Mr. Judson and the POA board of directors recently released their latest propaganda film, otherwise known as the Sept. 27 open board meeting video.
Their version bears little resemblance to what actually happened. They cut out two demands by members for Mr. Judson's immediate resignation. They cut out one member calling for Mr. Brandenburg's resignation because of his outburst at the Sept. 13 meeting in which he told a member to "shut up." They cut out Mr. Brandenburg scoffing at a member while he was speaking. They cut out the part where Mr. Abrahamson forgot that he works for the membership. The board's final product would make any dictator proud.
In an outrageous display of arrogance, staff attorney Doug McCash decided he had the power to circumvent the First Amendment by declaring that there was no recording allowed by any member. Allow me to set him straight. This is an open meeting and each board director, for better or worse (mostly worse), is a public figure. There is no expectation of privacy for the board of directors or anyone else who attends an event of this nature. What happens at these meetings is a matter of membership interest. Furthermore, three federal appeals court rulings have stated that citizen journalists have exactly the same freedom of the press rights and protections as any established news source. A citizen journalist is defined in these rulings as anyone with a camera.
Knowing this, I ignored Mr. McCash's flagrant disregard of the law and recorded the meeting anyway. And I will continue to record all future meetings, as is my right. I encourage all members to do the same. My uncut version of the meeting is now publicly posted at YouTube for the membership to see.
Mr. Judson and his board of tin-pot dictators already have a public relations nightmare on their hands. Specifically, they are seen by more and more members as secretive and authoritarian. This latest outrage only serves to reinforce that perception.
I'm once again demanding Mr. Judson's immediate resignation, and I encourage every member to do the same. Use your precious First Amendment freedoms ... or lose them.
Kevin Dooley
Bella Vista
Editorial on 10/17/2018