In response to Ryan Purdy’s recent post, Bob Filner’s Week of Lily Pond Lies, commenter La Playa Heritage writes, “By Monday, please stop encouraging Lillygate stories. Enough.” LPH then asks that we “move on to actual civic issues.”
Really? Monday? How Random.
Let’s make something perfectly clear. The Balboa Park Lily Pond vandalism incident of last week started as a story about just that: a night time party resulting in damage to the pond. Directly related to that story was the secondary one of whether the San Diego Police Department, knowing in advance of the party, should have done anything to monitor it or respond while it was “playing” out.
The third story wasn’t one at all, well, at least not until La Playa Heritage’s candidate for mayor, Bob Filner, made it one by falsely accusing opponent Carl DeMaio of being connected to the Lily Pond incident, then repeating the unsubstantiated claim throughout the next several days.
The incident was not an issue in the mayor’s race, nor should it have been. Filner chose to make it one.
Today’s U-T San Diego editorial called Filner’s lies a question of character, noting “that he has little regard for the truth, meaning he has little respect for San Diego voters.”
Filner’s supporters like LPH beg for the blood-letting to end. Yet, the candidate was the one wielding the knife in the first place.
If he let’s up, maybe the request will be considered. Maybe it will be in mid-November.
Filner’s character may not be the civic issue his supporter’s want covered. But, it is a civic issue, no different than a few years ago when then City Attorney Mike Aguirre made his constant clownish attacks against his often self-created opponents into a civic circus.
How is Bob Filner any different than Mike Aguirre?
Comments 9
Greg: Great post. Just glad you snuck it in before the Monday deadline. What deadline you ask? You might recall that La Playa Heritage has given a Monday deadline to stop writing/posting/talking about Liliygate. Very courteous of you to observe this deadline.
I also added this under my post:
I am happy to see that the Shepard’s Lilygate attack is working out as disastrously for him as his “Shame on you” (on behalf of his now vanquished mayoral candidate) ad in the primary.
The continued coverage of this online story may be making the situation worse for San Diego’s gay community and the pre-parties for Hillcrest’s annual CityFest celebrations in August.
The non-story is based upon rumor only and is driven by the ongoing multi-year feud between publisher Johnathan Hale’s websites San Diego Gay & Lesbian News http://www.sdgln.com and San Diego Pix http://www.SDPix.com (Carl DeMaio supporters); the editor of their rival newspaper San Diego http://www.LGBTWeekly.com (Bob Filner supporters), and the suicide “death of the former publisher of the Gay & Lesbian Times, Michael G. Portantino” another business rival to SDGLN.
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2010/jun/16/city-light-1/
http://sdgln.com/news/2010/12/09/san-diegans-express-shock-death-michael-portantino
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/financial-crime-politics/2010/dec/09/ex-gay-publisher-portantino-takes-own-life/
The following is how unsubstantiated rumors and innuendos connect the dots from Ken St. Pierre the original Promoter of the Lily-Gate Balboa Park incident to Hale Media.
This was the 2nd annual Midnight Water Gun Fight, held on the Saturday night before Hillcrest’s long standing CityFest celebration on a Sunday in August. Therefore in 2011, the first Midnight Water Gun Fight may, or may not have, been promoted by long time friend Ken St. Pierre when he was working for Mr. Hale at http://www.SDPix.com from approximately February 2010 to August 23, 2011. According to NBC 7/39 for the 2011 Hillcrest CityFest “A flash mob is also planned, though there’s no word on just what participants will do.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70I5XyVsMes
“Ken St Pierre and Johnathan Hale discuss PRIDE Events presented by San Diego Gay & Lesbian News and San Diego Pix Magazine” YouTube Video uploaded on July 15, 2010 when they worked together.
http://sdgln.com/entertainment/2012/07/27/sdpix-celebrates-10th-anniversary
“Ken St. Pierre, former director of business development: “Working with SDPIX was so much fun. Johnathan and I would brainstorm some wacky ideas over lunch and then a few weeks later we would see those ideas come to life in the form of the hottest new party in San Diego! Anything we thought of would come to fruition. For the past 10 years I have watched SDPIX participate, volunteer and donate to countless non-profit LGBT organizations in our community – a true friend to our community!””
For the 2009 CityFest, http://www.SDPix.com sponsored the Playpen which included water guns, and water mist to keep the crowds cool on hot August days.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sasannayee/3823985856/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sasannayee/3823183253/
Based upon the internet only, http://www.SDPix.com also sponsors WET Events and Foam Parties and seems to put up the $600 cash prizes for the winners.
https://www.google.com/#hl=en&sclient=psy-ab&q=sdpix+wet&oq=sdpix+wet&gs_l=
According to an eye witness account in San Diego City Beat:
http://www.sdcitybeat.com/sandiego/article-10848-an-eyewitness-account-of-what-went-down-at-the-balboa-park-midnight-water-gun-fight.html
“Only a scant few groupings of 20-somethings were milling around when a man whose physique made me regret having eaten anything, ever, especially while outside of a gym, strode past wearing a Speedo. I recognized his face from the event’s Facebook invitation as its originator, Ken St. Pierre.
St. Pierre announced that the starting point had relocated to the reflecting pool because the Great Fountain was down for repairs. “Pass it on,” he called.”
As part of the ongoing feud between Publishers, accusations have been made that longstanding San Diego gay activists and existing Mayorally appointed Commissioners that do not agree with Mr. Hale will not be welcomed at San Diego City Hall in a DeMaio Administration.
http://lgbtweekly.com/2012/05/24/why-the-background-of-the-mayors-partner-is-relevant/
“It is well known within the LGBT community that Hale has said to many people, “You will not be welcome in City Hall once we win.” So Hale should be off limits while he makes these types of statements? As DeMaio and Hale create their enemies list, the fourth estate should remain quiet? I don’t think so.
Hale has been a paid consultant for DeMaio’s proposition campaigns. DeMaio has been fined by the San Diego Ethics Commission for campaign ethics violations. Perhaps someone should file a complaint concerning the financial relationship between Hale and DeMaio’s proposition campaigns; the same commission that DeMaio tried to defund after he was fined.
You would think that Hale would try to keep a low profile, but May 4 Hale made fun of a vandalized CityBeat street box on his Facebook page with the update, “I did not do this I swear.” This bit of childishness was his response to CityBeat’s feature story and cover that said Carl DeMaio would be a bad mayor for San Diego.”
http://lgbtweekly.com/2012/05/24/why-the-background-of-the-mayors-partner-is-relevant/
http://lgbtweekly.com/2012/05/17/tweets-ignite-questions-about-checkered-past-of-demaios-life-partner/
Is Mr. Hale running for something? Is Bob Filner’s fiance? Would you like them to? Let’s do a debate right here, between the two of them. Speaking of your request to stick to the civic issues that impact the city.
Thor’s Assistant: Genius. I think the spouses of D1 should brush up on their debating skills as well.
http://www.kogo.com/player/?station=KOGO-AM&program_name=podcast&program_id=LaDonaHarvey.xml&mid=22350304
KOGO Ladona Harvey interviews Congressman Bob Filner and City Councilman Carl DeMaio, noon, on August 14, 2012 on Lilygate.
Please let Lilygate end as a discussion topic in the Mayors race.
p.s. There are only 2 hour and 8 minutes left before the Midnight deadline.
Lilygate. Lilygate. Lilygate.
TA,
The Lily has been gated and gilded but has received no silver stake through the heart.
LP
S
B
LaPlaya sweats bullets.
From Twitter today…
@chrisreed99: “Pretty funny reading a Filner supporter on @sandiegorostra still flogging Filner’s lies about DeMaio and Koigate.”