As if their heavy presence at the EIS Scoping Meetings for no apparent reason (they don't give a statement to the court reporter, they don't make useful comment at any of the meeting stations and only Mark Nitowski manages to talk to the media) isn't enough, AEP & Allegheny Energy personnel went home with egg on their face from the Purcellville EIS Scoping Meeting this evening.
Their piece de resistance was the clueless kid who took the mic during the public comment portion of the hearing (which was developed impromptu and not on the schedule until halfway through the first meeting in Harper's Ferry, therefore tonight's meeting was PATH's first opportunity to get a planned speaker signed up) and delivered a glowing endorsement of PATH as the answer to all our problems. Not only did he play to a thoroughly disgusted audience, he also finished up to stoney faces and silence.
I believe he may have identified himself as affiliated with PATH's Virginia astroturf front group at the beginning of his little speech, which is entirely plausible since a representative of Charles Ryan Associates (PATH's PR and astroturf front group magicians) was attending his second night of EIS Scoping Meetings and got uncomfortably left behind to clean up the mess when the bigwigs scurried away, lest any unfortunate crumbs attach themselves to their trouser legs. The Charles Ryan Associates representative stated that his purpose at the meeting was "to observe". Not sure how much he observed from his seat on a bench outside the meeting room door, but we noticed him spending a lot of his time "observing" a video game on his cell phone. I sure hope he stayed around long enough to collect that kid's carcass and give him his paycheck, because the last time I saw him he was being grilled by two of Winchester's finest.
Nobody in the room was fooled by this feigned performance, and that probably includes the Park Service, Forest Service and CH2MHill personnel. Good job, Charles Ryan Associates! Thanks for making what had been a great series of meetings to receive comment from the public uncomfortable for everyone. Another bang up job! You're doing so much good for PATH's opposition, we should be paying you for it. Oh, that's right... we are... every month in our electric bill.
Their piece de resistance was the clueless kid who took the mic during the public comment portion of the hearing (which was developed impromptu and not on the schedule until halfway through the first meeting in Harper's Ferry, therefore tonight's meeting was PATH's first opportunity to get a planned speaker signed up) and delivered a glowing endorsement of PATH as the answer to all our problems. Not only did he play to a thoroughly disgusted audience, he also finished up to stoney faces and silence.
I believe he may have identified himself as affiliated with PATH's Virginia astroturf front group at the beginning of his little speech, which is entirely plausible since a representative of Charles Ryan Associates (PATH's PR and astroturf front group magicians) was attending his second night of EIS Scoping Meetings and got uncomfortably left behind to clean up the mess when the bigwigs scurried away, lest any unfortunate crumbs attach themselves to their trouser legs. The Charles Ryan Associates representative stated that his purpose at the meeting was "to observe". Not sure how much he observed from his seat on a bench outside the meeting room door, but we noticed him spending a lot of his time "observing" a video game on his cell phone. I sure hope he stayed around long enough to collect that kid's carcass and give him his paycheck, because the last time I saw him he was being grilled by two of Winchester's finest.
Nobody in the room was fooled by this feigned performance, and that probably includes the Park Service, Forest Service and CH2MHill personnel. Good job, Charles Ryan Associates! Thanks for making what had been a great series of meetings to receive comment from the public uncomfortable for everyone. Another bang up job! You're doing so much good for PATH's opposition, we should be paying you for it. Oh, that's right... we are... every month in our electric bill.
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