Even better, there is an established principle of contract law (at
> least in the US), that both sides must understand what they are
> agreeing to. Your favorite grocery store can put some fine print on
> the back of your receipt saying that, by entering the store, you
> consent to their published rules of operation (which are available
> for inspection, by appointment, on three days notice, and may be
> changed by the store at any time, without notice). You are not bound
> by those rules, and the store may not one day insert a clause giving
> them the right to empty your wallet (or at least may not enforce that > clause).
Exactly.
I always laugh at trucks that say 'This vehicle not responsible for items coming up from roadway' or whatever the phrase is.
I've always been tempted to get a sign to put in my car's front window claiming not only are they responsible for items coming up from the roadway, but they're responsible for any actions of *my* car, too. And city buses.
I mean, if we can just put up signs *stating* what our responsiblities under the law are, I'd just like to state that I am only responsible for my personal actions as much as I wish to be responsible, in any situtation, from this moment until the end of time.
Someone, when I pointed this sign out to them, suggested that possibly it was a law (I actually think that's a reasonable law. It's not your fault if you drive over a rock and shatter the windshield behind you, how could you possibly be able to prevent that?) ...but, um, why *tell* us that with a sign?
I also laugh at the fine print on the back of event and movie tickets. Hey, dumbass, you gave me that *after* I paid my money, I couldn't possibly have agreed to it. No, not even if it's worded based on 'entering the event', and not 'purchasing the ticket'. I'm not required to sit there and read my new purchase before walking in the door, although one day it would be funny to purchase a ticket and try to get my money back because I took issue with a certain term. (I purchased something advertised as an admission ticket, it turned out to be an admission ticket with restrictions, which I was made aware of after the purchase. Open and shut case.)
And, of course, I scoff at EULAs. I carefully get a dry-erase marker, correct the contract on the screen to whatever I want, initial, and click 'I agree'. Of course, the contract isn't valid until they sign it, too, and it has vanished as soon as I've wiped my screen off, but, hey, is that my problem? I don't need their damn contract to run software I've purchased. If they want make a contract with me, they'll have to come up with better terms than ones that don't give my any rights at all. (Possibly I don't actually do dry erase thing, but I could always claim to hav done so.)
The attempt to randomly impose terms on people is one of the greatest abuses by *all* companies I'm seeing these day. We need some court decisions that no contracts can be entered into by a random action, like walking into a ballpark.