The Wardman Wire

These posts are weekly roundups of the latest developments from the campaign to make sure that the debacle of the management of the SPCK Chain of Bookshops is scrutinised properly.

I also support Cartoonist Dave Walker who received a Cease and Desist letter from J Mark Brewer who runs the SPCK Chain of bookshops about 75 posts on his Cartoon Church blog reporting the developing situation over an 18 month period.

Statistics

• Currently the Facebook Group has 418 members since it was set up on 22 July, two and a half weeks ago).
• There are 79 sites posting in support of Dave Walker and at least 8 reporting on the situation.
• Employment Tribunals submitted against Brewer organisations / SSG: 30.
• Downloads of the Dave Walker Reposts PDF from the Wardman Wire: 800 since August 1st.
• The Wardman Wire
• Reads on Wardman Wire of articles about the SPCK shops saga: approx 40,000.

Snippets

• I have a new PDF of a Phil Groom article: The SPCK SSG Debacle - How I came to be starting from here. (PDF: 70k)
• All PDFs I publish on the SPCK/SSG issue will be posted on my publications page.

Words of J Mark Brewer

‘I am not a public figure’

(Quote from at least 2 Cease and Desist Notices.)

Really?

Is Mr Brewer a Public Figure?

Here is the partial list of items about Mark or Philip Brewer or his organisation in the last 2 years:

National Media

• Radio 4 Interview - 1
• Private Eye - 2 known to me
• Times Online - 6
• Daily Telegraph - 1

Local Media

• Worcester Standard - 2
• Worcester News - 5
• News and Star, Carlisle - 4
• Chester Chronicle - 4
• Lincolnshire Echo - 1
• Eastern Daily Press - 1
• Network Norwich - 2
  (Note - I have not looked up the local and regional press in the area of all 25 SPCK bookshops).

Church Media

• Church Times - At least 21 and an unknown number pulled due to legal caution
• Cartoon Church - 75

Trade Press

• Christian Marketplace - At least 2 and one pulled due to legal caution
• Bookseller - 10

Blogosphere

• At least 80 separate sites and perhaps 250-300 articles for the Dave Walker affair alone in the last fortnight, never mind the previous 18 months.

Brewer Self-Published Media

• Promotional video for St Stephen the Great Trust

(Sources: Mainly SPCK SSG News Log, Church Times News Index)

It looks to me that you are a public figure Mr Brewer.

Private Eye

The story appeared in the current issue of Private Eye.

• Private Eye Article Private Eye August 6th Clipped by Elizaphanian

More people taking an interest

I’ve updated the “who’s posting” list with about another ten sites who have been covering the J Mark Brewer Cease and Desist notice to Dave Walker. Here are the latest:

1. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]Ben Gallagher - A Portal onto My Life - I’m Sparta…Dave Walker Has posted several times. Gerald the Sheep Cartoons.
2. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]Long withdrawing roar - I’m Sparta…Dave Walker
3. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]Unicorn Tree Books - Interesting Times Included in Cease and Desist sent to somebody else
4. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]Brainduck’s Weblog - I’m Dave Walker Includes copy of Dave Walker posts PDF
5. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]Chicken Yoghurt - Busy
6. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]Of life, laughter and liturgy . . . - Dave Walker threatened
7. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]It’s a Rough Trade, Politics - We are all Dave Walkers now. Excellent explanation of wider issues. “Given my antipathy to any form of religion, and that on offer from the C of E in particular, you may be surprised to find me posting on events concerning the SPCK (The Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge) bookshops. But there is far more to this than religion. “
8. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]A Blog Spotting Episcopalian - More and More: The Exploding SPCK / Dave Walker’s Cartoon Church Blog Story
9. [Update:08/08/2008 AM]exeblog - Former SPCK Bookshops and Blogging

New Shop in Norwich

From Network Norwich:

A thriving city centre Christian resource centre, bookshop and cafe is set to re-open in Norwich under new management within the next few weeks after a successful rescue plan…

…Virtually all the ex-shop and cafe staff will be re-employed at the new centre, which has been one of Steve’s other hopes over the past months.

And a Question

Let me wrap up with a question about timing and due process, leaving aside all the shenanigans that we suspect has happened with respect to a UK organisation filing for bankruptcy in Houston, Texas.

From the Motion to Dismiss the Bankruptcy Petition (PDF 500k):

June 4 2008: ST STEPHEN THE GREAT LLC applied for Chapter 11 (i.e., protective while sorting themselves out) bankruptcy.

June 25, 2008, the case was converted to chapter 7 (i.e., liquidation).

Comments on the SSG/SPCK News blog make clear that:

July 8: A supplier made the point that his company was owed money:

We are a Christian Charity who sold Christmas Cards and a few other Latin American Crafts to the shops last Autumn for which we have not been paid. Not a huge debt but significant to us!

July 18: The same supplier notes that he has been paid in full:

Surprise, surprise………we’ve been paid IN FULL, including the Court Costs for filing a claim, direct from ENC in the USA! Wonder if other suppliers have???

(for the casual reader, ENC is “ENC Shop Management Co” is a US based company “trading in the UK”. More detail here).

Why would Company B (ENC) pay the debts of Company A (St Stephen the Great LLC) when Company A is in the middle of a bankruptcy process? And is that a responsible action for the Directors of Company B to take?

Just asking, I genuinely don’t know.

Key Links

Articles

• Quick Intro for Press - effectively a FAQ.
• Introductory Guide to the Dave Walker Case
• Who’s posting and supporting
• Campaign Resources - Cartoons, Badges, Social Media etc.

Other Sites

• SPCK/SSG News and Notes Blog (Phil Groom)

Feeds

• Wardman Wire RSS Feed.
• Wardman Wire Dave Walker category Feed.