Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Sticks and Stones

Sticks and stones may break my bones,
but words can never hurt me!
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I remember that little proverb from childhood, don't you? When I was little, that was the standard come-back. But the way our society is today, it wouldn't surprise me to one day find the courtrooms filled with mouthy kids and their high-bucker lawyers. Just think if children were subject to defamation lawsuits. Can you imagine the drama in the courtroom? Your Honor, he called my client "a big turd!". Your Honor, he called my client "a booger butt!". Your Honor, she called my client "Poopsie!"
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Yes, it seems rather childish - even laughable that Hannabelle is being sued for calling (former) Chief Executive Officer D'Angelo "Poopsie" and for embarrassing Professor Freeman by complaining about his inappropriate, rude behavior. But this frivilous lawsuit is still an effective strategy. In some ways, D'Angelo and Freeman are accomplishing what they obviously set out to do: Hurt me. Punish me. Maybe even bankrupt me. (Otherwise, if they wanted to get along with Hannabelle, they might have tried COMMUNICATING with her...) No. This is about Power, and its abuse. And they have definitely succeeded in hurting me. But on the other hand, they have failed to silence me. Now we seem to be in a mighty pissing contest - two men standing against one woman (with bad knees that forbid her from squatting - not much of a contest, is it...)
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But we shall see how it turns out. One of the big things about a defamation suit is that the defamer (that would allegedly be me...) has acted with malicious intent. Hannabelle, malicious? you ask. Well, you must keep in mind that until Nexus forced themselves into my life, I was just minding my own business, trying to stay well enough to enjoy the little things I like to do in my simple little life. Music, of course. No longer being physically able to teach, conduct an orchestra, or perform, I compensated by publishing music when I felt up to it. Still trying to be "productive", I guess. I can't do many of the activities I used to do before my illness, but I was busy "keeping on keeping on" as they say. For example, I have trouble walking, but on a good day I love the freedom of riding a horse. Once in the saddle, I could ride all day. A year ago. Now, with my health deteriorating, I'm having a hard time there too. But the important thing to remember is that although I was chronically ill before Nexus came, I wasn't chronically angry. I almost never said the word "fuck". It wasn't until Nasty Nexus imposed 94 sex offenders on us and tampered with our rights that I began sounding like a chicken: FUCK, fuck fuck fuck fuck....
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But malicious? No. I'm not a malicious person. Vindictive, yes. I'm not an easy target, a willing victim. I fight back. I didn't set out to malign D'Angelo or Freeman either. My goal was simple. Stop the building of a sex offender facility in an R1 zoned neighborhood. Why? Because it is wrong. The sneaky, unfair way they handled this was wrong. My fight was always with City Hall. Without their blessing, Nexus wouldn't be able to build this kind of facility in our residential neighborhood. I should say "prohibited" (in the past tense). The Onamia City Council changed the local ordinances to allow juvenile sex offenders into our community - specifically. Onamia's new motto could be "Sex Offenders R Us". And who knows, it might be more appropriate than you think...
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Of course, I tried to discourage Nexus from buying the Steve Bye property. But consider this, if you will... Jim D'Angelo promised more than once (including at public meetings) that Nexus would "work with the community" (i.e. the neighbors), consider their input, even going so far as to say that we would be consulted on the building designs, tree removal, and landscaping. He said Nexus would even give me an easement so that I could still ride horses on the property. Jim D'Angelo said these things. Jim D'Angelo made such promises. I didn't make this up. It is on record. Plenty of witnesses. Yet, he never "worked with" us. Never consulted us. Never considered us at all. I'd go so far as to say that he intentionally refused to "work with" us.
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I tried calling him. I emailed him. He didn't respond. I did correspond with Mille Lacs Academy Executive Administrator Kathe Dellacecca - briefly - until she left Nexus... But nobody else would talk to me. I was definitely ostracized from the beginning. The old Silent Treatment... And of course, you know the story about D'Angelo - when I approached him on the sidewalk in front of the Onamia City Hall and he told me that he wouldn't respond to my emails because he didn't want to give me "the satisfaction". So much for my easement...
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So does this make Jim D'Angelo a liar? In my opinion it does. He said things which weren't truthful. He made promises he didn't keep. Should I be sued because I tattled on his bad behavior? Well, I guess anybody can sue anybody if they have the money to do it. And as D'Angelo himself said: What's $10,000 on a project this size? What's $50,000? (See video) I guess he can afford it. In 2005, D'Angelo is reported to have been paid a salary of about $267,000. (That's public information, by the way. Don't sue me......) That breaks down to a mere $22,416 per month. (Keep in mind that he's probably had a few cost of living raises since 2005... Now, compare that to the $356 disability check that Hannabelle gets per month to live on. (No cost of living raises for me since 1995... kind of hard to build up a savings...) That's $4,272 per year. Even with Social Security, I don't make a thousand per month. That might give you an idea of the "levelness" of our playing field in D'Angelo's game. *1
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I think it is important to note that although Hannabelle was told in April 2007 that Nexus was coming and there was nothing she could do about it, she didn't start writing until late June and July. Why didn't she start the Mille Lacs News or the Bradbury Buzzz sooner, you ask? Well, we were attending meetings, trying to learn what was going on, trying to talk sense into people who wouldn't listen. I received the Silent Treatment. Nobody would talk to me. Nobody would listen. If they had, perhaps there would be no Mille lacs News or Bradbury Buzzz. Experts have described Ostracism as the most cruel form of societal punishment and it can lead victims to aggression. You'd think that someone with a career in the mental health field or someone who teaches Social Work at a university would know that. Wouldn't you think?
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So after a couple of months of being ignored by Nexus, the City Council, (and of course, with pronexus coverage by the Mille Lacs Messenger) is it any wonder that I fought back the only way I could? With words? With the Truth? There was no maliciousness involved, at least on my part. There has been quite a bit of desperation though. This farm - my home - is all I have. I've spent a year trying to protect my mom from 94 unwanted sex offenders. I've tried to stand up for the neighbors, even when they didn't have the courage to stand up for themselves. Nexus has changed my life. For instance, I've become a public speaker, although I didn't seek an additional fifteen minutes... and am not looking for any limelights at this stage of my life. (I don't fear public speaking more than death, as I've been accused, it's just very hard physically for me to speak.)
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So, Jim D'Angelo brought all of this into my life and changed things forever. And now he wants to punish me for not respecting him the way that he thinks I should. *2 What do you think? Is it about respect? Or is it about fear? What do you think it is about? The U.S. Constitution, the Minnesota Constitution, and the Law all support my RIGHT to Freedom of Speech. Obviously, some people don't agree that Hannabelle should have the same rights as others, but should shut the fuck up or suffer the consequences..... like a lawsuit. Like being bad-mouthed in the community. Like being threatened and intimidated. Like being ostracized. Like being bullied.
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As our battle waged this past year, there were many more secrets revealed, more lies told and exposed. Hannabelle cannot stop Nexus from building in the swamp down the street, but she still has a lot to tell - and still has the RIGHT to tell it.
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to be continued...
*1. Jim D'Angelo said, after receiving 7 years tax abatement from the county, "Game over. You lose."
*2 Mille Lacs Academy Executive Administrator Paul Smith explained this to me. Its all about r-e-s-p-e-c-t.
Note: Poncho told me that my blogs are way too lengthy. I said, "Yes. But the lawyers down at Mahoneys' love them."

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