Howdy, Folks:
I got some interesting e-mail this morning, part of which is
quoted below, which demonstrates how fearful law libraries
are of the West/Thomson conglomerate. The person who sent
me this message has requested anonymity. If that doesn't
scare you, it should. If law librarians are so tight-lipped
about their deals with West/Thomson, think how cautious they
are in comments to the Department of Justice, if they comment
at all. Talk about a chilling effect!
The thing that really bugs me about this merger is "Where are
all the lawyers?" They'll be affected by this thing more than
anyone else. May I suggest that law librarians bring the fact
that comments with DOJ are due today to the lawyers in their
firms? I have been sickened over the years by the fact that
law libraries -- whose operations are really the nerve centers
for the practice of law -- have been stuck with cheap, second-
rate hardware, inadequate staffing and pay, and lousy support
from the lawyers who rely on them. Meanwhile all the trappings --
including marble and oak paneling -- are paid for without a
second thought. Criminy. What priorities. It won't get any
better for law libraries post-merger, either.
The anonymous quote follows:
>I had hoped that one of the things to come out of the law-lib listserv
>would be a sharing of the nature of our deals, so that companies could
>not offer deal X to A, and deal Y to B, and deal Z to C, all the while
>saying that's all there is, with no room for negotiation. In the spirit
>of democracy, and having come from a "government in the sunshine" state,
>I think that all deals should be available to all customers, with the
>customer being allowed to choose what suits his budget and needs.
>Unfortunately, everyone is very tight-lipped about their transactions
>with West, desperately trying to hold on to their deals, afraid that
>disclosure will mean no more special treatment, when in fact it would
>actually mean "special" treatment for everyone, consistently.
Scott Wetzel
CD Law, Inc., 1000 2nd Ave., Suite 1610 Seattle WA 98104
(206) 623-1688
http://www.cdlaw.com
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Wed Nov 14 2007 - 20:49:16 PST