Saturday, May 06, 2006

Why Do Oligarchs Rage (WDOR)?

Another beautiful day in a beautiful city, one that we're democratizing daily. Life is too short to hate anyone, especially entrenched oligarchs who "know not that they know not that they know not." The government of our Nation's Oldest (European-founded) City is run by one man who who fails to preserve 10,000 years of history while doling out favors to developers while putting 20,000 cubic yards of contaminants in the Old City Reservoir (while getting a heck-of-a-job award as the City Manager in the midst of an active criminal investigation on illegal dumping). In 1565, the City of St. Augustine, Florida was founded by oligarchs. It is still run by one oligarch (controversial City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS). We forgive him for his Philistinism and his undeserved martyr complex. We study his whiny ways -- repeatedly refusing to answer questions while using surrogates to take the heat and heap abuse on those who ask questions. The very first time I ever attended a public meeting (six years after we moved here), Mr. HARRISS threatened me with arrest for disorderly conduct, for questioning annexation policies and possible violations of the Voting Rights Act and Fifteenth Amendment. He and his City Attorney refuse to shake my hand or talk to me. Mr. HARRISS' (and surrogates') always-personal, in-your-face approach to "debate" on public issues reminds me of the yammering adolescent girl who once wrote William F. Buckley, Jr. in response to his initial published opinion on the Beatles ("P.S., you are too crummy to be called a person!!!"). Like the goofy girl, City of St. Augustine City Attorney JAMES PATRICK WILSON's gregarious, opinionated E-mail (reprinted below and prepared on government time and at government expense) typifies the genre of those being asked questions hereabouts in 2006 -- to attack the questioner personally (ad hominem) while threatening them with arrests and invoking other means of retaliation. We shall overcome this deviation from the standard of care one expects from public servants:
In a message dated 5/2/2006 3:18:36 PM Eastern Standard Time, JWILSON@ci.st-augustine.fl.us writes:
Dear Ed:Most people that know me think I am a nice guy, sorry you don't. Perhaps your conduct is the reason you have had so many problems throughout your professional career, while it lasted, and in your personal life (I presume). I would suspect that those problems can be traced to your unfathomably rude conduct and insults directed toward everyone that you have contact with if they do not completely agree with you. Apparently the first amendment in your mind only applies to you and those who march in lockstep with you. The rest of us should merely heel to your commands, I reckon.I have never mispronounced your first name. Even I can't mispronounce "Ed". You have accused me of mispronouncing your last name on occasion. If you ever heard me attempt to call roll you would understand that my inability to pronounce names is something I come by honestly. I have the right to refuse to mediate when there is simply nothing to mediate, there is no legal dispute within the scope of the mediation provision. I have no animus, that is your fantasy that you use to excuse your spiteful and malicious writings. This is my job, I am a lawyer representing a client. There is nothing personal to me regarding this. You cannot escape your hateful emotions so you attempt to spread them to everyone to create a battlefield where there need be none. It is this inability to separate personal from professional which causes you to fail. You do everything within your ability to breed hatred and contempt with everyone you contact, then tar the names of the people you have attacked by accusing them of animus when they don't follow your orders(?). You need help, but like I said, I am not qualified to provide that.I feel sorry for you. Your life seems to be one of tortured misery. As a human being, I find it hard to hate someone so pathetic.Kindest personal regards,James P. Wilson

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