IT’S only day four and Margie Thomson has, well, had enough.
Enough of us, that is.
It seems Margie’s idea of free speech – or high-priced speech as the case is here with the Whale Oil book – is that she’s free to say what she likes, but if we dare to say anything back then we should expect a slow painful death.
Granted, we have had had a fair bit to say about Margie Thomson this week.
And yes a good chance we will have a fair bit more to say next week also – and the week after that.
Margie apparently isn’t liking all this exposure.
So predictably she’s gone to the lawyers and had a whinge and they’ve responded as lawyers do with a legal letter full of empty threats.
In the letter they claim Marc Spring is in breach of the settlement agreement in his defamation case by disclosing how much money he received.
In none of the stories does Marc reveal how much he received.
Yes we talk in ballpark terms about how much to date it has cost to resolve the Whale Oil debacle – and in one story we made a reference to the figure of $500,000 plus.
Let’s be clear on one thing. Of that. $500,000 plus, we estimate most of that money went to the lawyers who’ve spent the past two years handsomely dining out on this saga.
And yes with double standards and this sort of hypocrisy.
We have a email from Margie Thomson’s husband James Charlton to a work colleague where he comments on Spring’s settlement and how the insurers were delighted they only had to pay such a ‘paltry amount’.
Quite remarkable given there is another lawsuit still pending.
Charlton, unlike Spring, did not receive a legal letter from Wynn Williams for the email where he also makes reference to how well Wynn Williams have done from the Whale Oil case.
We will go into that later in another story but for now we would like to tell Margie we won’t be silenced by her or anyone.
If she is looking to muzzle anyone, she should try her husband.
Here’s the thing. Free speech and freedom of the press are one and the same and we don’t need the permission of Margie Thomson, her lawyers, Matthew Blomfield or anyone to exercise it.
As you’ve seen with our coverage this week, we exercise that right without fear or favour.
Unlike others our aim is to elevate the discussion from to a place where truth shines bright.
A place which makes Margie very uncomfortable.
