John's head explodes: AT&T rebate paid with an AT&T debit card

My head just exploded.

Ok, so I knew when I did the deal with Satan's pond-sucking scum that I should expect a shaft or two, but this one is so audacious.

I just noticed, in a very fine print amongst all the paper work of a new cell phone contract, that AT&T pays its rebates with an AT&T debit card.

AT&T has been sued over this practice:

AT&T "Rebate" Case Going Forward - O'Reilly Emerging Telephony

...I also clearly remember my dismay at getting a VISA debit card as my “rebate” and the many hoops that I had to jump through to use it simply as a credit on my next Cingular bills...

More on the lawsuit -- so it went forward in 2007. There are a few web references to this topic, but I couldn't find anything new.

I'll see what the terms of use are on the cards we get and I'll update this post. It's likely I'll have the chance to fire off a letter to our state attorney general.

I so want Google to crush these leeches.

Update 3/24/2008: I get my cards, and consign the responsible exec to the eighth circle of Hell.