Howard Jarvis in disguise
State government reporters on Sunday received an authentic looking, but very phony, e-mail on Sunday purporting to be a news release from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association. It said the association was set to announce today the launch of an initiative drive that would attempt to curtail public employee pensions in California.
The press release included fake quotes from association president Jon Coupal and also gave precise details of the proposed initiative. At the bottom, Coupal's name and that of his associate, Kris Vosburgh, along with the phone number of the association's Los Angeles office, were listed as contacts.
Only one element of the parody raised suspicion -- Coupal's made-up explanation of how the association intended to finance the signature-gathering operation: "We clipped the Palm Springs Cahahulla Indians for $400,000 in selling our name to their initiative." In the first place, it's spelled "Cahuilla"; in addition, it seemed highly dubious that Coupal would admit to what his critics say is the practice of selling the association's good name to the highest bidder during initiative campaigns.
The association did endorse Proposition 70, sponsored by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians from Palm Springs, and was financially rewarded for doing so.
Contacted this morning, Coupal said the fake news release was the work of "a cyberstalker" and said the association will consider legal action.
Maybe the average voter will stop being suckered after this is over.
So called consumer advocates sell their endorsements and in my view their legitimacy or supposed virtue that they hold themselves up to.
Sheriff's departments will often make a candidate pay a large sum of money to hold a poll of its sheriffs with leading questions designed to guarantee a positive rating and then issue an endorsement that the community is supposed to respect.
Its time we pay attention to issues and records. Yeah, its not as simple at looking at who endorses who, but its a hell of a lot cleaner...
Any thoughts? What about you flap or do you have a backbone?
yup.sad.