Hot Rods The State of The Rodder's Journal - a note from Steve Coonan

Shit good catch, I'm not even dyslexic.

So where's my 84?

 

That’s the the $84 question or is it the $48 question

Maybe at this point it’s a moot point.

 

#roddersjournal is not an account posting pictures. It's a collection of pictures posted by people using the hashtag. Anyone can post a picture with that hashtag included and it will show up under that 'collection'. @roddersjournal would be an account requiring an individual (owner of the account) to post pictures.
I can post a picture with the hashtag #HAMB and it will show up under the #H.A.M.B. collection, but that doesn't mean Ryan posted it.

 

Well that quote from Mr Coonan appears to be another load of fantasy doesn’t it?
Why can’t you just cut the crap and be honest?

 

Ryan could you or some of the other guys who seem to be friends with Steve try and find out if there are any updates. I appreciate you allowing this conversation to happen but it does seem like unless some information comes out soon the naysayers have a point. I'm fortunately just out a T shirt rather than something like a subscription. Bad things happen to good people, we should all understand that but please try and get some communication from Steve.

 

Steve is probably going to stay quiet until he knows something firm and I don't blame him, he last tried to explain his situation and hoped to know something in a few weeks. it was like it was carved in stone for some.

He could have come on and said screw you but I haven't heard that yet, I would think he is making a effort to save TRJ, If the time comes and he folds the magazine we will have lost the best publication out there, sure he is guilty of trying to make the magazine better by moving to a more central location and during that time the pandemic hit which crippled businesses all over this country, the postal service got swamped and Steve was caught up in the middle of everything.

I'm still hopeful, HRP

 

It is pretty wild how some stuff goes thru the mail fine and some just gets stuck in limbo. I had a guy send me some stuff on eBay 3 day express and it took 14 day to arrive. I sure hope this whole deal can get sorted out.

 

I live in BC Canada....I bought some parts last month from a guy in Virginia. It took about 8 days to arrive and that includes clearing customs. He shipped USPS.

 

Well I like TRJ enough and it does have some good articles but I'm puzzled why everyone thinks it's the best ever. Quality of paper, pics, less adds? I miss the reincarnated Rod and Custom and a few others.

 

I agree. I´m getting orders from the US almost every other week, be it from Rockauto , Summit, whatever. Most orders are shipped by USPS and FedEx, sometimes DHL. I can´t think of a single one that took longer to arrive here than 5 business days within the last year, that´s including passing customs ect. I never had something to complain about with FedEx/ DHL/ USPS... Now ask me about UPS, that´s a whole nuther story. Not saying USPS did not screw up,I just don´t know, but I doubt they did screw up on overseas shipping.

 

As stated in my first post on this thread, I understand things can go terribly wrong on many ends at the same time... but telling people about that and asking for patience will go along way.

 

he could have but wouldn't that be mail fraud?

 

No, It does not appear so:

What, Exactly, Is the Crime of Mail Fraud?


Mail fraud – and its younger brother wire fraud – are the bread-and-butter of federal prosecutors. A person commits mail fraud when he engages in a scheme to defraud, with intent to defraud, and uses the mails in furtherance of that scheme.

• A scheme to defraud means depriving someone of property by deceitful or dishonest means. The scheme need not involve an affirmative misrepresentation or lie. And the property that is the target of the scheme can be tangible property (like money or real estate) or intangible property (like information or intellectual property).
• Intent to defraud means that the defendant intends to be deceitful or dishonest. An individual cannot commit wire fraud if he believes his statements and actions were truthful and honest. Good faith is a defense.
• Use of the mails in furtherance of the scheme means only that a mailing form a component of the scheme. The mailing need not be an essential element of the scheme. In other words, it’s not necessary that a fraudulent document be mailed or a false representation be made in a letter. It’s enough if the mailing is “incidental” to an essential element. And it is enough for the defendant to cause a mailing. He need not actually deposit the mailing in the mail.

The mail fraud statute can apply to a wide range of corporate criminal conduct. The statute’s simplicity and its severe penalties make it a favorite of federal prosecutors. For example, from January through July of 2018, the Department of Justice indicted 292 cases with mail fraud as the lead charge. And the Department of Justice has charged mail fraud in some of its most high profile prosecutions, including its prosecution of Bernie Madoff, former Illinois Governor George Ryan, and former U.S. Congresswoman Corrine Brown.

And, while the statute is called “mail fraud,” in 1994, Congress expanded it to include the use of “private or commercial interstate carriers,” such as FedEx and UPS.

To learn more about corporate and executive criminal liability, follow us on LinkedIn. “Brilliant lawyers with courtroom savvy” – Benchmark Litigation. Copyright MoloLamken LLP 2018.

Also, a very unhelpful conjecture

 

When this thread pops up in a couple years some will still be saying give it a little more time.

 

Yeah this thread has become addictive. Kind of like a long running soap opera with two camps of supporters and those who have been wronged. I don't have a subscription (and it seems like nobody does now!) but I always check in to see the latest drama...

 

In a couple of years this whole fiasco will be a bitter memory for some or a Davis verses Goliath ending for others, none of you can foresee the future.

Hopefully TRJ will survive and the owners can make a comeback and earn everyone's trust, You can't squeeze blood out of a turnip. HRP

 

Ah, but what do you get when you squeeze a turnip.??

 

Turpentine?

 

I hope nobody is holding their breath.

 

You California guys. It's "Turniptine"!!!!

 

I have held off commenting until now. I am a “lifetime” subscriber, got in on the first round of those. I have gotten more than my initial investment back, so I’m not technically going to be out any money if TRJ goes tits up. I understand that others are not so fortunate, and that really sucks. No one likes feeling ripped off.

I don’t personally know Steve Coonan, never met the man. I can only imagine where his head and heart are right now. It would appear that he is trying to save a rapidly sinking ship by himself. There is no more Rodders Journal staff to help. Just one person, trying to stave off the inevitable. I hope I’m wrong, but I feel like TRJ is a dead magazine walking.

 

I too am one of the first to purchase the Lifetime Subscription and like you I really won't be loosing anything except a publication I really enjoy.

The analogy of Steve trying a save a sinking ship by himself speaks volumes, a bucket at a time is not enough to keep his head above water and try as he might he can't do it without help from somewhere. HRP

 

I remember Steve selling first subscriptions out of the trunk of his car at an early and better Hot Rod Reunion. He had a vision of a Hot Rod Book, not just a magazine. beautiful photos printed on amazing paper, with amazing printing presses. Look what it has become! A true corner stone of information.
Do you think a guy that started from nothing, doesn't have the ability to earther the storm?
If you are reading this trite Steve, please understand, IMHO, the majority of your readers will stand behind you.
If a few people are complaining, you must be doing something right.

 

Weathering a storm is one thing. This is something entirely different. I know a few things about how the print industry works. Let me play out the likeliest scenario.

Due to circumstances, some self-inflicted and others out of your control, your business is hurting. Short of cash, and still bleeding money. You can feel it starting to slip away. But you have the next issue ready to go, and you figure to make some money from newstand (single copy) sales, plus maybe bring in some new subscribers and advertising revenue. You figure to get the wheels back on the buggy, and live to fight another day. Then the bottom falls out. Distribution kicks your ass. Your product goes undelivered. No revenue from the newstand, no new subscribers no new advertisers. No money coming in, only bills to pay.

In the magazine industry, there are only really 4 sources of income. Subscribers, advertising, single copy sales, and merchandise. Unfortunately, subscribers and advertisers pay up front. Once the checks cash, they are no longer an asset. They are a liability. You owe them, just like any other creditor. At this point, it becomes a bit of a pyramid scheme, trying to find enough new money to cover old debts. If you can’t generate income from the first two sources, you only have magazine sales (new subscribers or newstand sales) and merchandise sales to raise money, so you try to keep that revenue stream going as long as possible, hoping that you can somehow cover that later.

Subscribers are pissed. Advertisers are pissed. Merchandise orders are going unfilled. Out of desperation, you do what any other degenerate gambler does, you double down on your bets. You use the last of the company funds to produce another issue of the magazine. But now you are tapped out. No money to pay staff, so day to day operations come to a halt. No way to pay for distribution, so no way to generate income from the new issue. No money to order the merchandise that is already sold. No way to move the mountain forward. Game over.

I hope I’m wrong, but I don’t think I am.

 

I'm sorry I forgot to mention I have been and still am in the printing business since a Summer of 1972 when I went to work for a local newspaper. And now 49 years later, I still bleed ink.

 

I was a newer subscriber so I am only out a couple of copy's. I have read most of this and understand that a lot of people are mad about losing money on this. Maybe he is not responding because he has no idea what to do or what to say next. Sometimes it may be better to let things go and hope for some good news down the road. I don't think that someone that has published this magazine (book) intended for things to turn out this way. I sure would hate to hear that he did something bad to himself because of all the pressure. For me, it's time to move on. If I get the next couple of issue's great, if not, the world ain't gonna end. Lord knows I have lost more money on other things. D

 

I am one of the complainers. I have a life time subscription, plus a B cover subscription, am also out on merchandise and like an idiot (because I did not receive 83 or 84) I purchased copies of those locally from the Australian distributor.

I am not a forgive and forget kind of guy and I have been known to hold a grudge. Whilst I wish that Rodders Journal would step up and let us know what has happened I think 37 Hotrod and Dennis D have both made good points and summed this situation up very well.

This is my last post on the topic, time for me to move on.

 

I subscribed to TRJ and Speed and Kulture at the same time. Got my 3rd Speed and Kulture today. Still waiting on my second TRJ. S&K got thru the same pandemic and still created magazines. TRJ has just created excuses. Stick a fork in TRJ, its done.

 

RR is correct. I am a subscriber to Auto Round up an magazine that comes out twice a month. A couple of issues were running a little later than usual around Christmas time but I have received all my issues to date. I subscribed to TRJ last year and have NEVER received an issue..
Like RR said stick a fork in TRJ, they will never recover.