Reason Behind Anonymity

Mr. Vaupel,

Regarding your “dilemma” about my signing the original letter as Paul Harvey, which wasn’t published: You asked what my reaction would have been if you would have told your readers (and me) you had received a letter from “the” Paul Harvey… and then went on to wonder whether I would have written, “Hey Virgil, you Dumas. Paul Harvey is dead. Or didn’t you know?” Even if I had your talent for that “causerie” (informal but intelligent) writing style of yours, I wouldn’t have disrespected you in that way in a public format, any more than I would disrespect Paul Harvey or his heirs by signing off as him. I only did so on the original because it was intended for you, not the public, and it gave me an excuse to use his by-line, “And now you now the rest of the story” as wry humor. Because our instinct for survival makes all of us suspicious about anyone different from us, it is very tempting to base our opinions on our insecurities rather than facts. I decided the content may give the public something to think about too, and stepped forward with verification of authorship. But I switched to the pen name below thinking it was better suited for public consumption, yet would preserve anonymity.

You stated about yourself, “I am ignorant enough to use my real name,” and took a shot at me for hiding behind the cloak of anonymity. It has nothing to do with your using your real name. It’s about not empathizing with those of us whose income relies directly on retail sales, and simply can’t afford the loss of money from any of your fans who may irrationally believe that an author’s identity is as important as the merit of the content of his or her commentary.

Anonymity would not be an issue in a densely populated city, only in small towns where titillating gossip unfortunately trumps plain old horse sense at times. I do not have the luxury of freedom of expression that a truck driver, a farmer, a retiree, or many others do, unless I’m willing to sacrifice my living simply to take a stand on some controversial issue.

On the side of reason,

Horace Sence