Ripped from the STEPPS site.

Message: 5 Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 09:20:54 -0400 From: "Peter C.S. Adams" Subject: [STEPPS] Another letter from Advocates To: Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Another one. Are we being targeted? I hope SMOC doesn't ask all their residents to write in! (BTW this time, at least, I know what she is talking about, and I will remove the offending letter from the web site.) --peter Date: Wed, 13 Jul 2005 18:51:40 -0400 To the Leaders and Members of STEPPS: The following is directed to the Framingham man or woman who calls him/herself "Anonymous" and whose words were featured under the heading "Read a letter from a Framingham taxpayer who charges SMOC with causing the deterioration of Framingham" on your website. It would be much appreciated if you would be willing to post this on your message board. You are obviously amenable to posting the words of STEPPS members, and should therefore respect counterpoints. Dear "Anonymous", I find it ironically amusing that you are brave enough to make such generalized and ill-educated comments about SMOC and its affiliate organizations and the clients we serve, and yet you are cowardly enough to sign as "Anonymous." How could you possibly expect people to respond to your thoughts, or even to respect you when you obviously do not even respect yourself? A dignified person would support his argument and be willing to debate it further. A person with confidence would be willing to go to bat for what he believes in. By signing as "Anonymous", you give up your right to be respected and listened to. I feel sorry for you that you lack the courage to stand behind your words, but it is obvious that you realized your point was irrelevant and that you were simply looking for an opportunity to help your lacking self-confidence by calling other people "not desirable." is this what you need to do to feel better about yourself? I am sorry to inform you, Mr. or Mrs. Anonymous, but people like you- people who are uneducated as to the missions and priorities of organizations such as ours- are not desirable. You are unwelcome in a society of moral and fair people who are trying to make changes for the better, trying to improve the quality of life for others. YOU are an undesirable. I can only hope that you, whomever you are, are not a parent. For if you are, the message you send to children is a despicable one. For you to believe that you are at liberty to call someone else "undesirable" makes me embarrassed for you. For you to criticize organizations such as SMOC whose only mission is to serve those who are chronically ill or living with disabilities is shameful in itself. But for you to think that you are in any way above any other person, or that you have the right to speak for an entire city, well in that sense you are just ignorant. Most importantly, you have identified your "anonymous" self as an uneducated and selfish person who seems only to consider what would make Framingham a "better" place by eliminating the integration of "undesirable" people and the services that SMOC offers to its clients. I am actually a bit embarrassed for myself, because, as a contributing tax payer, I am actually associated with you in a sense. For that, I am ashamed. I strongly suggest you get your facts straight, and then find the courage to stand behind your argument. Sincerely, Jill Amicangelo (Also a "concerned taxpayer"- but one with enough dignity and self-respect to sign my own name when making a statement)

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