Re: Another letter to the editor

[Edward Dolan]

"rdclark" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Claire Petersky wrote:
>
>> If you are upset about inequities in our tax system, you have good cause.
>> Studies show that Washington State has the most unfair state and local
>> tax
>> system in the country -- the wealthy pay the least here, and the average
>> Joe pays the most. If you're feeling the pinch, you're not alone. But
>> don't blame bicyclists for that.
>
> Claire, your writing just gets better and better. That last paragraph
> effectively refocuses the argument in a way that's hard to refute, and
> does so without insult or condescension. It's a model rebuttal.
>
> Bravo!
>
> RichC

It was nothing but a typical letter to the editor, guaranteed to put all to
sleep. Claire does not know how to go for the jugular. Only someone as Great
as I know how to do that. Unfortunately though, every time I do it it never
gets printed. Editors of newspapers can spot my type from a mile off and
want nothing to do with me. I am the master of insult and condescension. Is
there any other way to write?

But I thought Washington Sate was the most liberal state in the nation. If
so, how can it be that the average Joe is paying the most and the wealthy
are paying the least. I thought that was a Republican philosophy. The Great
Ed Dolan is all confused and confabulated by this startling revelation.
Surely, there is something rotten in Seattle here!

Regards,

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota
aka
Saint Edward the Great - Order of the Perpetual Sorrows - Minnesota

 

[JimmyMac]

Ed,

If you continue to pat yourself on the back, do realize that you run
the risk of a repetitive stress injury.

I have written the editior of magazines and newspapers and have been
published many times. Your criticism of my writing abbility is
obviously unfounded. Could it be that you never get published is
because simply because you don't write nearly well as you think you
do??? Often, my subject matter has been of an insulting and
condescending nature, so you can't very well hide behind that as an
excuse.

Jim McNamara

 

[Edward Dolan]

"JimmyMac" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

ALL TOP POSTERS ARE IDIOTS!

> Ed,
>
> If you continue to pat yourself on the back, do realize that you run
> the risk of a repetitive stress injury.
>
> I have written the editior of magazines and newspapers and have been
> published many times. Your criticism of my writing abbility is
> obviously unfounded. Could it be that you never get published is
> because simply because you don't write nearly well as you think you
> do??? Often, my subject matter has been of an insulting and
> condescending nature, so you can't very well hide behind that as an
> excuse.

Nope, others clearly just don't like my opinions. But I express them too
forcefully in any event, which only makes matters worse.

It is actually quite easy to get a letter to the editor published in the
newspaper provided you just write pabulum and more or less agree with the
prevailing editorial policy of the paper.

I have found that there is more than enough intelligence to go around in
this country, but what is sorely lacking most of the time is courage. Our
politicians illustrate this phenomenon every day when Congress is in
session.

Regards,

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota
aka
Saint Edward the Great - Order of the Perpetual Sorrows - Minnesota

 

[[email protected]]

Ed,


If no one likes you opinions darw the obviouys conclusion and refrain
from offering them.

I wrote and article in opposion to one in Bicycle Guide glorifying the
outrageous antics of a local bicyle messenger. Here are two my two
submissions neither of which can be categorized as pabulum. Bicycle
Guide chose to publish the second one.


ERRANT MESSAGE

Until I read John Mora's article "Spider Jack" in the April issue, I
was never moved to formulate a commentary. I am a Chicago resident,
employed in the downtown area. I routinely encounter bicycle
messengers in my daily commute to and from the work place. Their
antagonistic antics, convey entirely the wrong message to the very
drivers we aspire to enlist cooperation from in courteously sharing the
road. Many of Jack Blackfelt's colleagues flagrantly violate the rules
of the road. It is commonplace to observe a bicycle messenger engaged
in senseless highjinks such as terrorizing pedestrians in a game of
"chicken" played out on the sidewalk or lane splitting against the flow
of traffic during rush hour. I was appalled by the author's cavalier
perspective, in eulogizing the swashbuckling riding style of Spider
Jack. The author's admiration for Jack's skill should have been
tempered with some verbiage explicitly devoted to the inevitable
consequences of putting those skills to the test. Much like a movie
which glamorizes war, this article deprives the target audience of a
peek beyond the hospital walls where glory is confronted by the harsh
reality of carnage.

It is rather out of character for Bicycle Guide to champion the cause
of this breed of two wheeled kamikaze. It is inappropriate for a
cycling advocacy magazine to publish an article which extols the
"virtues" of reckless abandon and endangerment, without so much as a
disclaimer.

Forgive me if I refrain from rendering homage, preferring rather to
trust my own judgment in selecting a personal cult hero to idolize.
The arena of cycledom certainly has far better representatives to
admire and/or emulate. This article was a poignant example of
journalism every bit as irresponsible as the foolhardy riding style it
portrayed. Your readership would have been better served if each of
the pages this article squandered had read THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT
BLANK!


PROFILE OF A NUISANCE

I was stunned by the tone of John Mora's profile of bicycle messenger
Jack Blackfelt, alias "Spider". Regardless of what Mr. Mora would have
the reader believe, "Spider's" brash demeanor is characteristic of the
breed. Skilled or otherwise, this aberrant fringe should be recognized
for what it is, a menace rather than a role model for the cycling
world. One word accurately personifies them --- nuisance! I sincerely
suspect that neither Jack Blackfelt, nor his colleagues, give even a
passing thought to the perils or repercussions of provoking a motorist.
It is not at all unreasonable to assume that, as a direct result of
such provocation, an entirely innocent and unsuspecting cyclist could
be become a victim of an enraged motorist's displaced aggression.

Blinded by the shortsightedness of youth, oblivious to his own
mortality, the bicycle messenger plies his trade in a vacuum, flirting
with death. As a proud member of the messenger corps, he has yet to
comprehend what the word corps becomes by merely appending the letter
E. He hasn't time for introspection. There are too many deliveries to
be made, too many cabbies to challenge, for safety to be a concern or
common sense to prevail. Is it any wonder that this mentality has
prompted enactment of regulatory legislation in response to the
outcries of outraged citizens?

Although I fully understand the use of Bicycle Guide as a platform for
exercising the right of free speech, nevertheless, I think it would
have been prudent for a caveat to have been issued such as ... "do not
try this at home ... Jack Blackfelt is a trained professional, and/or
.... this article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the
management".

Jim McNamara

 

[Edward Dolan]

<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

ALL TOP POSTERS ARE IDIOTS! NOR DOES HE EVEN QUOTE ANYTHING FROM THE
PREVIOUS MESSAGE, YET THIS IS NOT AN ORIGINAL POST. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW
YOU GET TO BE SO STUPID!

> Ed,
>
>
> If no one likes you opinions darw the obviouys conclusion and refrain
> from offering them.

Nonsense, what I have to say is good for people whether they want to hear it
or not.

> I wrote and article in opposion to one in Bicycle Guide glorifying the
> outrageous antics of a local bicyle messenger. Here are two my two
> submissions neither of which can be categorized as pabulum. Bicycle
> Guide chose to publish the second one.
>
>
> ERRANT MESSAGE
>
> Until I read John Mora's article "Spider Jack" in the April issue, I
> was never moved to formulate a commentary. I am a Chicago resident,
> employed in the downtown area. I routinely encounter bicycle
> messengers in my daily commute to and from the work place. Their
> antagonistic antics, convey entirely the wrong message to the very
> drivers we aspire to enlist cooperation from in courteously sharing the
> road. Many of Jack Blackfelt's colleagues flagrantly violate the rules
> of the road. It is commonplace to observe a bicycle messenger engaged
> in senseless highjinks such as terrorizing pedestrians in a game of
> "chicken" played out on the sidewalk or lane splitting against the flow
> of traffic during rush hour. I was appalled by the author's cavalier
> perspective, in eulogizing the swashbuckling riding style of Spider
> Jack. The author's admiration for Jack's skill should have been
> tempered with some verbiage explicitly devoted to the inevitable
> consequences of putting those skills to the test. Much like a movie
> which glamorizes war, this article deprives the target audience of a
> peek beyond the hospital walls where glory is confronted by the harsh
> reality of carnage.
>
> It is rather out of character for Bicycle Guide to champion the cause
> of this breed of two wheeled kamikaze. It is inappropriate for a
> cycling advocacy magazine to publish an article which extols the
> "virtues" of reckless abandon and endangerment, without so much as a
> disclaimer.
>
> Forgive me if I refrain from rendering homage, preferring rather to
> trust my own judgment in selecting a personal cult hero to idolize.
> The arena of cycledom certainly has far better representatives to
> admire and/or emulate. This article was a poignant example of
> journalism every bit as irresponsible as the foolhardy riding style it
> portrayed. Your readership would have been better served if each of
> the pages this article squandered had read THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT
> BLANK!
>
>
> PROFILE OF A NUISANCE
>
> I was stunned by the tone of John Mora's profile of bicycle messenger
> Jack Blackfelt, alias "Spider". Regardless of what Mr. Mora would have
> the reader believe, "Spider's" brash demeanor is characteristic of the
> breed. Skilled or otherwise, this aberrant fringe should be recognized
> for what it is, a menace rather than a role model for the cycling
> world. One word accurately personifies them --- nuisance! I sincerely
> suspect that neither Jack Blackfelt, nor his colleagues, give even a
> passing thought to the perils or repercussions of provoking a motorist.
> It is not at all unreasonable to assume that, as a direct result of
> such provocation, an entirely innocent and unsuspecting cyclist could
> be become a victim of an enraged motorist's displaced aggression.
>
> Blinded by the shortsightedness of youth, oblivious to his own
> mortality, the bicycle messenger plies his trade in a vacuum, flirting
> with death. As a proud member of the messenger corps, he has yet to
> comprehend what the word corps becomes by merely appending the letter
> E. He hasn't time for introspection. There are too many deliveries to
> be made, too many cabbies to challenge, for safety to be a concern or
> common sense to prevail. Is it any wonder that this mentality has
> prompted enactment of regulatory legislation in response to the
> outcries of outraged citizens?
>
> Although I fully understand the use of Bicycle Guide as a platform for
> exercising the right of free speech, nevertheless, I think it would
> have been prudent for a caveat to have been issued such as ... "do not
> try this at home ... Jack Blackfelt is a trained professional, and/or
> ... this article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the
> management".
>
> Jim McNamara

Both versions are well written which just goes to prove that JimmyMac can
write well when he wants to. I actually liked the first version slightly
better. You never want to give even an inch with idiots like the editors of
Bicycling Guide.

As to Bicycle Guide, I gave up on that publication many years ago when they
decided they wanted to get with the young and stupid crowd. You could not
pay me now to read Bicycle Guide. It is an altogether worthless publication
and I would not be caught dead even looking at it. However, it used to be a
great magazine back in the 70's. I especially liked to read Frank Berto's
articles on gearing and deraillers. Sic Transit Gloria Mundi.

Regards,

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota
aka
Saint Edward the Great - Order of the Perpetual Sorrows - Minnesota

 

[[email protected]]

Edward Dolan wrote:
> <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>
> ALL TOP POSTERS ARE IDIOTS! NOR DOES HE EVEN QUOTE ANYTHING FROM THE
> PREVIOUS MESSAGE, YET THIS IS NOT AN ORIGINAL POST. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW
> YOU GET TO BE SO STUPID!
>
> > Ed,
> >
> >
> > If no one likes you opinions darw the obviouys conclusion and refrain
> > from offering them.
>
> Nonsense, what I have to say is good for people whether they want to hear it
> or not.
>
> > I wrote and article in opposion to one in Bicycle Guide glorifying the
> > outrageous antics of a local bicyle messenger. Here are two my two
> > submissions neither of which can be categorized as pabulum. Bicycle
> > Guide chose to publish the second one.
> >
> >
> > ERRANT MESSAGE
> >
> > Until I read John Mora's article "Spider Jack" in the April issue, I
> > was never moved to formulate a commentary. I am a Chicago resident,
> > employed in the downtown area. I routinely encounter bicycle
> > messengers in my daily commute to and from the work place. Their
> > antagonistic antics, convey entirely the wrong message to the very
> > drivers we aspire to enlist cooperation from in courteously sharing the
> > road. Many of Jack Blackfelt's colleagues flagrantly violate the rules
> > of the road. It is commonplace to observe a bicycle messenger engaged
> > in senseless highjinks such as terrorizing pedestrians in a game of
> > "chicken" played out on the sidewalk or lane splitting against the flow
> > of traffic during rush hour. I was appalled by the author's cavalier
> > perspective, in eulogizing the swashbuckling riding style of Spider
> > Jack. The author's admiration for Jack's skill should have been
> > tempered with some verbiage explicitly devoted to the inevitable
> > consequences of putting those skills to the test. Much like a movie
> > which glamorizes war, this article deprives the target audience of a
> > peek beyond the hospital walls where glory is confronted by the harsh
> > reality of carnage.
> >
> > It is rather out of character for Bicycle Guide to champion the cause
> > of this breed of two wheeled kamikaze. It is inappropriate for a
> > cycling advocacy magazine to publish an article which extols the
> > "virtues" of reckless abandon and endangerment, without so much as a
> > disclaimer.
> >
> > Forgive me if I refrain from rendering homage, preferring rather to
> > trust my own judgment in selecting a personal cult hero to idolize.
> > The arena of cycledom certainly has far better representatives to
> > admire and/or emulate. This article was a poignant example of
> > journalism every bit as irresponsible as the foolhardy riding style it
> > portrayed. Your readership would have been better served if each of
> > the pages this article squandered had read THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT
> > BLANK!
> >
> >
> > PROFILE OF A NUISANCE
> >
> > I was stunned by the tone of John Mora's profile of bicycle messenger
> > Jack Blackfelt, alias "Spider". Regardless of what Mr. Mora would have
> > the reader believe, "Spider's" brash demeanor is characteristic of the
> > breed. Skilled or otherwise, this aberrant fringe should be recognized
> > for what it is, a menace rather than a role model for the cycling
> > world. One word accurately personifies them --- nuisance! I sincerely
> > suspect that neither Jack Blackfelt, nor his colleagues, give even a
> > passing thought to the perils or repercussions of provoking a motorist.
> > It is not at all unreasonable to assume that, as a direct result of
> > such provocation, an entirely innocent and unsuspecting cyclist could
> > be become a victim of an enraged motorist's displaced aggression.
> >
> > Blinded by the shortsightedness of youth, oblivious to his own
> > mortality, the bicycle messenger plies his trade in a vacuum, flirting
> > with death. As a proud member of the messenger corps, he has yet to
> > comprehend what the word corps becomes by merely appending the letter
> > E. He hasn't time for introspection. There are too many deliveries to
> > be made, too many cabbies to challenge, for safety to be a concern or
> > common sense to prevail. Is it any wonder that this mentality has
> > prompted enactment of regulatory legislation in response to the
> > outcries of outraged citizens?
> >
> > Although I fully understand the use of Bicycle Guide as a platform for
> > exercising the right of free speech, nevertheless, I think it would
> > have been prudent for a caveat to have been issued such as ... "do not
> > try this at home ... Jack Blackfelt is a trained professional, and/or
> > ... this article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the
> > management".
> >
> > Jim McNamara
>
> Both versions are well written which just goes to prove that JimmyMac can
> write well when he wants to. I actually liked the first version slightly
> better. You never want to give even an inch with idiots like the editors of
> Bicycling Guide.

Well, it is about time that you finally admit to agreeing with me that
I write well, in effect refuting your criticisms of the past. Both
examples were submitted to the magazine when it was still a respectable
read. - Jim McNamara

> As to Bicycle Guide, I gave up on that publication many years ago when they
> decided they wanted to get with the young and stupid crowd. You could not
> pay me now to read Bicycle Guide. It is an altogether worthless publication
> and I would not be caught dead even looking at it. However, it used to be a
> great magazine back in the 70's. I especially liked to read Frank Berto's
> articles on gearing and deraillers. Sic Transit Gloria Mundi.
>
> Regards,
>
> Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota
> aka
> Saint Edward the Great - Order of the Perpetual Sorrows - Minnesota