Wine goes with cheese like an Abusive HOA board goes with legal council

 "I am beginning to think that Jim Harkins should be fired for even agreeing to write these unprecedented letters.  He should have a higher standard that money can't buy."  Joseph Morabito, political activist, entrepreneur and former direct CZ Master Association 

Posted by CotoBlogzz

Rancho Santa Margarita, CA - " Wine goes with cheese. Meat sandwiches go with a pickle. Green tea goes with Asian food. Sushi goes with pickled ginger. Oil goes with vinegar. Soda goes with chips. Many of the world's most beloved food combinations pair an astringent food, which causes the mouth to pucker up, with a fatty food, which makes the mouth feel slippery,"  according to Natalie Wolchover, staff writer for LiveScience.com.  Now according to  Paul Breslin, an experimental psychologist at Rutgers University and Monell Chemical Senses Center who studies taste perception,  the reason why the pairings go well together  is found in gastronomy.

What about the pairing of abusive HOA directors and legal counsel:  the answer is found in self-preservation.  As White House press secretary Jay Carney might say, it is self-evident that abusive directors dislike criticism and are not afraid to use every means possible to silence dissent.  After all, it is a no-lose situation for these directors. 

The board can simply use legal resources to send threatening letters and the residents must either bow to the board or face a protracted legal battle, not unlike the one Seal Beach, CA’s  David Lyon faced when battling the Golden Rain Foundation over a simple request for records, or even the one in the City of Clayton being fought by Ann Stanaway over alleged voter fraud?

Lawyer letter sent to Mr. Kirkendale with love from CZ Master association

Just like the combination of wine and cheese, if a resident dares  criticize an association’s service provider, you can bet that the association will unleash faster than a New York minutes its WMD– weapons of mass disinformation, such as the ones in Antigua, or send its legal council after HOA Heroes such as Mike Curtis, or even old misogynist such as Bill Kirkendale, father to five girls and five granddaughters, as CZ Master association director Xochitl Yocham might.  Ms. Yocham previously referred to then 75-year old Ed Caruso as a neglected child, when Mr. Caruso dared

criticize the association’s handling of its private security company.  Not only that, but the association sent James Harkins, it’s legal council to have Mr. Caruso sing a Shut Up agreement as a pre-condition for Mr. Caruso to be allowed into open association meetings – even Mr. Harkins showed some empathy when he told Mr. Caruso “I   hate to do this but…”

As a result of the board’s indiscriminate use of Mr. Harkins’ services, we circulated the letter below, prompting a chilling response from a resident who wanted to know the legal ramification of signing such letter.

Now, it looks like the CZ board is at it again:  not only did it dispatch Mr. Harkins, but it also dispatched an Orange County police officer to see what kind of a threat disabled 75-year old Mr. Kirkendale represents to its service providers.

 From: Buzz @CotoBuzz
Subject: [COTO] Letter to legal counsel To: CotoBuzz@yahoogroups.com Date: Saturday, October 29, 2005, 8:56 AM

A group is working on a petition to be sent to the CZ master association’s legal counsel, to advice the board it is  knowingly  in violation of various statues, and that for the good of the association, the board must put a stop to it immediately. If you would like to see and sign your name to this petition, please send email to JMorabito@paragongri.com or to cotobuzz@yahoo.com Such petition may also be presented at next board’s meeting 

From: Morabito, Joe
Subject: CZ Letters - Chilling Effect To: "Patti "
"Buzz @CotoBuzz"
Date: Sunday, October 30, 2005, 8:28 AM

Patti: The fact that you would even have to ask that question demonstrates the intended chilling effect the unprecedented, threatening letters from Harkins and The Sunshine boys is designed to have on our Members.  Do we live in the Soviet Union?  The last time I taught American History and Government though it was many years ago, I don't recall any mention in the US Constitution stopping at Coto's gates.  Freedom of Speech and particularly as it relates to elected public officials is absolutely critical to the workings of a democracy.   And, while it is true that we don't yet have democracy in Coto and that our Board elections and especially the last one manipulated by the Sunshine Boys are corrupt, the California State Legislature continues to pass laws signed by the Governor to protect HOA Members from the very abuses we see happening in CZ under the management of the Sunshine Boys and their minions.  We must act to protect our rights and beat back any who would attempt to curtail them.   Joe Morabito P.S.  I am beginning to think that Jim Harkins should be fired for even agreeing to write these unprecedented letters.  He should have a higher standard that money can't buy.  

From: Buzz @CotoBuzz
Subject: [COTO] Letter tp attorney
To: CotoBuzz@yahoogroups.com
Date: Saturday, October 29, 2005, 11:51 AM

Hi Bill: I know you do no longer like Coto :-), but: Jerry Mezger has agreed, in writing, that he is knowingly in breach of his fiduciary duty by threatening to silence residents who are willing to exercise their free speech right. A group is working on a petition to be sent to CZ master association’s legal counsel, to advice the board they are knowingly  in violation of various statues, and that for the good of the association, thee board must put a stop to it immediately. If you would like to see and sign your name to this petition, please send email to JMorabito@paragongri.com or to cotobuzz@yahoo.com Such petition may also be presented at next board’s meeting 

I must say that I like sushi with wasabi, but have a strong distaste for an abusive HOA board of directors and its legal council.

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LETTERS

To: Coto de Caza CZ Master Association Board of Directors.
October 8th 2012

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Below is the letter I sent you a few days ago concerning my problems with your GM Vinnie Davis and your security company. UPS .

Today when I stopped by your Keystone office I asked  Miss Davis to discuss this matter with me. Not only did she refuse to talk to me about this in a nice way but she and her friend Mr. Kevin Edmunds started to insult and disrespect me right and left. Miss Davis rejected out of hand my suggestion to replace your overnight parking towing policy with a graduated fine policy. She claimed it wouldn't work when Dove Canyon has had this fine policy for years.

Not only that but she and Edmunds started to gang up on me about the supposed three parking citations I had received. One was for my car when I was rushed to the hospital one night. The other for my daughters car when because of the driveway problem we had she couldn't pull it in the driveway . As for the third so called citation I can't remember any third citation.

With a nasty, arrogant and disrespectful attitude she attempted to intimidated me saying that because of these three citations she had Edmunds dig up I had absolutely no standing to complain about your towing policy or anything else for that matter. 

Now as you may know this is not my first encounter with miss Davis. We exchanged angry words over the 4.5 foot high fence you wanted to install in the Coto country homes section in my back yard. 

We had not so nice discussions about the 200 year old oak tree you wanted to cut down. This matter is still not resolved. 

And finally until the van/towing problem came up she hassled with me numerous times over my driveway curb issue which as you know we handled quite nicely and easily at your executive session last month. 

Now we have the van/towing issue that seems to have emboldened her to treat me like a second class Coto de Caza citizen. ....which I don't intend to take from her anymore. Therefore not seeing any solution to the problem of Miss Davis treating me and others with disrespect and un-neighborly like behavior I want Miss Davis fired and sent on her way. I will discuss this with you at our upcoming executive board session on the 25th.  We residents pay her salary so she has an obligation to treat us with respect and dignity. This is not being done at the present time so you have to make some changes.
Sincerely
William Kirkendale 

MY PREVIOUS LETTER TO YOU......Oct 4th 2012

In doing my due diligence on your practice of towing resident's cars away for overnight street parking violations  (instead of levying fines against them)  it has come to my attention that:

(1) With many HOA security companies whose job it is, to select the cars to be towed  away there are substantial kickbacks being paid to them by the tow truck operators for every car they tow away.

(2) These kickbacks I am told range anywhere from 10-15%. If this is the case then security companies like UPS have a large incentive to have as many cars as they can towed away to collect their kickback fees.

(3) While I have no direct proof of this practice being carried out in Coto (only hearsay and rumors) it certainly makes me skeptical of the current tow away rules we have in Coto. 

My question then is this: Instead of having a tow away penalty for cars left on the street overnight why not have an increasing fine penalty. This would remove any question of kickbacks being paid to security companies by tow truck operators to tow cars away.

One final note. Before I moved to California 30 years ago I lived in New York City for 45 years....and as such I can tell you that tow truck operator kickbacks in the city was and still is a billion dollar business for almost everybody including organized crime. I only tell you this because I want you to know that tow truck operator kickbacks are nothing new to me. 

My suggestion for Coto therefore is for you to give strong and serious consideration to changing the current tow away penalty rules to a well thought out monetary fine penalty rule. Thank you.

William Kirkendale

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