We already know that an April 4 letter writer cannot make his case without resorting to logical fallacies. Now we know that he makes stuff up. Like many liberals, he looks at the way things are and assumes that they were always that way.

In his last letter he asserts about me that; “You were born with a silver spoon in your mouth and had everything given to you, including an education. You have never worked for a minimum wage in your life.”

When I was 3 years old my parents bought an 800-square-foot house and lived there for 45 years, raising four children in it. My father was a printing estimator, and my mother worked part time as a bookkeeper.

From seventh through 12th grade, I worked on a truck farm. I crawled up and down many dusty rows of radishes, green onions and parsley, under a hot summer sun, planting, weeding, and harvesting. For that I started out at 15 cents per hour, and by the time I was a senior in high school, I was making all of 50 cents per hour.

I was the first one in my family to go to college. I earned (I was not given) a National Merit Scholarship to help with my tuition. That was back when you earned scholarships by demonstrating scholarship. I also worked summers in a warehouse at minimum wage to help pay for my college tuition. I borrowed money to buy my first car when I was 22 years old.

Nobody studied for me or took tests for me in high school, college or dental school. Nobody studied for me, nor took the dental school aptitude test required for admission to dental school; or took the dental boards for me that allowed me to get a license to practice dentistry. Nobody is “given” an education. We are presented with an opportunity to educate ourselves, if we choose to take advantage of it.

I knew no one in Albert Lea when I moved here to start my practice. Since I had virtually no assets then, no silver spoon in my mouth, and nobody gave me anything, I had to borrow money from the bank to start my practice. There was no guarantee that anyone would walk in the door and pay me to do their dentistry so I would be able to pay back the loan.

Envy, resentment and jealously are three ugly character traits to have. You would be better off appreciating what you have and rejoicing in whatever success others may have achieved.

Your next letter should include the following: 1. An apology for making baseless assumptions about me based on one or two facts you think you know about me. 2. An explanation of how any of that stuff you made up about me, even if true, invalidates anything I’ve written; or validates anything you’ve written.

The purpose of my letter is not to brag about what I have done. My story is very ordinary. Many have started with far less, overcame far greater obstacles and achieved far more than I.  My hat goes off to them. The purpose of my letter is to shed light on the character of the letter writer attacking me.

I prefer to discuss issues. Unless the letter writer can make rational arguments without resorting to logical fallacies, and baseless attacks, then there is no point in continuing this, as I have made my point.

 

George Lundstrom

Albert Lea