Will Jenson is frustrated by the events of the last board meeting of his oil company:
“I don’t know how it happened. Every board member reversed their position.
We were so ready to drill. I was sure it was a done deal. We got all the permits quickly. We paid off and donated to all the key decision makers. This was our meeting to finalize the drilling for oil on the so-called “sacred land.”
I was concerned at the start of the meeting. Everyone seemed so somber. I hadn’t really prepared much for the meeting because it was a foregone conclusion that drilling was set to start. This was just the meeting to make it official.
I should have suspected when Jeff asked for secret balloting. Our bylaws require that if any board member asks for a secret ballot, we must do it.
We voted. All nine board members voted against starting.
Will Jenson sits back in his chair:
“Can anyone tell me what happened?”
Not a word from anyone.
The meeting adjourned, and I was dumbfounded.
Before Lester could leave, I grabbed him by the arm.
“Lester (also not his real name), we are friends. We go back before this business. What happened. This was supposed to be a done deal?”
Lester answered me reluctantly.
“Look, somehow, someone got dirt on each of us. Some big things and some small things and some stuff we will never know.”
“I have a lot to lose. You know that I stepped out on my marriage only a couple of times, but somebody found out and left me notes on my desk letting me know that if I didn’t vote against the drilling, the info would get out. I couldn’t risk it.”
“Who would have this info? How would they know? Weren’t you discreet?”
“I thought I was. But every detail of my hotel stay was in the note, and a photo from the security cams revealed the woman I was with. I couldn’t risk it.”
“Did you run into anyone that you knew?”
“No. The only people who saw me enter the room were the cleaning staff in the hotel. We made a point of entering separately.
An elderly woman was finishing up the vacuuming in the room, and she left quickly when I entered.
Most of the board members would not explain why they changed their vote. Just Wilson and Levitt were willing to talk with me. They had similar experiences.”
Dammit, thanks to this vote. We will miss the deadline, and the sacred lands bid goes to a historical site preservation committee. It’s over.” Read the series from the beginning on Substack. ANewkindofold.com
No posts
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.