Yes on I-912 campaign tries to mock me and fails miserably
I just got a message from Aaron Schwitters, the coordinator for the Yes on Initiative 912 campaign (known as "No New Gas Tax") informing me that they've put some quotes from me up on their website under two different sections - "Hysteria" and "Outright Lies".
I took a look and was somewhat amused to find that they not only managed to misspell my name, but they got my age and title wrong. Not only that, but they didn't source all their quotes.
Aaron, Brett, and the rest of the gang leading the Yes on Initiative 912 campaign appear to be lousy amateurs when it comes to putting together a good website.
Here's one of the quotes attributed to me:
It is true that Washington could end up losing federal funding if Initiative 912 passes. It's a very real scenario. Why should U.S. taxpayers pay for replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct if Washington taxpayers won't?
And it is true that the increase is very modest - in fact, it's more like an adjustment to bring up to par with where we have been in the past.
It's also very true that new pavement will not solve any of our problems. New pavement does not solve congestion. And laying down new pavement does not address some of our most critical safety issues. Repaving the SR 520 bridge will not make it safer. The whole bridge needs to be replaced.
And how was it "hysterical" of me to say that "Citizens shouldn't use the initiative process to override well thought out legislative decisions."
That wasn't hysterical. Good legislative decisions do not need to be overturned through the initiative process.
On the "Who is Against Initiative 912 and Why" page, they say:
On second thought...looking at the rest of this shoddy website, I'm not surprised. I don't have much confidence that they'll fix the mistakes they made with my name, age, and title, either.
They have a shoddy website...they're for a shoddy transportation infrastructure.
Finally: I dare John Carlson and Kirby Wilbur to read this blog post on air tomorrow.
I took a look and was somewhat amused to find that they not only managed to misspell my name, but they got my age and title wrong. Not only that, but they didn't source all their quotes.
Aaron, Brett, and the rest of the gang leading the Yes on Initiative 912 campaign appear to be lousy amateurs when it comes to putting together a good website.
Here's one of the quotes attributed to me:
"Critics bemoan the lack of new pavement, but new pavement will not solve any of our existing transportation problems." - Andy Villenueve, 19, Executive Director, Washington DefenseLet's attack this step by step, shall we?
- There is no source for this quote which is attributed to me. Now, I have written a lot, and I don't even remember writing this. They should have linked to the place where the statement was made. If I made the statement, I probably did so right here on this blog.
- My first name is Andrew - not Andy. I don't like being called Andy. I told Aaron not to call me Andy and he did anyway. That's disrespectful. Where on our network do I call myself "Andy"? Nowhere!
- My last name was misspelled. It's V-I-L-L-E-N-E-U-V-E, not Villenueve. Can't these people bother to take the time to spell a name right?
- They got my age wrong. I'm not 19 years old - I'm 18. They could have asked me what my age was if they wanted to slap it onto these quotes, but they didn't. Instead, it appears they guessed and got it wrong. How careless. I'm older than I really am, I guess.
- Lastly, I am NOT the Executive Director of Washington Defense. I am, however, the Executive Director of the Northwest Progressive Institute. I am simply a co-chair of Washington Defense.
It is true that Washington could end up losing federal funding if Initiative 912 passes. It's a very real scenario. Why should U.S. taxpayers pay for replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct if Washington taxpayers won't?
And it is true that the increase is very modest - in fact, it's more like an adjustment to bring up to par with where we have been in the past.
It's also very true that new pavement will not solve any of our problems. New pavement does not solve congestion. And laying down new pavement does not address some of our most critical safety issues. Repaving the SR 520 bridge will not make it safer. The whole bridge needs to be replaced.
And how was it "hysterical" of me to say that "Citizens shouldn't use the initiative process to override well thought out legislative decisions."
That wasn't hysterical. Good legislative decisions do not need to be overturned through the initiative process.
On the "Who is Against Initiative 912 and Why" page, they say:
Our opponents are BIG business, BIG labor, BIG law firms and BIG government. They worked to keep you from having your say on this massive gas tax increase and now they are working hard to stop us from passing I-912.That's funny - I don't see Washington Defense there. Guess what? Your opponents are also grassroots citizens who care about the future of the Evergeen State. That's a BIG oversight on your part.
On second thought...looking at the rest of this shoddy website, I'm not surprised. I don't have much confidence that they'll fix the mistakes they made with my name, age, and title, either.
They have a shoddy website...they're for a shoddy transportation infrastructure.
Finally: I dare John Carlson and Kirby Wilbur to read this blog post on air tomorrow.
