Dear Editor:
As I write this I am profoundly saddened angry that I and many others feel that these words need to be said.
The Court system is, from my understanding a charity group, the Emperor and Empress elected by the community to represent the community as a whole. If this is the case, we shouldn’t have bothered to hold elections this year; the group might as well have been disbanded.
The Court is not visible, they do not communicate and interact with people as a whole, and they have shown conduct very unbecoming to the community.
MoneyPennies has yet to see the court officially darken their door, let alone approach them to organize a function. What does this say to the owner of the bar? It would say to me that MoneyPennies isn’t worth their time, and as an owner I would be loathe to welcome the Court back ever after a slap in the face such as this.
It is rarely, if ever the Emperor and Empress are at Twisted Element, and if they do show up it is near the end of the night when most people have either gone home or are too drunk to care. When they do show up, there is no interaction with people; they cluster with themselves and that is it. Where do the future Emperors and Empresses come from I ask you? That’s right – the youth of our community. How are they supposed to garner any interest in this organization if their impression is a bunch of stand-offish snobs wearing weird crowns hidden off in a corner?
World AIDS Day was possibly the biggest disappointment and cause for righteous anger. The Empress decided, after having a juvenile fight with another queen, to boycott the show because she didn’t get her way. World AIDS Day is there to make people aware so the disease can be fought, and more importantly, to remember those who live with HIV/AIDS or have died from the disease. How dare the Empress presume that her own petty ego supersedes the lives, welfare and remembrance of many.
Last year, Dynamyte and Wolfgang were perfect examples of what representing and building the community are all about. From what I have seen and heard from others, they did this mostly by being visible, keeping in contact with their venues and talking to people about the organization.
I also chastise the Board that governs the Court, because their job is to protect the integrity of the organization and administer advice or reprimands as conduct requires. This means that the Board is either deaf and blind, or have a combined IQ equaling a newborn to have missed the misdemeanors that have been happening this year. I can only imagine what other things that have transpired if what myself and my friends have seen this much.
Lonnie and Conrad, either wake up, get off your asses and start actually representing the community, or do us a favor and resign because right now, no matter how much money you raise, you are an embarrassment to all of us.
Sincerely, J. Anderson


Due to the nature of this letter, we offered the ISCCA the opportunity to respond. The identity of the author was not revealed to them to ensure an impartial answer. The ISCCA’s response follows:


Dear Editors,
First off, allow me to express my gratitude being given an opportunity to respond to this letter in a timely manner. I would like to preface my comments by stating that the identity of the author of this letter has not been revealed to me as I write this, therefore I apologize if some of my responses are not in the correct context.
Let me start by saying that I am pleased that this individual has taken the time and effort to put their concerns into writing. It demonstrates that they care about the ISCCA and their community. You must be truly passionate about the issues in order to take this step. I do wish, however, that you would have addressed your concerns directly to the Board of Directors rather than using so public a forum. The ISCCA has always welcomed the public to their Board Meetings in order to discuss any issues or concerns. Anyone wishing to attend a Board Meeting can find our contact information on our website (www.iscca.ca) or through our page on facebook.
The ISCCA is a charity fundraising organization. That is our top priority. The social aspects of it, and representing our community, are both benefits that come along with doing the real work of our organization, which is to raise funds to support the charities in our community.
We have struggled this year with finding the most effective ways to utilize the spaces available to us in the community. Although you are correct that we have not done a function yet at Money Pennies, your comment that we have not approached them is incorrect. We are aware that the owners of Money Pennies want the ISCCA to do functions in their venue, and the ISCCA is grateful for the opportunity. The challenge we face is in ensuring that whatever we plan there is positive for both the venue and the ISCCA.
As for the lack of attendance at Twisted Element, the ISCCA does a show there every Wednesday night. Furthermore, when the monarchs arrive at the bar at the end of the night, it is because they are leaving another venue after a function in order to support the Twisted Element. On Saturday nights, the ISCCA has at least one, and as many as three functions going on throughout the city.
I don’t want to say much about the World AIDS Day situation, as it is over and done with. It is truly regrettable that the situation came to pass on that evening, which is supposed to be about honoring the memory of those we lost. Writing the event off as a petty bitch fight between queens is simply a convenient way for the other people who were involved in the events of the evening to avoid taking responsibility for their actions. The bottom line is this: it is the policy of the ISCCA that if a title holder is in an emotionally charged situation, and is unsure if they can keep their emotions in check, they are to leave that situation, rather than risking an emotional confrontation at the function. Again, although we are sorry the events came to pass on World AIDS Day, the actions of the Empress were appropriate to the situation.
I need to point out that the people who take on the role of Emperor and Empress are volunteers. They give up their personal life for a year, and they receive absolutely no financial compensation for their efforts. Being a monarch is like taking on a second full-time job. The sad thing is that it’s also like painting a huge target on their back, because they will never please everyone in the community, no matter how hard they try, and far more people are willing to criticize than help to make things better.
Last year, Dyna and Wolfgang had an amazing year for the ISCCA. Conrad and Lonnie were the only people brave enough to try and step into those shoes. Did we expect a year like Dyna and Wolfgang’s? No. Did we expect Conrad and Lonnie to do the best job they could? Yes. Are they doing the best job they can? You bet.
You make a lot of surface judgments without knowing what goes on behind closed doors, which is always easier than researching the facts. There is not an issue you raised in your letter which has not been discussed at a Board meeting this year. I do not understand your need to be insulting to either the Monarchs or the Board of Directors of the ISCCA. We are all volunteers, giving our time to give something back to our community.
I’m sorry you feel that Conrad and Lonnie are an embarrassment to our community. They are two of the hardest working monarchs I’ve seen in 14 years involvement with the ISCCA. Maybe they do focus on the fundraising aspect of their job over the social aspect, but again, at the end of the day, we are a fund raising organization, and they are in charge of the fundraising activities of the organization. The amount of money we raise may not matter to you in determining how successful a reign was, but it matters to the charities who receive the money we raise, and to their clients who benefit from that money. And Conrad and Lonnie are having a very successful year.
Fortunately, by the time this letter sees print, applications for the position of Emperor and Empress XXXII will be available. If you are a member of our organization, and since you seem to feel that you can do a better job than this year’s Monarchs, I challenge you to put your name forward for the position.
Sincerely,
Neal Debreceni
President, ISCCA



Dear GayCalgary,
I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for the tremendous turnout and for the overwhelming support at Pride Calgary’s AGM on January 09, 2008 and in making this the start to an exciting year for Pride Calgary.
In an unfortunate turn of events that the board of Pride Calgary had to exercise its rights to refuse membership to a select few individuals at the second meeting of the Pride Calgary AGM, because they were disruptive and continually speaking out of order during the first meeting.
Starting this year, Pride Calgary has revised its membership and we encourage the involvement of all individuals in the GLBTA community, including friends, family and supporters who share in the vision of Pride in promoting awareness, diversity and unity throughout the year. All members of Pride Calgary receive a PrideLink membership card, which includes a 20% off 2008 Pride Dance tickets, with additional community benefits set out by the Board or the Membership Committee. Members will receive information on the affairs of the society and are encouraged to participate in Committees.
Membership is important in any organization to be successful. Membership gives you a voice in the direction and planning of your community and events that take place. It is the goal of Pride Calgary to create a stronger membership with a voice in building a better community and in shaping the future of Pride in our city for years to come.
This year we have a proud and exciting new board of directors with energy and creativity.
Newly elected board members
Allison Brodowski (co-chair)
Dallas Barnes (secretary)
Jess Amber D. Hill (treasurer)
Laura Black (director)
Lyn Baer (director)
Christy Nicholson (director)
Sherina Alstad (director)
Megan Gill (director)
Don Turgeon (director)
Tasia Zandboer (director)

Re-elected board members
Sharon Boutilier (director)
Sig Moser (director)

Current standing board member
John L. Skorka (co-chair)

In starting off the exciting year ahead, the new board of Pride Calgary has already had their first meetings and things are underway with planning for upcoming events, and the planning of Pride Festival 2008. The Pride Calgary website is undergoing a fresh new look for this year with updated information available soon.
This AGM is an example of a community with spirit that truly exhibited its Pride. Once again I would like to say thank you to everyone for your overwhelming support. If anyone has any questions please feel free to email me anytime john@pridecalgary.ca
With Pride,
John L. Skorka
Co-Chair
Pride Calgary Association
www.pridecalgary.ca



Dear GayCalgary,
I wanted to write in response to all the articles in recent issues regarding Twisted Element and its owners. It kind of bugs me that the multitude of articles have been so one sided. There was barely any mention of any of the good work that Twisted Element has done and continues to do within the community. Even when it did briefly touch on their charity, it was questioned. It doesn’t come across very unbiased to me and sounded as though the authors had large grudges to bear.
The contribution to the community by the owners isn’t solely philanthropic. The patrons of the Club often feel the support of RJ and Cliff on a personal level. I’ve seen them talk to young men and women after they came out to their parents and friends and give support and advice. I’ve seen people go to RJ and Cliff after fighting with their boyfriends or girlfriends when they just need someone to talk to and cry in front of. After I was gay bashed walking home one night by a group of guys, RJ helped me find the strength and courage to keep going.
These are only some of the few examples of all the good they’ve done. I know I won’t always see eye to eye with RJ and Cliff but I respect them and appreciate all that they do for our community.

Calvin Campbell



Dear Calvin,
First off, thank you for writing to us with your concerns. You are correct in pointing out that the Twisted Element has done good in this community in the past, and in fact, our very magazine has reflected that extensively in prior issues. Yes, GayCalgary may have overlooked some of their more recent good deeds in light of current circumstances. Sadly, controversy tends to receive more attention than good will. Demonstratively, your letter makes mention of all the negative Twisted articles in our recent magazines, but you yourself neglected to notice (or at least to mention) that the bar still received photographic coverage throughout all of it - including Sunday Drag Shows, Halloween, New Years, World AIDS Day, Candycane Queens, and a full page of photos in December for their 3rd Anniversary party.
We strive to make the content of our magazine a reflection of what goes on in the gay community in Calgary and Edmonton. Things are not always happy and perfect, and the GLBT community at large needs to know about what is going wrong so that we can all be aware of it, discuss it, learn from it, and move forward. We would gladly move past the recent controversy with the Twisted Element if things had not continued to escalate these past months, warranting further articles. Sadly, whether our articles were fair or not, they are responsible for provoking these escalations. I only hope that my response to you doesn’t cause any further hard feelings.
Our writer brought up concerns about the money raised from the Sunday bike giveaways at Twisted Element, an event that was advertised in our magazine as a fundraiser for the SHARP Foundation running April 15th to June 17th. Our records indicate that the official total, announced to us by the owners of Twisted Element in June of last year, was $2710. The owners had asked us to be present to photograph them giving the cheque away, but when we received no notification, we concluded that they must have gone ahead without us. Five months later we found a lead that indicated this money might have still not have been turned over to the SHARP Foundation. We passed this information on to our writer so that she could properly investigate, and include her findings with her article if it was pertinent.
We don’t expect the SHARP Foundation to be anything but grateful for the support that the Twisted Element has given them. Still, the idea of monies not being turned over to them from a fundraiser more than 5 months ago would be an embarrassing mistake at the very least. I believe Allison made mention of it so that if it was indeed forgotten, The Twisted Element could do something to fix it. Nonetheless, the simple question is on the table and there is no reason to fear answering it if nothing was done wrong.
Regarding the articles in our magazine, you mention that you felt several were written with unchecked bias, and born out of a grudge. I think you might have arrived at this conclusion because you realize we have little to gain by writing these articles – our magazine is free, so controversy won’t sell more copies, nor would it necessarily attract more advertisers. Perhaps the only motivation that you could conceive for us doing something so unpopular was to satisfy a personal vendetta.
But consider for a moment TV shows like Marketplace. Do the reporters have a hate-on for the products or producers that they investigate and report on? No! They do it because if people don’t see mistakes being made, they don’t bother to correct them. And sometimes mistakes can cause others unnecessary harm.
I know that our articles get be tuned out as just a bunch of negativity, but not all criticism is meant to be disingenuous. The door policy article pointed a number of possible mistakes out so that Twisted knew what the community was already seeing, and so that they would have a chance, under the pressure of the public eye, to either fix it or better explain their reasoning for it. The Pride AGM article brought to the public light some actions that RJ and Cliff took that were unacceptable in a society where, no matter how successful you are, you don’t get to make the rules. Instead of fixing things, it is apparent to us that they’ve chosen to spend that effort trying to debunk GayCalgary’s credibility so that the articles are no longer taken seriously. It’s like you telling someone they have spinach stuck in their teeth, and being told that you need to go get your eyes checked. Furthermore, showing a willingness to listen to criticism and finding a way to make something positive out of it would only improve their standing in the eyes of the people that have given up on them out of anger or frustration. From the letters to the publisher, it is irrefutable that these individuals do exist.
If you still don’t believe me, keep in mind that through this all, the Twisted Element has still been listed in the GayCalgary business directory both online and in the magazine, that we sent them a large bouquet flowers for their 3rd Anniversary, that I have shown up to photograph events at the Twisted Element, and that my photographs were published in the magazine and are included in the photos now coming online – even though they were no longer advertising with us, and in fact, refusing to carry our magazine since August 2007 (see our September 2007 publisher’s column for the explanation as to why). That is a really large offer of good will for someone with a grudge. Allison was a regular customer of the Twisted Element as of her turning 18 four months ago. After writing the article, she was in the process of continuing to frequent the establishment when RJ personally barred her for it. Allison put in several months of research and interviews to create her article because she was motivated to affect change in something that she and others saw to be unjust. That’s not the same as a grudge either.
All that aside, you mention that RJ and Cliff should be given some slack because they do a lot on a personal level for their customers. First off, we are very sorry to hear that you were gay bashed, but glad that you found the support you needed to get past it. RJ and Cliff have helped you and others on a personal level, and that does warrant a certain degree of respect and loyalty. There is no doubt in my mind that they have counseled numerous customers, as youth often do need to seek advice from their elders; not everyone has the benefit of parents and peers that understand or know what to do. But you make it seem like RJ and Cliff deserve recognition as the only gay bar in Calgary that helps anyone. This is not the case. The staff and owners of the Backlot, Calgary Eagle, Money Pennies and Texas Lounge have helped a great deal of people - more than you or I will ever know.
Bar staff and owners are often seen in a position of authority, and called upon when their customers have nowhere else to turn. Long ago, before I met my partner Steve, he was gay bashed by his own roommate and was too terrified to return home. The owners of the Rekroom offered him a place to stay until his roommate cleared out, consoled him in the meantime, and escorted him back to his home to ensure he would be safe. Part of the reason a gay community exists is as a support network for one another – to care for and mentor each other so that we can all become fully developed, well adjusted human beings, in spite of the disadvantages imposed on us by society. This is a community effort , and it is often beneficial to speak to a number of different people as no single person has all the answers, and no problem has a single best answer. Many questions don’t have answers at all.
I know that RJ and Cliff pride themselves on their generosity. Since you made it fair game to bring up your own personal experience, then allow me to talk a little bit from ours. Back in June, RJ and Cliff were willing to sponsor a large quantity of beer and burgers for us to give away at our campsite at ARGRA, on the condition that we put their banner up. But we saw that accepting this offer would be seen as a major conflict of interest, as we are a company that is supported by advertising from the other gay bars in Calgary as well. Those other bars were all sponsors of ARGRA and had their own campsites where they were handing out free beer and burgers too. In contrast, Twisted Element refused to sponsor ARGRA, or rent a campsite of their own, or dedicate their own staff to be there. So in essence, what was a kind offer on the surface, not so much once we got to thinking about it. It was a chance for them to get their branding into ARGRA and compete against the other bars for a major bargain compared to what everyone else had to pay to be there. But they would be getting this by piggybacking on our campsite and RV which we too paid for, expecting us to hand the product out for them instead of fulfilling our responsibilities at the event, and jeopardizing our relationship with ARGRA and the other bars. Okay, so perhaps they didn’t really think about it from our perspective, but surely they would respect our decision to decline something that would be unreasonable to expect of us. So we thanked them for the offer and respectfully declined. Their response was angry and condemning, and RJ became argumentative with Steve on the phone over it. Later that month when their ads came due, they informed us that they were “too disappointed in us” to continue advertising in our magazine. Answer me this Calvin, if RJ and Cliff really had our best intentions in mind as they did yours, then why was it so important to them to get their way at our expense?
Rob Diaz-Marino
GayCalgary and Edmonton Magazine