Sunday, September 11, 2005

The ULA and Its Enemies

I'll reiterate, for those who don't know, that the Underground Literary Alliance from its beginning has operated in an open, honest, upfront manner. We've documented our accusations. We've presented them under our own names, accepting accountability for what we do and say.

By contrast, Dave Eggers's journal McSweeney's was born in an atmosphere of games and trickery. (Does anyone remember the McSweeney's family?) His publications have contained fake letters and false identities. This has been the essence of his behavior. In 2004 the New York Times itself revealed that Eggers, not the ULA, had engaged in anonymous attacks. Further evidence, in fact, about the two camps is available in the history of this blog. Witness the unrelenting swarm of pseudonymous and anonymous attacks against the ULA, which we confronted under our own names.

The question is out there: Which side is honest and which side lies? The answer, for anyone who looks at the situation honestly, with clear heads and unclouded eyes, is obvious.

What's the ULA? We're the whistle-blowers of literature, and for this we pay a price.

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