My AmazonReview of "The Reasonable Woman," allegedly by Wendy McElroy

George H. Smith · June 14, 2011

Imo this is very convincing evidence presented by Ghs here.

You ain't seen nothing yet. There are many dozens (possibly hundreds) of parallel passages like these. I haven't even posted all the parallels on OL yet that I originally sent out in 1998, since I'm double checking the stuff.

Wendy was very thorough when she pillaged my FOR transcripts. There is scarcely a passage in them that she did not appropriate for TRW, in one form or another. Some of the parallels are less literal than those I posted yesterday; i.e., Wendy rewrote my material more in some cases than in others. But the point at issue here is whether Wendy used my FOR transcripts when writing TRW. She says she didn't; I say she did. And when you read page after page of parallels -- many of which are virtually identical and some of which amount to paraphrases -- there can be no question that Wendy is lying.

My estimate in 1998, when I originally examined this material much more closely than I have since, was as follows: Approximately one-third of TRW contains verbatim or nearly verbatim passages from FOR; one-third contains paraphrases from FOR; and one third is Wendy's own material, i.e., material she did not take from FOR.

This estimate may be high, but, at minimum, one-quarter of TRW consists of verbatim or nearly verbatim passages from FOR -- and that is one big hunk of plagiarism.

Such estimates ultimately depend on how one defines "paraphrasing."

Ghs

Normal · June 14, 2011

Not a spammer, just someone who knew George in his drug days and saw the damage he did to a woman I cared for. Not Wendy. She was before my time.So George, do you remember the evening when you thought the hotel stationery's watermark was speaking to you? Probably not. And it doesn't matter. I wanted you to know I have the briefcase.

9thdoctor · June 14, 2011

What these pot-shotters need to understand is that I have nothing to hide. My life is already an open book, and whatever details I have not yet discussed will be discussed in my autobiography: Sex, Drugs, and Philosophy: In Pursuit of a Hedonistic Life.

Then what’s this about a red briefcase? It has the makings of a good “logline”.

http://www.lifeformz.com/cgi-bin/idea/idea.fcgi

Hard-living, controversial atheist author and dog lover loses his Vaseline smeared red briefcase.

9thdoctor · June 14, 2011

I wanted you to know I have the briefcase.

Does it contain more of the stuff he was tripping on? Sounds potent.

George H. Smith · June 14, 2011

What these pot-shotters need to understand is that I have nothing to hide. My life is already an open book, and whatever details I have not yet discussed will be discussed in my autobiography: Sex, Drugs, and Philosophy: In Pursuit of a Hedonistic Life.
Then what’s this about a red briefcase? It has the makings of a good “logline”.
http://www.lifeformz.com/cgi-bin/idea/idea.fcgi
Hard-living, controversial atheist author and dog lover loses his Vaseline smeared red briefcase.

First, let's get our facts straight. The briefcase in question was not red; it was maroon. Nor was it smeared with vaseline. It was a very expensive leather briefcase, and I took good care of it.

From the time I was 19, I kept a very extensive photographic record of my sex life until around 1994. I had many, many hundreds of explicit photos, some of which included more than two people. Many of them didn't even include me; rather, I took photos of others.

Many of these photos were the rountine Polaroids, but some were high quality black-and-white photos taken in the mid-seventies. (My first wife was a professional photographer.)

There were too many photos to store in that briefcase, but while I was moving once I stuffed around 1/3 of the pics in that briefcase, because it was a convenient way to transport them. Then, without going into all the details, that briefcase disappeared during the move. There is no question but that someone stole it. I have a theory about who it was, but I can't prove anything.

Very few people knew about this incident, so "Normal" is obviously an insider, or someone who knows an insider. What I cannot understand is why "Normal" thought this story would embarrass me. Many people saw those photos, including during the ten years that I lived with Wendy. And I still had the two-thirds that were not stolen, so, in the final analysis, it was no big deal.

Why did I keep such an extensive photographic record? Well, there is the obvious masturbatory fantasy aspect, but more was involved. I have said before that I decided to live a "hedonistic" life from an early age -- the notion of "rational hedonism" has always fascinated me --and I always thought I might write about my experiences one day. One purpose of those photos was to preserve memories for such a memoir. I have always been a very visually-oriented person, and just one photo taken 20 years earlier could revive all kinds of details about what was going on at the time better than any written record ever could.

Ghs

George H. Smith · June 14, 2011

Not a spammer, just someone who knew George in his drug days and saw the damage he did to a woman I cared for. Not Wendy. She was before my time.So George, do you remember the evening when you thought the hotel stationery's watermark was speaking to you? Probably not. And it doesn't matter. I wanted you to know I have the briefcase.

Oh, so it's you! My old drug buddy! When I asked you if you took the briefcase, you said no. I guess I was a fool to believe you. I considered you a good friend. I have no doubt that you have enjoyed the pics, including those of the woman you cared so deeply for.

Tell me, what "damage" did I do to her? Do you recall the time that you and she wanted to use a needle instead of snorting the junk? And I said absolutely not, that we didn't need to get more deeply into that shit than we already were?

I wasn't going to bring you into this, but if you want to join the party, welcome!

You got the watermark story wrong. Nothing ever "spoke" to me. Rather, I saw images all over the place. I was hallucinating like a son of a bitch for months. In fact, I had a serious nervous breakdown.

So why don't you use your real name?

Ghs

George H. Smith · June 14, 2011

Normal,

Did you know that I gave you an acknowledgment in Why Atheism? (2000). It reads:

My thanks also to:
...
**, who shared my curiosity about heaven and hell.

I made this acknowledgment, not because you had anything to do with the book, but because you gave me a place to live after I fled from Norman (Oklahoma) and the "Indian Therapy" of Robert Murphy. For that I shall always be grateful. Thank you.

I'm frankly surprised to learn that you are holding a grudge. We parted on good terms, and we even had a cordial phone conversation sometime after that. All this is news to me.

I would very much like to know what became of the woman in question. I have no wish to contact her. I just want to know if she is doing okay. If you don't wish to discuss this publicly, please email me at:

smikro@comcast.net

Ghs

George H. Smith · June 15, 2011

Boy, this thread has turned into quite a soap opera!

I want to be clear about something. I was wrong to associate the briefcase story with Wendy, Brad, or any of their friends. For that I apologize. I never thought any of those guys stole the briefcase -- there was no way they could have. Rather, I thought they had heard the story from someone and were using it in an attempt to embarrass me. It simply never occured to me that a man whom I once considered my best friend would do such a thing.

As Briefcase Boy himself said, he was post-Wendy. I always thought he was the guy who stole my briefcase and the pics, because he was the only one who knew what was in the briefcase and who had access to the apartment. I didn't take this very seriously, however; indeed, I even left a joke message on his answering machine that said something like, "The Top Ten Reasons Why You Wanted Those Photos." Then I gave the reasons.

Both my girlfriend and I thought the message was pretty funny, but when Briefcase Boy heard the message he got quite angry. The next time I saw him, he said, in a contemptuous tone, "Why would I ever want those pictures?" -- as if only a degenerate would have any interest in them.

At that point, I took Briefcase Boy at this word and dropped the matter, even though it left no possible explanation of who could have stolen the pictures. It's not as if they were lying out in the open.

Well, at least that mystery is solved, after all these years. <_<

Ghs

George H. Smith · June 15, 2011

I wanted you to know I have the briefcase.
Does it contain more of the stuff he was tripping on? Sounds potent.

Nope, that's not the briefcase. Mine was the type that opens at the top and has a single flap.

It's not very often that someone joins OL for the purpose of confessing that he stole something that was very important to a good friend, but I suppose there is a first time for everything.

I would ask "Normal" to return the briefcase and its contents to me, but he won't. Indeed, I rather doubt if we will be hearing anything more from him, since his attempt to embarrass me didn't work. But if he decides not to do the right thing by returning my property, I can always include him in my autobiography with some great stories. The stuff he did on drugs makes my weird activities look almost...ahem...normal. Let's see...there was that shotgun incident, and the sex stuff, and the enterprising use he once made of those photos of his Dad that he found under a sink...oh my, oh my! I won't use his real name of course, so no one will have any clue whom I am talking about.

Btw, I don't think for a minute that Briefcase Boy showed up on OL right at this moment by sheer coincidence.

Ghs

Selene · June 15, 2011

George:

Clearly, his "appearance" was no coincidence.

As the Buddhists explain:

Coincidence, when traced back far enough, becomes inevitable.

Adam

George H. Smith · June 15, 2011

George:
Clearly, his "appearance" was no coincidence.
As the Buddhists explain:
Coincidence, when traced back far enough, becomes inevitable.
Adam

Yeah, you're right. My apology to Wendy was a bit naive.

I have this mental picture of Wendy as Dr. Evil, sending in one hit man after another to dispose of me on OL. Yesterday it was Brad, who quickly beat a hasty retreat. Today it was Briefcase Boy, whom I don't expect we will hear from again.

I gave a tip to Brad, so I will give one to Briefcase Boy: If you are going to do Wendy's dirty work by attempting to embarrass me with some story, you should make sure that your own stories are not more embarrassing than mine. And you should understand that I am not now as you once knew me. I am virtually embarrassment proof. It's not as if I don't have plenty of dirty laundry; it's just that my dirty laundry has been hanging on a line, out in the open, for so long that people no longer care about it.

NEXT!

Ghs

Brant Gaede · June 15, 2011

NEXT!
Ghs

Oops!

Not me, babe.

--Brant

why did the turkey attack Ellen Moore?: he was NEXT in line

9thdoctor · June 15, 2011

Let's see...there was that shotgun incident, and the sex stuff, and the enterprising use he once made of those photos of his Dad that he found under a sink...oh my, oh my!

What gauge shotgun are we talking? We’ve got a briefcase, photographs, Vaseline and a shotgun for props, I’m trying to work out a plot. So far it’s looking like your erstwhile friend will be photographed using the shotgun barrel for a masturbation aid, with the Vaseline serving as lubricant. But I still don’t have a role for the briefcase.

George H. Smith · June 15, 2011

Let's see...there was that shotgun incident, and the sex stuff, and the enterprising use he once made of those photos of his Dad that he found under a sink...oh my, oh my!
What gauge shotgun are we talking? We’ve got a briefcase, photographs, Vaseline and a shotgun for props, I’m trying to work out a plot. So far it’s looking like your erstwhile friend will be photographed using the shotgun barrel for a masturbation aid, with the Vaseline serving as lubricant. But I still don’t have a role for the briefcase.

Do you have any idea of the damage a guy can do when, angry at his wife and high as a kite on coke and heroin, he repeatedly fires a 12-gauge shotgun into his wife's large closet, which is packed full of expensive clothes, including some very pricey, full-length leather coats?

And what would you do if this guy -- let's assume he is your best friend -- rushed over to your place in the middle of the night in a panic, asking if you would come back with him and help him get rid of the clothes and pick up all the pellets before his wife got back?

Just thought I would ask. No particular reason.

Mine will not be a boring autobiography, believe me. I have not exactly lived the life of a typical philosopher. :rolleyes:

Ghs

George H. Smith · June 15, 2011

NEXT!
Ghs
Oops!
Not me, babe.
--Brant
why did the turkey attack Ellen Moore?: he was NEXT in line

Refresh my memory. Was that my entry in the "Why did the turkey attack Ellen Moore?" contest. Or did someone else come up with it?

Ghs

Brant Gaede · June 15, 2011

NEXT!
Ghs
Oops!
Not me, babe.
--Brant
why did the turkey attack Ellen Moore?: he was NEXT in line
Refresh my memory. Was that my entry in the "Why did the turkey attack Ellen Moore?" contest. Or did someone else come up with it?
Ghs

That's me. The winner was something like, "She took exception to his Cyprus lectures," a reference to the now late "Jason Alexander." I think I got 2nd or third. Ross Barlow emailed me and said that when he read what I wrote he couldn't stop laughing. I don't think you had any entries, but you're the guy who set up the contest.

--Brant

,

George H. Smith · June 15, 2011

NEXT!
Ghs
Oops!
Not me, babe.
--Brant
why did the turkey attack Ellen Moore?: he was NEXT in line
Refresh my memory. Was that my entry in the "Why did the turkey attack Ellen Moore?" contest. Or did someone else come up with it?
Ghs
That's me. The winner was something like, "She took exception to his Cyprus lectures," a reference to the now late "Jason Alexander." I think I got 2nd or third. Ross Barlow emailed me and said that when he read what I wrote he couldn't stop laughing. I don't think you had any entries, but you're the guy who set up the contest.
--Brant
,

Okay, that makes sense. But was I the judge? If so, I don't know why I didn't give you first place.

Did Wendy co-write your entry?

Ghs

Brant Gaede · June 15, 2011

You were the judge. The winner was really, really funny. Jason as the turkey pissed off at Ellen making one of her patented, thick-headed denigrations, namely of his Cyprus lectures. It hit both her and him and well deserved first place.

--Brant

Brant Gaede · June 15, 2011

dup deleted