Here is a bit more detail on the DBC conference "groundswell."
RMB has been pestering me over the past month with endless emails and posts on the MN to bury the hatchet and join with him in a joint Cooper Conference for this November. He would like me to join forces with him in a conference project that he says he has been crafting with a Portland-based impresario named Jim Brunberg. I told RMB, "No way, Jose."
Apparently, RMB has been reaching out to others in Cooper World to build an assembly of speakers and has had difficulty developing a full and respectable roster. To date, I know of no one who is teaming with RMB, although RMB says that Darren Schaeffer and Bradley Collins have accepted a presentation slot.
At first, RMB envisioned his conference with Brunberg as a kind of alternative to EU's scheduled CooperCon on November 30, 2019. Then, RMB considered making it a kind of competitive or supplemental entertainment show for the same date. Every day RMB sent me variations on those themes.
Jim Brunberg called me a few days ago to introduce himself to me. I was surprised to learn a few things. First, he told me that he has never met RMB. Secondly, he knows very little about DB Cooper, but is ironically good friends with one of the Decoded principals, and through that contact knows of RMB and Kenny Christiansen. In the course of a lengthy and healthy discussion over a range of Cooper-related topics, I informed Jim of my many run-ins with RMB over the past decade, and my current inability to participate in any conference in which RMB participates.
The groundswell has given rise to what I perceive as an effort to build a One Big Happy Family in Cooperville, and that just can't happen in my view - for me, certainly. RMB is just too dangerous and too toxic for me to share any professional dealings with him. Frankly, I have very real concerns for my personal safety - let alone my professional reputation - and am taking steps to protect myself.
At the very least, today I blocked RMB from sending me emails. I have communications out to WordPress to see how I can best block RMB from posting at the Mountain News. Two days ago, RMB posted ten unwanted commentaries at the MN, and I had to scrub them all. I am done with that kind of nonsense. I have sought legal counsel on how to respond to RMB's intrusions and harassments, and will be exploring the recent changes to Washington State law that increase the protection of folks from unwanted cyber bullying, threats, and attacks.
As I have stated in an earlier post, I have developed a memorandum of understanding for the kinds of apologies and acknowledgements that I need from RMB that would give me the degree of security that would allow myself to participate with him in a professional conference on NORJAK. I have sent that MOU to several of the principals of Cooper World who are seeking to develop the Conference in November 2019, including EU and Jim Brunberg. I thought it would be important for them to know the details on the conflict between RMB and I, and what I think it will take to fix it.
That said, I do recognize that CooperCon 2019 is EU's baby - it's his show, and he is seeking to build a partnership with Brunberg to offer a real whiz-bango weekend, which I think is great. I support that fully. I also realize that my role in this all is as a vendor of information. I know what I know and can deliver it in a mostly appealing manner. I would be honored to do that, if invited.
Can RMB and I share a stage together? Or even be under the same roof? No. Not until a change is made in our relationship. I need the past transgressions resolved. Further, I do not seek the assistance of anyone in addressing my issues with RMB. If RMB wants to right our relationship, he must take action to do so. However, it must be through a third-party at this point, as I refuse to have any direct dealings with him.
Regardless, I will be happy to assist EU and Jim Brunberg is any way I can in building a fantastic CooperCon 2019, and beyond.
more words! more words than there are atoms in the oceans.
Will RMB be packing his .45cal ?
Coopercon ?
con1
/kän/
informal
verb
verb: con; 3rd person present: cons; past tense: conned; past participle: conned; gerund or present participle: conning
1.
persuade (someone) to do or believe something, typically by use of a deception.
"I conned him into giving me your home number"
synonyms: swindle, defraud, cheat, trick, fleece, dupe, deceive, rook, exploit, squeeze, milk, bleed; More
fool, take advantage of, mislead, delude, hoax, hoodwink, bamboozle, string along;
embezzle;
informaldo, sting, diddle, fiddle, swizzle, swizz, rip off, take for a ride, pull a fast one on, pull the wool over someone's eyes, put one over on, sell a pup to, take to the cleaners, bilk, gull, finagle, gazump;
informalstiff, euchre, bunco, hornswoggle;
archaiccozen, sharp;
raremulct
"she was jailed for conning her aunt out of £500,000"
noun
noun: con; plural noun: cons
1.
an instance of deceiving or tricking someone.
"a con artist"
synonyms: swindle, deception, trick, racket, bit of sharp practice, fraud; More