Here's what Ronald Wieck wrote to me today regarding Mr. Chandler pulling out (again) from the Hardfire debate. I think Ron makes some very good points - why is David Chandler avoiding debate?
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Tired Routine
Well, Chandler has made it official: he's ducking the debate. You may use our exchanges for any purpose you deem appropriate.
Ron
On Thu, Aug 27, 2009 at 3:03 PM, gary popkin <> wrote:
I have reserved the studio for Sunday afternoon, September 27, from 1PM to 4 Eastern Time. I will need Tony and Ron in their seats in the studio at 1:15.
David or Ryan will have to be designated as the "caller." The caller will have to call two telephone numbers. Ryan says that three-way calling is a pretty routine part of phone service these days. Around 1:30 I will call the designated caller and tell him to proceed to make the three-way call. Please use your best phone for this purpose.
We can then spend a few minutes adjusting volumes and so on, and testing whether all four participants can hear one another. When we are ready to begin taping, I will have Ron tell Ryan and David to start rolling their camcorders or web cams. If for any reason David can't accommodate to this procedure, we will go ahead without him.
I will need, in advance in electronic form, any visuals that you want to include in the program. You should also trade visuals in advance so everyone knows what we are looking at.
Gary
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From: David Chandler [mailto:d
Sent: Thursday, August 27, 2009 11:51 PM
To: gary popkin
Cc: Ryan Mackey; Ronald Wieck; Tony Szamboti
Subject: Re: BAck onn Track
Hi All,
I talked it over with Tony and I am going to stay out of the debate. I signed onto this thing as something that was going to happen during the summer. I don't have the time to put in on it during the school year. Tony will do a fine job. Have a good one.
--David Chandler
On Fri, Aug 28, 2009 at 12:39 PM, Ronald Wieck <> wrote:
If I may inject a note of cynicism into these proceedings, you are saying that you can't find the time to break the biggest story in the history of journalism, one that will win you fame and fortune. You are attempting to overturn basic principles of physics, refute the professional opinions of every demolition expert in the world, establish the existence of heretofore unknown substances of extraordinary, indeed magical, powers—yet all of this takes second place to marking homework papers.
When your bizarre movement stops ducking real scientists and engineers, an honest debate will be possible.
Ron
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From: David Chandler [mailto:]
Sent: Friday, August 28, 2009 3:53 PM
To: Ronald Wieck
Subject: Re: Back on Track
You're out of line.
--David Chandler
(Ron Wieck wrote to David Chandler)
Yes, you now want a vigorous e-mail debate about your predictable behavior—of course you do. You will hurl abuse and feign anger, but you wont do your act for more than a handful of people. Will you defend your outlandish claims, the ones that have been thoroughly demolished on the JREF, in front of a television audience (an admittedly tiny one)? After your dismal performance on that forum, absolutely no one dreamed you would show up.
David Ray Grifter made us jump through hoops to arrange a format he would accept. When we finally surmounted all the hurdles, the publication of Mackey's devastating white paper sent him running for the hills. The fraud attempted feebly to distract from his contemptible, craven behavior by calling me dishonest.
Look, I understand—everyone understands-- that you dont care to try defending indefensible rubbish against a NASA engineer. Your realization, however, that the nonsense you promote has been exposed wont stop you from, well, promoting it. This incident encapsulates almost eight years of shenanigans by the grotesquely misnamed truth movement. There is even a name for the tactic of braying loud challenges to government agencies that aren't listening while avoiding all confrontations with real scientists and engineers: the Twoofer Two-step-and-Slide. Its buffoonish clumsiness still gets laughs from rationalists, but the novelty has worn off through excessive use.
Ron