Dawkins sues Josh Timonen

[Robert_S]

Josh liked Chinchillas before it was cool to like Chinchillas.

He's trying to look sensitive, that means the poor things gonna be a chinchilla chimichanga before the weeks out is we don't do something!!!

[Bella Fortuna]

Josh liked Chinchillas before it was cool to like Chinchillas.

He's trying to look sensitive, that means the poor things gonna be a chinchilla chimichanga before the weeks out is we don't do something!!!

Nah - he'll just say that he invented it and claim all the profits deriving from chinchillas rightly belong to him.

[hopey_dishwasher]

I've sort of been following this, but am not legally-literate enough to understand what the point of the new documents is. What's being removed?

Does this mean the case has been dropped, or moved to another court, or what? Are they documents that he has received, or that he has submitted?

Also, what's his defense? Is it

a) that he never took the money
b) he was entitled to the money and he took it, and hasn't done anything wrong
c) the precise manner in which he was employed did not legally prevent him from taking the money, so he did; You snooze you lose.

?

[hadespussercats]

I've sort of been following this, but am not legally-literate enough to understand what the point of the new documents is. What's being removed?

Does this mean the case has been dropped, or moved to another court, or what? Are they documents that he has received, or that he has submitted?

Also, what's his defense? Is it

a) that he never took the money
b) he was entitled to the money and he took it, and hasn't done anything wrong
c) the precise manner in which he was employed did not legally prevent him from taking the money, so he did; You snooze you lose.

?

I just looked up "notice of removal"-- the gist I get is that a defendant can apply to have his case removed from state to federal jurisdiction, or from one state to another (as long as all defendants in a case agree to do so.) The reasons for this could be that the defendant doubts their ability to get a fair trial under the initial jurisdiction, or that possibly the statutes of the new jurisdiction would be more favorable to the defendant's case. Or possibly so that two people who just moved to Oregon don't have to travel to California for their court dates. I'm not sure.

What I don't understand is why JT is publishing all this. What's the point? These forms do nothing to establish the facts of the case. Nor do they engender sympathy-- any more than a photo of a douchy-looking guy nuzzling a chinchilla engenders sympathy. But all I can think is that he's trying to fight his court case one-handed in the public sphere, before it actually takes place in the legal one. Which, quite frankly, reeks of the man who doth protest too much. And it makes him seem very immature and loose-lipped-- which, what with the chinchilla photos and all, he probably is.

[Bella Fortuna]

I think the chinchilla photo may be the most damning thing about the whole matter.

"If the chinchilla fits, you must acquit"

[Tigger]

It's not actually a chinchilla

[Bella Fortuna]

It's not actually a chinchilla

^^^ Cross breeding between Timonen and a chinchilla...

[hadespussercats]

I think the chinchilla photo may be the most damning thing about the whole matter.

"If the chinchilla fits, you must acquit"

I'm suddenly seeing images in my head of Richard Gere... huh. Funny.

[Bella Fortuna]

I think the chinchilla photo may be the most damning thing about the whole matter.

"If the chinchilla fits, you must acquit"

I'm suddenly seeing images in my head of Richard Gere... huh. Funny.

Maybe JT's just a bigger arsehole...

[lordpasternack]

As I already said, Mai - Josh cares more about trying to have his ego stroked, massaged and consoled than he does about being in the right.

This was perfectly evident when he (perhaps with assistance from sidekick Andrew) flung poo at us unwashed masses during the very exciting renovation of RD.net, and Josh then assisted Richard in publishing his "Outrage" post, which Josh KNEW contained blatant falsehoods and misrepresentations - and which he must have known would cause even more ill-feeling. And he must have known that it would be frankly embarrassing for Richard to publish and then have to retract that, and perhaps only after the sorry mess had made some of the popular press.

That is of no consequence. EGO, EGO, EGO.

Might I add though that perhaps one of his biggest mistakes in all this has been greatly underestimating and insulting our intelligence. Does he really, really, think we are going to be moved by vague protestations of innocence with no real substance, alongside sweet, soppy pictures?

[Rum]

I find it quite worrying that people are influenced by opinion, impressions (the chinchilla was certainly a mistake!), and prejudice here. I don't like the look of this guy either from what I know, but I am happy for the courts to decide what was legal and what was not.

[lordpasternack]

I find it quite worrying that people are influenced by opinion, impressions (the chinchilla was certainly a mistake!), and prejudice here. I don't like the look of this guy either from what I know, but I am happy for the courts to decide what was legal and what was not.

As I've already stated, it's not just a question of legalities here. Someone can be a downright cunt, and still be within the letter of the law. Timonen could have led Dawkins down a long garden path, wilfully deceived and misled him, and used money that was ostensibly agreed to be used for charity coffers instead for his own selfish purposes - and he could get away with this partially or fully so far as the law is concerned - and we can all still agree that it's completely bastardly, all the same.

[Pappa]

Hahahaha.... the documents have been removed. What a surprise. Josh is an utter dufus for posting anything online about it while proceeding are... erm... proceeding.

[klr]

Hahahaha.... the documents have been removed. What a surprise. Josh is an utter dufus for posting anything online about it while proceeding are... erm... proceeding.

Indeed, especially as the Google cache sees all ... something RD himself once pointed out.

[lordpasternack]

Josh is an utter dufus

Pappa's post: abridged version. Practically lossless compression.