(Part 3 of 4)
Game-hatin’ attorney Jack Thompson went verbally medieval on GamePolitics in an interview with the obscure PopZart site during the week of E3.
In my third year of running GamePolitics, I’ve grown accustomed to Thompson’s criticism, but this attack was remarkably personal in nature, so I feel called upon to respond. Part one of my riposte may be found here. Part two here. Part three follows:
JT: McCauley filed a Bar complaint against me over a year ago, claiming that my tactics were "unethical." He's entitled to his opinion, and he can even file a baseless Bar complaint. It was baseless, because The Florida Bar... looked at his ridiculous Bar complaint and threw it into the wastebasket.
GP: Thompson has been the subject of a number of Bar complaints in recent times, filed by judges, lawyers, and yes, GP. In fact, based upon the Florida Bar's investigation of other complaints, Thompson faces a pending disciplinary trial before the Florida Supreme Court.
In regard to GamePolitics, Thompson has posted about my Bar complaint before, and I've made no effort to block his postings.
The fact is that filing the complaint was never something I wanted to do, but under the circumstances in early 2006 (veteran readers may recall those turbulent times) I felt I had no recourse. A cease-and-desist letter sent to Thompson on April 3rd, 2006 had been ignored. It read in part:
As a public figure, you can expect to be commented on, and not always to your liking... for a long time I resisted calls from readers to ban you from GamePolitics... I thought that you had something to add to the dialogue and that there was benefit in hearing diverse views.
When the C&D was ignored, the 9-page Bar complaint was filed on April 19th. Thompson's characterization of the complaint as "baseless" is simply his spin. The Florida Bar took four months to investigate and ultimately chose not to proceed. They didn't explain why. The fact that I was neither Thompson's client nor involved in any legal cases with him seems a likely factor. The Bar certainly didn't say my complaint was baseless.
JT: When McCauley filed it, I told him that he had a journalist [sic] obligation... to disclose to his readers that he had filed the complaint. Why? Because it's called full disclosure. It gives all a heads-up that you, a reputed "news" site, have a vested interest in harming someone about whom you are "fairly" reporting. Any real journalist knows you can't report on a story and at the same time make yourself a player in the story.
Disclosure of the existence of an inquiry or complaint and the contents thereof outside of the disciplinary system may provide a basis for legal action.
Thompson has chosen to make to my Bar complaint public. If he wants to talk about it, fine. But beyond confirming its existence, I won't discuss specifics, for the reasons listed above.
Comments
I know it wasn't him.
I was reffering to jdecamp's first statement. The one before that comment.
Not to make things more confusing ;p
Oh good. I'm not the only one who thought that pic made Jack look afflicted from constipation.
I also agree with Dennis on this series. Stupidity and malice to soem degree can eb ignored, but when a guy starts slinging accusations, you have to respond. Otherwise, it's like you're admitting it.
"You are responsible for Columbine and you are responsible for Virginia Tech"
Taking away from the victims. Is that what you mean?
I remember the episode with the Newspaper Jack, I remember who was continually phoning his boss complaining, and I know how full of BS you are.
There's no point trying to throw out more accusations simply because you are being humiliated five ways from Sunday, it simply looks like the grasping at straws that it is.
Repeating your 'spun' version of the facts ad-hominum does not make them any the less spun, and does not make the evidence of your falsehoods any less real.
The reason for the regulatory sanction, as you are well aware, was because you were claiming that it was a legal requirement to state our full name, address and telephone number when we responded to you, your action may have put any minors on the site at extreme risk had they believed you. That is something I will never, ever forget.
All other arguments aside (I think we'll let Dennis defed himself, seeing how he has the facts in hand), I'd like to point out that the Entertainment CONSUMERS Association (ECA) is NOT funded by the industry. It's funded by people like the posters here, and 3rd parties that sympathize with our position. The buyers of videogames are sick and tired of these broad, demeaning, and grossly overpublicized generalizations about gaming and thegaming industry.
You yourself can dare not claim to be the innocent protector of virtue and constitutional right when you have the bare-faced audacity to claim that all the industry is a dishonorable establishment. If you knew the FIRST thing about honor, Mr. Thompson, you never would've had a judge recuse himself by threatening to run for his official position. That dirty, underhanded, and false trick makes you more a serpent than a knight in shining armor. Do us a favor and keep that forked tounge behind your teeth until you TRULY learn what honor is.
AgnostoTheo
Further, no real attorney would inject himself into cases in which he was never apart of by seeking bogus amicus briefs just so you could get your 15 minutes of fame on every case involving youth violence.
Additionally, Thompson has not told you all that due to so many bar complaints and questionable courtroom ethics his pro-hac vice license rejected in Alabama for turning a courtroom into a court of kangaroos.
Jack Thompson has thus become nothing more than a shill for fringe political groups such as the LaDouche movement and the Eagle Forum. Real attorneys speak on behalf of their plantiffs and not of themselves.
How typical. How amusing. How typical of one Johnathon Bruce "Batman" Thompson
PyroHazard. Professional asshole and you're not, Woo Woo!
Yes, but at least you've then put the truth out there so that the bile doesn't reign unchallenged. Plus most people begin to suspect BS when someone's response to a counter argument is "You're secretly on their payroll!"
You have no ground to stand on. And what makes me even more angry that you are trying to keep adult games out of adult hands (and don't even try to give me that trying to keep adult games out of children's hands because none of your actions have ever been anything but keeping them out of everyone's hands). What makes me even more angry then that is that you are a driving force keeping people from understanding the real motivations behind the school shootings. While you are using an easy target scapegoat primed and ready for knee jerk behavior more and more children who feel lost and angry and in need of psychiatric care are slipping through the cracks. While you rail away on games they are getting worse. And by preventing any real progress they come ever and ever closer to another Columbine or Virgina Tech. And you will have blood on your hands Jack. To make a quick buck you take people's attention away from these lost children. You are responsible for Columbine and you are responsible for Virginia Tech. You are a loathsome human being.
Caps lock is cruise control for cool. >.>
But even with cruise control you still have to steer :D
Reading this a second time made me giggle.
I believe he pointed it's a consumers association, yes?
Secondly repeat after me "The ECA is not a part of the video game industry." Now say that a hundred times until it starts to sink in.
And finally he might not have reported on the bar complaint because frankly, its not all that big a deal. Honestly I didn't really care. I know you think the sun rises and sets at your feet and the news agencies should report every bowel movement you make. Unfortunately for you Jack Pride is a sin. You may repent now.
It's because the Bar said he would risk legal action if he did.
"Additionally, Dennis has not told you all that the St. Paul Pioneer Press told him to stop referring to himself as a columnist for that paper when in fact he was not."
Yes he did.
"Dennis McCauley has thus become nothing more than a shill for the video game industry, as his apparatchik status with ECA indicates."
The ECA is not part of the game industry. It's a consumer group.
Believe me, people get much more exited when they hear that some guy is about to ban a game, they are more entrapped.
When Manhunt 2 got banned, the Original Manhunt broke the records of sales in my country, non-Gamers bought it too (and some even purchased a PS2)
Further, no real journalist would have made himself "part of the story" by seeking a regulatory sanction against someone in the news about whom he was reporting. No one else would have done such a thing and claimed to be objective.
Additionally, Dennis has not told you all that the St. Paul Pioneer Press told him to stop referring to himself as a columnist for that paper when in fact he was not.
Dennis McCauley has thus become nothing more than a shill for the video game industry, as his apparatchik status with ECA indicates. Real journalists cover an industry without becoming part of the industry they are covering.
How sad. How dishonorable. How typical of the video game industry.
Jack Thompson
*shudder* it was like a circus
Careful what you're saying there. Combining the ideas of Thompson and /b/ could prove fatal for unprepared minds.
Funny how you don't see any JT memes around.
I think I even got JT to insult me in an email once over video game legislation in my state, Louisiana...
The thing is, Jack's like conspiracy theorists; if you ignore him then you end up being a bunch of people believing lies, simply because no one took the time to refute said lies.
And if you try to refute such lies, you're in the pockets of the industry. he tries to make it so you can't win.
It's the same as arguing with a /b/tard.
I dont Recon him talking against Running with Scissors (Postal Game), THQ (Saints Row) or even SCEE - SOHO Studios (The Getaway series). Arent those games GTA replicas ?
Dont get me wrong I dont want him to continue attacking the gaming industry but he seems biased sometimes. (or else maybe he is just a Games pawn, made up to increase Games Sales... hmmmm)
It's possible, and he has alluded that he plans to make trouble for them over GTA4, it was and is only a matter of time before that settlement is shattered.
Not necessarily, however he did do the equivalent of the fishing wire prank, basically putting the check in their hands and whipping it away with his "satire" claims
And yes, JT kept trying to urge Dennis to release info about the BAR complaint many times in hopes that it could be rendered null and void.
Another reason you disclosed this information was because it was a personal matter. You report news, not blog about your feelings (granted this is one, but this feels more as an editorial than anything, and since JT uses his media to rant, you can use yours).
JT is an unreasonable man, and even though this won't help anything for him, it might help us, in some way, break him.
And I'm pretty sure since hes claiming victory over Manhunt 2 that he's breaking the agreement he had with T2/R*
Can't wait for part 4.
Karma is a bitch and it'll catch up to him sooner or later. Im kinda suprised that he's been allowed to act like such a twat over there and still be a lawyer.
Oh and i got a real laugh over him claiming victory over manhunt 2 lol. like he did anything to stop it being released.
I think that in order to properly put JT in his place, we must not answer any of this madman's ramblings. We must do as he does. Ad hominem attacks. In the end, regardless of how wrong JT is, the only real comment that has done any damage to him whatsoever was the "massacre chaser" comment.
JT doesn't make these accusations because they are true, he makes them because a) people will believe them b) to put his target on the defensive so they can't attack and c) just to say them.
We need to spin the stories... how about "Jack Thompson steals $10,000 from charity"? Which he did.
I just wanted to pass along my thoughts that you truly are a exceptional journalist. The way you choose your topics and report on them is something every journalist should try to emulate. You've proven yourself to be intelligent, reasonable, and honest. And I'm glad you don't let people, and I'm refraining from using a derogatory term, like Jack Thompson push you around and change what you do. I'm always amazed that the journalists who are actually fair are attacked by people who claim to be. Keep up the good work.
-HR
Not only that, but the only reason Jacky Boy wants Dennis to disclose the Bar complaint he filed is because Jacky Boy wants an excuse to file a libel suit against Dennis.
But if Jacky Boy were to file a libel suit against Dennis, Dennis could use that as an excuse not to post anymore news stories where Jacky Boy is an active participant in the story, thus taking attention away from Jacky Boy's activities.
That's called Mutually Assured Destruction.
I'm happy your responding in a professional manner Dennis, taking the high road with people like Thompson is always the right thing to do.
He isnt locked up because he tricks a lot of people in his making and so he is believed upon no proofs.
Fortunately, Dennis is more than a bit more professional :)