The Imperial postmaster delivered a stunning letter the other day, it was from my fun-bud Alfred — regarding a couple of comments I made on the now defunked RR group. There was some ugliness there, people got bent out of shape and allegations were made.
The letter I received was thus –
Sir;
I don’t comment on the “R” Cubed “blog” any longer so I’m loath to say this over there, and won’t (I won’t so much as grace this scurilous accusation with a denial), but I did not remotely expect your response to this… loathsome situation… to be so even handed, apparently consistent, and fair.
.
Thank you. Sincerely.
I wanted to say “your welcome” but Mr. Lehmberg very strongly remanded me not to email him anymore.
Oh stop! I’d ask who the f**k you are… but I just don’t care, poots. No — I’m the bridge you burned before you even got to it, and the only thing you can count on from ~me~ is to whack your little literary mole when it most ~offensively~ raises it churlishly ~pointed~ little head. Welcome to the world you made, emps.
Now — step ~off~ and stay out of my mailbox. OE is UERDS (unwanted, especially repellant, and detested SPAM). I think I’ve made myself clear. A copy of this note is being sent to my ISP et sig al…
Fare how you will… sincerely.
I did not thank him for that missive, or all the others– I would have thanked him, I wanted to even.
But I think he must understand that I’m not taking sides in this matter. I really think he was wronged but to be perfectly fair, he’s been asking for it.
Begging.
What’s it all about one might ask?
The “scurilous accusation”? is just as described. I’ts pretty scurrilous too, uncalled for I might add. I mean, Lehmberg can be crude at times, a bore, a cad and a rabble-rouser when he gets his dander up. I don’t fault him for that. But this situation (such as it might be) did not come out of thin air (not even chubby air.) Someone didn’t just wake up one morning and say “I’m going to randomly hassle a UFO proponent, just because he has wacky ideas’,won that be fun?”
No; this has been brewing for awhile now.
What’s not said is the reams of “conversation” that caused the scurilous accusation to come about. Now I’¢m certainly not saying that the so-called accusation is true or not true. I don’t know Lehmberg well enough to judge and frankly , I don’t want to. What remains unsaid in this mess is–
The thing that caused it the first place?
*Why* did someone make a “scurilous accusation”?
A pissing contest.
Simple, stupid and concise–A pissing contest.
Two adults tried to get each other mad enough to so that one would libel the other. Like two bullies on a playground, each daring the other to step across the line and throw the first punch. The punch is some overly libelous comment, some hateful and vile accusation. On the Internet, that person is automatically the loser.
Or as Al reminded me;
“Remember pookers. The first one to get mad, call the other a Nazi, or threaten legal action is the loser, emps. Check the bylaws.”
Al Lehmberg is a past-master of this strange ritual. He has a fabulous array of harmless insult and ad hominem which he flourishes like A Matador’s muleta. Dodging and weaving out of any substantive conversation he seeks to enrage his opponent. Tries to get them to charge head-down with lather on their chin.
Well Lehmberg got his “scurilous accusation”[sic] all wrapped up with a pretty bow. He seems to have been working hard for it. I hope he enjoys it.
The drums of outrage are beginning to sound and he’s forming a posse. I don’t blame him really. I suppose that if someone tried that kind of crap with me, I’d do something along those lines.
Or not; actually I’ve received death threats, accusations of plagiarism, accusations of libel, people accuse me of being a psychopath, A fraud, a loser, a buffoon, a vile clown yada yadda yadda ad infinitum. These things don’t bother me *because* they are untrue.
(Maybe not the buffoon part.)
They do this because I voice my opinion. I’ve always responded with the truth, verifiable truth.
Liars hate the truth!
But The truth *always* emerges if you allow it. The Internet is a brightly lit place. That’s both an advantage and a liability for people (as I’m sure Al learned after he Googled me.)
***
Anyway; I often contemplate such things and when I do, I find myself in the Imperial dungeon, this is where I keep my Legal Team (being the law firm of Labrusky, Skinflint, Shyster, and his larger brother leo)
I call them the Hounds of Hell.
The junior partner, Leo Shyster was up and about, hunting rats or something (I don’t usually pry into the personal habits of the Imperial legal staff It’s better that way.)
I mentioned the events of the past couple of days. How my buddy Al has been maligned. Maligned by skeptical dark forces. Dark forces bent on the destruction of all we hold dear, apple pie, space craft, aliens– that sort of thing. He thought about it for a moment, idly scratched at a flea and then said a strange thing;
Shucks! –just ignore them-shits boss! They got nothin and they got nothing ta say! Bullies always go off half-cocked like that! Don’t pay them no freakin mind.”
In the immortal words of Stan Lee,
“nuff said!”