The internet has provided the MHRM will growth opportunities like nothing else. It has also created an environment where inevitable clashes and disagreements go public. Sometimes that is because some people feel the need to leave the MHRM, or in particular AVFM on a parade float waving at the cameras.
Sad to say, here we go again.
Attila Vinczer, our erstwhile Canadian Activism Director, has decided to exit AVFM by sending some key people a letter that is basically full of lies and poor me victim chanting. I am attaching that letter here, unaltered for anyone who cares to read it.
I will refute the basic untruths with minimum investment, and try to sketch out what actually happened. Ironically, much of what is in Vinczer’s letter will support precisely what I have to say.
As I said, here we go. I will take it one lie and misdirect at a time. Regarding the Toronto Symposium, Attila says:
The head of AVFM promised to help raise funds, but that failed to happen.
Uh, actually the head of AVFM promised Attila that he would do what he could, but that things were very tight and any significant help would be unlikely. I also invited him to use the site as he saw fit to ask for support, which he did. It is not mine, nor AVFM’s nor AVFM’s readers fault that he failed to raise enough money. I have often failed to raise money for things I wanted. I never expected I got to blame people for not giving.
Furthermore, my last attempt to discuss this matter had been denied by the head of AVFM after agreeing to speak with me.
A bit of truth to that, until you consider the multiple complaints I had received in the meantime about Attila failing to remunerate several people after two consecutive symposiums, complete with “the dog ate my homework” level of excuses for not paying.
One example of that was with me. Even after forgiving large portions of money that Attila owed me personally, and after countless broken promises of when I would be paid, Attila messaged me one day that he really had intended to pay me $2,000 that he owed me that his car got towed and it cost him $750.00, so I got nothing. Forgive me if I calculate wrong, but for some reason that came out to $1,250.00 he could have and should have paid me. I guess the dog ate that, too.
I am no longer willing to remain silent, particularly with the incredulously wanton threats made against me, by those who at a time, I thought were my friends and allies.
The feeling is mutual, Attila. There are many people who have, out of a desire to give you every benefit of the doubt, remained silent in the face of your leaving them saddled with the expense of your ambitions. That is about to change.
I have been accused of being a cheat, a liar, a thief, a con artist, dishonest in addition to being called a scum bag and coerced into doing things I was unable to do.
And I am sure that has nothing to do with dozens of broken promises, unpaid bills, manipulating people into covering your expenses knowing full well that if you did not make the money back that you could not reimburse.
I need to remind readers here that most of these people were NOT people of means. They were just activists. In other words, people that scrape by in the decidedly not profitable world of trying to help men and boys. Attila’s disregard for their well-being is atrocious.
So I am going to be brutally honest. There are several issues that need to be addressed.
2015 TorontoDV Symposium:
I made a decision to cancel the event due to lack of funds raised including ticket sales. Sen.
Anne Cools was the first person I emailed and she was deeply disappointed(sic). Another person who got wind of this at CAFÉ (sic), said I could not and should not cancel this important event and promised to raise $5,000.00 I needed. Based on that promise I went back on my decision, which I never do, and resurrected the event. This turned out to be only $1,500.00 and my troubles began.
Of course, Attila. It is CAFE’s fault. Certainly you were not able to look at the previous years failure and make a sound decision to cancel before your “troubles began.”
Despite asking, I have yet to see a copy of the invoice for the flight AVFM arranged from London to Toronto to LA and eventually back to London.
This is false. Attila never asked. It would seem to make no difference since he paid nothing back at all to me or anyone else anyway. Keep in mind that Attila had no problem dumping this expense in my lap when I was right in the middle of planning our own conference at considerable expense.
I won’t put financial documents online here with sensitive markers on them. And I won’t take the time to redact them pointlessly, since Attila has already acknowledged he did not have the money to pay. I will put the reservation confirmations here. I assume most people can figure out that this kind of flight schedule, business class, does not stretch the imagination at $6,500.00. $1,700.00 of that was indeed paid by Al Martin. The rest came out of my pocket (Silly me forgave most of the balance in the name of unity), to which all parties not lying about matters can attest.
BTW, I am sending a link to this to Ms. Pizzey herself, who has not reported favorably on her dealings with Attila. I am sure we can look forward to her comment on this, to be added to this letter.
The cost for having Marty Fiebert and his wife travel to Toronto was agreed to be $2,100.00 including lodging. This bill has not been covered and is being paid on Monday, October 5, 2015.
Gee, another promise to pay a two year old bill. Another fronted cheeseburger that will be gladly repaid on Tuesday. Problem is, that I have just been advised by Tanveer Ahmed that he did not get his money back from Attila even after being told it had been wired. I did not even know how to react to that since Attila has been in debt to me long before he stiffed Dr. Ahmed.
God this is all so sickening.
The cost of Stephan Moulineux’s hotel $450.00 bill was covered by him. He too will be reimbursed on Monday, October 5, 2015. Neither Stephan nor his assistant have never caused any fuss about this.
Lucky you, Attila. How convenient that they did not get uppity about being shafted along with everyone else. And good oh, they got another one of your now infamous promises.
I love the melodrama! Will Tanveer’s mysteriously disappearing wire suddenly come through just the moment Attila was really, really about to pay Stefan for realsies!? Only the shadow knows!
Sorry folks, have to pass the buck (no pun intended) on the next part because it involves the money for silver that Al Martin got shafted on. Suffice it to say that he has not seen a dime after a string of broken promises. I am sure he will speak up if he wants to. Meanwhile I can promise you that Attila is not exactly on his favored list.
Are we starting to see a pattern here?
The hotel attempted to charge my Visa card for about $1,000.00 several times causing it to be locked. I had no means and time to deal with that issue.
Damn your luck, Attila. You seem to be stricken by the worst of it, at least when there are others around to yank out the plastic and cover you. But that bad luck seems to follow you around for years, making it impossible to pay that back.
I think the worst of it is that it appears Attila Vinczer really thinks people are this stupid.
Take that back, ripping people off really is worse.
Oddly, even after providing AVFM with 10 free tickets, not one AVFM person came to see him, not even protesters.
Now that really is desperate. I knew about half the people in attendance, which was four of them. Despite having tons of seating and stacks of tickets, almost no one attended. Meanwhile a CAFE event down the street was bustling. Make of that what you will.
I had kept Suzy up to speed about my situation and asked her, before she left if she could help out with $1,000.00 on an emergency basis if needed.
At this point, the only thing I can see in this is that he knew he was in trouble and was lining up others people’s money to pad the inevitable meltdown. Oh wait, I must have forgotten, this was all CAFE’s fault. I think Suze McCarley should send Justin Trottier an invoice.
My law firm informed me Friday morning that there were complications and closing was not going to take place Friday June, 3, 2015 as expected.
Bad news from law firms tends to follow cars being towed.
However to my further shock, I was informed by third party that Paul, Suzy and Dean had left Toronto.
Well, sitting around in a hotel with a group of people who are wondering if it is actually, really paid for, and who are making the same stack of complaints as the last people unfortunate enough to do business with Attila Vinczer will make that happen. Indeed, I made a decision to leave and urged Dean and Suze to come with me. That choice was actually a second best to what I should have done, which was decide not to come in the first place.
While others have received money from AVFM including remuneration, my department has been afforded not a single dime of the money that AVFM collects. Leaving me out of pocket for several thousand dollars.
What do you want, Attila, a cookie? Actually very, very little has ever been dispensed in remuneration to AVFM volunteers. That includes David King, who has produced volumes more than you without taking a dime. Monies that were paid out to anyone were paltry. And the operation has been a financial failure to me personally, because it was never about making money. That last bit of language sounded a bit like an attempt to document losses in the midst of writing about a men’s movement in which you have left an unending string of broken promises and empty pockets.
Shame on you, Attila Vinczer.
To call me a con artist and to embark on a path to knowingly, and willingly cause me, my family and particularly my children harm by cyber attacking me is criminally malicious. Those who still think I am a liar and dishonest should know, everything I have said, remarked and my entire interaction with AVFM has been digitally recorded. In my defence, I will not hesitate to make that public should the need arise to do so. Remember before you hit the publish button, in a battle both parties are injured.
Boy, did you ever pick the wrong person to threaten. I am itching to hit the publish button, complete with my opinion that my experience with you has left me with the certainty that you are a liar, a con artist and a dishonest scoundrel that has ripped off people over three countries and two continents.
Our risk mitigation is simple. Let you ride out of here on your exposed ass and make sure that your letter and this, the official AVFM response stays on the record. Protect other advocates from your thievery. Let you sit and rot in the filth of your own creation and never have anything to do with you again.
Look at it this way, Attila. You have scored high. You have managed to garner the largest collection of high profile activists and thought leaders on men’s issues and have most of them conclude that they cannot trust you any further than they can throw you.
The list here of people who have done business with you and found themselves left holding the bag because of your slimy way of doing business includes myself, Al Martin, Tanveer Ahmed, Stefan Molyneux, Erin Pizzey, Martin Fiebert and Suzanne McCarley.
The kicker is that you and I both know full well that list is PARTIAL.
Then you have to stupidity send out this letter, leaving me with no option but to answer any upcoming questions in advance.
Bad move from a bad apple. Have your attorneys send me a cease and desist so I can publish it with my two word response.
Now please, get out of this movement and go find something else to do that involves making your own money.
