[DeTomaso] Letter to Voting POCA Members

[Mark Charlton]

Very well stated Mike.

Mark Charlton
pantera01826 at rogers.com



On Jan 12, 2015, at 8:39 PM, Mike Drew via DeTomaso <detomaso at poca.com> wrote:

>   In a message dated 1/12/15 11 53 46, LaurieFerrari at aol.com writes:
> 
>     As a POCA member, I am asking for a REVOTE and hope that others will
>     second and agree to back up this request as a motion!
> 
>>>> Laurie--while I appreciate your sentiment, I'd like to go on the
>   record as saying that I am *against* such a proposition.
>   While everything you say about the corruption associated with this
>   recent election is true (and there's much more besides that), and your
>   indignation is amply justified, I have taken a rather philosophical
>   stance on the matter.
>   I strongly believe that if the election had *not* been rigged, and Mike
>   Haney ran an aggressive campaign, more likely than not he would have
>   won the election anyway.  Not only because of the fact that Profiles
>   production has diminished markedly in recent years (never mind the
>   various reasons for it, since I was in charge it's easy to assign blame
>   to me), but also because of that 'new car smell' associated with an
>   unknown, eager volunteer.  For that reason, I haven't felt any
>   compulsion to attempt to challenge the results.
>   I have known Mike Haney for going on 25 years and we've been good
>   friends all that time, and will continue to be so.  Although many
>   reprehensible things were done by a handful of unethical POCA board
>   members to ensure that the election results came out as they did, I
>   have yet to see the slightest indication that Mike himself had anything
>   to do with any of that.  I am filled with admiration for anybody who
>   puts his hand up to volunteer to serve, especially in a job that is as
>   grueling and thankless as this one, and I for one appreciate his
>   willingness to enter the fray and attempt to keep the magazine going.
>   Regardless of how you might feel about how the election transpired, the
>   simple fact is that Mike Haney is now in charge, and he is going to
>   need a lot of support if he is to be successful.  While arguably he is
>   more skilled than I am at the mechanics of assembling a magazine, the
>   act of laying out text and photos represents perhaps 10% of the total
>   job, at most.  The remaining 90% involves networking, soliciting
>   contributions, fact-checking, editing, traveling to events, etc. etc.
>   etc. and that is where he is going to need the support of everybody in
>   the club.  So I am urging everyone to avoid the temptation to hold him
>   responsible for the bad acts of others, and do whatever they can to
>   help him to ensure that Profiles doesn't simply roll over and die.
>   I would also urge people to avoid blaming POCA, as an entity, for this
>   situation.  A surprising number of people have told me that they plan
>   to quit the club in protest, and there is at least one chapter that has
>   viewed this as the final straw after what they feel is a series of bad
>   acts (unrelated to the election) and is considering formally
>   disassociating themselves from POCA entirely.  I view both of these as
>   being deeply disturbing and counterproductive and have been stridently
>   arguing against such actions.
>   To me, POCA is not the handful of people who are responsible for all
>   this ire; instead, POCA is the many hundreds of people all across the
>   country and around the world who together share passion for De Tomaso
>   cars, as well as the friendship and fellowship that normally follows.
>   Just as you don't renounce your US citizenship if you aren't happy with
>   the results of a presidential election, neither should you renounce
>   your POCA membership.  The biggest enemy of the club is not corruption
>   at the top, but instead apathy throughout.  The total number of ballots
>   returned was pretty dismal.  And for year after year, club officers
>   have run uncontested, and in fact some offices have gone unfilled for
>   many years because not one single person was willing to step up to
>   volunteer.
>   To me, the takeaway from all of this is that if people want to have a
>   club that serves them, they need to be willing to serve their fellow
>   members in some capacity.  Whether that means taking on a chapter
>   leadership position, or writing an article, or running for a national
>   board position, the club will only succeed if many more people are
>   willing to step up and do something.  It doesn't need to be much--it
>   can be as little as casting a ballot in an election to let your voice
>   be heard.  But quitting is not the answer.
>   I'd also like to once again publicly thank Chuck Engles for his hard
>   work in receiving and counting the ballots.  I am convinced that he
>   maintained his high level of integrity throughout, and did the best job
>   that he possibly could, within the often-changing constraints that were
>   placed upon him.  So while it may be legitimate to feel anger towards
>   some people, he is definitely not one of them.  I can only hope that he
>   will be willing to continue to serve in this capacity and put the
>   negative experiences of this election behind him.
>   I thank everyone for their support over the last 20 years that I have
>   served, and I very much hope that everyone will work together to get
>   POCA past this low point and ensure that it thrives once more in the
>   future.
>   Mike
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