An Open Letter

Dear [□ Sir / □ Madam / □ Representative / □ Journalist / □ Idiot],

I know you believe you know a great deal about

[□ linguistics / □ children's literature / □ law / □ psychology / □ other (please specify)]

simply because you

[□ use language / □ read Harry Potter and Goodnight Moon / □ watch Law & Order / □ have a mind],

or because you've read a newspaper article about

[□ the lack of numbers in Pirahã / □ Dumbledore being gay / □ some Supreme Court decision / □ Prozac].

But please understand that the issues in this field are far more complicated than you realize. For instance, the field isn't all about

[□ proper grammar / □ writing children's books / □ litigation / □ schizophrenia];

those of us practicing in the field spend much of our time reading articles, synthesizing facts, and seeking a deeper understanding of [□ language / □ literature / □ law / □ the mind]. I'm not saying that you can't have an opinion until you've

[□ understood an article by Chomsky / □ read every Caldecott and Newbery Medal winner / □ argued a case before the Supreme Court / □ spent three years running rodents through mazes]

—in fact, most of the people in our field have never done that. But we'd appreciate it if you either consult an expert, or educate yourself a little more by

[□ taking a course or two / □ taking a course or two / □ taking a course or two / □ taking a course or two]

so that you have a basic understanding of what's going on in the field, before you confidently proclaim

[□ English should be the official language of the United States / □ some word or phrase that's been around for hundreds of years is a clear sign that English has changed for the worse in the last five years / □ English is at all special / □ Dumbledore is gay / □ J.K. Rowling is daring and innovative / □ children's books are simplistic / □ someone on trial is clearly innocent or guilty / □ some law would clearly heal or harm the country / □ the candidate's plan is unworkable / □ the mind works in a certain way / □ Prozac is the answer / □ Prozac is not the answer / □ anything else, really].

Thank you for your time. See you in [□ class / □ the library / □ court / □ therapy / □ Hell].

Yours,
[□ __________(your name here)__________]

http://cqs.livejournal.com/40687.html

I’m going to preface this blog with, “I am not a very good writer,” but this might translate into self-loathing.

So far, my life (made up of twenty-two years) has been a not-too-complex variety of sojourns trying to find myself through different forms of identity. I seem to find more and more about myself seven years ago. So this blog might get interesting in seven years, but I'm not promising anything.

I used to describe blogging as selfish, but keeping to oneself and not sharing is also selfish. In a way, this blog is an experiment to see how selfish / not-selfish this can get. Its also a way for me to write. And have readers (Thanks in advance!).

Welcome, please share your thoughts and brioche recipes.