Bhopal Bloopers / How Dow and Burson-Marsteller made a big stink even stinkier
Let that be a lesson to all those big companies out there that don’t like it when a couple pissed-off people say what they like and it’s read by millions. Hush it up, and the furor only gets louder. Now that you know a little more about Bhopal, Dow and Burson-Marsteller, you can consider yourself part of the furor, too.
Great stuff here: Internet continues to enable wider dissemination of disparate perspectives. It’s a shame that even in 2002, BM/Dow don’t understand the impact of the Internet.
via Fark
This kind of harassment is called a SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation). Many states, including California, have statutes that allow judges to summarily dismiss lawsuits of that type.
Unfortunately, SLAPP statutes don’t apply to commercial speech. There have been cases where people posted critical reviews of a store, were sued by the owner, and had to settle at their expense, even when they were right, because they could not afford lawyers in our screwed justice system. A lawsuit can easily ruin your life.
The website http://www.chillingeffects.org has great resources on the subject, and I urge anyone who reads this to support the EFF, which is leading the good fight.