Ahh, thanks for your instruction to "give it a rest". Being the dense, oblivious person that I am, none of that ever occurred to me, and without your input I never would have put it all together.
If you'll notice, my comment isn't just about Clapio specifically, but rather all corporate executives. I was just attempting to inject a little levity (and perhaps some cynicism) into this discussion.. While I really am no fan of corporations, in reality how the execs live their lives has nothing to do with Clapio's legal stance on the 445nm debacle. I just assumed most people would be able to see that.. therein lies my error.
As much as I would love for all LDs to be available for pennies on the dollar to hobbyists, It's not my job to ensure that people here have a limitless supply of 445nm diodes for all time. That has never been guaranteed, and it would not be even if I said only all the right things all the time. I did my part for this community by being the first to supply these diodes to LPF members, and by sharing their source (although both would have been done by someone else had I not done it). I also stopped supplying them after a very short period of time because i recognized their potential for danger and abuse, AND because I started to see the havoc they could cause in terms of the overall hobbyist laser market. I just thought that LPF members would enjoy exploiting such a "gold mine" of laser diodes. Now, IMO, rather than feel entitled to these diodes, those people should feel fortunate that they have had this opportunity to have nearly free high-powered 445nm diodes, while at the same time understanding that at no point has there ever been any guarantee that they will remain that way. I've been saying that forever now. There's a good possibility that lasers in general will continue to fall in price now that such a large, reliable market has been created, but it would be foolish to assume that these diodes will be available for peanuts for the rest of eternity.. There's an equally good chance that display manufacturers will go to greater lengths to discourage people from harvesting lasers from their equipment to protect themselves from any possible legal ramifications. None of this should be surprising.. A wise person would plan for this possibility by keeping a few spares around at all times. That way if the source does ever dry up, you've got a few left to get you by. If you treat them good, they'll last many thousands of hours each.
And I'll be sure to take your lecture on responsibility very seriously, after all it's not like I've been living life for many years now, running a business, taking care of my family, building lasers, electronics etc.. etc.. Clearly I would have no clue about responsibility.