A Meeting With Jefferson County DA Cindy Intschert About The Cape Vincent Wind Ethics Mess

Now before some of my critics get their underwear all in a bunch over this letter and confidentiality and that I am revealing some big secret...this is now a public document that I would think could be FOILED by anybody, from the County.

The letter above was sent to our Jefferson County, NY DA, Cindy Intschert and likely was a step in the AG’s ethics investigation that has evaporated. .  I sent out a general email through WPEG to ask if anybody was interested in signing with me on this letter.  I received about 70 names via email from people in several local towns giving  permission to include their names.  Once again I felt WPEG was not addressing the real ethics problems.  Some in WPEG wanted to play nice and would not address the conflict issue head on since it would be an ugly issue.  I didn’t care after what I saw happening to our community, and how blatant it was and I was not willing to let our conflicted town officers any more slack.  I already had doubts about WPEG, since they didn’t seem to want to take a truly public NO wind stance.  I guess you could say the events around this letter were where I really split with them and Mr. Hirschey on approaches.

Now many say I am an ego freak and want all the glory.  Whatever!   Well let me say something real positive about the people who signed this letter and helped.  I don’t think this letter would ever had any impact at the DA’s office if they had not been brave enough to put their names out there and back me. You have to understand that this was a different time when the wind issue was really hot and getting hotter.  It was not fashionable for any person or wind opposition group to say your were against wind  energy, the green mantra, or renewables.  It’s not like today where everybody has attacked the ethics issue and it is or was mainstream like before the 2011 elections, and people can look around and see everybody else is against the ethics mess so now it is OK.

Yet these people had real guts when it counted and signed their names and stood up when the going was really tough, and they knew this could be a public document that could have consequences for them.

They did not sign on this letter ANONYMOUS!!!   I thank them all for the support!

Later in May of 2008 Mrs.  Intschert called me in AZ.  Again I was a little surprised since I had gone after her in the WDT for sitting on the side lines as the blatant CV ethics issues became worse. She actually told me she was well aware of my WDT letters and had read each one as well as others letters. She asked for a meeting, and we set a time after I would arrive in CV.  It was in June.  In the mean time I put all the research I had into a document that as I remember was about 3/4 of an inch thick. Town records, case law, the town and State ethics codes, info on wind power and what it would do to Jefferson County and CV. on and on.

I immediately told WPEG of this call and meeting and tried to get some of them to go with me.  I had two volunteers (no names) and it helped. If you are reading you know who you are and thank you.  Now let me say some positive things about Mrs. Intschert, before I go on.  I gave her my document which she graciously accepted, and assured me she would read.  She spent more than two hours with us in her office.  She never seemed distracted or bored with our discussion, and was very attentive. She took copious notes and asked sharp detailed and probing questions.  If she didn’t understand something she would ask me or the others to go back and clarify it.  She indicated a DA has broad authority to pick the cases they would pursue.   She indicated she was in contact with the AG’s office on these matters and with Franklin County DA Derrick Champaign who actually had pursued wind corruption near Malone.

And interestingly enough WPEG’s best lawyer had been an asst. DA with Champaign, if I remember correctly, but they put him off…Go figure!!! Why is this important?  Because Champaign had actually gone after wind corruption AND helped develop the AG’s Wind Ethics Code for Cuomo.  Geee I don’t know do ya think that could be an asset in the CV wind ethics battle????   But WPEG kept going to for environmental lawyers and SEQR lawyers figuring they were going to win that battle. If you are going to fight a battle on the wind developers and politicians turf you might want to consider who and what the best weapons are!!! So what are we doing now…we are running around with appeasement wind laws in FEAR of the wind developers and Cuomo’s Article X.  You know…one more time…let’s study it to death!!! Forget the birds and bat! If we don’t stand up to this BS at some point WE are going to become the endangered species!!!!

Anyhow Mrs. Intschert never tackled the CV wind ethics mess, but she did forward my document to Cuomo’s AG office, and I know that because it showed up in the hands of some AG investigators I talked to.  So I will credit her for that.  Unlike the current CV zoning committee which refused to look at any input I give them…Oh well.

Now here is what you don’t know and won’t hear other places. If you go back through my posts you will see one not long ago that addresses which political party is to blame for the wind issue or ignores it.  The CV blogs and die hard CV Republicans would like you to believe it is ALL the Democrats…Oh really!!!  Well my experience says otherwise.  You would be real surprised which Republicans refused to sign the letter to Intschert right in the face of the worst ethics scandal CV is likely to ever face.They would not back the 70 names sticking their neck out on the line.   In fact it turned into an ugly argument over the issue.  Some Republicans were even invited to attend the meeting with DA Intschert and refused, and Mrs. Intschert is a Republican too.

 Yet here we sit right today with two CV planning board members with wind conflicts. 

Also whether it means anything or not, and it may not,  Mrs. Intschert’s name  shows up as a campaign donor to former Rep. Sen. James Wright who was on the NY Sen. Energy Committee, ( a rather powerful position) and he has a list of donors from industrial wind interests as long as your arm, including AES/ Acciona!!!   These campaign lists are FASCINATING -  Democrat or Republican when you start  digging around!!.

Some  really interesting names pop on Aubertine’s donors list too. I will get into that story in a later post. 

Two documents going at once.  My wife helping me organize research for a document for a meeting with Jefferson County DA Cindy Intschert. And this picture doesn't show the deep pile of crap behind the camera on a desk! If it wasn't for this wonderful loving intelligent person and some very close personal friends I would have lost my mind long ago in the CV wind  battle. This document  would ultimately go to Cuomo's AG investigators. Also spread on the floor are the pages for a thick document to be given to the Jefferson County Legislators about the impacts of wind power, and studies from around the world to document how industrial wind could negatively impact our whole beautiful region.  It include my own and wind company visual  studies.  A friend with a business volunteered to make all the copies...thank you and that saved me a fortune.  One copy was made for each legislator and Jeff. Cty Legislator Mike Docteur said he would pass them out to each. 

Thank you Mike! 

I show this picture for two points... and it ain't ego!!!

Now is this picture ego as some accuse me of?  Is it all about me?  Well do you really think this is the way I have wanted to spend much of the last 7 years of my life and beautiful CV summers?   Do you really think I am doing this endless shit in CV and AZ just to boost my ego? Get Real!!! This is not my idea of fun.

Secondly, some people work very hard, like the CV blogs and their commenters  and supporters at trying to convince you that my and other's prohibit turbines approach is based on nothing more than radical hysteria, and we are marginal voices who haven't thought it through with any science or research or work.  We are just "loose cannons, and crazy!  Wiley at JLL once said we were just having a NO WIND HISSY FIT and K at Pandora's had a coffee cup posted on her blog that said  "Never under estimate the power of a HISSY FIT."     That was because she was using a video visual study of mine and never gave even credit and then blocking and marginalizing my voice and I got sick of it. You can see copies of the still pictures from the video it at the lower left by the brief case that would go to the Jeff. Cty Legislators.  I don't care if they attack me, but would you say based on the picture that marginalizing me by saying all I am doing is having a hissy fit is an accurate?  Be careful what you read!   Funny isn't it how Wiley and K seem to conveniently take on the same marginalizing mantra at the same time.  Wonder why that is?

Well take a look at that floor, I don't think that qualifies as a lack of research and a HISSY FIT!  So why  work so hard to marginalize me and other voices and keep you from the truth????

So if you want another side of the story, I hope you will keep reading and make up your own mind.