As the end of the year approaches, I’ve been reflecting on
the ongoing efforts of those in the Friends group on Ravelry, our allies and
partners and recognizing that the struggle we’ve been engaged in for most of
2012 (and many before then) has been a struggle for justice.
It is an injustice that designers, writers, photographers,
employees, contractors, printers, many commercial vendors, advertisers,
landlords, subscribers, lace, sock, and amigurumi club members either:
- Weren’t
paid for goods or services they provided
- Weren’t
provided goods they paid for
- Didn’t
have their goods transferred to be published by the purchaser of the
magazines sold by the Administrator
- Didn’t
have their goods submitted for payment and publication returned as
promised
- Had
patterns sold on without payment or in violation of contract or where no
contract existed
- Had
work published without permission or payment
- Saw
goods paid for provided to the public free for download from the Internet
- Allegedly
had advertising run without agreement
- Were engaged
to collect disputed or uncollectible debts
For a history and more detail:
Click
AND MORE THAN ANYTHING
To have the reasons for and the defense of the above and
more be that mistakes were made and the companies’ liability is
limited under
UK
law. To quote the oft quoted Mr. Bumble from Oliver Twist:
“…the law is an ass—an idiot. If that’s the eye of the law,
the law is a bachelor; and the worst I wish the law is that his eye may be
opened by experience—by experience.”
There are those who still sleep, doze, or continue to imbibe
the intoxicating potion ladled out by those whose refuge has been and remains
the crenellated walls of the law and
who publicly swear that certain individuals have
done no wrong. Personally, I wish you well with that. Hope it works for
you. But I fear, and think I speak for many more than you know, that one day you
will reap Mr. Bumble’s wish and find out the worst: that your eye has been
opened by experience.
