Time seems to be flying by this year. It seems only yesterday we were enjoying the hospitality and great weather of Monterey, yet here we are with Christmas Holidays upon us.
I have been reading about a lot of incidents in the paper and seeing news clips both on the internet and the evening news. This brings to mind that our quarterly trainings are very important to our membership current in our methods. To this I am happy to report that quarterly trainings are receiving high ratings and praise for their content. I have to commend and thank the regional and state board members who are working hard to bring relevant information to everyone. As always you are doing an outstanding job.
During this time I would like to address two subjects:
The first is the membership cards. It appears while I was working with the company who created the software for our membership cards, we encountered a minor problem. While creating our design template, I was instructed to delete the field which reads and translates the information onto the back of the membership card. Deleting this field made the magnetic strip on the back of the card useless. Patricia Larrigan has been in contact with the manufacturer to work on this issue. I am hopeful we can solve this problem soon. We are working with the manufacturer to provide replacement cards and several ribbons for the printer to complete the task. However, it will mean we will have to replace all of the membership cards that have been distributed. Please hold onto your cards and we will issue you new ones as they come on line. I apologize for any inconvenience and hopefully will have this problem solved before the next conference.
The second item I would like to address is press inquiries. I have been contacted on numerous occasions by press asking for a critique of an in progress incident or asking what tactics a negotiator would use in a given situation. Each time I have responded that CAHN would not comment on an in progress call as we do not want to be perceived as critiquing another agencies operation. I also do not feel comfortable having only the press agencies view of events. They don’t always give us the straight info or in most cases don’t have all of the facts. Each time I have responded that I would be happy to provide information once I have had the time to gather the facts from sources other than the press agency making the inquiry. Each time I have received the response “I need the info now; I’m working on a deadline”. The press has found our website and contacted several state board members for comments, going down the list when they don’t get an answer or a reply. I would caution anyone making any statements to beware as the press will take a small comment and make more out of it than what your intention would be. They will also ask you what agency you work for, even though they may have contacted you as CAHN member. The most recent incident I can think of was a “jumper” in San Francisco. A Fire Department Lieutenant approached a subject who was on the ledge and in active negotiations with Police on the ground. The Lieutenant did not tell/nor ask permission from the police command post about what he was going to do. The end result was a failed attempt to grab the subject and pull him to safety. Instead the subject was startled, did not know what was happening and began to fight and subsequently fell to his death. A member was contacted and gave a statement, which I agreed with and was right on track with our training. This is just a reminder to be careful when talking with the press and ask for time to research the incident before answering questions for the press. This is how the state board has been asked to handle the situation.
As always, if you have any questions or input, please do not hesitate to contact myself or any regional or state board member. We are happy to have your input for your association.
Happy Holidays to you and your family and be safe.
Matt Thomas
