Our Two Cents: The Tale of The Monkey Man
EDITORIAL – Dave VonTesmar broke news this week all over the state of Arizona, and even news sites across the country, for giving the law the banana, so to speak. What was his crime? According to The Arizona Republic, 37 moving violations for excessive speed triggered by speed cameras between VonTesmar’s home and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, where he is employed by Southwest Airlines. Cameras in Arizona are set to trigger at 11 Miles Per Hour over the posted limit. What makes VonTesmar’s case so unique is he says he didn’t do it. A monkey did. Photos from the citations show a man in a monkey mask. Arizona’s Department of Public Safety is not exactly enjoying this ruse, and has had DPS agents monitor his home where officers observed VonTesmar dawning the monkey mask before leaving his home. He’s still adamant that the monkey did it.
Keep in mind this is someone whose entire job is ensuring the safety of passengers traveling Southwest Airlines as a Flight Attendant. Sadly, he also has his backers. Visitors to AZCentral.com bickered with some referring to him as a patriot with connections to the Boston Tea Party thrown in for good measure.
VonTesmar, states on his Facebook page that “I am Southwest Airlines! Take that Beeeeeyotchs! Oh yeah, The opinions expressed by me on my page are MINE and protected by my constitutional rights and guarantee of FREE SPEECH.” Seeing as how Mr. VonTesmar is all for the first amendment, he should have no problem with ORIM expressing it’s freedom of press and freedom of speech.
VonTesmar, your shenanigans on the highways shows to us that you have no regard for others. Excessive speeding, and reduced visibility from wearing a mask while driving is making our roadways dangerous for everyone. We encourage you to grow up, as a 46 year old Flight Attendant, your behavior is reprehensible. Do the right thing, and burn the monkey mask and take responsibility for your actions. You may not agree with photo radar, but the fact of the matter is you were caught breaking the law. It’s time to act like a man and take the $6,500 punishment, and enroll in defensive driving courses. It is obvious you know your actions against the law, otherwise you would not go to great lengths to conceal your identity.
In our opinion, a ride on a Southwest flight with you as flight attendant is less than safe, and as such we cannot from this point forward recommend Southwest to our readers. We’re sure VonTesmar will understand that our freedom of press allows us to decide what services we recommend and why. We may be a small collaborative travel magazine, but we cannot good conscience recommend our readers place their lives in the hands of someone who not only ignores, but openly mocks the law in a way that puts us all in danger.