I'm amazed at ignorance, although I know I shouldn't be. If you haven't read Marian Pierre-Louis' blog post, "And So She Risks Everything by Being Completely Honest," over at Roots and Rambles, you really need to. Perhaps those tactless individuals were indeed joking, but it really doesn't matter. Just because someone hasn't gotten letters after their name yet doesn't mean that they are any less a researcher/genealogist/family historian. It means that they don't have letters after their name. Maybe some day they will. Maybe some day they won't, but it doesn't make that person inexperienced, unqualified or any less than another. It means THEY DON'T HAVE LETTERS AFTER THEIR NAME! I'm not sure if they had their heads jammed in the sand or somewhere else!
Now I'd like to move to something of a more solemn nature. A remembrance posted by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. I've posted about the VVMF previously. I love the fact that they are looking to put a face with every name that is inscribed on the Vietnam Wall. The VVMF posted on Monday about a Vietnam Hero that does not appear on the Vietnam Wall, because he made it home alive and died saving others (thousands of others) in the WTC on 9/11. Go and read the post, "10 Years Later and No One Has Forgotten." It was incredibly moving. A true hero.
A great point made by none other than Dick Eastman (always an excellent source for information), was a post "Copyright Myths." We deal with these issues daily whether we are hearing about someone taking from us or from one of our colleagues (hopefully not us taking improperly from someone else.). It's always nice for a little refresher. Wouldn't it be nice if the people that needed the refresher would read this? Ah well...we can always hope! Thanks for the post, Dick!