Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!xanth!ukma!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!mtxinu!unisoft!hoptoad!tim From: tim@hoptoad.uucp (Tim Maroney) Newsgroups: comp.protocols.appletalk Subject: Re: Finally, Peer-to-Peer non-dedicated AppleShare, this month!!! Message-ID: <7391@hoptoad.uucp> Date: 21 May 89 23:44:48 GMT References: Reply-To: tim@hoptoad.UUCP (Tim Maroney) Organization: Eclectic Software, San Francisco Lines: 52 In article GD.WHY@STANFORD.BITNET ("Bill Yundt") writes: >Any supplier who threatens >effective communication within the market they serve >risks exposure and condemnation within that market....a >fate far worse than dealing with criticism ....like an >adult. I agree completely! Companies must learn to accept reasoned criticism "like adults" if they want to improve themselves and to be taken seriously. If they respond to criticism with threats and bullying instead, they risk a public relations fiasco when their Mafiosi tactics are exposed. Unfortunately, sometimes people find themselves in positions which do not allow this exposure. Those people with "real jobs" are at the mercy of their managers; those of us who work on a contracting basis have to respect the commercial interests of our clients. Further, the whistleblower effect is real and dangerous, and will dissuade many people from exposing those who threaten them. As a whistleblower myself, I know that the economic effects can be serious. I would like nothing more than to expose the people who have threatened me, but it simply is not possible, because more interests than mine are at stake -- unless, of course, the thugs deliver on the threat, in which case nothing will be lost by a full public recounting of the affair. >Let us risk the wrath of the lawyers.....my >lawyers are better than their lawyers anyway!! > >....from one who has been sued for slander and survived. > >Bill Yundt It's not quite so easy for a small independent contractor to laugh off legal threats from a multimillion dollar company, I'm afraid. In this country, being vindicated in a lawsuit can destroy you financially. In summary, an idealistic view does indeed find that increased awareness of the networks as commercially important would be good for everyone. However, pragmatic consideration finds the opposite -- that bullying and gangsterism will not simply evaporate just because it should, that increased awareness of the networks can only lead to more childish threats from offended companies, and that many of these threats will be effective in suppressing criticism. -- Tim Maroney, Consultant, Eclectic Software, sun!hoptoad!tim "What's bad? What's the use of turning? In Hell I'll be there a-burning! Meanwhile, think of what I'm earning! All on account of my name." - Bill Sykes, "Oliver"