I talked to my lawyer and he was fine with me publicly commenting on it, especially since the mainstream media is doing its best to turn this into a huge story.
AND
I do trust my partners enough to my name and business on the line for them. They are innocent.
while not illegal, the direct marketing online yellow pages biz is shady as hell, comparable to online lotto's, online deals and foreclosures database purveyors, and "punch the monkey"-style advertisers (all legal businesses that employ many people). Not something I'd consider as a value-added business, more sucker-traps than anything else. The fact that "yellow pages" and the logo are up in the air makes that entire industry a massive gray area. I wouldn't want to be associated with that. What would we say if 37signals launched a bargain network service tomorrow? . . . not illegal, but goodwill down the drain.
There is a huge difference between innocent according to the letter of the law and innocent in a real-life sense.
See the OJ Simpson case for a nice example of the two.
Your friends may be 'innocent' according to the letter of the law - when all is said and done. But meanwhile they look guilty as hell in the eyes of the general public of maybe not scamming half a billions worth of dollars but still a significant amount out of the pockets of hardworking people and corporations.
It may be 'legal' but it certainly isn't 'right', and by associating yourself so strongly with these people you are not helping yourself or hashrocket.
Your lawyer has no stake in your public image but you do, your interests are not aligned and I think you've been given some bad advice.
There is a huge difference between innocent according to the letter of the law and innocent in a real-life sense.
Definitely. As a matter of fact, courts in the United States don't even claim to determine innocence; rather they determine guilt. You're either "guilty" or "not guilty" beyond a reasonable doubt of a crime.
Comments
I talked to my lawyer and he was fine with me publicly commenting on it, especially since the mainstream media is doing its best to turn this into a huge story.
AND
I do trust my partners enough to my name and business on the line for them. They are innocent.
while not illegal, the direct marketing online yellow pages biz is shady as hell, comparable to online lotto's, online deals and foreclosures database purveyors, and "punch the monkey"-style advertisers (all legal businesses that employ many people). Not something I'd consider as a value-added business, more sucker-traps than anything else. The fact that "yellow pages" and the logo are up in the air makes that entire industry a massive gray area. I wouldn't want to be associated with that. What would we say if 37signals launched a bargain network service tomorrow? . . . not illegal, but goodwill down the drain.
There is a huge difference between innocent according to the letter of the law and innocent in a real-life sense.
See the OJ Simpson case for a nice example of the two.
Your friends may be 'innocent' according to the letter of the law - when all is said and done. But meanwhile they look guilty as hell in the eyes of the general public of maybe not scamming half a billions worth of dollars but still a significant amount out of the pockets of hardworking people and corporations.
It may be 'legal' but it certainly isn't 'right', and by associating yourself so strongly with these people you are not helping yourself or hashrocket.
Your lawyer has no stake in your public image but you do, your interests are not aligned and I think you've been given some bad advice.
There is a huge difference between innocent according to the letter of the law and innocent in a real-life sense.
Definitely. As a matter of fact, courts in the United States don't even claim to determine innocence; rather they determine guilt. You're either "guilty" or "not guilty" beyond a reasonable doubt of a crime.