The CCA Advisory Meeting -- A Place of Surrender

Pembroke Pines Commissioner Carl Shechter warned us about inconsistent messages when they debated the resolution to inform the President that we did not want this detention center.  He said that the inclusion of the 10 demands to ICE "should" they insist on building the prison anyway, sent an inconsistent message and telegraphed defeat.

All those involved, from the 4 commissioners and Mayor to every single public speaker were very clear in that we are not going to negotiate terms of surrender.  The resolution included statements from 19 HOAs representing 90,000 (at a bare minimum) of the 150,000 residents of Pembroke Pines that they STAUNCHLY oppose the immigrant prison.

In order to complete the legitimacy of the process of jamming a prison down our throats, private prison company Corrections Corporation of America, LLC, has been conducting closed-to-the-public advisory group meetings which are by invitation only and spearheaded by Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz who is also the chair of the Democratic National Committee in an attempt to justify that the public was listened to and she was correct in endorsing the immigrant prison.

These meetings are being used to undermine your opposition to the prison by bringing legitimacy to the negotiations you are engaged in to give us the best prison we can get.  You are writing our terms of surrender and we have made our voices clear.  NO SURRENDER.

If you disagree with this assessment, please read the following letter from Director of Enforcement and Removal, Gary Mead as he responded to Mayor Frank Ortis' demand that Southwest Ranches be taken out of consideration.  He's actually calling these sham advisory meetings "town council meetings."

This is a travesty of representative government.  Again, the advisory meetings you are attending are by invitation only and they EXCLUDE those who refuse to negotiate for the "best prison we can get" including most members of the Residents Against the SW Ranches ICE Detention Center.

HOA presidents, your attendance lends credibility to their process.  Your actions are undermining opposition to the prison. You need to immediately boycott these meetings especially if you signed on to this resolution in opposing the prison.

There are no negotiations.  We will only discuss THEIR concession to leave our communities alone.

A Math Lesson For Attorney Keith Poliakoff

Keith Poliakoff's Twitter Feed has been an interesting source of "creative statistics."  He just posted a few Tweets regarding the AWESOME turnout we had opposing his immigrant prison at the SWR Town Council meeting last Thursday, December 8th.   There were over 150 area residents who came out on a rainy Thursday night to express their opinion on an item that wasn't even on the agenda and barely two weeks away from Christmas.

Take a look at the creative math used by our Attorney who will be compensated more than $600,000 this year by the Town for his apparent expertise.  He Tweeted on 12/12:

Since I was just asked, there are 2460 residential households in the Town. 16 households spoke against the CCA Facility, or .0065%.

12 Dec Favorite Retweet Reply

»

keith_poliakoff Keith Poliakoff

16 total SWR households spoke against CCA Facility at Town's meeting. Town asks CCA to reach out to households not spoken to yet.

Keith is negotiating our contract but apparently doesn't understand basic mathematics.  He claims that 16 households our of 2460 residential households equals a percentage of 0.0065%.  Of course, even an elementary school student knows this math is wrong.

One can only guess at the motive this allegedly smart man had in understating opposition by a factor of 100.  But, it should be a wake up call to the Town Council as to how consistently Keith Poliakoff plays fast and footloose with facts.  He has no compunction about shooting from the hip and emoting whatever is on his tongue at the moment.

The correct percentage of turnout of SWR households was 0.65% (assuming their aren't HUNDREDS of vacant houses in foreclosure in the Town.  But that's a different issue.)  This turnout should resonate with anybody who understands the nature of public turnout and activism.  It is the tip of the iceberg in terms of grassroots opposition.

When is the last time that Poliakoff saw 0.65% of his Town's residents turn out for ANY political issue, especially a non agenda item?  And if 0.65% is nothing to Poliakoff, then perhaps HIS turnout of 4 people at the ICE meeting which is 0.16% is even more telling.   It's more telling that on a widely anticipated and advertised meeting with ICE on 11/5 that took place on a beautiful Saturday morning at 10:00 AM, he was only able to get FOUR SWR residents to go on record supporting the prison.  One was former Councilman Aster Knight.  So really, he got three people who apparently didn't have a dog in the fight to come out.

THAT'S pathetic.

Shame on you, you feckless Attorney.  I hope you understand mathematics or the TRUTH better as you negotiate two prison contracts.  For the sake of us all.

Council take heed.  If you honestly believe that you have 75% of the SWR residents on your side, it's going to be FUN to watch the freight train of residents hit you in November.