[nfbmi-talk] official board correspondence remove cannon

joe harcz Comcast joeharcz at comcast.net
Wed Dec 7 17:05:45 UTC 2011


Official board Correspondence the Big Lies

 

 

December 4, 2011

 

 

 

Paul Joseph Harcz, Jr.

1365 E. Mt. Morris Rd.

Mt. Morris, MI  48458

E-mail: joeharcz at comcast.net

 

To: Members Michigan Commission for the Blind

 

Dear Commissioners,

 

Adolph Hitler’s Chief Propagandist, Josef Goebbels termed the notion “Big Lie”. The principle of this evil was to tell a lie often enough and soon the people will believe it. Today in modern politics some call this principle “spin”, or “spin control” where information is massaged, perverted, or otherwise controlled to effectively create a “big lie” scenario which helps keep some interests in power. We have seen this within the Michigan Commission for the Blind. Aside from the usual “weapons of mass deception” the Commission under the Directorship of Patrick Cannon not only abuses the Freedom of Information Act and other tools of transparency, but also cynically abuses the right to receive information in a timely and accessible manner to we who are blind as an additional arrow in the quiver which he has employed over more than a decade now against we who are blind and the taxpayers of the State of Michigan as well. . These things have been documented over years and the proof is on archived list serves including NFB MI and the MCB 20/20 list serve itself.

 

Indeed it is in the public record of minutes of MCB meetings in spite of delays over producing them and disseminating them including draft meeting minutes which are delayed for public inspection for months on end in violation of the Michigan Open Meetings Act and corollary obligations under the ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as Amended. alone

 

Regardless, allow me to document some horrendous lies in the public domain and on the record today.

 

 

Here is one big lie from the MCB Report received December 1:

 

“Earlier this year, staff began distributing the MCB Budget to Commissioners on a monthly basis.  However, during the last two months of the fiscal year, LARA’s Finance division was unable to provide staff with the monthly budget as they had in the past due to end of fiscal year and change in LARA staff.  The budget report that is included with this report was generated by MCB staff based exclusively on expenditures.

 

The State is currently in the middle of the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2012 and staff will be generating an MCB fiscal year spending plan and match analysis before the end of the first quarter.”

 

 

Now the agency has stated that commissioners have been given monthly reports, but that is simply a lie it is now December 4 and today here are the latest financial data posted on MCB’s own web site:

 

 

 

 

“Linked at the MCB web site at:

 

May 2011 Budget Projections

Block quote start

 

Commission for the Blind (11210), FY 2011 Financial Report - May 2011

Youth Low-Vision Program (11220), FY 2011 Financial Report - May 2011

Department Grants, SBPH (BTBL) - State Aid to Subregional Libraries (08301), FY 11 Financial Report - May 2011

MCB ARRA (11211), FY 11 Financial Report - May 2011

Block quote end

 

June 2011 Budget Projections

Block quote start

 

Commission for the Blind (11210), FY 2011 Financial Report - June 2011

Youth Low-Vision Program (11220), FY 2011 Financial Report - June 2011

Department Grants, SBPH (BTBL) - State Aid to Subregional Libraries (08301), FY 11 Financial Report - June 2011

MCB ARRA (11211), FY 11 Financial Report - June 2011”

 

Note, that I have requested more up to date financials several times but in brazen violations of the ADA and 504 I haven’t even received a response to requests to this information. Regardless there is no financial data made available to commissioners let alone the public since June as this entry itself documents.

 

 

 

Big Lie Number Two

 

Now, this from the Director’s self evaluation goes to the core of the Big Lie in fact and deed:

1.           “COMMUNICATION: Clearly conveying and receiving information and ideas through a variety of media to individuals or groups in a manner that engages the audience, helps them understand and retain the message, and permits response and feedback from the listener.
  APPRAISEE SELF EVALUATION:  3 – Through numerous communications and outreach initiatives, MCB has spread the word about blindness, the agency and its services to numerous media outlets dozens of times this past year.  Additionally, the agency has conducted several targeted outreach efforts to eye care professionals, community partners and others about MCB services.  Internally, the MCB Insight publication is one of the ways to keep Commission staff informed about events and issues affecting the Agency and its clients.  One of the communications highlights of this year was the MCB Achievement Honor Roll Awards luncheon, which showcased the achievements of MCB clients, employers and community partners – an event which achieved considerable media attention statewide.

     Section I.5  COMMISSIONER RATING =                 

“

 

 

As denoted in many instances including the budget/finance issue alone there is a dearth of timely and accessible information of any significance and has been for some time. But, regardless, do  the Director and the Public Relations folks at MCB not recall the mainstream articles in the Kalamazoo Gazette concerning the grave injustice, including by the way a link to the Arbitration report, regarding Christine Boone’s dismissal and the elimination of the lauded marksmanship program at MCB TC? Does the commission not recall similar articles and news coverage dating from January of 2010? Does it not recall the three critical articles in the Braille Monitor from last year to most recently about this issue, failure to comply with the ADA, and abuses in the BEP system?

 

Oh and we haven’t seen much coverage about the Robin Hill case, or Hazell Brooks case or David Robinson’s case. I guess this is “fair and balanced” reporting right?

 

Do we not also recall the technical breakdowns of MCB meetings themselves that are now archived on MCB’s web site? Do we not recall the $5,000 fiasco of the video recording of a recent MCB meeting  and why isn’t that posted on the MCB web site by the way complete with its closed captioning and video description?

 

Oh by the way how are communications including return phone calls and information in accessible formats including IPES handled by this administration? Pretty dog gone badly by more than ample evidence.

 

Given this and aforementioned documentation about again the lack of meaningful information  about its functioning how can the assertion of effective communications be anything but “pathological” self-delusions?

 

It certainly is documentation of spin over substance.

 

 

 

Big Lie Number Three:

 

Again from the Director’s eevaluation tool here:

 

“Objective 7:  Provide positive direction in the implementation of EEO programs, such as EEO, Diversity, Discriminatory Harassment, and ADA, through training and monitoring, in order to ensure compliance with all federal and state civil rights statutes.  Also ensure that equitable practices are adhered to in the areas of selection, hiring, assignments, discipline, and training.  Demonstrate commitment to workplace safety through the establishment of safety policies, procedures, and safe working conditions.  Respond timely to reporting requirements for information on these practices.

                        APPRAISEE SELF EVALUATION: 3 – All EEO requirements of the Civil Service Selection Process are consistently adhered to as the Commission hires, trains and/or promotes individuals.  Because of its aggressive recruitment and outreach procedures, MCB has been successful in achieving a high rate of diversity of agency staff and is among the leading blind rehabilitation agencies in the Nation in terms of hiring and promoting blind persons.  MCB’s internal Safety Committee has also undertaken several steps to enhance the safety of agency personnel, including safety training, establishing safety monitors in every office, training those safety monitors, and procedures for safely dealing with blood borne pathogens. Finally, excellent diversity training was provided for all participating staff by Dr. John Lee from Michigan State University.   

 

 

 

“

 

Ok I can only say, “What is Cannon smoking here?” I have documented along with others that none of the facilities used by MCB including those for daily work and for public hearings meets the program access requirements of the ADA due by no later than July 26, 1995 and clearly documented by the DTMB survey conducted in 2008 which has been made available to numerous parties. Moreover, it has been documented over and over again that the agency does not meet the effective communications requirements of the ADA for customers, blind members of the public, BEP operators (note the cases in the upcoming meeting alone), and even commissioners. Moreover, there are still significant access issues with all of the Michigan dot gov web site, access issues related to System Seven (even denoted in the recent MCB Report), and with MAIN to this date impacting blind and disabled employees of MCB as well as of the public.

 

As far as protections from “harassment” I think the Robin Hill, Dave Robinson, Christine Boone, Hazell Brooks, Terry and Mark Eagle, and numerous assaults upon rights of BEP operators over recent years speak for themselves and again that is in the public record. The fact that MCB is out approximately $2 million in settlements during the last fiscal year alone and have expended valuable resources in all the legal defenses stand again as  documentation that this rating is not only ludicrous but simply delusional by any standard.

 

Oh, yes and again in the BEP program alone why is it that the last three Promotional Agents hired by MCB are all sighted, white males with no prior BEP experience? Wow that’s diversity in action for you!

 

Oh, yes and the extra-ordinary and documented unequal treatment of African-Americans in the Southeast region and the unequal distribution of resources is pretty legendary about now even to the most obtuse. Need I mention “bullet proof drapes” as the agency response to Richard Clay and Advocates for the Blind to underscore this contention?

 

Or need I only point out the documented deficiencies in various assorted RSA monitoring over years in this regards?

 

Anyway the former ADA coordinator and former head of the United States Access Board apparently wouldn’tknow the ADA or other laws if they came right out and bit him on his backside.

 

Again to claim a “three” rating in the face of all this documentation and more is either 

 

 

Ok I’ll end now for the sake of brevity and because going step by step over the abuses of power and the big lies perpretrated over years have been documented over and over again inspite of past and even recent attempts to stifkle transparency and to engaged in actual censorship.

 

Bottom line is this:

 

Pat Cannon has violated in documented fashion over his tenure multiple laws and those are under his direct control they included again in documented fashion violations of:

 

-The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as Amended including numerous violations of Title I and V

-violations of the Public Act 260

-Violations of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

-violations of the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, or causing thoseviolations to take place by subordinents

-violations of the Open Meetings Act, or causing them to take place

-violations of the Randolph Shepard Act directly and causing them to take place through subordinents

 

These alone are cause for removal and I, Paul Joseph Harcz, Jr. do hereby unilaterally call upon the Governor, Rick Snyder, and Cannon’s immediate supervisors to remove him from office for causees here enumerated and for others in the public domain.

 

Moreover, if these allegations or others I’ve remitted in the public record are untrue then I chachallenge openly for Mr. Cannon to sue me in appropriate court of jurisdiction for defimation or libel. Make my day I could use some money.

 

Thank you commissioners for hearing this out.

 

Sincerely,

 

Paul Joseph Harcz, Jr.

 

Cc: file

Cc: several list serves

Cc: S. Arwood, LARA

Cc: NFB Mi

Cc: MCB List Serve

clinical denial, or just another exercise in the “big lie” approach, or both.

 

 



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