Bingo!
We just got off the phone with Pinnacle Marketing's Head Honcho, Larry Hansen.
We had a fine conversation!
He takes the position that he considers his "polling data" to be "private and confidential," which is quite alright by us. It's the First Amendment Right of every special interest group, the Mind-Numbed Zombie Gondola at Any Cost Cult included, to collect data any way they want, and propagandize to their hearts' content -- so long as all the "collected" data remains "internal."
What would be unethical, of course, would be to have anyone publish a rigged/privately designed marketing push-poll in the guise of being a legitimate public opinion survey.
Mr. Hansen agrees totally on this, we think.
We believe Mr. Hansen recognizes the above point, although he frankly admits: "I'm no mathematician."
He makes no pretension to being a "scientific pollster," either.
Mr. Hansen assures us that all details of this so-called "phone poll," which were compiled entirely for a private analysis, will be made publicly available, in the event this poll is ever published as a purported public opinion survey:
Here are the things Mr. Hansen graciously agreed to provide, in the event his company's private "poll results" are ever publicly disseminated, and in the event his "clients" violate the terms of their express or implied agreement with Pinnacle Marketing, and release any portion of this "internal survey" publicly.
*Complete Poll Methodology
*Exact Text of the "Polling questionnaire."
*Identities of his so-far un-divulged clients.
We applaud Mr. Hansen and give him a hat-tip for his honesty and integrity.
And we know we can trust him at his word. This is Utah, afterall, where most everything still works on promises, "a handshake" and a secret "highsign." It's re-assuring to be such a righteous State, innit?
Not only that: Ogden's Own Pinnacle Marketing will long survive the "Blessed Matt Godfrey" era -- hopefully -- we predict.
Whew!
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14 comments:
It is not surprising to have Hansen respond in this manner. I have been aware of Pinnacle Marketing for several years and have held a very favorable impression of them as an Agency and Production house. Artisticaly and Professionaly they have appeared to be first rate.
And yes, they definately will outlive the reign of the Godfreyites.
One should be aware that Pinnacle Marketing is quite involved with marketing the Mayor's "vision".
The city has paid for a website:
www.skithehub.com
According to the
WhoIs database, which contains domain information available to the public, the regsitrant of that website is:
Pinnacle Marketing Communications
According to domain information available, the servers hosting this this website are owned by Ogden City
The DNS servers:
ns2.ogdencity.com
ns1.ogdencity.com
Some information about why they located in Ogden and free advertising for Descente, Goode, Kahuna Creations and Scott.
A section for the proposed gondola is on this page too. At least they got it right and make no mention of a connection to Snowbasin.
Excellent work, Rudi.
You angling for the job of city desk reporter for the SE?
Godfrey is playing Robin Hood in reverse!!!!
He is taking money from the poor and giving it to the rich!
Elected offecials need to stop playing developers. Government is supose to serve us. What happen to more Cops, Firefighters, Teachers, and better roads.
Sort of off topic, but something we might want to keep in mind...
A novel use of eminent domain:
A San Francisco suburb voted Tuesday night to use the power of eminent domain to keep Wal-Mart Stores Inc. off a piece of city land after hearing from dozens of residents who accused the big-box retailer of engaging in scare tactics to force its way into the bedroom community...
...Attorneys from Wal-Mart, based at Bentonville, Ark....said the council couldn't claim it was legally necessary to take the land and that the decision set a bad precedent...
...City officials countered that buying the land was acceptable to ensure it was developed to the community's liking and fit in with overall plans for the city.
Much more here, from AOL Money and Finance: Town of Hercules Blocks Wal-Mart
Dian...
Regardless of who they were targeting, that is still an inappropriate use of eminent domain IMHO.
Notice the Hercules city council was not buying the land to preserve it as open space, but rather to develop it to the "community's" liking. A few interesting questions about that situation would include which demographic constitutes the "community," and what the property owners had intended to do with their land.
I agree with the WalMart attorneys that the decision sets a bad precedent.
Agree with Turdust, absolutely.
Improper use of governmental authority is improper use, even if the end is something we might think beneficial.
Most communities have other, quite proper, ways to combat development they think not wise. The zoning power in particular.
Nothing to cheer about in the news from Hercules.
PS to Dian: No City Council meeting report? Do you really want to condemn us all to relying on the SE?
I thought the Hercules article was interesting in that it turned the popular notion of eminent domain around, and I like mind opening things like that.
But this article got me thinking about city planning, and especially as it relates to our situation here.
Our situation is:
In order to have the Peterson development go forward, these things, among others, must occur:
Amendment of the current Ogden City General
Plan
Change in zoning for that area.
Our local administration is working tirelessly to achieve these things.
The townspeople of Hercules evidently also have a General Plan, the merits of which they believe in so strongly that they have committed this eminent domain action.
But hypothetically, what happens when someone is interested in buying a property? Usually, if the price is right, they can get that sale.
Whether the projected use conforms to a General Plan or not. This is the fatal flaw of General Plans. Even if backed up by zoning, the Plan and the zoning can always be changed, as we have seen from efforts to do so here.
This is a huge problem with planning in general. It really doesn't have any teeth unless the government wishes to give it some, and when it does, as is evidenced by Hercules' attempt to block WalMart because it does not conform to the General Plan, it is accused of abuse of power. Similarly, in our situation, the local government stepping in to amend Ogden's General Plan to facilitate private enterprise is also viewed by some as abuse of power. Therefore, one must conclude that city planning in its most extreme sense gives elected officials an opportunity, should they choose to exercise it, of favoring or spurning specific private enterprises via the use of tax dollars and governmental powers, which again, to me, is an abuse of power.
Which is really what I'm talking about here. I view the government intervention in both Ogden and Hercules as abuse of governmental power. No matter which side I happen to favor, I simply do not think that the government should be in there trying to sway things, helping one side at the expense of the other, because it is supposed to represent all of us and therefore should remain totally impartial to these private commercial enterprises.
I realize that this view is not The Way Things Are. But there are lots of things happening that one need not approve of simply because they exist. This to me is one of them.
And if you all like the CC reports, I will do them when I can--thanks, Curm.
Curm and Dian - I agree with your assessment of this improper use of eminent domain. That being said, I still can't help but to snicker just a little - maybe they can realize how others feel when THEY use it.
ArmySarge.....
Me too.
Of course, two wrongs never make a right, but nonetheless....
...It was interesting. I'll leave it at that.
done ;)
Dian,
I guess I was thrown off when you said it was a "novel" use of eminent domain... it was an interesting story to hear about, and it is interesting to see eminent domain "go the other way," (although it is still questionable whether the developers chosen by the Hercules city council will be any better overall)... I just originally got the impression that you favored Hercules' actions, nice to know that you don't.
Mayor Godfrey should get out of the Ogden City Mayor’s line of business. I just got off of his Webb site and his proposed Gondola, There is a hell of a lot of hoopla but no real facts. He would make a better used car salesman, be never a good accountant. I sure would hate to have him be a lawyer representing me in a court room. Since there is no facts there. Therefore I am going asked some factual questions. For his Pie-In-Sky Gondola. I would like someone to make this not a pie-in-the sky but down to earth feasible plan by answering these questions. With facts and not with lies or guesswork.
These questions should have all been address over the last 2 years of his idea.
• What is the actual proposed price tag for this project?
• How would it be financed?
• How long would this loan take to pay off and what is the interest rates?
• Has any one in his administration looked into getting matching state funds or federal grants?
• Where is all the money going to come, from every red cent?
• Who exactly are we going into this as partners?
• What guarantees are there that if this things fails that the tax payers won’t be stuck with the tab. You Know like the Eccles Conference Center?
• Is the Mayor willing to put his money where his mouth is by signing promissary notes that if this thing fails that he would agree to relinquish all of his personal and cooperate assets to help satisfy the creditors.
• Has these people who want the taxpayers to join them in this business partnership agree to open their own personal finical records to the public so that we can support it or disagree with the Idea.
• Do we know or have a way to project what the annual operating expenditures are?
• Who is actually going to end up owning it?
• Is there a board of directors going to over see the operation and maintenance of this thing and who do they answer to?
• What is the life expectance of this thing?
• What is the liability and what is that type of insurance going to cost annually?
• What is the fee structure for this, and what is the break even costs per day of riders?
• How will this handle advise weather conditions?
• How much money is there stand to be lost for every minute this is not operational?
• What is the emergency evacuation plans for patrons to get off in a safe and timely manor?
• what is the maximum weight capacity this thing will handle?
• how many gondolas cars will be on this thing?
• Is the proposed route going to go over personal property and what rights of privacy do this people have?
• Will intimate domain be used to acquire the necessary land?
Anonymous:
Great questions. As you will find with this crowd, there is no end to good questions, but a complete dearth of good answers. As you intimated, we all want real answers, not the pie in the sky variety that we get out of the Gondolist crowd.
One minor correction, it is "Eminent Domain", you know - the other ED! It only seems like "Intimate Domain" considering that it is always some poor citizen that gets screwed when it is used.
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