Tuesday, February 12, 2013

UFA going to the authorities

We told you recently how United Fishermen of Alaska suspected a rival had eavesdropped on one of UFA's private teleconferences.

UFA is now taking the matter to the authorities, including the Juneau district attorney.

Here's a press release UFA issued today:

UFA begins process of releasing information to the Alaska authorities regarding unauthorized eavesdropping of UFA teleconference by office of Kenai River Sportfishing Association

On January 17, 2013 the United Fishermen of Alaska (UFA), Alaska’s largest statewide commercial fishing trade association representing 34 member organizations, held a private teleconference. In addition to 25 UFA Board members, an individual or individuals at the offices of the Kenai River Sportfishing Association (KRSA) was also on the line during the teleconference. This fact was later confirmed by the teleconference vendor, who provided a phone log, which included a phone number registered to the KRSA office. KRSA is not affiliated with UFA in any way. KRSA is not a member of UFA. KRSA was not invited by UFA to join the teleconference. The person or persons who listened in on UFA’s meeting from the KRSA offices did not acknowledge their presence when joining the teleconference. UFA was not aware of this intrusion until it received an email on January 18, 2013 indicating that information regarding UFA Board member discussions had been transmitted to a third party. On February 8, 2013 UFA began the process of turning over information to the authorities with the expectation that a full investigation would be initiated.

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

how will this improve anything in a fish fight? another mistake by a downward spiraling industry. ufa hotline number...1 (800) WAAA.

Anonymous said...

And of course since illegal interceptions, seem to be a UFA speciality, how would one know if KRSA, has no affiliated members at UFA?

34 Organizations, and not one KRSA member?

What "IS" an illegal interception?

http://www.ucba.org/

Associate members,?

http://groundfishforum.org/

Anonymous said...

Alaska is a "one party consent" state. If any party consents to allow another party to listen in on a private conversation, there is no violation of 42.20.300 or 310. If someone from the UFA board who attended the teleconference provided anyone not a party to the UFA teleconference the call in number, then at least "one party" consented to the act of listening in. How else could anyone get the call in number if it was not given to them by someone participating in the teleconference? Probably not a smart thing to do, but probably not illegal either.

Anonymous said...

1. Could have stole the number
2. Could have taken off a computer
3. Could have broken into ciaa
4. Could have hacked a Ufa email

Who cares how they got it

Ufa will know sooner than later cuz if KRSA got this legally they'll have to show their source

Else do the time

Anonymous said...

The DA's office will look at the evidence, if the evidence warrants, they will have an investigation, and if the investigation shows the law was broken, presumably they will prosecute the KRSA person who eavesdropped the call. If there isn't evidence that a law was broken, they will drop it. Its not rocket science.

All the secondary, speculative questions about how the teleconference number was obtained, what the involvement of the BOF chair was, etc. won't be known without an investigation.

This should have happened weeks ago.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous sounds like a disgruntled deck hand fired for using drugs...

Anonymous said...

It seems like the DA's office has plenty of rape, murder, home invasion shit to worry about. I have been told by my in-house attorneys that white collar crimes are not typically pursued unless the amount is at least six figures. Is it really reasonable to think they care about this petty nonsense?

UFA needs to be more careful with their teleconference numbers. KRSA cheated and will probably get away with it. Quit the drama.

Anonymous said...

Alaska Fisheries Politics.

Oh Alaska, Alaska, Crooked State Alaska.

Anonymous said...

Eldon Mulder, former house finance chairman, never senator, as alleged in the other Ufa-KRSA piece, is the president of KRSA and you'd just have to ask yourself why he never registered with apoc, how he got his place on the Kenai river when he was making 20,000 , a year, in the legislature, as a representative, never as a senator, a guy was sticking up for him last time saying everyone liked him, and that he had been a senator, wrong on both counts!yeah call Wesley and have him take this comment down like the last one, that way well know how you got that place on the Kenai

Groundswell said...

UFA - "fellator of mandrills" as one associate terms it - aka, a political fire bottom-blackened pot encrusted with the overcooked dung of corruption against real fishermen, tool of the kleptocracy, has the gall to take a barbeque starting gas wand to the alleged kettle of the Kenai.

Once headed by the kingpin of ad hominems, Bobby T; now sporting school-girl enthusiast violator of the federal (criminal) Hatch Act Julianne Curry, UFA can't find its way through the world of blogging chatter into the realm of defamation which it long ago began to practice with regularity. Now, with little juice left in Juneau, little chance for its faction to crush democracy and reason in favor of parochial SE-AK seiners and Seattle cohooters, this is all they have left to provide Raison d'être -- when they should be busy admitting their tripartite of failures: to unite, to represent fishermen, and to be Alaskan at all.

Most pitiful is that UFA members would allow the baseless expenditures - some lawyer must be lined up with this as a kickback or else top brass is really dumb - of such an unwinnable case. No, the facts will not exactly get a hearing - as this will be tossed by the courts as frivolous or summary judgment rules no need for a trier of facts.

One wonders what next for UFA, as if its leaders are so easily stunned and left stumbling by something this spitefully childish -- score one for the Kenai -- then may the gods help them when some seabird scoops the next little pink salmon out of their net.

In other words, it is delightfully entertaining to watch UFA fall so easily under the first slinged stone of undersized opposition. The end is surely near. Save for a (never) successful next, "Hey Rocky, watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat".

Festina lente,
Groundswell

Anonymous said...

KRSA, the poster, Taufen of Groundswell has been unrelentless and steadfast in pointing out the real truths of corruption in Alaska Commercial Fisheries. All players who would steal a public resource and attack anyone who spoke of it have been exposed by Goundswell. Taufen's work has never been challenged by the crooks because they know they can't beat the truth. It would be advisable to hear/read what he has been talking about, in fact, all fishermen who are fed up with UFA and Bobby t should plan for a change.

Anonymous said...

Bob Penney (of KRSA) has joined the board of a pro-Susitna dam organization.

He only has love for salmon that impress his corrupt political friends. And if Kenai salmon are the only salmon left - then that's a good thing for Bob Penney.

http://commerce.alaska.gov/CBP/Main/CorporationDetail.aspx?id=133554

Anonymous said...

KRSA and Taufen, a match made in hell. Yeah don't join Ufa join groundswell,oh that's right they have no members
Just like Taufen to saddle up to KRSA

Anonymous said...

You make it sound like having a director with a nice ass is a bad thing. Your just jealous cause yours is butt ugly.

Anonymous said...

The Alaska State Constitution includes a specific Right to Privacy in Art 1, sec. 22. A privacy right requires a reasonable expectation of privacy, actually exhibited and willingly recognized by society. Under Alaska law, the right to privacy extends to private conversations, even where one of the parties consents to the violation.

This violation of privacy was not, however, a government action - there was no instigation by a State agent, nor did any agent join the incident.
This is best handled through private litigation under tort law. And if we know one thing, both UFA and KRSA can hire lawyers galore.

Anonymous said...

Groundswell, membership of one. A real force!

Anonymous said...

Hatch Act? Sounds serious. Since 12:19 is such a famous whistle-blower an all, why not blow the whistle instead of hot air?

Anonymous said...

Hey Groundswell, you sound like you are stroking KRSA for a job. Are you pro comm fish? If so shut up!

Groundswell for Fun said...

Pro-subsistence, Pro-sportsfishing, and pro-commercial.
KSRA and Groundswell would indeed be a match made in hell, as Groundswell has already reported Penney's network of corruption to topmost law officials on several occasions - after the Kenai billionaire had both your uncle Ted and auntie M on their knees to do his bidding. Truth is, Penney and Bobby T are like the siamese twins of fisheries corruption and both largely got away with it, so far. The Justice Dept. gag order (request to not publicly disclose all we know, factually) in place keeps you from fully evaluating the situation with clear senses. And yes, the Hatch Act is serious enough that Congress spent a lot of time reworking that law. Not our problem that the Office of Special Counsel has trouble enforcing it - same as Senate Ethics is a failed arm of guv'ment.

But let's just get back on topic and say that UFA is a bunch of pipe dreamers if they figure they'll have more pull with the Alaska AG - a political appointee - than Penney has behind closed doors. And with no real criminal intent, no intelligence measures taken to keep UFA telecons exclusive, and given Alaska's good law on eavesdropping rights, our gurry in one hand and hope in the other and see which fills first.

And loose the talk of rights to privacy for public vortex matters, as that pink salmon don't fly.

PS: apologies to all those who know a good sea-run pink can be a delicious fish. We hate to insult the humpies like that... but the simile takes wings well.

Now the real work is cut out for UFA - figuring out how to regain integrity - about like figuring out how to get unpregnant and re-virginized. Such is the casting couch of the fisheries show.

Shame on us for reading humorous crime novels at this time of year.

Anonymous said...

Fair enough, can't argue with you about Penney.

But at least I know what side BobbyT is on in the sports/comm fish wars.

You just seem to talk alot of smack.

Anonymous said...

Groundswell is wicked. Go Groundswell, KRSA won't need your help, but UFA SURE DOES. UFA membership jump over to Groundswell and get your transparent representation with balls, you are in a fight not a dance for your survival.

Anonymous said...

Most people already have ditched the UFA, It is as easy to separate those parts. as to pick out diamonds from dunghills.

The boisterous sea of liberty indeed is never without a wave.

Timid men....prefer the calm of despotism...just join the UFA.

Anonymous said...

As for Penney and mr t
Taufen says they 'largely got away'
I must say that is the understatement of the century past and present

Penney has triple the net worth as when this started at around an estimated 1/2 billion.
Football head is busy building 2 brand new 58 footers, has billings of 300,000 as a fish lobbyist according to apoc. When this corruption probe started he had a wood boat and a job at SEAS

I'd say this Taufen porn approach at lambasting Penney and T has only backfired, although this is the very first time Penney has appeared on taufens screen and it looks as though he may be closer to penney than originally thought!

from OceanCalm, a group dedicated to the real truth, the very opposite of GroundSwell, if you didn't get it,though we despise Penney and taufens and groundswells apparent joining up with KRSA, we like mr T. As we've always asserted, "He may be an SOB, but he's our SOB"!!!!

Signed, M.K., Secretary, Kodiak Grand Camp of OceanCalm

Anonymous said...

As the world watches, I would like to point out that the blogger above hits the nail on the head when he said:

"Timid men.....prefer the calm of despotism......"

They know they don't have the stuff to make it on their own so they group up like the bullies that they are and sling hearsay like it's the God Given Truth. It is through their actions that the society we live in sucks to hell and back. It's a good thing that those peoples names are on some sort or paper or another. That paper will go down in history. That paper will become part of those peoples legacy.

The shit hits the fan eventually when there is so much BS being slung around as if it is fact!

Anonymous said...

Love the comments, Groundswell
IS exposing the REAL TRUTH. That Bobbyt guy sure has bullshitted his way to happiness. How can most residents listen to someone who endorsed a greedy equal split caper for sitka herring, running seine permits aground permanently, kicking processors in the teeth with a shrinking fleet, eliminating hatchery cost recovery, then buys another permit plus builds two new 58' seiners? Sure there will be those that support this, it doesn't take alot of smarts to figure out that they are just like him. Seems poster 10:32 has it right. Time for a bag of popcorn, this show is about greed, bullies and dancing with no teeth.

Anonymous said...

Kicking processors in the teeth with a shrinking fleet.bummer.lets do away with limited entry so the poor processors can have unlimited fleets.

Anonymous said...

That Bobbyt guy?
That Bobbyt guy?

Creating an equal playing field by sticking up for fishermen, trying to rescue Sitka sac roe before it runs aground by working for the vast majority of fishermen over there who believe in a better management model,, attempting to change cost recovery so that it works for fishermen rather than just processors.

Working for continued access to the fisheries resources of Alaska by Alaskan commercial fishermen, throughout the state.

That Bobbyt.

And the guy who ran a seiner at age 19, in 1983, and now, finally after 30 years with a 1949 seiner that is older than 90% of the seiners fishing in Alaska, is building 2 seiners, finally, along with a half dozen partners who are skippers and crew members. Who could've built these boats without partners, but who believes in the young guys climbing the ladder and working with them, for them and encouraging them.

Yup. That's me

You guys can throw crap on the wall all day long. Most of you have never met me and you are nothing but pathetic, nameless, faceless losers who are afraid to sign their names.

It's quite amusing. Someone said on here that they couldn't sign their name for fear of retribution. How empowering. Like I could just call their mom or dad and cancel their allowance or something.

Face it guys,gals, anonymous whomever you are. On the seas blog at www.seiners.net folks ID themselves or they don't get posted

Period. And around 35% of all hits come from countries other than the US. So you might be some anonymous poster from Yemen or Madagascar for all we know.

Only the extremely ignorant and stupid take any credence or give any validity to anything that is posted anonymously.

At least Taufen-porn, when it shows up from Groundswell, has an author, even though I have yet to clearly understand just whose side the former Unisea employee is on.

Bobbyt

Anonymous said...

As you know most processors all have a stake in farmed salmon and sell salmon in a world market. Loosing boats, paying higher fish prices, having more risk and watching profits dwindle is the same as getting kicked in the teeth. AND who is behind whacking the fleet? Greedy ass Seiners, don't start crying when the processors have had it and start pushing farmed and breaking some ass with a huge drop in ex-vessel. The market is great but it is the processors who determine how much they will pay. Silver Bay cannot beat the farmed market no way.

Anonymous said...

Silver Bay, Icicle, Trident , AGS, OBSI, NPPI, ECPhillips, and our latest buyer in SE, Sealaska,dba Rocky Pass, are all great companies.

Where did processors lose boats? You, sir, do not know SE.

It was SE seiners who were kicked in the teeth. A decade ago, on limit, 5-7-8 cents a pound, we couldn't make a living.

The less fortunate of us, including myself, had to get jobs.

We didn't embark on a mission to make processors profits dwindle, quite the contrary. Processor profits from 2007-2012 have beat a y 6 year period in the history of the salmon industry post statehood.

So they are paying us 50 cents a pound now instead of a nickel or dime. We think that's a good thing.

That's it from me here. Loosing boats, you're probably from china or one of those nigerian bankiers we all get emails from. Learn the English language and sharpen up your SE history.

As for e processors, they're great, we love them, and we appreciate e newfound appreciation they have for us that seemed to be lost a decade ago when half of us lost our jobs

Sincerely

Bobbyt

Anonymous said...

BobbyT, you say where are the processors losing boats? Your buy-back program. Seen by some as un-necessary due to the high profits of late.
You say SE Seiners were kicked in the teeth? Yep and you did it. Fished during a strike along with the other Petersburg boats. You can scream all you want..this chinese says it is the year of the snake and he sees one.

Anonymous said...

Snakes can taste good too.

http://1.usa.gov/XcLRia

Anonymous said...

Boats fishing 2002-2007, pre buyback, 215 average

Boats fishing 2011-2013, post buyback 265 average


Do the math, mr chinaman

Processors lost no boats overall

They gained 50 boats

Bobbyt

Ps.. Don't know what your processor defense has to do with KRSA eavesdropping the UFA teleconference, however.

Anonymous said...

And btw. I broke 2 strikes. Not one. Do your history along with your math.

1991 and 1997. I owned 3% of my processor, my family 12% so I wasn't about to strike against myself, my father or my grandmother.

In 1997, the Petersburg fleet negotiated a 100% price increase. That wasn't strike breaking, that was good negotiating. In 1991 the entire icicle fleet was tied up.

Bobbyt, signing off