Mellotronists

Greetings, all.
 
After reading the content of some of the recent postings, it's time  to 
address a more serious issue, one that extends beyond the petty sniping and  
bickering that Streetly is known for.  There is Mellotron Blacklist, and  I've been 
placed on it.  This is a long posting, but please read it all as  there is a 
much more significant issue here in the conclusion that all on this  list 
should concerned about and could potentially be negatively impacted  by.
 
Why, you are likely asking, am I being blacklisted?  I, too  would like to 
know.  Last year, I had a dispute with a well-known member on  this list.  It 
was, should have been, and remains a private matter, other  than to say there 
was an uncooperative third party involved that complicated  matters.  Although 
the issue was resolved back in September, and there was  no intent, no harm, no 
foul, this person has deliberately broken confidentiality  by sharing his 
skewed and paranoid version of the incident with Streetly, Jimmy  Moore, and 
perhaps others who have no business being involved.  Part of  this vile, vicious, 
retaliatory, backstabbing, unjustified, and willfully  malicious slander/libel 
stems from this person's insecurity, paranoia, anxiety,  and extreme 
narcissism.  Email exchanges degenerated to a nasty level,  which I'm not proud to say 
I also engaged in.  Despite this person having  been nicely paid for doing a 
magnificant job in restoring my MkII (and I might  add that payment for 
services was NEVER an issue), and basically having an  all-expense paid 5-day trip 
to San Diego for follow-up inspection and work,  complete with sightseeing 
trip, my hospitality was rewarded by petty bickering  and sniping the likes I have 
not seen since the infamous Streetly-DK flame wars  of a few years back.  I'm 
surprised that my mother was not insulted.   This insecure person could not 
refrain from reminding me of the work he had done  at every opportunity.  Hey, 
when the plumber fixes my sink, I pay him,  thank him, tell him he did a good 
job, and he goes on to the next job, and  doesn't call me several times a week 
to remind me of it.   I  basically would not kowtow to this person's 
unreasonable demands (that would  have only gummed up the situation even further), 
would not say "How high?" when  he said "Jump", and basically told the emperor 
that he had no clothes.   Although the subject was tape availability, it is 
interesting to note that this  person recently wrote, "Some of us have openly 
disagreed on this  List about many topics.  'Ya think we could collectively work 
on this  all-important tape issue to the betterment of the Trons?"   I  guess 
"collectively" means when it suits his own purpose and/or elevates him in  
others' eyes to feed his narcissistic personality.  And before anyone  starts 
questioning my use of these terms, I'm an experienced therapist  (and you're not, 
as Chevy Chase used to say) and know that this  clinical assessment is 
accurate.
 
After a good deal of thought, I sent this person a holiday greeting  and a 
concilatory message extending the proverbial olive branch just before  
Christmas, with no response.  I sent email to Streetly inquiring about a  replacement 
tape for the MkII, only to receive the  following responses, "Having read the 
recent correspondence  between yourself and (name withheld) and having 
witnessed the slow decline in  (name withheld) spirits as the threat of credit 
blacklisting became a real  possibility, John and myself have decided that we can 
never again support  you.  This decision is final and lasting.  No further 
correspondence  will be entered into", "We choose not to deal with you.  We chose 
not to  deal with you prior
to (name withheld) taking on the MKII.   If it was up to us it would never 
have been restored but luckily it provided a  good man with an income when he 
most needed it and that is why we  supplied the parts and tapes.  The deal is 
done and and you have what you  wanted.  Now go away.", and "All the ugly traits 
of character displayed  during recent events only confirmed that our earlier 
decision to remove you from  our lives was correct.  End of correspondence."  
I emailed  this person again to follow-up on the content of Martin's response 
only to find  that this person had blocked my emails.  TRONBROS subsequently 
also blocked  my emails.  Martin couldn't even refrain from sniping in a 
posting from  earlier today, "First of all I don't hate anyone in particular, Mark  
included, although there may be a fat bastard somewhere I can't stand but 
that's  for another day."

I had a very civil phone conversation  with this person on New Year's Day, 
and he denied having any involvement in  Streetly's decision, despite Martin 
having made direct reference to him on three  occasions, including a phone call 
to me from Martin later the same day, stating,  "John and I don't like you", 
and threatened to  "publicly denounce" me on the list if I kept "bothering"  
this person, then said the situation with this person had nothing to do  with 
their decision despite the aforementioned references, and that they  (Streetly) 
felt this way even dating back to my visit there in July  2003.  I then wrote 
Martin asking what other pre-visit reasons there were  and have not received a 
response to date.  What, are you guys still pissed  over the aborted deal for 
MkII #103?  Most of you are aware that the  backing I thought was in place 
fell through back in 2000.  103 was sold a  month or so later to John McLain 
(probably at a higher price), and Streetly kept  750 pounds (roughly $1K at the 
time) as a "restocking fee" (but they don't tell  you that part).  They made out 
very nicely on the deal, so what's their  bitch? 

To Streetly:  Whatever transpired between this person and  myself was and is 
simply none of you fucking business!  Do you  guys run a business or a gossip 
column?  You pissed off half the Mellotron  community with the Streetly-DK 
flame wars, then continue to be  just as snide and condescending to Markus 
whenever the opportunity  arises.  Good business move, guys!  Now you  start 
blacklisting people who help supply you with a livelihood?  Good  business move, 
guys!  I don't give a rat's behind if you like me or not, I  haven't lost any 
sleep over it, but you too easily lose sight of the fact  that I'm a paying 
customer.  Good business move, guys!  A  member of this list recently commented that 
both Streetly and MA supply parts  and tapes, but that MA has not supplied 
any new sounds.  Let's look at that  - Most of the new sounds from Streetly were 
created/generated by others (i.e.,  Ian McDonald, Rick Blechta, Fritz Doddy, 
Mike Dickson); the Sad Strings were  already pre-existing, so we were told.  I 
don't recall the origin of the  Russian Choir, so Streetly may get a credit 
here after all - hey, give credit  where credit is due.  But where are the 
T-550's and 400's that have been  promised since the first Toronto workshop back 
in 2000?  Good business  move, guys!  Instead of a collaborative Streetly/DK 
effort, we ended up  with warring factions.  Good business move, guys!  Made all 
the  more funnier by your recent alienating comment that some owners just 
have a tron  for the sake of having one and won't upgrade.  Another good business 
move,  guys!
 
To all on this list: The bigger issue is beyond what has happened  to just 
one individual.  Is this a business or not?  Streetly  keeps paying us lip 
service that is is, yet their actions speak volumes to the  contrary.  Who in hell 
appointed this person and Streety as  conspiratorial and judgmental moral 
guardians of the Mellotron community?   Is this a community united in its love for 
Mellotrons or  not?    Is this tolerable/acceptable behavior?  Is the  
membership of this list going to take a stand of their own to reverse this  
injustice, or merely be sheeple and preserve the unfair status  quo?  So which member 
of the list that doesn't follow the party line  is next to be placed on the 
blacklist.  How many more have to be put on it  before we do something?  I say 
one is too many.  Now, I have a MkII  with a broken cycling motor mount bolt on 
one side and a broken tape on the  other, and can't get parts for it (sorry, 
Markus; I'm only speaking in terms of  Streetly compatibilty here; no offense 
intended).  So does my  Pinder-pedigreed MkII sit here and rot now?  Should I 
take it out to the  desert and pull a Wakeman?  Or should it get the support 
it  deserves?
 
Hoping to gain some support here,
Frank Samagaio
San Diego CA
MkII #134 / M400 #908
author, The Mellotron  Book