Charles Crehore can't shut down his Facebook page

"I find your postings on Coronado Happenings boring because it lacks a vibrant exchange of ideals and is a quintessential example of the cancel culture. It's an exercise in groupthink, mindless and without merit." — reads a meme re-posted by Charles Crehore on his private Facebook group, Coronado Happenings (CH).

The message is the type of stuff we, 27,000-plus exclusive members, can't initially see, as Crehore reads direct messages from the outsiders that can't see inside the CH private group.

"I would say I've actually banned probably less than 100 people from the group," he said in a recent interview with me. "And, if people get banned but then contact me and apologize or let me know they're sorry and would like to rejoin the group, I almost always re-add them."

"Almost" doesn't include unbanning Coronado Mayor Richard Bailey from the Facebook group, which Crehore started in 2012.

"Richard, if you're asked questions give them an honest answer - just try being honest," Crehore continued in a statement directed to the mayor. "Instead of taking care of your future aspirations, take care of the people who put you where you are ... pay attention to the people behind you."

Crehore says he was one of Bailey's supporters before Bailey became the mayor of the City of Coronado in 2016.

On Coronado Happenings' timeline, the two were depicted climbing down a tall building for the Over the Edge cause. And when the 2016 elections came around, Crehore posted about Bailey's meet-and-greet at McP's Irish Pub on the CH group. Bailey was elected the 51st Mayor of Coronado in November 2016, and Crehore and the majority of the CH group cheered.

Bailey openly posted on Coronado Happenings until about 2020, when the pandemic and shutdown transpired, as did the elections. At that time, Coronado Happenings grew to more than 20,000 members, and Crehore said he began seeing Bailey in a different light.

"I thought he (Bailey) was a great guy," he said in a recent Reader interview. "I think he was manipulating me to get my support, and I did. It was one of the biggest regrets of my life that I supported and endorsed him."

On October 23, 2022, Crehore explained in a lengthy CH post how his relationship with the mayor went sour. It began when Bailey left the Coronado beaches opened, early in the pandemic, and drew in the partiers and crime element to the island, as Crehore recounted. The open beaches on the island drew national news. And with the influx of folks, some from Los Angeles, the Coronado Police Department staff was swamped. "We were having to pay overtime for an increased police presence," read Crehore's post in part. "Someone wants to tell me how that makes good fiscal sense? Bailey, who claims he's all about the bottom line, cost our city taxpayers a lot of money with his antics." Crehore spoke on Bailey's statements about the mask mandates, Bailey's religious associations, and his political position.

I reached out to Mayor Bailey for a statement via a direct message on Facebook. Here is his answer: "I am I unaware of what Charles is posting on his page bc he removed me from the group, without explanation, after I posted an update from the San Diego county health officer in 2020."

This time around, in 2020, Trump supporters were more vocal on the CH Facebook page than in previous years. But on the rules and regulations imposed and regulated by Crehore, it states, "No partisan politics: this applies to state and national elections, but local elections are definitely a 'Coronado Happening.'" But folks, even Biden supporters, kept posting political posts and memes, and Crehore would pull it down. If they persisted, he'd ban them from the page. Crehore was called snowflake, a convict (because he served a 20-year stint in federal prison "for marijuana conspiracy"), and derogatory terms. He almost gave up the page but couldn't – when a Facebook group surpasses 10,000 members, the page's founder cannot disband the group. Not only that, his page raises a good chunk of change when there's an emergency or folks are in need within its 27,000-plus members. On a quick scan of the page, there's a slew of insightful dialogue about the island, and Crehore allows its users to promote their Coronado-based small businesses. It's a busy hub.

In 2020, Crehore posted: "Because of the recent unfortunate events, monitoring Coronado Happenings for inappropriate content and comments has become essentially a 24-hour-a-day job, and I am being overwhelmed with having to endlessly weed out the unnecessary vitriol and posts which violate the group's rules. Coronado Happenings is now averaging over 200,000 posts, comments, and reactions every 28 days, or over 7,000 a day. The volume is enormous, but I don't mind that. What I do mind is people who break the rules and exhibit rude behavior to other members. So I am asking everyone to step back, take a deep breath, and think before you post. There is simply no need for the garbage. If you don't get that, you'll leave me no other choice than to remove you."

Many of those who were removed or banned from the circa-2012 Coronado Happenings group, nearly 100, as Crehore stated earlier, started their groups. One of those groups is Coronado Happenings 2.0. It's a private Facebook group that "grew from the commonality of those who weren't treated with respect in the original version. While the original version seemed to start on a good path – it has now become something most of us do not want to be associated with. However, we continue to wish them well and hope they, too, find peace and prosperity. We take the elevated path for our great city and respect each other for the love of our great country and community."

Crehore said Mayor Bailey could join "Coronado Happenings 2.0, and there's another Coronado Forever. I will not put [mayor] Richard back in our group. I would never give him that platform, and he can go to KUSI if he wants; he doesn't need my little Facebook group."