We Do What We Can...

I received the expected angry responseto the letter from my last post from Mr. Wade, which included, "exactly who the heck are you?" a somewhat defensive listing of the work he has done "on the front lines", plus a bit more of the same claims about Michael Moore, and how "money can do anything" as well as the claim I quoted in my reply below. He also called me ignorant and stupid and asked, "What have you been doing sir, i mean besides criticizing people erroneously?" (obviously missing the point of my rhetorical question at the end). But really, I wasn't angry at him, but at an attitude which I only saw reflected in his original letter. And besides his reply didn't end that harshly:

If this sounded harsh, i apologize, i usually am more Christian, but you attacked me without any basis or fact. We can certainly try to start over and have a rational discussion.

So I felt compelled to explain...

Anthony,

The reason I was so harsh in my criticism was exactly so that you would react and think about this: Why do we criticize others without fully knowing what they are doing? I critized you (and I know it was unfair), but your implied criticism of Moore ("The line about how well he did on the film does not imply envy, grow up. What it does is highlight that he may need to sacrifice some to get this done. It is one thing to travel the country and rouse the slackers, it is another to actually sacrifice cash.") shows you don't know anything about him either, so now perhaps you might know how he feels. Michael Moore does put his money where his mouth is, but he doesn't make a big deal about it. That's who he is. I'm sorry that you ended up being the target, but too many people have said similar "ignorant" things, and I thought it might be time to let someone know how it felt.No, I have no connection to Michael Moore, but I have great respect for his work and what he has done for things that matter. Until today, I was not aware of your efforts, so maybe if I had been, I would have been a little more tolerant. However, if we are ever to get important things accomplished, it won't be just one person with money, but everyone working together. Actually, I really didn't mean what I wrote to be a personal insult to you, but more of a general "rant" about expecting someone else to accomplish tasks we should be working on ourselves. You were just in the line of fire. It is certainly agreeable to me to "try to start over and have a rational discussion." I may even try to make some time to read some of your past articles and form a different impression. I can often be a harsh critic and know that I might have gone a little too far in your case, so I too hope that we can come to a better understanding in the future.

Harold

I wanted to share this exchange for the possible lesson it might lead us to: We are all doing hopefully what we can, and if we can do more, we should do more...but no one should judge us at a distance, because they do not stand in our shoes.