Trial Piece
The New Yorker has a Wonderful piece on the trial between Mrs. Rowling and Mr. Vander Ark.
Below is a few small pieces, be sure to check the entire article HERE.
Once upon a time, a talented weaver named Arachne declared herself superior in skill to Athena, the goddess of wisdom, who also invented weaving. Whether Arachne was actually better we’ll never know, for Athena, in a jealous rage, destroyed her rival’s tapestry and turned her into a spider. Last summer, at a “Harry Potter” convention in Toronto, a fan named Steve Vander Ark made a similar mistake when he dared to compare himself to Joanne (J. K.) Rowling.
In 2000, Vander Ark, turned his obsessive notes into a Web site, The Harry Potter Lexicon. Soon, he was a celebrity in the “Potter” community. But when he decided to turn his Web site into a book Rowling sued his publisher, effectively exiling him from the wizard community.
One of his former cohorts, Melissa Anelli, sat at the back of the courtroom for much of the testimony. Although she and Vander Ark had collaborated on podcasts (she’d referred to him as a “guru”) and had even linked their Web sites together in the “Floo network,” she was not at the trial to cheer him on but, as she said, “to support Jo.”
Anelli is writing her own “Potter” book, with Rowling’s blessing, and during a break in the trial Rowling sought her out and gave her a warm embrace, a moment that might have been as difficult for Vander Ark as any part of the legal proceedings.
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I don't know how bad the courts and courtrooms are in other countries, but this suit sits just fine with the mighty U.S. legal system. Where people can not only sue, but win millions of dollars in a lawsuit because the coffee that was bought was 'too hot'; or where burglars can sue a homeowner for injuring themselves during a robbery.
I'm sure no matter where you stand on this case, you're hoping as we are here, that justice Does win out on this case.
Thanks to Tim Wu for writing this piece, and to Portkey for passing it on to us.