If A Columnist Falls From the Paper, Does Anyone Care?

Self-aggrandizing Moscow-Pullman Daily News columnist Chuck Pezeshki has created a bit of a firestorm over his latest throwaway paean to eco-terrorists published on August 16. In it, Chuck wrote:

Frank Bennett, that ostensible local communitarian, at my last check was living in Palm Springs.

Uh, there's a slight problem there. Frank Bennett does not, nor has he ever, lived in Palm Springs. But why let truth stand in the way of a good anarchist rant?

The problem for Chuck is that Mr. Bennett has many friends in the area. A letter to the editor appeared in the paper today correcting Chuck's lie.

The real question is, where was the editorial staff fact checking? Is Chuck just allowed to publish anything he wants? At a recent Palousitics lunch, Daily News Managing Editor Steve McClure told us that another columnist had been let go for promulgating false information.

We'll see where this goes.

Pest-o-crats Reduced To Fighting Plastic Bags

So now we need a tax on plastic grocery bags? Fresh from having had their fannies handed to them in the Wal-Mart wars, Pullman’s cadre of professional pests have chosen their next futile crusade. They now argue that the town they desire to tyrannize would find itself improved by a new tax. These Pest-o-crats are following their masters in Seattle and San Francisco as they seek to enact a tax on shopping bags. I am not kidding.


The problem, as the Pest-o-crats see it, is that disposable plastic shopping bags are so inexpensive that consumers dispose of them. Once consumers come home with their purchases, they either discard that bag or save it to line their restroom garbage cans. And that is a market condition that Pest-o-crats would like to alter. If consumers were forced to pay 20 cents for each bag, then the great unwashed would choose to lug around those reusable fabric shopping bags. I have no doubt that National Public Radio looks forward to the day when they can reward contributors with NPR embossed reusable grocery bags.

Where would Pullman’s self-anointed elite get such an idea? If you think that it’s original, then you don’t know Pullman’s Pest-o-crats. The inspiration for all such thoughts arise from the most enlightened cities on Earth, Seattle and San Francisco. The Pest-o-crats are simply drones of the great collectives. Because Seattle and San Francisco are the centers of the cultural universe that has given us so much in the past, like grunge rock, drugs, AIDS, Nancy Pelosi and Patty Murray, it makes sense to the Pest-o-crats that the rest of us should bow before the great wisdom that animates these cities. We rubes, who inhabit the east side of the state, have demonstrated that we lack the sophistication needed to make the proper decisions and so we require west side wisdom.

Okay, I will allow that Seattle’s attempts to exert hegemony over Pullman is slightly less crude than Russia’s interference in the Georgian Republic, but the west side’s desire to extinguish cultural diversity throughout Washington is no less determined than Vladimir Putin’s. Seattle already selected our governor and elects our US senators. Seattle raises taxes on the entire state and decides how little of that is permitted to trickle over the Cascades to the east side. For that matter, west of the Cascades, east side is defined as the strip of land that lies between Lake Washington and the Cascades. I’m really not sure what term Seatllistas use to describe the fur-wearing barbarians who inhabit this side of the state.

Like all great imperial powers, Seattle benefits from the advantage of fifth columnists, or native traitors. In Pullman, the fifth columnists are composed of a cadre of moon barking professional pests who move from cause to cause in their quest to impose their vision upon those of us who simply wish the freedom to live our lives as we see fit. And now that they failed to dictate their retail shopping preferences, they’ve moved on to plastic bags.

Chuck Pezeshki, the philosophical guiding light of the Pest-o-crats, demonizes disposable plastic bags as “wind borne litter” and “hazards to wildlife.”

Judging by the waistlines of Pullman’s Pest-o-crats, it is quite probable that I spend a great deal more time out of doors than any of the Pest-o-crats and I’ve never seen a wild animal harmed by a plastic bag. As a volunteer who picks up trash along highway 195 as part the Adopt-a-Highway program, I don’t really encounter as many bags as Pezeshki’s logic suggests should be found out there. Beer cans outnumber plastic bags by a couple of orders of magnitude. The complaints against plastic bags are like global warming, all theory without data.

It’s worth noting that Pezeshki identifies his anti-bag crusaders as consisting “mostly of members of the WSU community.” In my own experience, such is the composition of most such movements because tenured university faculty are free from the burdens of productivity that hobble the rest of the world and that leaves them plenty of free time that they can devote to telling the rest of us how to live.

If we let them get away with this, the Pest-o-crats certainly have other Seattle ideas waiting for us. For example the Emerald City’s mayor would now like to close off much of downtown to automobile traffic on Sundays. This would make room for artists to decorate the streets with chalk drawings. Really!

"Paying a 'hidden cost'; Pullman residents lead effort to charge 20 cents per plastic bag"

Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki stated in a recent comment on Dnews.com that Pullman was the most "anti-intellectual" town he had ever seen.

Is Pullman sui generis? Or is the antipathy he observes the result of the meddling efforts by Chuck and his liberal academic chums to introduce envirofascist Nanny Statism into Pullman, such as a tax on plastic bags modeled after what Mayor Greg "Hugo Chavez" Nickels has attempted in Seattle?

I'll have much more on this later as I contemplate mounting a counter-effort to shoot this absurd proposal down.

From Friday's Moscow-Pullman Daily News:

Liz Siler counted 22 discarded plastic shopping bags during a recent drive through College Hill in Pullman.

Some bags were caught in trees, while others were lying on lawns or blowing in the street.

"None of those bags were obtained with the idea that it was going to end up on the side of the road, but that's where they end up," Siler said.

Siler is among a group of Pullman residents who want to cut back on the use and distribution of plastic bags. Nearly 80 community members have endorsed a proposal that stores be required to charge 20 cents for each plastic bag dispensed inside city limits.

Plastic bags used for unpackaged items, such as produce, would be exempt from the fee.

The group recently submitted the proposal to the Pullman City Council for consideration, with the goal of having an ordinance go into effect Jan. 1.

Siler said in place of plastic bags, shoppers could get into the habit of keeping reusable bags tucked in their car.

"We're not trying to make things harder for people," she said. "We're trying to make things easier."

The proposal shouldn't be viewed as elitist, said Pullman resident Chuck Pezeshki. It will encourage change and show that residents respect and care for their community.

Though the commonly used bags are compact and currently free, Pezeshki said "there's a hidden cost for society" because many recycling facilities - such as WSU Recycling and Pullman Disposal Inc. - no longer accept the bags.

"If we can't recycle, we've got to reduce and reuse," he said, adding that lightweight bags can travel quickly through the wind or waterways.

The bags are made from petroleum and do not biodegrade, Pezeshki said. In fact, the plastic bags "photodegrade" in the presence of light, meaning they break into tiny pieces and can be eaten by animals. The bags also pose risks to animals that can become entangled in them.

"It's basically spreading petroleum all over the landscape," he said. "When you use a plastic bag, it's like an oil slick all over the land."

Siler said the idea to limit plastic bag use isn't new. She points to Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels' recent proposal to charge a "green tax" on disposable shopping bags, and added that San Francisco and communities throughout Alaska have banned the bags entirely. Ireland and China recently took similar action.

The Pullman group points to statistics from the Environmental Protection Agency to justify its cause - 4,630 tons of plastic bags, wraps and sacks were generated in the United States in 2006, of which only 8 percent were reused. The EPA also reports that a family of four uses about 1,500 bags per year.

Siler said the group has met some opposition from a few community members who are concerned they would have no way to pick up their pet waste or line garbage cans without plastic bags.

"No one's saying you can't have plastic bags," Siler said. "You're just going to have to pay for it."

Trev McCuaig, manager of Dissmore's IGA in Pullman, said the store is making strides to reduce plastic waste. Customers who want plastic bags get them, but there are other options. Inexpensive cloth bags are sold at the register, and many customers are eager to pick one up.

"Since we brought those in ... I think we've sold 700 to 800," he said. "I think there are a lot more people that are conscientious."

The store also uses recycled bags when they're offered by the supplier, and all plastic waste generated at the store is baled and sent to a recycling company in Spokane. McCuaig said the store also plans to set up a plastic bag recycling bin.

"There are things that we do at store-level to try to help out," he said.

Siler said the profits from bag fees could go to the Pullman Food Bank, which relies on the bags to package foods for area families. She suggests the money could fund an alternative method for the food bank to distribute food, or go to community beautification efforts.

City Supervisor John Sherman said the city frequently gets proposals and suggestions for change. They are forwarded to the City Council which ultimately decides whether the issue is discussed further.

Sherman said Councilman Bill Paul recently expressed interest in discussing the plastic bag fee proposal publicly, and the topic is scheduled for the council's Aug. 26 meeting. The delay is intended to allow interested residents who may be out of town for the summer to participate in the conversation.

Non Sequitur of the Day

Instead of waiting until gas is $9 per gallon, we could seek to develop augmented water supplies.

- Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki, "Like it or not, change is coming for us all," Moscow-Pullman Daily News, May 10, 2008

Huh? What does the price of gas, which we have no control over, have to do with water supplies?

Runners-Up:

We could pull out all the stops and work toward developing sustainable housing close to the university, where many of the staff that now must commute from Colfax, could live.

Apparently, with Chuck away in Europe, he didn't hear that College Hill has been designated a historic district listed with the National Register of Historic Places. Good luck putting in your "sustainable housing" now. Those drafty, old, energy inefficient houses are here to stay.

We could work toward making both Moscow and Pullman the most bike-friendly communities in the West, and move the majority of our student population toward cycling.

Ditto. Chuckie must not be aware that Pullman was recently named one of the most pedestrian-oriented cities in the U.S.

We could actively engage our organic farming faculty toward a goal of campus food self-sufficiency.

I can't wait to see the organic farming faculty grow enough food to feed 18,000 students.

Honorable Mention:

Some of our faculty and staff in my university building, from professorial to janitorial, still drive from homes far distant, alone in their pick-up trucks, spending up to 15 percent of their take-home pay on gas.

15 percent?

We celebrate the commissioning of an unnecessary and useless golf course that will only further deplete our pristine water supply.

I am definitely taking up golf because it pisses off the liberals so much.

We still welcome obesity with our dietary choices.

What a rant. Chuck is taking swings at everything that makes him mad, including apparently, fat people driving pick-up trucks. You gotta love the intolerance of the "tolerant."

Instead of having city councils making backroom deals for large developments promoting failed models of consumerism, we could have our local governments actively address some of these big issues.

"Failed model of consumerism?" Unfortunately for Chuck and his fellow socialists, consumerism hasn't failed. Otherwise, Hawkins wouldn't be building a mall. And just what would he have local governments do? It's the people that decide where they want to shop last time I checked.

"Proud of Bishop Boulevard"

For those of you without a subscription to the Moscow-Pullman Daily News, below is my letter to the editor that ran on Monday.

In addition to making the obvious comparison between Professor Ayad Rahmani's elitism and that displayed by Barack Obama in his "bitter Americans" statement, I wanted to make a deeper, more subtle point.

Many of Rahmani's cheerleaders, including Chuck Pezeshki and Chris Lupke, are proponents of locally-owned businesses versus national chains. Yet, there are no chain stores on Bishop other than Safeway (yet.) There are only locally-owned businesses (Fireside Grille, Village Centre Cinemas, Corporate Pointe, Crimson and Gray, Zeppoz, Barnacle Bill's, et. al.) and locally-owned and -operated franchises (Radio Shack, Absolute Fitness, Jiffy Lube, Holiday Inn Express, et. al.)

Do we as a community really want to impose onerous and expensive architectural requirements on the types of businesses we supposedly want to encourage just to please the aesthetic sensibilities of a few professors? That will make our local businesses even less competitive with national chains. I'm quite proud of all the progress on Bishop Blvd. over the last 10 years. The sidewalks will come later when the city has more money and the Bishop build-out is complete.

For example, up in Hayden, the city negotiated with Wal-Mart to have the facade of the store tan and brown with rock veneer "to blend with the rustic flavor Hayden Lake is trying to develop as part of a revitalization project." That's chump change to Wal-Mart; merely the cost of doing business. They are dropping $600,000 to put in stop lights down in Clarkston. But that's a very big deal to a small business.

From Monday's Moscow-Pullman Daily News:

Prior to Professor Ayad Rahmani's "architorture" faux-protest a few weeks back, I had heard only pride expressed about the buildings on Bishop Boulevard from Pullman residents, civic leaders and elected officials. Many have rightfully praised native son Duane Brelsford Jr.'s Corporate Pointe, Fireside Grille, and Village Centre Cinemas, as well as the new Pullman Regional Hospital.

Now, much as presidential candidate Barack Obama has been doing for the past week, Rahmani, who called Bishop Boulevard "counter-human," has tried to perform damage control (Opinion, April 18.)

Unfortunately for Rahmani, his Viewpoint column in the Oct. 26 issue of WSU Today completely undermined his efforts.

Sure, Rahmani is concerned about the "built environment," but only because a "worldly faculty member wants to be proud of his or her choice of place, not making apologies to those who visit" and "high-class faculty will refuse to live in scattered and inconsequential buildings."

His call for the public and the private sectors to work together also rings hollow. In his column, Rahmani claimed only the university can "save" Pullman. Pullman's housing represents the "worst of the effects of a market economy." Developers persist in building homes with "materials and planning that are highly wasteful and unsustainable." The city is "too bogged down in trying to increase tax revenues to worry about the role of architecture in improving matters." Rahmani advocated a Washington State University land grab on Grand Avenue, which "shows little beyond gas stations and neglected farm buildings," under the guise of "student housing."

Rahmani stated, "This need not be a divisive issue." Unfortunately, we nonworldly, low-class, nonfaculty types get bitter. We cling to offensive "mcmansions" with garages or inconsequential cookie-cutter homes or antipathy to people who insult and disparage our town and the people who live in it as a way to explain our frustrations.

Tom Forbes, Pullman

Academic Freedom?

The great Milton Friedman wrote:

The essence of political freedom is the absence of coercion of one man by his fellow men. The fundamental danger to political freedom is the concentration of power. The existence of a large measure of power in the hands of a relatively few individuals enables them to use it to coerce their fellow men. Preservation of freedom requires either the elimination of power where that is possible or its dispersal where it cannot be eliminated.

By Friedman's definition, there is no freedom at WSU, as Foley Institute director Ed Weber recently pointed out, "hegemony of the left-leaning liberal viewpoint" has coerced him into not "inviting too many of 'the wrong kind' of intellectual."

Yet "academic freedom" is being used as a defense of Ayad Rahmani's "architorture" protest by Chuck Pezeshki and Chris Lupke.

A letter in Saturday's Moscow-Pullman Daily News pointed out that absurdity:

Protest not the best way

Chuck Pezeshki (His View, April 12 & 13) does it again. He missed the point even after questioning it himself. And Ayad Rahmani, (His View, April 18) with somewhat reasonable explanation, also.

If a medical professor required a for-credit peaceful protest against abortion, a science professor for nuclear energy or against climate change advocates, a political science professor against anti-war protesters or for guns, or a religion professor for prayer in schools or against gays, and many more possibilities, there would not only be a tempest in a teapot, there would be tornado in a Starbucks latte.

You would never hear the end of it from liberals. Just think if this type of requirement became a trend in education. A more responsible, rational, less controversial requirement would have been for students to critically evaluate the good, bad and ugly of the situation, write a comprehensive article and send it to the newspaper and all concerned.

Joe Ulliman, Moscow

Indeed. The 1940 Statement of Principles on Academic Freedom and Tenure states with regard to academic freedom that:

Teachers are entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing their subject, but they should be careful not to introduce into their teaching controversial matter which has no relation to their subject.

And:

College and university teachers are citizens, members of a learned profession, and officers of an educational institution. When they speak or write as citizens, they should be free from institutional censorship or discipline, but their special position in the community imposes special obligations. As scholars and educational officers, they should remember that the public may judge their profession and their institution by their utterances. Hence they should at all times be accurate, should exercise appropriate restraint, should show respect for the opinions of others, and should make every effort to indicate that they are not speaking for the institution.

There are a couple of comments on the Friday Rahmani column that are too good not to repeat:

"I have a great idea for Lupke, Pezeshki, and the architecture prof: If you don't like the way it looks, then you can buy the property and do anything they want with it. Just like the folks who own it now. The concept that the "community" should consider themselves stakeholders is ridiculous and elitist, and pretty parasitic to those who buy, develop, maintain, and pay taxes on the land. You do what you want with your stuff, and I will do what I want with mine. period!"

"I cannot believe the arrogance of some of these professors. Bishop Blvd was not developed for your walking/visual pleasure. It was developed to grow retail development for Pullman. For your walking and visual pleasure and in memory of Bill Chipman many of us worked very hard to gain funding to develop the Chipman trail and downtown walkways for that purpose. I also resent that you seem to think our elected/hired city officials do not know what our community wants and apparently are not as intelligent as you. I am very pleased that they are not making the mistakes of their predecessors and are moving in the direction the community has been waiting for."

Quote of the Day - Godwin's Law Edition

Sadly, in the epilogue the author develops a tortured analogy comparing the logging of these forests with the Holocaust and Nazi Germany. Apparently, he actually believes that the people working for the Forest Service and in the timber industry hate the woods and the trees just as the Nazis hated Jews.

- Phil Druker, book review of Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki's book, Wild to the Last.

Wow, and I'm the one accused of having a "prurient fascination with Nazis." I guess we can conclude Chuck is not acting as an advisor to any logging corporations.

This was pointed out by a commenter on Dnews.com Some good stuff coming out of that thread about Ayad Rahmani's column last Friday. More later.

Quote of the Day

When you match my success in corporate America, as an advisor all the way to the top of some very large corporations, then we'll talk.

You've never given any evidence that you're anything other than a dead-end small-town loser that's even afraid to stand out in a rather small community.

That's the truth. Too bad for you-- as well as the rest of your pathetic cohort.

- Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki, online comment at Dnews.com, April 19, 2008.

BWHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Chuck is demonstrating how a six-figure salary tenured professor engages in the third-grade schoolyard game known as a "pissing contest." (One wonders what Chuck "advises" these corporations on.)

He's also, indirectly, acknowledging that he has no further aspirations for elected office.

Say What?

But how one uses their First Amendment rights is also a bellwether of where they want that society to go. And it matters even more in a small university community, where we all live together and, hopefully, are all growing together. There’s never going to be perfect harmony here — nor anywhere. But to what end, all of this behavior?

- Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki, "Time for Community Building at WSU,", Moscow-Pullman Daily News, November 21, 2006

But to pick an issue that one might care about and do something legal and political once in a semester? These are young adults we're educating. We'd like them to become active citizens someday. Anything we can do to engage them and stop the inherent sleepwalking through the curriculum that too many of our students already do is a good thing.

- Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki, "'Architorture' protest brings on tempest in a teapot," Moscow-Pullman Daily News, April 12, 2008

I guess Chuck's idea of where he wants the society in "our small university community" to go depends on whether it's the College Republicans protesting or one of his "hip," fellow elitist leftist professors.

By the way, Chuck, you can certainly do better than label anyone opposing Rahmani's PR stunt as mouthbreathing members of the local John Birch Society. Pullman residents were offended by Rahmani's overweening arrogance and snobbery, all funded on the taxpayer's dime.

"D'Souza: Affirmative action no longer needed; Former Reagan policy analyst tackles tough topics at WSU"

In today's Moscow-Pullman Daily News, Amy Gray does a decent job of providing a précis of Dinesh D'Souza's remarks at WSU last night. For the sake of clarity, I will add my comments after hers in red:

Conservative author Dinesh D'Souza told a packed house at Washington State University on Tuesday that affirmative action as it exists should be retired.

D'Souza is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in India and came to America as an exchange student at 17. He was educated at Dartmouth College and went on to become a policy analyst for President Ronald Reagan and a Robert and Karen Rishwain Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.

He was introduced at WSU's Smith Center for Undergraduate Education as "one of America's most influential conservative thinkers, a highly acclaimed scholar and true patriot." [No mention of the WSU College Republicans sponsoring this event at considerable cost? Come on.]

D'Souza said affirmative action was "conceived for one group - African-Americans, blacks - for a specific period of time." Other groups such as gay people and women eventually began to seek affirmative action to counter discrimination in employment and education.

He said blacks are a small minority in America - 10 percent. Hispanics make up another 10 percent of the population, and women make up 50 percent.

"Now we have a majority," he said.

He told the audience of a debate he had with the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

"Our skin colors were identical. Why do I and he have an opposite take on the same set of facts?" D'Souza asked.

He said the answer is he represents immigrants and Jackson represents indigenous minority groups such as blacks and American Indians - people who "have been here longer than the Italians and the Jews."

He said the difference in the two populations is that immigrants compare America to the rest of the world whereas Jackson "was comparing America to Utopia, to a garden of Eden, and America consistently falls short." [He also asked Jackson to specifically name where this discrimination that is supposedly being fought still exists; to name just one example from today. Jackson couldn't. How's that for "comparative ethnic studies?"

Dinesh didn't mention it, but I would imagine this also explains Barack Obama's poor polling numbers with Hispanic and Asian-American voters. D'Souza commented how Obama could be uniquely positioned to transcend racism. Obama is much more like the immigrant. His Kenyan father only attended college in Hawaii and then returned to Kenya. Obama's ancestors were never slaves. The only "indigenous" part of Obama is his white Kansas family. But, somewhat unexpectedly, race has become an issue in the presidential race, with Jeremiah Wright's sermons demonstrating the "typhoonic rage" of the indigenous minorities.]

D'Souza pointed out that 50 percent of National Football League players are black, and no one complains about discrimination in that case. [Dinesh didn't say the NFL was specifically 50 percent black. He mentioned several pro sports and several percentages. More accurately, 75% of the of NFL players and 85% of NBA players are black. His point was that blacks, comprising some 10% of the population, are overrepresented in pro sports. He wondered where are the protests about having more Koreans and Jews in pro sports. Pro sports teams pick players based on merit, not race. This merit standard results in the inequality observed.]

"They're outperforming everybody as a result of achievement, not social power or a game that's rigged in their favor," he said.

He countered notions that standardized tests are racially biased, focusing on math portions of tests that require absolute answers.

"Is it really possible that all these tests are conspiratorially based?" he asked. "In any test given to a group - reasoning, math, vocabulary, legal skills - I will tell you the results. Asian-Americans and whites will do the best. Hispanics will come in second and African-Americans will come in last." [Dinesh offered three theories as to why these test results happen:

1. The Genetics Theory - it's how you're born.
2. The Liberal Theory - it's all society's fault.
3. The Cultural/Behavioral Theory - it's up to you and your family.

He believes that the "Cultural/Behavioral Theory" is the most plausible and empirically proven. As an example, he talked about a study conducted of racial groups and the amount of time spent on homework weekly. Those numbers corresponded exactly to how well each group did on tests. Dinesh suggested this had to do with parental involvement. Asian-Americans have the lowest illegimacy rate and Hispanics and blacks have the highest. It could be that children from two parent homes have more parental involvement/supervision than children from single parent homes. Ironically, this is the same point that Chuck Pezeshki made in his column yesterday, even though I'm sure Pezeshki would disagree with most everything D'Souza said.]

Francene Watson, a doctoral candidate in the WSU College of Education, told D'Souza she believed he was oversimplifying race issues with regard to educational advancement.

"In 10 years as a public high school teacher, I've never had a student ask me to lower the standards," she said. "We're talking about something that's institutionalized. Public school has always been about oppression. I would like to hear a more critical analysis than saying everyone is a blank slate and they show up in a class and test."

D'Souza likened affirmative action to "lowering the net" for basketball players who are not as tall as Michael Jordan. [Dinesh discussed how much Michael Jordan himself would have resisted this. If that had happened, all of Jordan's records and accomplishments would be asterisked, much as Barry Bonds' will be. Affirmative action and lowered standards strengthen racist stereotypes. In essence, the liberals who claim to be racism's biggest foes are actually the worst racists, intentional or not, demonstrating a "plantation mentality."

For example, Pullman's Don Orlich had a column on the WASL that appeared in both the Daily News and Spokesman-Review earlier this year. Orlich pointed out what D'Souza pointed out last night:

Data for all 10th-graders – approximately 75,000 – who took the WASL in 2006-07 show the following: The percentages meeting standard — that is, passing an arbitrary score — were 80.8 on reading, 83.9 on writing, 50.4 on math and 36.4 on science.

White and Asian students exceeded those performances in all categories.

But the percentages for black students were 37 for reading, 39.3 for writing, 14.2 for math and 9.2 for science.

Orlich's solution? Dump the WASL, for everyone. Here are some reactions to Orlich's column from letters to the editor in the Spokesman-Review:

I find much of Mr. Orlich's commentary insulting, and suggesting that establishing a common standard of achievement and testing for it is inherently discriminatory against those who don't measure up ought to be insulting to them, too. Accepting that line of thinking will keep you right where you are – instead of reaching for the stars.

And:

Donald Orlich, for his scathing rebuke of the WASL (Jan. 31), gets my vote for poster child for the soft bigotry of race-based, lowered expectations, his allusion to MLK's "I have a dream" speech being completely inapposite, highly offensive rhetoric. It comes as a complete shock and outrage to read a WSU professor's admission that he has little hope of blacks and, to a lesser extent, Hispanics and American Indians, ever competing academically with whites.

Of course, Orlich doesn't see himself as a bigot, but that's the perfect word for the person who, in giving up on minorities, indirectly labels them as inferior. I have seen this before in education, where the teacher who says somebody's got to work at Burger King is venerated, viewed as experienced and positive, and the one who pushes black, red, brown and white all just as hard called naive, not suited for teaching, counterproductive, even racist!

Spokesman-Review, don't you ever again trash a national icon like MLK by publishing plain racism, however indirect or subtle, racism purporting to have his endorsement no less! If MLK stood for anything, it is stop judging people by the color of their skin, his "I have a dream" speech being the best example of this conviction.]

"Racism in America is substantially different than it was in the past. In the South, it was systematic," he said, using segregated water fountains as an example.

"Racism today is not only less than it used to be but it is episodic rather than systematic," D'Souza said. "We may be in the best position to correct this. We must sometimes take responsibility for things we didn't do. Individual responsibility means you need to take the cards you're dealt and do the best with them. Policies need to be based on achievement, development and merit. Instead of trying to rig the outcome, invest resources to allow people to do better." [Dinesh referred to this as the two strategies that minorities could use: The "Protest Strategy" (or the "Cornel West Strategy"- West believes blacks face "existential angst" from their slave past and that accounts for their problems) or the "Assimilation Strategy."

Are a lot of school subjects not culturally "neutral?" Sure. It's AMERICAN history, for example. But shouldn't we all learn that as we live in America?

Yes, America was slaveholding longer than it has been free. But what's the point in bringing up the past? No one alive today was a slave, nor was anyone's parents or grandparents. Rather than protest against things in the past that cannot be changed, why not make the best of it now? He gave an example from his own experience in India. People would blame British colonialism for plumbing leaks and broken down trains. And indeed, it was the British that had originally laid those pipes and tracks. But if all the Indians did was to blame the British, nothing would ever get fixed. D'Souza pointed out how the stereotype 40 years ago of "eat your food, there are people starving in India" has changed to "be careful or an Indian will take your job." This has been accomplished by an assimilation attitude, not a protest attitude.]

D'Souza's comments were met with mixed reaction. As students exited, one shouted, "That guy's racist!"

WSU freshman Shera Shupert thought her fellow students were rude to D'Souza.

"He's a respected speaker at our university and people were yelling at him," she said. [Not hard to believe at all, considering just a year and a half ago, a WSU professor called a student a "white shitbag" and likened a College Republican demonstration to a "swastika in a Jewish neighborhood" and only faced minimal disciplinary action.

For the most part, the faculty/students asking questions last night weren't really asking questions or engaging in debate. They were making statements (one guy admitted as much); precanned statements regurgitating what they have been indoctrinated about concerning "white supremacy" from the likes of John Streamas, David Leonard, Richard King, TV Reed, et. al. (Were any of those guys there? I didn't see them, nor did I see Alex McDonald.)

The ad hominem argument is really about all the liberals have in their arsenal. Other commenters tried to imply that D'Souza was somehow "elitist" and "privileged," even though he is a dark-skinned Indian immigrant from a humble background. They chided his humorous comments as being "insensitive." That and a few straw man arguments thrown in here and there for good measure. There were implications that Dinesh was denying that racism had ever occurred or was somehow glossing over the damaging effects of racism. He made no such allegations. D'Souza just stated that those things are not happening NOW.]

D'Souza reminded the group that "In a university you also need racial, gender, cultural, and language diversity -- but you also need intellectual diversity and I hope I've tried to provide that," he said. [He did. I hope a few young minds were enlightened. The unenlightened ones were certainly embarassing to WSU, but I'm sure Dinesh is used to that.]

My Response to Chris Lupke

I'm sure some of you were wondering if I would respond to Loopy Lupke's latest Town Crier column with its embarassing hypocrisy and tortured circular logic concerning the Hawkins development. Well, I did, and here it is from today's Moscow-Pullman Daily News

Columnist changes stance

In a 2006 Daily News op-ed, Chris Lupke wrote that, "Wal-Mart and its surrogates have tried to pit Pullman and Moscow against each other in a 'divide and conquer strategy,' arguing a dollar spent in Pullman would have the 'added benefit' of not going to Moscow ... We should be thinking of ways in which growth in Pullman also can benefit Moscow and vice versa ..."

And yet, in his latest Town Crier column (Opinion, 3.5), Lupke does a volte-face, fretting about sales leakage and claiming the Hawkins "boondoggle" will "permanently situate the retail center in and near Moscow, miles from Pullman" and not "closer to our retail base." Incidentally, Pullman schools will benefit from taxes paid by Hawkins. City residents utilize county parks, roads, and law enforcement and emergency services that stand to gain as well. Pullman is, after all, part of Whitman County. Those taxes also will help pay Professor Lupke's salary.

The Pullman Alliance for Responsible Development's position paper on Wal-Mart states that, "While we understand some people in Pullman who think it only fair turnabout to gain sales at the expense of Moscow at a time when the Pullman and Moscow governments are seeking to cooperate on a number of projects, including responsible development of the Route 270 corridor, this is no time for store wars to ruin good will."

Indeed. By PARD's standards, the Hawkins development is highly responsible, as it will be situated on the largest highway in the region far away from any hospitals, schools, retirement homes or cemeteries. Distance certainly can't be an issue either, as PARD member T.V. Reed has publicly offered to drive folks over to Moscow to shop. Plus, as PARD has repeatedly assured us, they are not against all large retail stores, just Wal-Mart.

We can only hope Target or Costco soon announce plans to locate in the Hawkins development.

Tom Forbes, Pullman

If Lupke and PARD wanted to covince everyone they were not against retail and not just Wal-Mart, this column was very ill-advised. But of course, they are against national retail stores. They are liberal fascists just like Chuck Pezeshki. As the late Don Pelton used to point out, the PARDners long for an economic model and lifestyle that disappeared in the 1920s, which is fine in itself, except they demand the government mandate it through land use regulations.

And inevitably, the "constructive community dialogue" the Daily News thinks is is fostering with the online comments just leads to more irresponsible lies from anonymous idiots like this:

Also, as I understand it, there won't be any tax benefits for anybody except the holders of the bonds Whitman County wants to saddle residents with for the next 20 years.

You understand nothing. First, as has been stated before repeatedly here and elsewhere, THERE WILL BE NO TAX LIABILITY TO THE CITIZENS OF WHITMAN COUNTY. The $10.5 million infrastructure bond will be paid off with the retail sales tax proceeds. And as far as tax benefits go, how about:

$4,207,500 for the Pullman School Distict over the next 20 years
$2,174,001 for Whitcom emergency communications over the next 20 years
$2,050,115 for Washington State schools over the next 20 years
$1,190,000 for Rural Fire District 12 over the next 20 years
$421,005 for Whitman County libraries over the next 20 years
$350,370 for the Port of Whitman County over the next 20 years

And that's just from property taxes, which are the same regardless of how much business the mall does. So let's hear some alternatives from our local leftists on what they believe could raise that much money.

Why exactly do people like Lupke think the Hawkins project is bad if it won't benefit Pullman (it will)? Would it be the end of the world if some of the smaller towns like Palouse, Colton, and Garfield in Whitman County benefit (they will also) for a change? How selfish and short-sighted. We're all in this together.

What the Big Box Battles On the Palouse Are All About

Even though his frequent self-congratulatory egocentrism makes me blanch (e.g. "I'm a university professor with a large, successful, corporate-funded program that advises them on their business,") I generally enjoy Chuck Pezeshki's online comments because he cuts through all the usual bullshit our local liberals spout and reveals the unvarnished thoughts of a leftist in public. Take for example this recent comment on Dnews.com:

It's pretty shallow to define life in America as some kind of enhanced shopping experience. I don't think that the Founding Fathers meant 'pursuit of happiness' to mean price-shopping in a small geographic area. Sadly enough, with the collapse of anything resembling an external life in this country, shopping and over-work have turned into the few available pastimes. Lest ye think that I lament only for liberal pastimes, look at the fate of groups like the Lions. And try to buy a beer in an outdoor venue in the US. Not allowed-- because we're all supposedly hooligans. Even though there are whole continents where such a simple pleasure is a way of life-- not an exceptional activity.

For the last 12 years, this country's hit the skids. People are afraid, and now many are queued up for losing their homes. The collapse is on its way. It ain't gonna be pretty...

Bubba definitely had something to do with it. But GWB hammered the throttle down.

Besides demonstrating a terminal case of Bush Derangement Syndrome, Chuck's comment perfectly illustrates what Professor James Twitchell of the University of Florida in an article in Reason magazine called "Marxism Lite:"

Since the 1960s, the primary "readers" of the commercial "text" have been the well-tended and -tenured members of the academy. For any number of reasons--the most obvious being their low levels of disposable income, average age, and gender, and the fact that these critics are selling a competing product, high-cult (which is also coated with its own dream values)--the academy has casually passed off as "hegemonic brainwashing" what seems to me, at least, a self-evident truth about human nature: We like having stuff.

In place of the obvious, they have substituted an interpretation that they themselves often call vulgar Marxism. It is supposedly vulgar in the sense that it is not as sophisticated as the real stuff, but it has enough spin on it to be more appropriately called Marxism lite. Go into almost any cultural studies course in this country and you will hear the condemnation of consumerism expounded: What we see in the marketplace is the result of the manipulation of the many for the profit of the few. Consumers are led around by the nose. We live in a squirrel cage. Left alone we would read Wordsworth, eat lots of salad, and have meetings to discuss Really Important Subjects.

In cultural studies today, everything is oppression and we are all victims. In macrocosmic form, the oppression is economic--the "free" market. In microcosmic form, oppression is media--your "free" TV. Here, in the jargon of this downmarket Marxism, is how the system works: The manipulators, a.k.a. "the culture industry," attempt to enlarge their hegemony by establishing their ideological base in the hearts and pocketbooks of a weak and demoralized populace. Left alone, we would never desire things (ugh!). They have made us materialistic. But for them, we would be spiritual.

To these critics, the masters of industry and their henchmen, the media lords, are predators, and what they do in no way reflects or resolves genuine audience concerns. Just the opposite. The masters of the media collude, striving to infantilize us so that we are docile, anxious, and filled with "reified desire." While we may think advertising is just "talking about the product," that packaging just "wraps the object," that retailing is just "trading the product," or that fashion is just "the style of the product," this is not so. That you may think so only proves their power over you. The marginalized among us--the African American, the child, the immigrant, and especially the female--are trapped into this commodifying system, this false consciousness, and this fetishism that only the enlightened can correct. Legendary ad man David Ogilvy's observation that, "The consumer is no fool, she is your wife" is just an example of the repressive tolerance of such a sexist, materialist culture.

Needless to say, in such a system the only safe place to be is tenured, underpaid, self-defined as marginalized, teaching two days a week for nine months a year, and writing really perceptive social criticism that your colleagues can pretend to read. Or rather, you would be writing such articles if only you could find the time.

See, the problem with Chuck's ascetic Waldenesque utopia is that he and his elitist and enlightened academic chums who share his vision don't just want to decide what goods, stores, leisure pursuits, lifestyles, thoughts, feelings and beliefs are worthy for themselves, they want to decide for you also. This is the path to a totalitarian society.

Another example of Chuck's line of thinking is the book "The Politics of Meaning: Restoring Hope and Possibility in an Age of Cynicism" by Michael Lerner. This book and its message have been enthusiastically embraced by Hillary Rodham Clinton ("It takes a village to raise a child"), among others. Jonah Goldberg in his #1 bestseller "Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning" states that modern American "progessives," like Chuck, share the same nostalgic tradition as the communists and fascists in that they want to use political power to reestablish in the alienated modern city the lost innocence of community and kinship of the pre-modern village.

This is what the fight over Wal-Mart and Hawkins in our community is all about, not water, traffic, or stormwater runoff. I thank Chuck for reminding everyone of that.

Technorati Tags: wal-mart walmart

Say What?

I still don't get it. We have a Walmart 6 miles away. For some of us in Pullman, it's shorter and easier to get there than across to Safeway.

- Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki, online comment regarding the Pullman Wal-Mart Supercenter at Dnews.com, December 6, 2007

So many of these decisions really benefit no one who lives here-- that's my point. They just create more sprawl, which, as gas prices go up, is really going to kill all of us five years from now.

And needless to say, no one is even beginning to look five years into the future.

- Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki, online comment regarding the Hawkins development near the Moscow Wal-Mart at Dnews.com, February 24, 2008

I still don't get it either. Liberal man speak with forked tongue.

The Geographically Challenged

Let me get this straight. Hawkins, a development company from Boise, got a good deal on some Palouse farmland and wants to build a sprawl-mall there. However, because the land does not have all utilities and is distant from either Moscow or Pullman, Hawkins wants either the Whitman County taxpayers to underwrite this mall with a bond, or the Moscow taxpayers to underwrite this mall with utility access.

- Bill London, Moscow-Pullman Daily News, January 29, 2008.

The Hawkins development, of course, will be directly adjacent to Moscow, hard against the state line. Don't laugh. It's sad, really, that our no growth moonbats have been reduced to this level of intellectual bankruptcy. It's much more fun when they have a sporting chance.

Numerous conservative commentators in our own community find time to comment on their lack of faith in the environmental certainty of global warming, as well as their belief that there is a vast liberal conspiracy behind anything to do with environmental protection.

- Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki, Moscow-Pullman Daily News, January 29, 2008.

You have to forgive Chuckie Sandiego's poor timing on today's column. He's in Denmark at the moment, not shoveling a foot of snow out of his driveway like the rest of us in Pullman.

A mind is a terrible thing to waste.

What They Said - Unplugged

As an observer, I have watched PARD keep the issues focused and not personalized. No matter the outcome for a Walmart in Pullman, they have used their rights and liberties and a democratic judicial system with grace.

- "Guest" December 11, 2007, 3:49 pm

I applaud Dr. Lupke and other PARD members for their numerous letters and Op Ed pieces that have addressed issues in a manner consistent with the spirit of civil free speech.

- "Proponent of Civility," December 11, 2007, 8:34 pm

Now we'll look at comments posted on the Daily News website by the PARDners and their supporters since November 27 and see if those bold pronouncements above will bear scrutiny. I have made no effort to provide names, as the posters were too cowardly in most cases to give one. After reading these comments, you tell me what you think my response should be to Chris Lupke's demand that "I call on Mr. Forbes to stop his character assassination of long-standing members of the Pullman community, to apologize for his anti-social behavior, and learn to present his views in positive ways, regardless of what those views are, that would serve to restore dignity to the debate over Pullman’s community issues."

It seems as though Tom Forbes hates everyone who is opposed to the inevitability of a walmart in Pullman - for whatever reason - because he can't talk about them without stereotyping them as elitists. His consistent use of that word always negates his arguments to me. In his letters, he comes across like a big baby and his tantrums are tiresome. I enjoy reading about the different opinions on the subject, but these are your neighbors, Tom - whether they agree with you or not - and it's too short a life to be so mean spirited to people who seem to be trying to do what they think is right, just as you are.

I'm particularly amused by the following statement by Tom: "If you don't agree with PARD's far-left political agenda, then they attack you publicly. Any wonder that the "silent majority" chooses to remain silent". Now THAT's the pot calling the kettle black.

Another Walmart is just plain stupid. But if you have read much of what this clown Forbes has to say, you'll see that stupidity is his calling card.

Tom Forbes has to dig pretty far back into history to find a political battle in Pullman that he claims Wal-Mart won -- which is debatable anyway.

The main reason is that while he has tried to avoid becoming the subject of Forbes' vicious slander attacks on long-standing Pullmanites by not coming out vocally against the Wal-Mart invasion, he has presented hiimself as someone who is not right-wing, not simply in favor of selling out Pullman to corporate elites whom Forbes touts on a daily basis.

And the fact that Sorenson has posted onto Forbes' website, with all its vicious attacks on local residents in Pullman, did not sit well with the voters. So, pay for your recount, Al, and when it is done, please say goodbye to the residents of Pullman.

We all know that Tom Forbes has an unnatural pyschological attachment to Wally World. But what I want to know is this -

When Forbes drives over to the gigantic Wal-Mart Supercenter to spend all day every day shopping there, who the hell is going to fill the other 1038 parking spaces in Wal-Mart's gargantuan parking lot?

Tommy One-Note has an arrogant, elitist, and unnatural psychological need to hear himself drone on, and on, and on ……….

I read Lupke's letter from a few days ago and Forbes needs to look up the word "lash out" in the dictionary -- either that or see a psychiatrist. And it sounds like from what others have said that the latter is likely the best idea. Of course, for a flatheat like him, probably being a hippy would warrant a call that I should "pack up and leave" too.

Forbes' nasty habit of libeling anyone who does not want a Wal-Mart in Pullman makes it impossible for most thoughtful people to express themselves on the issue publicly. Isn't it ironic that the concept of free speech has morphed into free mudslinging as far as Tom Forbes and his cronies are concerned.

Yes, I know what you mean. This Forbes guy is about as nasty as it gets. I've never quite seen anything like him in Pullman. In fact, my display name comes from the fact that people have attacked those critical of Walmart as being "hippies." I'm not sure if this is an insult or not, but I did notice from time to time that Forbes uses this moniker on his hatesite, so it very likely was he who made that attack too.

But what I wanted to say in more detail is that I really do believe Forbes needs a pyschiatrist or something to bring him back to reality and probably some medication as well. He uses words like "lash out" and "attack" all the time. That bellicose rhetoric consistently informs what he has to say.

There's a lot of anger and violence pent up in this Forbes character and I just hope he seeks help soon -- for his own good and for ours too!

The big irony is precisely the "free speech" to which you refer. The whole point of Forbes mudslinging is to intimidate people into silence. And if they are not silent, then the next step is to try to have them run out of town.

Forbes even uses the term "comrades" to refer to people in PARD, as if they are communists. He really is psychotic if he's dredging up this kind of McCarthyistic rhetoric.

Boy, based on the comments above, it looks like PARD may speak for a lot more of Pullman than Forbes wants to admit. As one who has been the brunt of his childish name-calling, I can personally attest to the nasty demeanor of his writing. He even accused my business of engaging in unethical practices because I pointed out the errors in Wal-Mart’s original SEPA application to the City of Pullman and Washington State regulatory agencies.

Matthew Root

You really shouldn't be calling anyone "poor ignorant slobs." It's just not right and it sends a chill through our little community. But that's what Tom Forbes has been doing for years -- anyone who disagrees with him is a ... fill in the blank with your favorite disgusting insult.

I'm a PARD "fringe" person, I'll admit. That is, I went to all the meetings in the beginning when I thought we had a chance of beating Walmart. There were HUNDREDS of people at these meetings. The first one was held at a coffee shop downtown. There was not enough room for everyone. Had to be switched to the high school. The next week we met there, in the gym I think. It was packed. Then we started meeting at a church. The basement was full for weeks. It did taper off after awhile, and I confess that I was one of those who tapered off. I also don't write letters to the paper, because I don't want to be attacked by the likes of this fiend Tom Forbes. But I haven't heard any of my many friends from those initial meetings say they feel any better about Walmart now than they did then. They just feel they don't want to spend their time on this anymore and don't want to suffer the calumny of Forbes. My point: what did Walmart do? Talk to us? Interact with the community? Adjust its plans? Try to work with us or effect a compromise? No. They tried to recruit people around Pullman to serve as attack dogs on the PARD people. And that is exactly what happened. That hardened any sense of compromise I might have once had toward Walmart.

I wanted to remind people of the unfair attacks and mischaracterizations of Tom Forbes and urge people not to use those.

Well, now! I usually stay out of Pullman's business, but this week it looks like you guys have got all the fun! And with all this talk about Tom Forbes, I had to take a peek at his website. Actually, I had seen references to it on Dale's hatesite, so I thought I was prepared.

omg! Does he REALLY put Dale to shame or what? Talk about nastiness. Go no further! If it's bile you need, Forbes has got one stop shopping for you. What Forbes has to say will burn your eyebrows off.

I thought we had it bad in Moscow and was sort of envious of Pullman.

Not no more!

I would like to thank those who have posted into this site defending me against Mr. Tom Forbes’ assaults, both present and past. I am writing a letter of response which I hope the Moscow-Pullman Daily News prints promptly. For now, let me just say that Mr. Forbes has been attacking me and others in PARD for years now. He especially despises the fact that college professors and those employed by Washington State University would have the audacity to speak out against a corporate giant like Wal-Mart. For the record, I am proud to be a college teacher at WSU. It is true, as he says, that I am fluent in Chinese. It was not easy to gain this ability, but I did it through hard work, relying solely on my own funds earned in odd jobs, student loans, scholarships, and teaching assistantships over many, many arduous years. But I am not embarrassed to have gone from someone who knew nothing about China to some who is now a national expert on China and Chinese culture. I’m very proud of it and believe what I do makes a contribution to society, to our community and state, and to America. The US government is doing everything it can to encourage young Americans to learn critical languages like Chinese and Arabic, and it is a shame that someone like Mr. Forbes would try to ridicule me for that as somehow being a member of the “elite,” disconnected from reality. I find it to be very unpatriotic. I also feel that others who live in Pullman and work at WSU have a right to voice their opinions too. WSU is a great university, not an elite, exclusive country club. It is a place filled with hard-working teachers, researchers, students, and administrators. And as a result Pullman is a community made up of many of these good people. We who work or attend WSU should not feel we are second class citizens to people like Mr. Forbes, just because he does not teach there. And we should not have to endure being called “elitist” (and worse) just because we earned our degrees, have risen to the top of our respective fields, and with that expertise and those skills are now in a position to give back to our community and our state. I am proud to be associated with WSU. But even so, in Pullman, a town filled with PhDs, I consider myself an ordinary joe just like everyone else. I don’t have any place of privilege, but by virtue of the US Constitution, I also don’t have to cede my own basic right of expression to others who otherwise would wish to shut me up.

As to Wal-Mart, I will make no excuses for my opposition to it. I have been consistent in my opposition to a massive Wal-Mart Supercenter in Pullman since I first heard about it three years ago. Wal-Mart has a reputation for destroying local businesses and then picking up the pieces by hiring the workers of those failed businesses, often at lower wages and few or no benefits. This proposal will severely hurt Pullman’s whole retail environment and ultimately lead to less choice in the marketplace than shoppers currently have. Mr. Forbes insinuates that I am left wing and maybe even a communist, but what he fails to point out is that I have previously advocated encouraging Costco to build in Pullman. This would make a lot more retail sense to me than Wal-Mart. That being said, many people in the community actually stand to the left of me on this issue, opposing any further big box development at all. This illustrates the fact that actually I am in the mainstream not on the radical left, as Mr. Forbes’ so desperately wishes to paint me.

Mr. Forbes’ tactics are very clear. In the face of very poor same-store sales returns over the past several years running, Wal-Mart is encountering a crisis. Ordinary people such as myself have been waking up the past few years to the fact that Wal-Mart is a disreputable business. We don’t speak for business. We speak as part of the market. What the market is telling Wal-Mart is this: change your ways. Start acting like an ethical company. Listen to what the legion of critics are saying. Look at your business model and realize that ruthless, bottom line tactics where you cheat your employees in the United States, outsource solid manufacturing jobs to the third world where you can easily exploit factory workers, and engage in predatory business practices against small businesses should be rethought. When you do so, we will again spend our money at your stores. Until you do so, we will not.

What Mr. Forbes has done has become the local front for a corporate giant. And the tactics are to avoid talking about how wonderful Wal-Mart is, expounding on all the high-quality items that Wal-Mart sells, bragging about the wonderful jobs that Wal-Mart provides to the community or generous philanthropy that it bestows on our public schools like WSU or Pullman HS, and noting the positive impact that Wal-Mart will have on traffic in its vicinity, the environment, other businesses. Mr. Forbes cannot do that because Wal-Mart does not do those things. Instead, taking a page right out of the Wal-Mart propaganda playbook, Mr. Forbes seeks to destroy the reputations of those who have had the courage to voice their opposition to the Wal-Mart Supercenter proposed for Bishop Place. He attacks the messengers. It’s a pathetic tactic and I call on Mr. Forbes to stop his character assassination of long-standing members of the Pullman community, to apologize for his anti-social behavior, and learn to present his views in positive ways, regardless of what those views are, that would serve to restore dignity to the debate over Pullman’s community issues.

Chris Lupke

He doesn't seem to get it that, agree or disagree, the resistance to Walmart is this community is widespread. When he's attacking people who have vocally opposed Walmart, he's actually attacking a big segment of this population -- a lot of people who have not spoken up so much. Too bad he wasn't at those first meetings that I mentioned above. Had he been, he would have seen it for himself. It's not "elitist." It's grassroots.

I always use this same display name so that people know it's me. I don't want to reveal my real name because Tom Forbes not only attacks people on his nasty excuse for a website but he even pastes in pictures of them if he can find them. And the name calling. It's just shameful . . . and shameless for that matter too.

There are so many people in Pullman just dying to see Forbes shrivel up and blow away.

Forbes doesn't take the high road and isn't satisfied just crowing about Wal-Mart's many wonderful attributes for one clear reason -- there is nothing good to say about Wal-Mart. In the absence of good things one can say, turn the attack on people in the community and slander them. Maybe that will get you some headway.

Forbes' tactics are about as high quality as the crap they peddle at Wal-Mart.

More comments from Forbes in the pigsty (you said it, not me) showing how nasty and gratuitous he is. Why not put forth something positive for a change and stop the defamation? Oh, I forgot, he's advocating Wal-Mart. Nothing good to say.

I'm very impressed with the way Lupke has dealt with this. It's clear he's careful with his words. And you can see that he's basically silenced Forbes on the character issue.

I'm not going to use the term "pig" to describe Forbes because that would be to stoop to his level.

His plan is clear and I don't think he's made a secret of it. He has created a big rhetorical pigsty of name calling, defamation, character assassination, half-truths, mischaracterizations, out-of-context quotations, un-confirmed quotations, and outright lies. He has done this to hopefully drag the PARD people like Lupke into the mud with him. The motivation is what he does not admit -- that this is the only way Walmart can gain in the arena of public opinion.

I have to admit, I'm surprised that Lupke put up with this onslaught so long. But when he finally decided to take on Forbes directly, he really delivered a knock out punch . . . right back into the pigslop. That's what I mean when I say I was impressed with the way Lupke dealt with it.

Here's a question everybody will want to see Tom Forbes answer on his flogsite:

Doesn't Schweitzer Engineering, where I've been told Tom Forbes works, have a health plan that pays the majority of drug prescription costs? And wouldn't then these prescription costs be the same (and rather reasonable) at ALL pharmacies in Pullman? And, finally, how does that prescription plan compare to the one that is offered to employees of Walmart? Do Walmart employees get as good of a break as Tom Forbes does?

It's funny. It suddenly occurred to me why Tom Forbes attacks people with his personal insults and lies so much.

When you try to argue the merits of Walmart, you quickly learn your screwed.

Yes, another good Tom Forbes-ism. Now apparently I smoke pot all day. I'll have to remember that one. What crystaline logic you do apply.

This place is peaceful, in spite of the mudslinging from people like Forbes. It will go to hell in a hand basket if it becomes a big sprawl and/or a mini-Spokane. They can keep their crime, drugs and sprawl as far as I'm concerned.

Nobody believes the lame lies about working poor in Pullman. It's just another one of Forbes'/Wal-Mart's ploys. We've seen all these before.

So, spare us your lies about the working poor, Forbes/Wal-Mart, because we know you're here to suck the last drop of blood out of the veins of the working poor.

I don't see why Forbes doesn't drive people around. Doesn't he work for Schweitzer? Doesn't he have an excellent health plan through Schweitzer? What is the health plan at Schweitzer anyway? Forbes can probably afford to drive all these people around. Forbes could drive Walmart workers to the emergency room when they need health care, since most don't get it through Walmart. And he could put their health care bills on his credit card. That would be better than making the tax payer pay for their bills. Are tax burden is already heavy enough as it is.

The pro-Wal-mart crowd sure do raise some compelling arguments. Denial, ad hominem, and a claim that all faculty should apparently work 18 hours a day, leaving no time to get involved in community matters. It is sad that you think that people who work in Liberal Arts departments such as Foreign Languages and Speech and Hearing are so unworthy. Hmmmm, that logic would mean that the TF crowd does not have enough work to keep them busy. I guess everyone should just be quiet and get back to their own jobs. I sure hope the commentors above are not logging on during work -- I guess all you all must work the night shift or are self-employed.

I met Dr. Lupke once and asked him about Walmart. I don't think he opposes the existing Walmart just the new one. Forbes argument doesn't make sense to me. But why is he so wired over this? Is he being paid by Walmart?

Just follow the nasty, offensive posts and you'll find forbes! Again, it is amazing to me that this is the issue that he has decided to waste his time on! I'm sure his children will be proud one day as they look back and say, "If it wasn't for Dad I wouldn't have the opportunity to buy all this cheap crap and to work at this minimum wage job with no benefits!"

At least Mrs. Forbes had the guts to use her real name which Tom Forbes never does. I won't use my name either. Do you know why that is Mrs. Forbes, so proud of your wonderful husband and the community service he provides to Pullman? Because I don't want my face pasted on your husband's disgusting website with all sorts of lies and insults. I think he said himself not long ago that he sees his community service as pulling others into the pigstye with him. Nobody knows whether your husband is paid by Walmart or not but considering the pack of lies he spews on his website I guess with your blessing there is no reason to believe you. Yes, have you no shame is a question that many have for him. Glad to hear you are proud of that and you've programmed your kids to be too.

There are many "innocent" people in this debate, Mrs. Forbes - people who haven't attacked others, who have simply expressed their opinion on a matter that means something to them and will have a big impact on their community. Where is your compassion for those of us who have been attacked by your husband and his vile, name-calling and hypocrital writings? Or does the same law not apply to you because you believe your opinion and your husband's opinion is THE only one worth considering? I don't mind that Tom has a different opinion than mine on this issue - but he does nothing to bring the community together on this issue and therefore, all of his 'efforts' are meaningless, except, perhaps, to stroke his own ego. I would never be so crass and mean to a fellow neighbor just because I felt I had the right answer to something that affects everyone in my community. But your husband seems to revel and wallow in it. If I lived with someone like that, I would be ashamed - not of his position on the matter - but of his tactics towards my neighbors - people I didn't even know. I agree with you on this: no one's children should be brought into this discussion unless they too have participated in the discussion and expressed an opinion on the matter. Everyone knows there's going to be a walmart in Pullman - and Tom Forbes will have had no effect on that fact. Wal mart will do what they're going to do - with or without Tom Forbes - or with or without the residents of Pullman. Tom's just there to stand behind the multi-billion dollar company and stick out his tongue at his neighbors, like a 2-year-old baby.

I have been observing his fakery for quite some time myself. I don't think he would psychologically be able to restrain himself from writing in.

To Susan Forbes:

I have three sets of questions for you that I would like you to answer, not other people, if you and the others in this thread would be gracious enough to indulge.

1. On your husband’s website out there for all the world and God to see he once wrote that he would like to see the members of the Pullman Alliance for Responsible Development run out of town. How do you think your children would feel if the father of a friend of theirs had publicly called for her or his parents to be run out of town? Do you think that was right? Do you think someone who said something like that has shame?

2. Your husband and his small coterie have often attacked PARD people as mainly being faculty in the College of Liberal Arts at Washington State University and that therefore they have no real conception of the world and, apparently, no right to assert their opinions in the public arena. I am told you too work in the College of Liberal Arts at Washington State University. How does it make you feel that your husband and his small coterie frequently degrade employees in this division at WSU? Do they not have a right and if not then do you have a right to make such a sanctimonious statement as that presented above? Is that not hypocritical?

3. The issue of Walmart and Pullman has been portrayed by your husband as one of members of the university community against locals. Were you and your husband born in Pullman? Have you lived here your whole lives? Are you a local or a member of the university community, the College of Liberal Arts in particularly, and if so, then why is it legitimate for you to speak up and not others who are no different from you except in the opinions they espouse?

I know what it’s like to be called names. That’s how I got this display name. I guess someone thought they were insulting me by calling me a hippy. I sort of like it. It brings me back to the Berkeley days of my youth. But he or another later accused me of taking bong hits, which I don’t do. That points to the notion that I don’t like people making unfavorable insinuations about my personal life that such people have no way of knowing. That’s call lying and its called character assassination. And that is the pigsty in which your husband resides.

It’s true. I haven’t lived in Pullman all my life, but I think I’ve lived here a lot longer than Tom Forbes if I’m not mistaken. But my kids were born here and they are bona fide locals. I would like to think that their parents could remain here with them to raise them lest Tom Forbes’s command that I be run out of town actually become a reality. As a mother, would you not agree, Mrs. Forbes?

Susan-- so you read these comments. Do you read your husband's blog? I read it for the second time a couple of days ago. The constant ad-hominem attacks against me are probably libelous. There are some ten or so posts just about me, mostly attempting to defame my character. Are you proud of that?

Are you proud of the fact that your husband spends time with Photoshop making collages of me, with my picture? Personally, I find it creepy. I've worked on political issues the whole time I've been here on the Palouse (close to 20 years) and aside from the midst of the roadless hearings, where much more was at stake than a Wal-mart, I've never seen anything like it. I know that it wasn't the way that I was raised, and if it's a model for your kids, I find that pretty sad.

I'm a big boy. But when I read constant, inciteful comments against my person, with little or no substance, I wonder about the consequences. You might think about how you might feel if one of Tom's followers commits an act of violence against myself or my family. Regardless of your intent, that's what that kind of constant ad-hominem attack leads to.

Chuck Pezeshki

Students don't rank in this town and you're partly to blame for that. But if you're actually one of the businesses that Forbes claims to represent, you'll take my money won't you.

You also assume that because I said Forbes' name I was referring to the posts. I already said I wasn't. I seriously doubt none of these are his posts, but it doesn't matter to me. I'm mainly referring to what he's already said in the paper and on his nasty website. You should admit that I clarified that. You don't.

What do I call what happened to Mrs. Forbes? What are you talking about? What happened to Mrs. Forbes? Did something happen while I was away from my computer? What I see is a wife who wants to defend her husband or some mere mention of her kids, not by me. Look at the guy's website. It's the worst piece of nasty crap imaginable. And he maligns good people in Pullman. If you can't admit that, then you have no credibility at all. And we're done talking.

So, yeah, since she posted in all high and mightly, holier than thou, but completely hypocritically, she's got alot of explaining to do. Alot of explaining to do. And because she isn't, it shows she can't. There is no good excuse for Tom Forbes except the one he's already given -- pigstye.

First, your husband is not a nice guy, he is a bit of a beast. In a letter to the editor last year he referred to Dr. Lupke as a communist, making a joke about his job as a Chinese teacher. That is below the belt. So don't cry for him, just ask him to be more civil and maybe civility will follow him.

Second, you note that he is spending a lot of time on this issue and that you are proud of him for standing up for his principles. Fine. Let's rephrase my comment: What principles is your husband standing up for other than the principle that people can buy cheap crap and other people can have minimum wage jobs? I don't see it. This is just a stupid issue to stand behind and not one that justifies the kind of angry rhetoric that your husband and most of the other folks above continue to dish out.

Mr. Forbes' defensiveness is interesting given the extent he has drug others through the mud the past couple of years. He has not hesitated to name individuals, comment on their character, call them scumbags, communists and elitists. His blog is offensive, a poor representation of the Pullman community, and an embarrassment. There are a handful of people who post on his site and they are not the voice of Pullman. If you haven't read through his writing, I'd encourage you to do so. He is not a simple libertarian with a bone against PARD.

When I read Tom Forbes' hateful letters, I feel sorry for him. People who act like he does usually have some hole in their life that they're trying to fill. I'm sure that he acts like he does because it makes him feel important and gives him attention he would otherwise not be given if he were to present his opinions on the Wal-Mart subject without all of the tantrum/name calling/in-your-face tactics of his. I would rather listen to the pro-Wal-Mart side of the story from someone who presented their opinions without having to put down their neighbors, just because they have a different opinion. But, Tom seems to really enjoy putting other people down and in today's culture, some people think that's funny. It's sad.

I'm surprised it took someone from PARD so long to respond to Forbes' unfair, ruthless, uncivil, immature attacks. As an observer, I have watched PARD keep the issues focused and not personalized. No matter the outcome for a Walmart in Pullman, they have used their rights and liberties and a democratic judicial system with grace.

It's funny that anyone would think that WalMart needed support when they push their way into towns. They don't need defending. It's the equivalent of rooting for a team when the outcome of the game is fixed. Why would someone do that, if not for their own attention? If someone wants a WalMart in their town, they should say so, but to fly to Arkansas to armor oneself with corporate propaganda - that's a little self-serving, in my opinion.

I do not use my name in my postings, however, because Tom Forbes has previously attacked me with labels and names, rather than addressing the real issues at hand, and I'm tired of it, so like a lot of others, I choose to be a coward in that I don't post my name. I certainly hope no one claims to speak for the community, as no one has been appointed by "the community" to do so. After all, what would they say..."some people want walmart and others don't?" I like to read actual 'facts' from both sides of the issue and am not afraid of changing my opinion if enough compelling evidence or a well-made, correct argument convinces me otherwise. I don't like watching my community be hammered with name calling, labels, and assumptions based on their opinion of the world's largest retailer. Who would be my real hero be in this matter? Someone who came along to bring the community together - to see what we have in common on this issue - to see what we can do to keep this an affordable community that also offers places that we really want to shop - even when we don't have as much money as others. My friends and I even have differing opinions on this matter, but it doesn't mean that we sit around calling each other names, making assumptions on each other's education or morality levels, or crossing people off our x-mas card lists because of it. Even Tom Forbes could earn my respect if he genuinely made such concessions to the people in his community that he's alienated. Unfortunately, I don't think that he has the skill, nor the respect, to do so. It will have to come from someone more thoughtful than he. Perhaps the pro walmart side needs another "spokesperson?" and everyone who has an opinion on the matter can wipe their hatred clean and try to consider the "other side's" position?

As one who has also been subjected to the vitriolic libel of Mr. Forbes, and chosen not to sink to his level of public discourse, I applaud Dr. Lupke and other PARD members for their numerous letters and Op Ed pieces that have addressed issues in a manner consistent with the spirit of civil free speech. A public rebuke of Forbes is long overdue. With that accomplished (thank you Chris), let's get back to the issues of responsible community and regional development. It's a big job for creative, knowledgeable people who are willing to step forth and debate the solutions we need to find. I sincerely hope it can be done with a reduction in rancour and a committment to positive, productive dialog.

Gee, Ms Torkelson, I'm so sorry your feelings have been hurt. At least no one has libeled your character -- which seems to be the operational mode of the Forbicites. Just think how much more constructive the past three years would have been if the Wal-Mart supporters had forsworn personal attack, stuck to the issues alone, and contributed to the effort to reduce the negative impacts of a supercenter on Bishop Blvd. Maybe by now there would have been solutions that everyone could live with.

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My Own Private Idaho

Camera shy "WSU Student" states on the Daily News website:

Can I add something to what you wrote? I emailed in about a week ago or so about this second Walmart in the area. It makes no sense. I live in the NE WSU apartments area. It's about 6 miles from there to the Moscow Walmart. A straight shot. It's about 2 miles from my apartment to where the new Walmart is supposed to be. Right through Pullman and all its traffic. That's a difference of only 4 miles. Plus, the thing this Forbes doesn't admit is that sales tax is lower in Idaho. I'm a student. I'm on a budget, as most of us are. There is no way a student like me living up here is going to drive across Pullman to pay more, with taxes, than driving from here to Moscow and not fighting traffic and stop lights. It just doesn't make sense.

The biggest allure of a Supercenter to students is discount GROCERIES. And the thing this Forbes DOES admit is that there is NO SALES TAX ON FOOD in Washington as opposed to Idaho. I think "students on a budget" will appreciate that fact, don't you? I think that is worth driving across Pullman "fighting traffic and stop lights" for. As far as sales tax on retail items go, there is a whopping 1.7% difference between Washington and Idaho. On a $100 purchase, you would save $1.70 at the Moscow Wal-Mart and spend $2.48 in gas to make the 15 mile round trip to Moscow with a vehicle getting the average of 20 MPG. Do the math.

Plus, a Supercenter is not merely "another Wal-Mart" It is a beast of a different color. Clearly these snobs have never been in one. Outside of food, a Supercenter has on average twice as many SKUs as the Wal-Mart in Moscow has. For exampe, the Pullman Supercenter will have an electronics section three times the size of the Moscow store. These offerings will bring in shoppers from a wide radius, much more than the "2 miles to my apartment."

But what would that matter to "WSU Student" anyway? He posted on an older thread:

And I like going to downtown Moscow because it is so much better than the sorry excuse for a downtown that Pullman claims to be.

Nothing like that "Cougar Pride," eh?

Then "WSU Student" writes:

It would be good to TRY to get a Target here. I mean REALLY try, not these mythical references from some time back when Reagan was alive or something that a few pot bellies wrote a letter to Target. I mean really put it together as a community to try to get a Target.

Here's a mindblower to "WSU Student" and all the other left-wing false dilemma crowd who say it's either Wal-Mart or Target. If you really, really want a Target so bad, what if you found out that efforts are underway to get Target in Pullman but that Target will come only AFTER Wal-Mart has been opened? What if your efforts to delay/stop Wal-mart are also delaying/stopping Target as well?

Then Chuck "Mr. Civil Discourse" Pezeshki chimes in:

I still don't get it. We have a Walmart 6 miles away. For some of us in Pullman, it's shorter and easier to get there than across to Safeway.

Why are you being deprived? How is not having a Walmart across from Safeway depriving you of Walmart goods?

Hmmmm. Let's see. What are we being deprived of? I'll let the No SuperWalMart-funded retail study from the CLUE Group answer that:

Pullman is experiencing sales leakages in almost all major retail categories, including a leakage of $4.0 million in groceries, $7.6 million in furniture/home furnishings, $9.6 million in apparel, and $1.3 million in pharmaceuticals/medical supplies (the only major retail category in which Pullman is experiencing a sales surplus is dining out).

While it is impossible to state with certainty without conducting consumer surveys where Pullman's residents currently shop for various things, it is highly likely, given Moscow's high per capita sales performance relative to Pullman's and the region's relatively isolated location, that Pullman residents often shop in Moscow for groceries and other consumer staples.

The 223,000 square foot Wal-Mart Supercenter that has been proposed to be built in Pullman will attract approximately $100 million in sales - roughly the equivalent of all current sales in major retail categories in Pullman - according to Wal-Mart's current national sales averages. This will have an enormous impact on retail activity in the region - in Pullman, in particular, but also in Moscow, as some sales currently being captured by Moscow businesses will almost certainly gravitate to the new Wal-Mart Supercenter. Grocery sales are particularly vulnerable, as the proposed Supercenter will likely capture approximately $35 million in area grocery sales.

Do you get it now? Does that "stir" you? It certainly "stirs" our local merchants. Do you "feel sorry" for them? It's a hell of a lot more than "cheap toothpaste" at stake. And yes, people will not only come from Pullman to shop at Wal-Mart, they will come from Moscow and all over the surrounding area.

Remember, Chuck, how you PhDs butter our bread? How do you expect Pullman to get a slice if you all go over to Moscow to shop? Don't you love the Wal-Mart haters "Buy Local" program? "Buy Moscow" is more like it. And didn't you serve on the Jefferson Elementary PTA? Just having the Wal-Mart building in Pullman means an extra $112,784 a year to the Pullman School District from property taxes. Lastly, Chuck, aren't you an environmentalist? Does your disdain for Wal-Mart extend so far that you recommend more car trips to Moscow versus a Pullman Wal-Mart that would be accessible to shoppers via walking, bike paths and public transportation? By my simple estimate, every less trip to Moscow to shop is 20.9 pounds less carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. We could conceivably save millions of pounds of carbon emissions a year by having a Wal-Mart in Pullman!

Here's another mindblower that "shifts the paradigm." What if Wal-Mart doesn't keep the store in Moscow open after the Pullman Supercenter opens? That is an extremely likely possibility, as Wal-Mart is attempting to convert all their discount stores to Supercenters. That pretty much blows all the "One Wal-Mart is Enough" arguments right out of the water. And please don't cry for Moscow, They had their fair shot to get a Supercenter and Queen Nancy and her moonbats ran it out of town, with PARD's assistance. By the way, thanks for that PARDners! If you had not helped create the No SuperWalMart group, Moscow may have gotten a Supercenter and Wal-Mart would be less interested in Pullman.

Chuck follows that with:

Pursuing things in the courts is also part of the checks and balances set up by our Founding Fathers. It is legal, and it is part of the process. The courts are a resort that I've used very successfully many times to change public policy, and there have been a few of my efforts that have resulted in change of national policy (don't you love how these guys love to toot their own horns in these comments? Pezeshki is "changing national policy" and Lupke is a "national expert on China and Chinese culture." *LOL* - tf)

That's right, Chuck, there is no such thing as frivilous lawsuit designed to delay and manipulate the legitimate process. That never happens in the land of the free and the home of the brave. A group like Wal-Mart Watch, for example, would never advocate something like this:

Appealing a Pro-Wal-Mart Rezoning

If you can appeal a rezoning, or a special permit decision in your state—do it. It will allow you to gain half a year to a year’s worth of delay—during which time, land deal can fall apart of expire, Wal-Mart can move on, etc. Delay always works to your benefit as a citizen’s group.

Chuck concludes:

My concerns have always been local-- how any community could build a huge, high-traffic retail facility next to their new hospital, to provide essentially replacement services, is beyond me. And so it remains.

Boy, it's a really good thing they didn't decide to put the hospital right by the main entrance to campus where 18,000 students and 6,000 faculty and staff go to school and work each day. Oh, wait a minute......

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