Excellent, Alison. (And if that don't put the fear o' gawd in'em, I'll sue
for leaving out my brilliant Madonna post while including the "Sister
Candice" one by Jakes duh Gall!)--Candice
> Dear Andrew and Samantha
>
> I have now had a chance to look at the"response" printed in your
> magazine, supposedly from the archives of British Poets.
>
> It's quite clear that you didn't check them against the actual archives,
> because posts not only from me, but from others, have been altered, or
> added to, or rewritten, or edited extremely misleadingly, not in single,
> but in many instances. I am quoted as writing things which in fact I
> never said. This is an issue quite aside from your dubious decision to
> publish copyright material without asking permission of the authors, and
> to publish it (very) selectively in misleading contexts.
>
> The row was only marginally about the Lacan dialogues, which mainly bored
> people, but about other issues, most notably Johnson's complete
> insensitivity to the established and complex culture of British Poets,
> which has been one of the most consistently interesting, stimulating and
> tolerant poetry lists around. You might note that Kent Johnson has not,
> even now, been removed from the list.
>
> Other issues included Johnson's offensive and misogynist responses to
> even the mildest of criticisms, the fact that he kept crossposting
> voluminous arguments from another list (subsubpoetics), and the sheer
> volume of his postings, experienced by many as an assault as tedious as
> spamming. I notice his own posts are cleansed of the bulk of these less
> radiant moments. A careful trawl through the British Poets archives would
> perhaps be illuminating on this point.
>
> I am astonished that any editors who claim to publish serious literature
> should be party to such a fraudulent beat-up as this. I am also
> personally very upset to be misrepresented in this way. If it is
> necessary, I will document all the re-writings of my own posts: I am
> happy to stand by what I actually wrote. And I would like an apology to
> be published in your magazine at least as prominently as the slanderous
> misrepresentation to which I have been subject.
>
> Best
>
> Alison Croggon
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