Tom Mulhall Takes My Words Out of Context

In a post today, Tom Mulhall claims that I actually agreed with his position on San Onofre based upon a few words he claims I wrote back on July 19 of this year.

The funny thing is, I cannot find those exact words anywhere on my blog (perhaps they are from an email or another forum), but yes, I did say that following the loss in the Fourth District Court of Appeal, I felt the NAC would better serve the naturist cause by returning to a grassroots effort, because I believed the appeal to the Supreme Court was futile, and I was right.

I HAVE ALWAYS SUPPORTED THE INITIAL NAC LAWSUIT AND HAVE SPOKEN LOUDLY AND OFTEN AGAINST AANR'S APPEASEMENT POLICY WITH THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION.

You can go back and review everything I've written about the San Onofre case here.

Pulling a few words out of context is a patently dishonest way to engage in debate. I would hope that Tom would keep this exchange of ideas and positions on a higher level.

Tom Mulhall Blames the NAC for San Onofre Loss

In a disappointing yet predictable move, Tom Mulhall, owner of the Terra Cotta Inn, has decided to bash the NAC for the loss of nude sunbathing at San Onofre.

I guess some people do not understand the meaning of hazards of litigation and decided to sue. They put at risk nude sunbathing at ALL beaches in California. That was so obvious in the lawsuit.

Worse, not only was Cahill at risk in California, but Cahill was a model policy used by nudist groups in other states to work on getting legal nude beaches.

Sorry Tom, but your argument is bogus. The minute the California Department of Parks and Recreation decided to ban nudity at San Onofre Beach, the Cahill Policy was breached. While AANR made the decision to roll over and accept the loss, the NAC stood up for naturist rights and put up a good fight.

Tom, who is on the AANR West Board of Directors, made this statement upon his election: "I am very happy to be elected to this position of trust for nudists. I won't let you down."

Well, Tom, today you let me down, as well as every member of The Naturist Society and board member of the NAC. This political spitball game is unbecoming of people entrusted to uphold nudist and naturist rights. This is schoolyard childishness that only serves to stroke the egos of all the AANR officials who made the decision some time ago to abandon San Onofre.

“Lost causes are the only ones worth fighting for.” ~ Clarence Darrow

"I guess this is just another lost cause, Mr. Paine. All you people don't know about lost causes. Mr. Paine does. He said once they were the only causes worth fighting for. And he fought for them once, for the only reason any man ever fights for them; because of just one plain simple rule: 'Love thy neighbor.'... And you know that you fight for the lost causes harder than for any other. Yes, you even die for them." ~ James Stewart as Senator Jefferson Smith in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington"

An Open Letter to Tom Mulhall

Tom Mulhall reports that he has been elected to the AANR West Board of Directors. I wholeheartedly congratulate him on this well-earned honor.

Tom and his wife Mary Clare are experts in public relations and have made their Terra Cotta Inn clothing-optional resort a model for success in the nudist industry. They are by far the most enthusiastic and friendly spokespersons in the industry, qualities which they will no doubt bring to AANR.

In his announcement, Tom writes:

If people have questions about AANR, feel free calling me at 800-786-6938. If you want me to bring something up to the board, let me know.

OK, I'll bite.

It's no secret that I have been critical of AANR's failure to support the NAC's initiatives in trying to save the clothing-optional status of a section of San Onofre Beach. It is my opinion that by ignoring the legal front and attempting to come to some sort of "deal" with the California Department of Parks and Recreation, AANR has not only thrown San Onofre Beach under the bus, it has endangered the status of all clothing-optional beaches on state lands. AANR is blaming the NAC's lawsuit for creating the hostile atmosphere, but the real truth of the matter is that the DPR made a unilateral decision to ban nudity at San Onofre, would not bargain with the NAC, and left no alternative but to sue to protect nudist and naturist rights.

I would hope, Tom, that as a private business owner with a successful resort, that you will not forget the public lands issue. There is a common belief out there that AANR is deliberately sabotaging the public beaches because it will drive more people into private AANR affiliated resorts like the Terra Cotta Inn.

I don't subscribe to this misconception. From my point of view, the more public lands are set aside for nude recreation, the more people will become accepting, and overall participation will increase. In Florida, the creation of Haulover Beach appears to have contributed to a boom in private resorts throughout that state, and now Key West is looking for its own clothing-optional beach in order to increase tourist revenue. Crowded nude beaches means crowded nude resorts.

The banning of nudity on public lands in California only serves to propagate the myth that nude recreation obscene and dangerous and should be made illegal. Nudist resorts are always at risk from government encroachment and could be next.

I humbly suggest that you keep in mind that in accepting a board position with AANR you are representing all of the hard-working dues-paying members who all share the same basic philosophies that wholesome family-friendly nude recreation should be a basic human right, and not just for people who can afford expensive resort vacations.

I also suggest that you help to find some way to secure greater cooperation from AANR with TNS, NAC and local free beaches associations in helping to protect naturist rights.

I wish you great success in your new position with AANR West, as well as continued success to you and Mary Clare at the Terra Cotta Inn.

Bad for Nudism

Last night VH1 ran an episode of "New York Goes to Work" where the personality visited The Terra Cotta Inn clothing-optional resort in Palm Springs, California. You can watch it online here.

From the minute owner Tom Mulhall walked out and New York (aka Tiffany Pollard) exclaimed, "Oh my goodness, his wiener is hanging out", it was clear that this was going to be a public relations disaster for nudism.

Tom, I love ya, you run a great resort and your wife Mary Clare is a gem, but what were you thinking? Sure, you might get some extra bookings from the show, but allowing you and your guests to be "censored" on national TV with animated smiley faces and fig leaves was a bad move

"I always thought that good hygiene required pants" was one of New York's "observations", thus perpetuating one of many common myths about the lifestyle. "Your dick is out, I'm sorry, I'm just noticing it" she said as she covered her eyes and looked away. About her job, she exclaimed, "It's just hard to do it with all these old nekkid people around". Holding her head, she cried "Help me help me help me" as if asking God to deliver her from Hell. And she also referred to one rude guest as a "mother****er" when he got irritating. Was this guy a plant from the network, Tom? I hope so, because if he was an actual guest it's speaks poorly for your clientele.

"Your thing is out, like, you're hanging out" New York said as she served breakfast to a guest, as if she's never seen a penis before. There were also several shots of an older gentleman, who was greeted with comical sound effects and rude comments.

The one moment of truth was when New York, an African-American, said that seeing all these nude people was all a huge culture shock for her, thus illustrating all too painfully the lack of racial diversity in the clothes-free lifestyle.

Tom, you were used by VH1, who put an over-the-top comic personality into your midst merely to exploit your resort for cheap laughs. The show did nothing, NOTHING, to put the nudist or naturist lifestyle in a positive light.

(SPOILER ALERT)

And to top it all off, Tom had to fire the woman because she was a ditz and drank on the job, and tore up the $10,000 check in her face, causing New York to storm off in anger , making Tom not only look like a weird California dude, but an asshole as well.

Every dealing I've ever had with Tom and Mary Clare has been terrific. The work hard, run a great resort, and are perhaps the friendliest online nudists you will ever meet. I hope that they can come up with an antidote to the poison pill they were forced to swallow last night.

"Lingerie Bowl" Cancelled, Nudism Suffers Again

The Lingerie Bowl scheduled for Super Bowl Sunday at Caliente Clothing Optional Resort has been cancelled.

The Lingerie Bowl has been officially canceled, Stephon McMillen, a spokesman for the Lingerie Football League, announced Sunday in an e-mail.

The cancellation is the result of a conflict over where nudity would be allowed during the event. The Lingerie Football League, which is organizing the game, has requested that people stay dressed in certain areas of the resort. That's something the clothing-optional resort would not agree to.

McMillen wrote that the league was "forced to cancel" the event because Caliente officials have "chosen to breach their agreement in relation to our previously agreed upon 'clothing mandate' during our broadcast and events at the resort."

Angye Fox, spokeswoman for Caliente, said this morning a contract was never signed with the league. "We never came to a full agreement so we haven't breached anything," she said.

This whole think stinks. First of all, why would Caliente publicize the event and sell tickets if there was no written contract? Perhaps Fox subscribes to the adage "there's no such thing as bad publicity."

And what's up with this so-called "Lingerie Football League"? You can't make up something this absurd. Wait a minute, somebody did make up something this absurd.

I don't think any of these people ever expected to pull off this event. Originally scheduled to be played in a vacant lot, the "game" apparently found the perfect venue in Caliente, a clothing optional resort. After a round of press releases and news stories about issues involving player salaries and indignation about playing at a "nudist colony", this non-event self-destructed. It's all just been a fabrication of huckster public relations trash.

"While this is a disappointing development for the thousands of fans that were planning on attending the festivities and the millions set to watch the broadcast, we feel ultimately it is in the best interest of the league not to place ourselves in what some would consider a potentially negative environment," McMillen wrote.

Negative environment? Caliente makes no effort to conceal its adult nature, marketing to swinger groups and cutting ties with AANR. And where are AANR and TNS on this issue? With nudism and naturism taking a huge PR hit, there is nobody out there trying to neutralize the negative impressions the public is getting from all this.

Tom Mullhall of the Terra Cotta Inn has weighed in on the issue.

Caliente in Tampa which has swinger parties said nudists did NOT support them enough and swingers do. They have bills to pay, thus they cater to swingers. Nudists have no one to blame but themselves for Caliente's policy change. I do not know how to change this thought process of the experienced nudist club member.

But, just remember, every time you book at a non nudist hotel or at a nude place not owned by nudists, you forfeit your right to say "why aren't there more nudist places to go to in the US," because you are part of the reason.

I wholeheartedly agree. The only way to counteract Caliente's negative affect on nudism is to support real nudist organizations and venues. Time will tell if nudism and naturism is strong enough and smart enough to overcome the damage done by Angye Fox and her sex-ed up selling and trashing of the clothing optional industry.

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

Best of the Naturist World

Anyone who has ever Googled the Internet looking for nudist resorts has certainly come across a photo of Mary Clare and her dog Godiva (photo above). The both live at the Terra Cotta Inn Clothing Optional Resort in sunny Palm Springs, California, which has been named one of the top ten places in the world to get naked.

Now I know that Mary Clare's husband Tom Mulhall works tirelessly to promote the resort, especially with his popular blog which is updated nearly every day. Tom is a past President of the Palm Springs Chamber of Commerce, and is constantly touting the weather, attractions and beauty of the city. And I have no doubt that the Terra Cotta Inn deserves all the accolades it receives, and I would love to visit sometime.

But, for this particular blog post, I want to pay tribute to Mary Clare. Is there a brighter and friendlier smile anywhere? I don't think so. And is there a better model anywhere for a nudist resort? Absolutely not.

When you take the time to peruse all of Tom's posts on his blog, it's the photos of Mary Clare that draw all the attention. While Tom is letting you know about airfare deals, room availability, and Palm Springs special events, Mary Clare is playing roulette, hanging ornaments on a Christmas tree, floating in the pool, modeling jewelry, serving Thanksgiving dinner to guests, and so much more - all in the nude, wearing only that wonderful smile.

Tom boasts that Terra Cotta Inn has one of the highest repeat rates in the travel industry. It could be because of the fantastic weather, the luxurious rooms, the spa services, the beautiful garden-like grounds, the poolside breakfasts, the outdoor pool and Jacuzzi that keeps bringing people back, but I really think the secret to the success of the Terra Cotta Inn is Mary Clare's infectious smile and her uninhibited generousity in posing for photos.

So here's to Mary Clare, one of the Best of the Naturist World!

The Terra Cotta Inn Web Site
The Terra Cotta Inn Yahoo Group

The Terra Cotta Inn Blog (NSFW)

The Terra Cotta Inn Blog 2 (SFW)

The Terra Cotta Inn Flickr Photos

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked