OB Rag Staff / OB Rag
There is a small group of SeaWorld supporters (apologists?) who have directly taken on the OB Rag and editor Frank Gormlie. They have a blog and posted a recent article calling out Gormlie by name in a headline refuting his claims about SeaWorld.
About a month ago, Gormlie wrote an article entitled “Why SeaWorld Can’t Build a Hotel at its Location on Mission Bay”, citing the proximity of the old Mission Bay landfill which is known to contain toxic materials.
The article must have touched a nerve somewhere; it did anger the SeaWorld supporters, who have a small blog called Orca Action Network who has the following slogan:
Join us in fighting the agendas of animal rights activists.
Just below the blog’s name is a giant poster advertising various well-known San Diego hotels owned by the Evans family. And, of course, it’s Evans who has pledged to SeaWorld to get them a hotel. Any connection between this “action network” and Mr. Evans? You think?
The SeaWorld supporters came back the other day and slammed Gormlie and the OB Rag with their post entitled: “Sorry, Frank: SeaWorld’s Future Hotel Isn’t Affected by Toxic Waste”. The opening paragraph takes us on:
Lawyer, OB Rag founder, and self-proclaimed “grassroots activist” Frank Gormlie recently posted an article on his opinion website OB Rag on “Why SeaWorld Can’t Build a Hotel at its Location on Mission Bay“. He argues that because of SeaWorld’s proximity to a former toxic waste dump site, the hotel project which SeaWorld announced recently will not be able to go forward. Luckily, this claim is not true.
Differences of opinion or fact?
One thing immediately should be known. The site that sits at South Shores Park and other areas – including the SeaWorld east parking lot at the very least is STILL a toxic waste dump site. Even the Orca Action Network folks admit it was a “toxic waste dump site”. It was never cleaned up. The City study over a decade ago found that everything would be okay as long as the site was not disturbed.
The other issue is the “proximity” of the old landfill site to SeaWorld and any future hotel diggings.
The OB Rag stated that it was too close to call.
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Gormlie’s article was based on decisions against permitting other projects in the area because of the landfill, which is gonna be a tough problem for Sea World and City Council to overcome. It was once toxic and now isn’t?
The site is probably contaminated with PCBs just like the rest of Mission Bay. Isn’t that what the current lawsuit against Monsanto is about?
I guess, since the Sea World supporters termed Frank Gormlie as a “self-proclaimed” grass roots activist, that throws his grass roots activism in doubt?!
I think it’s the “self-proclaimed” bit that bothers me. Having known Frank since 1970, he’s done more community/activist work than anybody else I know of. Hell, he even ran for city council in 1987. In 2014, OB’s “self-proclaimed” Town Council named Frank (along with OB Rag) as their community partner: “To recognize significant community contributions and persons making a difference in OB.”
Meanwhile, the folks behind this “self-proclaimed” Orca Action Network won’t even post their names on the website, Facebook page (11 likes) or at Google+.
Orca Action Network. Another perverse inversion. The only
orcas they love are in WaterWorld Prison. Send them to LA
to learn from Richard Caruso how to put more commercial
into wetlands. Rename them Orca Reaction Network, or
just Net Orcas.