Rentmen Donations/Fees Gone?

[dc_billm]

I discovered 2 days ago that the rates are now being shown on RentMen, but only if you use RentMen apps for Windows and Android. I'm not sure if the iPhone app shows the rates since I don't own an iPhone. The rates, at least in the US, do not show if you are using a browser to get to RentMen.

[JTtorretto]

In my opinion, RM is beginning to act a little overly paranoid as the chance of the US Federal Govt sending federal agents to the Netherlands etc DOES seem extremely unlikely and far fetched. Unless there is some sort of precedence for such actions that I'm not aware of.

[Lab12]

In my opinion, RM is beginning to act a little overly paranoid as the chance of the US Federal Govt sending federal agents to the Netherlands etc DOES seem extremely unlikely and far fetched. Unless there is some sort of precedence for such actions that I'm not aware of.

Well you never know with the feds though, If they are out to get you no matter where you are they will create an excuse to get you. Remember FIFA?

[+ goosh69]

In my opinion, RM is beginning to act a little overly paranoid as the chance of the US Federal Govt sending federal agents to the Netherlands etc DOES seem extremely unlikely and far fetched. Unless there is some sort of precedence for such actions that I'm not aware of.

You literally did not read anything I said. They would go after the payment processing companies, ISPs and banks, all which are American or have American operations. Your post is a complete straw man.

[+ saminseattle]

In my opinion, RM is beginning to act a little overly paranoid as the chance of the US Federal Govt sending federal agents to the Netherlands etc DOES seem extremely unlikely and far fetched. Unless there is some sort of precedence for such actions that I'm not aware of.

 

I tend to agree that there is probably an overreaction in the face of uncertainty and more than a little paranoia going on. On the other hand, the risks of “misguessing” where the line is (and how law enforcement may choose to act if they perceive the line to be blurry or shifting) can be severe, as Mr. Hurrant found out. And there are increasingly aggressive efforts to push the envelope, in terms of Government policing of the Internet, including new a new proposal in Congress to amend the “Communications Decency Act” as well as novel prosecutions being pursued in the court system. http://techfreedom.org/techfreedom-condemns-ag-proposal-to-amend-section/, https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2015/09/court-ruling-against-backpagecom-setback-online-speech-washington-state

 

The “Netherlands defense” may be unavailing to the extent RM has employees who work in the US or visit the US. The CEO of Backpage was arrested at a Texas airport when he flew in from Holland. And as others have pointed out, payment systems on which RM depends could be subject to various Government pressures. All of this was probably part of the Government’s strategy all along: since they probably don’t have the resources to go after everyone they disapprove of, they are trying to instill fear and paranoia in people to get them to curtail their activities “voluntarily." Obviously, this is a dangerous road to go down, and I appreciate your post for the reminder that attempting to avoid all risks is also a problematic strategy.

[+ goosh69]

^that.

[instudiocity]

Can anyone explain this phenomenon, like I was a six year old?

 

In short, I am baffled why and how the U.S. influences the functions of foreign based escorts sites.

Ever heard of "Blue Sky Laws"? Basically the term is used to say a state can regulate anything happening under it's own blue sky. In this case, a national government can regulate anything under it's own Blue Sky.

 

While RM may be an European-based site, they are engaging in international commerce, facilitating international, interstate, and intrastate commerce, while aiding & abetting violations of federal, state and local law regarding the commercial sexual activities.

 

Just like RB, RM can potentially be sued civilly, or charged criminally for violations from pimping to laundering money, or Hurant's conviction of "promoting prostitution." Just because an agency is domiciled outside the US, doesn't not exempt that agency and it's owners, managers and employees from being at risk of criminal or civil charges.

 

Ask yourself, how does RM collect it's revenue? Credit Cards? Money Orders mailed to Europe? Wire Transfers? Well, Uncle Sam can monitor overseas payments. And Uncle Sam can confiscate those revenues as they pass through commerce.

 

It's best not to raise Uncle Sam's ire.

[Nvr2Thick]

The “Netherlands defense” may be unavailing to the extent RM has employees who work in the US or visit the US. The CEO of Backpage was arrested at a Texas airport when he flew in from Holland. And as others have pointed out, payment systems on which RM depends could be subject to various Government pressures. All of this was probably part of the Government’s strategy all along: since they probably don’t have the resources to go after everyone they disapprove of, they are trying to instill fear and paranoia in people to get them to curtail their activities “voluntarily." Obviously, this is a dangerous road to go down, and I appreciate your post for the reminder that attempting to avoid all risks is also a problematic strategy.

 

Exactly. I was never quite sure whether Rentmen was Netherlands-based company or whether they shifted their hosting and business presence there.

[instudiocity]

With respect to credit cards being used in illegal activities, please let me remind you that the current White House occupant has a henchman named Jeff Sessions (Attorney General) who said, many times, that he will enforce federal laws concerning marijuana even though numerous individual states have legalized the sales of the product.

 

Despite Mr. Sessons threats, there are banks that allow credit cards to be used for the purchase of marijuana - a federal illegal product.

California marijuana dispensaries for the most part are cash only businesses. They cannot even deposit money in federally chartered banks because the Feds can confiscate the cash as proceeds of a federal criminal enterprise. That's why all of them are protected like mini-Fort Knox's and security guards carry AR-15s.

[Despardo]

Nothing in this thread suggests that you would receive a discount of any kind for using the RM app over the website. Pricing is set by the advertiser, not RM. The pricing being available on the RM app ( just a safari shell on the website ) is most likely just an oversight. We as advertisers are still unable to update the pricing and they may be out of date at anytime.

The other information on the app seems to be current, travel plans, etc. Seems like a pretty big "oversight" on the part of RM and one that could be easily corrected if RM wanted to. I really prefer the app to the other RM options. Yes, it is available for phone and for desktop PC. Pricing seems credible. I would check with the escort to verify that.

[marylander1940]

OMG I spelled it for you!!!! With online gambling, the government went after the BANKS AND CREDIT CARD COMPANIES THEMSELVES!!!!! With Canadian drugs they did that AND the ISPS and even search engines!

 

if there's a will there's a way.

[+ stevenkesslar]

In my opinion, RM is beginning to act a little overly paranoid as the chance of the US Federal Govt sending federal agents to the Netherlands etc DOES seem extremely unlikely and far fetched. Unless there is some sort of precedence for such actions that I'm not aware of.

 

Anybody ever heard of Auckland, New Zealand?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seizure_of_Megaupload

 

"Dotcom and three other Megaupload executives were arrested in a leased $30 million luxury mansion near Auckland on Friday January 20, 2012. This was in accordance to a request from the U.S. Federal Bureau of investigation (FBI) that Dotcom and the three other executives be extradited. The raid took place during Dotcom's birthday celebration. Assets worth $17 million were seized, and four men were arrested. These four men were Kim Dotcom, Finn Batato, Marthias Ortmann, and Bram van der Kolk. On January 23, 2012, Dotcom was refused bail due to being a flight risk, with Judge McNaughton stating that: "he was denied due to the risk [that] Mr. Dotcom would flee jurisdiction and the possibility that if he reached Germany he wouldn't be extradited to face the charges". However, on February 22, 2012, North Shore District Court Judge Nevin Dawson overturned the previous rulings and granted bail to Kim Dotcom due to the risk of Dotcom fleeing being diminished after his assets were seized.[6][7]"

 

My guess is that happened because of political pressure from Hollywood and lots of deep pocket intellectual property companies who donate to ........... uh, the Obama campaign, and Democrats? And probably Republicans, too. So the advantage of any relatively small escort/porn site is that they fall under the radar in a way that Megaupload didn't.

 

So you can speculate about what could or could not happen. But seems like Rentmen would rather be safe than sorry. Speaking as someone who's been in their shoes, I don't blame them.

 

Megaupload is one of many cautionary tales about what the Feds can do, whether you're in Bolivia, Bulgaria, or Botswana. :confused::confused:

[Despardo]

Ever heard of "Blue Sky Laws"? Basically the term is used to say a state can regulate anything happening under it's own blue sky. In this case, a national government can regulate anything under it's own Blue Sky.

 

While RM may be an European-based site, they are engaging in international commerce, facilitating international, interstate, and intrastate commerce, while aiding & abetting violations of federal, state and local law regarding the commercial sexual activities.

 

Just like RB, RM can potentially be sued civilly, or charged criminally for violations from pimping to laundering money, or Hurant's conviction of "promoting prostitution." Just because an agency is domiciled outside the US, doesn't not exempt that agency and it's owners, managers and employees from being at risk of criminal or civil charges.

 

Ask yourself, how does RM collect it's revenue? Credit Cards? Money Orders mailed to Europe? Wire Transfers? Well, Uncle Sam can monitor overseas payments. And Uncle Sam can confiscate those revenues as they pass through commerce.

 

It's best not to raise Uncle Sam's ire.

Pot shops in Washington seem to operate normally. Other than someone at the door to check IDs for age (which in my case is funny) there is no conspicuous sign of security or heavy artillery. Many take credit or at least debit cards.

[+ Keith30309]

I think this has been said elsewhere, but establishing a personal web site (or, at least, registering the domain) would 1) help isolate a companion from any unexpected change in RM, and, 2) help them control their content rather than being at the mercy of someone who has different priorities.

A single, central repository can be closed one way or another regardless of geography, but 1000 different sites is a different story.

[JTtorretto]

Rentmen has recently begun promoting Bitcoin as a viable and welcome payment option.

 

Because of the discreet nature of Bitcoin transactions and RM not having to deal with the credit card companies, couldn't this be a way for RM to keep their business transactions protected and private?

[+ goosh69]

Sure. But bitcoin goes up and down in value wildly and regularly.

[instudiocity]

Pot shops in Washington seem to operate normally. Other than someone at the door to check IDs for age (which in my case is funny) there is no conspicuous sign of security or heavy artillery. Many take credit or at least debit cards.

Do you think maybe LA might have a few more gangsters running around?

[excelntsvc]

i see references to a rentmen phone app ... maybe i'm totally out of it but it does not come up in the apple iphone store ...help ...

[mike carey]

i see references to a rentmen phone app ... maybe i'm totally out of it but it does not come up in the apple iphone store ...help ...

I don't have an iPhone so I can't experiment, but if I open rent.men in my browsers in Windows and on my android phone there are prompts to download the app. In Windows it specified 'rent.men for Windows app', while in android a platform for the app isn't specified. (I haven't tried to download it.) I suspect if you open it on your phone browser it will detect what version of the app and default to downloading that version. Good luck with that.

[+ freecahill1965]

I like the app. You can see prices most of the time.

[+ freecahill1965]

There have been several threads about the redirect and the new practice of suppressing fee information. In fact, there was a notification about the redirect on rentmen.com's website.

 

Does anyone know why witth the phone app rates show on some asnd not others??.

For example, I do not see rates for https://rentmen.eu/Galileo but I do for others.

[mike carey]

I've read in one of the threads about this subject that the fact that rates show up is a bug in the app - they've turned it off on the webpage but for some reason have not on the app - and that since the feature was deactivated on the webpage escorts have been unable to edit or delete their rates. So they are frozen in time. Someone mentioned that escorts can ask RM to clear the rates field for them. He may have done that, or he may have left them blank when he wrote his profile. Either way, even if you can find rates, they are no longer reliable unless they have been included in the text of the ad.

[+ freecahill1965]

Thanks Mike, good info do to know.

[+ quoththeraven]

Rentmen has recently begun promoting Bitcoin as a viable and welcome payment option.

 

Because of the discreet nature of Bitcoin transactions and RM not having to deal with the credit card companies, couldn't this be a way for RM to keep their business transactions protected and private?

There are rumblings from the Fed about doing away with Bitcoin if too much of the market flees there because it's unregulated and thus unpredictable. (And they're right about that.)

[+ Keith30309]

There are rumblings from the Fed about doing away with Bitcoin if too much of the market flees there because it's unregulated and thus unpredictable. (And they're right about that.)

This would surprise me a little.

Distributed ledger solutions (I.e., blockchain) are snowballing and used for everything from selling surplus hotel room nights to used car parts. If you ask 10 people if Bitcoin (or one of the many other cryptocurrencies) is a currency or an asset you'll get 10 different answers; that's an important question. I would think that perhaps the OCC could institute a reg that prohibited federally chartered banks from engaging in any transactions involving a non-sovereign currency (so it would make it more difficult to buy BTC's using my US Visa, for example, but I can still buy 100 other currencies and then use them to buy BTC's in accounts completely domiciled outside the US.)

I think that the genie is out of the bottle on this one and the challenge is to make it a reasonably economical process. Losing 15-cents on the dollar on conversions is a bit of a discouragement.

But, for small RentMen transactions, it would be cheap insurance for some.

Besides, it's a good way to get rid of that Olive Garden gift card your aunt gave you.