just to set the record straight: i have reviewed my notes from that week. it's good to have notes.
1. there was no agreement of confidentiality asked or given
2. we did not 'want... [George] to join the UTCC". the UTCC at that time did not have any formal structure or conditions for 'joining'. the kind of organizing that GL was talking about doing (unity meetings--meetings with other 'groups' of drivers) were what we were already doing at the time. any driver who had expressed an interest in organizing activity could have been invited to attend our meetings. the AUPD with Melissa Callahan had been going thru the same process just before steve and i resigned.
george didn't have a problem with our meetings then, or with his not being invited.
3. the reason for the meeting i wanted to call with george was not to 'stroke [him] by telling [him] how important [he] was to the cabdriver community'. it was simply out of respect for his position in that community, just like i said. in my history with george, i had heard him say all the right things about what he wants for the drivers--an organization that can fight for our rights, etc etc. and here i was, and we are, building EXACTLY the kind of org. that everyone says we want and need, and george now immediately has a problem with it and is throwing hissy fits.
4. we never said that prateek sampat called our meetings or decided who came. ever since the first meeting, we drivers have been calling all the shots. the process steve and i initiated (meetings every 2 weeks, attendance by invitation by one of us drivers after some kind of intake interview) was EXACTLY the same process we had been carrying out in AUPD for 4 months previous. (melissa callahan, anil sahay, steve kim, zafar bhatti, and wali budhul can all testify to the truth of this--ask them)
george didn't have a problem with it then. i have an idea why--because he had been getting reports on our activities, and felt he had some control over one of our members. and now that he didn't have that control and is not getting reports, he has a conniption fit.
5. as far as we are concerned, the person who has done more to sabotage unity than anyone else is george lutfallah. we have a very open, semi-formal process for joining in cabdriver organizing activities. any one who wants to really unite has merely to call us, read the UTCC Voice, or attend our monthly general meeting to find out how.
6. we have heard mention of many references to other cabdriver 'groups' lately. we are not sure what this term is in reference to. we do know of the ghanaian driver org. but no others who constitute any more than (possibly) 4 or 5 drivers. we officially welcome the formation of any and all kinds of cabdriver organizations (such as the newly formed CCDAC) which put into political motion the drivers who come together in their perceived common interests. as we said in our newsletter, the Voice, we look forward to working with any and all of them in the future to create a better life and working conditions for chicago cabdrivers. we will meet with any cabdriver groups that form and make an attempt to find common ground and unity around our issues, as befits a cabdriver organization formed around "community" and "council". (notice that 'community' has the word 'unity' in it).
7. yes it is insulting for grown men to be called puppets. i've always considered myself pretty intelligent, with free will and my own agency. i also look upon my fellow drivers as having these character traits. there is such a fierce independence of will and genius among those in our cabdriver community here in chicago, and it is reflected in our steering committee of the UTCC. and in every cabdriver that we speak to in our organizing activities. this will and genius is reflected in the level of political discourse carried out in our meetings. no one could EVER assume that a committee of six or eight or twelve persons could be controlled by one person who wasnt even a driver, or had our experiences. the idea is ludicrous, and only a cretin could actually sincerely hold such an idea. we don't actually believe george is a cretin, nor do we believe he believes the things he says.
CABDRIVERS!--look for some other reason for george's positions and his activities. , you can figure it out yourselves, i dont' have to put ideas in your heads. you are all smart enough and informed enough about your own historical experiences to know what the term "material opportunism" means.
8. george did not "[throw us both]..out of [his] office]". we left after 2 hours of pointless arguments with a person who can't put 2 logical statements together to form a logical conclusion. we were the ones to leave in disgust, having wasted our time.
9. we call upon george to list the "various independent groups" he mentions, and to list the "important issues" they all discussed. this is the kind of thing you'd think would be important enough to report in the Dispatcher, don't you think? wouldn't YOU like to read an article about various independent groups of cabdrivers discussing important issues? i would!
10. i am tempted to challenge george lutfallah to a public debate about our respective political positions and vision for solving the problems of our workforce vis-a-vis the power structures here in chicago. it would be filmed and we could put it up on youtube for all the driver community to see, hear, and make up their own minds which vision they wish to support.
how 'bout it, george? are you man enough to put your ideas before your imagined public? if not, please stop behaving as if you have all the answers for our beleaguered driver community, its just that you won't tell us what they are until it's some kind of done deal that you can impose on us. we won't take kindly to that, believe me.
peter ali enger
Peter,
I personally have nothing against you, or your organization that you have formed.
George Lutfullah is a great guy, and I never heard him say anything negetive about you or your organization. He gives you credit for what you're trying to do in the cabdrivers best interest.
Why don't you and your organization get together, and have a personal meeting with George, and try settling your differences. Then the both of you can probably get along better.
This is George's web site, and the purpose is to help other cabdrivers in trouble and needs advice. This is not to go badmouthing people like Mike Foulks, who has the same idea of helping drivers just like you are.
So my advice to you is, get together with George and see if the both of you comes to any agreements. Also, get together with Mike Foulks and try to work together.
Remember what George says; he will look these messages over before he will post them. If he sees any bad messages, they will not be posted.
Guess who?
to guess who, and others:
did you read george and peter's posts? it seems to me he tried to get together with george, and was insulted and refused. why should he or the UTCC go begging to george or mike foulks? they never badmouth mike or george here or anywhere i know about. they have meetings open for these guys to come and join in unity if they can agree. if mike an d george don't want to come talk, why should UTCC go chasing after them? they are only 2 guys! UTCC acts like they want to organize all the other 9,998 drivers. and they go out and do the work. i like what they do. they are dedicated, steady, available for talking every day and i like they're principles they talk about: justice, dignity, human rights. we want to be treated like human beings. i don't see george or mike doing any organizing at all.
as far as george being a great guy, that is beside the point. no one is saying he smells, or cheats on his wife. but what is he doing in favor of organizing? the UTCC is doing so many things and he reports nothing--NOTHING, about it. does he think we drivers don't notice? he gives no credit to UTCC about thier activities in his paper. he doesn't report on their meetings, and he probably won't report on there organizing the strike or the voting. it is what people do that matters in political activities, not what they say, or promise, or tell you theyr'e working on something or studying it or looking into it . this is what the city does all the time, and we get nothing.
Okay, I see what you mean. George Lutfullah is just an owner of a newspaper. Several months ago when George Lutfullah had a meeting in his Belmont Avenue office, he did invite Peter to his meeting, I was there too. George at his meeting said that he was in favor of cabdrivers organizing in small groups, and says that small groups should be working together.
If you and Peter don't agree with something George says and does, than you should go to his office and let him know how you feel. We are all grown men and we should try working together and be diplomatic.
As far as George's paper is concern, he's not going to help give you or your group any recognition unless you ask him.
We are all mature adults, and we can be respected if we conduct ourselves in an adult way. So, let's at least give it a try and see how far it will go. I'm sure it'll go a long way for everybody.
guess who,
i am not in any group right now. i hear UTCC will have a membership drive soon. then i will join.
maybe you don't understand how newspaper works. they are supposed to write about news. in cabdriver life, UTCC is news and i dont think any body should have to go and beg a newspaper to report on activiites. i was only pointing out that when he doesn't write about it it shows his prejudice.
that is probably why UTCC start publishing thier own. we need to have the information they talk about to make up our minds about who has the best ideas.
hanek
When I was in high school, one of my courses was Journalism. In Journalism we learned there's alot of propaganda, and newspaper reporters bend the truth to make the stories more interesting than their competitors. The reason for that is trying to sell more newspapers than the competitor. So I do know how the newspaper works.
I'm not having you go begging to George, just stand up to him and tell him that you disagree with him and tell him the facts. You're not going to get anywhere unless you stand up to him. George is a man who will listen. Trust me.
The same question has been asked several times!
What was the Date of the CRIME occurred to the John Doe?
To refresh your memory, here is the original post:
________________
Subject: An Epidemic of Violence
Name: Chicago Dispatcher
Date Posted: Jul 3, 08 - 9:24 AM
Message: From the Chicago Dispatcher, July 2, 2008
An Epidemic of Violence
Another Chicago cabdriver is attacked, this time in an apparent robbery in front of the Swissotel.
By: Jonathan Bullington
Editor's note: Per his request, the driver's name in the following story has been changed to protect his identity.
For almost eight years, John Doe has driven a cab in Chicago without incident. Then, one Sunday morning in July, his luck ran out.
A night driver, Doe was approaching the Swissotel on Wacker Drive around 5:00 a.m., ready to drop his last fare of the shift. After collecting his money, Doe planned to return to his cab garage, pay his lease and go home. As he made the turnaround past the hotel, he noticed four young males, all mixed race, flagging his cab. Figuring one more ride wouldn't hurt, he decided to stop and pick them up. He would quickly find out how much one ride could hurt.
“It happened so fast,” Doe recalled of the events of that morning. First, he said one of the four men came to the front passenger door, opened it, slid in his cab, quickly grabbed the key and shut off the engine. Simultaneously, Doe said, another man came to the driver's side door, opened it, pushed Doe (who was still seated with his belt on) and punched him once in the right eye, immediately drawing blood. Then, both men started punching him in the face for, as he remembers, at least five minutes straight.
Soon, the two men had Doe's seatbelt off. They dragged him out of the cab, where they were joined by the other two men in kicking Doe while he lay on the ground, again mostly in the face. While being beaten, he was also being robbed. Doe said the men took his wallet, his money (all his night's work, including the money for his lease - about $500 total) and his cell phone. They even took his shoes off and threw them in a puddle, Doe speculates, so he couldn't run after them. All the while, Doe said his attackers were cursing at him and making racist remarks.
For his part, Doe said he tried to cover his face and hang on until the beating stopped, which it eventually did. Through the blood in his eyes, he could see the men running away. He summoned the strength to rise to his feet, at which time he made his way to the cabstand in front of the hotel, roughly 200 feet from where he stood. He said there were three cabs in line at that time, and all of them had their windows rolled up (which may have been why they couldn't hear him being attacked). He approached the first cab in line and noticed the driver was on his phone. Doe knocked on the window to ask for help, only to watch as the driver cracked his window and then closed it just as fast. This went on four or five times, as Doe remembers.
“At this point I'm getting mad at him,” Doe recalled. “I asked him to call 911 and he said no. I was so frustrated I didn't go to the other two [cabs].”
Instead, Doe said he returned to his cab, in part because it was open and he didn't want it damaged. When he got there, he noticed another car behind his cab, honking because he couldn't get around Doe's taxi. Doe asked the driver to call the police, which he did. The man stayed with Doe until help arrived.
Doe was taken to Northwestern Hospital where he was treated for his injuries. Fortunately, doctors said he had no internal damage to his eye. Yet, two days later, Doe said he was having severe headaches and eyestrain, as well as difficulties focusing, particularly at night. He went back to the hospital, where he was told a blood clot behind his eye was causing his troubles. Then, three days later, Doe was back in the hospital, this time with pain and swelling to his left elbow. Doctors said he could have had fluid leaking into his joint, so they prescribed antibiotics to prevent any infection of the elbow. Even as we spoke, Doe was still feeling lingering effects of his attack.
Physical pain wasn't the only damage Doe suffered. First there was a problem with his cab. During his initial hospital visit, Doe said police came to question him about the attack. At that time, Doe said he was told his cab would be towed to the city's auto pound, which made him worry about the cost of such a move.
“I was very mad when they said this,” Doe said. “It's legal robbery. The city should tow to the pound, keep the car safe and not charge you to get it out.”
Doe said he asked the police if they could try to place his cab outside the pound so he could pick it up without having to pay for its removal. He said his cab was left outside the pound, but when the cab's day driver went to retrieve it the next day, he found the cab with its wheels and rims stolen and replaced with cheaper wheels and rims.
“It's very strange,” Doe said. “If I steal, why would I replace with [cheap] parts? And right outside the police impound? Maybe it was a cheap cab owner with a friend inside the pound? Or it could have been the tow truck driver?”
Then there was the issue of his stolen wallet. When Doe returned home from the hospital after his attack, he went online to check his bank account and found his debit card had been used several times, starting at 8:30 the morning of his attack. First his card was used at the Post Office, where two separate charges of $38 and $46 were made. Later, his card was used at a Jewel Osco at least seven or eight times during the course of the afternoon. In all, close to $250 was charged to his account at the grocery store.
Doe made three separate trips in three days to the Post Office to inquire about the charges on his account. He was told to call the Nationwide Crime Hotline and the U.S. Postal Inspector, but as of press time, he has not received word about the charges on his card. His bank, on the other hand, said they would investigate the charges made to his account, Doe said, and will reimburse him if they determine the charges were indeed fraudulent. According to Chicago Police, no arrests have been made yet. They are still investigating the case.
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Replying to:
When I was in high school, one of my courses was Journalism. In Journalism we learned there's alot of propaganda, and newspaper reporters bend the truth to make the stories more interesting than their competitors. The reason for that is trying to sell more newspapers than the competitor. So I do know how the newspaper works.
I'm not having you go begging to George, just stand up to him and tell him that you disagree with him and tell him the facts. You're not going to get anywhere unless you stand up to him. George is a man who will listen. Trust me.
What about the year? 2002 maybe?
From what I read it seems that peter tried to get together with george only after george invited peter to a meeting. Peter did not want to come because he thought that working with other taxi driver groups was a threat to what he was doing with the utcc. That part is not disputed by either of them.
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Replying to:
to guess who, and others:
did you read george and peter's posts? it seems to me he tried to get together with george, and was insulted and refused. why should he or the UTCC go begging to george or mike foulks? they never badmouth mike or george here or anywhere i know about. they have meetings open for these guys to come and join in unity if they can agree. if mike an d george don't want to come talk, why should UTCC go chasing after them? they are only 2 guys! UTCC acts like they want to organize all the other 9,998 drivers. and they go out and do the work. i like what they do. they are dedicated, steady, available for talking every day and i like they're principles they talk about: justice, dignity, human rights. we want to be treated like human beings. i don't see george or mike doing any organizing at all.
as far as george being a great guy, that is beside the point. no one is saying he smells, or cheats on his wife. but what is he doing in favor of organizing? the UTCC is doing so many things and he reports nothing--NOTHING, about it. does he think we drivers don't notice? he gives no credit to UTCC about thier activities in his paper. he doesn't report on their meetings, and he probably won't report on there organizing the strike or the voting. it is what people do that matters in political activities, not what they say, or promise, or tell you theyr'e working on something or studying it or looking into it . this is what the city does all the time, and we get nothing.
terry j,
i do dispute your allegations. we in the UTCC have never expressed that working with other taxi driver 'groups' was a threat to what we are doing. you show us another taxi driver 'group' and we will attempt to work with them.
also, i had been planning to meet with george before he called his meeting, to try to come to some agreements about our respective relationships with each other. as i identified elsewhere, we failed in this attempt.
I don't understand. Why did you want to meet with George before the unity meeting? Why not just go to the unity meeting?
Peter, quit making up alibis. George is not in anyway a threat to the UTCC. That is your crazy idea. Maybe you are afraid to meet with George because you know you stink! Go home and take a shower if you can afford a bar of soap. You smell pathetic. I don't know how you keep passengers in your cab. Dress more civilized instead of dressing like a 1960's hippie. You should know that the yuppies are taking over, so there's no room for dirty hippies like you.
"Guess who?", and I hesitate to guess,
I don't have any problem with anyone challenging anyone's relevant statements or conduct here.
I would prefer that these types of comments cease as they aren't that relevant to the discussion.
Having said that, I will support the idea that Mr. Enger could dress in a different fashion and become more acceptable to many or more successful as an organizer or otherwise.
However, I don't think you are sincere, "Guess who?", nor do I believe that Mr. Enger would respond to "advice" presented this way.
I would respect Mr. Enger if he continues to dress as he pleases, but perhaps not as much as I could.
Maybe he needs a intervention-style "makeover"!
Seriously, I would prefer that he ignore this and instead respond to the questions about why he met privately with Mr. Lutfallah before the "unity meeting".
For the record, I have never noticed any objectionable odor from Mr. Enger.
I don't think that etiquette permits much public discussion of this particular "issue", anyhow.
Let's try to stick to what's really important and avoid the insults, can we?
-Mike Foulks
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Replying to:
Peter, quit making up alibis. George is not in anyway a threat to the UTCC. That is your crazy idea. Maybe you are afraid to meet with George because you know you stink! Go home and take a shower if you can afford a bar of soap. You smell pathetic. I don't know how you keep passengers in your cab. Dress more civilized instead of dressing like a 1960's hippie. You should know that the yuppies are taking over, so there's no room for dirty hippies like you.
Hey Mike Foulks,
I hate to tell you about your appearence. All you need is a set of bongo drums and you would look like a real beatnik! Do you dig DADDY-O?
You have Mike right too. Can you come up with a good one for Peter?
