This past month I received a nasty letter to the editor.  That makes a total of four nasty letters in 21 years.  How can I help but comment on this rare and irreverent occurrence?  It is fodder for my faculties.
If the letter had been signed,
I would have printed all of it for it castigated only me, contained no profanity, and was not poorly written.  I always appreciate proper punctuation and complete sentences.
Sometimes I print anonymous letters to the editor here in the Gazette, but I think the nasty ones deserve full credit.  I, therefore, set aside such a thing until someone is willing to accept that credit.
This latest missive probably came from a member of the younger generation.  The handwriting is steady but still developing.  We must always extend a certain length of rope to the young, or they may hang themselves.  I am also willing to extend rope to the old folks because, my goodness, they're almost at the end of it already.  As for those of us in the middle, we are always tying and untying knots, it seems.
Earlier, back in the youth of my high school days, I wrote a monthly column for our student newspaper entitled "Sue's Cue."  The column was so silly that upon rereading it today, I blush.  Fellow students probably paid scant attention to it, and I suspect the teachers were wise and knew from whence I came -- puberty.  But I always signed it.
So aren't you just dying to know, dear readers, the content of this recent letter to the Gazette?  All right, I'll let you in on parts of it -- if I can add my own retort (in parenthesis).  Seems only fair since this is my paper.  Here goes:
"Your letters to the editor are all letters of 'Great job, here's my money.'  These could be eliminated."  (But they make me smile, and they're all signed.)
"Your last page of quips and quotes are always from the same people and aren't really funny or interesting."  (First of all, the word "page" is singular and takes the singular verb "is," not "are."  Despite your error, anonymous one, might I suggest you invite me to your table sometime and let me see how funny and interesting you are.)
"The only newsy part of the Gazette is what's happening at City Hall, but there the reporting is at a 7th grade level."  (My seventh grade teacher was Sister Mary Andrew.)
"Be aware that not everyone feels the way you do and wants a word by word description of all that goes on at City Hall."  (It is precisely the word by word description that prevents me from expounding on the way I feel.)
"I, for one, was not happy to be told the Holy Family Catholic High School was a done deal and that the new water tower was a done deal.  Where was the community input?"  (Are you against schools or water or what?)
"Your biases are very evident."  (Since I make every effort to have a bias toward truth, I don't mind that evidence, thank you.)
"Histories of Victoria families aren't really that interesting to some of us."  (I'm not surprised.)
"The Gazette reminds me of a 4th grade newsletter that I used to be a part of."  (In today's adult world of outright lies, deceit, and coverup by some of the media, this comment could be mistaken for a high compliment.)
"My commentary is over.  And you don't have to print this."  (Are you telling me about free press?)

So there you have it, folks.  Not very pretty, huh?  Do you think he's a neighbor or an acquaintance in real life?
Unlike many papers and maga-zines, the Gazette is unencumbered by corporate ownership, high finance, real estate interests, the influence of people climbing ladders, politicians in pockets, and other perceived advantages.  This can be irritating to those who are not free in their own lives or who would wield such advantage themselves.
I have little to gain from this paper except the enjoyment that comes from writing a bit about humanity and reporting a bit about truth.  I don't claim to be a professional anybody, and I am beholden to everybody and nobody at the same time.  I will always sign my name.  And I do not apologize for being in your face, whether you perceive me to be juvenile or delinquent or otherwise.  I'm having a ball.
Thank you for the fodder, fella -- or is it, feline?
--Sue


DEADLINE

The deadline for the next issue of the Gazette is Monday, Septem-ber 25th.  You can send your news to Box 387 in Victoria or e-mail me at Sue@VictoriaGazette.com.  Thank you, always, for thinking of the Gazette.