That’s right: you can interview me, or I will interview YOU for #deathtosquirrels – winner’s choice.

NO SUBJECT OFF LIMITS!

Promote yourself or your business! Make me embarrass myself – forever! On the goddamn internet! Either way I will post our interview here, and you can post it wherever you desire.

But before we get to that, I want to tell you a quick story about what “free” speech really costs.

As many of you know, a former blogger at FtB filed a SLAPP suit against our blog network (among other defendants, including PZ Myers personally) for publicly discussing well-known, widely-reported allegations about his unsavory behavior toward multiple women.

Of course he had no basis for suing and dropped all claims, eventually “settling” for $0.00 and without any nondisclosure agreements in place concerning the matter. But not before the defendants racked up a sizeable legal bill with First Amendment lawyer Marc Randazza.

This is precisely how SLAPP suits work to shut down free speech. These defendants collectively hired a lawyer and fought back; not all SLAPP suit defendants can do so. But shutting fighting came at a steep price.

THAT’S WHERE WE COME IN. (“We” as in YOU and ME.)

YOU can make a donation to FtB’s legal fund here. Any amount is appreciated: it all adds up. If you value what we do here, please help us pay down our legal debt. Because this is what “free” speech really cost us when you get right down to it.

My FtB comrades and I want to offer you a little extra incentive to donate: there are offers and incentives from other FtB bloggers you can peruse here.

This is my offer to you:

The highest bidder in this post’s comment section as of 6:00 PM (EDT) on Sunday, September 27 can interview me – or I will interview YOU for #deathtosquirrels: winner’s choice.

RULES

1. Bids. Minimum bid is $1. You can either bid directly in the comments of this post, or by email if you wish to remain anonymous. To bid via email, send your bid to irisvpluym [at] gmail [dot] com, with “Iris Interview” in the subject line. I will post a corresponding comment here that reads “Anonymous bid for $____” along with the date and timestamp of your email. [h/t Marcus]

2. Winning. When bidding closes at 6:00 PM (EDT) on Sunday, September 27, the highest bid wins. The winning bid will be announced in this comment thread and in a separate post. The winner is expected to donate the bid amount to the defense fund within 48 hours of announcement, and provide me with suitable proof (a receipt or screenshot will do, though if it looks janky to me I will ask PZ to confirm the funds are received). [h/t]

3. Method of communication. If by 6:00 PM (EDT) on Sunday, September 27 FtB’s defense fund has collected less than $1,500, the interview will take place via email. If it hits $1,500, via voice call. If it reaches $2,500, by video. The winner may downgrade if, for example, email is preferred.

4. Preconditions. I reserve the right to decline to respond to any question the answer to which may incriminate or otherwise harm myself or others, and/or for my own safety and privacy or that of others. I will likewise honor the winner’s preconditions if I am the interviewer.

5. Date, time and length of interview. Once the winning bid is confirmed as paid, the interview will commence during the week of September 28 through October 4 at a mutually agreeable time and will conclude no later than 10:00 PM (EDT) on Sunday, October 4. If by video or voice call, the maximum length of time allotted will be 20 minutes (not including any preliminary communications, setup time or the resolution of technical issues). If by email there is no time limit, but the maximum question limit is 20 with a maximum exchange limit of 3 (back-&-forth = 1), not including any preliminary exchanges. All communications in connection with the interview will cease as of 10:00 PM (EDT) on Sunday, October 4. The interview will be posted as soon as possible and practical.

BID EARLY! BID OFTEN!

MAKE ME REGRET THIS!