[NoDrama43]

Ron,

I have given this issue allot of thought and I can agree that you probably have the right to be upset. I can't remember ever hearing or seeing anything derogatory about myself or .net that is directly contributed to you. I will offer you an apology for including you in the situation and video. My best description would be "hand grenade management" and I believe you probably know what I mean by that. My anger, attitude, and relentless "angst" is not because of anything you have done. You and I have had warm friendly discussions in the past that I enjoyed and I also remember we share some common experiences in the workplace. I understand why you are upset and hope that after you digest my response you will have a better understanding of where this has come from and let it be water under the bridge.

that being said.....I want to explain to you why this has digressed to the point that it has. I am here at this website because of the way my friend Mike McCullers was treated by Mike Riley and David Philipkoski years ago. I disagreed with Mike Riley and tried very hard to talk him out of making what I described to him then as the "most damaging decision he would ever make for the SSP Mustang hobby". This was long before most of the current membership of either site was involved. Newcomer David and his wallet were more of an influence resulting in Mike getting banned which then began the downward spiral of events that has landed us where we are today. That is very very old news and the result is what it is. Literally hundreds of members here and at .org have no idea what I am talking about, but Mike, David, Mike and I are crystal clear how that happened, why it happened, and what the facts are surrounding it.

but none of that matters. None of that means anything to me anymore. it is simply ancient history.

and then......

Several years ago on New Year's day when I awoke in the morning I had an email message from David Philipkoski. There hadn't been much jabbing going on so I opened it thinking maybe it was a message saying hey lets do better this year and try not to fight so much. I was wayyy wrong on that assumption. Because I am human I was shocked and outraged when I read it as it included comments about my family, morals, ethics, etc. I'm not going to throw other .org members under the bus and name them but there are a couple that can confirm it happened because I forwarded the email to them in the hope they would try and rein him in. I know of one that confirmed he spoke to David about it. I thought that issue was over with.

but I was wrong.

The issue that put me over the top was when recently I had three new members of this website send to me the communications they were getting from David that included links to case law regarding my termination of employment 14 years ago (this was also the subject of the email I received from him several years previous). Again I asked several members from .org to intervene and rein him in and again I know of one that tried. After all the raging hatred was posted on multiple websites David publicly apologized to .org members for "this happening again" but denied it was true. Instead of posting up the forwarded emails/pm's I dropped the issue. I made a very serious attempt to blow it off. In the end I failed.

I have been a cop since 1986 and I assure you have I been called everything in the book. You would think that I could just laugh it off and go on to another day but the fact that 14 years after the fact I have someone trying to ruin my reputation with a group of people that do not even know me was more than I could stomach. I don't care if David comments on this, I don't care if he apologizes about it or try's to deny it. These events are what have made it obvious to me that there are no boundaries, and nothing is off limits. Nothing is sacred, not our families, our kids, our wives, pets, or jobs and to be honest with you I have to admit I would not be surprised to find all my tires slashed at a car show, or one of my cars keyed. Where does one draw the line when it comes to having a fundamental differing opinion about an issue as simple as the public display and use of an old police car? Will members of .org support David if he tries to get me fired from my job in some manner? How about if he puts up a link from the county auditors site that shows I am 430.00 behind in my property taxes?? When do the members of this hobby finally say enough is enough?? Is posting a YouTube video crossing the line?? When someone gets assaulted at a car show will people make a decision to set limits on how far they will take their hatred?? If you have an answer or solution I am all for hearing it.

I am not innocent nor do I pretend to be.

Over the past several years I have made hundreds of negative comments, jokes about flippers, mop and glow, dealers, gougers, and on and on. I have complained non-stop about the light shows, chalk line outline parties etc etc etc. and I take full responsibility for putting myself out there and being a smartass about many different issues. I have made an effort to insult David every opportunity I get, on any issue I can because I have reached my limit of patience. If nothing is off limits with him then let's just throw all the rules out the window ?? How ugly does it need to get?

In short I am absolutely certain I have made this hobby less enjoyable for others at times which isn't fair to those that are simply stuck in the middle and trying to have a good time and learn about the cars. I enjoy the cars very much and I hate the internet for being the vehicle that has made my favorite pastime feel like an ugly divorce.

Again Ron I want you to understand my anger is not directed at you personally, nor was it directed at Chris. My anger is the direct result of my intense hatred for the events of the past 2 years. My anger is a direct result of David doing Google searches to dig up "dirt" on me and try to ruin my reputation. There are enough members on .org that know for a fact this happened so it is of no importance if David admits it or not. I don't care I am simply describing the actions on his part that have helped to create the atmosphere of hatred that exists.

Yesterday I had a day at work unlike anything I have ever seen in my career, and I have seen allot. I have been shot at, burned in a house fire trying to save a person, got hit by a car, had my right ear almost torn off in a fight, GOT FIRED once, retired once, came back and went through the academy again, been disciplined for screwing up, got awards for acts of bravery/stupidity, totaled police cruisers in crashes, seen lots of dead people missing heads, arms legs etc. and everything else you can think of. I won't describe what happened yesterday on here because Mike will delete it but just believe me when I say it was the most repulsive, disgusting, moment in my career and it really put some of these issues in perspective for me. In the big picture NONE of this matters.

I appreciate your adult discussion and the way you posted your opinion and feelings. We all have our own opinions and there are many differences in the philosophies of .net and .org. I am not going to discuss them because we all know where everyone stands. I am simply putting all this out there so that you will understand why I feel and act the way I do.

I hope you will continue to lurk and contribute on issues when you can.

I would appreciate it if the other mods would not delete this