Slog - Comments on Uh...

Comment by Boo Hoo

Boo Hoo — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:09:22 -0800

Oh, poor you! Life is so hard.

Comment by Dan Savage

Dan Savage — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:14:38 -0800

It is! Thanks, Boo Hoo!

Comment by Will in Seattle

Will in Seattle — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:15:03 -0800

Now, Dan, this is why we love Jezebel's "The Doctor Is Stoned" videos ... people don't get the choice.

At least you're discrete.

Comment by Cato the Younger Younger

Cato the Younger Younger — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:17:32 -0800

The phrase saying "Please don't print this" sound like an invite to print it! Along with their home address and phone number!

Comment by ellarosa

ellarosa — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:20:09 -0800

back when your column was more obscure, i guess letter writers weren't as worried about being identified.

Comment by lostboy

lostboy — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:33:05 -0800

Dan,

I'm an adult with serious ADD, and it's causing all kinds of difficulties in my long-term relationship, especially since my girlfriend grew up in a country where ADD is even less acknowledged and understood than it is here.

My problem doesn't really have anything to do with sex, but since you're so smart about everything, you can help me, right? There's a whole bunch of information about ADD and relationships online, but I'd much rather have a concise answer from you that gets all the important info in one place. You can look all that up more easily than I can anyway, right?

P.S. Please don't print this in your column, and please, please, don't let any of those misogynistic assholes who hang out in Slog comments see it! 'kay thanx, bye!� <3 <3 <3

Comment by Hernandez

Hernandez — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:34:29 -0800

Can't be any worse than those infected dick pictures people send you all the time. Yeesh.

Comment by Amy Kate Horn

Amy Kate Horn — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:35:28 -0800

Discreet, not discrete (consisting of distinct segments).

Comment by Jason Josephes

Jason Josephes — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:37:15 -0800

Well said, Dan.

Comment by Balt-O-Matt

Balt-O-Matt — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:44:05 -0800

It's like the people who ask Carolyn Hax on her chat at the Washington Post to answer online only. WTF? Lots of people read the online stuff, too. At the same time, Dan, apparently people trust you and value your opinion. Heck, they're dropping your name into theater reviews in the Times! You're FAMOUS! Next thing you know people'll be painting pictures of you!

Comment by Boomer in NYC

Boomer in NYC — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:45:33 -0800

It's an interesting thing, though--wouldn't the Do Not Print letters actually be more serious and less fucked-up than the ones coming from people hoping to be featured in your column? Admittedly, everyone has problems, but having a problem compounded by the need for attention or public titillation seems somehow worse.

That said, you do an incredible job every week.

Comment by Greg

Greg — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:45:48 -0800

@8: That's hot.

Comment by PopTart

PopTart — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:03:25 -0800

@8 Thanks Amy Kate for correcting WiS, though for a moment I entertained the idea he did it on porpoise.

Dan, loved the line "that's what editorial meetings are for."

Comment by dawicksta

dawicksta — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:07:21 -0800

oops - guilty. If it's ANY consolation, your advice was more helpful than anything I received from anyone else, and a young girl in need of an advocate and her very grateful family were helped. Also when i shared your advice & what i went on to do with it with colleagues, they have started listening to your show (or confessed they already did). P.S. You really nailed it with the :) ! P.SS It also should indicate to you that people are hungry to be told the truth & trust you, in a big world full of lying liars, to do it! Just sayin, that's kinda cool.

Comment by Fnarf

Fnarf — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:18:15 -0800

@8: one of my pet peeves, and one of the many reasons you are awesome.

Dan, your last paragraph is pure delight.

Comment by pragmatic

pragmatic — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 12:20:23 -0800

Dan if you use Outlook you can create a rule that filters out phrases like "do not print" and "don't print". Unless your letter is from a cursive fetishist, in which case we would unduly filter them out. And who wants that?

Comment by Will in Seattle

Will in Seattle — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:04:56 -0800

I prefer my version.

I like to think of Dan in bite-size chunks of time.

Besides, Australia outlawed American speling years ago.

Comment by seattle mike

seattle mike — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:50:00 -0800

Sounds like a job for a fucktern to me.

Comment by yuiop

yuiop — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:36:58 -0800

Read the bottom of the letter first, Dan.

Comment by spelchekdownunda

spelchekdownunda — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 17:34:29 -0800

@17: You don't know what you're talking about. A) discreet/discrete are 2 different words, nothing to do with differences in US/Brit/Aus spelling. B) Australia has always followed British spelling, with a couple of exceptions. 'Outlawing' seems a little hyperbolic if you mean 'failing a spelling test'. C) If US spelling was 'outlawed' here, Microsoft would owe us billions in fines for its programs (that word is one of the exceptions) defaulting back to it all the f'in time.

Comment by amy!

amy! — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:29:53 -0800

Give us a whole column of those letters (edited to protect privacy, of course)!

Unfortunately, I'm guessing they are no more interesting than the ones you actually do run.

Comment by Laura

Laura — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:32:06 -0800

Hey bro, you can send the ones who want "therapy" to me. I always wanted to do some writing, to offer all my educational knowledge to someone outside of those I see at work!! let me know what you think!! could be fun!

Comment by Helena

Helena — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:36:13 -0800

Thank you @20! The rest of us might have taken Will seriously and spent the rest of our lives in ignorance of Australian spelling logistics. Tragedy averted!