In April of this year I wrote a Buzzz article entitled "Doth Thous Protesteth Too Much?" which questioned the gung-ho-edness of Sex Offenders R Us, C3EO, and R2D2 in persecuting an obscure, private citizen who opposed forcing convicted sex offenders into a quiet, private neighborhood - next to day care centers, children, elderly widows, children, and vulnerable adults (Uh, that would be me...) - through abusing the justice system by filing multiple bogus law suits - frivolous SLAPP suits. My question was: WHY are they going to such lengths to shut me up and make me go away??? What do they have hidden that they don't want Hannabelle to unearth?
Well, now we know .... more....
Remember Paul Smith? He is (or perhaps the past tense would be more appropriate here) WAS the Executive Director of the Mille Lacs Academy - the local head honcho, so to speak. He is the guy who, when I asked him why JIM D'ANGELO, the former CEO of Nexus is suing me answered, "You didn't show Mr. D'Angelo proper respect." Really??? Can you really get sued for not respecting someone? In America? Well, I guess you can, if some bastard is wealthy enough and vindictive enough - and this one certainly seems to be.
Anyway, I feel pretty confident to express my candid opinion about MR. Smith without fear of yet another law suit from him because.... it looks like he has his hands so full with his own legal fees for his own trial that he probably won't want to waste more money on l'il ol' Hannabelle here. Yes, MR. Smith has bigger fish to fry. Or perhaps he IS the "bigger fish" about to be fried.
When, so many meetings ago, I asked him why he didn't live in our community, he said "I choose to live in the country. I don't want to live next to a .... school." This was just plain sadistic. To me it seemed like he was enjoying my pain of having my own choice of country living ruined by his "school". I certainly didn't choose to live by 94 convicted sex offenders. He seemed to enjoy rubbing it in... my lack of power to stop Nexus from taking over Dahmerville.... A na-na-na-boo-boo sort of thing.
But, MR. Smith (notice how respectful Hannabelle can be!!!) have no fear!!! My research indicates that - unlike your "Academy", most correctional facilities are situated away from residential areas, often in rural settings. So, if you are indeed convicted, whatever prison you end up in - you probably won't have to worry about living next to a school. Yay for you!!! Of course, you are presumed innocent until proven guilty - because this is the United States of America and we have a Constitution to protect citizens. Right?
But since I no longer trust my own Rights, especially when it comes to FREEDOM of SPEECH, I'll defer to other people's words.
from: Former head of Marie Detty indicted
"Smith served as the director of Marie Detty Youth and Family Services Center that administered a Head Start Program with a federal grant from September of 1989 to August of 2004.
The counts include theft and embezzlement from the non-profit agency's employee benefit profit-sharing plan, converting funds for his own personal use.
Smith is also indicted for a scheme to defraud and mail fraud in a contract where Marie Detty sent thousands of dollars in payments to a ghost company called Paradigm Associates. Court documents say Paradigm is a company Smith set up to advise, consult and direct management for Marie Detty, but in this scheme, it had no employees, no business location and provided no such services.
Other counts involve providing false information to federal investigators.
If found guilty of the crimes, Smith would face up to 30 years in prison, and $750,000 in fines."
http://www.kswo.com/Global/story.asp?S=9222926
Fry Fishy, Fry.
3 comments:
I was a resident of Onamia for many years, attending both elementary and High school there. From time to time I try to keep up with local news even though it's been a couple decades since I've been a resident. I have read through your entire blog and I have to commend you on your energy and tenacity. As a fellow blogger: blogging is not an easy activity and to keep up on it is day in and day out, especially if you don't get a lot of positive feedback it impressive.
I don't really like to make comments addressing a blog style or how a blog is managed, but I have to say that I think that you did yourself and your cause a great disservice with the style and content of your blog. You do, in fact come across as crazed and hysterical at times and certainly alienated many people who would have perhaps otherwise been your supporters. In particular the following struck me:
- References to intercourse with infants and toddles. By bringing this up many times, you almost certainly alienated many readers. And the hysterical and tasteless way it was injected almost certainly lead readers to think that your were exaggerating, out to shock or perhaps mentally unstable.
- Use of profanity. Actually many successful blogs do use profanity. But to me there never seems to be a point. Some people simply don't like to read it and others, even if they don't mind it themselves would never pass on a link to a blog that uses it. (In all cases diminishes your potential readers and ultimate supporters.)
- Many accusations made without providing support. If your going to accuse someone of something then you should provide a detailed argument with links and references. You should quote the relevant sections of those links (don't just repost the whole article). If you are restating an accusation you made previously and don't want to reexplain it then you should link to your original argument.
- Lack of a coherent structure to your posts, making it difficult for readers to follow your reasoning and understand how various arguments were related to evidence your were providing. Many of your blogs are long rants that are hard to follow a mixture of story anecdote argument and facts, all jumbled together. Very difficult to follow. Many blogs do, in fact take a ranting tone, outrage and incredulity being common. But successful ones are not just a stream of conscious but well structured. George Carlin, who you mention and refer to many times is an example of this. Listen or read him carefully. His rants SOUND as though they are spontaneous, but they are in fact finely crafted and well structured.
- A tendency for extravagant and hyperbolic language that actually engenders sympathy for your target rather that support your point.
- Talk of Mothers' ill health or your own is cheap. It can't be validated. Even if it were true, using it as an example of the harm NEXUS is causing. Simply makes it look like you've run out of substance and are throwing innuendo.
In short you may be outraged and have every right to be outraged, but screeming your outrage is neither persuasive or informative. I would invite you to reread your material and maybe work on trying to improve your writing; clearly you are intelligent ant well read. I think that you could be a very good writing. (cont.)
That said, I know from my years in Onamia that town and school leadership, if it can be called that, can be incompetent, corrupt and very stupid. All the cast has changed, many times probably, since I followed Onamia political antics -- although the last names of some seem to indicate at least a continuation by blood -- but I certainly know how frustrating they can be. I also know how large organizations, non-profit and commercial, do try and take advantage of small towns. And it would seem that this is a case in point. There are significant cost saving for NEXUS putting a facility in a small town where service and utility costs can be defrayed, especially if corresponding exception from property taxes can be secured. In addition I can see the lure of bring an institution into town that will bring addition jobs into the region, perhaps some holders of those positions will even be encouraged to settle even encouraged to settle in the city limits. But Onamia is simply too small for even such a modest size institution. At 94 students, Onamia is now, generously allowing for the 2000 population of 847, over 10% convicted juvenile delinquent. That is too much for any community and especially a marginal one such as Onamia.
In addition, the legal intimidation is unforgivable. I have no doubt that you have caused them embarrassment and indeed some of your posts are well outside the bounds of fairness and good taste. And I would urge you, as I mentioned above to modify your style, not because your targets are undeserving of it (I really don't know if they are or not) but because it diminishes your cause. But in any case even if everything you said was a complete fabrication, which clearly it is not, their lawsuit is a naked attempt to silence an opponent of vastly unequal resources who has a personal stake in what he or she is writing about. This type of behavior, in and of itself, disqualifies such an organization from the town having anything whatsoever to do with it. Even crazy crackpots should be given the broad possible license voice their objects about such concerns because there is so little oversight from anywhere else. And any organization that resorts to intimidation and ham handed libel suites is one that can not be trusted to do business in good faith.
Finally, I laud you for making the effort to blog your complaints and observations even if I think that they were probably counter productive and certainly not as helpful as they might have been. In addition, as you hone your writing, I encourage you to widen your scope and seek out other topics to write about. So, much of what happens in small towns goes on unreported, or worse yes reported with bias by the very limited and receiving scope of the media. It sounds like you have gained considerable skills in research and following town hall proceedings. Onamia could benefit from you lifting the lid and shinning a light in on them. In some ways, you as a citizen blogs are the wave of the future for keeping small town government honest and accountable. I'm also contributing to your fund. It's not much, unfortunately, but I encourage other to do what they can.
Dear Anonymous,
Thank you very much for your comments. You obviously spent a lot of time reading the Bradbury Buzzz, analyzing and critiquing my writing, and generously sharing your impressions. I sincerely appreciate the time and effort you expended and I take your comments to heart. I will respond in greater depth in my next blog entry. Thank you also for donating to Hannabelle's Legal Defense Fund. I don't want to sound like a whiner, but the Nexus lawsuits have pretty much wiped out my entire life savings, not that I had much to begin with. (But at least I still have my integrity... They can't take that away from me.)
Thanks again,
Hannabelle
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