The Tribune's Coverage of Los Osos Just Gets Weirder, and Weirder

TO: David Sneed, reporter, The Tribune
DATE: 6/17/10

Hello David,

You seem to have missed two extremely critical points in your story today, "Judge OKs Osos sewer suit settlement."

You wrote:

"Taxpayers Watch sued the district in 2005 after three of the district’s board members were ousted in a recall election..."

What you failed to mention is that Taxpayers Watch IS "three of the district’s board members (that) were ousted in a recall election."

That is a very, VERY important point, and you didn't include it in your story, at all.

Recalled Director, Gordon Hensley's name shows up all over Taxpayer Watch documents, recalled director, Richard LeGros is their #1, vocal, and very public cheerleader, and recalled director Stan Gustafson's name shows up alongside Hensley's name in at least one Taxpayer Watch document that I have.

["Taxpayers Watch Information Contact: Gordon Hensley and Stan Gustafson"
-- Water Board Comment Letter, December, 2005]

But you didn't mention any of that.

I also noticed how, a few years back, when the recalled directors/Taxpayers Watch officially attempted to immediately "dissolve" the very government agency that they were democratically recalled from, the local agency that handled that dissolution attempt -- LAFCO -- was so disgusted with the "9 month" effort, that LAFCO actually sued Taxpayers Watch to recover the some $40,000 (that LAFCO wasted on administrative costs on the matter), AND WON.

But the Tribune never covered THAT super interesting angle of the story, like I did, at this link:

http://sewerwatch.blogspot.com/2008/08/unlike-my-moms-garden-club-taxpayers.html

... AFTER your paper wrote several stories involving the dissolution attempt, itself.

You never followed-up... on that amazing story.

Why?

Finally, in today's story, you write:

"... stopped construction of the sewer started several months earlier by the previous board."

and;

"Stoppage of the sewer resulted in numerous legal challenges."

and;

"The sewer project has since been taken over by the county Public Works Department, which recently received final regulatory approval for a new project."

As usual, the Trib totally ignores the over-the-top important question of "whatever happened to the 'previous project?'"... that the 1998 -- 2005 LOCSD (consisting of Taxpayers Watch types) spent 7 years and $25 million developing.

I have to admit, it just gets weirder and weirder with your paper, and the Los Osos sewer story.

I sent the following e-mail to, (Tribune editor) Sandra Duerr, the other day, but, of course she never replied:

- - -
Hello Sandra,

Thank you SO much for taking my question today on KCBX.

I'm working on a story for my blog, and I just have a very quick follow-up question, please:

Considering that you said that the editorial board does not influence your news gathering, will the Tribune soon be publishing a story on the collapse of the Tri-W project -- a project that the Los Osos CSD spent $25 million and seven years (1998 - 2005) planning?

Because, I have to admit, what's currently happening with your paper, and that over-the-top important story, is kind of weird.

Think about this...

After your paper published three editorials endorsing that project in 2005, four years and $7 million worth of careful SLO County analysis would later show that exact same project to be a complete "infeasible" embarrassment.

However, your paper has yet to publish a story on that "project's" dramatic collapse... AFTER the Tribune published three separate editorials endorsing it.

And THAT's where it gets weird. You've yet to report on that unbelievably newsworthy story, AFTER publishing three editorials supporting it.

So, will the Tribune now, after your appearance on KCBX today, publish a story detailing the dramatic collapse of the Tri-W project?

After hearing your answer to my on-air question, I'm a little confused on that one.

Finally, was Bill Morem (a Los Osos prohibition zone resident) a member of your editorial board in 2005, at the time of those pro-Tri-W project editorials?

As always, much thanks,
Ron
- - -

I also don't expect a reply from you, so that's why, when I already know that I'm not going to get a reply to an e-mail, I just go ahead and publish the e-mail on my blog, so, that way, I can at least show that I sent it, which is what I did with this e-mail:

sewerwatch.blogspot.com

Thanks,
Ron

And, my quick follow-up to Sneed:

- - -
Hello David,

It took me about a minute to dig this up:

"Taxpayers Watch Information Contact: Gordon Hensley and Stan Gustafson"

http://swrcb2.waterboards.ca.gov/centralcoast/board_info/agendas/2005/dec/item3/comment_ltrs/letter072_albright.pdf

Since, clearly, the Trib isn't aware of this...

Immediately after they were recalled, in 2005, the three recalled directors immediately formed Taxpayers Watch as a front, and then used it to sue, dissolve, bankrupt, and "fine out of existence" the very government agency that they were DEMOCRATICALLY recalled from, and the obvious fact that the Tribune doesn't know ANY of that, is, frankly, appalling.

Can I recommend a "brickbrack," or whatever your paper calls 'em (other than the obvious one for your reporting)?

A brickbrack for Hensley, LeGros and Gustafson for taking over 200 years of the Democracy that we all know and love, and going hard-core scorched earth on it, and the Trib enables it.

Thanks again,
Ron

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