Being the amazing, true-to-life adventures and (very likely) misadventures of a writer who seeks to take his education, activism and seemingly boundless energy to North Minneapolis, (NoMi) to help with a process of turning a rapidly revitalizing neighborhood into something approaching Urban Utopia. I am here to be near my child. From 02/08 to 06/15 this blog pushed free speech to the envelope, so others could take heart and speak unafraid. Email me at hoffjohnw@gmail.com
Friday, April 10, 2009
Ben Myers And Johnny Northside: Separated At Birth?!! Plus More Information On The Recent JACC Board Meeting
Top Photo By Pat Carney, Bottom Photo By
A Jordan Resident With Johnny Northside's camera
I'm not sure if it's any defense to say I was drinking bloody Marys at the Broadway Pizza "policy booth" when somebody goaded me into repeating my Ben Myers impression for the camera.
And speaking of Ben Myers! Here is a firsthand account of the "Old Majority JACC members" delivering their purported, alleged and self-styled "resolutions" at the lawful "New Majority" board meeting a few nights ago, as I previously reported...
Here's a firsthand account from somebody who was there:
As the meeting was gathering and right before it was to be called to order, Chair Kip Browne had noticed that a few of the board members were standing in the back of the room and not at the board meeting table. He addressed Ben from across the room and said "I'd like to get the meeting started, are you going to sit up here at the (big boy) table?"
(Insertion of words "big boy" by Johnny Northside)
That is when Ben replied, "No, I am not, and I'd like to take this time to present you with a resolution' as he walked towards the board table with a document in hand. Ben Myers said "This meeting is out of order due to the fact that this organization does not have any leadership" and he placed the document on the table. He said, "I am sure you won't be in agreement with this resolution but I want to document that it has been filed."
So he walked to the back of the room and sat there for a while before leaving. He was with Steve Jackson and Robert Wilson. A few minutes into the meeting, EB Brown had arrived. She was smiling and had a generally friendly aura, which was nice to see. However, instead of joining the meeting at the table, she sat away from the board table, and eventually she also approached the table and placed a document next to Anne McCandless. She did this without interrupting the meeting.
Shortly after that, another lady, who I believe is EB Browne's daughter, did the same thing, approached and placed a document with the secretary, McCandless.
The source also adds the following: "The former JACC accountant, Judy Gallas, has been deposed by JACC attorney David Schooler. She has handed over financial records, quick books records and some other stuff that she had. Discovery at its finest!"
In another development: One of the JACC agenda items at that meeting was about an opportunity to have a Hmong college student working 10 hours a week at no cost to the organization in a partnership with MCTC, CURA at the U, and the Hmong community, AT NO COST TO JACC.
However, an obstacle is the fact JACC has no office equipment available for this person to get any work done, so some kind of arrangement will have to be made to house the college student at some other office.
I say again...SOME KIND OF ARRANGEMENT WILL HAVE TO BE MADE TO HOUSE THE COLLEGE STUDENT AT SOME...OTHER...OFFICE!!!!!
Like...like maybe a NEIGHBORHOOD office?
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I'm on it. Just so long as we don't get SUED first. This partnership and other follow-up items from the Hmong youth pizza dinner that Jay, Yia, and I did will be brought up at the Crime and Safety meeting on Tuesday.
OMG!!!
Are you TRYING to get sued???
Are we all supposed to tip toe through the tulips all day out of fear of frivolous lawsuits from the "Old Majority?"
They have a bunch of lawsuits, and every one of those lawsuits is going VERY BADLY.
Or, as Kenya McKnight would say, "Very, very, very badly." (See her convention statement on transportation issues)
The result of one "Old Majority" lawsuit was to hand subpoena power to the DEFENSE, which promptly went after the financial records in the possession of the former JACC accountant.
A few nights ago, I saw this fear of (frivolous, asinine) Old Majority lawsuits articulated as a reason to refrain from being helpful and decent and assisting our neighbor to fund their trash clean up. That's just WRONG.
I'm not going to live like that. If Ben Myers sues me, I'll offer him $3.
And then I'll make the same face.
If I live my life with guts, others will take heart, as well.
Not that crossing my eyes at Ben Myers requires any GUTS, since the emperor has no clothes or, in this case, NO CASE.
(Crossing eyes, making rubber love doll lips)
Here's the other reason the lawsuits don't scare me (and granted, I'm not a lawyer so maybe SOMEONE with a law degree who facilitates conversations on the blog could help articulate this):
Hawthorne has proposed to HELP Jordan with their clean sweep. Jay Clark and others with CURA have a Hmong organizer that will reach out to folks in our community in both Hawthorne and Jordan. The intentions and expected results of this type of organizing are to HELP the neighborhood.
But doesn't a plaintiff have to show where they have been damaged or harmed? Because I'd love to see Jill Clark or Ben Myers show that they (meaning their fantasyland "real" JACC) have been harmed by the good work of Hawthorne, CURA, and other community partners.
Ben Myers is using his law degree as a weapon of urban terrorism. I hope the State of Minnesota and the Bar Association reveiw his privaleges to pratice law before he cows all the good people of north Minneapolis into silence.
Well, he hasn't cowed ME.
I received an email pointing out that Benjamin E. Myers lives at 2615 Logan Ave. N., and there are delinquent taxes on the property. I confirmed this information online today. There ARE delinquent taxes on the property.
Myers is free to contact me and relate his side of these disputes, in detail, which I will not hesitate to publish.
All of his big talk --lawsuits --challenges -- resolutions -- and BEN MYERS hasn't paid his TAXES!?!?!?
I don't think Ben "tax dodger" myers, (Esq.) wouldn't miss a change to accuse someone of racism, sue for defamation, and pretend to care about the community.
(JNS, my sarcasim font isn't working)
SOOO, how much does he owe the government (or is it the Queen)??
wait wait..I've seen this on a commercial before..
Sue 3 neighbors: cost nothing.
Sue more neighbors: still cost nothing.
Sue the city, the police, and the state(NRP): again, cost nothing.
Pay your property taxes for the past 3 years:
PRICELESS!
For the record: I'm not certain how far back the taxes go. I can determine there are some back taxes, yes, but three years? Not sure. Anybody who has details--or alleges to have details--can share that info.
Well, somebody shared the (alleged) details by email, and here they are:
According to County records, Myers bought his house in Feb 2006. The last property tax payment was made in March 07 for $110.88. The last year that the taxes were paid in full was 2005, the year before he bought the house. Currently, he owes $3,190.01. That does not include 2009 taxes,
the first half of which are due in May.
On 4/14/2008, the county got a judgment against Myers for the back taxes. However, since the house is in a distressed neighborhood, he has three years before the county moves to take the property.
It looks like he moved into our neighborhood fully
intending to live her for nothing for as long as he could work the system. Fine, upstanding citizen.
(JNS says, "Oops. The sarcasm font is broken or at least wasn't working on that last sentence. Notifying the reader manually)
So Ben Myer's wants to use the Hennepin County services for his own personal reasons (at least 2 lawsuits that he is a plaintiff) - but yet he does not want to pay his "dues" to the Hennepin County club?
Never even mind the fact that he earns his living off of the same county services (the court system).
You have to pay to play Ben!
Got this email today:
------------------------
Genital Carbuncle to me
show details Jan 28 (3 days ago)
Your constant ridicule of attorney at law Benjamin Myers is juvenile at a level below that of a first grader.Your so-called humor is offensive, mean-spirited, low-brow at best and downright lazy.
And I can't stop laughing.
Keep Up The Great Work! The good people of the Hennepin County District Court are LOVING it!!
By the way, next time you take a crossed-eyed pic, put a fake blue tooth in your ear - he's famously assholish about that IN courtrooms!
Let us know how your trial goes, douchebag.
(Parody font)
Dear Brother Ben,
Big Mama Sweetums says you are "dead to God for lying under oath" and if you got hit by a bus in the street they should "just put (you) in a Dumpster, because hallowed ground will spit (you) right out."
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