The new Atlanta show schedule

wow my last sentence made no sense lol...I changed the way I wanted to word that and didn't backspace far enough lol...free cage hook at the next show to the first person to properly translate my garble lol

come on JM you should be able to win the snake hook. What's wrong cat(hy)
got your tongue

I had a little talk with Jason last night. I never meant to piss anyone off and I can understand the frustration when they feel that they aren't fighting with Tony but just defending themselves. I guess if some large snakehook company started posting about what cheap crap my snakehooks were, I'd get defensive too...or at least invite them field herping for a little flipping competition lol. I just don't like seeing this stuff being made public. It's too unpredictable who's going to listen to what and follow who...Things like this at least to some degree will always split some people into sides and it just shouldn't be that way. But please understand, it's the war I'm speaking out against, not any of the players.

It's not that I've taken sides. It's just that I hate to read or hear a bunch of lies about ANYONE that I know is not true. You know how I am. I tell things like they are. Like it or not, and I'm the same way outside from the reptile business as well. I don't beat around the bush, I simply call the shots as I see them. Yes, I can be a b!tch. But at least I'm an honest one. And I expect honesty from others in my life as well.

Chuck, no offense bro...although with your ego, I'm sure you will get offended anyway, but your handling and mentoring scares the hell out of me. I don't think I'd want you doing a public show with my name attached either nor would I ever want you teaching my kid anything.

To be offended, I would need to first respect your opinion and you are the man that called a show where the promoter lost thousands of dollars a success. Sorry, with that track record, I can’t put much faith in anything else you have to say.

So, I scare the hell out of you. I guess to join the Brett, Tony, Jeff clique I need to ship all my snakes off to Portland and have their venom glands ripped out. If I were to do that, then would you be more secure and let me in? Either way, not going to happen. I guess Roark and I will stay in exile, since we choose not to disarm our snakes. =)

I'm as antivoid as anyone. I'm also anti freehandling and showboating with hots, allowing children to handle them...models for tshirts to handle..I could go on. What risks you are willing to take are your business, just don't blame others for not wanting to be held accountable for your actions.

How did Tony lose thousands of dollars? at 9 bucks a head and at least 5000 people through the door...that comes to 45,000 bucks just off tickets.

Will someone please tell me where and when I did my share of mudslinging? I have gone back and checked every web site that I have ever posted on, no mudslinging! My posting on the other sites are all the same, word for word. Defending oneself against slanderous, ficticious accusations is not mudslinging. Why do you think I posted about the Atlanta show being postponed/cancelled for that weekend (the first date)? I did that to let people, vendors and attendees know about it so that they wouldn't waste their precious time and fuel and suffer disappointment as well. .Vendors and attendees are the lifeblood of this business. They deserve as much advance notice as possible in order to change plans. They deserve to have all the information to make an informed decision. It was nothing more than a public service announcement. Not everyone who makes plans, buys tickets, etc continues to check for updates. People can become very busy. Why should I have waited until he posted? He said himself that he doesn’t read the forums and it was less than a week to the original show. Brett you know yourself one person can read a post or an email and get something totally different than what the author intended. Take Eric’s “attempted joke” he posted. You believe that you knew where that came from but many others found it inappropriate considering the manner in which it was written and the perception that it was coming from one of Tony's employees. As written it appeared as a serious statement with no laugh out louds or hahas behind it indicating a playful post. I realize by your own admission that you are unaware of the facts and history of this brouhaha but you entered without benefit of all the information anyway. Many who are informed found it to be in poor taste as written regardless of Eric's intentions. I believe that Eric may be a thoughtful and nice young man who may have posted hastily or without really thinking it through. Elroid is one of Tony's favorite terms for me on his website and in vendor's newsletters (aka hem rrhoid). He has many pet names for me according to many vendors and that is supposedly the kindest one. You say we are close friends Brett and that you don't really know Tony that well.....I have taken much abuse from him this past year without slinging the mud back at him. Your responses seem pro Tony as you admitted that you must seem like a "liberal Tony lover." A couple of weeks ago Mr. Roark posted a request for a cease fire at Tony's request. In just a few short days he violated that cease fire by firing off an email letting me know that he considered me to be less than trash effing me up and down. I posted his reply so others could see that I was not inventing his attacks. Where were you my close friend to support me in my time of need then? Was you mouth sewn shut? Why didn't you post then? Mr. Roark's cease fire request was most thoughtfully and elegantly written and produced immediate results. Where was webslave's lil clapping hands then? Where was Jeff Mohr's lil clapping hands then? So much for objectivity. I have never discouraged vendors from vending at others shows. Mr. Cueto however continued to bash me in public accusing me of telling people and vendors that his Greenville show was cancelled. Really! Where would he get a crazy idea like that? It seems that our hiring of Roark to headline the Columbia show got one of our speakers panties in a twist. This speaker who was going to give a few talks in exchange for a few tables became so upset that he withdrew from the show and told Tony the Greenville cancellation nonsense. Mr. Cueto became so enraged at Roark because his presence would give us added credability that he gave Mr. Roark an ultimatum. He asked Mr. Roark to choose between me or him. Mr. Roark chose educating the public and would not bow to his blackmail and threats. Mr. Cueto told him that if he spoke at the Columbia show he would not be the headliner at Mr. Cueto's shows anymore. Mr. Roark honored his commitment to us and the vendors/attendees who supported us and we had a very nice show with a lovely turnout. Mr Cueto has had 3 shows since and the numbers have been dramatically lower than the previous shows with Mr. Roark speaking and ralleying the troops. His huge loss and everyone elses gain. The columbia show was the weekend before the Greenville show. Mr. Roark arrived and passed out hundreds of fliers to the vendors tables and we supported these actions (to the amazement of all) and allowed him to promote Mr. Cueto's upcoming show with numerous and enthusiastic microphone announcements both days.I do care about the vendors and attendees regardless of which show they choose to attend. What many fail to see is this: IF I was out to hurt his show then why would we promote it. That would not be good for the reptile industry. I agree 100% that we should all work together for the good of the industry. I have tried till I am blue in the face to satisfy Mr Cueto (within reason). It takes more than one person to work together! What else can I do or what else is expected of me? Someone please tell me! On another note. Why do we need anger management training? After searching the threads I have found Professor Chuck's posts to be cautious, thoughtful, investigative, provacative, and providing declarations only after examining those facts and careful consideration. He has many times defended Mr. Cueto and others giving them the benefit of the doubt until evidence or logic proved otherwise. Why are his post deemed egotistical or arrogant by you when they provide insight and comfort to so many. Considering all the nonsense Mr. Roark has put up with from Mr. Cueto in the wake of the fallout it continues to amaze me that he went out of his way to support Mr. Cueto at our show. Just yesterday I visited his site and he still had Mr. Cueto's site listed. Roark's site disappeared from Mr. Cueto's site as soon as Roark commited to speak at our show. Must be those anger management sessions he needs to attend. Have to run now and attend my own. Seriously folks, there is only so much crap you can get on the bottom of your shoes before you can’t walk any more without scraping it off!

Brett, you are now a Tony boy. there is no way he had 5000 people at atlanta, try more like 1200. please stop this insane backing of Tony's lies.

Well, I'll never be in your "click" as my wife doens't allow* me to keep
snakes - let alone venomous snakes!

I finally broke down and asked around about exactly what was going on
with Toyn and Cathy. I've heard little bits and stuff, but not enough to
get the whole picture. Damn.

Had I known the extent of the situation, I wouldn't have posted the joke,
even with a very obvious disclaimer. I'm going to try to contact Cathy
again and let her know.

I feel really horrible about the situation (the overall situation). Much of
the facts I had known, but never put them together, or had forgotten.
For a while, I thought Tony was - at first - on the moral high ground,
because Cathy put up a show in HIS market, with a similar name.
Interesting to know the little, tiny, itsy-bitsy details that change
everything. It's a good thing I never bothred to jump in the discussions, I
was even less informed about the feud than I thought, and would have
looked like a total a$$ defending him.

Tony, I've got to say, has been nothing but awesome to me. I have
never been wronged by him in any major way. I truely hope I can work
for him - in the future. Everyone appreciates the things that he has done
for the industry. I also think everyone would like to see him get things
back in shape again. Unfortunatly, I also believe Tony's actions are not
fully under his control now. Reasoning with him wont' get anywhere until
he gets certain things under control. Tony's got very VERY serious
problems, and I worry about him. It is no surprise, that, with such
problems, he doesn't consider others. Not his employees, nobody.
Though I have always been paid, and treated well, others have not. His
most faithful, and hardest working employees are not taken care of.
Every time I work for him, and GET paid, that's money they aren't
getting paid. I'm not doing it anymore. It's unfair. I feel I'm facilitating
his ill-treatment of them by working for them. I don't "need' the money.
It's money I spend on my hobby - these people work full time to get his
shows up and running. I can't bring myself to do that to them.

When Tony cleans things up, starts paying them what they're owed, and
resolves this stupid feud that does nothing but cause trouble in the hobby,
I'll work for him again. This hobby has enough trouble from it's enemies
on the outside, no good will come out of fighting on the inside.



*she doesn't, but I have no desire anyway, so I was able to marry her in
good faith.

Way to go Cathy. Very one should know you are not out to hurt anyone. If you were you would have named Jeff Mohr as the person who spread those rumors, about you and the greenville show. Jeff you should not have been jealous of Roark. You should have went to Cathy's columbia show and learned how to do a lecture from Roark. Maybe than you would be able to do yours with real snakes.