Jim,
Them there's pretty strong words, Jim. I suppose if I was guilty of all of these atrocities against you I might be pitching a fit right about now. Fortunately, I'm so amused at your perspective that I'm actually astonished. I'm clearly to blame for everything, I'm really sorry.
I'm convinced at this point that there MUST be a parallel universe lerking about here somewhere. You sure weren't at the same world I was at. It's pretty obvious we're not getting anywhere discussing this matter.
Apparently it doesn't sink in regarding the day in LA. I knew absolutely nothing of what was going on between the two "warring" parties. I had never met you nor did I know who you were. I would have to be an idiot to even listen to your crap under the circumstances. I also guarentee you this. You would have done exactly as I did were you in the opposite position. Get serious. Unless you also remember me laughing in your face afterwards, I still say you're mistaken about that conversation taking place. Certainly I would have remembered you calling me a whore and whatever else, to say nothing of the Nazi bit. Come on, Leno isn't even that good!
Honestly, I don't mean to ride you and I don't (and never have) ment you any ill will, but sometimes you're so off the wall I can't help it. As I suspected much of what you are angry about originates from goings on in San Marcos. You don't need me to tell you how weird that whole thing was; and you're right we don't want to open that can of worms. Might be too late though. If you clue me in as to exactly which incident in San Marcos has upset you so, and which cohort you are refering to, I will ponder it if you like. You might do well to ponder why people treat you this way instead of always blameing them when they do. You should also know from the schoolyard that you don't give someone like Tesch any ammunition, but you kept feeding him. What did you expect?
Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to pause here and erase from your minds ever having heard mention of the "San Marcos period" of this rollercoaster ride. You think the Mario stuff is complicated; you have NO idea how bizzarre that situation was. I REALLY don't think that would be wise to explore. But if Jim insists, I'm game. Later though.
OK, we're back.
Sorry pal, my policy is to respond in the forum it was presented in. That's a cheap shot. You want to speak your mind like that about me in public forum, the answers comming to public forum. (Sorry folks, I didn't mean for it to come to this; but I expect further communications will take place off list if necessary). Well, I've had enough excitement for one day. Time to pack it in. I hope everyone else can see the humor in this situation as I do. You have to admit, it's pretty rich.
Brian Baylis Man, this is getting too weird, even for me. Help Mr.Wizard! I want to come home!
Dear CR list,
> I have received many kind and supportive posts off list regarding the
> Confente/Recht/Medici story. Thank you all.
> It seems necessary to respond to Brian's recent response to that post,
> because it was sent to the list, not to me.
> RE: > Personally, I think the only thing between Jim and I in reality is a
> simple matter of
> >>personalities being about 180 degrees apart. Happens sometimes. No
> worries.
>
> In many way we are opposites that don't attract. I have resigned myself to
> his opposition. I don't seek Brian's company. I do (and have done) nothing
> to harm him and I and try not to express any animosity toward him. I can
> work quite well with those whose personality, politics or lifestyle are
> distasteful to me. What Brian misses or tries to gloss over here, is that
> the problems I have with Brian are his actions against me. Personality
> differences just add heat to the formula.
> RE: >I was amused buy Jims' account of the goings on between himself, Mario,
> and Recht.
> It is hard for me to imagine being "amused" by as sad a story as this is.
> In recent attempts to socialize with Brian at bike events I have tried to
> warm up to him, but I am often repulsed at this sense of humor. It seems
> mean spirited. What is funniest to him is others hardships or put downs. I
> just can't get into that. This makes it especially hard for me to mend
> fences with Brian, although I've tried. A recent effort ended in a shouting
> match at the GWBR in 1999.
> RE:>The only time I either went in or out of the Confente
> shop that day was >with an escort (I assume that >was the Chris person) who
> unlocked the >door and let me in where I had no key to open the dead bolt to
> >get out.
> This sort of thing was one of many things what should have made it clear to
> Brian that something was wrong with the situation? (Not to mention unsafe
> and illegal) To me it was perfectly clear that the only reason to deny my
> request to have a Marshal-escorted notorized inventory performed was to
> facilitate Recht's theft?
> RE:>I never spoke to Cunningham, and I can assure you that the
> >>"conversation"(however cleaver it is; I especially liked the part about
> >>the Nazis). <SNIP to the end of the same sorry paragraph> There is a
> possibility
> >>a conversation took place through one of the push out windows which (I
> think)
> >>had bars over them on the front of the building;
>
> Now that he mentions it, I do remember that the conversation occurred
> through the window. I had forgotten that detail as I had several heated
> exchanges on the doorstep. The content of the conversation, which we
> absolutely did have, I am quite clear about. Being 50% German and having
> Jewish girlfriend at the time, and having ground up with Shultz on Hogan's
> Heroes on the tube, the "Nazi" accusation popped out. I am not proud of it.
> I think such accusations have no place in such trivial matters as business
> and employment disputes. What I meant however, was clear in context: Brian
> was shutting out the ethical problem with what was happening, just following
> orders that were obviously wrong and refusing someone desperately asking for
> his help.
> We don't have to speculate on weather we had failed to communicate. Having
> read my detailed written explanation of events, Brian says now, "My business
> was with them, not you. Even if I could have opened the door, I wouldn't
> have if they told me not to." And "your beef with Recht was your business.
> My business was to paint bikes. I'm sorry you feel the need to consider me
> evil, but I'm OK with that".
> I put the anger of that exchange behind me long ago. I recognized that
> other things I called him, were probably unfair at the time. I did not know
> how short-term his involvement had been, nor that he really could not have
> opened the door at all. Remember I supported his being included in the San
> Marcos cooperative in 1981. Even after he helped destroy that cooperative,
> in very ugly fashion, "evil" is too grand a word for the way I feel about
> Brian. I don't waste energy on hate. I do steer clear of people who have
> disappointed me.
> RE:>I don't think I owe you an apology for anything that happened to you as
> a result
> >>of your involvement with Bill Recht.<SNIP> But me apologizing to him for
> his
> >>having gotten involved with Bill Recht isn't going to happen
> either.
>
> I agree. As I said before, I never held that single event discussed above,
> against Brian. Also, Brian had no part in our getting together with Bill
> Recht. The apology is owed for a series of actions taken later, in San
> Marcos in 1983. I don't want drag that mess out in public, and I don't
> expect a public apology. I do think however, if Brian can find it in
> himself to do so, in private, as did his cohort at the time, Dave Tesch, it
> would help heal the rift between us.
> If Recht hurt Mario, perhaps I am to blame for fostering his involvement,
> but Recht would have contacted Mario and tried to hire him without me.
> Perhaps I could have sensed Recht' danger sooner, perhaps I could have
> insisted on a written contract. Perhaps I could have found another
> investor. Perhaps I could have insisted that Mario get medical check-up that
> would have uncovered his heart condition. Perhaps... I could not see the
> future. I did my best in all these areas and more.
> In our partnership, I saw Mario as the master and myself in a support role,
> I presented options and expressed opinions but the decisions at all critical
> points were left to Mario. I suppose to Bill Recht, I had poisoned his plans
> by helping Mario to believe in himself and the possibility of freedom
> through hard work in America. Then I exposed Recht's plans and had the
> audacity to stand up to him.
> RE: >I have no emotional involvement >in what went on with
> Recht and Mario and Jim. Jim obviously has a lot, >pretty much all of it
> negitive. I don't blame him for having bad >feelings about what happened and
> some of the people involved.
> For someone with a passion for framebuilding and who knows how hard it is, I
> find this lack of compassion for others in his craft strange. Perhaps there
> is some jealously or competitiveness getting in the way.
> I came away from the Recht/Confente saga with much more than "negative
> emotional involvement" or "bad feelings". First, despite the unfortunate
> turn of events I still feel privildged to have shared several years with
> Mario Confente. Mario was a masterful craftsman, disciplined and passionate
> about bicycles above all else. They were his calling, money, women, even
> food were lesser priorities. His bravado and weak English masked a
> childlike naitivite' and a powerful soul. He never built my Confente, I was
> not able to keep a single tool, but I gained immeasurably by being his
> partner. I learned about integrity and the power and danger of one's
> convictions.
> Even Bill Recht taught me lessons beyond those in universities. I learned
> to how to protect against and even attack a superior force. I learned
> unwritten laws of litigation. I learned that power and money do not buy
> happiness. That those who would sell their principles for money are weak
> and will fail or desert when times are hard. Pain and struggle build
> strength. More recently, years after I last saw him, Recht has taught me
> that that love of one's craft can out last a corporate empire. (The only
> hits to be found today on a Google Internet search for "RexArt" or
> "Plexicraft" printing or "Bill Recht" is an EPA suit for illegal dumping of
> chemical waste.)
> Brian closes with one question of the type we need to get back to:
> RE:>I'm curious how much Mario was involved in the
> >development of the Masi lugs.
>
> I believe Mario made the models for the first Masi investment cast lugs,
> just as Recht asked him to make them for what became the Medici lugs. They
> arrived when Mario and I were there, but Mario was not satisfied with them.
> This is why he wanted to make the molds, not just the models. As Mario
> explained it, the molds cannot simply be a female of the male model. They
> have to be distorted for the part to be undistorted when cooled. Also, he
> had ways to make the steel thinner than had been done up to that time.
> If there are any responses to this post, I ask again; please send to me off
> line as I need to get back to the book and will not be following the CR list
> as much as I'd like to.
> JFC ~ CyclArtist
> Jim Cunningham
> Vista, CA