Enough Is Enough

Ray Pavlak has repeatedly misstated facts regarding the Winsted Health Center Foundation. It is a disingenuous strategy to repeat an inaccuracy in the hope that it takes on a truth of its own. This relentless misinformation campaign and barrage of name-calling by the Pavlaks is not a substitute for facts and accuracy.

For example, Ray states for the umpteenth time that the bylaws of the old Winsted Memorial Hospital and the Winsted Health Center Foundation are the same [Where Are We Coming From?, March 8]. It is simply not true. They are vastly different, and anyone who cares to read both may contact me. Another repeated error is that the Foundation is spending more for staff compensation—wrong. A further inaccuracy is that the Foundation received less in contributions in 2001 than in 2000—wrong. These are factual matters that are not open to interpretation.

Ray acts like he is on a crusade and that it is righteous. To this end he and his small gang of disgruntled corporators submitted a grossly inaccurate complaint to the Attorney General, which was dismissed. Nearly every claim was based on erroneous fact. At that time, I wrote to Ray to remind him that the reason Code Blue was successful in uncovering and publicizing the misdeeds of Mr. Sok and the former hospital board of directors was due to research and factual accuracy.

Last week Ray’s group threatened a lawsuit against the Foundation, its executive director Deirdre DiCara, former executive director Fred Hyde and 11 corporators, including Blanche McCarthy Sewell, Bob Ellsworth and Claire Nader. This lawsuit asserts many of the same preposterous claims that the Attorney General dismissed and several other outlandish claims not based in fact or law. Threatening lawsuits against hard-working volunteers based on false information and unsubstantiated opinion is inexcusable.

Public ranting doesn’t change the facts and hiding behind the cloak of democracy is no excuse for falsehoods. One cannot go on misleading the public; eventually people realize it. The corporators have finally had enough: last year, Ray was voted out of the corporation by an overwhelming majority and this year, several more of his gang seeking re-election were also voted out by a nearly 3-1 margin.

Ray continues to insult the corporators by saying that they are all part of a clique. He is entitled to think conspiracy. But Ray’s misinformation campaign has backfired. The vast majority of corporators and others dismiss the rant because they know the facts.