[WikiEN-l] Troubling news on Citizendium

[Ray Saintonge]

Fred Bauder wrote:

>>From: Ray Saintonge 
>>    
>>
>>I agree in general, but deference to lawyers continues.  "IANAL" appears 
>>far more frequently that any similar phrase for other professions.
>>    
>>
>And well it should. Listening to someone give legal advice that doesn't know squat is very painful. A good lawyer knows you have to be familiar with the facts and research the law before you start in with the advice, and even then it is likely to be wrong unless a judge agrees.
>
That a good lawyer knows about facts and research does not logically 
imply that a person who is not a lawyer doesn't.  That the  lawyer is 
likely to be wrong before a judge (who is himself a lawyer) does nothing 
to build confidence in lawyers.

Listening to poor advice is indeed painful, but that experience is not 
limited to law.  Law does not begin and end with the statutes.  For 
every statutory provision there are people willing to give multiple 
interpretations where you would not expect them, and precedents often 
appear contradictory.  I believe that people have to accept the direct 
consequences of their actions, and ignorance of those consequences is no 
excuse.  It also comes down to a matter of risk tolerance, and I find 
most people to be not risk tolerant at all.

Ec