Filip Mikolajewski wrote a letter…

I have a new fan. Mr. Filip Mikolajewski is apparently an extremely well educated gentleman from somewhere in America who has chosen to write me several angry letters over the last weeks. His first two were very political in nature, both attacking the Belarusian government and the first suggesting that my living here was in itself a political statement. I believe he added that he was more socially conscious than me for not having left the US for Iran despite his disagreements with the policy making of George Bush.

Here is his latest letter to me and my late night reply to him.

Mr. Goodman

I'm one of those "evil Polaks", and the fact that my last name tells you that am Polish only tells me how racist and CRAZY you are...I could also refer to your surname and what it tells me, Mr. Goodman... I'm aware that you are probably a paid KGB (as you know Belarus is the only former Soviet republic that kept "KGB" as the official name of the Ministry of the Interior) agent and I've informed the Polish government regarding your pro "Soviet" statements and your anti-Polish remarks, lies, and propaganda. If you do not cease your vicious activities there will be serious consequences. Say hi to the KGB from me. How well do they pay you to write this bullshit?

PS I did my homework and have two degrees in Political Science, and no, not from a Polish Uni.

Mr Mikolajewski,

You are not the first person to point out that Being Had has taken on over the years a generally anti-Polish theme. And I am not denying that this is true.

However, you seem to be missing he point that I did not create this blog to make Polish joke or to espouse racism, but rather to expose a remarkably corrupt country for being exactly what it is. Also, my opinion of Poland did not arise by itself but was rather thrust into my consciousness on May 15th 2002 when the entirety of the Polish justice system conspired to deprive me of my time, credibility and money. They made a rediculous case against me and kept me for a year and I in turn saved all of the documents and posted them on the internet so everybody could see who they were. That's why I am here. This blog therefore has not been a racist rant but rather a reciprocal present for Poland's taking that year of my life. And even more specifically, all I have really done is to use the same sort of logic that they used against me in my farce of a court case (is it possible that the damage to the car could have been caused by a hand?) and returned the favor in kind with a similarly employed style of logic: Do you think it is possible that the polish judicial system was capable of being licentious and corrupt?

Can you see my point?

And as of the moment, it seems that this capacity for corruption and heartless ugliness is not only true for the Polish constabulary, but it is also true for the general population, both for those who stayed in Poland and those who ran away. And, I have posted, as of the moment, about 510 pieces of evidence proving this point.

As far as my being a racist, this probably has some truth to is but not by any American standards. I have been living in Eastern Europe for six years and in general it is pretty much understood that there is a division to the races and this is something that is within the mindset of people. We are not speaking of discrimination per se, only that people who live in non-ethnically blended cultures do see the world in more "black and white" terms. And also, I did come here at first because my ethnic background is from exactly here, so obviously, this had played a part in my decision making.

But basically, I am seeing your letters as being pretty much cranks. I posted one comment from you because I thought it had some relevance and pulled another because it was inappropriate for the post, which was about a letter from the sister of the Marine who was murdered (apparently) by his girlfriend and that the Polish Police (surprise, surprise) hasn't done much about it. But other than this, you seem to be the one with the problem. You haven't offered any evidence to the contrary to any point I have made or that you think I have made, you have not offered to engage in any reasonable dialogue and basically, Mr Mikolajewski, all I can see is that you have used my blog as a target for your own vitriol and hatred. I mean, don't you find it ironic that you have chosen to go after after my name as having some sort of (ethnic?) meaning while at the same time accusing me of racism? And by the way, what does my name mean to you exactly?

I am sorry Mr Mikolajewski, but all I can really think to say at this point is that you really are… you know… Polish. And, as it is technically illegal according to Polish law, to either call someone crazy or to assault by words or actions another human being, you are also, as of this printing and along with all of the others from your fine and well meaning part of the world who have been collected in these pages, a criminal.

Probably I would not have bothered writing to you but I have been up all night making a BHTimes and there was some time before I had to be at the day's chores and I was really bored. I guess I am also blogging the letters just so I don't feel that I completely wasted my time writing to you. I mean a point well made in one place is a point well made anywhere, right?

But in any case, thanks for the attention and for the reminder that I do in fact not only have something to say here, but that it really, really, really needs to be said. And of course thank you for reading me.

Oh, and by the way, thanks also for the invitation for expelled Jews to come back to Poland. I myself would, of course advise against the return. Not to be racist or anything but I believe the correct term which has been used in the region is actually "wealthy Jews" and, all things being equal, and I think Jan Gross might agree with me, it is rather evident that y'all haven't come all that far in your thinking in that last 100 years…

More soon...