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How to support this blog.

I'd like to thank everyone who's used the Amazon search box on this blog and other Amazon links to buy things and thereby (without extra cost) to send some money my way. I had some trouble recently and had to change some code in that box you see over there in the sidebar, so I'd be especially appreciative if you'd use the box today and reassure me that I've set things aright. Suffice it to say it was some damned thing about federal law, a box I didn't see that I needed to check on a new form that made me need to redo my account. It's too boring to explain and any comic talent I might have is not oriented to making bureaucratic headaches funny. So I'll stop right here and just say thanks for your support.

AND: If you've been using an old link that you consider the Althouse Amazon portal, it should be changed to this.

Amazon sues 1,000+ users of its site for posting fake reviews.

This isn't Amazon suing people who, for whatever reason, put up reviews of products they haven't bought or who say things they don't really believe. 

The lawsuit targets account holders on Fiverr.com, a marketplace for odd-jobs where "gigs" are sold for $5 and up....

"Most of the defendants offer positive or 5-star reviews for Amazon sellers' products. Indeed, many encourage the Amazon seller to create the text for their own reviews," the complaint reads.

Amazon's terms of use ban fake reviews, and it's suing for breach of contract and violating Washington's consumer protection laws.

I'd never heard of Fiverr.com before, so this seems to be effective publicity for them. It's also an effective way for Amazon to scare people away from spamming its site. As for finding the the 1,000+ people who've raked in the five-dollar bills for easy easy work and getting money out of them, we'll see. Maybe some people are getting rich doing this sort of thing (and other Fiverr-facilitated schemes).