[Vision2020] Fwd: A response

Tue Sep 30 10:19:58 PDT 2014

The way I read Mr. Steed's remarks to Tom, I am sure he (Walt) would agree
with you. Nowhere in the back and forth of the communication did I read
anything that implied that that anyone needed to run criticism by the
councilman before making their ill informed opinions public. What I read
was that he would simply not respond to sniping from the cheap seats of
V2020. This seems a reasonable position to take. Lets face it, life is far
too short to spend very much of it responding to casual sniping from those
with an abundance of time on their hands. Should they feel a burning desire
to have their concerns addressed publicly, they can attend the council
meetings and pipe up for the record.

g

On Tue, Sep 30, 2014 at 8:32 AM, Paul Rumelhart <paul.rumelhart at gmail.com>
wrote:

> While I agree completely that you should be able to voice your opinions
> about Walter Steed without having to run them by him first, I also think
> that you probably shouldn't have forwarded your private email exchange with
> him on this list, since it's apparent that he wouldn't want you to.  I
> don't think any laws were broken (though I'm damn tempted to cc the Chief
> of Police just to make sure ;) ) but I do think it is bad etiquette.  You
> could have simply summarized your conversation.
>
> Paul
>
> And, before we go there, I am *not* trying to trample on your rights and I
> don't expect you to change your bull-headed behavior any more than you have
> in the past.
>
>
> On Tue, Sep 30, 2014 at 5:18 AM, Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com> wrote:
>
>> V-Peeps:
>>
>> I have been debating whether or not to publicly disclose an email
>> interaction I had recently with Walter Steed, a member of the Moscow City
>> Council.  Lacking a response from Mr. Steed, in reply to my most-recent
>> email to him, I have decided to air it publicly and allow the fine peeps of
>> the Viz to form their own opinion, as this argument concerns a very basic
>> right granted to us by our constitution . . .
>>
>> His argument, apparently, is that any adverse comments I make about him
>> (even when such statements are substantiated) should not be aired publicly
>> without initially presenting my comments to him off-list and in-person.
>>
>> (Translation:  Mr. Steed does not want anything bad stated or suggested
>> about him publicly . . . only privately.)
>>
>> Two concepts that Mr. Steed has difficulty grasping are . . . my right to
>> publicly state my opinion without having to initially pursue his approval .
>> . . my right to disclose my opinion publicly in the form of political
>> satire (a method used universally).
>>
>> Moscow Vision 2020 is, as described in an interview of myself and Keely
>> Emerine-Mix conducted at Friendship Square by the Moscow-Pullman Daily News
>> some years back, an online community soapbox open to everyone.
>>
>> So . . .
>>
>> No, Mr. Steed.  I am not going to quietly and privately seek you out
>> every time I have an opinion I wish to express.  I will post them on a
>> publicly accessible digital bulletin board (i.e. Moscow Vision 2020).  If
>> people, such as yourself, find my postings to be snide and sniping, they
>> may either ignore them or respond publicly to them.
>>
>> Until then . . .
>>
>> Stay tuned.
>>
>> Seeya 'round town, Moscow, because . . .
>>
>> "Moscow Cares"
>> http://www.MoscowCares.com <http://www.moscowcares.com/>
>>
>> Tom Hansen
>> Moscow, Idaho
>>
>>
>> Begin forwarded message:
>>
>> *From:* Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com>
>> *Date:* September 27, 2014 at 2:27:21 PM PDT
>> *To:* Walter M Steed <wmsteed at ci.moscow.id.us>
>> *Subject:* *Re: A response*
>>
>> Fine.  Point taken.
>>
>> However, publicly elected officials (whether they be a member of the
>> Moscow City Council or President of the United States) have been, are, and
>> will always be targets of political satire, whether that satire is launched
>> from Fox News or a subscriber to Vision 2020.
>>
>> In my twenty years in the Army, I have been called everything but Tom.  I
>> learned to live with it (even expect it in some circumstances). How about
>> you?
>>
>> Tom Hansen
>> Moscow, Idaho
>>
>>
>>
>> On Sep 27, 2014, at 2:15 PM, Walter M Steed <wmsteed at ci.moscow.id.us>
>> wrote:
>>
>> I have no problem with the public arena as I understand what it entails
>> and the exposure it brings.  My complaint is not what you say about me or
>> even that you say it; it's the way in which you chose to do it.  I stopped
>> reading 2020 years ago when you started injecting uninformed opinions on
>> every topic under the sun and I just couldn't take it anymore.
>>
>>  I do, however, periodically get told about your snide, sniping,
>> personal attacks with no effort at all having been made on your part to let
>> me know whatever it is you don't like about me or what I have done or
>> said.  Criticism for the sake of criticism is unproductive (unless stroking
>> the ego of the critic is the goal).
>>
>>  Ever since my first election I have had a personal policy of responding
>> to all direct contacts (just not the letter-to-the-editor or 2020
>> directed).
>>
>>  If you have any specific questions, comments, or concerns, please just
>> address them to directly to me and I'll be happy to provide you a response.
>>
>>
>>  WS
>>
>> Sent from my iPad
>>
>> On Sep 27, 2014, at 5:18 AM, Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com> wrote:
>>
>>   Mr. Steed -
>>
>>  Yesterday, the "Ellen and 'Pops' Roskovich Bench Dedication Ceremony"
>> was not the appropriate location or time to debate politics with you, as it
>> appeared was your intent.
>>
>>  That said . . .
>>
>>  As a private citizen, I reserve the right to discuss my political
>> opinions publicly (humorous or not), as I did on Thursday in a posting to
>> the Moscow Vision 2020 listserve (below).  There will be more forthcoming.
>>
>>  If you are offended by such postings, perhaps you should avoid the
>> public arena as a city council member.
>>
>>  If you wish to publicly discuss my expressed opinions, please let me
>> know.  Otherwise . . .
>>
>>  Stay tuned.
>>
>>  Tom Hansen
>> Moscow, Idaho
>>
>>
>>
>> Begin forwarded message:
>>
>>  *From:* Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com>
>> *Date:* September 25, 2014 at 12:46:21 PM PDT
>> *To:* Moscow Vision 2020 <vision2020 at moscow.com>
>> *Subject:* *A traffic control suggestion as presented by . . .*
>>
>>    . . . Councilman Walter Steed
>>
>>  http://www.TomandRodna.com/Soundbites/Steed_Traffic_Control_110205.mp3
>>
>>  I got me LOTS of 'em, like . . . a sliced up and diced up city council
>> video to the tune of *The Wizard of Oz' *"If I Only Had a Brain"
>> starring one of the city council's re-newest members members (a transplant
>> from the Corner Club) . . . and, of course, there's "The Kiss" (my personal
>> favorite.
>>
>>  Later, V-Peeps.
>>
>>  I gots to get tomorrow's "Who Dat?" photo together.
>>
>> Seeya 'round town, Moscow, because . . .
>>
>>  "Moscow Cares" (the most fun you can have with your pants on)
>> http://www.MoscowCares.com <http://www.moscowcares.com/>
>>
>>  Tom Hansen
>> Moscow, Idaho
>>
>>  "There's room at the top they are telling you still.
>> But first you must learn how to smile as you kill,
>> If you want to be like the folks on the hill."
>>
>>  - John Lennon
>>
>>
>>
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>
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