Dirty Secret Of Ballroom Dance

Dirty Secret of Ballroom Dance The dark side of ballroom dance for women and the bright side of it for men. By Joan Westin rev 12.1.09 ~~**~~ Copyright Joan Westin 2006-2009 License Notes: This free ebook may be copied, distributed, reposted, reprinted and shared, provided it appears in its entirety, without alteration, and the reader is not charged to access it. Table of Contents Chapter 1 Dirty Secret of Ballroom Dance Chapter 2 Pure Sleaze Chapter 3 Feasting At The Public Trough Chapter 4 Get All Those Instructors You Can - Or Maybe Not The dark side of ballroom dance for women and the bright side of it for men. Ballroom dance is not as gloriously depicted on Dancing With The Stars. Its dirty little secret is that men do ballroom dance for sex and money and women do it to get a husband. With more than a dozen women for every male, the odds favor the men. Men quickly figure it out and soon sleep with every woman there, successfully playing on her hopes of snagging a husband. That is not just the single men, so do the married men. Like a condemned woman, she seizes for her hope any man. Therefore, women advertise that if a man doesn’t have something nice to say about his wife, come dance with me. The instructors never teach ballroom dance. Instead, they only teach the men and women to take more lessons. The male instructors have the added benefit to the sex they get of also being paid for their “lessons.” Men quickly learn to “practice” with the women. The result is the incident of sexually transmitted diseases is extraordinarily high in the ballroom dance world. Another result is because ballroom dance attracts male sexual predators, they prey on the women desperate for a husband. Therefore, there is a high level of physical and emotional abuse in relationships with a man who ballroom dances.

Men are never as good of a dancer as the women because they know they do not have to be. Women who marry a man they met in the ballroom dance world think they have won a victory. However, the women soon find it was a Pyrrhic one. First, if he does marry one of the women dancers, he still sleeps around. Second, because he knows how desperate the women are for a husband, and that women literally run up to the men to dance with them, he knows he can get away with mistreatment to the women. Third, men in the ballroom dance world usually have secrets. Like they’re married, sometimes twice at the same time. Alternatively, they’re a cross-dresser (ya think with the wardrobe and those costumes!) Or, they’re bisexual. Or, they’re gay. Or yes, they live in some rich place, but forget to tell her on a boat, a very small one, or in a trailer. Fourth, men who have figured out the benefits of the ballroom dance racket will commit Elder Abuse on the widows and single women by isolating her. They will flatter her, all the while fleecing her out of every dime as she pays for everything. First, she pays for his dance shoes. Next, it’s his dance lessons. Then it’s his wardrobe. Then he’s “borrowing” money from her. He buys her gifts. Too late she finds out he charged it to her account. Then he moves in with her but she pays for everything. Soon he gets her to elope to oh so romantic Lake Tahoe there getting married with a Confidential Marriage Certificate, a dubious offer at best and a hollow victory for her. She then puts his name on the free and clear house(s) and car(s) and the bank account(s). Then starts her downward slide. The now former dance partners square off as he then divorces her. He gets half of everything as she co-mingled everything into community property. More often than not, he even gets alimony. All along, he’s been sleeping around by saying his wife just doesn’t support his dancing, successfully repeating his pattern time and again. Then he’s on to his next victim, who he’s already had a covert operation going with. So women, do ballroom dance and you’ll get your heart broke, your bank account emptied, broken bones and teeth, sexual diseases and lose your home and future. Men, run, do not walk, to the nearest ballroom dance. Sex, money and never having to work again is your reward. In the San Francisco Bay Area it’s: The Metronome, The Pavilion, The Starlight, and the City of Novato Parks and Recreation. Photo courtesy of Edward. 17 comments on The Dirty Little Secret of Ballroom Dance By VeroniqueChevalier on December 30, 2007 at 02:26 am Oh, my dear. This is just absolutely appalling! I hope that you are not one of the unfortunate ladies who lived these abuses personally. Thank you for writing this article. If it saves just one other woman from heartache, you will have done a great public service.

By Kerry on December 30, 2007 at 04:52 pm I'd heard that about ballroom. It even looks sleazy on tv. By loves 2 dance on December 31, 2007 at 04:18 pm Ballroom dancing lessons can be taken at local community colleges for under $50.00 for a full semester! The instructors are not predators and the lessons are quality. Men and women of all ages find great enjoyment from learning how to dance. There are many venues for social dancing in the SF Bay Area, every part of the US, and world wide. It's not sleazy at all! By Jen on December 31, 2007 at 05:21 pm Ah...I agree with loves 2 dance. I have taken plenty of dance classes and had a blast! Never have I felt preyed upon. It is as easy to sweep the trash aside in a dance venue as it is in a bar or anywhere else social/sexual predators go to hunt. You just have to keep your wits about you. In other words...go to learn how to dance and not to husband hunt and you will have a lot of fun. Interesting article. By Lois on January 03, 2008 at 05:32 pm I agree with Joan. Over the years it sure seems the male teachers and male dancers had an affair with every woman at the dances. The men never mention they're married or have a girlfriend. Or they tell me they're separated. Look at Steve Rebello and Jim Olson and how many affairs and marriages they've had over the years they've successfully trolled the dances. It is difficult to compete just to dance when too many women literally do run up to the men who all a man has to do is show up at a dance. He can be fat, short, balding, married, ugly, smell, old or any combination of, and the women still run up to him vying to dance with him. As for the community college classes in ballroom dance, those teachers are the worst. Those classes are taught on the non-credit side. So those teachers have no credentials to teach nor does the college do a background check on them. Those community college teachers are like the ones at a city's recreation departments. These "teachers" submit their "proposal" and then get half of the "tuition" brought in by the "students" that attend. These community college teachers and recreation department teachers are not good enough to teach at a legitimate dance studio. The result is the community college and recreation department dance teachers teach you only to memorize a series of steps rather than to dance. The legitimate dance school instructors do not consider the community college or recreation department dances classes to be "quality." They consider them to be junk and find that "students"

from those classes are a danger on the dance floor to themselves and to other dancers, as they recklessly attempt their memorized steps with no thought to floorcraft, timing, their partner or the other dancers. As for venues to go dancing, yes there are. However, there are a dozen women for every man. So the men get all the dancing, not the women. Ballroom dance is a racket and a sleazy one at that. By loves 2 dance on January 05, 2008 at 03:37 am In defense of community college teachers: They are well educated, experience, dedicated teachers of dance. Dance instructors need a BA and an MA to teach dance at City College in San Francisco. Check out the class schedule for spring '08 and take the time to read the bio's on the instructors. Also there are other social dance forms such as East Coast Swing and Lindy-Hop, which are a blast. City College classes fill up quickly, and the teachers are not paid per student like an Arthur Murry dance studio. The ticket to being asked to dance is becoming a good dancer. I've seen lots of people take dance lessons and never go out social dancing. No one ever becomes a good dancer with just a few lessons and no practice. The more you go out social dancing, the more your face becomes familiar and you get to know people and it becomes more comfortable and soon you get asked to dance a lot. It's also okay to ask someone to dance, but you need to learn how to dance first. Now, I'm never not dancing when I go social dancing because I learned how to get it right at the dance classes. It takes dedication and practice on the part of the student. It's not easy at first but it has a way of coming together. Men and women looking for affairs can be found in the office, Safeway, and Walgreens. It takes "two to tango," and it is anyone's option to say, "No," to an unwanted offer of sex. By Golie David on January 06, 2008 at 12:58 am I would venture to guess that loves2dance and jen are well under the age of 60. I get the impression that Joan W is describing the reality for older women. Unlike you young ones, statistics are not stacked in favor of ladies from previous generations, and when you reach that age range yourself, you will come to comprehend that. Maybe the older women who populate the ballroom dances wanted men to make advances. Maybe the men initially seemed above board and actually interested in a woman as a human being, rather than a conquest, but once they got what they wanted, the truth finally came to light. Don't tell me, you young ones, that you've never had a guy lie through his teeth to get you to have sex with him, and then once he got what he wanted, dropped you flat. I know my own gender too well for that. According to official US Census statistics for 2000, there were a total of 138,053,563

males and 143,368,343 females in the US. Just where are older ladies supposed to turn to find new male companionship when females outnumber males, but even more so over the age of 60? Ageism is rampant enough as it is without making lonely, elder women into further victims for blaming them for their lot. I don't see how they can be faulted for being widowed or dumped by husbands who wanted younger wives. The fact is, life does not treat males and females with equal kindness at ballroom dances, or anywhere else really, even in our so-called liberal country. Live it up today, you younger women, because unless you decide to become lesbians after your male life companions expire, you could very well find yourself facing a similar dilemma as the women victimized at these dances. Unless of course you want to start importing some of the excess older males from China (thanks to rampant female infanticide in that country) for lonely older women. If I was an American woman, I sure wouldn't want one. I can't imagine elderly Chinese males would be very pleasant company for American women who are used to some measure of personal freedom in our culture. And don't pretend to be so shocked at the concept of importing and exporting human beings. Mail order brides and female sex slaves have always been available to men throughout history. (I don't say it because I condone it, only to point out that it exists). By loves 2 dance on January 06, 2008 at 04:22 am Just got back from another fun night of dancing! I'm 60 this August. I love to dance and I'm an accomplished dancer. It is my passion and I actively pursue it. I'm not dancing to date, or mate. I'm out on the dance floor "living it up." Why would someone turn to becoming a lesbian if that is not their calling? Being alive is not just about sex, is it? And why is it so important to be in a partner relationship anyway? Why not have an active social life with friends that doesn't involve a partner? Is that too foreign? There are so many venues, for many interests, for just about all walks of life in the Bay Area, so there is no need to be "lonely." If you are not married or in a relationship, and that is the worst thing that can happen to you, then consider yourself lucky, that's how I feel about it. Independence is a wonderfuly liberating, if you can handle it. Like I said, become a good dancer and good dancers will seek you out. I get asked to dance, (or I ask them) by men in thier 20's 30's 40's 50's and 60's and I don't feel like I need to take them to bed as a thank you. Maybe I just have a completely different experience than everyone else. All I'm trying to convey is that dance is a wonderfuly physical, athletic outlet. People are smiling on the dance floor and enjoying themselves (you don't see that in a gym). Find a dance that suits you and GO FOR IT. You'll get

good and soon you'll find yourself meeting new friends of both sexes and most of all having FUN. Even taking dance classes is a joy and challenging. Dancing improves brain function and more fun than crossword puzzles. Dancing keeps you young. No one can believe it when I tell them my age, which I do not keep a secret. I never dance with my instructor, unless I dance with him in a social dance setting. There are about 50-70 people in the class and we dance with each other as we rotate around the floor during our dance instruction. The instructor is not hitting on the students and he has his own partner in class to demonstrate how to do a particular move. Go out social dancing. Check out the scene. Be a fly on the wall, take a friend with you, if nothing else you'll have a few good laughs. Good dancers love to be complimented on their dancing. Ask only to the women, who are good dancers, where they learned to dance. Be brave. Take care of yourself. I hope I've inspired one women to go for it. I'm not going to comment anymore on this subject. By Kerry on January 06, 2008 at 03:54 pm I will not give any credibility to someone calling themself "loves 2 dance" or puts na in their Broo bio. What loves 2 dance is conveying to me is they are a fake shill Broo account. By Credo on January 06, 2008 at 04:52 pm An unorthodox but fascinating topic for sure, can’t say that I ever knew about the jungle dance fever issues. This proves that there are stranger things in life than appears in books and fairy tales. Credo By Ron on January 06, 2008 at 06:43 pm Right on Credo! If you can’t hang with the big dogs, stay on the porch I snarl my opinion of ballroom dance. Lead, follow or get the hell out of the way. Joan, get a backbone. Stop running up to the guys as if you’re some desperate whore peddling sex. Then you’ll start getting some respect. I entered into, and remain in, ballroom dance solely for one fact. It’s a connivance that sexually benefits me as a male. Too much aggression is dangerous, but, then so is too little,” is from George R. Elder’s An Encyclopedia of Archetypal Symbolism. The first time, of hundreds of times to follow, a dozen or so women ran up to me at a ballroom dance, was intoxicating to me. I was dumfounded as they dragged me onto the dance floor, and then later into their beds. As I sorted it all out, I came to some conclusions.

One conclusion I came to was the young ones were just looking to get pregnant with a claim on me for child support for the next twenty years. That’s when I got the vasectomy. Came in handy later when girls tried to nail me down as the contributor of the sperm that had gotten them knocked up. A second conclusion I came to was that the older women wanted to stake their husband claim on me. For some reason, women equate sex with marriage. That’s when I started telling women I did not love ‘em ‘cause those tramps and sluts certainly did not love me. A third conclusion I came to was that the younger women were great for quickies as their getting pregnant, not their orgasm, was their goal. A fourth conclusion I came to, was that the older women were much more grateful for an orgasm. That made my getting off even better as it was usually simultaneous with hers. Therefore, I evolved a system. “I must create a system, or be enslaved by another,” wrote William Blake, poet. To me that meant that I will not pay homage to any woman that runs to me. Why should I? I didn’t create the ballroom dance system. I don’t whine as I benefit from it. I don’t promise the women dancers anything. They want to pay for my dance lessons, clothes, meals, and dance camps, that’s okay with me. My system includes that I never lie to the female dancers. I’m not married, don’t want to be. I’m not a daddy, don’t want to be. I live alone, plan to stay that way. I’m not a cross-dresser, gay, or bi-sexual. I’m partial to the missionary position. I’m not into bondage. I do not require vinyl or leather or rubber to get off as so many of the male “dancers” do. I own my own home free and clear. I have a Masters degree. I have a pension. I’m looking to be laid, not become a better dancer. We go to her house not mine. I don’t pretend to be a ballroom dance instructor. When I was younger, it was seven times a week with seven different women as I couldn’t that many times with just one or two women. I’m quite a bit older now, so I’ve slowed down to four times a week with four different women although with a new female dancer on the scene I’m usually up for a fifth time that week. I’ve had STDs more times than I’ve cared to. In the thirty or so years I’ve been in the ballroom dance world, no woman has not run up to me. The day I meet a woman who does not run up to me at a dance, then spends five or so years investing her time with me with no sex, her leading by becoming and being my friend, who learns to love me as me, accepts me as I am, who develops a shared history with me so she knows all about me and still loves me, is the only woman I will follow, fight to win and marry. That is the only woman I will respect and love with fidelity, until death do us part. I would not share her with anyone; therefore, I would become a better dancer just for her. We would dance only with each other, and only in private, for the sheer pleasure of it, rather than to show off at a public dance. This “loves2dance” Broo “reader” with their asinine “comments” and

“na” in their bio is a sicko jokester and an even sicker shill with their fako Broo name. There is no ballroom dance class taught anywhere in the Bay Area as an academic credit class. Duh. “loves2dance” is one of those non-credit male community college self-titled “ballroom dance instructors.” Or, even worse, a male recreation department self-titled “ballroom dance instructor.” A reject aka pervert aka watches himself in the mirror at the public ballroom dances. He hypocritically holds himself morally above the rest of us while he hides his own sex trolling cross-dressing double life. The type Joan wrote about. By Craig B on January 09, 2008 at 02:39 pm When Dancing With The Stars first came out I asked my wife if ballroom was something she was interested in us doing. She gave me that long cool direct look she had so perfected many years ago and flatly and dryly said “I catch you doing that ballroom dancing and you’ll be lucky if all I break is your leg.” Ouch. My wife just slugged my arm, saying “Don’t go getting any ideas Bubba.” By Morgana on February 04, 2008 at 06:55 pm Ballroom dance is notorious for its own vulgarity. Ron Montez, 7-Time (1979-1985) undefeated US Latin Ballroom Dance Champion says: “The man’s role is to frame and to circle and to present his partner. For that reason I dislike men’s see-through shirts intensely.” His wife Karla adds, “It takes away from the masculinity that we need to keep other viewers looking at this sport. Ron continues, “I prefer couples who along with technical mastery, have a good rapport and genuinely seem to be enjoying dancing with one another. It’s a very delicate balance. Some are too much into one another, like a social dance, and some are too into performing and doing a ham dance!” I add to that the “dancers” who incessantly watch themselves in the mirror. Ballroom dance is also famous for discrimination as it is predominately young, white and not disabled. In All Kids Are Our Kids, Peter L. Benson writes “ . . . the cancerous spread of age segregation, in which adults and children go their separate ways. The architect and design of communities and neighborhoods isolate families, and virtually every program and institution is organized to meet age-specific needs at the expense of the richness of intergenerational community. The public perception of danger and the rise of mistrust freezes connectedness and undermines community.” In accordance with Executive Order 11246, Title VII Civil Rights Act (1964) as amended by the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972; Title IX Regulation Tool Education Amendments of 1972; Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans With Disabilities Act; the 1991 Civil Rights Acts, and all other federal and state rules, laws, regulations and policies concerning nondiscrimination, ballroom dance is supposed to be nondiscriminatory on the basis of sex, age, race, color, religion, handicap, or national origin. Ballroom dance also rips off musical artists. Music, Archival Sound Recording and Synchronization licensing requirements apply to all ballroom dance studios, dance

instructors, dance operators, dance associations, dance clubs, dance bands, dance DJs, dance organizers, municipal recreation departments who have music in their classes, non profits who have music in their classes, etc. The article in the San Francisco BrooWaha Feasting At The Public Trough missed mentioning the fact that municipal recreation departments are also required to obtain copyright permission for the music used in their programs. That is more feasting at the public trough as it is another unfair economic benefit at the public expense and is another detriment to artists as dozens of music artists are repeatedly deprived of lawful income as a result, another dirty secret. “Teaching for pay makes an amateur a professional,” according to the United States Dance Sport Eligibility Committee. For several years now, the cities of Reno & Sparks, Nevada and Washoe County, Nevada has all required finger printing and police cards for their instructors of programs involving youth under the age of 18, and One Million Dollars in liability insurance. Washoe County, Nevada also requires accreditation from a member organization of the National Dance Council of America (NDCA), city, county and state business licenses, and BMI, ASCAP & SESAC music performance licenses from their dance instructors and that their instructors pay business and personal income taxes on their revenues, like any legal business owner. These requirements eliminated many of the "instructors." By jake strong on April 11, 2008 at 01:56 am Joan's article seems like an expression of her pain, full of absolutes about male dancers. The human condition is ripe with vulgarity, abusers, womanizers, hustlers, hookers and pimps. Some people are users and others are victims. Surely all this activity is not limited to the world of ballroom dancing. I am a Lindy -hop dancer and an amateur ballroom dancer. Dance is senuous by nature. The physical contact feels great as two bodies move to a rhythm. Many good leads are also musicians and dancing is a real time expression of a great blues, or jazz song. I dance because it puts me in the moment and pushes away worries about stocks, divorce, and the state of humanity. When I Lindy-hop and blues dance, women half my age ask me to dance. We will have a sexy blues dance, thank each other and move on to the next partner. I suppose the young girls are using me for a dance. So be it! More drunken sex would occur after Friday happy hour at the local watering hole than at the dances I attend. Dance is a conversation. The ladies are sober. Some are sexy and some are athletic and fun. Can you get laid as a male dancer? I should hope so. You already have her in your arms and women love men who make an effort to dance. But dance is a community; people know each other and reputations must be maintained. I would like to have a beer with Ron. He could enlighten me on his Machiavellian techniques to use women at his leisure. Perhaps I can find a lady to take care of me

and pay me to dance? According to Joan-because I actually like to be nice to women-I should make a great catch compared to the mutts she writes about. It sounds better than hustling stocks. I apparently have no idea of the power I hold in my dancing feet. Ace Bigelow dance/stock gigolo. My experience at a chain ballroom studio was a money hustle. Divorced women spending their alimony seemed common. All the instructors would flirt shamelessly but were not allowed to date students. My lady teachers made me feel like a million dollars. Unfortunately they cost a substantial percentage of that million. I wish I could afford them. Sleaze is everywhere. Is it more prevalent in ballroom dancing? Perhaps, but dancing lends itself to high quality, clean fun. Growing up in a church, I would prefer dancing sleaze to church sleaze. There is more action between the pastor and some lonely woman counseling for a divorce, than there is at a big city Lindy dance in the heart of Chicago. Go to Fizz nightclub Monday nights in Chicago. You will find the best Lindy-blues-balboa dancers in the city. There are couples, singles, and people about to meet. The leads and follows are there for a great dance. Most people have many dance partners for the evening. If someone meets the man or woman of their dreams, all the sweeter. The scene however is social and dance till you drop. By Craig B on August 16, 2008 at 03:53 pm http://www.biblestudyguide.org/articles/shall-we-dance.htm By Lucy Ong on October 08, 2008 at 09:46 pm A similar thing happened to me as the author describes here. Since that terrible experience, I no longer have anything whatsoever to do with ballroom dancing. I met a nice man, at the library. We are now in a committed relationship. If he ever has anything to do with the ballroom dance racket, that'll be the immediate end of our relationship. By John Donnely on May 18, 2009 at 04:54 pm True about ballroom dancing. Darn useless when a guy dances with a woman to watch himself in the mirror instead of the pleasure of dancing with the woman in his arms. I did meet my partner ballroom dancing as I’d heard very early on from guys that was the place to get laid. After we got together, my partner quickly had other reasons for why we didn’t go as much and then finally not at all. My partner was quick and firm about getting public ballroom dancing out of our lives. A ballroom is the first place I’d go if I was single again, or just wanted extracurricular sex. Any guy that’s honest knows he’s ballroom dancing for the sex and cares only just enough about the dancing to get to the sex.

As for Jake’s comment “reputations must be maintained,” not at the ballroom dances I’ve been to. Men brag about their sexual exploits to each other and more often than not to women. Men are keen on that sexual stud reputation and use that to play the women off each other. We’d compare notes on how many women we could get to run up to us. Women that run up to men don’t care about their reputation. Ron’s right about the woman that doesn’t run up to you. The first six months I went to the ballroom dances, I’d slept with a couple dozen women who’d run up to me when I arrived at the dance, and gave me the clap. I started looking for those that didn’t run up to me. That’s when I spotted her. I courted her and she played it cool which made me want her even more. She teased a lot me about the women running up to me. It took me six months to even get a date with her, and another six months to sleep with her. In that time she became my best friend. That first time with her was when I learned there was really such a thing as making love. Lucy’s a bit extreme about “If he ever has anything to do with the ballroom dance racket, that'll be the immediate end of our relationship.” Why don’t you dance together in private? My partner and I dance together in private, as it should only be, dancing only for the pleasure of having her in my arms – not watching myself in any mirror, instead watching her eyes that are filled with love just for me. Chapter 2 Pure Sleaze The Bigger the Smile, the More Expensive the Lesson at Never Enough Ballroom When it comes to the ballroom dance racket, the bigger the dance instructor’s swarmy smile, the more expensive their lessons. Small print leads to large risk in dance contracts. Ballroom dance teachers, whether they are in a studio or these con artists at the recreation centers, don’t teach dance, they just teach you to take their dance lessons. According to Jeff Allen , “Dance studios are still used as a case study to recognize deceptive trade practices. The Internet has become a common ground for sharing viewpoints. As more dancers are tuned in to the electronic age it will become increasingly more difficult for the bad practices of dances studios, no matter how remote or small their marketplace is, to continue without being noticed, as has been the case until now. Dancers of all levels and of experience have begun to share their opinions concerning the various pluses and minuses of the dance studio and teaching business. The Cash Cows are not coming out well in these news group discussions.” Ballroom dance teachers in the late 1950's, including the Arthur Murray studios, increasingly came under government scrutiny for the shady practices we increasingly see making a comeback. Hundreds of dance customers, then the government, made allegations that quickly escalated. Dance studios, including Arthur Murray, were using “high-pressure sales, bait and switch tactics and long-term contracts involving then shocking sums of money, $12,000 or more as an initial payment for a lifetime contract.”

In 1960, the Federal government ordered the Arthur Murray studios to “stop using bogus contests and high-pressure tactics to sell their dance instruction courses.” In 1962, the California Office of the Attorney General began a statewide effort to “stamp out a dancing school racket that reaped many millions of dollars from gullible customers.” In 1976, Governor Carey of New York State signed a bill “providing dance customers with safeguards in dealing with dance schools.” I read the articles Feasting at the Public Trough , The Dirty Little Secret of Ballroom Dance , and Get All Those Instructors You Can – or Maybe Not . Webster’s Dictionary defines Sportsmanship as “conduct becoming of a person who is fair, generous, a good loser, and a graceful winner.” These ballroom dance instructors are none. It’s not just the male instructors, it’s the females as well. Which is what happened to both my wife and I. The instructors were sneaky, snooty, used flattery, put her knee in my groin, he brushed his hand over my wife’s breast, she pushed her breasts into my chest, he pushed his groin into my wife’s pelvis. Their purported dance lessons were more like immature sexual manipulations to con us into their next condescending dance lesson. Before we moved to Reno, my wife and I lived in Novato, California. When we decided to get married, for our wedding dance we took ballroom dance lessons at the Novato Recreation Department from Jim Olson. Disgusting. After we later moved to Reno, we went once to Never Enough Ballroom . Same obscene story with Mikel and Suzette. Never again. Jeff Allen, “Fawning and flattery are the hallmarks of con men. One must be cautious not to mistake fawning and flattery for encouragement and honesty. The lines of propriety are crossed when all these compliments and accolades are in fact meant to gain the confidence of the student for purposes of sales or extracting funds for other purposes rather than to represent what is really happening to the student. Dancing is learned by gaining the correct physical feeling, not an emotional one.” My wife and I hike, walk and bicycle together. We meet a much better class of people that way than we ever did in our brief foray into ballroom dance. 14 comments on Pure Sleaze By Craig B on April 30, 2008 at 05:13 pm That is one lol sleazy photo. I'll also stick to the walking. By Craig B on April 30, 2008 at 05:13 pm Oh, welcome to Reno Broo. By Morgana on May 06, 2008 at 05:29 pm A big welcome, and best of luck with your writing.

By Edward on June 05, 2008 at 06:17 pm Thanks. The 2008 Reno BBB Accredited Business Directory is out. Has that "When you see the BBB seal, it means that the business has agreed to "Tell the Truth, Keep Its Promises, Be Responsive." Never Enough Ballroom is not in it. Now we know why. By Craig B on August 16, 2008 at 03:53 pm http://www.biblestudyguide.org/articles/shall-we-dance.htm By speedracer on March 21, 2009 at 09:32 am Pure Immaturity It is quite obvious that Edward is quite immature to post such comments based on one single lesson. Additionally it is clear that he has no understanding of Ballroom Technique which is danced in close contact to the partner (yes the bodies do touch and the legs do intertwine to maintain proper center of gravity, etc.) My wife and I have been taking lessons from both Mikel & Suzette for over 8 years and I can assure everyone that we would have long left if any part of what was said in the above article were remotely true. All I can say, is grow up and when you have reached the maturity of a 16 year old you might revisit dance lessons! Until then, I recommend you stay with your walking and bike riding! As to the BBB response, this must come from someone who is not familiar with business. The entities (Businesses) listed there are paying members and are not there because the are good citizens!!! The fact that NEB is not listed there speaks volumes as this would indicate that there might be and/or are complaints against them for misconduct, etc. Now, my advice for Edward is: Prior to being sued by any member in the photo you posted, you might want to make sure that you have written consent from each and every one depicted to allow their image to be posted on the web! (I know a number of them) For the rest, you have the right to free speech and with that the right to write anything you like. It would however be beneficial to base your comments on fact. Cheers By Edward on March 21, 2009 at 02:01 pm My Story Is Based On Fact

My opinion is based on fact. 8 years of lessons huh? So you've gotten real good at taking those lessons have you? Thank you for that comment and the rest of your comment as it just further proves my points. By speedracer on March 21, 2009 at 03:33 pm Since my previous post was removed (most likely by the request of Edward) I will post again so Ed's previous response will make sense: It is quite obvious that Edward is quite immature to post such comments based on one single lesson. Additionally it is clear that he has no understanding of Ballroom Technique which is danced in close contact to the partner (yes the bodies to touch and the legs do intertwine to maintain proper center of gravity, etc.) My wife and I have been taking lessons from both Mikel & Suzette for over 8 years and I can assure everyone that we would have long left if any part of what was said in the above article were remotely true. All I can say, is grow up and when you have reached the maturity of a 16 year old you might revisit dance lessons! Until then, I recommend you stay with your walking and bike riding! As to the BBB response, this must come from someone who is not familiar with business. The entities (Businesses) listed there are paying members and are not there because the are good citizens!!! The fact that NEB is not listed there speaks volumes as this would indicate that there might be and/or are complaints against them for misconduct, etc. Now, my advice for Edward is: Prior to being sued by any member in the photo you posted, you might want to make sure that you have written consent from each and every one depicted to allow their image to be posted on the web! (I know a number of them) For the rest, you have the right to free speech and with that the right to write anything you like. It would however be beneficial to base your comments on fact. By Maryam's Broother on March 22, 2009 at 02:28 pm Spam made me think this morning. The subject line read: "Hot Mature Cheerleaders!" Here's where the thinking occurred: what exactly is a "mature cheerleader"? Once out of college, there isn't much of a cheerleader market in this world. Most students graduate by age 22 (we are tacitly dismissing the possibility of graduate/post-graduate cheerleaders). Allowing time for

making up failed classes, unplanned pregnancies, substance abuse problems, bereavement of dead relatives/roommates, we would expect over 99% of cheerleaders to be out of school by 26. Compared to a 6th grader, 26 may indeed be mature, however, I doubt the originators of that email had such a juxtaposition in mind when they developed their randy tag line. In any event, in the big picture, I hasten to call 26 mature. Which brings us back to the original question. Of course, there is a professional market for cheerleaders in such arenas as professional sports and used car lot promotion, but these cheerleaders are lucky to have their GEDs, let alone a college degree. Most are simply strippers either killing time until their shift starts, or waiting for their crystal meth to wear off (or both). In other words, they are not older than college age. In fact, since most of them will be dead, pregnant or in prison by the time they reach 24, we would expect the mean age of this professional cheerleader demographic to be between 20 and 21. But perhaps here we may find a clue as to what exactly constitutes a "mature cheerleader". The "mature cheerleader" is a creature of fiction, not of the real world as we know it. The mature cheerleader is simply a recycled porn thespian or stripper in a Halloween costume reinventing her career after her fourth divorce. She does a little hoochiecoochie dance for fifteen minutes in an aluminum siding warehouse in Chatsworth, then stops being a mature cheerleader. Put another way, the mature cheerleader is a lie! Just another vicious lie in my bloated inbox. Just like the lie about the Professional Ethical Realtor, or lawyer, or ballroom dancer or ballroom dance studio. speedracer - your "previous post" was not removed. It's still there. To get removed you must do much better than that. By John Donnely on August 08, 2009 at 06:48 pm True about ballroom dancing. Darn useless when a guy dances with a woman to watch himself in the mirror instead of the pleasure of dancing with the woman in his arms. I did meet my partner ballroom dancing as I’d heard very early on from guys that was the place to get laid. After we got together, my partner quickly had other reasons for why we didn’t go as much and then finally not at all. My partner was quick and firm about getting public ballroom dancing out of our lives. A ballroom is the first place I’d go if I was single again, or just wanted extracurricular sex. Any guy that’s honest knows he’s ballroom dancing for the sex and cares only just enough about the dancing to get to the sex. As for Jake’s comment “reputations must be maintained,” not at the ballroom dances I’ve been to. Men brag about their sexual exploits to each other and more often than not to women. Men are keen on that sexual stud reputation and use that to play the

women off each other. We’d compare notes on how many women we could get to run up to us. Women that run up to men don’t care about their reputation. Ron’s right about the woman that doesn’t run up to you. The first six months I went to the ballroom dances, I’d slept with a couple dozen women who’d run up to me when I arrived at the dance, and gave me the clap. I started looking for those that didn’t run up to me. That’s when I spotted her. I courted her and she played it cool which made me want her even more. She teased a lot me about the women running up to me. It took me six months to even get a date with her, and another six months to sleep with her. In that time she became my best friend. That first time with her was when I learned there was really such a thing as making love. Lucy’s a bit extreme about “If he ever has anything to do with the ballroom dance racket, that'll be the immediate end of our relationship.” Why don’t you dance together in private? My partner and I dance together in private, as it should only be, dancing only for the pleasure of having her in my arms – not watching myself in any mirror, instead watching her eyes that are filled with love just for me. By Edward on August 28, 2009 at 03:40 pm speedracer, the ballroom dance instructors at Reno, Nevada's Never Enough Ballroom and the Novato, California Parks and Recreation were sneaky, snooty, used flattery, put her knee in my groin, he brushed his hand over my wife’s breast, she pushed her breasts into my chest, he pushed his groin into my wife’s pelvis. Their purported dance lessons were more like immature sexual manipulations to con us into their next condescending dance lesson. By Craig B on September 25, 2009 at 05:45 pm When the imbecilic Dancing With The Stars first came out I asked my wife if ballroom dancing was something she was interested in us doing. She gave me that long cool direct Admiral’s look she had so perfected many years ago and flatly and dryly said “I catch you doing that ballroom dancing and you’ll be lucky if all I break is your leg.” My wife then slugged my arm, (Ouch) saying “Don’t go getting any ideas Bubba.” Chapter 3 Feasting At The Public Trough Or a Tool For Sexual Predators? I was a renter in San Francisco for years. Last year I inherited some money. I then bought a house in Novato. Novato is the furthest town north in Marin County. As a homeowner I now pay real estate taxes that go to the City of Novato and Marin County. My understanding is they go to pay for infrastructure. Like police, sheriff, district attorney, fire department, animal shelter, 911, schools, recreation departments, etc. I also pay rent for my office, also in Novato. I pay insurance, advertising, maintenance and utilities for my office. I have a doctorate in Psychology, a license from the State of

California and a business license from the City of Novato. I’m wondering why the City of Novato subsidizes people using the City to earn a living. I’m talking about all the “instructors” who are paid to teach classes through the City’s Parks and Recreation Department. These instructors are getting a building and services free, as we taxpayers paid for it. 1. A building. 2. A building with tenant improvements. 3. A building with utilities all paid for 4. A building with real estate taxes not charged on. 5. A building with fire and liability insurance all paid for. 6. These “instructors” have all their advertising paid for. 7. These “instructors” are not required to hold licenses for what they are instructing in. In fact, these “instructors” are not even required to have any demonstrable proficiency in what they are “instructing” in. 8. A building where all the maintenance, upkeep and landscaping is all paid for. 9. A building with parking. 9. A building with exterior lighting. How can a business compete against these public trough subsidies? They can’t. I add to these issues another one. The City does no sort of background check, does not require a bond, nor require proof of any sort of proficiency in what is taught. The result? A magnet for those deliberately looking to slip between the cracks. That, for various reasons, an individual won’t or can’t work elsewhere. That would be two types of an individual. One being the individual who works the system to feast at the public trough. Get out of paying all the costs I, or a restaurant, or an attorney, or an artist, etc., have to pay. Another is a predator. A predator that creates a class to draw in their victims. The victims usually are children and women perceived to be desperate. The roster of classes offered by the Novato Parks and Recreation targets that audience. 12 comments on Feasting At The Public Trough By Jen and Tonic on December 13, 2007 at 02:06 pm This is happening all over the place. I recently read a story about how a man in Germany was sent to do community service at an elementary school after he committed

fraud. Their system failed to check that a few years prior he had been in jail committing sexual acts against a child. Scary stuff. By Steven Lane on December 13, 2007 at 03:29 pm What are they instructing and are they charging for the lessons? Sounds crazy. By Anonymous on December 13, 2007 at 04:50 pm Judging by the caliber of writing here, the existence of a doctorate (which the author claims every chance she gets, including in her screen name) is highly doubtful. At the very least, the PhD issuing institution/web site must be held suspect. If you are so envious of "these instructors", Mistress, perhaps you should give up trying to compete with them, which apparently you are incapable of, and get a job with the City. Take care By yesteryear on December 13, 2007 at 06:58 pm It's actually not that cut and dry - course instructors for classes at most of these facilities aren't charged for use of the rooms because they have provided a 'proposal' to the city and are in essence 'hired' by the City to teach their course. It does pose a threat to other businesses (see my example below), but the City's benefit isn't financial - ideally it's a benefit to the whole community by providing a affordable, local way for residents to access enrichment and educational courses. But I do agree with the sentiment of your article. As a former small business owner with a business in the downtown of an East Bay city that will remain nameless, I was always furious when the "craft fair" folks would come to town for a weekend, block off the streets, drive away my regular customers, and take away all of the parking spots my customers used -- all for the price of a simple "vendor fee" for setting up their booth. Ironically, the city did not provide those of us who paid rent every day of the year, and taxes, with free booths so we could compete with the out-of-towners who came once a year. It's a racket. By Annonymous on December 17, 2007 at 07:10 pm It's also a publically funded conduit for pedophiles, etc., as, at least where I live, NO background checks are done on the one doing the proposal. Hell, for that matter, the instructors don't even have to prove they even have the minimum qualification to teach. By Creedon on December 21, 2007 at 12:32 pm It's the same story in LA. As a small business owner I knew about the unfair perks the city gives these jokers with no credentials to support their "proposals." What I hadn't considered before was no background checks as a way in for sexual predators. I also didn't know about the extra perks the cities give to the crafts fairs when they come to town. Probably the same for the flea markets. I shop and buy local from a local who is here 365 days out of the year.

By Lois on January 03, 2008 at 06:18 pm It's both feasting at the public trough and a tool for sexual predators. These "teachers" submit their "proposal" and then get half of the "tuition" brought in by the "students" that attend. Same for the community college's non-credit classes who also don't do background checks. These community college teachers and recreation department "teachers" are not good enough to "teach" at a legitimate place. It certainly is a racket. In many cases, the strong possibility for a dangerous racket. By Craig B on January 11, 2008 at 01:37 pm So, Novato Parks and Recreation Department, dahlings, bubbaluhs, why don’t you consider talking to me? I’m very open-minded. I won’t even put our interview in a paper with those escort, B & D Clubs and pot-club ads. I won’t pester you with the questions that some want to ask you after this Feasting at the Public Trough story came out. Not that I’d hound the Novato Parks and Recreation Department, and their no qualifications or background check required of their “instructors,” but if I did, here’s a list of due diligence questions I’d promise not to pose to them. Do you believe the Novato Parks and Recreation Department has a duty of care to the public? Do you believe that verifying “instructor” qualifications and doing “instructor” background checks meets an reasonable amount of care standard in dealing with others? Do you have an Age of Majority requirement for your “instructors” or students? Ya know, the age at which an individual is considered legally capable of conducting themselves responsibly. Are your “instructors” in an agency relationship with you since you pay them as independent contractors? Have you done any sort of background check that any of your “instructors” are really aggressors who just might acquire another in a take-over attempt such as a pedophile or other type sexual predator would do? What are your “instructor’s” qualifications? Or are you just using a logic analogy as a trade-off by assuming that if the instructor tells you they are qualified that they are? That implies a course of dealing that is based on a false understanding, and that you are trading off the safety of the public attending those courses for your desired result of “courses” to fill up your schedule. Are you using anticipatory repudiation as to why you have not done “instructor” background checks or verified qualifications?

Why are you relying on your “instructor’s” apparent authority to teach their proposal class instead of verifying it’s real? Aren’t your “instructors” practicing appropriation, the act of making the Novato Parks and Recreation Department their own, or exercising or making use of the Novato Parks and Recreation Department to subserve the “instructor’s” own interest? What do you think of the assumption of risk doctrine if one of your “instructor’s” questionable activities has been repeatedly brought to your attention and you still keep on the instructor? Doesn’t the laches’ doctrine and negligence per se kick in at some point? What do you think of the doctrine of attractive nuisance if one of your “instructor’s” is using the venue the Novato Parks and Recreation Department to lure children by something enticing therein? What do you think of beyond a reasonable doubt when assessing your “instructors?” What would make you hesitate before acting in a matter important to you such as filling out your schedule offering versus the safety of a child or vulnerable woman? Have you utilized categorical imperative as an ethical standard in the hiring of your instructors? What do you think of consequential damages to students as they are reasonably foreseeable when “instructor” qualifications and backgrounds checks are not done? What do you think of the likelihood of “instructor” duress on their students? Does the Novato Parks and Recreation Department undertake any activity up to the point at which the marginal benefit equals the marginal cost? So there you have it. How does that sound Novato Parks and Recreation Department? If you’re interested, drop me a line. By Morgana on February 04, 2008 at 06:57 pm Ballroom dance also rips off musical artists. Music, Archival Sound Recording and Synchronization licensing requirements apply to all ballroom dance studios, dance instructors, dance operators, dance associations, dance clubs, dance bands, dance DJs, dance organizers, municipal recreation departments who have music in their classes, non profits who have music in their classes, etc. This article missed mentioning the fact that municipal recreation departments are also required to obtain copyright permission for the music used in their programs. That is more feasting at the public trough as it is another unfair economic benefit at the public expense and is

another detriment to artists as dozens of music artists are repeatedly deprived of lawful income as a result, another dirty secret. “Teaching for pay makes an amateur a professional,” according to the United States Dance Sport Eligibility Committee. For several years now, the cities of Reno & Sparks, Nevada and Washoe County, Nevada has all required finger printing and police cards for their instructors of programs involving youth under the age of 18, and One Million Dollars in liability insurance. Washoe County, Nevada also requires accreditation from a member organization of the National Dance Council of America (NDCA), city, county and state business licenses, and BMI, ASCAP & SESAC music performance licenses from their dance instructors and that their instructors pay business and personal income taxes on their revenues, like any legal business owner. These requirements eliminated many of the "instructors." By Diana's Art on February 21, 2009 at 03:53 pm Outstanding article! Aside from the obvious unfair financial advantage given to those that “teach” at these recreation departments without licenses, insurance or any check of their experience or credentials to “teach,” recreation facilities are major attractions of pedophiles and for that reason this link lists implications for recreational professionals to ensure they are keeping children safe by not hiring pedophiles. Realize that pedophiles and sexual predators of adults can be charming individuals who live double lives very well. County commissioners have put a proposed ordinance on hold that would ban anyone who had ever been convicted of a sex crime from public parks or recreation centers. The City of Novato, California Parks and Recreation Department’s email is [email protected]. They and the City of Novato, California must know they have some very grave injustices going on here as well as a publicly paid for invitation to sexual predators. By Greene on July 17, 2009 at 05:27 pm How can a business compete against these public trough subsidies? I naively assumed these sort of questions were being asked and satisfactorily answered before an instructor was hired. Chapter 4 Get All Those Instructors You Can - Or Maybe Not I’m just a bystander in media-land drooling to have the exclusive interview with a suddenly publicity shy city department. So, Novato Parks and Recreation Department, dahlings, bubbaluhs, why don’t you consider talking to me? I’m very open-minded. I won’t even put our interview in a paper with those escort, B & D Clubs and pot-club ads. I won’t pester you with the questions that some want to ask you after this Feasting at the Public Trough story came out.

Not that I’d hound the Novato Parks and Recreation Department, and their no qualifications or background check required of their “instructors,” but if I did, here’s a list of due diligence questions I’d promise not to pose to them. Do you believe the Novato Parks and Recreation Department has a duty of care to the public? Do you believe that verifying “instructor” qualifications and doing “instructor” background checks meets an reasonable amount of care standard in dealing with others? Do you have an Age of Majority requirement for your “instructors” or students? Ya know, the age at which an individual is considered legally capable of conducting themselves responsibly. Are your “instructors” in an agency relationship with you since you pay them as independent contractors? Have you done any sort of background check that any of your “instructors” are really aggressors who just might acquire another in a take-over attempt such as a pedophile or other type sexual predator would do? What are your “instructor’s” qualifications? Or are you just using a logic analogy as a trade-off by assuming that if the instructor tells you they are qualified that they are? That implies a course of dealing that is based on a false understanding, and that you are trading off the safety of the public attending those courses for your desired result of “courses” to fill up your schedule. Are you using anticipatory repudiation as to why you have not done “instructor” background checks or verified qualifications? Why are you relying on your “instructor’s” apparent authority to teach their proposal class instead of verifying it’s real? Aren’t your “instructors” practicing appropriation, the act of making the Novato Parks and Recreation Department their own, or exercising or making use of the Novato Parks and Recreation Department to subserve the “instructor’s” own interest? What do you think of the assumption of risk doctrine if one of your “instructor’s” questionable activities has been repeatedly brought to your attention and you still keep on the instructor? Doesn’t the laches’ doctrine and negligence per se kick in at some point? What do you think of the doctrine of attractive nuisance if one of your “instructor’s” is using the venue the Novato Parks and Recreation Department to lure children by something enticing therein?

What do you think of beyond a reasonable doubt when assessing your “instructors?” What would make you hesitate before acting in a matter important to you such as filling out your schedule offering versus the safety of a child or vulnerable woman? Have you utilized categorical imperative as an ethical standard in the hiring of your instructors? What do you think of consequential damages to students as they are reasonably foreseeable when “instructor” qualifications and backgrounds checks are not done? What do you think of the likelihood of “instructor” duress on their students? Does the Novato Parks and Recreation Department undertake any activity up to the point at which the marginal benefit equals the marginal cost? So there you have it. How does that sound Novato Parks and Recreation Department? If you’re interested, drop me a line. 11 comments on Get All Those Instructors You Can - Or Maybe Not By Annonymous on January 11, 2008 at 04:51 pm Sounds like you know something and aren't telling us. By Craig B on January 11, 2008 at 07:23 pm No, anonymous. "This story is the fourth I’ve now written that was inspired by a Broo author’s story. This one has been bouncing around in my head ever since I read Feasting at the Public Trough by Mistress Doctor in BroWaha. In that story, the complaint was put forth as a syllogism that a public entity, as the major premise is unfairly subsidizing “instructors.” Then as a minor premise, that “instructors” are not first checked for their qualifications. Therefore the conclusion that “instructors” have a high potential to be dangerous to the public. That got me wondering. By Keely on January 12, 2008 at 11:50 am Thanks Craig, for making me think. I've tended to naively assume, whenever I have enrolled my offspring in anything run by a governmental agency, that I can be less wary than I otherwise would be. They only the public good in mind, with state-of-theart screening systems in place, HR and legal departments that do everything possible to ward off lawsuits, no? No, is what you're telling me. Very well-written article. By Craig B on January 12, 2008 at 02:10 pm Thank you Keely. I also hadn't thought much of it until I read Feasting at the Public Trough by Mistress Doctor in BrooWaha.

By Morgana on February 04, 2008 at 06:59 pm “Teaching for pay makes an amateur a professional,” according to the United States Dance Sport Eligibility Committee. For several years now, the cities of Reno & Sparks, Nevada and Washoe County, Nevada has all required finger printing and police cards for their instructors of city recreation programs involving youth under the age of 18, and One Million Dollars in liability insurance. Washoe County, Nevada also requires accreditation from a member organization of the National Dance Council of America (NDCA), city, county and state business licenses, and BMI, ASCAP & SESAC music performance licenses from their dance instructors and that their instructors pay business and personal income taxes on their revenues, like any legal business owner. These requirements eliminated many of the "instructors." By Maryam on July 21, 2008 at 05:14 pm More reasons why we left Northern California for Sparks, Nevada. By Lucy Ong on October 22, 2008 at 09:44 pm The author nailed it there. These city Recreation departments are only interested in filling their schedule. Time and time again I’ve heard or read too many stories of exactly what is written here. Did this Recreation ever get back with any answers to these important questions? By Craig B on October 23, 2008 at 08:28 pm Hi Lucy, I e-mailed the Novato Parks & Recreation, but no answer back. By Diana's Art on February 21, 2009 at 04:07 pm Outstanding article! As correctly questioned in Feasting At The Public Trough @ http://www.broowaha.com/article.php?id=2763, aside from the obvious unfair financial advantage given to those that “teach” at these recreation departments without licenses, insurance or any check of their experience or credentials to “teach,” recreation facilities are major attractions of pedophiles and for that reason this link lists implications for recreational professionals to ensure they are keeping children safe by not hiring pedophiles. Realize that pedophiles and sexual predators of adults can be charming individuals who live double lives very well. County commissioners have put a proposed ordinance on hold that would ban anyone who had ever been convicted of a sex crime from public parks or recreation centers. The City of Novato, California Parks and Recreation Department’s email is [email protected]. They and the City of Novato, California must know they have some very grave injustices going on here as well as a publicly paid for invitation to sexual predators.

By Greene on July 17, 2009 at 05:25 pm I also naively assumed these sort of questions were being asked and satisfactorily answered before an instructor was hired. By Craig B on October 12, 2009 at 05:28 pm I also naively assumed these sort of questions were being asked and satisfactorily answered before an instructor was hired. Greene, you and a lot of others. Let me say this clearly to those that complain here and allegedly complain about what I write – I’m just an ole city cowboy trying not to fall out of my saddle. Here’s what another editor had to say about threats and complaints he gets. D. Brian Burghart ([email protected]) is as good as they get for an editor. Brian, who has many awards, wrote in the April 30, 2009 Reno News & Review: “Let me say this clearly: There are all kinds of newspapers, pamphlets and magazines in this area that posture their advertising as articles and stories. We don’t do that. It is never my job, other editors’ jobs or freelance writers’ jobs to promote any business, be it local, big or small. It’s not our job to pretend objectivity or balance or that we can be absolutely comprehensive. It is our job to write about our experiences from our idiosyncratic and independent points of view and to be honest as possible. If we have conflicts of interest, we avoid or disclose them. We write for our readers and nobody else. I don’t know how else to say this: We put out the best newspaper we can with the knowledge and resources we have.” That position, which I agree with, echoes the Mission Statement of the News & Review, a paper in Sacramento and Chico, California and Reno, Nevada that is highly respected, popular and the recipient of many industry awards. That Mission Statement is: “To publish great newspapers that are successful and enduring. To create a quality work environment that encourages employees to grow professionally while respecting personal welfare. To have a positive impact on our communities and make them better places to live.” I’ve modeled my writings on Brian Burghart and what I’ve read in the Reno News & Review. So, I’m gonna paraphrase Brian and the News & Review’s Mission Statement here:

Let me say this clearly: I write my stories to have a positive impact on my community and make it a better place to live. There are all kinds of newspapers, pamphlets and magazines that posture their advertising as articles and stories. I don’t do that. I want to publish in great newspapers and blogs that are successful and enduring that create a quality work environment that encourages employees and their freelance writers to grow professionally while respecting personal welfare. It is never my job, editors’ jobs or other freelance writers’ jobs to promote any business or individual, be it or they local, big or small. It’s not my job to pretend objectivity or balance or that I can be absolutely comprehensive. It is my job to write about my experiences from my idiosyncratic and independent point of view and to be honest as possible. If I have a conflict of interest, I avoid or disclose them. I write for my readers and nobody else. I don’t know how else to say this: I put out the best stories I can with the knowledge, that I have verified, and resources I have. I'll always give you the benefit of the doubt. If I didn't, what does that say about me and my ethics?