Life and business are complicated and often opaque for good reason. There are many, many perfectly good reasons that folks don't want others to know what transpired to reach a particular point, decision or effect. Why and how things occur in life and business are often not completely or even minimally clear or evidenced by what we see publicly as a result of that opaqueness.
As a journalist I am often privy to back stories about some business activity that was told to me "off the record" in confidence. I am often amazed, humored, and sometimes shocked, at the conclusions good folks draw about things that they see occur which have no basis in reality, because I know the back story and they don't. Being way too involved in political issues with Knife Rights, I know firsthand that the public result is often a product of things that occur behind the scenes which the public will never know. Because, that's how things get done in the real world.
My grandfather, a pretty wise man I think, used to have a number of sayings that were imprinted upon me as I grew up. He'd remind me often that I "didn't know what I didn't know." He also liked to say that "ignorance is bliss" and I should be careful about "making assumptions from a position of 'bliss'" because "assumptions too often result in making you an ass."
When I made assumptions or jumped to unwarranted conclusions he'd caution me to not assign maliciousness, or stupidity, to actions about which I was ignorant, because I didn't know what I didn't know. He'd say, "don't be an 'ass,' Doug," to remind me of his admonitions.
I see all too much of that online these days, to say nothing of seeing it in the news on a daily basis. Many of the assumptions made in this discussion are clearly the result of not knowing the whole story. Some are actually pretty close to the truth, others are just bizarre. Some folks apparently have vivid imaginations. Some evidently have no idea how things work in the knife business or maybe even in business in general, and certainly not in this particular instance. And, for good reason, those involved choose to keep their business affairs confidential. Because, that's how the real world works.
In any case, folks here should know that Mel Pardue and I have known each other for about 20 years. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Mel who is a gentleman of the highest order. Just a few weeks ago Mel and I spoke and caught up on our families, our various ailments, our ongoing knifemaking projects, business affairs and life in general. As always, it was a pleasure to spend time with him.
As has been noted, everyone has opinions. It is said that everyone has a right to their opinion, but that doesn't mean every opinion is grounded in actual knowledge, because they often cannot be. I try to remember what my grandfather taught me and try hard to make sure my own opinions are based on facts I know, not assumptions made on what I don't know, and what often cannot, for good reason, be revealed or discussed publicly.
I am reminded of an apocryphal tale that's been around for some time: The Wedding Ceremony
The wedding ceremony came to the point where the Minister asked those attending had any objection to the union of the bride and groom to speak now or forever hold your peace.
After a brief moment of utter silence, just as the Minister was prepared to move on a young woman carrying a child stood up and starts walking down the aisle towards the wedding party.
The congregation was aghast - you could have heard a pin drop.
The groom's jaw dropped as he stared at the approaching young woman and child.
Chaos ensued. The bride threw the bouquet in the air and burst out crying. Then the groom's mother fainted. The best men started giving each other looks and wondering how to save the situation.
As she approached the wedding party the Minister asked the woman, "Why have you come forward? What do you have to say?"
There was absolute silence in the church.
The woman replied, "we can't hear you in the back."
And that, my dears, illustrates what happens when people make the wrong assumptions and jump to the wrong conclusions!
