Patton Won't Be There For Ya, Buddy

For those who read this blog or my home page, I've discussed the issues facing me in trying to deal with the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners (MCRGO). I had filed suit to try to get the Executive Director and the Board to follow the law and our own Bylaws. It's a complex issue and much of the legal papers can be found in this directory.

As the case developed, I won point after legal point and it became clear to even the folks who believed they could get away with anything - well - that they would not be getting away with anything. I suppose they became desperate and they began to flail about for any way to try to get me to give up. I don't know what kind of people they are used to dealing with but trying to ruin my life was not the approach that would get them the results they were after. Amazingly enough, they told such obvious lies, so easily proven to be lies that to most thinking folks, they just end up looking foolish, I suspect.

I spoke with my attorney and we filed a slander and defamation lawsuit, in addition to the original lawsuit and got a restraining order that we later got turned into an injunction. Not much seems to stop some of these folks, though, because they continue to lie and atttempt to interfere with my right to run for the Board of Directors, make a living, and do meaningful volunteer work. All in an effort to put so much pressure on me that I will give up in this fight. It is foolish because, in the end, it is not going to work and it's going to be a costly process as well.

It has moments that almost approach low comedy, though.

Recently, one Director of the MCRGO, Kerry Miller, after being served with the slander/defamation suit papers, then finally seeing the last legal papers asking that the entire board of Directors be jailed (and I will discuss our change in tactics on that in another week or so - we need to get out next Court appearance out of the way first) approached the rest of the Board and, including me and several others in an email said (paraphrasing here), in very frank language, that he did not intend to go to jail and that they needed to comply with the original order and then offered some possible negotiating points for settlement of the slander/defamation suit.

The response was a deafening silence, of course. But then an email came from David Aviles, who has, perhaps, been watching too much TV. I say TV because if he'd actually read the history behind what he said, he might have noticed some very key differences.

What was his response, you ask? One word, "Nuts."

History buffs might recognize the response of General McAuliffe to the demand from the Germans at Bastogne that he and his troops surrender.

Details here.

Now, McAuliffe was later vindicated in his response. He was victorious in the end and awarded a Distinguished Service Cross. As a very dear friend would say, "Good form. Good form, indeed."

However.

He had General Patton and the Third Army to back him up and knew that they were on their way to do so. I would suggest that Mr. Aviles does not have anyone approaching that caliber and his troops faltered long ago.

I also suspect that Judge Giddings will not be awarding him a Distinguished Service Cross.

But that's just my not all that humble opinion.