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The size of that discussion can be shown by the "ghost's" left behind in the search engine Google. Note the range between the message numbers at the end of each link. There may have been messages prior and subsequent as well. |
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The links are there in Google but the messages themselves and all references to Paul Trummel have been expunged from the HUD web site. The two fragments that remain listed on Google make it plain that not all those postings were supportive of Paul. Those would have been a welcome bit of full disclosure and reportorial balance but bureaucracies are notoriously controversy-averse. |
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A phrase introduced in George Orwell's cautionary novel ("1984") and the old Soviet Union's practice of constant revisions of uncomfortable public records, comes to mind. At the moment, Paul Trummel seems to have become an "un-person". |
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But hold on. Let's give HUD the benefit of the doubt. After all, the people who work there are Americans too and it would be unfair to prejudge their position. They may surprise us. Today (June 09, 2002) I sent the following email to the Press Officer of HUD. Any response will be reported on this web site. |
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The Honorable Mel Martinez Mr. Martinez, You may be aware that during the past few days there has been major international media attention paid to the jailing since February 27th of 70-year-old Paul Trummel, a freelance journalist and member of the National Writers Union (UAW - AFL-CIO) as a consequence of his public reporting of a dispute involving a HUD property in Seattle, Washington. Newspapers around the world have run the Associated Press article of June 06. Independently investigated newspaper articles have appeared in other leading newspapers in the USA and Europe. The largest and most respected professional organizations of freelance journalists in Europe and the USA have issued statements urging the immediate release of their member-in-good-standing, Paul Trummel. Other newspaper articles have appeared in Paris and London. The Freedom Forum and The First Amendment Center have posted materials regarding this matter on their web site. Your detailed and candid responses to each of the following questions will be greatly appreciated. What is the official position of HUD regarding the Paul Trummel affair in Seattle, Washington? Do you support, without reservation, First Amendment Rights for all persons within the USA, regardless of their occupation, even when critical of a governmental agency and the conduct of its employees so long as the laws regarding libel are not violated in the judgment of a court? Do you agree that Paul Trummel is entitled to the protection of the First Amendment and that no prior restraint or post-publication punishment is justified absent a complaint that what he has published is libelous? What is your position regarding Trummel's continuing incarceration in solitary confinement in a County jail for asserting his First Amendment rights by refusing to remove a web site containing materials that includes criticism of HUD, its policies and its employees? Would you support Trummel's being permitted to return to Council House as a resident? Thank you, Joe Harkins Delegate, National Writers Union, (UAW - AFL/CIO) |
