The Arrival to NYC and the unfairness of Clearwire

The past few months, to say the least, have been a wild ride.

Firstly, Circuit City went bankrupt and then into liquidation, leaving me amongst the throngs of jobless in the country, a victim of everything from a recession to a company that had made quite a few corporate missteps in its past, missteps that couldn't be recovered by a well-meaning CEO and his board.

So, with the remaining paychecks coming in, I've finally made it up to NYC. Well, not fully, but I'm close enough for now.

The past few weeks have also put me in touch with a few comics legends for Graphic NYC: Joe Simon, Jules Fieffer, and the ever pleasant Walt Simonson.

Sticking it out in a studio spot in Gowanus, Brooklyn, around a bevy of established creators that shame me into popping back onto the laptop to write comic scripts again, I know things are going to be nothing short of swell.

And then, there's Clearwire, the wireless internet service that, if you're around, I completely advise against subscribing to.

This is the gimmick with Clearwire: they have a wireless modem that you merely plug in and pick up a signal with. All it takes is a two-year contract, where they automatically draft your $33 a month from your bank account. The signal, from my old apartment in Richmond, was pretty good and the connection was admittedly strong.

But here's the kicker: In moving to New York/New Jersey, where I can not receive any Clearwire service, they stick strong to not letting me out of my contract. Unless, of course, I pay $200 to be let go.

Allow me to elaborate:

I currently don't have a job that will allow me to fork out $200 for something I can't get.

Clearwire doesn't serve the area I'm moving to.

They can still deduct $33 a month from my bank account.

I don't receive any service from Clearwire here.

They won't let me out of their iron-clad contract that, apparently, comes this side shy of including my first-born.

I can understand contracts in business, but something I'm also really steadfast on is good customer service. Part of that entails having a bit of compassion for your customers, particularly when you are no longer able to provide a service. Sure, they may be able to legally do this (I checked with the FCC, and have still issued a complaint), but they should also consider that good customer service can only result in great publicity.

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