The Good, The Bad, The Spin

How wild horse advocates spin-doctor a volatile issue and spread misinformation

They are one of Nevada’s most misunderstood attributes. From long eyelashes in Disney movies to the ongoing anthropomorphic attitudes expressed by all stripes of mostly well-intentioned folks, Nevada’s wild horses are universally admired. They are also endlessly mired in controversy.

This is to be expected. As our “backyard pets,” that appear essentially harmless and carefree, it is easy to understand why people would be offended as the suggestion of removal of horses from rangelands—or human interference of any kind.

These good intentions are driven by emotion and passion, which frequently step in the way of reason and the desire to seek out science-based knowledge of the issue, especially if such information ends up unpleasant or contradictory to one’s beliefs. Nothing exemplifies this more than the uproar recently stirred when none other than Willie Nelson and Snoop Dog recorded audio commercials urging people to call Nevada’s governor to “intervene on behalf of our wild horses.” (more…)

Reno blogger Ryan Jerz continues to face harassment for his outing of complaint-happy, former University of Nevada, Reno soccer coach Terri Patraw.Jerz outed Patraw’s–and/or her supporters’–online behavior, wherein it appeared as if all defenses of Patraw were coming from the same computer. First Patraw threatened to sue Jerz. Most recently, Jerz’s web host is being threatened with a suit if the host does not take down Jerz’s site.

The tragic aspect of this story is that if Patraw is half the soccer coach she and pseudonymous fans claim she is, apparently the students with athletic potential, those who could benefit from a good coach, are less important than trying to prove a righteous point in court–a prospect that will no doubt take place over many years. These reputation-enhancing antics are sure to influence the prospect of a cozy coaching job somewhere while suits are being litigated.

Having been in positions where I either was fired or walked out–it’s been more than once in both accounts–it’s almost always better to go on your own terms than to raise a public stink about it. And dare I add: even if you have been wronged.

Regardless of who is in the right, at the end of the day, organizations do not have a conscience. People, however, do, and it’s up to each of us how we choose to exercise our sense of rightness, for better or for worse.

I purposefully avoid discussing local matters for two reasons: 1. there’s ample material of which I often know too much, and 2. in light of number one, I try to maintain a decent amount of good juju with my colleagues. I admit I’m not always successful. Thus, this blog’s emphasis has rarely been about matters related to Nevada.

This one is too good to pass up, however. My friend and colleague, Ryan Jerz, is one of Reno’s best bloggers and is certainly one of the most read. He recently had the audacity, as he often does, to comment in the negative. This time, it was about a lawsuit being filed against the local university by a former disgruntled employee*. It seemed harmless enough at the time.

He underestimated the wrath of said disgruntled employee, however, who has since attempted all manner of trying to silence him, up to and including visits over coffee, threat of a lawsuit and, most recently, a cease and desist letter.

Jerz did the right thing, in my opinion. I said if it were me, I would post up everything. He did. And it’s a delicious read.

Transparency, as I’ve mentioned before, is a two-way street. Fortunately, most have seen through the wrath, now put in a more open context by Jerz’ coming out (as it were). Many are offering up donations to his legal defense fund. I donated to him the time of my virtual assistant, who is a paralegal. (Thank you, Kimberly.) (more…)