We'd just hit the send button on that last post when we received this concerning the county's "reluctancy to let sunshine in" on their Aliso Creek clean-up project. It's an email exchange between local do-gooder group Iris Project and county Supervisor Tom Wilson, whose district includes Aliso Creek:
From: Iris Adam [mailto:iris@uci.edu]
Sent: Friday, September 15, 2006 7:17 AM
To: Thomas Wilson
Dear Supervisor Wilson,
The Iris Forum looks for commonalities -- this is where solutions lie.
The Iris Forum is a diversified portfolio of opinions on a single issue resulting in an ongoing intentional shift toward finding commonalities in issue of the day. The Iris Forum is the first multipartisan environmental think tank dedicated to an on going dialogue regarding the biological, social and economic effects of human activities on our environment.
A single topic (the Aliso Creek Corridor), six political parties (a Republican, Democrat, Green, Libertarian, Natural Law, and an Independent), along with the experts, sit down together for a conversation. The Iris Forum is known for inspiring dialogue from diverse perspectives, resulting in broadened awareness of humanity's relationship with the environment.
Ideally, for an Iris Forum on Aliso Creek, we would like to see three experts brought in:
1. A neutral party who can briefly explain the proposed dams on the creek and proposed watershed issues
2. A representative from The Athens Group
2. A representative from the Voices of Wilderness
Schedule for an Iris Forum:
1. Welcome and Statement of Purpose (10-15 minutes)
2. Neutral expert (10-15 minutes)
3. The Athens Group (10-15 minutes)
4. The Voices of Wilderness (10-15 minutes)
5. Iris Forum with Republican, Democrat, Natural Law, Green, Libertarian, Independent, and a Facilitator
a. Conversation (30 minutes)
b. Commonalities (30 minutes)
Please let me know if the Iris Forum can be of service to you at the Aliso Creek Watershed Stakeholder Meeting.
Tuesday, October 3,
4:00-5:30 PM
Laguna Hills Community Center
25555 Alicia Parkway, Meeting Room C, Laguna Hills, CA 92653
Sincerely,
Iris
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Iris Adam, Founder
Iris Forum
http://www.irisforum.org/
Here is Wilson's reply:
From: "Wilson, Thomas"
Date: September 15, 2006 1:42:12 PM PDT
To: 'Iris Adam' , "Wilson, Thomas"
Dear Iris,
I certainly appreciate your offer to assist us in our efforts to address the on-going issues in Aliso Creek; however, I am confident that we have already launched a viable, success-oriented approach which includes many of the components you reference in your recent memo to me.
I thank you for your interest and your proposal of service but I sincerely believe we have a strategy in place that will produce the positive results expected.
Thank you,
TWW
September 16, 2006 07:09
In exercise of my guaranteed rights to free speech, press and opinion, the following is submitted, as my opinions.
Supervisor Wilson, working in conjunction with the other ELECTED OC Board of Supervisors, ALWAYS have a strategy in all that they do in the interests of the citizens who elected them and in accordance with the oath they have all taken:
1. My letters relating to the safety of children, adults and "alleged" fraudulent activities related to The Toll Roads, potential conflicts of interests relating to law firms hired by the County of Orange for litigation, county bond counsel and potential obstructions of justice, have never once received a response similar to the one received by the Iris Forum.
2. The OC Board of Supervisors, in my opinion, may have sold the interests of the citizens of OC down the river -- hopefully, I am wrong and will be proven wrong!
3. OC is in the midst of a revolution of its own -- in my opinion, with an OC Sheriff, OC District Attorney, Board of Supervisors and the OC Register diligently serving one strategy, while sharing many commonalities:
* IN MY OPINION, all Republicans (or closet Republicans--sometimes referred to as Independents or Democrats).
* IN MY OPINION, all have failed to take action to protect children and adults from crimes by PRETENDING to protect the public but instead, continuing back room plea deals and allowing political and religious influences to interfere with justice.
* IN MY OPINION, all have failed to hold the legal advisors hired by the Sheriff, the DA and the County ACCOUNTABILITY for financial, political and religious conflicts of interest.
* IN MY OPINION, let's hope that the Iris Forum does not face the same retribution that others have been FORCED to endure, without resources from those who have taken an oath to protect the freedoms of speech, press and opinion.
* IN MY OPINION, in the OC, the guaranteed rights to free speech, press and opinion are only honored to certain politically-connected attorneys, religious leaders and elected government officials in the OC... take a good look at what happens to anyone who decides to run for public office but is not part of the INNER CIRCLE, AND
* IN MY OPINION, if you are an OC citizen who is not RICH, FAMOUS or POLITICALLY-CONNECTED, do not give up in making your voices heard. EVIL never prevails and the EVILS in OC will eventually be held accountability for failing to protect those who cannot protect themselves.
Debby Bodkin, Founder
www.catholics4justice.com
September 16, 2006 21:09
Generally speaking, I believe that talking on a cell phone while driving is a bad idea.
Ahh, nuts. Am I on the wrong page again?
Warmly yours,
Pete Fundy
Senior Editorial Writer
OCLegend.Com