Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik says that recent allegation that he urinated in public last week are “bullshit.”
Local right-wing radio jocks have been repeating the unsubstantiated claim, which was first made at the Arizona Daily Independent website.
Kozachik, who was the subject of this week’s cover story, told TW via email:
They’re clearly desperate. Anybody can make an anonymous allegation, and that’s all the ADI blog is. Nobody is ever on the record and so it makes it easy for them to put guys like me in the position of having to prove a negative. They smeared Ray Carroll during his campaign, and are so fringe that they’ve called guys like Bruce Ash and Al Melvin RINO’s.
If the Republican Party wants to regain any level of credibility in this community, they’ll remove the link from their web site.
It also says something about the journalistic professionalism of KNST and Journal Broadcasting that they’re running this shit on the radio day after day, but I guess that’s the small-minded echo chamber of hatred that the fringe right in this town seems to thrive on. Two weeks ago it was me “testing” prostitutes through my efforts at offering a diversion program. Before that it was me having a “gay wedding with my secret lover” that they had posted on Facebook. I won’t be spending the next six months of this campaign giving them any level of relevancy by answering false and anonymous allegations, but I’m more than happy to put it out there with you this one time that this group of children needs to grow up. The fact is that they’ll show that they’re incapable of that and that’ll validate the reason behind them being a bunch of losers in virtually every election in this region.
The ADI article in question, like most of the content on the website, is bylined “ADI News Services.” The non-attributed story cited anonymous sources who allegedly witnessed Kozachik standing against a wall in a neighborhood near El Con:
The City Councilman, an avid runner, stopped and urinated against a wall outside of Gabby Gifford’s new neighborhood in full view of stunned passersby.
Kozachik was seen moments later, at approximately 10:16 a.m. near the Starbucks at El Con mall.
One witness to Kozachik’s public indecency said, “He ran up to the wall, faced it, and just started peeing and peeing and peeing. It seemed like an eternity.”
Witnesses had considered calling law enforcement for the public indecency, but feared retaliation. The Councilman is well-known for his angry temperament and with the mismanagement of the City budget it was unlikely, in their estimation that the cops could come any way.
As is typical of ADI articles, the story also included more anonymous reaction from people who fear to give their names while expressing their opinion:
“Some call it the ‘Tucson way’ and others call it B.S.,” said one native Tucsonan. “I call it B.S,. There is a double-standard here and people are getting sick of it. These city clowncil folks and their cronies are starving us with their boycotts, bans, and bullshit.”
One Tucsonan said of Kozachik’s lack of public decency, “He wants to regulate every part of our lives, but he can’t regulate his own bladder? God forbid, his need to pee was not caused by a 32 ounce Big Gulp, because we know what would be coming next.”
Kozachik was blunt in his reaction to the story: “It’s bullshit. Two weeks ago, (radio host) Jon Justice was talking about how I was testing prostitutes when I was doing Project RAISE. Folks, grow up.”
Here’s the deal: Anonymously sourced articles like this just don’t pass the sniff test (if you’ll excuse the expression in this case). If no one is willing to go on the record—including the author of the piece—you’re simply not credible. It’s amateurish and clownish.
Furthermore: Is this really the best that conservatives in this town can come up with when they’re trying to criticize public officials? The way that the radio guys have seized on this nonsense is not a reflection on Kozachik. It just demonstrates that his critics have a hard time coming up with a substantive argument, primarily because they do virtually no investigating of anything. They’re not engaged in journalism. They’re engaged in epistemic closure.
That’s not a criticism based in ideology. Listen to what Emil Franzi, a longtime local GOP political consultant, has to say about this:
There is a totally unsupported claim made in a rather disreputable website that Councilman Kozacik was seen publicly urinating. This is the same hit sheet that similarly smeared Supervisor Ray Carroll last summer with the claim that an “anonymous source” told them he has solicited a bribe from them. In both cases, this website claims that they cannot divulge the name of the accuser because they “fear retaliation”. Right.
Now unlike the warmed over gypsy shock jocks who have repeated this claim about Kozacik, some of us have been around long enough to know better than to run with a story this dirty that somebody claims somebody told them about with no real proof. (HINT: a picture of a wet spot on a wall doesn;t count.) While I realize feeling against Kozacik runs high on the right (I’ve stoked some of it myself) the public peeing story has no credibility whatsoever and those repeating it should be ashamed of themselves and knock it off.
Franzi is no fan of Kozachik, but he told The Range yesterday that there’s no reason to believe anything you read on the ADI website.
“All you have to do is look at that piece of shit for about 10 seconds and you know there’s something wrong with it,” Franzi said.
Franzi is running his own conservative news site, the Southern Arizona News-Examiner. He has a long-running radio talk show, Inside Track, that airs on Saturday afternoons on KVOI, 1030 AM.
Franzi said the radio hosts who have been hyping the story “give talk radio a bad name with their complete inability to investigate a claim. They’ve been conned by a publication that’s clearly a scam. You ever read that thing? There are no bylines. Why would you believe that source on anything? If you’re going to use that as your source, there’s something wrong with the way you’re doing the news at your station.”
This article appears in Apr 4-10, 2013.
Baloney! I don’t know who they actually saw, but he doesn’t even jog in that area. I see him jogging every morning on my way to work and he doesn’t go any further than Grant road. Sorry, Charlie, you got the wrong guy! You must not have anything better to do than to pick on someone who is trying to do right by our city.
I will add my name, profile, etc. to this debate gladly. I don’t much care who does or doesn’t like my comments. I’m a big boy and I don’t need to, as Steve says, “grow up.” Instead, he should grow up. Grown ups usually don’t call names and make sure disparaging remarks. I guess you could call me intolerant of intolerance. Now I didn’t see this so can’t comment on the veracity of it, but I can read and what he says is unworthy of a government official. I don’t like it. Also, I don’t listen to any of the programs he lists.
I would like to say the Teabaggers are reaching for a new low, but this just seems par for the course. I would bet a serious amount of cash that Frank Antenori & Jon Justice got together over a few appletinis to cook this one up. Pathetic.
Yep, another classy Steve K. moment. Nice tinfoil hat AZ/DC… but it’s doing a poor job keeping out that gee-wave radiation. There are witnesses from Special K’s ward that saw the whole thing.
If Steve were still a republican… you and all the outer occupiers would be all over this, whether there were credible witnesses or not. However, SK was a snake from the very beginning and I didn’t vote for him either.
Geez, I’m glad I’m an independent voter.
It sounds like a tempest in chamber pot. Steve K says he didn’t do it, but who cares if he did? Urine has a lot of good nutrients for plants. Sometimes, your bladder demands that you take a leak. Right now. Assuming that one is relatively discreet, what’s the big deal?
Alright, go ahead and name these “witnesses” Les Owens. I’m about 99.99% sure you will not do this, unless you feel compelled to lie. You probably want to protect these “witnesses” anyways, right? (Chuckle!)
If a tin foil hat is keeping the bullshit that is affecting you away from me, then I will make a bulk purchase of them to keep myself from coming across as you do.
I’ll check back tomorrow to view the “witnesses” to this event that never occurred.
Thanks for the good hearty laugh, you’re a riot. DC
“The plane! The plane!”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1x_QbVDlLbI…
The candidates that Jon Justice and Garrett Lewis, a.m. talk jocks in Tucson, support, often lose, e.g., Jesse Kelly, Frank Antenori (guest on the Justice show on Friday mornings), and all of the opponents of Raul Grijalva whose names have been forgotten. Nonetheless, their baseless claims should not go unanswered and Justice and Lewis should be held accountable for fabrications. With their lack of success in helping to elect far right candidates, they may eventually be beating the bushes for new gigs on the oldies stations.
Les Owens: I can say with absolute certainty that I would never report the story ADI did about a Republican, Democrat, Green or whatever. One, public urination is not really a big concern of mine. Two, if someone isn’t outraged enough by an event to call the cops, it’s hard to call it a story.
On the other hand, if you want to say we protect Democrats who embarrass themselves, you might want to ask Katie Bolger.
I am an independent, but it seems the liberal left sure do like to point figers and call names, and refuse to apologize when they are proven wrong. I also note tht they are also the same that demand “civility” and yet rarely refuse to use it themselves. My dislike for Kos is based on his betrayal of those that electedhim, and his falling in line with a corrupt ad inept City Council. Had a republcan city concil pulled the bulshit this council does there would be outrage over the massive waste of public funds with nothing to show nor any accountability fo the “missing” funds. Can someone please locicaly explain as to why one side can do such while the other cannot? And yes, both party’s are guilty f graft and orruption, but this curren cro of crooks seem to be the worst tucson has ever seen.
I see Steve is characterizing this story as bullshit, but he also doesn’t deny it. He just says the witnesses need to come forward before it’s true.
Okay, I’m searching this thread for the names of those witnesses that Les Owens knows about and as I expected I’m finding nothing. He probably would’ve listed names like I.P. Freely, Phil Mayas, Seymour Butts and Mike Hunt anyways. Pure classic comic gold!
If anyone knows BS its Steve K
Guess What Folks? This story is NOT going away.
Within the next week I will be filing criminal charges against those who have engaged in criminal acts of retaliation against me for republishing the Kozachik story.
Moreover; TPD Officials themselves have adopted an intimidating posture in what appears to be an attempt to protect Kozachik.
Until the witnesses come forward I don’t know if Kozachik did or did not piss on a wall. But I do know this: For more than a decade Tucson City Officials have pissed all over the people of Tucson.
And I also know this: I’m going to find out who retaliated against me for republishing the story.
Roy Warden
Was someone talking about you, Asshat? Republishing what story?
A no comment from Steve would have been prudent his response seems to be one of a guilty man. Men have to pee, we don’t have to be gunophobes, he has worse issues than a bad bladder!
A no comment from Steve would have been prudent his response seems to be one of a guilty man in my opinion. Men have to pee, we don’t have to be gunophobes, he has worse issues than a bad bladder in my opinion! Censored? Really?
A no comment from Steve would have been prudent his response seems to be one of a guilty man. Men have to pee, he has worse issues than a bad bladder! Let me guess the profile of the person censoring my message? 25-35 white female.
Even if it isn’t bullshit, who cares? Honestly, its natural, plus what man hasn’t had to go, and sneaks off in a bush?
Get a life people.
The Wizzer of Koz is embroiled in Wizzergate.
@Bill Heath – a ONE comment from you would have been prudent
I used to laugh when Nintzel would pair Kozachik up against a Democrat better suited to be the token Conservative on TV. Somehow, Tucson – the dysfunctional blighted sandpit that it is – DESERVES Kosachik (Cunningham, Uhlich, Romero et al) … and so this story seems to be more about competing intra-media Rivalries. I personally like Jon Justice but please, no one – misunderstand that his role is not to make life in Tucson better, but to make people with people-meters spike positive listenership in large numbers so that his radio BUSINESS can charge more for Ads. Jon Justice is like Washington Bureaucrats – no one has any interest in actually solving problems because their bread in butter relies on the existence of problems, not the existence of solutions. Unfortunately, this particular City Council provides an endless supply of fodder, which is why this place seems like a very weird episode of the Twilight Zone to me.
Personally I am shocked at the immaturity of the politics in this town. Urinating in Gabby’s neighborhood! Unsubstantiated press reports! Our elected officials using such CRUDE terms while in office such as B… S>>>. The political pressure groups trying to change peoples’ rights to self expression are shameless and frightening. I noticed the other night the late, great Jay Leno referred to the AP wire service has changed their reference style code for undocumented immigrants to undocumented Democrats. Now, there’s a man who shows no fear in the face of getting fired!!!
No witness? No police report? Steve’s right – it’s BS.
As for urine, I remember several elections ago when a group of Democrats were on one side of the intersection at Speedway and Campbell and the Republicans were on the other side. I thought it was going to be one of those friendly get togethers where both groups were just trying to get cars honking for one side or the other. I was wrong. One of the Republicans peed in a cup, ran across the street and threw it on one of the Democrats. I was shocked, to say the least. The young man who it was thrown on was from California and refused to press charges. Too bad…. It may not be on paper but it will forever be in my memory. What I don’t understand is why people get so incredibly angry about voting today when so few of them bother.
Darque Wing witnessed it.
It was witnessed by Darque Wing