There’s a healthy amount of irony in this…
Long a local government watchdog and critic, conservative activist Orville Seymer is now asking the federal government to help him sort out his money troubles.
Seymer — a top official with Citizens for Responsible Government — filed for bankruptcy last month, listing $147,126 in assets and more than $1 million in liabilities. He is seeking Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, which stops all legal actions and could allow him to write off many of his debts.
Seymer is pinning much of the blame for his financial woes on City Hall, saying he has been targeted by city building inspectors for speaking out against local officials.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett’s administration is dismissing his complaints.
“His allegation that we are political hacks, for lack of a better word, has no credibility in my mind,” said Art Dahlberg, head of the Department of Neighborhood Services.
In an interview, Seymer called the bankruptcy filing “embarrassing” but pointed the finger at “bad tenants and the city of Milwaukee” as the two primary causes for his current hardship.
Seymer, 61, owns seven rental properties in the Milwaukee area through his company ODS Properties. Dahlberg’s agency has cited his buildings over the years for numerous code violations, many of which ended up in court.
“With all due respect, DNS is a blatant political organization whose mission is to punish those people who make any attempt to stand up against it,” Seymer said via email. “Because I stuck my neck out a few years ago, I am still getting punished for speaking out against them. That punishment continues today.”
It’s worth noting Orville Seymer listed more than $1 million in liabilities in his bankruptcy petition but owes only about $10,000 in forfeitures or reinspection fees as a result of enforecement actions by the City of Milwaukee, so his assertion that the City of Milwaukee is responsible for his financial predicament seem utterly preposterous. Perhaps if Orville Seymer had exhibited a good deal more fiscal responsibility, he wouldn’t be asking for the federal government for help erasing debts Seymer chose to take on.
Curiously, I’ve found no mention of Orville Seymer’s current financial peccadillo among any of the innumerable conservative media outlets/bloggers here in Wisconsin.
Zach, it sounds like you are suggesting that conservatives should not file for bankruptcy? Or is it because he is an activist/critic/watchdog? I believe even conservatives should be granted equal protection under the law, even if they criticize those laws. Now there might be some irony in this situation if Seymer was a activist against bankruptcy law, but alas, you provide no such evidence.
Not surprising that Dead-End Denis doesn’t get why this is hilarious. Seymer has claimed for years that he’s all about. “Fiscal responsibility”, just like his boy Scott Walker (who CRG has fronted for for years). And the reality is that they can’t come close to keeping their own house in order, and prove they are nothing but empty-talk posers. Maybe he should spend more time getting his own house in order instead of spending so much time on political endeavors. Just a thought.
And it’s especially rich that he whines and claims being fined $10K for being a slumlord is what did him in. Forget about the other $800K that Orv us in the hole for.
Have you noticed that a whole lot of these “business-sense conservatives” tend to be horrible at running a business and creating jobs? I sure have.
First ironic, now hilarious. I guess it is hilarious to those who take pleasure in the misfortune of others. I am a business owner and an advocate of fiscal responsibility. As an aside, who isn’t for fiscal responsibility? Anyway, many businesses fail for myriads of reasons and there is insufficient information presented here to suggest that Seymer himself has been fiscally irresponsible. Still wondering what is ironic, or hilarious for that matter, about a failed business and a bankruptcy filing. What else do you find funny Jake? Grandmothers that fall and break their hips– ha ha. Or how about fatal car crashes, I bet that makes you laugh eh Jake. Oh and what about a cancer diagnosis Jake?
You’re a moron. Please second amendment yourself.
Rotflmao. Oh so funny Conslayer. You and Jake should get together and watch some snuff films, then perhaps some footage of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, maybe top off the evening with some grainy footage of the Kennedy assassination. Good times.
There’s no need for that, conslayer.
Distract from the fact is all you have, again, color me amazed? The subject of the post topic is “funny,” because of the blatant hypocrisy, not the bankruptcy or business failure itself. You actually claim you “don’t get,” what is funny, yet, you that doesn’t prevent you from setting a new record for the # of straw arguments in one post comment, 1)small business failures, 2)car crashes 3)grandmothers falling 4)cancer diagnosis, AS IF YOU DO UNDERSTAND THE HUMOR. With all due respect (none earned yet), bullshit.
Not ironic, not hilarious, and alas, not hypocritical, unless he is an outspoken critic of bankruptcy laws, but there has been no such evidence presented.
So, are you lying now or were you lying above @ 1:22 pm about not getting the humor or did you totally refuse to read the OP or are you simply refusing to acknowledge the truth in the article describing ODS and his affiliations, or did my comment help you understand what the humor was about?
I need to go hose off my boots, the shit is pretty thick coming from you.
Neither. I do not, have not, and likely will not seen any irony, humor, hilarity or hypocrisy on the part of Seymer and his situation. Bankruptcy sucks for Seymer, the people whom he owes money, and citizens at large because of lost revenue. Hey some of those people might be Democrats. I guess they are just collateral damage.
Denis,
1. What’s the name of the business you “own?” Are you the only “owner,” or are there others? Is it incorporated? If so, under what IRS chapter? How many workers do you have? How long has this business been in existence? Is this the one that produced “millions” for hospitals all around the “midwest?”
If you really own a business, how can you afford to spend so much time here?
2. Don’t ever let anyone tell you that you’re not good at anything. You play the victim card like it’s going out of style. Is this something I need to keep a record of, everytime you think BB has been unfair to wingnuts? Have you ever heard of the acronym WATB?
3. Why are you “rewarding Seymer’s failure” with compassion? Is that for everyone who files Chapter 7 on $800,000 in debt?
Off Topic: Googly is your friend, the source of my prior questions about exchange rates with an one continent, child and slave labor, obvious opposition to any minimum wage in the USA and support for unequal pay for women here, a new product line from the dark continent and likely unregulated labor produced goods for sale. I am suspecting similarities to Ron Johnson’s ride to business success with PACOR.
1. Why is “own” and “owner” in parentheses?
2. Why not put “incorporated” in parentheses?
3. When did you first notice “leakages?”
4. Did you see a doctor?
5. When did you last clip your toenails?
6. Did you pick up the clippings?
7. If yes, please provide proof.
8. Why do you “find pleasure” in the “misfortune” of Seymer?
9. Are you in “favor” of “debtors prisons?”
10. Thanks “in” advance.
Denis, thanks. I’ll take that as confirmation that you don’t “own” any business.
If you did, you’d want to talk about it, maybe get some free advertising.
You never answer a question, but certainly demand answers. And Zach politely characterized his suspicion you were not here to “discuss,” anything.
I gave you the answer to your #8, you are not here to discuss anything.
The irony here as I see it is that a man who made a name for himself as a crusader for fiscal responsibility in government can’t even manage his own personal finances. What could Orville Seymer possibly know about fiscal responsibility, given his current situation?
Thank you Zach. I guess we will have to agree to disagree on this one. In my view, while fiscal irresponsibility may well have been the cause of Seymer’s financial problems, there has been no evidence presented to bolster that case. As a business owner, I can think of many potential causes of financial problems besides fiscal irresponsibility. Running a business is risky.
On the contrary nonquixote. If you haven’t noticed, JC typically asks a series of irrelevant questions, so I don’t see the point in answering most of the time. But do please look at the first response to Zach’s post. I ask a fair, snark free question about the irony of the bankruptcy. And it dissolved from there with Jake’s pronouncement that it was hilarious. So I am eager get to the bottom of the irony (or hilarity) question but I am getting nowhere having a substantive discussion or debate with most of you most of the time. The initial post here is all about schadenfreude and subsequent responses reinforce that impression. Why not just admit it and we can move on.
We can fuss with Denis all day, but maybe the discussion should center on the question of which law abiding, taxpaying entities get to be screwed over if Orville is granted protection from debts he incurred? Also, my understanding is that Orville doesn’t want to liquidate his assets to pay his debts, so does he get to walk away from his debts but continue to be a landlord, and if so, what guarantee does he give anyone that he won’t do this again? I hear people can get in the habit of expecting something for nothing.
Well said, Sue. Funny how the biggest takers and moochers are righties who will talk your ear off about how “others” are abusing the system, when it’s usually more likely that they’re the ones doing wrong.
It’s always projection with these RW trolls
Ok, let us focus on your questions Sue. The people who are getting screwed are the people whom he owes money, banks perhaps, and who knows who else. Regarding your second question, presumably the bankruptcy will be overseen by a judge in accordance with bankruptcy law. And who can “guarantee” that they will never be in financial distress again? Can you guarantee that you will not go bankrupt Sue? I wish I could but I am unable to predict financial calamity. In reading the many comments here, one can’t help but wonder whether the compassionate left would like a conservatives-only debtors prison here in Wisconsin.
Another strawman, thought you might have used those up already, but you keep pulling them out of your ass. This isn’t about Sue potentially needing to file someday. Seymer wasn’t insured against financial calamity handling those amounts of estimated .
Compassionate conservatives aren’t holding a fund raiser, a $500 a plate rubber chicken dinner to help him out? A partisan party hack isn’t taken care of by his own kind. You are digging pretty fucking deep into foo-foo mush-brain “reasoning,” in actually insinuating that the “left,” wants ANY type of debtors prison, so are somehow being the, “bad,” players here. From the comments here you surmised that?
Zach, would you kindly pull the plug on this terminal case?
(Off Topic)
Not sure if this is a Wm the elder or Billy the kid, Malloy, but it is interesting to see the straight-line lunatic fringe, Brookfield to the Bradley Center, area codes and street maps, “Pox on Americana,” patriots, running right through Scooter’s backyard, needing to call in the “reserves,” to try put together a cogent argument or defense (still haven’t been able to muster the brain power) of your political hash, to trip up a couple of individual blue collar rubes fortunate enough to claim tutoring from exceptional, caring and dedicated public school teachers in our early educational backgrounds.
From real estate to pharmaceuticals to whatever you are doing, WillBill (didn’t have more than 2 minutes to waste searching this morning), to the main poster/poser retailer (of not made in America) just south of you (is he hoping to move up to your area code), things must be tough as you and your merry troupe are all apparently reduced to trolling on one specific moderately blue leaning blog site to be noticed by anyone. Thanks for the links, helps us almost as much as a recall list. All of you should get on your party line and figure out a strategy that might have a chance of influencing anyone in any manner.
http://www.wispolitics.com/1006/130520PrairePatriotsCommonCore.pdf
http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/29544424.html
http://www.wisconsinconservatives.com/about-us/
http://www.paxamerica.org/
That protection from debt would clearly be a handout from the, “government,” and should at least require Orville to be drug tested prior to any decision.
Orville Seymer is, was and always will be a piece of filthy garbage. He has cost taxpayers millions of dollars because of his neglect and contempt.
I’m tempted to want to see that bankruptcy case go to court, because I’m interested in seeing who gave Orv and his fellow Cretins for Republican Governance the funds to make all of their frivolous open records requests and lawsuits. I bet you’ll find a lot of common funders with the Walker campaign and/or Scotty ‘s “inner circle”.
By the way, this story made Charlie Pierce’s blog at Esquire as an example of the Fitzwalkerstanis’ “penny-ante grift.”
There’s plenty more where that came from, if the national media wants to check it out.
Excellent point, thank you.
Some or all of that info may already be in the petition. Someone with access to PACER could take a look.
IANAL
Maybe I’m the first one to notice, but, seriously, who would name their business “ODS Properties”? ODS = odious. Am I missing something here?