To: Bryan Marcella

From: Art May

Date: October 13 th , 2004

RE: Response to October 4 th letter

I had an opportunity to read your October 4 th letter addressed to me even though you failed to forward me a copy. It appears this letter, the same as your “recycled letter”, was written by the resident ACRE Svengali, Jack Gaines. Apparently the only sections authored by you were the salutation and your signature. After your previous letter was distributed, Bottalico confessed to an ACRE member when quizzed about the actual author of the letter, that you had extensive assistance in preparing the text. I have no reservations with placing “your letter” on www.MTAcre.com . Most of Gaines' assertions are too ludicrous to warrant a response. His predisposition to sling mud and hope some sticks is evident in the letters content. If anyone chooses to believe the remarks in this letter, especially after four years of ACRE lies and mis-information, all that can be said is they should consider the messenger and the overall performance displayed to date by the ACRE organization.

I reiterate my response to your previous letter (I could forward a copy to you to refresh your memory) please produce the records . I have in my possession copies of Local 77 LM2's from my term in office. These records reflect a healthy balance in the two funds that I controlled, the Local and the LCA Funds. In early 1995, after Bottalico was elected General Chairman, I made an appointment with Paul Holland to come to the Local 77 office and review all of the Lodge records. I will cheerfully provide information from those records to any interested party. Oh yes, before I move along, I did not have access to General Committee records, but I did have a conversation with someone that had reviewed those records after Bottalico assumed office. This information is also available upon request. The responsibilities of any UTU Local President include: operating the Local (not the General Committee), enforcing the Constitution and Local By-laws and employing Roberts Rules of Order when chairing Local meetings. A Local President does not initiate Lodge action, he or she, ensures proper procedures are utilized for either ratification, amendment or rejection of the proposed action. I was not in office when a special assessment was presented for a vote in the spring of 1987. This action was necessary because the General Chairman that vacated office on January 1 st , 1987, Ed Farley, left a General Committee balance of approximately $3,000.00. The appropriate

balance should have been closer to $20,000.00. Check the records . Of course there is more to the story, and I would be willing to provide further details.

Jack, has the graffiti issue reversed? I would like to learn the identities of the members engaged in this activity so that I could perhaps persuade them to focus their frustration in a more constructive fashion. By the way Jack, whom should I contact when my name appears on a cab wall, especially regarding the sentiment wishing me to contract prostate cancer?

Examine your record in office Bryan. You violated the UTU Constitution while in office as President of Local 77, thus violating your oath of office and the members trust. Your salary as President of ACRE Local Division 1 for 2003 was $14,814.00 instead of the Lodge approved $8,305.00. Most ACRE officers receive salaries over the Lodge approved salary structure. And you, the officer entrusted to enforce the Constitution and Local By-laws and safeguard the members' interest, do not encourage fiduciary responsibility from the officers for these overages. A myriad of failed promises, lost agreements, the ratification of the worst agreement in Metro-North history and the complete shunning of the ACRE organization by the labor community are only a few examples of ACRE's performance during the past four years. You should not be held accountable for Bottalico, Gaines' or Doyle's actions, but you still support and attempt to justify their perfidy to members.

Because you affixed your signature to Gaines' letter, I decided to modify my position related in my Farley compensation issue letter regarding the identity of the indiscrete ACRE officer I mentioned. You conceded the Farley issue was a stratagem to establish precedent for Bottalico's self interests. Initially, I did not wish to reveal your identity to spare you a Bottalico tongue lashing, similar to the diatribes Bottalico has inflicted upon several other ACRE officers in the past that possessed the temerity to not fully subscribe to his doctrine. Upon reflection, I felt you should be held accountable for at least one of your actions.

Bryan, you have succumbed at least twice to Gaines' puppeteer machinations. Unfortunately, you are not the only ACRE officer to fall victim to his sophistry. Someone operating in your capacity should be capable of producing original thought and possess the ability to ensure proper representation is available to ACRE members.

Gaines' attempts to discredit opposing viewpoints or the individuals that oppose ACRE's methods of operation do not diminish ACRE's pitiful accomplishments as a company dominated union.

P.S. I became aware at an early age that I was cursed with an arrogant and condescending bearing when I was ejected from church school for repeatedly challenging the pastor concerning an issue of decorum and later from the Boy Scouts for thrashing the Scoutmaster's son after a variety of disputes. Does the possibility exist that you could post this response on the ACRE web site?