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Subject:The Fine Art of Complaining From:"Dori Green" <dgreen -at- associatedbrands -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Thu, 16 Aug 2007 14:56:45 -0400
I'm told my communications problem with my town board and code enforcement officer have gone away.
I did not write up my complaints and take them to the town board meeting as suggested by the town supervisor.
I asked for advice about how to handle the situation from the head of the New York State Farm Protection Board and USDA's Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas, who is sending a heavy packet of info about how this very situation is a recognized and important global issue. Another buddy from USDA made a phone call just to mention how he's heard that I've relocated to their area, I'm a community activist well known on the National scene who happens to garden organically (not a solitary unknown organic farmer with antisocial tendencies as it might appear on the surface), and their community is so lucky that I've decided to settle there.
Why light a match when an autostart blowtorch is just a telephone or keyboard away?
TW connection? Audience analysis. What was going to be effective?
Best result -- judge and code enforcer were actually friendly and certainly no longer making any attempts to intimidate me. Enforcer is officially satisfied with the progress I've made toward correcting the items in question, and the summons is officially closed -- no more vague and undocumented demands for action, reversed and added to the next week. When I gave him an intentional opening for discussion of a different topic by mentioning my missing cats, he came back with a report that he thinks he's already seen one. He even described her accurately, so maybe she really will return. I feed and catch feral cats for neutering, he shoots them. There's still some water to cross. But it's a start.
The neighbor is still scowling mightily and he almost ran me off the road the other day. But the town is off my back.
Dori Green
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