Thursday, January 7, 2010

The large print giveth and the small print taketh away

Some arrogant outfit called "Clear" -- some sort of wireless internet scam -- sends junk mail to LOVESalem HQ, despite our energetic efforts to get on every "Do Not Call" and "Do Not Mail" list in existence and our total lack of interest in supporting any business that is converting forests to landfill material by sending junk mail to unwelcoming non-customers.

But to top it off, they reveal themselves to be deceptive liars to boot.

In clean, normal-size print in the body of the letter you see this:
CLEAR is simple
Just plug and surf. No appointment, no installation visit and no annual contract required.
But lo! Down at the bottom, in the middle of a dense paragraph SIX-POINT GREY-ON-WHITE-BACKGROUND type, you can, with a magnifying glass and strong lighting, barely make out
Requires $35 activation fee with a one-year agreement.
So just remember: CLEAR -- a firm you clearly don't want to support.