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Opera board not provided with information requested
This is great news, and I hope it will call out to others. The value of this gesture is enormous, above and beyond the monetary! Thank you Carol Lazier!!— April 5, 2014 9:51 a.m.
School officials Gandara and Sandoval plead guilty
I really hope some kind of message will be sent--it is not ok to steal from school children, it is not ok to rig the system, it is not ok to act like you are above the law, it is not ok to waste the resources of a community. Students need to see that there are consequences for unlawful and truly selfish behavior. Those who continue to act against the best interests of the students, the teachers and the community need to realize their time is running short. Judge Espana, please take your job seriously. Bear in mind all the damage that has been done--all that cannot be accomplished because of what selfish, greedy people have done. We need a big change in Sweetwater; let us hope it has started.— April 4, 2014 10:30 p.m.
Ed talks out of school
There is an article in the UT that both Sandoval and Gandara plead guilty. The article, by Greg Moran, was wrong in stating that Gandara was fired, and the article did not specify what charges these to plead guilty to. Someone posted a comment that Gandara plead guilty to one misdemeanor and one felony, but as far as I could tell, there were no further details. Looks like no one wants to go to trial. So what will Cartmill do?— April 4, 2014 2:24 p.m.
Opera board not provided with information requested
Eight years is a long time to watch things get worse--but we can't go back in time, so we need to correct what we can and go forward. Few people enjoy telling bad or difficult news--but now that the news is out, it would be great if all the financial info could be shared with those board members who are requesting it. And I think it is time to name an acting director. There must be someone who knows enough to step in, or did the Campbells run such a closed shop that there is no one who knows enough? Time to remove the Campbells from access to computer records and paper records. Even if they would never touch anything, it is better to ensure that they haven't interfered with the process of untangling and reorganizing. I do not think the SD Opera will disappear or go away, but it will have to undergo a rebirth of sorts. It would be so much better if defensive postures played no part.— April 3, 2014 1:13 a.m.
Opera board not provided with information requested
I have better information now, which is what all of you probably know: that the American Guild of Musical Artists, has two charges filed with the National Labor Relations Board against the SD Opera. The first, that SD Opera did not "provide the union with information related to its financial condition" ; the second, that "the opera has refused to engage in bargaining with the unions over the effects" of the dissolution. This info is from the UT. So--someone is needed to spearhead the people who want solutions. Now things almost resemble a Pirandello play. Instead of 6 characters, there is an entire company, and instead of searching for an author, they are searching for a leader. (Also, just want to add that it wasn't easy for me to find this article in *The Reader*, but maybe now that it is getting more traffic, it will appear as a choice on the sidebar?)— April 3, 2014 12:59 a.m.
Opera board not provided with information requested
I did hear that there is another law suit brought by employees stating that they were not informed of the fiscal problems as they should have been. So if the members who requested the information do not receive what they have requested, what is the next step? Banks can't erase information; lawyers cannot destroy evidence...but I do know sometimes people say they are unable to locate files, or say that something must have been misplaced, or some sort of nonsense. If the board members who are remaining blindly loyal to Ian and Ann Campbell have hurt feelings due to the public outrage, it will only get worse if there is no cooperation with those trying to find out where things went wrong. People do make mistakes, but responsible people try to correct mistakes, improve things and continue getting the job done. There is no excuse for anything else. If people are truly tired of being on the board, let them depart, and let those remain who want to keep opera in San Diego.— April 2, 2014 8:30 p.m.
Ed talks out of school
Yes, I know that officially there is supposed to be board approval, so my post was semi tongue-in-cheek, as that doesn't seem to have stopped Ed Brand's real estate schemes in the past. I just wonder if Voit is the only company he is dealing with, or if there are others. We--the public--really need to have full access to what is going on in Sweetwater. All the accounts, all the deals, all the side arrangements, tie-ins, sweet and cozy relationships and plans for further and future Ed Brand positions. I do think that all the charter school stuff could part of a larger scheme, i.e. potentially splitting off, thereby creating an asset and capital fortress for Ed Brand, out of public funds. I wouldn't put anything past him, master of the sleazy move as he has shown us to be.— April 2, 2014 9:36 a.m.
Opera president denies ugliest rumors
Don't know if anyone will see this comment--but the UT actually has run an editorial published online 4/1 saying that this situation with the opera needs looking into and that opera is important! Something of a breakthrough!— April 2, 2014 7:45 a.m.
Ed talks out of school
Ed, Jim & John are losing the PR battle, IMO. I wonder what they are plotting as a next move. I am thinking something along the real estate line, as they don't seem to need board meetings or votes to do what they want there. Keeping tabs on Fast Eddy's schemes is important--I just have a feeling something is up. Maybe it is real estate, maybe it is another deal with one of the less-educational 'institutions of higher learning', maybe it is a bargaining point that he will appear to agree with, and then when things look like they are set, he will back away...untrustworthy in the extreme. I hope the teachers are ready for anything, and have very solid procedural and legal advice, as Ed Brand is as shifty as they come.— April 2, 2014 7:30 a.m.
Opera board still looking for donors
The board must have the power to create a committee that could look into this, if it wanted to. I would like to know more about Opera America, why they were called in last year, what they suggested, and why they were dismissed. My guess is that they saw something that needed to be addressed/corrected and that Campbell felt threatened somehow by suggestions. Maybe a key is there somewhere.— April 2, 2014 7:14 a.m.