uShortlist Of Future Google Fiber Cities Keeps Getting Longer, Three More Cities Addedr

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  Broadband competition in the U.S. still stinks almost everywhere and most of us are nowhere near gigabit connections. Google, of course, is the biggest — or at least, most popular — name out there trying to change both those things at once, and they’ve announced another three locales where they might plop fiber down if all goes well.

  The lucky cities this time are in Florida and Oklahoma, with Jacksonville and Tampa representing for the Sunshine State and Oklahoma City also lining up to come on board.

  The gigabit fiber service so far only actually exists in three cities (Provo, Austin, and Kansas City), but the list of cities getting hooked up sometime in the near future continues to grow, and the list of cities that can maybe have the option of getting added to the “soon” list soon grows right behind it. Just last month, Google added San Diego, Irvine, and Louisville to their “exploratory” list.

  This expansion brings the list of municipalities that are actively exploring bringing Google Fiber to town to nine, with another six further along in the process. The joint planning phase basically consists of Google meeting with local and state officials to see if the cities on the shortlist can guarantee favorable conditions — rights-of-way, tax breaks, and potential consumer pools — that make it worth doing all the construction and logistical work to bring Google Fiber to town.

  Exploring Fiber for Oklahoma City, Jacksonville and Tampa [Google Fiber Blog]

  
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by Kate Cox via Consumerist

uEmirates Passenger Says She Was Sexually Assaulted By Fellow Traveler While She Slept On Flight To NYCr

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  We’ve asked this before, and apparently we have to ask again: what is wrong with some people? Unfortunately we have to yet again report on an incident involving a passenger accused of molesting a fellow traveler during a flight. This should go without being said, but just because someone is asleep, that does not mean they’re giving you permission to touch them.

  A woman flying on an Emirates flight from Dubai to New York City said a male passenger took lotion out of the seatback pocket where she’d left it and rubbed it on her body while she was asleep, federal investigators said (via The Smoking Gun). He allegedly claimed that he thought the victim “enjoyed it because she did not resist.”

  According to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, the victim said she fell asleep about an hour into the 13-hour flight after taking anti-anxiety medication. She was seated next to a 42-year-old man who lives in Staten Island.

  After several hours, she said she woke up and the man asked her “whether she had a good nap.” Shudder. That’s when she realized there was lotion on her arms, chest and up her legs, and that she noticed her hand lotion wasn’t where she’d left it. When she walked to the bathroom, she said she realized “her vaginal area was sore.” She then “saw that her underwear had been shifted and that lotion was in her vaginal area and on her underwear.”

  When she got back to her seat she asked the man where her lotion was, and he gave it back to her. That’s when she alerted the plane’s crew, telling them that she believed “something happened to her while she fell asleep.”

  The man reportedly admitted to applying the lotion to the sleeping woman, saying that he thought the woman “needed it,” and that the sleeping passenger “enjoyed it because she did not resist.”

  He was questioned upon landing at John F. Kennedy International Airport and admitted to “inappropriately touching the passenger, that he knew it was wrong, but he did not specify how he touched the passenger,” law enforcement said. The male passenger was arrested for the alleged in-flight sexual assault and was ordered to surrender his passport and not leave New York City without the permission of pretrial service officials.

  Again, we’re really getting sick of having to report on these situations, but here are just a few of the ones we’ve had to cover already:

  • Yet Another Airline Passenger Arrested For Groping Sleeping Woman

  •Off-Duty Delta Pilot Accused Of Groping 14-Year-Old Asleep Next To Him On Flight

  •United Passenger Guilty Of Sexually Assaulting Sleeping Female Traveler

  •Man Prompts JetBlue Flight To Make Emergency Landing Because Groping Pregnant Women Isn’t Okay

  •JetBlue Passenger Charged With Putting Hand Under Sleeping Woman’s Skirt

  Woman Molested During Flight From Dubai [The Smoking Gun]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uRushCard To Create Reimbursement Fund For Customers Unable To Access Moneyr

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  The thousands of unbanked consumers who rely on prepaid RushCards but have been unable to access their funds because of a technical glitch, may receive compensation for the issue. 

  RushCard announced Thursday that it plans to reimburse cardholders who lost money during the recent weeks-long disturbance during which customers say they were denied access to their funds, or had accounts that incorrectly showed a $0 balance, the New York Times reports.

  The company says it is in talks with regulators about creating a reimbursement fund for affected cardholders.

  Details of the fund – including how many RushCard users were impacted and what they can expect to recoup – were not released, and likely won’t be until regulators approve the reimbursement plan.

  “While the reimbursement and review process will not occur overnight, we will act as quickly as regulators will allow, and are already doing so on a case-by-case basis,” Russell Simmons, RushCard’s co-founder, said.

  RushCard previously said access to funds had been restored for most customers, but the Times reports the company is still working with Meta Bank, which issues the cards, and MasterCard to resolve the issues.

  An update for our valued members. http://pic.twitter.com/4kjC1RiX3D

  — RushCard (@RushCard) October 26, 2015

  Problems with the RushCard first surfaced late on Oct. 11, when the company experienced a disturbance during a “technology transition.”

  “During this process, many of our customers were adversely affected when the technology that was used to transition their accounts did not work as planned,” RushCard CEO Rick Savard said in a statement at the time. “RushCard is working around the clock to resolve all of these matters.”

  Since the incident began, the company has provided several updates on Twitter, including one that announced it would wave all fees for new and current users between Nov. 1 and Feb. 29, 2016 as an incentive to stay with the company.

  Consumer advocates and regulators have also taking issue with the RushCard debacle.

  CFPB director Richard Cordray issued a statement regarding the problem, noting that the agency would take director action “to get to the bottom of this situation.”

  A coalition of consumer groups also chimed in, pointing at the incident as evidence that federal regulators need to do more to protect prepaid cardholders.

  Additionally, Consumer Reports announced last week that it would suspend its RushCard recommendation in light of the company’s technical issues.

  RushCard Says It Will Reimburse Customers [The New York Times]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uUber Customers Can Order Up A Kitten Visit In More Than 50 Cities Todayr

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  If you’ve missed your chance in the past to order a kitten visit through Uber — whether because there weren’t enough cats to go around or the offer wasn’t available in your city — you’ve got another opportunity today. Uber will bring shelter kittens (many of which are eligible for adoption) to customers in more than 50 cities today between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Snuggle fee: $30 for 15 minutes of playtime. [Uber]
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uAlaska Airlines Suffers Technical Glitch, Delays Nearly Two Dozen Flightsr

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  There’s just something about airlines and technology that haven’t been jiving well this year. Case in point: nearly two dozen Alaska Airlines flights were delayed on Thursday morning because of a technical glitch. 

  The airline says that crews are currently fixing the programs and systems are returning to normal, the Associated Press reports.

  The issue first started late Wednesday night when several computer systems ran into what the airline is calling technical problems. Alaska Airlines spokesperson Cole Cosgrove said the problem affected passenger check-in and pre-flight departure paperwork.

  Because the computers were not working at the check-in gate, employees were forced to hand-check every passenger against the manifest and physically tick off their names as they presented their boarding passes.

  In all, 20 flights were delayed, but it’s possible others could follow suit this morning. Cosgrove says the airline doesn’t expect to cancel any flights.

  Passengers were advised to check the status of their flight before leaving for the airport, the AP reports.

  Alaska Airlines is just the latest carrier to experience glitchiness: Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, Spirit Airlines and United Airlines all suffered computer issues recently that snarled air travel for many travelers, and even the Federal Aviation Administration said it suffered a technical issues that led to flight headaches in August.

  Alaska Airlines: Issues That Delayed Flights Being Resolved [The Associated Press]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uKrispy Kreme Customer Says Video Shows Bugs Falling Onto Doughnuts Along With Glazer

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  A Krispy Kreme customer has a few choice words for her local restaurant, claiming that a video she took at a North Carolina location shows large insects falling onto doughnuts in the process of being glazed.

  In the video posted to YouTube, you can see black specks getting caught in the glaze that’s spread on the doughnuts by a machine at Krispy Kreme. Those little dots are bugs, the customer says in the video’s description. And that’s not all, she claims.

  “The machine had freaking MOLD on the catcher and the employees were touching the floor with the same hands they handled the doughnuts with! One employee even dropped a spatula, picked it up and proceeded to scrape the belt the doughnuts were coming off!” she writes. “After expressing my concern with the supervisor he shrugged me off.”

  She goes into the experience further on the local store’s Facebook page, writing that the manager was extremely rude and “nonchalant” about the things she said she witnessed, and that he laughed at her complaint, “even going as far as stating that he gets complaints everyday but he doesn’t care about them.”

  The location in question replied to her complaint in a comment, writing:

  “Thank you so much for letting us know. We have been investigating this issue and the video. We take this very seriously.”

  (h/t UPI)

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uPolice: United Airlines Passenger Walked Onto Plane, Claimed He Had A Bomb In His Bagr

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  Whether you’re lying or telling the truth, the thing about saying you have a bomb in your bag on an airplane is you’ll get in trouble either way: a Massachusetts man has a court date this morning after walking onto a United Airlines flight last night out of Boston and allegedly announcing that he was carrying an explosive device.

  According to Massachusetts State Police, the man boarded his flight last night and told other passengers that he was carrying a bomb in his bag. That more than likely caught the attention of his fellow travelers, as police then boarded the plane to investigate his alleged statements.

  The 55-year-old man was ultimately arrested for making a false bomb threat.

  The flight was delayed for about 50 minutes, while the passenger was delayed significantly longer: he was booked at the State Police Barracks at Logan Airport and held on $250 bail. His arraignment is scheduled for this morning in Boston.

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist