Was just listening to an NPR piece on arbitration

[Duncan]

Was inspired to google the term "we live in a corporate dictatorship".

Got 10500 hits.

How the fuck do we get out of this situation when our representatives are 99.9% worthless corporate whores?

Just a rant, not an actual question.

[Enrique]

1. what kind of arbitration?

labor related?

[Duncan]

2. The kind that is written into contracts

that removes the right to sue them in a dispute.

In part the NPR bit was about how an employee of KBR who was brutally raped by other KBR employees could not sue, and that her case was in secret indefinite arbitration, which is only overseen by KBR. She is going to court to try to get the right to sue, going to court to be allowed to go to court.

Apparently similar fine print is commonplace in lots of corporate protecting contracts with consumers, and the corporations win something like 96% of the time in such "arbitrated" disputes.

There is "arbitration reform" legislation pending in congress, but it sounded like it probably won't get far.

[NC_Nurse]

3. Credit card companies are really big into this bullshit. It's part of the tiny print

agreement that you get when you sign up. I'm sure the print will be bigger when the new law goes into effect.

Whoopee!

[Callisto32]

4. If such agreements are not contracts of adhesion, I see no problem with terms for arbitration.

Nobody forces a person to enter into such a contract, and if you fail to read the terms that you agree to abide by, it is your fault. I know that this sounds cold, but I don't think it is right to use the violence of the state to get someone out of a contract into which they were not forced to enter. Better time could be spent educating people to read offers carefully and to have other read them as well if there is any chance they do not understand, and even if they are sure that they do.

I agree that "legal print" is bullshit, but not the actual terms.