The problem is these methods sometimes make things much worse. It's actually akin to bullying. I have it on good authority that Warner was in talks with the collector, and, once thejudyroom.com article went up and various comments were posted on HTF, that those talks abruptly ended.
Let's not forget this material was dumped, discarded and disrespected by Warner at one time, so I can understand why a collector, who was able to rescue it from complete loss, would then be hesitant to entrust it to the same company that, at one time, was hell bent on its destruction. We also don't know the details on what prior events occurred between the two parties in the past to complicate such a negotiation.
It's easy for any of us to say, "Hey, turn it over!" But isn't that the same thing that was told to the theaters about returning the trims after they cut the film to conform to Warner's instructions?
I'm reminded of that old saying that goes something like, "You catch more flies with honey than...," well, you get my drift.
I find it odd how some people feel this urgent need to be THE ONE to right the wrongs, to be the instigator, to raise their voice to espouse their feelings and cause to rise above anyone else's. In a way it comes off as selfish to me, one person doing what they can to put their own name and stamp on the legend. Now, I'm a fan of Don Quixote and the ideal of fighting the good fight when everyone else believes the cause to be hopeless. I also think it's important to stand up and blow the whistle when we see injustice and deception, regardless of what anyone else might think. However, publishing the name of a private citizen and rallying the troops based on nothing but third-hand information that is sketchy at best brings to mind the scene near the end of Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, when the villagers band together to storm the beast's castle, rushing to the conclusion that he will make off with their children in the night and terrorize them all, not even taking into consideration that the beast actually has a good and moral soul.
I'll all for tilting at windmills, but there has to actually be a windmill first. Believing that there MIGHT be one just isn't enough. And aren't people supposed to be presumed innocent until proved otherwise?
What happened to the idea of trying to engage someone into coming forward, to join the club, to be welcomed and congratulated for sharing what would have been lost if not for their foresight? Seems to me that would be a far better way to get results than resort to what teeters on harassment. Does anyone remember how we got some of our best intelligence information from the people we captured during WW2? It wasn't from water boarding - it was from playing cards and befriending them.
Edited by Chuck Pennington - 5/21/10 at 12:06pm
