Question for Board Candidates.

Divemaster said:

I guess I’m rather surprised that you have not seen any of Dave’s postings on judging in particular and competition in general....

Seeing that you have been a member of this forum since January, 2008 and are now questioning his qualifications as well as slamming others who know him, makes me wonder where you normally reside here.

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I have seen Dave's posts over the years, but he is not some one I converse with regularly. I was vaguely aware that he was a judge, but felt it was better to ask him an up-front, honest question rather than waste my time searching for and reading past posts by him to determine his participation level.

As for questioning qualification levels, that's what I'm supposed to do, and I'm amazed that any one would want me to vote for a candidate I don't know without questioning qualifications and being happy with them. Take a step back and look at the situation. These aren't personal attacks against defenseless forum members. These are people who have chosen to run for office and asked members of this organization and forum to vote for them. They have opened themselves up for questions about their qualifications and stances on positions. It has been well established by now that I don't know Dave Compton but I am asking him questions so that I can make an informed decision about who will will receive my votes. I think that any one who doesn't know him and doesn't do the same is doing the very thing that has angered people about past BOD elections, voting for names and not people.

Look at it from another angle as well. I personally believe that in order to be a good BOD member, a person should be involved with KCBS competition BBQ. If you don't agree, that's your opinion, and fine, but that's how I feel. What if I'm not alone in that opinion? What if Mr. Compton had just announced that he was neither a rep, organizer, nor regular competitior, and some one who is not a regular member of the forum reads that and decides that he doesn't want to vote for some one who isn't involved. Maybe (just maybe) I was trying to help Mr. Compton by having him inform other people in the forum that he is a frequent judge who is involved. Maybe I didn't know him well enough to say that in his place, and maybe I didn't want to be a campaigner for him, but I thought that others deserved to know that about him. In stead of him, or one of his stauch supporters, saying the truth about him, I've been told that I shouldn't ask him questions and that I shouldn't wonder about his qualifications. That really makes me (and maybe others) wonder why his qualifications shouldn't be discussed.

I think it does a great disservice to all involved to continue this conversation here. My PMs are about full, but I'm friends with many ppl on this forum on Facebook, and I invite any one who really wants to discuss this further to contact me there and discuss.

dmp

dmp, I fully understand what you're saying but Dave's signature here has a link to both the Web site and his Facebook campaign page. Reading such things are a part of one's educating themselves on the issues and where the candidates stand. To be quite honest, it's not even Thanksgiving yet and with all of the posts here, we as candidates could spend literally hours daily chasing all of the questions and responding to all of them.

Some states may differ, but in Ohio, ALL meetings of public officials to discuss business are required to be open. I see no reason KCBS business could have any reason to be more secretive than any city or county in an entire state.

I do stand corrected in that legal matters can cause closed sessions, but those reasons should be stated prior to entering a closed session and the closed session should be used only for discussing previously stated subject.

roksmith said:

Some states may differ, but in Ohio, ALL meetings of public officials to discuss business are required to be open. I see no reason KCBS business could have any reason to be more secretive than any city or county in an entire state.

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I don't have the time to research the law in Ohio but I'm confident that personnel issues and more importantly the details aren't public record. There are federal labor laws that would preclude a lot of that info becoming public knowledge. If I'm wrong, it wouldn't be the first time.

Beyond that, for better or worse, KCBS has business to discuss and the board has a legitimate need to discuss pending contracts, negotiations, and legal matters without it becoming public knowledge. After the fact, I'm fine with everybody and their brother taking a look at what is relevant within the law.

Ok, I'm back from doing yard work .

Right - I'm not a Rep, organizer, etc. But as Ed pointed out I judge 12 to 15 comps a year in Iowa, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska. Next year I plan on adding a few more states to my "Have Judged" list by taking a vacation trip that includes BBQ contests (I plan to do this whether I'm on the BoD or not).
I've judged over 60 contests since getting my CBJ badge in early 2007 and I received my Master CBJ in early 2010. I started out cooking with a small team here in Iowa but a back injury has put a stop to any comp cooking on a regular basis so now I judge a lot and try to cook once or twice a year with different teams.
You'll see me at a lot of comps on Friday evening, wandering around visiting with the teams that I know and meeting new friends as I pass out some smoked cheese that I have in my two-wheeled cooler that many cooks here in the Midwest recognize. At most comps that I go to I'll know at least 25% of the teams and I'm welcome in their camps when I come out to visit.
I've introduced at least a half dozen CBJs to cooks so that the CBJ can get their Master CBJ. I'm trying my best to figure out ways that the cooks and judges will get to know each other long before the judge does 30 contests. I think that the cooks and judges are two sides to the same coin and we need both sides before we have anything of value.
I've posted below a couple of links that go to my Facebook page and our campaign website. You could also check out my blogs at www.BBQCritc.com or research my posts here in the Comp section.
I guess that I've been pretty vocal as to how I think on most subjects. Have I been wrong at times? Sure! But when I find that I'm wrong I'm willing to admit it & move on.
I really didn't want to make this a long BBQ autobiography, but this does try to answer some questions that were asked.

Meatlover said:

Do any of the candidates have anything to financially or personally gain from being elected? Consultant, marketing expert, contest rep, contest organizer, bbq related business owner, or anything else that people may feel is inappropriate or conflicting.

If so, what would that be?

If not, how would you deal with potential conflicts?

How would you work to make sure other board members refrain from conflicts?

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I cook with the team I Smell Smoke !!!
I own a bbq catering business in Massachusetts
I teach an occasional BBQ class (I hope to increase the number of classes)
I also own a retail bbq store that sells rubs, sauces and other bbq related items in a brick and mortar store and online.

I have never advertised my business or my classes in the Bullsheet or on the KCBS website .

I have no intention of using a position on the KCBS board to promote my business or my classes. If there were ever an issue related to my business I would abstain from voting. If I were a board member I would vow to never make any type of ruling at a contest that I was competing in.