Ron The Cop

Cross-posted from Rocket’s Brain Trust

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I should preface this post with a comment from a previous post here to explain my passion re seeking “The Truth”:

IMHO the S-R is being used as an instrumentality of an ongoing criminal enterprise to conceal the illegal acts of its owners [River Park Square and other projects] through its own self-censoring of stories and censoring of alternative info and reader comments. The systemic level of political/governmental corruption in Spokane is the worst I’ve witnessed in my 35-year law enforcement career.

RBT

*****

Dear Dr. Tallent [new S-R Ombudsman]

I thought I would welcome you to the “club.” I hope your tenure is longer than Steve Blewett’s. Notwithstanding what Mr. Smith has told you, Mr. Blewett’s departure probably had more to do with him actually considering a complaint filed by award winning investigative reporter Tim Connor re Mr. Smith’s shooting from the hip re the River Park Square mess. You may be interested in reviewing the reporting and documentation that both Tim Connor and Larry Shook have amassed at their online magazine:

www.camasmagazine.com

I suspect you will be hearing directly from Mr. Connor in the near future.

Since I’ve been relegated to the realm of little green men, I’m forwarding my complaint directly to you. I have my doubts it will reach you:-)

Again welcome to the club. I’m including a draft bio to show I’m a “wacko” that has the education, training, and experience to have a professional opinion on RPS.

Det. Ron Wright (Retired)
Riverside PD

PS: Here’s the link to the Orange County Register’s web page (Orange County, CA) re the Mitch Gold multi-million dollar charity fraud that was national in scope in which I played a small part. See in the right margin:

RAID REPORT: A police detective describes what he saw during a raid on a Mitch Gold boiler room.

*****

From: rocketsbrain
Date: Jan 25, 2008 1:44 PM
Subject: A complaint for the new S-R Ombudsman
To: Gary Graham

Mr. Graham, Managing Editor
Spokesman-Review

Re: News is a Conversation – Censorship

I thought my comment [below] was civil and to the point re having an ethics code. No point in having one if those involved are won’t follow it. Mr. Smith immediately pulled my post and sent me a personal rant unbecoming of that of an Editor of a paper that is soliciting comments. In what’s becoming common place he again called me a a wacko much like he has award winning investigative journalists Tim Connor and Larry Shook as well as former Sheriff Bamonte and others. Mr. Smith essentially libeled award winning investigative TV journalist Tom Grant a while back in the S-R Blogs for which he issued an apology of sorts.

i still think you’re a whacko. you have no credibility with me on this issue and my blog will not be a place for your repeated digressions.

I think I made my point:

Without a commitment of those involved to abide by the Code, this is an exercise in futility.

If you’re going to have a Code of Ethics then it’s incumbent for those involved to abide by the Code. I do believe I have the professional education, training and experience to have an opinion re RPS et al and the lack of investigative zeal on the part of S-R. Mr. Smith attempts to marginalized me in a vary paternalistic manner. It would be more appropriate to let my comments stand and let the readers decide for themselves as to my veracity and my qualifications and thereby to decide the worth of my opinion. This assuming if I don’t violate the normal blog etiquette and general conventions re obscenity, name calling, and/or personal threats. To do otherwise IMHO is censorship plain and simple which violates the very core values of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Cheers,

Det. Ron Wright (Retired)

*****
Personal note from Mr. Smith
*****

you are at it again. no dice.

you may cmment on substance, you may make suggestions for changes in the code.

but i won’t let you beat your dead horse. especially on things you know nothing about.

and, trust me, i still think you’re a whacko. you have no credibility with me on this issue and my blog will not be a place for your repeated digressions.

you call it censorship. fine. take that charge wherever you want. but if you don’t watch it, you won’t be posting on the blog at all.

we are clear on that, correct?

steve

*****

Wow! That was quick. My comment in Mr. Smith’s thread on soliciting comments on the new S-R Code of Ethics was censored already!

RBT

*****

More from the S-R ethics debate.

RBT

*****

Bruce,

You asked the $64 question.

My question is: what is the process of the newspaper when stories are perceived by readers as biased, when it can be simply explained away as a difference of perception? How is this accountability to readers to be actually assessed?

Sorry if Mr. Adams and I digressed a bit but both of us have had our comments in this thread, censored, without a trace. I won’t go into specifics but feel free to visit my blog for more information (Click on my screen name below). Naturally we are a little gun shy when it comes to discussing a Code of Ethics. Without a commitment of those involved to abide by the Code, this is an exercise in futility.

Ideally an independent Ombudsman is what you’re asking for but the last S-R Ombudsman perhaps was straying to close to the “darkside” and was abruptly terminated. We are watching closely how this new Ombudsman will respond to reader complaints and criticisms.

Both Mr. Adams and I along with others believe the S-R has failed in its responsibility to its readers on stories where the S-R owners have an active involvement/interest. Mr. Smith has with a broad brush dismissed us as loons. He has called us conspiracy theorists, wackos, and little green men without refuting our challenges. Kinda like what attorneys do by blowing smoke to the jury when they can’t dispute the facts.

It’s a fine line that Mr. Smith must walk. Will he bend to the interests of the owners or will he exercise his journalistic independence based on the Code of Ethics of the Society of Professional Journalists. It’s humane nature not to bite the hand that feeds you. Sophe was dead on with this quote:

While minimizing bias and telling the truth are ideal, it is not reasonable to believe that employees would take on the owners of the paper, biting the hand that feeds them. Nor should reporters be expected to do so. This is an inherent conflict of interest. An independent resource for such reporting should be obtained, one that the owner or editor cannot just terminate upon displeasure.

This is why I linked to the OCR story on the Mitch Gold fraud. One to demonstrate that I do have the training, education, and experience to a professional opinion. Secondly to show how a major paper of record took the leading role in a very complex fraud that many governmental agencies were reluctant for a number of reasons to deal with.

Det. Ron Wright (Retired)
Posted by rocketsbrain | 24 Jan 8:05 PM

Update I:
More re Mr. Smith and hypocrisy re professional journalistic ethics

Mr. Smith and I had another exchange of opinions in S-R Blog HBO. I sent this along as an update to Dr. Tallent the new S-R Ombudsman. See the bolded comment.

*****

Dear Dr. Tallent,

Please see this excerpt of the thread at S-R HBO where Mr. Smith’s comments re blogs were cross posted. Mr. Smith is again attempting to marginalize me in an attempt to dismiss my professional opinion re the S-R coverage on RPS. It would be refreshing if Mr. Smith would refute anything that Tim Connor and Larry Shook have documented at their site re the RPS et al fraud.

If Connor and Shook are so wrong with their reporting/documentations why is it that the Cowles Companies haven’t sued them for libel? The answer is they can’t. They can’t afford to be cross-examined during the depositions. The “truth” will come out.

Det. Ron Wright (Retired)

 

Cross-posted at Rocket’s Brain Trust 

To All:

This comment is from the thread at S-R’s HBO [Spokesman-Review’s blog Huckleberries Online] thread re the former S-R Ombudsman Steve Blewitt. Two regular HBO commenters, Sam and Bob, asked relevant questions of me.

I just posted this comment. It’s self-explanatory. I doubt it will remain long.

UPDATE: – It’s was pulled. Apparently blog moderator Dave Oliveria was overruled as he was going to let it stand.

Ron the Cop
Friends of Mark Fuhrman

*****

Here’s the link to the thread.

DFO,

Please bare with me for a moment and allow me to answer both Bob and Sam. The issue of the S-R Ombudsman is just the tip of the iceberg of a much larger game afoot. Strike this comment if you feel it necessary.

Bob and Sam

I’m truly honored by your confidence in my skills & abilities. Yes, this is a very complex conspiracy fraud case involving many Machiavellian players who have compromised their professional ethics and breached the publics’ trust. When this is boiled down though in simple terms, this nothing more than a common confidence game like a “pigeon drop.” The IRS in as much said so when it concluded that the “casino was rigged” when it disallowed the nonprofit tax exemption status for the first bonds.

Actually many people before me have already done the groundwork. Disregard the editorial comments of Camas Magazine, the documents in their archive speak clearly and stand-alone on their face. Base on my read there are people who should be in the slammer. What needs to happen now is for the feds to do their job, not become politically co-opted in the process, impanel a federal grand jury, summon and interview witnesses under oath, if warranted then issue indictments of the principals and bring this case to trial. Anything less will be a travesty of justice.

As I said in my letter to the editor some months ago the inaction and passivity on the part of US Attorney Jim McDevitt spoke volumes to me as to why no federal criminal investigation gained any traction. McDevitt’s potential involvement was well known and yet this was first broken on the Mark Fuhrman Radio Show. Mr. McDevitt subsequent recusal will now allow this process to proceed.

And to my new friend cub reporter Jimmy Olsen, Sam, there has been a method to my apparent OCD madness in my persona as Lt. Columbo. I’m sure I’ve given you a considerable case of cognitive dissonance. One was to open a legitimate public debate. Another was to draw out the principals to force them to play their hands in the open. The third was to draw flak while other actions were being pursued. Unfortunately for my many new friends here at HBO, because of the uniqueness of HBO and the S-R Blogs, they became a forum to carryout this mission. I have now accomplished my goals.

As I said there are other areas being actively pursued beyond the current federal criminal review. I’m not at liberty to discuss them here and now. I will post “new” news when appropriate here when DFO initiates a relevant discussion on Spokane and in my blog. I will now come out from undercover and sign any further comments with my real signature.

As to why Sam, I moved to Spokane for its many fine attributes however there is one thing sorely lacking that is clearly evident to me in my short tenure here. I feel compelled to help restore a healthy political/governmental landscape and a true free market place where businesses will choose to locate here.

And to close:

“All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing”?

Det. Ron Wright (Retired – Badge No.1)
Riverside PD, CA

PS I will continue to comment as “RBT” in matters of neo-con tinfoilery:-)

 

To All Rocketsbrain Readers:

Friends of Mark Fuhrman Blog and email group

Terresa of Noisy Room and Media Mythbusters Blog now has our joint blog up and running. I will be cross-posting previous Spokane et al posts over here.  Also if you’re not already subscribed to the Friends of Mark Fuhrman Yahoo egroup, you can join here:

Click to join friendsofmarkfuhrman

This is the unofficial fan site of Mark Fuhrman Radio Show that was squelched in my opinion by the “usual suspects.” This blog and email group are dedicated to pursuing among other things the River Park Square fraud et al in Spokane, WA and other related topics that you will never read about in the Spokesman-Review. Read regular updates from Fuhrman Show regulars, Larry Shook, Tim Conner, Cherie Rodgers, former Spokane Mayor John Talbott, Dick Adams, “Ron the Cop” and others.

Ron the Cop
Friends of Mark Fuhrman

AKA RBT of Rocket’s Brain Trust

Cross-posted at Rocket’s Brain Trust:

By: RBT

A BLEG TO THE BLOGOSPHERE – WE NEED YOUR HELP!

I’m sharing this post from Spokane resident Dick Adams as an example of the Spokesman-Review’s media malfeasance and malpractice [Paper of record of Spokane, WA]. IMHO the S-R is being used as an instrumentality of an ongoing criminal enterprise to conceal the illegal acts of its owners [River Park Square and other projects] through its own self-censoring of stories and censoring of alternative info and reader comments. The systemic level of political/governmental corruption in Spokane is the worst I’ve witnessed in my 35-year law enforcement career.

I’m also sharing an email to the S-R Editorial Board by award winning investigative journalist Tim Connor of Camas Magazine (www.camasmagazine.com) who has documented this ongoing fraud for the last seven years. Connor is taking to task S-R Editor Steve Smith for the hypocrisy of his past actions and the S-R’s behavior re the new S-R draft code of ethics.

There is a national angle to this story as the matriarch of the Cowles family [Owners of the S-R] is married now to the patriarch of the New York Times family. The family just spent $41M to purchased several TV stations in California. The Cowles family are founding members of the AP and continue to sit on its board. Nothing re this fraud and conspiracy rarely leaves Spokane. For a more in depth piece on the pervasiveness of this conspiracy see Terresa Monroe-Hamiliton’s post ant the Media Mythbusters Blog:

An Army of Davids Strikes – Spokane, WA

Terresa and I are about to unveil a new fan website for the Mark Fuhrman Radio Show. This show fell victim to the “usual suspects” as it was cutting too close to the bone on the River Park Square fraud. Tom Grant an award winning investigative TV reporter was also similarly squelched by the Cowles. In the meantime we have started an email group to post new information. If you would like to join the list go here:

Rocket’s Brain Trust – click on his subscribe to Yahoo Groups

Powered by groups.yahoo.com

The citizens of Spokane need your help to break this story nationally. This house of cards will topple in the light of national media attention. This story also includes the tragic and untimely “Death by Parking” of Ms. Jo Savage in the River Park Square parking garage that IMHO was a negligent homicide that should have been investigated and prosecuted as a first degree manslaughter. This is documented in Connor’s partner Larry Shook in his soon to be published book, Girl from Hotsprings, a chronicle of former Councilperson Cherie Rodgers who has unceasingly attempted to expose this fraud. The sitting US Attorney for the Eastern Washington District, Jim McDevitt, may be complicit in this fraud and has recused himself from the new federal criminal investigation underway by the US Attorney’s Office in Seattle, WA.

I’m invoking the Instapundit’s Army of Davids effect. Please spread the word. If you can we would appreciate a link. More importantly if you have contact with any national investigative reporters who are looking for their next intriguing story by all means pimp this story. Pulitzer anyone?

Please help the citizens of Spokane to rid themselves of this river leech that is sucking the its life’s blood and soul.

RBT

www.rocketsbrain.com

AKA “Ron the Cop” a regular of The Mark Fuhrman Radio Show

Det. Ron Wright (Retired – Badge No. 1)
Riverside PD, CA

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