Monday, March 29, 2010 — We received the following message this morning as a comment on our Masthead page:
“You should find something better to do than publish subversive and treasonous content. It’s not too late to seek employment that may instill in you more realistic values.”
David McVearry Anderson-Colcord
Descendant of Edward Colcord of 17th century New Hampshire
Naturally we approved the comment immediately. There are few things we like better than a thorough airing of disagreements.
Furthermore, we’ve promoted that comment into this post, because we would like to continue this conversation with Mr. Colcord. (That’s his family crest in the image at right. We’ve appropriated it from Descendants of Edward Colcord of New Hampshire, 1630 to 1908, by Doane Blood Colcord, which we believe is in the public domain.)
Just to get this party started, addressing Mr. Colcord, we’d like to specify a few things:
1) We find your use of the phrase “you should find something better to do” to be arrogant and offensive. We are not your employee. We are not your subordinate. We are not your subject. And we sure as hell are not taking career advice from random strangers.
2) We take exception to your characterization of our work as subversive or treasonous, at least as properly considered. It may be subversive of the status quo, but that status quo includes a Supreme Court willing to name Presidents and give the rights of citizens to corporations. As for treason, when the editor of this paper took the soldier’s oath 43 years ago to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” it may have been under duress, but even so he has yet to betray it. In fact, editing this newspaper is the only way he can imagine staying true to it.
3) Call us overly sensitive, but we are in the language racket — your statement that “it’s not too late” could be construed as a threat. We are, however, somewhat dense. If you are threatening us, please be more forthright.
Before we get into the political business, though, we’d like to get clear on a family matter. Are you descended from the John E. Colcord who had this building, Daniel Fowle’s first print shop, demolished in 1877?
Dear Editor:
Is Mr. David McVearry Anderson-Colcord any relation to the young Cookie Colcord of Water Street, Portsmouth circa 1900?
Cookie was said to be a lively lass, gifted in the french arts. It was said that on a good night Cookie could suck the galvinizing off a gigsprit in under three minutes.
Historically yours,
Michael Gowell
Kittery Point
It seems more probable to me that Mr. McVearry has descended from the Baron Of Graymatter.
Sorry to hear about the print shop.
Shalom,
Infidel
While we’re on the subject, I am wondering exactly what Mr. Anderson-Colcord considers “more realistic values.”?
If, say, he is a pessimist, might he consider ignorance and apathy a “more realistic value?”
If he is more optimistic, would he consider self-serving denial a “more realistic value?”
Or perhaps by “more realistic” he means “too busy making the mortgage payment on my McMansion so I can’t be bothered defending freedom and liberty.”
If everyone was more realistic than idealistic, we’d be living in a country that was being run by greedy multinational corporations, in hock up to our ears to rich countries, and letting a bunch of crooks run the show….Oh, wait a minute…that DOES sound familiar.
First of all I love the Gazette because you tell it like you see it . Secondly I love how you tell the upper class why not too talk with a silver spoon in their mouth.