[Vision2020] Response to Kimmell: Part I,
DiscriminatoryHiring/Contracting Practices
Art Deco aka W. Fox
deco at moscow.com
Mon Sep 20 16:52:17 PDT 2004
Re: [Vision2020] Response to Kimmell: Part I, DiscriminaSean,
Again, I make no apology for the content or tone of my posts. Ideas have
behavioral and social consequences. Sexism, racism, tax cheating, etc. have
behavioral and social consequences which I, and perhaps the majority of this
community, find unacceptable. The cult has entered their beliefs in the market
place of ideas. I am arguing for a "No Sale." If you think that niceness alone
is going to combat toxic religious/superstitious and/or discriminatory ideas,
you only have to watch the evening news to see the folly of such an idea. Hint:
Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the Sudan, etc.
Excising a toxic cult is like open heart surgery. In this particular operation
my overt role thus far has been partly like that of a diagnostician and partly
like that of the technician who cuts open the carcass so that much more skilled
surgeons can take over and do the vital, intricate, difficult work.
We have the skilled surgeons -- Unitarians, Quakers, Buddhists, Humanists,
etc. -- in this community who stand ready assist the oppressed in the cult,
particularly the women and children, who wish to find a safer, much, much more
kind, loving, Christ-like haven for themselves and their religious beliefs.
These skilled surgeons are quantum levels much more able to do these tasks than
I (and many of these do not agree with my role in this cultural war either). I
do the things for which training and experience in these matters has enabled me.
I make no pretense of the nobility nor the absolute correctness of my role nor
will I explain why I say the things I say except to say that most of them are
carefully thought out, crafted, and previously tested in similar frays.
If you are familiar with history, then you know that strong, no bullshit
language, and even intense dislike has played vital, absolutely necessary roles
in furthering humanitarian reforms.
I have so far failed to see posts from you that indicate that the cult's beliefs
and actions trouble you at all.
While this subtopic of tolerance is an interesting topic, it distracts from the
main topic from which it arises: The actions of Christ Church Cultie Paul
Kimmell using the influence gained from important positions to propagate
discriminatory practices with our tax money in order to rob the all but a few in
the community of opportunity/income/experience and to cram his hateful religious
beliefs down our throats. Perhaps you and others who find my views so
intolerant could address the specifics of that topic also.
Wayne
Art Deco (Wayne Fox)
deco at moscow.com
----- Original Message -----
From: sean
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Sent: Monday, September 20, 2004 2:18 PM
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Response to Kimmell: Part I,
DiscriminatoryHiring/Contracting Practices
In other words, you think it is OK to demean others publicly, to be
religiously discriminatory, and to foster division in an effort to see your
views win out?
Informing need not rely upon hate speech (your posts sound pretty hateful).
Discussing need not be rude or spiteful. Describing someone's stance doesn't
mean using the most extreme or divisive term is necessary or worthwhile. And
disagreeing with a position or view does not mean someone is anti- (e.g., you
probably would not say you are anti-Christian or anti-religion because you
disagree, evey staunchly, with some of it).
Freedom of speech without conscience equals?
Avoiding taxes when I can,
s
Sean,
I have written extensively on this forum and others about tolerance.
I encourage everyone with any view what-so-ever to express and to argue for
that view. As far as ideas go, my tolerance ends there.
All ideas are subject to critical evaluation and comment. That is the
reason freedom of expression is the cornerstone of an open, democratic society.
I doubt that you wish me to re-express my critique of the Christ Church
Cult's ideas at this point. I call them a cult because they are. Various V
2020 posters have posted various academic, observation-based, scholarly based
tests of cult activity and pointed out how the CCC meets most of those criteria.
You can find this out for yourself if you can Google.
I make no apology for being critical of a sexist, homophobic, arrogantly
dishonest, anti-secular, anti-public education, manipulative, hypocritical, tax
avoiding cult. If you find this idea demeaning, so be it.
Wayne
Art Deco (Wayne Fox)
deco at moscow.com
----- Original Message -----
From: sean
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Sent: Monday, September 20, 2004 1:22 PM
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Response to Kimmell: Part I,
DiscriminatoryHiring/Contracting Practices
Interesting information. Worth knowing more about.
I wonder, however, why you, Wayne, feel the need to demean others'
religion in the process of raising concerns about unethical practices. Is it
because you are similarly guilty of discrimination?
As it is you confuse the issues surrounding the alleged practices by
potentially raising outrage at not only Kimmell but yourself. Somehow I doubt
you would consider similar venomous language to be acceptable by others in the
community if it were leveled at groups you support. Yet it seems being a
liberal makes it OK to insult others. Or is it just that those liberals who
lack self-control give a bad name to the rest?
If one bad apple doesn't spoil the rest, it certainly may make the others
be avoidedSdespite their good character. I guess that goes for apples and
organizations (both liberal and conservative).
s
Preface
On August 27, 2004, a pseudo-folksy column by Paul Kimmell appeared in
the Daily News [appended below]. This column was an apparent attempt to respond
to some of the many criticisms made of Kimmell's actions in his dual role as
Moscow Chamber of Commerce Executive Director and Latah County Commissioner.
Because Kimmell's column did not address certain important issues and
dishonestly addressed others, a multi-part response is in the works to set the
record straight.
This first part deals with discriminatory hiring/contracting practices -
the favoring of Christ Church Cult members/businesses in hiring and contracting
practices by the chamber and county - an issue that Kimmell did not choose to
address in his Pollyanna column.
Discriminatory Hiring/Contracting Practices
As Executive Director of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce, Kimmell hired
at least five fellow Christ Church Culties as employees. Assessing generously
in his favor the odds of fairly hiring even one cultie from all the possible
applicants in the area at 1 in 50 (with replacement), the odds of fairly hiring
five culties are about 1 in 315,000,000!
One of the culties hired was Kimmell's current wife, Connie. Can you
also say NEPOTISM? [More about the Kimmell/Kimmel connection at the chamber
will be forthcoming in the posts on chamber financials.]
A few more of the allegations that a considerable amount of chamber
money was spent in a discriminatory manner for part-time work and contracted
services are as follows:
§ Hiring eight cultie children directly without any attempt to
find other children to do a special project.
§ A disproportionate amount of catering done by Zume, a cult
member based business housed in the NSA tenement. [Some chamber members are
also not enamored by the quality of the alleged comestibles served.]
§ A disproportionate number of entertainments at chamber
functions provided by Eric Engerbretson, a cultie and cultie apologist.
[According to some chamber members, a little of Eric goes a long way.]
§ The contracting of the design, programming, and maintenance of
the chamber website to inexperienced, inept amateurs from NSA for over $22,000.
As county commissioner, Kimmell recently used his influence to help
install a cultie in a clerical position in the Latah County Courthouse.
Effects of Discriminatory Hiring/Contracting Practices
Discrimination based on religious preference/practice is contrary to
state and federal law. This is especially true of public institutions and those
organizations like the chamber that thrive in part because of public tax monies
received.
There are many secondary effects that can arise from this discriminatory
misuse of public money:
Public agencies who have contributed to the chamber either through dues
or grants can demand that those past contributions be returned for the entire
period that the discrimination has occurred. These agencies can use court
action to force the return of such monies, if necessary.
Further, the public agencies themselves can be forced to return funds
which were given to them under laws and contracts prohibiting discriminatory
practices by vendors and/or other service organizations to that public agency.
Public agencies giving money to organizations practicing discrimination
(such as the chamber has for the last three or four years) face a loss of
community goodwill. Just losing a little goodwill can cause a public agency to
lose a levy request or lose support for a budget increase.
I have little doubt that unless the chamber apologizes for, stops the
discriminatory practices, and removes the individual (Kimmell) responsible for
them, that the public agencies supporting this past discrimination with public
funds will themselves be the object of some very unpleasant community wrath,
protest, and action.
As for the pathetic chamber website, chamber members have been willfully
and arrogantly ripped off. Besides its marginal graphical design and overall
structural inadequacies, important parts of the website are dysfunctional.
There is no search mechanism to find member businesses [Google provides such
programming free]. You can't even use the web browser edit function to find a
business since the business names, etc. occur in graphic files! Hence, even if
you go through the slow process of going page by page to find a member business,
you can't copy the individual business information from the graphic page.
Further, it does not appear that simple maintenance procedures that chamber
employees could use have been created; therefore the chamber is dependent on the
NSA students to maintain the website. Needless to say, the information on the
chamber website is out of date.
A professional could have created for the chamber a graphically and
functionally well designed website. Such a design would have provided chamber
members with the search ability and visibility for their businesses and
organizations they have a right to expect. The website building and cost from a
professional? Probably under $5,000!
Instead, under Kimmell's religious discriminatory contracting practices,
inexperienced, inept students from cult business NSA have been paid over $22,000
and the product is marginal at best. This is con-artistry at its small town
worst!
Kimmell's discriminatory practices also show that in addition to getting
"oversight" from Christ Church Cult Master Douglas Wilson as a Latah County
Commissioner, Kimmell's obeying orders from the Cult Master is aiding the Cult
Master's A-Religious-Kingdom-for-Myself ambitions using our tax money.
[Question: Do the culties knowingly hired/contracted through these
discriminatory practices, a process of community theft, hypocritically continue
to call themselves "Christians" or have they in their heart of hearts (but not
publicly) given up such a pretense?]
Obviously, discrimination based on religious preference/practice is in
itself grossly unfair. It steals from everyone in the community both
opportunity and possible income. Therefore, this kind of discrimination is
little more than common theft and its perpetrator, Paul Kimmell, is little more
than a common thief. These discriminatory practices in the name of the chamber
make that organization look like a bunch of common thieves also.
Previous posters have described Kimmell and other some chamber board
members as very "community minded" and "nice." Kimmell may be "charming," but
to describe him and his co-conspirators using the words "nice" and "community
minded" when they are, in effect, common thieves using tax money to finance
their hateful discriminatory practices is a gross misuse of the English
language.
Silence of the Chamber Board
Although they have been asked several times and by several different
persons to comment on the above described discriminatory practices, members of
the board have not yet made any public comment on this issue. [At least one
member, however, has said, "It is none of the public's business."]
Although the chamber board has been silent on this issue, one
influential past president of the chamber has commented. Jon Kimberling in a
series of exchanges with myself, made these remarks, perhaps speaking for the
present chamber:
"Wayne - as past president of the Chamber and someone who spent a year
on City Council working with Paul, I can tell you he is a man of great
integrity. The Chamber board questioned him about his hiring's. It is my
belief that he hired the best people for the job - some happened to be
associated with the church. I don't know about you but I have a tendency to
associate myself with people who have similar values. Is that so wrong? ..."
"Whatever the math, there is still every possibility that the Chamber
went through a thorough process in each hiring and that the best candidate was
chosen.
When I said: "I have a tendency to associate myself with people who have
similar values," Is that so wrong? I should have continued and explained that I
believe Paul networked with local business people, church members and anyone
else he knows to advertise the jobs. It was certainly no secret at the Chamber
and we were all encouraged to get the word out. I don't deny the appearance of
favoritism..."
The sentence comparing Jon Kimberling's practices to Paul Kimmell's
practices: "I have a tendency to associate myself with people who have similar
values. Is that so wrong?" perhaps explains in part why the chamber has ignored
not only state and federal law but the rights and reasonable expectations of
everyone in the community in their hiring/contracting practices.
Solution
There is a simple solution that any prudent business person would pursue
when faced with the problems described above.
1. Apologize to the community which provides its funding
for past missteps, and as far as legally and fairly possible, correct them.
2. Design, write, and scrupulously follow procedures which
provide for advertising, screening, and hiring/contracting such that all of the
qualified candidates in our community have an equal chance of being considered
and hired for any chamber position or contracted service.
3. Immediately dismiss Paul Kimmell as executive director.
His open, arrogant violation of state and federal law and his cause of the
community loss of respect for and confidence in the chamber by discriminatory
practices - stealing opportunity and income from all of us - and forcing his
religion down our throats and using our tax money in the process, are grounds,
in and of themselves, for instant dismissal.
If the chamber board refuses with the stubbornness and community
insensitivity they have so far exhibited to do these three simple steps, they
will certainly be surprised at the outrage and action that will pour forth from
insulted and concerned members of the community.
/s/ Wayne A. Fox
Wayne A. Fox
1009 Karen Lane
P.O. Box 9421
Moscow, ID 83843
(208) 882-7975
waf at moscow.com
______________________________
From The Daily News
______________________________
COLUMN: Trying to live peaceable lives in Moscow
Paul J. Kimmell
As a child, I would wander through Philadelphia staring at the Liberty
Bell and through Independence Hall not knowing what that "experiment in liberty"
was all about or that the men who signed the Declaration of Independence had
risked their lives, fortunes, honor, and reputations for a very risky
proposition.
During my years of public service, I've come to realize the great amount
of scrutiny that one in such a position is under. Much has been written of my
dual roles of late, both as a Latah County commissioner and as executive
director of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce.
Unlike some in the media and in the community, I am accountable to all
of you in one form or another. For the record, I wish to respond to some of
these recent attacks on my character and the organizations I work for.
First of all, I want to assure those of you involved in the chamber of
commerce our financial situation is not grim but in fact fairly healthy. In the
3 1/2 years I have been with the organization, our bottom line has improved
steadily. While some of our numbers have been taken out of context, it is
difficult to explain them without looking at them as a whole and in one setting,
which is what our Executive/Finance Committee does every month. They have
realized areas that needed to be fine-tuned, and have provided great direction
to our outside bookkeeper, making sure each account is properly categorized.
During this process, some items have needed to be moved from the Chamber
Foundation to the Chamber - again, per the Executive/Finance Committee. That is
what some of these numbers that have been discussed reflect. This committee is
well aware of the Foundation's and the Chamber's status - none of these
decisions have been made without their direction, contrary to what some have
implied. This same volunteer-based committee and Chamber Board continue to
provide this important oversight while making suggestions as to how we provide
our membership and the community with quality services. This is a group of
small-business owners dedicated to improving and protecting Moscow's quality of
life and business.
I am also very proud of our chamber staff and the tremendous amount of
work they produce on behalf of Moscow and its businesses. Like many of you,
they're overworked and underpaid, but I appreciate how well they represent this
community when the phone rings or a visitor stops in for travel information.
As the community's "front door," the chamber is often the first
impression someone has of Moscow. We take this responsibility seriously and we
make sure it is a warm and inviting one. We operate on a fairly small budget and
we rely on the great generosity of our business community to help us provide
these services.
Can we do better? Absolutely.
I'm often reminded just how fortunate we are to live in a place where
crime is low, the air is clean and the culture is abundant.
I am also very aware of the importance in protecting these assets, our
farms and farmlands, our forests and lumber mills, our water and other
resources, our businesses and institutions and, most importantly, our people and
our community's rich heritage.
Moscow is a great community full of genuine, caring and active citizens.
I am thankful that I live in a country where I have not needed to worry about
liberty or freedom, that the past and present sacrifices of those in the armed
forces protect us.
As of late, however, there has been a small but loud group of displeased
persons who claim tolerance, yet they are showing how intolerant they are of
other religious and/or moral views.
It's important for me, and others, to keep in mind the majority of us
are trying to live in an area that we are convinced is one of the best places on
Earth to live and raise our families.
I am concerned some have grown suspicious of others in our community and
harsh words have been expressed. Accusations have been made about one another
and those who have control of the "public square."
Moscow is far too good a town for this kind of behavior to continue. Our
founding fathers would have expected more, and so should we.
* Paul J. Kimmell is executive director of the Moscow Chamber of
Commerce and a Latah County commissioner.
_____________________________________________________
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
http://www.fsr.net
mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
ØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØ
--
Thanks,
s
* * * * * * * *
Sean Michael
.dwg
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
_____________________________________________________
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
http://www.fsr.net
mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////
_____________________________________________________
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
http://www.fsr.net
mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
ØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØ
--
Thanks,
s
* * * * * * * *
Sean Michael
.dwg
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
_____________________________________________________
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
http://www.fsr.net
mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////
----- Original Message -----
From: sean
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Sent: Monday, September 20, 2004 2:18 PM
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Response to Kimmell: Part I,
DiscriminatoryHiring/Contracting Practices
In other words, you think it is OK to demean others publicly, to be
religiously discriminatory, and to foster division in an effort to see your
views win out?
Informing need not rely upon hate speech (your posts sound pretty hateful).
Discussing need not be rude or spiteful. Describing someone's stance doesn't
mean using the most extreme or divisive term is necessary or worthwhile. And
disagreeing with a position or view does not mean someone is anti- (e.g., you
probably would not say you are anti-Christian or anti-religion because you
disagree, evey staunchly, with some of it).
Freedom of speech without conscience equals?
Avoiding taxes when I can,
s
Sean,
I have written extensively on this forum and others about tolerance.
I encourage everyone with any view what-so-ever to express and to argue for
that view. As far as ideas go, my tolerance ends there.
All ideas are subject to critical evaluation and comment. That is the
reason freedom of expression is the cornerstone of an open, democratic society.
I doubt that you wish me to re-express my critique of the Christ Church
Cult's ideas at this point. I call them a cult because they are. Various V
2020 posters have posted various academic, observation-based, scholarly based
tests of cult activity and pointed out how the CCC meets most of those criteria.
You can find this out for yourself if you can Google.
I make no apology for being critical of a sexist, homophobic, arrogantly
dishonest, anti-secular, anti-public education, manipulative, hypocritical, tax
avoiding cult. If you find this idea demeaning, so be it.
Wayne
Art Deco (Wayne Fox)
deco at moscow.com
----- Original Message -----
From: sean
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Sent: Monday, September 20, 2004 1:22 PM
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Response to Kimmell: Part I,
DiscriminatoryHiring/Contracting Practices
Interesting information. Worth knowing more about.
I wonder, however, why you, Wayne, feel the need to demean others'
religion in the process of raising concerns about unethical practices. Is it
because you are similarly guilty of discrimination?
As it is you confuse the issues surrounding the alleged practices by
potentially raising outrage at not only Kimmell but yourself. Somehow I doubt
you would consider similar venomous language to be acceptable by others in the
community if it were leveled at groups you support. Yet it seems being a
liberal makes it OK to insult others. Or is it just that those liberals who
lack self-control give a bad name to the rest?
If one bad apple doesn't spoil the rest, it certainly may make the others
be avoidedSdespite their good character. I guess that goes for apples and
organizations (both liberal and conservative).
s
Preface
On August 27, 2004, a pseudo-folksy column by Paul Kimmell appeared in
the Daily News [appended below]. This column was an apparent attempt to respond
to some of the many criticisms made of Kimmell's actions in his dual role as
Moscow Chamber of Commerce Executive Director and Latah County Commissioner.
Because Kimmell's column did not address certain important issues and
dishonestly addressed others, a multi-part response is in the works to set the
record straight.
This first part deals with discriminatory hiring/contracting practices -
the favoring of Christ Church Cult members/businesses in hiring and contracting
practices by the chamber and county - an issue that Kimmell did not choose to
address in his Pollyanna column.
Discriminatory Hiring/Contracting Practices
As Executive Director of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce, Kimmell hired
at least five fellow Christ Church Culties as employees. Assessing generously
in his favor the odds of fairly hiring even one cultie from all the possible
applicants in the area at 1 in 50 (with replacement), the odds of fairly hiring
five culties are about 1 in 315,000,000!
One of the culties hired was Kimmell's current wife, Connie. Can you
also say NEPOTISM? [More about the Kimmell/Kimmel connection at the chamber
will be forthcoming in the posts on chamber financials.]
A few more of the allegations that a considerable amount of chamber
money was spent in a discriminatory manner for part-time work and contracted
services are as follows:
§ Hiring eight cultie children directly without any attempt to
find other children to do a special project.
§ A disproportionate amount of catering done by Zume, a cult
member based business housed in the NSA tenement. [Some chamber members are
also not enamored by the quality of the alleged comestibles served.]
§ A disproportionate number of entertainments at chamber
functions provided by Eric Engerbretson, a cultie and cultie apologist.
[According to some chamber members, a little of Eric goes a long way.]
§ The contracting of the design, programming, and maintenance of
the chamber website to inexperienced, inept amateurs from NSA for over $22,000.
As county commissioner, Kimmell recently used his influence to help
install a cultie in a clerical position in the Latah County Courthouse.
Effects of Discriminatory Hiring/Contracting Practices
Discrimination based on religious preference/practice is contrary to
state and federal law. This is especially true of public institutions and those
organizations like the chamber that thrive in part because of public tax monies
received.
There are many secondary effects that can arise from this discriminatory
misuse of public money:
Public agencies who have contributed to the chamber either through dues
or grants can demand that those past contributions be returned for the entire
period that the discrimination has occurred. These agencies can use court
action to force the return of such monies, if necessary.
Further, the public agencies themselves can be forced to return funds
which were given to them under laws and contracts prohibiting discriminatory
practices by vendors and/or other service organizations to that public agency.
Public agencies giving money to organizations practicing discrimination
(such as the chamber has for the last three or four years) face a loss of
community goodwill. Just losing a little goodwill can cause a public agency to
lose a levy request or lose support for a budget increase.
I have little doubt that unless the chamber apologizes for, stops the
discriminatory practices, and removes the individual (Kimmell) responsible for
them, that the public agencies supporting this past discrimination with public
funds will themselves be the object of some very unpleasant community wrath,
protest, and action.
As for the pathetic chamber website, chamber members have been willfully
and arrogantly ripped off. Besides its marginal graphical design and overall
structural inadequacies, important parts of the website are dysfunctional.
There is no search mechanism to find member businesses [Google provides such
programming free]. You can't even use the web browser edit function to find a
business since the business names, etc. occur in graphic files! Hence, even if
you go through the slow process of going page by page to find a member business,
you can't copy the individual business information from the graphic page.
Further, it does not appear that simple maintenance procedures that chamber
employees could use have been created; therefore the chamber is dependent on the
NSA students to maintain the website. Needless to say, the information on the
chamber website is out of date.
A professional could have created for the chamber a graphically and
functionally well designed website. Such a design would have provided chamber
members with the search ability and visibility for their businesses and
organizations they have a right to expect. The website building and cost from a
professional? Probably under $5,000!
Instead, under Kimmell's religious discriminatory contracting practices,
inexperienced, inept students from cult business NSA have been paid over $22,000
and the product is marginal at best. This is con-artistry at its small town
worst!
Kimmell's discriminatory practices also show that in addition to getting
"oversight" from Christ Church Cult Master Douglas Wilson as a Latah County
Commissioner, Kimmell's obeying orders from the Cult Master is aiding the Cult
Master's A-Religious-Kingdom-for-Myself ambitions using our tax money.
[Question: Do the culties knowingly hired/contracted through these
discriminatory practices, a process of community theft, hypocritically continue
to call themselves "Christians" or have they in their heart of hearts (but not
publicly) given up such a pretense?]
Obviously, discrimination based on religious preference/practice is in
itself grossly unfair. It steals from everyone in the community both
opportunity and possible income. Therefore, this kind of discrimination is
little more than common theft and its perpetrator, Paul Kimmell, is little more
than a common thief. These discriminatory practices in the name of the chamber
make that organization look like a bunch of common thieves also.
Previous posters have described Kimmell and other some chamber board
members as very "community minded" and "nice." Kimmell may be "charming," but
to describe him and his co-conspirators using the words "nice" and "community
minded" when they are, in effect, common thieves using tax money to finance
their hateful discriminatory practices is a gross misuse of the English
language.
Silence of the Chamber Board
Although they have been asked several times and by several different
persons to comment on the above described discriminatory practices, members of
the board have not yet made any public comment on this issue. [At least one
member, however, has said, "It is none of the public's business."]
Although the chamber board has been silent on this issue, one
influential past president of the chamber has commented. Jon Kimberling in a
series of exchanges with myself, made these remarks, perhaps speaking for the
present chamber:
"Wayne - as past president of the Chamber and someone who spent a year
on City Council working with Paul, I can tell you he is a man of great
integrity. The Chamber board questioned him about his hiring's. It is my
belief that he hired the best people for the job - some happened to be
associated with the church. I don't know about you but I have a tendency to
associate myself with people who have similar values. Is that so wrong? ..."
"Whatever the math, there is still every possibility that the Chamber
went through a thorough process in each hiring and that the best candidate was
chosen.
When I said: "I have a tendency to associate myself with people who have
similar values," Is that so wrong? I should have continued and explained that I
believe Paul networked with local business people, church members and anyone
else he knows to advertise the jobs. It was certainly no secret at the Chamber
and we were all encouraged to get the word out. I don't deny the appearance of
favoritism..."
The sentence comparing Jon Kimberling's practices to Paul Kimmell's
practices: "I have a tendency to associate myself with people who have similar
values. Is that so wrong?" perhaps explains in part why the chamber has ignored
not only state and federal law but the rights and reasonable expectations of
everyone in the community in their hiring/contracting practices.
Solution
There is a simple solution that any prudent business person would pursue
when faced with the problems described above.
1. Apologize to the community which provides its funding
for past missteps, and as far as legally and fairly possible, correct them.
2. Design, write, and scrupulously follow procedures which
provide for advertising, screening, and hiring/contracting such that all of the
qualified candidates in our community have an equal chance of being considered
and hired for any chamber position or contracted service.
3. Immediately dismiss Paul Kimmell as executive director.
His open, arrogant violation of state and federal law and his cause of the
community loss of respect for and confidence in the chamber by discriminatory
practices - stealing opportunity and income from all of us - and forcing his
religion down our throats and using our tax money in the process, are grounds,
in and of themselves, for instant dismissal.
If the chamber board refuses with the stubbornness and community
insensitivity they have so far exhibited to do these three simple steps, they
will certainly be surprised at the outrage and action that will pour forth from
insulted and concerned members of the community.
/s/ Wayne A. Fox
Wayne A. Fox
1009 Karen Lane
P.O. Box 9421
Moscow, ID 83843
(208) 882-7975
waf at moscow.com
______________________________
From The Daily News
______________________________
COLUMN: Trying to live peaceable lives in Moscow
Paul J. Kimmell
As a child, I would wander through Philadelphia staring at the Liberty
Bell and through Independence Hall not knowing what that "experiment in liberty"
was all about or that the men who signed the Declaration of Independence had
risked their lives, fortunes, honor, and reputations for a very risky
proposition.
During my years of public service, I've come to realize the great amount
of scrutiny that one in such a position is under. Much has been written of my
dual roles of late, both as a Latah County commissioner and as executive
director of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce.
Unlike some in the media and in the community, I am accountable to all
of you in one form or another. For the record, I wish to respond to some of
these recent attacks on my character and the organizations I work for.
First of all, I want to assure those of you involved in the chamber of
commerce our financial situation is not grim but in fact fairly healthy. In the
3 1/2 years I have been with the organization, our bottom line has improved
steadily. While some of our numbers have been taken out of context, it is
difficult to explain them without looking at them as a whole and in one setting,
which is what our Executive/Finance Committee does every month. They have
realized areas that needed to be fine-tuned, and have provided great direction
to our outside bookkeeper, making sure each account is properly categorized.
During this process, some items have needed to be moved from the Chamber
Foundation to the Chamber - again, per the Executive/Finance Committee. That is
what some of these numbers that have been discussed reflect. This committee is
well aware of the Foundation's and the Chamber's status - none of these
decisions have been made without their direction, contrary to what some have
implied. This same volunteer-based committee and Chamber Board continue to
provide this important oversight while making suggestions as to how we provide
our membership and the community with quality services. This is a group of
small-business owners dedicated to improving and protecting Moscow's quality of
life and business.
I am also very proud of our chamber staff and the tremendous amount of
work they produce on behalf of Moscow and its businesses. Like many of you,
they're overworked and underpaid, but I appreciate how well they represent this
community when the phone rings or a visitor stops in for travel information.
As the community's "front door," the chamber is often the first
impression someone has of Moscow. We take this responsibility seriously and we
make sure it is a warm and inviting one. We operate on a fairly small budget and
we rely on the great generosity of our business community to help us provide
these services.
Can we do better? Absolutely.
I'm often reminded just how fortunate we are to live in a place where
crime is low, the air is clean and the culture is abundant.
I am also very aware of the importance in protecting these assets, our
farms and farmlands, our forests and lumber mills, our water and other
resources, our businesses and institutions and, most importantly, our people and
our community's rich heritage.
Moscow is a great community full of genuine, caring and active citizens.
I am thankful that I live in a country where I have not needed to worry about
liberty or freedom, that the past and present sacrifices of those in the armed
forces protect us.
As of late, however, there has been a small but loud group of displeased
persons who claim tolerance, yet they are showing how intolerant they are of
other religious and/or moral views.
It's important for me, and others, to keep in mind the majority of us
are trying to live in an area that we are convinced is one of the best places on
Earth to live and raise our families.
I am concerned some have grown suspicious of others in our community and
harsh words have been expressed. Accusations have been made about one another
and those who have control of the "public square."
Moscow is far too good a town for this kind of behavior to continue. Our
founding fathers would have expected more, and so should we.
* Paul J. Kimmell is executive director of the Moscow Chamber of
Commerce and a Latah County commissioner.
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ØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØ
--
Thanks,
s
* * * * * * * *
Sean Michael
.dwg
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_____________________________________________________
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
http://www.fsr.net
mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
ØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØØ
--
Thanks,
s
* * * * * * * *
Sean Michael
.dwg
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