May Day…May Day…May 1, 2024

Today many people around the world celebrate “May Day”….the first day of May every year.? For some people this is celebrated as the first day of summer and a celebration of life and renewal that Spring has ushered in as part of the natural cycle of life.? May Day is also known as International Labor Day and is meant to raise awareness of both the struggles and contributions of the working class towards our society throughout the world.? The history this day makes for an interesting read as our daily news updates continue to reinforce why and how May Day became known for these two celebrations…in honor of Mother Nature…and the working class.

For me personally, I truly hope this year’s May Day….May 1, 2024….will be a new beginning for the communities, families, and the children of Cayuga County, NY.? While I am still unemployed due to my voluntary resignation as a matter of principle, I am hopeful that my labor of love since that resignation and last day of work on January 12, 2024…will begin to start bearing the fruits of that labor…finally.? That labor of love started out wanting to support and protect the people in my immediate family…which then turned into a grotesque Netflix Fargo-like series in real life…to protect myself against the onslaught from some of those very same people and their family members…and associated support structures…which has morphed into the very real and organized attacks against me both personally and professionally.? This was due to what I uncovered through the last couple of years of diligent efforts with documentation and verification of the situation as it was unfolding in my own life.? I could be embarrassed, but am not…to admit that I have been implementing the Deming Cycle in dealing? with my personal nightmare that I continue to be forced to endure.? That is to say, as I have been uncovering the level and depth of the very disturbing situation occurring within Cayuga County, NY….I’ve simply implemented a Plan, Do, Check, Act….and Verify…approach into what has turned out to be a very complex and multifaceted situation involving some serious unethical activity being supported by a whole host of unethical legal and other professionals within Cayuga County and with the support of some associated well-known non-profit organization(s).

The Deming Cycle, also know as the PDCA Cycle by some, and later given other pet names and variations on the originally theme…raised its head among colleges and universities across the U.S. back at the beginning of 2000 (technically earlier, but let’s go with 2000) when the now famous…or infamous depending who you ask and your view…College and University Initiative was started by some of our friends out of EPA Region 1 and then followed suit in earnest with the rest of the EPA regions within the U.S.? I say “good friends” not because I personally knew anyone of them, although that year and following years I spoke to many EPA staff at various conferences and events.? As a historical note, I almost accepted a position with the EPA, however, ended up accepting a position at Binghamton University at the time instead.? I say “good friends” in recognition of the GOOD work they had initiated and really served as the spark for the other EPA regions.? I also say this in light (despite) of the incredible amount of work that was involved with that initiative…on college and university campuses across the country.? An amount of work that involved participating and conducting enough audits and inspections that would make even a seasoned EPA inspector shudder and question why they continued to remain in the field of environmental protection….except in my case….the field of Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S).? For many of us in the EH&S profession, those years were viewed by some as the professional challenges culminating in our careers at the time as a “do or die” moment...career-wise…and in reality…there were just as many and more….who saw this initiative as the opportunity that truly existed.

These were very challenging times though, where EH&S professionals at colleges and universities had to become overnight “experts” (i.e. drew the shortest straw based on job title) of the known, myriad, and obscure environmental regulations….that only the most diligent of bureaucrats could muster dreaming up…in order to inflict as much dental-like pain upon EH&S professionals who chose to work at the campuses we have all loved throughout our careers.? Perhaps that is a bit of an extreme description…then again ask my peers who went through that time-period as well.? For many of us though, this initiative was truly a blessing and something that we had been warning senior administrators about for years and years.? I will go out on a limb and say…we were hoping for…because of the continued lack action or support being received from the same senior administrators who worked for the same universities that we were trying to protect as part of the job we were all hired to do.? When I try describing to non-EH&S professionals what the role of EH&S looks like at a high level, particularly on a university campus…I like to describe it as a Venn Diagram with three overlapping circles.? It is upon these three circles which an EH&S professional works to create and implement programs that attempt to achieve a balance between three distinct, but related groups, in our positions in a campus environment…with an ideal target being where the three circles intersect.? These three circles include (at the high level) the people and environment of the campus, the college or university itself (including those same senior administrators) and meeting the requirements AND intent of the regulations that are applicable to the campus operations.? There is a whole separate article that could be written on this topic alone, however, for the purposes on this article, the point is that EH&S professionals have always had to participate in a juggling act on college and university campus and as time has gone on….and people fail to remember the past (think Love Canal for hazardous waste)….then at some point a forced correction will occur.? Back at the beginning of 2000…EPA Region 1 initiated that long overdue forced correction at colleges and universities.

I loosely use the term “hoping”…because the fact is that we had been saying these things for years and decades about what support and resources we needed….and tried to educate senior administration in terms of cost benefits and risks for non-compliance, etc.…required to carry out the job responsibilities that we were hired to perform.? Most importantly, those of us in the profession also kept telling these same senior administrators about their role in not just financial support….but also the true support they needed to show to the campus, including holding both themselves and everyone else on campus to the level of accountability that was expected of them by the regulators…and to the campus itself…regardless of title or position.? Most importantly…these senior administrators needed to hold themselves accountable by accepting the responsibilities and accountabilities that that had already accepted….by default…of accepting a paycheck for the titles and positions they held.? The College and University Initiative helped to force those senior administrators who were not listening…and worse yet…those who willfully and knowingly failed to act and act appropriately and in a timely manner…when they were provided with information upon which any reasonable person in the same position with the same information….would have done.? So with the EPA College and University Initiative….the EPA forced these senior administrators to either step up to the plate and start holding people on their campuses accountable….or be stepped on by an empowered EPA…for GOOD reasons.? This initiative allowed the EPA to make both good and bad examples out of a number of colleges and universities as a result.? I want to emphasize the good parts from the standpoint that through the use of Supplemental Environmental Projects and other outreach efforts, this initiative also empowered those senior administrators who were already leaders in the filed and had already figured out how to make things work for the campuses.? I know this for a fact because I made it a point to attend these sessions at conferences, and when possible, have discussions with these senior administrators…to listen to what they had to say about how they achieved success and what lessons were learned.? It’s another example of part of my philosophy in life….which is to try and take lessons learned away from each situation….which most people do anyways, however, the big difference between people in this regard…all comes down to implementation.? It’s very easy to point out what went well and give honorable mention to what didn’t quite work out…however…what separates true leaders – at any level within any organization is who takes action with that information.

I do not have hard data to prove it, only decades of experience in the profession…however, I would argue that more EH&S departments across the country were able to get more staff and resources, and most importantly…more understanding of what we as a profession…were up against in our roles to basically attempt to ensure compliance with the myriad of environmental…health…and safety…regulations as implemented within organizations that built their foundations upon free speech, free thinking, pushing the envelopes of accepted thinking, and all working under a model of independence and decentralization.? A model that was not well-suited for the black and white world of state and federal regulations.? This fact was glaringly highlighted, and I would argue…the very effective “hook” upon which the EPA was able to…not to push itself into the academic world…but rather simply…to pull the academic world into their orbit through this College and University Initiative using three simple words.? These three words created more conference networking conversations than any other words during that time period among myself and my peers…before, during, and after that initiative took place.? Many people, including my peers, might suggest those three words to be “Environmental Protection Agency” or “Supplemental Environmental Project” or even…”Go To Jail”…or similar.? However, in my personal opinion, while all would be considered as good suggestions, I would argue the three magic words the EPA successfully used as the “hook”….were….”Satellite Accumulation Area”…and once that door was opened…the rest became history.? While private industry had decades to get a grip around the impact of those three words…the decentralized academic world was just starting to wake up...not from the EH&S professionals…but from senior administration.? By now the blood pressure of some of my peers may be rising and flashbacks at all the time, effort, and resources…and head banging…that happened during what felt like dark days at time.? I do however believe, that looking back, many of those same peers, myself included, while we would not wish such an experience again on anyone…the end result and multiplier effects have been worth it.? If for nothing other than the conversations and ideas that got generated…and implemented.

A takeaway from that whole experience was the concept of…finally…there started to be some accountability of students, employees, researchers, faculty, gatekeeper administrators, and mostly importantly...senior administrators.?? Those same senior administrators who enjoyed their paychecks and perks of their titles and positions…some of who conveniently chose to ignore their responsibilities and not holding responsible people on campus accountable…but rather pushed the task at hand…without the necessary support…over to EH&S departments around the country.? In the end, that wasn’t exactly how it played out and in fact, I would argue that quite the contrary happened.? Besides giving some of those senior administrators who may have fallen in the category above…the College and University Initiative in fact empowered those senior administration officials who were already taking a proactive approach and supporting their EH&S departments on campuses…to not only highlight some of the great work they had been doing…before the EPA showed up…but also were able to share their lessons learned and success stories with other colleges and universities through a variety of means and methods with conference presentations, workshops, sharing of templates etc.? Perhaps it’s just my personal philosophy…but despite the short-term pain and suffering that was required…I believed back then, as I still do today…that initiative was a necessary wakeup call that resulted in far more GOOD…than the significant cost and inconvenience that was required at the time.? At the end of the day…fast forward almost 25 years and you can still see the results of those efforts in place and further developed at colleges and universities across the country. ?In particular, with the wider adoption of environmental management systems…which at the very core and basic level…put Deming’s Cycle into full swing and practice.? I also saw this initiative creating opportunities for personal and professional growth for my peers, my friends, and most certainly for myself.? I thought it would be very appropriate to present this topic in the context of May Day celebrations for today due to the positive results that were achieved when people across colleges and universities worked together which at the time felt like…and was an insurmountable effort….that was however addressed and dealt with…and more GOOD than bad came out of it.

In a similar fashion today, as I write this article and reflect on those challenging times of that past, I find myself still embroiled in just as serious a challenge at both personal and professional levels….continuing to be forced to live through this ongoing Netflix Fargo-like series of a life I stepped into through a fatal attraction of some sorts…or perhaps not.? Perhaps, this was meant to be a culmination of the core values that I was born with and passed on to me for generations through my family line.? Despite this grotesque personal nightmare that I continue to be subjected to, I still actively seek out ways to force GOOD out of this situation and will continue to do so.? I continue to keep the faith and maintain the hope that is required to keep moving forward…while trying to keep doing GOOD things while I am permitted to do so….such as what I am trying to do for the community, families and children of Cayuga County, NY.

In some of my earlier articles (best to review chronologically from the oldest to the most recent to get up to speed with the themes), I mentioned that given the significance of what I have uncovered happening within Cayuga County….from direct experience….and then learning more from other people as the TRUTH continues to come forward…I have made decisions and have taken actions at substantial personal and professional risks and costs, however, there do come times in our lives when it is necessary to put everything on the line if the end result is what is best for the greater good…even at one’s own expense.? For me personally, I am in one of the moments and unfortunately have been for a couple of years, which only continues to intensify and appears to have no end in sight…because my spirit will not be broken in achieving the goal I have set.? This worthy goal that I am seeking to achieve is not about financial gain, even though I laugh at the idea that half of my retirement savings…as well as these last two years of my life…have essentially been “stolen” from me due to this situation….but I have never been a person driven solely by money.? A big part of my philosophy in life and one in which I attribute a large part of my success to…both personally and professionally…is that if you strive for worthy goals that you cannot place a true monetary value on, those that do not solely get rewarded with material goods (which are all short-term rewards)…then when you achieve those worthy goals you set for yourself…no matter how big or small…at the end of the day you will be a wealthier individual in both terms of knowledge, wisdom, and experience which make up our lives.? This is what counts at the end of the day, at the end of each year, and at the end of our lives whenever Mother Nature determines that time is appropriate.? I strongly believe and have tried to live my life this way, as well as believing that if you give at least an “E” for effort into working towards these types of goals…these worthy goals…then as they say…the money will follow.? For me personally, when the money follows, it just allows me to continue moving forward and keep trying to do GOOD things.? It’s a simple philosophy and has served me well over the years.

So how does this circle back to Cayuga County, NY?? The time, effort, and resources of my own that I have literally been dedicating myself to is meant to achieve some of these worthy goals as the end result will have a substantial positive impact on the community, families, and children of Cayuga County…and specifically the culture that is currently embedded within the Cayuga County government, legal system, along with other support structures….that has only gotten worse when this grotesque situation reared its head in the Daniel Leubner case (https://justicefordanny.net/ - see the menu bar at the very top of this website's header) in which many of the same people and legal professionals who were involved back then…almost 25 years ago…are still operating under the same unethical behavior and tactics that were being used then….except its only gotten worse and continues to be refined and get even worse as time moves forward.? I am committed to dealing with this situation as a worthy goal, regardless of the personal cost to myself.? I say this from firsthand experience of what I continue to be subjected to.? I continue to report on the situation to various agencies and have compiled enough documentation to generate a Netflix Fargo series in and of itself….yet what I am saying is still falling on deaf ears partly because the problem is so complex (but not the root cause and how to deal with that is pretty simple…as I keep saying).? It’s also because it’s too easy to just be pointed back to the same unethical legal professionals that are supporting the structure of what is going on.? Its along the lines of the stories you hear about abused victims going to various law enforcement and other groups only to be told that its not their problem and you should just go back to the same home that you are reporting on….that’s exactly the case…coupled with an unethical legal support system…and here we are today with no end in sight.? However, I keep reporting, keep compiling summary reports, and will keep persisting until someone with NYS authority steps in and does something about this disturbing situation.? The other sad part about this is there are indeed other people and organizations who are willfully choosing to do nothing because they don’t want to deal with what is a deep pool of issues…and in fact, because they do not want to get called out for their own behaviors once the TRUTH finally comes out….and it will come out.? I may not see those end results, but I can promise the TRUTH will come out on this matter.?

Earlier this year I had stated to a variety of people and organizations that the reportabusecayuga.com ?and accompanying YouTube channel:? https://youtube.com/@IveHadEnough-CayugaCounty ...were my “gifts” to the families and children of Cayuga County…which were not fully understood initially as both were being developed in coordination with my own personal investigation into the situation within Cayuga County…which I will provide in a separate article at some point in the near future.? The date in the image I used for this article is significant…as well as the image itself…because on April 26, 2024, I submitted a summary report and supporting documentation to the Grievance Committee for the Seventh Judicial District to get this matter away from local politics and groups, including some well-known non-profit organization(s) that have been successfully using…to some degree…unethical behaviors, tactics, and outright false statements being filed in legal documents.? I continue to do this not just to deal with the personal nightmare I continue to be subjected to…but for the families and children of Cayuga County, NY…and also as another “gift” to Cayuga County.? I thought it only fitting for today, May 1, 2024….May Day…to write this article and share another “gift” for Cayuga County that was delivered in the form of two packages with a summary report and supporting documentation to the New York State Office of the Attorney General Public Integrity Bureau and to the Charities Bureau in relation to what is occurring withing the legal structure and government of Cayuga County as well as some well-known non-profit organization(s).? It is my hope that this information will land on the desk of the right people with NYS authority who will take the time to review it and take some long overdue action.? I have taken a large amount of time and effort at the continued expense of my personal and professional life as part of my accepted costs and risks to ensure this disturbing situation in Cayuga County gets exposed and resolved.? I will continue moving forward with these and other efforts for the benefit of the communities, families, and children of Cayuga County, NY…so they will have a bright future…free from this current disturbing situation and live in a county that’s a much better place that what they may currently refer to as….Home Sweet Home….this too shall pass and a brighter future lies ahead.?

-Jerry, Forever a Diplomat