By Bill C.
Just up on the Standard-Examiner website, a letter to the editor from Abe Shreve, check it out. Unadulterated blather, straight from the fall guy for Boss Godfrey's cabal:
• Envision Ogden supports those with a greater vision for OgdenHave at it, O Gentle Ones.
14 comments:
In re: Mr. Shreve's letter on the SE site:
The letter does not address two of the main questions raised by the Standard Examiner in its articles:
1. When Envision Ogden solicited money from donors like McKay Dee Hospital and others others, did it reveal to those donors the group's intention to use the money donated to make campaign contributions to mayoral or council candidates? [The SE reported that some of the donors were surprised to learn that they had donated money to election campaigns through Envision Ogden.] On this, Mr. Shreve's letter is silent.
2. If, as Mr. Shreve says, his organization saw nothing wrong in using the money it had raised to support the election of candidates who shared the organization's goals, why then did it not simply give its money directly and openly, to the Johnson and Eccles campaigns? Why did it give the money instead to a mysterious group called Friends of Northern Utah Real Estate or FNURE [organizers and members unknown], which then passed the money on to Mr. Johnson and Mr. Eccles? On this too, Mr. Shreve's letter is silent.
In fact, no where in Mr. Shreve's letter will a reader learn that Envision Ogden gave its campaign donations to FNURE at all. And no where in Mr. Shreve's letter is FNURE, the group to which Mr. Shreve directed his group's accountant to write thousands of dollars in campaign contribution checks [as the SE reported] so much as mentioned.
Imagine that....
Good catch, Bill.
Mr. Shreve said “Envision Ogden was formed several years ago by a number of Ogden residents and businesses with the mission of stimulating economic development within Ogden City -- especially as it relates to outdoor recreation.” I guess that is true if you count the Mayor as one of those “Ogden residents.” The Mayor informed the Council that he had formed a committee with the goal to encourage economic growth and to make Ogden the mecca for outdoor recreation.
Mr. Shreve also stated that in
order “to accomplish the goal of turning Ogden into an outdoor Mecca, Envision Ogden has: 1) supported city council candidates that share the same vision.” It is noted that Envision Ogden’s goals and purpose are identical to the Mayor’s and so, of course, they support city council candidates that also support their views so that the Mayor could have another “rubber stamp” council with no checks and balances.
We point out that it is their opinion that only those who share their viewpoint want economic growth and development for Ogden. I daresay that ALL of the city council members want economic growth and development for Ogden only in a more sensible and reasonable manner – one that doesn’t throw Ogden into debt so deeply that it will take generations to pay that debt off. I can say that because I know some members of the Council have made suggestions as to businesses, who were looking for a new home, that were possibiities for the Junction or River Front, Their suggestion were ignore by the Administration. But in 2005 Mr. Shreve said that he didn’t care about Ogden going into debt millions of dollars!
He also said, “We elected not to offer any financial support to….a member of the Ogden City Council who voted against the Salomon Center - a project which is now viewed on a national level as a treasure for downtown Ogden.” I ask him: If the Salomon Center is such a treasure, why are the taxpayers of Ogden subsidizing it at $750,000. A year – three times that of the Mount Ogden Golf Course?!!
Mr. Shreve apparently is another “rubber stamp” for the Mayor and willing to risk his reputation, honor and integrity to be a FOM.
So apparently Godfrey and his Legion of Doom friends had an emergency meeting to try and quell the rising tide from this scandal. They'd been exposed, so it was decided it was best to just come forward guns blazing, divert attention away form the FNURE issue by diverting the issue back to the "progressive heroes vs naysayers" bullcrap. Do these people ever do anything that isn't dripping with secrecy and lies?
Everything is always a matter of perspective.
Abe Shreve's perspective is a carbon copy of the Matthew Godfrey perspective and Godfrey is the one who let some organization use the Junction or whatever the h-- the name is, to use it to raise money for the opening while it was still Ogden City property.
But no one will step forward and tell taxpayers who or what got the fees charged to the public to participate in the opening.
That income belongs to Ogden City because that was Ogden City property being used and some body had to give the o.k. for that to be done.
If those funds are not returned to the Ogden City budget then someone or group has stolen the money and should be charged with a felony.
In typical Godfrey fashion, this deal stinks from top to bottom. Yes folks, this "Envision Ogden" and the other phony cover entity FNURE, are creations of our dear and dark little mayor and his circle of empty suits.
One of the more amusing parts is when Godfrey's very own mouth piece - Williams - says:
"no action will be taken on his complaint because Johnson and Eccles have amended their disclosure statements".
Well DUH, what did any one expect? honesty from the inner circle of the Godfreyites? Of course Williams is going to unilaterally exonerate his own boss, the one he owes his very substantial bread and butter to! Never mind that this would be the same as this same city attorney exonerating any other petty criminal if the criminal gave the loot back before said city attorney actually got around to filing charges.
So all you snatch and grab gang bangers out there, just remember in Ogden if you mug an old lady and it looks like you're going to get caught, just get the purse back to the old broad before the cops actually get their hands on you, and viola! you will not face any charges!!
And remember punk, ya owe it to our progressive and brilliant dealster mayor who never saw a lie he didn't kinda like!
OK, I tried to resist, but I just can't....
I just plugged "Shreve" into the SL Trib's search engine. Got no hits. I plugged "FNURE" in. No hits. I plugged "Friends of Northern Utah Real Estate In." One hit --- an article that appeared last month, reporting that Ogden's City attorney was taking no action on complaints about campaign finance violations because Johnson and Eccle's had [more than a year after the election] amended their campaign finance reports and "cured" any potential problems.[SE covered the story the same day.]
The SE has run several important stories on Ogden City government since then regarding this matter, and others [the pending demolition of the properties Mr. Lesham may or may not own, for example]. The Trib has run nothing.
For the past couple of years, some here have argued, often heatedly, that the SL Trib does better coverage of Ogden affairs than does the SE.
The fact that the SE has been continuing to cover the campaign finance matter and FNURE and the River Project "who owns the place" stories while the Trib has all but ignored them, makes it clear, I think... or should... that warts and all, the Standard Examiner is the only paper regularly covering Ogden city. We have no other home town paper. Whomp it all you like when it drops the ball... and sometimes it does. But it is the only game in town for consistent coverage of Ogden City matters.
OK. Putting my soap box away now. Got it out of my system. Sorry. Just couldn't let it go.
Curm:
The Trib plays an important role, occasionally looking at angles that the Standard-Examiner misses.
Sadly, that role has been greatly scaled back in recent months. It was an enormous loss when the Trib reassigned Kristen Moulton and didn't replace her with another reporter dedicated to the top-o-Utah. Chris Smart and others do what they can, but they're spread way too thin.
The fact that Kris Moulton has been reassigned somewhere else explains what is going on...I was wondering.
Kind of like when Cathy McKittrick went from Ogden to the Tribune and left a big hole. Cathy and Kris are two darn good reporters.
Makes me wonder if the Tribune is interesting in helping Ogden City's city fathers cover up their wrong doings??? Do not tell me, pleez, that Godfrey is a relative of the big guys at the Tribune.
Not only is this the typical old Godfreyite trick of "spin and smell", but by golly I think they have come up with a very forward thinking and proper sounding acronym - FNURE which is suspiciously close in sound and smell to MANURE.
As I recall this striking coincidence was pointed out on this very blog a while back by TLJ?
Ogden's latest and boldest, if not brightest, PAC - hereafter known as: FaNURE. I do believe their new slogan for the next council races might be:
"FaNURE - hold your nose, here we come!"
Dan:
Didn't mean to denigrate the Trib, particularly. For the Trib, Ogden is an out-of-town story. Always has been. It, like the SLC tv news programs, focuses on home town and suburban-ring news, with an occasional glance up to see what's going on in Ft. Ogden now and then.
I subscribe to the Trib and the SE. And unquestionably Ms. Moulton did write some important stories in re: Ogden city. However, even then, for the Trib an Ogden story was out-of-town story, something to deal with occasionally and intermittently. Ogden was not covered consistently or, usually, in much depth. Ogden has never been a major focus for the Trib since I got here.
So, Dan, even when Ms. Moulton was working wild & wolly Weber County, however frustrating the SE's coverage [or more often non-coverage] was, it was as it is now, Ogden's only home town paper. That's true, even when of a particular morning after I've read an editorial or a story [or not read a story I know should have been there], I have trouble not running out to buy a parakeet so I'll have a bird cage to line with the paper.
Walking away from the SE [as some here said they were doing] made little sense to me then. Or now. Or tomorrow. No matter how badly the SE spoils my breakfast some morning or raises my blood pressure --- and it will --- it's still the only home town paper we've got. [Plus, it has improved some over the last couple of years, I think.]
Curm,
I ain't arguing--just trying to point out that there's been a big change in the Trib's Ogden coverage since Moulton was reassigned. No, she never attended as many city council meetings as Schwebke, but she usually was there when she knew there would be something controversial. Now, as far as I can tell, the Trib never sends a reporter to an Ogden council meeting. In her time, Moulton broke quite a few stories that the Standard-Examiner didn't have the curiosity to uncover. And on a per-article basis, I think her reporting had more quality and depth than the S-E.
Joan,
I don't see any conspiracy here. I think the Trib is simply downsizing, like so many papers.
I guess that since I don't support EO or FaNURE, I must not have a greater vision for Ogden.
Here's my puny little vision of what I'd like to see in Ogden. [Some of this is happening, but not most of it.]
1. Our trail system is kept up and expanded where appropriate.
2. Our water/sewer system is brought up to date so we have good-quality drinking water and my neighbors' basements aren't flooded from breaking sewer pipes at least once a year.
3. Our taxes are at a reasonable level so that no one has to lose their home because they can't afford to pay them.
4. City services are the main interest of City Hall. Our police and firefighters are paid well and respected.
5. All municipal employees are treated with respect and paid decently.
6. If companies want to move here because of the standard of living and access to trials and skiing, they should be welcomed. However local, existing businesses should be supported as well regardless of which political candidates they support.
7. All branches of city government will work to serve all the citizens of Ogden, not play favorites, and most of all "be honest in their dealings with their fellow men [and women].
What good is having a "greater vision" if no one can afford to live here or wants to live here?
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