As Promised in the last post – an email I recently sent

You should start by scrolling down to the email sent to me before I sent back this reply. And yes, I was granted permission to send this to both Mr. Frederick and to you my readers:

On Sat, Aug 29, 2015 at 6:57 AM, wrote

Andrew,

It is a big deal and I’m sorry. When Alanna wrote last night to tell me you would prefer that I asked permission before quoting you I wrote back the following:

“He’s right. I’ll apologize. It was a perfect email for the post. Still, a poor excuse.”

I know using your emails without your permission was a big deal because writing about Art Johnston on my blog without his permission six years ago set off a war between us that wasn’t bridged until we both got elected and found ourselves in the trenches together facing a joint foe.

I’m a little schizo. On the one hand I am a pretty ferocious conventional fellow who follows the book, hence my objections to the Red Plan. On the other I’m a guerrilla fighter who strikes when the bigger foe is off guard. Nothing crimps the fighting ability of a guerrilla fighter like committees, calendars and asking permission. Chuck Frederick took a punch at Alanna that she didn’t deserve because he’s mad at Art and me. It was very small and frankly ignorant of him to do this. I’m making him pay by doing to him on my small blog what he did to Alanna in his much bigger newspaper. I used your email without permission to build the case. You have my promise I will never do this again. As I told Alanna its still a poor excuse.

That said, I do use my discretion. I correctly sensed that you would say of your writings that you stand by them. I also thought what you said was imminently fair and would reflect credit on you. As for your meetings with Chuck in the future I am sure that while he may be stung by your mild comment that his paper’s (not his) editorial was “passive-aggressive” his full wrath will be aimed at me not you.

I will continue my series of blog posts on his editorial to make it hard for him to continue his passive aggression towards Alanna. He wants a pass because he’s just doing his job. I understand that. When he writes that Art should step off the board to spare Duluth grief or that I ought to grow up and not risk censure he wants immunity as a journalist. I will give him that pass because I’m a big boy and understand the game and will take my lumps. But he crossed a line when he nailed Alanna to the cross because he suspects she’s Art’s and my puppet. My critique of him is purely professional and not personal. We will see if he can withstand my scrutiny as well as I have withstood his.

The guerrilla fighter in me saw that this blow……and it was a blow if not a knock out punch…needed to be countered immediately. I understand I am risking an all out war with Chuck but its apparent to me that the fix is already in. He is about to steer the Trib into an all out war to elect representatives to carry on Judy, Rosie and Annie’s machinations. He needed a brick upside his head. I gave it to him and I’m not finished. If necessary I will escalate this conflict.

I’m usually the good cop but right now I’m being the bad cop. I may only have 3,000 occasional readers to Chuck’s 20,000 daily readers but mine are school board wonks and his are the general population. I need my readers to see Chuck’s small minded revenge. I truly hope you don’t suffer politically as you face the copper sulfate mine controversy as a result of my using your comments in my blog. I know you are part lobbyist. But you are also a parent of children who are being short changed at Denfeld. It’s that side of your motivation I’m counting on at the moment.

Again, although I take the general view that any email sent my way is subject to my control, during the rest of this campaign I will never publish your emails without asking for your permission first.

Harry

PS. I would like to send this email to Chuck. Would you object to that?

—————————————–
From: “Andrew Slade”
To: “Harry Welty”
Sent: Fri, 28 Aug 2015 21:42:32 -0500
Subject: Re: email blog publishing

Hey Harry, no big deal, I can stand by my words. Every now and then I set up meetings with Chuck Frederick and the editorial board, hopefully they can see the context of my comment. Though if Harry had asked, I probably would have politely declined.

Andrew Slade