Shawn Juris wrote:So help me to understand this, because some request was not fulfilled to Sharon's satisfaction, that justifies a year of insults, misrepresentations, and general bullying of an organization and therby all of its supporters?
Shawn
Where to start on your misrepresentation, bullying and insults.
Jay and Mary Anne attacking and bullying a 60 year old woman with cancer. Do you really think, that my comments, and my position on the management of Lakewood
Alive and their financial and civic accountability is solely based on this? Really? I only
mention Sharon's heroic fight with cancer as Mary Anne brought that up as a reason to
farm out a job that could have been handled in Lakewood.
I am extremely disappointed that Jay and Mary Anne never felt the need to apologize to
Sharon. That they have felt it easier to tell everyone not to read the deck or ever post,
so that their flight from accountability does not look odd, or that it has some basis in fact.
I have heard all sorts of reasons for my extreme disappointment with LakewoodAlive and
their management, but you are the first to go this low.
Though other reasons seem even
stranger! For the record, barely knew Jay in high school, we did not hang around. I mostly
remember him as the guy that always finished last in School council voting behind Mike
Summers and Steve Petras, again not really my crowd. Rarely saw them in the smoking
pit, or van in the parking lot where I spent too much of my time. So take that one off the
list of reasons too.
Let me assure you, their is no more single person in this city who can defend themselves
better from petty thoughts and deep hurting personal attacks than Sharon. She regularly
calls to kick my ass, on the phone, stops by in person, or here on the Deck.
When did accountability or asking if anyone actually judges a group's success be called
some sort of insult or bullying? How is asking for accountability attacking or belittling the
work of the wonderful volunteers? How would that even work? Is this some sort of
"family" or religious movement? Why is the topic always changed when accountability
rears its (I guess) ugly head?
Is that really it Shawn? So when I or Sharon or Rhonda, or Ken or anyone asks
LakewoodAlive to be accountable, or for others to dare to wonder aloud if we need a single
monopoly for everything in Lakewood, we are attacking the good hearted volunteer
members?
While I am sure it is painful sometimes for members to read my "LakewoodAlive..." how
else does one ask if the "group's" real plain is to delivery us to the regional machine of
mediocrity and incompetence? If they have a plan? What happened to the money? The
promises? The accountability to the citizens of Lakewood?
Shawn, you are really losing me on this one. You who demands facts, and questions
answered by me, seem to not ask the same from them?
For some reason you think it is not odd that a 501C3 one never told Sharon how much
a single public event raised, and gave to the charity it was going to, but has also never
bothered to tell the head organizer of that event. I could even talk about possible litigation
from them to that person and other non-profits groups over this, but I am sure you will
not find it odd that they fight so hard to cover it up.
Shawn as proven here, in this post. You demand accountability from all, but the team you
are on and play for. But then I guess you knew that all along. Remember when you would
attack me, Ken Warren, Steve Davis, Dan Slife and others because we dared to try and
help Lakewood define "our brand" so that we could find like minded people to move here
and work here. You accused us of working behind the scenes, and running the city on our
own. Which was never true. But now you rejoice that "your team" has defined "Lakewood
Brand" and now demand we must now walk lock step like mindless sheep to the promised
land of Economic Development over Education. Minimum wage jobs over front porches,
mass numbers of people from other cities, over balanced budgets and a safe, secure and
clean city.
Shawn go over and look in the mirror, and ask yourself my friend, what would you post
be here if AGS Software Development, Inc. awarded Jim O'Bryan, publisher of the year?
Ask yourself, what would you post, if I stepped in to help Pillars, and a year later you
found yourself on the street and Pillars branded a LO Project?
Ask yourself, what would you post, if we took in millions and handed out a flyer 4 times a
year?
Ask yourself, what would you post if I had the schools print the paper and had the children
carry it home, while making sure Pillars did not have the same opportunity?
Ask your self what would you post if I had promised that the Lakewood Observer would
never act on any of our findings and then the second we saw a paycheck reverse those
comments?
Ask yourself what you would post if had promised an event and it was done half assed, and
two people showed up and reported thousands were there?
Ask yourself, what would you post if you had joined the Lakewood Observer as we had
promised to NEVER act on what were were teaching, and then overnight we became a
PAC, then a year later we seized the opportunity to TAKE OVER another group that now
gave the LO power and public funding to carry out our plans that drastically change OUR CITY?
Ask yourself what would you post if the Lakewood Observer tried to own, take over or
control everything going on in Lakewood?
Ask yourself what would you post if I worked behind the scenes to undermine the hard
work of hundreds of volunteers simple to win some perverse "game."
Seriously, the sad fact is I could go one for days, but the answers we already have. You
would attack the LO, and praise anyone else that you were part of. As you are already
on record for years of doing just that.
With that point made, I want to commend you for bringing it out and asking it aloud.
Thank you for making me accountable for my words and actions. Thank you for weighing
into the public mosh pit of word jazz, and asking, in a forum where I at least have a
chance of setting the record straight, or defending my comments. I appreciate the chance
to examine myself and where this is headed. As I guess you consider yourself a member of
the Lakewood Observer, and I hope you do, I look forward to you asking nearly the same
from the management of LakewoodAlive with their comments towards me, and the LO.
Because I know after this little talk, you will demand openness and accountability from all
especially your team of "players."
Shawn as always, thank you for your time, your comments, and your thought provoking
questions. Though I know we have major disagreements in what Lakewood needs, and
where we need to head, I am sure you will agree with me that I am not always right, and
that maybe sometimes you are not always right, and for a city to really grow and serve
all, it is through public discussion and discourse, and the accountability and ownership of
words, ideas and actions that a true course can be charted to benefit all.
In the end I hope we all want was is best for the entire city, we want all voices heard, and
all groups using our money or trying desperately to change Lakewood to be accountable to
all of the people of Lakewood, not just a small handful of self ordained "gifted people."
FWIW
Scott
Went over all of that stuff, and besides some numbers that do not seem to add up and I
am sure could be called interesting but legal bookkeeping.
Did not see where Sharon or any resident of Lakewood could not ask for more details on
what they do with the money they raise from the public.
.
