Who is this guy?

Recently I decided to return to school. I signed up for a class covering online journalism at UMass - Amherst and now I am struggling to re-learn how to be a student. One of the requirements for that class is to have a Blog at the college. That new Blog for my class has my name on it. Though I have not made much of an effort to hide my identity (I even put my real name on business cards I created to promote the site), I have not really "come out" on this web site. Concealing one's identity online has always been a recommended safety precaution and one I have followed consistently. However, there are times when we need to stand behind what we say and do. As you can see from the top of the left column on this page I have decided to do just that.

There are those who have cautioned me against revealing myself. They are concerned for me and I appreciate it. However, being a card carrying member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the ACLU, the Institute for Justice, the NRA, the Investigative Reporters & Editors Association, the National Newspaper Association, the Online News Association, the Society of Professional Journalists, and well as the Cato Institute, the New America Foundation, Common Cause, and a host of smaller groups, I suspect that I will have more than enough assistance availible to counter anything "they" might try.

Though some have warned that there are people out there who would seek to cause me trouble or even harm, I was surprised recently to find out that such activities are not limited to just one side. Due to a recent false rumor being spread concerning myself and my motivations I decided the best way to counter such things is to be up front and open with everyone. There are those who question my choosing to talk to supporters of their opposition. For them, all I can say is that real learning requires multiple sources. If you limit your information flow to one source or another, you never getting the whole story. That said, one can listen to the devil without choosing to follow him.

As to the rumor mongers' motivations I have no idea. I suspect they saw this as an opportunity to gain status with their peers at my expense. Maybe they are the type of people who do not feel like they are "up" unless they beat everyone around them "down". I have no idea what their reasoning was as those who started this rumor never choose to ask me about it first. Something I would have thought any adult would do. This rumor is of course false, but I doubt that really bothers them if they got what they were after.

So, with the prospect of a career change that will require that I be out in the open, my recent foray into college education, and the actions of rumor mongers here at home I decided to "out" myself this weekend, before Monday's Council Meeting (Sept 11th, 2006 - 7:00PM at the Overland Community Center (9225 Lackland Rd)). This way, anyone who has anything to say to me, be it a complement, a complaint, or an accusation, can come chat with me before or after that meeting.

Stealing a concept from one of our Councilmen that I admire you'll find me at every Overland Event. I'll be the not so good looking guy in the U.S. Navy Seabee cap.

John Moyle
aka: OverlandSailor
(I never said I was pretty)

My name is John Moyle, I have been a resident of Ward 1, Overland for 8 years, and I have been married to my wonderful wife for the same amount of time. We have a precocious 5 year old daughter whom I am very proud of and some fantastic relatives and neighbors that live close by.

I have had a rather colorful past full of wonderful experiences. I have worked in numerous fields and a host of jobs. They paid the bills, but they fell short of being a personal success. I am a Veteran of the U.S. Navy, and I though I am sure there are those who would waste the money to check anyway, I have a clean record with the authorities.

When it comes to politics I have been there, done that and have little faith in those who want the jobs until proven otherwise. When it comes to my personal politics and beliefs, well that would be a HUGE post (worse than this one). If you want to know them, do a web search for "Overland Sailor". I have used that identity for years and I have debated many, many political issues on various sites. I am sure you will find many things I have had to say. However, be advised, as we get older, we get wiser so if you want to know where I stand on something, feel free to ask me. My opinion on something may have changed over time. A good place to start (as well as a great place to discuss issues reasonably) would be the Americas Debate Forums.

Several months before the election in April 2006, I started going to the City Council meetings to help me decide who I was going to vote for. I had watched Council meetings on Charter cable channel 18 before, but only when I happened to notice them in the TV listings. For the most part I was blissfully ignorant of what was going on in Overland other than what I had heard from my neighbors. However, the more I watched the more I became concerned.

After the election I was disappointed. My candidate didn't win. But I was willing to give the new Mayor a shot. She blew that shot in a manner of days when she chose to try to remove Chief Herron and City Attorney Herman from office improperly. But, I thought it was worth a second chance (we all make mistakes right?). We all know how things have gone since. As a result of her actions, there is no way I could possibly support the Mayor. She has only herself to blame for the troubles she faces now and will likely face in the forseeable future. Unfortunately, those troubles are costing Overland alot both in our wallets, and our City's reputation.

I been to every meeting that followed the election. As the procedural violations continued I decided it was time to try to do something. First I created Overland Speaks Out!, a forum site I designed to be a community resource that I hoped would open up lines of communication, promote local businesses, and help get residents engaged in our community. However, from the beginning the site was dominated by political conversations that prevented many groups from being willing to get involved. Then, the site slowly died off in use (though people hit the links list daily). The project was a failure in my opinion. However, when we learn from our mistakes we become better for them. Some time in the future you can expect to see a new site made better by the education I gained from OSO.

Being frustrated with the way most of the sites we have were handling the issues facing Overland, I decided to take on creating a Blog myself. I have done a blog or two before, so it was not too complicated to get done. My mission was to challenge our politician's claims. I choose to combat rhetoric with research and common sense. This site you are reading right now is that Blog and it has been a success thus far in my view.

Since my motivations have been questioned I thought I would spell them out. For starters I have no interest in running for political office ever. My interest is in becoming a journalist, a member of the "forth estate". Running for or winning political office would be a major conflict of interest for me.

I have no desire to lead any local groups. Though I have participated with some local groups (and I plan to join more as we speak), in order to be as objective as possible I feel taking on a leadership role of any kind would make objectivity difficult (and could also be detrimental to those groups at times).

I believe Overland has the potential to be a real crowning jewel of our area. It will take a lot of hard work to get there, and it will be a time investment measured in years, if not decades. To succeed, several issues need to be addressed. We need better leaders. We need visionaries who can see the grand Overland of the future in their minds and are willing to work to get us there. We need more residents to get involved, both in their duty to monitor their local government as well as becoming active in one or more of the great organizations we have in our community. Businesses, Residents and Government working together for Overland's future. A pipe dream? Perhaps. But a dream I am willing to work my tail off to support.

I have chosen to fund my efforts, both in improving myself as well as the community at least until 2007. That means that the projects I am working on have my full attention. My ultimate goal is to create a dynamic site, a community newspaper, where everyone can go to see what is happening in our area. Did Ritenour win the football game? What are they building on such and such corner? Who did the Overland Business Association elect to their board this time? They said what at the Council Meeting? etc. All the news that people want. With that would of course come news of what the government is doing (or not doing), features on local groups and residents, letters to the editor, my own editorials, columns for others, and profiles as well as contact information of all the local organizations that are working to make Overland a better place. This is THE project I have in mind, and this is the only ambition I have at the moment.

So, for those who would question my motives, my methods, or my identity, etc, now you know. If you have questions in the future you can always reach me at overlandsailor@aol.com or you could just come up to me and say hi at the next local gathering.