaceful protest.
I know their are groups of us here at Wealthy Affiliate, promoters of such fields as alternative health, political (if it's on the wrong side), and religious (if its on the wrong side), who are forced to tape their lips closed and dance to tunes they hate. My goodness, imagine-- little ole me, a domestic, or is it political terrorist-- for quoting the Bible.
Not for long, Baby!
There are ways to speak out against these super woke corporations. And wall street did. PayPal's stock dropped immediately and massive numbers of people closed their accounts.
The former president of PayPal, David Marcus, wrote on Twitter:
"It's hard for me to openly criticize a company I used to love and gave so much to. But @PayPal's new AUP goes against everything I believe in. A private company now gets to decide to take your money if you say something they disagree with. Insanity."
Insanity, indeed!
This is fairly old news, and I have to offer an apology for spreading it (incomplete) in my last post without a proper investigation and after the fact. Had I dug a little deeper and were I quicker to catch up on the news, I could have discovered PayPal had already changed its stance.
On the other hand, had I not felt the obligation to correct this, many would not have known it at all.
Donna
Recent Comments
37
Evidently if they are owned by Vanguard or Black Rock (which they are), etc. they can do anything they want. They are the speech police.
I have a natural health website and had my PayPal account shut down a year ago until I badgered them for an explanation, which they simply refused to give me for the longest time before eventually relenting and "plugging me back in". I never did get an explanation, which is a pretty clear explanation, I figure!
Who would have ever thought this kind of Orwellian craziness would escalate so fast, and in our lifetime?!
The god (slumlord?) of this world knows his time is short!
Blessings,
Craig
Haha, hey brother.
I trust you are rockin' it. How's the challenge going (60 articles in 30 days, was it..?)?
Actually, I love to keep my articles SHORT & SIMPLE---simply because a NEW UPDATE could come back any day, week, month or year from NOW.
Except for God, almost NO ONE has an ERRORLESS RECORD.
After all, are you ready for Halloween NEXT Monday?
Hi Gary. Thanks for reading my post. Short and simple was certainly easier. We must keep those people employed who dream up the new updates. I read every one, don't you? Not!
I use Paypal for business, and I was surprised when I read that new release about the$2500 fine.
I didn't believe they would actually do that, cu that was insane to think they would.
And so they retreated, blaming that as an 'error'.
The only error was that somebody thought they could get away with charging such a ridiculous fee.
Thanks for sharing....
Rudy
I know, right! Who would actually do that? But they tried to slip it in. Unbelievable. I thought PayPal was sort of a politically neutral company. Thank you, Rudy, for reading and commenting.
Some in the UK had their accounts shut down and the money confiscated. One was a company that helped children at risk and in need. Cannot recall what the other was for but know it also helped people. They were the first a few weeks ago and they fought against it but were ignored until it got out on twitter big time.
Many people were closing their Paypal accounts in support. They then seemed to decide it was an "error."
When these types of business decide they can control the narrative of others, they take steps into dangerous territory.
A few businesses here and there have a hard job fighting back but when they and many people get together in outrage, those businesses can fall if they aren't careful.
One person can make a difference but together many can change the world.
Wow, Linda, those are the accounts mentioned in the article I quoted. Can you believe that it is precisely the companies trying to help who are the ones targeted? Thank goodness there are those now waking up and fighting back. My energy is waning, but I will do what I can. Thank you for reading and commenting on my post. It's good to hear from you.
This is definitely good to know, Donna! As the saying goes, "Go WOKE, and go BROKE!"
Jeff
Hi Jeffrey. Thanks for taking time out of your no doubt terrific Tuesday to read this and comment. And I so hope your saying is true and the "Wokes do go broke.
Hi Donna...I wasn't aware of this but wow, it's shocking to hear this actually happened. Thank you for bringing it to light.
Susan
Hi Susan. I could hardly believe this when I read it. Often I whip through my emails reading the titles and maybe saving them for later to read. And sometimes it takes days to do, or never. So I am happy I found the article in the Epoch Times and I was able to read the whole story and pass it along. I know PayPal is an important payment system in our business. But I'll bet there's an even better one out there. I think I'll go looking for it.
It is an incredible story and I appreciate you telling it. If you find a better system, please let us know. It’s going to be tough to forget this.
Hey, Donna
Thanks for the update.
No biggie! We all make mistakes and I usually lead the pack. 😎
Rock On 🤘
Frank 🎸
I know it's not a biggie, Frank. But it could be. I'll be more diligent. I'm behind on the news because of some rather difficult subjects I've been attempting and science that's as far over my head as the sun, moon, and stars. LOL.
Hi, Donna
Life is short.
Don’t be too concerned about all the science stuff. Just learn what you want or what you can.
Everything new is a learning process and we learn much better if we make it fun.
Speaking of fun, maybe you should include that tremendously insightful poem in your discussion of quantum computing.
Above all, don’t forget to take time to do the things you enjoy most.
Frank 🎸
Hi Frank. I missed this one. We took a trip to Portland, Oregon for a “Heart’s of Fire” prayer conference and visit to my sister’s. We will be gone for six days by the time we get back, so I am way behind. I love your idea of using the poem and I appreciate the information you sent/send. Don’t worry, I won’t break my brain. By the way, the conference was on fire. So inspiring.
Hey, Donna
That conference sounds wonderful!
Have a wonderful time with your family! 😎
Happy Halloween! 🎃👻🎃
Frank 🎸
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Hi there, Crag. Longtime no talk to. It's good to hear from you. I thought Paypal was a money changer, not a publisher. I was surprised they cared at all. The slumlord of this world, you got that right.
Yes, I have been a tad anti-social. Okay, even more than usual. :)