@gabs: “I hope some of you remember that there’s a difference between attacking a person and attacking a person’s actions. SVA is on trial because of what he DID not because of who he IS.”

I disagree. People’s actions reflect who they are.

Don’t get me wrong; we all do or say stupid things at one time or another that we come to regret. Nobody’s perfect, and we all have our moments where we speak harshly, or lie, or do something dishonest out of anger or fear.

But when someone shows a persistent pattern of lying, evasiveness, or disregard for other people, or decides to do something dodgy in a planned, premeditated fashion, that’s not a nice person who did something stupid – that’s a seriously messed-up individual. And when that person shows no real remorse for what they did, but instead keeps making excuses and telling stories to deflect blame and avoid the consequences of their actions, those actions say a lot about who they are as a human being.

I’m not saying a person who keeps doing rotten things and lying about it is inherently evil, but they are definitely sick and damaged, and placing one’s trust and faith in their character is not a good idea. I’m also not saying that person is undeserving of sympathy and help, but at the same time I don’t think they should be spared the consequences of their actions. Those consequences might just be the thing that person needs to admit they’ve gone badly off-track and need help.

To bring this back on topic, do I feel sorry for Steve Vander Ark because the Lexicon book has turned into a nightmare, and made him the target of mockery in the fandom? No. He brought that on himself. He’s a grown man who should have known better – who did know better, but did the wrong thing anyway. Do I feel sorry for him because he’s a deeply sad and screwed-up individual and is suffering under the weight of that? Yes. It’s a “love the sinner, hate the sin” sort of thing. I don’t despise SVA; I just think he’s a sick individual who needs help. At the same time, I don’t trust a single thing he says anymore because part of his sickness involves telling whatever story he thinks will best save his butt at any given moment, no matter what he’s said before.

@I Am the LOLrus

I guess it was a poor choice of words from my part. English is not my first language (as you may have noticed by now.) What I meant was something along the lines of what you previously wrote:

It’s a “love the sinner, hate the sin” .

The thing that really makes me feel bad is that there´s a lot of name calling in here “greedy, sorry excuse for a human being, pathetic,” etc. There’ s no need for that IMO. I understand the anger that many are feeling because of this, but it would be nice if people were a little more respectful (even if some feel that SVA doesn’t deserve any respect.)

I also don’t like the way that many like to point fingers at each other (and I mean both sides), if you (general you) write about being in favor of Steve then you are either Steve or someone from RDR, and if you (general you) defend JKR then you are an obsessed fan.

I agree with you in some of your comments, thank you for the time you took to reply. Like you, I also feel sorry for Steve, I think it’s a lose-lose situation for him, and regardless of his actions I wish him well.

I just wish this whole thing is over and all the parties involved can leave this behind.

thank you, Gabs.

@ I Am ”@Altarielle: “I still dont get how people are complaining that it’s fine to buy Wrock CDs but not fine for Steve to publish this book. It’s the same reason why it’s fine for Mugglenet to publish a “What will Happen in Book 7” book and not fine for Steve to do the Lexicon.”

This has been discussed over and over again. I don’t imagine explaining it again will help, but what the hell—hope springs eternal…

Wrock is sufficiently original and transformative-and these are the important criteria-to be considered Fair Use. It’s inspired by JKR’s work, and makes reference to her characters and storylines, but Wrockers don’t copy directly from her and claim her work as their own. Also, because it’s music, not a book or film, it doesn’t directly compete with either JKR’s or WB’s commercial interests-they aren’t making Wrock, and Wrockers aren’t taking part of their market share. In the unlikely event JKR/WB ever decided to crack down on Wrockers, they could also make legitimate claims that their work is parody-which is protected under Fair Use.”

I know, maybe you should read my post properly, eh ;)