This letter is really hard to respond to, but it mentions me so I guess I'll give
it a shot. There seem to be two themes...(1) The author did wrong, but others
did worse, leave him/her alone and go after them.
(2) His/her customers were only
doing what was in their self interest and he/she encouraged them to do so.
I hardly
know how to begin to respond. Perhaps an analogy. Suppose that you are
a high school teacher. Your students will be taking the SAT tests. They
are not supposed to cheat -- but it is in their (short-term) self interest to cheat.
If they get high scores, it also makes you look good. You administer the test
-- but ignore the rules. You allow them to bring in books, tutors, and talk
among themselves. After all, it is in their self interest to cheat. Their
high scores will also make you look good. Later, officials become suspicious
and post your name on a list. You write the officals and tell them -- "I was
only helping my students do what is in their self interest. Besides, I only
have 25 students. Don't go after me. There is a high school down the
road with 1,000 students who cheated. It is very unfair for you to put my name
on a list."
Look folks, I am not a saint. I am guilty of all sort of things,
including pride, hypocrisy, greed, anger, lust, etc. -- Thus I am a fan of
mercy. But, jeepers, does the author of this letter seems to have some serious
problem realizing that they have done anything wrong? If they were to realize
what they have done wrong, the honorable thing would be to refund the fees collected
and seek cancellation of the names.