Please Help

[truespode]

Recently there was a post about a lady who is in opposition of an MX park in Ga. We all saw her writing and made fun of it. However, I have noticed lately that there is a trend on the part of the paper in Ga. to only show the anti-MX letters that have been sent it.

Please flood http://www.thehartwellsun.com with e-mails, comments or whatever in support of the sport of MX. If you have personal knowledge of Thunder Valley MX in Ga. please voice your support. They have went to county council and are trying to bully through rezoning. One opinion letter even suggested that the land owner of Thunder Valley relocate.

I have talked with a few people who have ridden there and from my understanding no houses are visible from the track. This is not like the track running up to the property line of the neighbor. From my understanding this is just a bunch of people wanting their way and instead of comprimising with the land owner or being consistent in their demands they are trying to bully changes to be made that fit into their tunnel visioned idea of what should be.

Below is my letter to the editor. Please send your comments too.

Contact web page: http://www.thehartwellsun.com/tr/contact.asp
E-mail: hartwellsun@thehartwellsun.com

Regional Publisher
Robert Rider
robertrider@thehartwellsun.com

Editor
Judy Salter
judysalter@hartcom.net

General Manager
Peggy Vickery
peggyvickery@thehartwellsun.com

Staff Writers

Edith Gaines--e-mail edithgaines@thehartwellsun.com

Rich Lovie --e-mail richlovie@thehartwellsun.com

Jeff Schenck--e-mail jeffschenck@thehartwellsun.com

hartwellsun@hartcom.net

http://www.thehartwellsun.com

I am writing in support of Thunder Valley Motocross Park. This is my second letter. I feel obligated not only to respond to some of the things I have read in The Hartwell Sun but also to argue for equal time on this issue as The Hartwell Sun has definately shown tremendous bias in their reporting.

To date, I have not seen one letter in support of the MX park by The Hartwell Sun yet I have sent in a letter of support and so have many others who I know. Yet, I have seen several opinion letters in opposition as well as a guest column against the MX park. I would think that an objective news media would have allowed a counterpoint at the very least after running the guest column.

Now on the topic of a few things I have seen printed on www.thehartwellsun.com. In regards to the one opinion letter in which they saw a person on an MX bike running speed runs up the road and doing a U-Turn and running back down the road. To that I say... turn them in. That type of activity is not legal, nor condoned by the off-road community. The vast majority of the off-road community believes in abiding by the laws, riding safely and taking responsibility for ones actions.

In regards to the zoning issues. Each landowner has the right to request zoning and to want to do the best for their community. However, before you get wrapped up and telling a land owner to relocate to another community (which I read in a letter to the editor from Bill Clark). One thing to realize is that Thunder Valley does not just get riders from Lawrenceville. They get riders from several states in the South East. The riders that come from other states bring in revenue (gas, food, etc) to the Georgia community that would not be there otherwise. Furthermore, the requests that are made need to be done correctly and not by attempting to bully a public agency in regards to a private land use dispute.

That may not appear to be significant or even important to your oppositional crowd but the stereotype that we are riding dirtbikes on the road and all come from one part of the state or that the land owner should relocate so others do not have to deal with the issue is unfair, insulting and shows considerate hints of elitism and an unwillingness to discuss the issue objectively.

The owner of Thundervalley has as much right to his "noise" as the farm owner has to his "stench." I have been a part of off-road riding for most my life and I realize full well the distance in which the sound travels. To me this sounds more like an elitist crowd of homeowners who want to do what they want on their private property but are unwilling to let someone else in the area have the same rights.

I hope that a mature decision can come from this. However, after my readings on www.thehartwellsun.com I see that only one side is being reported so it leads me to assume that there is just as much of a bias on the part of the opposition. Since The Hartwell Sun has been so unwilling to print a counter-argument from those in favor of the track that as well leads me to assume that those against it are just as unwilling to listen to a different view.

It trully appears that The Hartwell Sun is only an extension of a few people whose only goal is to remove Thunder Valley either by drumming up support with one sided stories in The Hartwell Sun, changing its demands regularly, attempting to rezone the area or asking a law abiding land owner to relocate because a few other land owners want it their way and only their way.

I trully hope that I'm wrong. I guess The Hartwell Sun's willingness to correct their error of not reporting both sides of the issue will be a tell-tale sign to me and others who are following this issue.

Sincerely,
Ivan J. Liechty, M.A.
3210 Cannons Campground Rd.
Spartanburg, SC 29307
ivan@truespode.net

 

[RM_guy]

Will do...

 

[truespode]

I have gotten in a pissing match with their editor now. She wants things at 250 words or less if you can.

For me that was a pain!! But I did it.

I'm really upset they allowed a guest column but no rebuttal guest.

Also, please include your name and addy.

Thanks
Ivan

 

[jmics19067]

this is my reply I hope it helps the cause, literary debates are definately not my specialty


"I think it is highly irresponsible for you to consider yourself a newspaper. To show only one point of view <against the motocross track> only implies that you are a biased media source. To quote and represent one view without any rebuttal from the opposing view only tells me that you are trying to persuade the general public. By not letting a counterpoint be voiced and heard you are only showing me that your articles are nothing more than editorials of your personal opinion.

If there is no apparent land use regulations or zoning regulations preventing some one from doing something on their own property ,I just dont see what the big deal is. The person setting up a motocross track is doing nothing but exercising his legal right to pursue happiness in a wholesome outdoor motorsport.

Sincerely Yours,
James M. Santapau"

 

[truespode]

Thanks. I must clarify one point... the bias has been on their website. I have not seen the printed version so I'm hesitant to say if there are or are not any differences there.

However, the website is a world read publication and therefore there responsibility to show both sides is even more important.

Thanks
Ivan

 

[XRpredator]

I'm all for helping out. Hope it does some good.

 

[jmics19067]

True spode,

that kind of concerned me also but after snooping around their website for a bit the comments about the county lawyer saying something about " set up land use regulations" definately tells me;

That they are trying to avoid the fact that the guy is setting up something completely legal and yet they do not want to acknowledge it or blatenly state that it is legal. Which is the papers fault for not pointing out that it is legal and only letting a referance in the editorial to an illegal action <the person zipping along the road>. That is not a part of this guys problem building a track on his property but since it is a reference to dirt bikes it is trying to make him look bad.

things like this just get my mind rolling a thousand times its safe operational speed so for fear of sounding like a true idiot that Iam. I am hoping that the paper will set up posts productive for the sport /recreation.Hopefully I didnt detract from dirtbiking but opened the door for someone more eloquent to speak.

or in other words it was the only thing I could come up at the time that didn't portray me < and subsequently dirt bikers in general > as a screaming idiot.

 

[truespode]

This has been going on a while with the track. While the paper claims to have published rebuttal letters they have yet to do so on their website at all.

Also, they have not had a rebuttal to the guest columnist who basically villified dirtbikes. That is what got me upset the most. It really showed their bias.

Maybe we'll at least show the editor that we are concerned and are watching.

Thanks everyone.

Ivan

 

[Nevada Sixx]

the guy buiding track should spread the word that he may do away with the track, to install a asphault mixing plant,,that you can smell for miles.