Re: consumer fraud vs. the homeless: HPN again

Virginia Sellner (wych@tcd.net)
Fri, 30 Jan 1998 17:38:02 -0800 

Who do you think you are anyway?  God.  Where do you get off with your
attacks on people.  We were homeless for your information in 1961 so I
resent your implications.  I resent your implications regarding Tom, hpn and
everone else that you mentioned.  I AM NOT a landlord -- I suggest that you
watch what you say on the net --  you may be held liable.

Some of the people on hpn are no longer homeless, but all have experienced
homelessness at different times and for different lengths of time -- I
believe that in the very beginning Tom actually gave some examples of this.  

You know very little of which you speak, and it is getting old.  

Why don't you quit attacking people and get on with some positive work.

Virginia
>
>Someone wrote me privately, suggesting that the recent HPN plug on this
>CSF Homeless listserv was designed to attract the attention of the
>reporter from France. 
>
>HPN update:
>
>There doesn't seem to be much change in the HPN list since my posting last
>month "Dispatch from HPN".
>(http://csf.colorado.edu/mail/homeless/dec97/0023.html).
>
>HPN is tightly controlled by:
>
>-Tom Boland, who is a non-homeless college graduate and former graduate
>student. Tom refuses to disclose where he went to school, his studies, and
>his involvement in the poverty industry, much of which may disqualify him
>for having a conflict of interest with the homeless. 
>
>-Patricia Myers, a non-homeless, middle-aged graduate student at the
>University of Washington. 
>
>-Virginia Sellner, graduate of Rollins College in Florida, who is
>a (former?) board member of the NCH, non-homeless, and is a landlord of a
>facility in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
>
>As of this report, there are between 300-350 postings at the HPN January
>archives.  Approximately 2/3 of those postings are from less than 5
>non-homeless "core" members of the list.  Non-archived postings are
>presumed distributed by similar proportion.
>
>The HPN list still has only 30 to 40 members.  Most of them are
>non-homeless.  Less than 3 appear to be possibly homeless.  
>
>HPN is a de facto "moderated" list, by Boland, Pat Myers, and Sellner. 
>Contrary to Boland's representations, HPN is definitely *not* a homeless
>controlled list.  Homeless people who wander into their list are at high
>risk of exploitation for profit, aggrandizement, and class-formation.
>
>The list is hosted by Arizona State University (aspin.asu.edu).  Like
>other major universities, Arizona State probably has strict guideliness in
>respect to human-subject research, which would include the use of homeless
>people as research subjects.  Any such guidelines and necessary
>administrative approvals are not incorporated by Boland. 
>
>One member of the HPN list who is probably homeless, and believes himself
>to be mentally ill, appears to have recently prostrated himself on-line to
>the list-leadership of Boland, Pat Myers, and Sellner, who appeared to
>look upon his prostration unabashed.
>
>Conclusion
>
>HPN still remains a nuisance for homeless internet consumers and others
>who may be interested in homelessness.  It is clear that there is little
>or no chance Boland will operate HPN honestly without his hand being
>forced, so therefore HPN should probably be shut down until adequate
>disclosures about Tom Boland and the list are made publicly available on
>the HPN homepage. Outside intervention, perhaps by Arizona State
>University, might be appropriate.
>
>News reporters are especially vulnerable to personations by non-homeless
>people who pretend to be homeless.  For example, during this past year,
>there was a large newspaper photograph in the Stanford Daily of an
>activist who was described as "a homeless man", who actually wasn't.
>Reporters should therefore view HPN with a great deal of caution.
>
>dhm
>
>
______________________________________________
 Speak only words of truth.
 Speak only of the good qualities of others.
 Be a confidant and carry no tales.

 Dhyani Ywahoo,"Voices of our Ancestors, Cherokee teachings from the Wisdom
Fire".