union divisions - part 3 - afscme president's response

in response to the anonymous email that was sent out this week to afscme staff and members (see previous blog post), afscme president gerald mcentee sent out his own broadcast email today. i can't help but notice the irony in the fact that the anonymous email service was supposedly "outsourced" to a service provider in japan. the clintons have long been big proponents of corporate globalization, and thus it is interesting that their friend--mcentee--is now taking heat via anonymous emails sent from an offshore corporation that makes money by benefiting from the jurisdictional and legal limitations of the internet age.

one thing about mcentee's email that i agree with is when he states: "When there are disagreements, we should be able to debate face-to-face." it is no fun and unfair to be attacked anonymously and not be able to counter the arguments. that is why i make no attempt to hide my identity on this blog. i certainly have my disagreements with mcentee--especially as he continues to spend our members' money on the clinton campaign and continues to attempt to drive a wedge between working families with his "electibility" arguments against obama--and so i can't wait to get to the afscme convention in san francisco and "debate face-to-face" about these and other issues.

this is mcentee's email response:

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

You may have received an anonymous email (attached) that is circulating around the country making false and outrageous claims about AFSCME's political program and finances.

I am personally offended by the falsehoods included in the e-mail, including the suggestion that the rights of our members "have been trampled on by some of our union leaders," including members of the International Executive Board.

As you know, our decision-making process is democratic and our finances are transparent.

It is especially disturbing to me that this email is being sent anonymously. We have a proud history of open and honest debate. False accusations and name-calling have no place in our union, and no one should be making unsubstantiated charges from behind a curtain.

The email writer went to extreme lengths to remain cloaked in secrecy. When we looked into the matter, we learned that they outsourced their lies and distortions to Japan. Specifically, they used a Japanese website designed to allow people to send anonymous emails. The purpose of the site is to hide the identity of the user and to skirt American liability and privacy laws. The company gets paid to send anonymous emails and they promise to delete all traces of the transaction.

The Japanese company even tells prospective customers that they "will absolutely not release any kind of user data without a court order from the Supreme Court of Tokyo, Japan."

I hope you will let us know if this email from Japan makes its way to you or your members. When there are disagreements, we should be able to debate face-to-face.

In solidarity,

GERALD W. McENTEE