Kristen Mack, in today’s Washington Post article, focusing on the appointment of Duecaster, has clearly connected the comments of Robert Duecaster to “Advocator.” It was interesting to me, viewing the comment section, that Advocator tried to deny he was actually Duecaster! Ummm, Robert, you already took responsibility for your comments regarding “pitchforks and shovels,” it’s a little too late for back tracking. My hope is that we can start moving away from immigration status, and really focus on the underlying issue in this debate: the demographic changes in the county. We don’t know who is documented or not, legal resident or not, but we can focus on how to help our neighbors without vilifying an entire segment of our population, the Latino community. Certainly, our country is facing an economic crisis of a magnitude that will effect us all, and I believe our collective energy is better focused on the issues that REALLY will effect our everyday lives, like a bailout of a trillion dollars! When our personal property taxes come in next year, that will be a sobering moment for all us.

120 Thoughts to ““Activists Want Answers on Panel Choice””

  1. Mando

    Trust me Elena, you DO NOT represent the concerns of PWC residents. If your ability to only secure 70 signatures does not tell you so, I don’t know what will.

    By fighting the will of the people with rhetoric and name calling you’re only villifying yourself.

  2. TDB

    Put the puncuation marks INSIDE the quotation marks, please.

  3. NotGregLetiecq

    There was only one speaker at Citizens Time, but he was aaaawwww-saaaam!

    Brother basically said how can we appoint a guy who would refuse to associate with people of color?

    I hear there is going to be a special guest at 7:30 who will be of particular interest to certain Supervisors who have been trying to get to the bottom of this. Don’t ask me how I know….

  4. NotGregLetiecq

    Mando, 70 names is about 68 more than were willing to stand up to the Witch Hunt a year ago. And 3 votes standing up to the Witch Hunt on the BOCS is three more than were willing to do so a year ago. So your mob is losing its muster. It will only be a matter of time before the Board “just says no” to hate and scare tactics.

  5. ShellyB

    I find it interesting that the newspapers can never come out and say just what it is that is so frightening about this man. I think it’s something you have to see with your own eyes. After seeing that video, when I read the guy’s various internet comments, I read them with the sort of hatred he displays in that video.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45DFErK5LEw

    I just don’t understand who in this county would welcome this kind of behavior. I think they probably say they welcome it, but really they’re embarrassed to be forced to publicly link themselves to this kind of thing. I know I’m embarrassed and I have never even met the man.

  6. NotGregLetiecq

    I just looked over all of his Washington Post comments and I can’t see where Duecaster denies being “Advocator.” He is saying that he DID say what he said, but what he said is not racist.

  7. Just Cause

    NGL- But do you not consider that as some kind of ” We the people have spoken”? I can appreciate all the effort but this isnt looking good….personally, Im on the fence with the whole illegal vs legal immigration debacle and with all the mis-information I have seen and been witness to, I am even MORE frustrated and confused then I was several months ago..Guess I am just curious as to when you call a truce??

  8. junkyard dog

    Mando, you mistakenly assume you are on the side of the ‘will of the people.’ Obviously people in the county feel differently about what has happened in our county. My guess is that feelings tend to run along economic lines. What do you think?

    Elena sure expresses my feelings.

  9. Just Cause

    Junkyard: Guess I dont understand what your trying to say, but if you only have 70 votes and some are not in PWC…then doesnt common sense kinda tell you that ” Will of the people have spoken?”

    …please elaborate for me so I can better understand…

  10. Just Cause

    and will of the people I am talking about is obviously the remaining county residents that didnt or hasnt signed this petition…isnt it like 350,000?? to me that is not a victory in your favor….however sad it is..

  11. NotGregLetiecq

    JC:

    The topic of discussion is what significance is it that there are 70 or so people willing to stand up and be counted on a very simple question: Will the Supervisors who voted for the Duecaster appointment please explain that they do not support prejudice in PWC, and that they welcome the Hispanic community and their contributions.

    http://www.thepetitionsite.com/3/we-deserve-to-know

    Some are trying to say that 70 is a small number. But considering the fact that Gospel Greg and his four remaining followers have made it clear they will use his blog to publicly attack anyone who stands in their way, and not just public officials like Chief Deane or Craig Gerhart, but anyone who even thinks about opposing their agenda, including people who receive emails from Elena!

    That’s just nuts. But it does cause a lot of people to say, “Hell I won’t deal with this hate. Leave it to someone else.” The interesting thing is that more and more people are saying, “No, I will stand up to these bullies. Including four members of the Board.

    If May and Covington were to make statements that they are not down with prejudice (but voted to confirm Duecaster out of respect for Stirrup), then we would all feel a lot better about the direction of this county.

    That’s all we are saying by signing the petition. We want a new direction. And we’re not afraid of Gospel Greg.

  12. NotGregLetiecq

    Well, JC, Elena doesn’t have $30,000 of tax payer money at her disposal to solicit people on behalf of her petition.

    Consider this, Gospel Greg sends out email blasts for every meeting saying “Get down there and speak for Duecaster, or get down there and speak against the Citizen Satisfaction Survery!”

    And how many people show up? An average of 2, I’d say, including Letiecq and Duecaster two weeks ago as the only ones who responded to an email that went out to 2,000 people.

    So, what that shows is that most residents in PWC have thrown up their hands and are just hoping the Supervisors will figure this out.

    But when an issue comes up where we have to decide whether to continue to waste tax payer money on a program that has failed, is failing, and will continue to fail, there will be people organized on both sides, and the Supervisors will not feel bullied into voting the Duecaster way.

  13. Just Cause

    I thought the topic was about Deucastor..Not Greg?? All I am saying is it appears that the remaining 350K people are in favor of Deucastor and only 70 are not.. or maybe those 350K are refusing to sign out of repect for…what I have no idea but that is where I get the “will of the people” …

    Are you implying that this petition would have more signatures if it not for fear? Now I am really confused?!!?!

    Its one thing to stand up and be accounted for but…I am starting to have some concern that you are not grasping whats really happening here..The people have spoken and they like the direction the county has taken and your efforts are kinda..well…all for nothing….Just my opinion

  14. Just Cause

    You cannot possibly speak on behalf of all the residence of PWC, Oh my goodness you need to give them more credit than that!! I find it hard to believe that 350K people have thrown their hands up in the air…If it truly is a waste of tax payers money and all the tax payers felt this wasnt working, you truly believe they would leave all this up to Alanna, Elana, Eric, yourself and the remaining 66 people to advocate against it ?Seriously???

    I am not trying to be difficult…I am just concerned that you consider this a victory…

  15. TDB

    the people on this blog claim that those of hsm or anyone with differing views of being racist againt hipanics. But, it appears that YOU GUYS seem to be the ones that bring ‘hispanics’ latinos’ into the conversation. Kind of like when the obama campaign claims that the mccain campaign will bring race into the campaign. When, in fact it’s the dems and obama that bring race into the equation.

    I submit the following as just one example:

    NotGregLetiecq, 23. September 2008, 14:55
    JC:

    The topic of discussion is what significance is it that there are 70 or so people willing to stand up and be counted on a very simple question: Will the Supervisors who voted for the Duecaster appointment please explain that they do not support prejudice in PWC, and that they welcome the Hispanic community and their contributions.

    WHY NOT ASK THE QUESTION WITH REGARD TO ALL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS?

  16. Censored bybvbl

    Just Cause, how do you know how the remaining 350K feel? HSM claims a membership of 2200 yet Greg can get only about twenty members to show up for a meeting. Maybe twenty are all that follow the HSM/BVBL agenda now. The big turnout at the BOCS meeting showed that HSM was vastly outnumbered. I think most people are apathetic to the issue.

    I see the petition as a way of asking the BOCS to set some damn standards for their appointees. If John Stirrup nominated David Duke, would the rest of the board meekly follow?

  17. TDB

    And if the queen had balls, she’d be king!

  18. Here is one of my latest posts trying to explain things to the people on the Washington Post webiste, who are considerably less evolved when it comes to the complexity of the issue. They can’t even get the terms right!

    Okay, let’s be fair to everyone involved:

    No one the Board, not even John Stirrup or Corey Stewart, is publicly “Anti-Immigrant.” They have made some semantic slip-ups that implied as much, but these are not the same as policy statements.

    Likewise, no one in this country is pro-illegal immigration. Even those who’s visas have expired are waiting quite anxiously for the red tape to get out of the way so they can get back into status. And, those who come across the border (a minority of those in the country illegally by the way) would also prefer to be given legal status and the legal protections that would come with it.

    The term “pro-illegal” is thrown around much like Communist sympathizer to try to intimidate and discredit anyone who is for sound fiscal policy, and avoiding the pitfalls of race baiting and anti-immigrant hysteria.

    The term anti-immigrant is aptly applied to the lobbying firm that crafted the Immigration Resolution, since their position is stated on their website, they oppose ALL FORMS of immigration. And their history has shown they are particularly concerned about immigration from non-White countries.

    There have been many activists in PWC, Mr. Duecaster being one of them, who have not been able to fully disguise their prejudice when speaking publicly on this issue. This leads some to label the entire Help Save Manassas organization as anti-immigrant.

    But just as you cannot judge an entire ethnic community based on the actions of a few, you cannot judge everyone on the Help Save Manassas email list by the actions of Mr. Duecaster.

    If there is any justice, the Board of Supervisors and Prince William County will not be judged for Mr. Duecaster either.

  19. NotGregLetiecq

    It’s a victory for those who don’t want to live in a county where racism is embraced by the BOCS. That is what an 8 to 0 vote on Duecaster would have said to me. The fact that 3 voted no and one explained that Duecaster’s quotes are “deeply offensive” is a victory for anyone who will concede the basic point that racism is bad, and reflects badly on the county.

    There is that stain of intolerance on the county. No one can deny that. You have to live in a bubble not to see it.

    I think the stain remover has started to be sprinkled on, now that Supervisors are taking public stances against racism as symbolized by Mr. Duecaster and his public statements (which he has not disavowed).

    The petition is only asking for a little more stain remover.

    Can you really be THAT angry at us for wanting that?

  20. NotGregLetiecq

    David Duke would not make it, because everyone knows it is not okay to be racist toward Blacks. The “Macaca” thing would not have been such a big deal if he’d called the kid an Asian slur. But the fact that it was a slur against Blacks costed Allen the election 2 years ago. I hope that we soon evolve to the point where any form of prejudice, directed at any target, is equally unacceptable.

  21. junkyard dog

    JC,

    How do you know where people are from? Did you sign the petition? You cannot see the names.

    Why would more people sign it? It is just for people here. No one stood out in front of Giant to get signatures.

    We are not a club or organization. Perhaps that should clear up the confusion

  22. Just Cause

    Oh Im not angry at all…I am trying to understand why you think 70 signatures was a victory…Like I said, I am in the middle…but isnt it funny how 2 people can see the exact same thing yet, have 2 differences of opinion on what they see??

    and Censored, I dont claim to know how 350K people feel but it has been proven that actions do speak louder than words and with 70 signatures out of 350K..well…..hmmm

  23. TDB

    NotGregLetiecq, 23. September 2008, 15:58
    David Duke would not make it, because everyone knows it is not okay to be racist toward Blacks. The “Macaca” thing would not have been such a big deal if he’d called the kid an Asian slur. But the fact that it was a slur against Blacks costed Allen the election 2 years ago. I hope that we soon evolve to the point where any form of prejudice, directed at any target, is equally unacceptable.
    =======================================================================
    PLEASE get the facts straight!! Allens’ so-called slur is NOT a black slur. This is what you liberals do…spread misinformation!

    During a press conference today, a reporter asked Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) if he was offended when, in August 2006, former Virginia senator George Allen used the word “macaca” to refer to a campaign volunteer of Indian descent working for Jim Webb’s campaign.

  24. TDB

    NGL-With regard to your comment posted at 3:58 today…why would it not have been a problem if the slur was directed at Asians?

  25. NotGregLetiecq

    What did McCain say about “Macaca?” I’m dying to hear, don’t keep us in suspense.

    Why not Asians? If it was bad to use slurs against Asians, then McCain would probably not be the guy being asked about “Macaca” because he used to use a really awful slur when talking about Asians all the time.

  26. NotGregLetiecq

    The guy Allen was talking about was Asian. If Allen had said an Asian slur, I just figure it would not have been as bad.

  27. TDB

    I’d have to give someone that had been held in a prisoner of war camp and tortured on a daily basis for 5.5 years a pass for using an ethnic slur.

  28. NotGregLetiecq

    You have to look it up. I don’t want to get us sidetracked on McCain and get everyone mad at me for attacking him. Most people have forgiven and forgotten what he said 8 years ago, and seeing that he was a POW, it probably shouldn’t be an issue.

  29. TDB

    the macaca guy was of Indian descent

  30. NotGregLetiecq

    No, I take it back. POW is not an excuse for me. But a lot of people would forgive him since it was Asian people who held him captive.

  31. TDB

    either way he was not black as you stated

  32. NotGregLetiecq

    TDB, we crossed paths without knowing it re. McCain slur. I’m torn on that issue. But I certainly agree he is not a racist other than toward people who (look like ones who) tortured him.

  33. TDB

    Racism is not unique to any one race of people

  34. NotGregLetiecq

    Didn’t mean to say the guy George Allen went after was Black. But the moral of the story is that, for mainstream Americans, there is a threshold here where prejudice becomes no longer a GOOD thing in public office. At a certain point it is a BAD thing and I think PWC has reached that point, and the 4 Supervisors who stood up to the Duecaster appointment is a sign of that. They are worried about how they look as a Board, and how it reflects on a county. Hooorayy!

  35. Elena

    WHWN,
    Thank you for a “fair and balanced” summary of the issue facing PWC.

  36. Haha George Allen…

    What a shame for Virginia that he almost won. You know the republican party was grooming him for a shot at the presidency.

  37. NotGregLetiecq

    For sure TBD. We all have people in our communities with racist viewpoints. I think that the only reason why we focus more on white racism (and I know this is unfair to whites who are not racist) is that our country has a history of institutionalizing white racism, for the simple fact that there has always been enough of a majority for this to be possible in a democratic society.

    This is one of the reasons why I welcome the day when we will have no clear majority in the U.S. It is not because I as a woman of color want to take anything away from Caucasian people, it is because I feel that it will no longer be possible to institutionalize racism.

    I don’t oppose racism as a thought or emotion or whatever it is. What am I gonna do about what some folks think other than try to educate them if they are willing to talk to me? But, I can stand up to institutionalized racism when it occurs or threatens to occur in my local government or in my state government, or in my federal government.

    I see this as one of my duties as an American. And I would like to think I would feel that way if I were Caucasian. I think I probably would.

  38. TDB

    IMHO, we need to expel the race baiters in order to achieve racial harmony. It’s not always as simple as black and white. There are whites from some countries that are racist towards other whites from other countries. There are blacks that are racist against blacks that are from other countries. It’s just human nature. And as long as we have race baiters, and they come in all shapes, sizes, and colors racism will endure.

  39. hello

    NGL – Honestly, I don’t think that you should be the one beating the racism drum here, you were one that asked: “Can I ask if others felt a little creeped out by the hoards of sneering cheering white people at that convention?”

    That sounds a little racist to me and along the same lines as some of the things that Duecaster would say.

    People in glass houses…

  40. TBD,

    I’d have to give someone that had been held in a prisoner of war camp and tortured on a daily basis for 5.5 years a pass for using an ethnic slur.

    This kind of propaganda is everywhere you look, especially in the mainstream media. We’re taught to automatically put anyone with a uniform up on a pedestal. This training begins in public school where we’re taught ‘good boys and girls do what they’re told and do not question authority’. Then we spend the rest of our lives unscrewing our screwed up heads.

    McCain chose to put on a uniform and go fight in an unconstitutional war. No one forced him. He knew the risks and was captured. It’s unfortunate but we ALL have our crosses to bear. Just anyone who has ever seriously considered suicide or had to break an addiction to drugs.

    Is their struggle for life and freedom any less heroic?

    We’re all supposed to be equals in this country. If I was robbed and viciously beaten by black assailants, and then I ran for office, would it be allright to use the ‘n word’? A presidential candidate has no more right to hurl racial insults than any one of us. If he thinks he does, he’s not fit to be president.

    And if he thinks his suffering at the hands of people he was bombing was wrong…well…what goes around, comes around.

  41. TDB

    I find it unbelievable that you would compare someone suicidal and a drug addict to a POW. That’s rich!

  42. NotGregLetiecq

    I stand corrected!

    Duecaster IS trying to deny he is Advocator on the Post comments page. I just don’t understand it.

  43. Rick Bentley

    “We don’t know who is documented or not, legal resident or not”

    And we should. And we would if our government were not so corrupt. And someday we will.

  44. Jake the Snake

    Maybe Duecaster would like to distance himself from advocator. I would not blame him if that was the case.

  45. Actually TBD,

    The following article is what you should find unbelievable:

    Illegal Immigrants Held As Witnesses for Trial
    http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/21/AR2008092102378.html?sub=new

  46. TDB

    Poor little gang bangers!!

  47. TDB

    I agree with this comment:
    “We’ve got to do everything we can,” Morrogh said, “especially in a murder case, to make sure the victim’s rights are protected.”

    I’m sure you’d take a different tact if it was one of your loved ones that had been MURDERED!

Comments are closed.