***Update: This is NOT an April Fool’s joke, as some commenters have thought. It’s real, I promise! ***
OK, it’s almost the holiday weekend, so as promised, I thought I’d go with light reading today and share with you one of the greatest pieces of hate mail I ever received. I received this back in August and would’ve forgotten all about it had I not been digging through old mail earlier this week.
Enjoy this poetry from a very strange and angry Colorado man, coincidentally also named Josh.
Hey,
you ignorant fuck who just wants to sell (fake?) books and sound smart or perhaps just thinks it’s fun to fuck with people,
I admit, I do like to sound smart sometimes. And my book is real! It’s not fake!
Oh….sorry….should I use the same cute and utterly ignorant type of language that you use in your emails or should I just resort to brutal honesty?
Nah, I ain’t been raised to be cute so I will fall back on the good ol standby: brutal honesty.
Well, that’s twice now that he’s said “brutal honesty” so I’m guessing there’s some brutal honesty coming.
You didn’t even read my fucking application, you fuckhead, but you were counting on the fact that you could trick me into thinking you actually had something more to say other than dribbling drivel.
In Josh’s defense (maybe?), I should point out here that it seems Josh had just received one of my automated email responses, where I advise students to look out for certain types of errors that are commonly made. So, Josh is right that I hadn’t YET read his essay at this point…but of the many thousands of applicants I’ve had over the years, I’m thinking Josh is by far the MADDEST about it.
The next time that you want to send computer generated emails
Is there another kind of email?
to the likes of me; a person who actually wants to finish and/or extend my education but do not fit any of the retarded, gross and ridiculous generalizations you fucking think that you can make about me or my application,
|
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I understand at this point that Josh is really upset and possibly infected with rabies or at least a LOT of hard liquor. But if he knows it was an *automated response*, then you’d think he wouldn’t take it so personally.
think about how it feels to never be considered worth more than two good shits on Sunday morning….after eggs and Budweiser. Yeah, it tends to stink.
That’s just gross, dude. And honestly, if the guy has really never been taken seriously by anyone his whole life, it’s too bad, because his spelling and grammar are pretty fantastic, actually. Better than 98% of the applicants I see. He’s at least got that, plus an impressive murderous-rage streak, going for him.
Your “criticism” of my application reflects the fact that you, your staff, your company and all that you say you stand for do not reflect even a fraction of the intelligence of the people applying for your money.
Actually, um…it was just an automated —
(For fuck’s sake, you can’t even do something as simple as read the applications and make a personal judgement from there!)
Hey! I do too read them! I just hadn’t read yours YET…
Additionally, I will happily take a piss on the majority of those who are applying to your outlandish outfit because I can guess that possibly 98% of them are not over thirty years old and want to take the skills they have learned over fifteen years of work and apply them to a worthwhile education, you fuck.
Yeah, you guys thought it was all about him being angry at me, didn’t you? No way, man — now he wants to urinate on every single one of you. Especially you under-30 types.
They probably don’t even know that they are being taken by, what?, a bunch of grad school trust fund fucking know-it-alls who have nothing better to do than waste the time of worthwhile people?
I have no idea who he’s talking about here.
Who the hell do you think that you are?
Josh Barsch.
It’s comical, actually.
On that we agree.
I’d just like to sit down and speak with you some day, just so that we could discuss the fact that you shouldn’t make a living off of intimidating and manipulating strangers
Right. Because if anyone’s trying to intimidate a stranger here, it’s…me?
for your own profit.
Yeah, not making a truckload of money on the book really, Josh. It’s not exactly New Moon.
You are a lamprey, don’t you think? (It’s a parasitic type of beast….)
Josh, call me an osprey, Grand Prix, Kid Capri — but lamprey? You’ve crossed the line, sir.
I have worked my ass off for the last twelve years in Colorado and I want to go back to school in Arizona to study Enviromental Engineering, in case you missed that, which I am convinced that you did.
Well, I just hadn’t read it y– oh, never mind.
I don’t have the money to pay my way and I thought you guys were legit but you are not.
We are, actually, but man, you’re really burning a lot of bridges here, Josh.
I wrote my application honestly and openly; you replied to me in some sort of ill-worded condescending tone that made no damned sense whatsoever.
Well, it was an automated — oh, never mind.
You are a fucking scam and I hope that you shit splintered glass until the day you die for being obscure, smoky, unreliable and selfish.
This is the most outstanding tell-off I’ve ever received. Smoky! Obscure!
Fuck you,
Joshua
No reason to re-print the guy’s full name and info here — which he did leave, in an admirable John Hancock sorta way — because I assume he was just having a bad day. That’s some serious vitriol for just one automated email response. Imagine how pissed this guy gets when someone cuts him off in traffic.
Happy Easter!
All the best,
“Judge Josh” Barsch
Whoa… lay off the crank, bro.
April Fools?
Poor guy…moreso poor environment he wishes to study…
smh
I’m sure he’s older and didn’t realize it was an automated response. Older folks get confused even by spam mail.
Haha April Fools perhaps? If not, that’s pretty bad. Did he, did he get that scholarship, or?
Wow. That is all.
I’m not even sure how this got in my e-mail but certainly glad it did! Who does this? And what does this guy want to go to school for anyway? Man’s got talent! He could be the next howard stern or Jimmy Kimble for cryin’ out loud! He certainly has the vernacular down.
haha. I liked your responses to parts of his letter. It makes him look more like a dumbass. 😛
Reading this put a smile on my face 🙂
It amuses me how stupid people can be.
I guess I can see where this guy is coming from. My daughter had straight A’s in high school – top 4% in our County, (and is still making the Dean’s list at a top midwestern university), a high ACT score, a pt job and lots of extra-curriculars, yet no scholarship offer from any state schools. However, he seems to feel like he’s entitled to be given a scholarship just because he’s over 30 (?) and worked his ass off. Yeah, you and everybody else trying to get ahead in this world. Too bad he can’t check off “Pacific Islander” on his application forms, since it seems to be the hot minority group. Anyway, he should be advised that the use of the “R” word (retarded) is not acceptable, but somehow I don’t think he really cares.
Thanks for listening to my mini rant and kudos to you for sharing the wealth and offering scholarship money.
Was his essay any good?
Actually odds are this guy is probably right. I mean, you ever watch late night TV when the guy wants to sell you his book because “he wants to help you” and he’s not making any money off it? You should probably buy those books right after you forward your “Bill Gates wants to give you $56784.37” emails. I barely have a clue about this site besides being inundated with worthless emails, but anyone who calls himself “Judge Josh” pretty much stands as a big red warning flag.
WOW! THIS GUY IS UNGRATEFUL
We don’t know what is going on in this guys life. Perhaps he is beaten down and depressed and feels his world is caving in on him. I am not excusing his behavior, but perhaps he needs someone to reach out to him and say they care. He actually sounded desperate to me. The economy is in a terrible place and many people are trapped. Animals do crazy things when they are trapped. And even though we are smarter than the average bear, ( we are human) we are still animals that respond negatively to being trapped. Josh B, I thought your responses cute to his outrageous spewing. However, I hear a real cry for help in his words… maybe as Annie said, everyone should re-read this mans words and hear what he is saying between the lines instead of the actual words.
It is despicable that you would not only post this here, but also send it via email under the guise of legitimate, helpful scholarship advice. Degrading others is neither honorable, nor a worthy addition to my inbox. It saddens me that you have subjected well-meaning students to this trash. Grow up barsch.
Haha! Wow, this guy is deranged, and probably certifiably insane. Angry over an automated response?? Pathetic…
very entertaining.
THAT is AWESOME!! it just made my day.. thanks!
R
I must say, while I have been rejected by numerous scholarships, I don’t think I ever came close to this kind of anger. Perhaps he was having an atrocious day. Well, best of luck to you and your book. And thank you for the moment of entertainment. Happy Easter to you and your crew!
Very respectfully,
Paola
PLEASE…. do not give thi guy a scholarship! I cant imaging someone this unhinged being in college or being an enviromental engineer. Lord help anyone who comes in contact with this guy!
Wow, that’s awsome! I really don’t understand people! They want free money but can’t wait the worth to get it.
So despite the hate-mail…oh, never mind. I know he didn’t get anything except recognition for this piece of work. Happy Easter to you as well.
Haha, he should get a (small) scholarship for giving you such good copy!! I mean, this is priceless! He deserves some form of reward for this, even if he does go down in the Scholarship Hall of Shame (and ends up blacklisted). Without his fervorous rant, we’d be without this wonderful gem!
That was so funny! As my friends would say, “Can you believe this guy?” It is actually kinda sad that he didn’t know that it wasn’t some kind of automated declination letter to his application. But nevertheless, thanks for sharing this. Hilarious!
That is hilarious!!! What in the world is that guy smokin’ on? Hahaha. God bless you Mr. Barsch. Happy Easter to you and all undiscruntle automated email recipients.
its an april fools joke
what r u fucking retarded
this is obviously an april fools joke u dumb cunts
I feel sorry for the guy (I see nothing funny here except maybe feelings prompted by schadenfreude?)
Maybe he really does not know about automated mail at the time he sent it? After all when he did send it (way back when?) I’m guessing he was already 30+ years old, and we all know the sharp learning curve for technological tricks/intricacies for the older generation.
That being said, he should probably take some anger management classes.
Cheers,
Jason
must not be that smart to reply to an automated response with such.. vigor.
O my gosh, Josh, that was so funny! Your responses were so hysterical! You know how people are. They want everything and they do not want to work for it. Free money without having to do anything! If I sent hate mail for every automated email that I receive (and I have about 5 different email accounts), that would be a job from sun up to sun down. Thanks for the entertainment! Happy Easter!!!!
Josh, take it down.
This man was obviously very hurt and very angry when he wrote this email. Did you read what he said or just how he said it? Start from the top. It sounds like he spent a lot of time on his application. From the sound of it, he probably really needed the money.
“I wrote my application honestly and openly; you replied to me in some sort of ill-worded condescending tone that made no damned sense whatsoever.”
To spend so much time on something that was ultimately ignored then receive an automated e-mail which then criticized his application, that would make anyone upset.
This guy is obviously at least 30 years old. He said he had been working (likely full time) for fifteen years. Do the math, he probably had to start working full time straight out of high school (if he was even able to graduate) and never had the chance until now to go back.
“I have worked my ass off for the last twelve years in Colorado and I want to go back to school in Arizona to study Enviromental Engineering, in case you missed that, which I am convinced that you did.”
Think about what the economy is like right now, he probably didn’t have a skilled job and might have just lost that job. Maybe that’s why he needs to go back to school. Maybe he even has a family.
“I don’t have the money to pay my way and I thought you guys were legit but you are not.”
As for the “piss on everyone comment” I don’t blame him for being jealous of resenting people who are able to go to college, most students don’t appreciate their education.
So Josh, please take this down. I’m very disappointed that this was put up here. This guy obviously has more than enough to deal with and was very upset and hurt when he wrote this:
“think about how it feels to never be considered worth more than two good shits on Sunday morning….after eggs and Budweiser. Yeah, it tends to stink.”
Who hasn’t let their emotions get the best of them at one point and say things they wish they hadn’t?
Was it acceptable or justified for him to to respond to you in this manner? No, absolutely not. He was completely out of line. But is it acceptable or professional to post an applicant’s e-mail on your blog for everyone to see so he can be mocked and publicly ridiculed?
I’ll let you answer that question.
Hahaha,
Who cares about either of the Joshes. They seem both to be in a serious pathological state then one for writing, the other for publishing and commenting.
Just don’t do scholarships and don’t do loans, it’s literally a non sense enterprise. Buy a plain ticket for 400$, go to Europe, and study for free… oh shit right, that would mean you would have to leave the greatest country in the world that is starting to introduce a health care system that might come close to Mexico’s health packet… in 20 years.
Cheers,
nils
Hey, thanks for all the comments, everyone. Just wanted to quickly say that this is NOT an April Fool’s joke! Guess I brought that speculation on myself by publishing it today!
LMBO!
wow…
uhh… very strange. he totally just went off on a rant about his own life problems.
Annie’s right. Writing that email wasn’t a very good decision on his part, but it’s not very hard to see what kind of a situation he might be coming from when he wrote it. Displaying it like this in such a gleeful way, even without his full name, is extremely inappropriate and in bad taste; you should know better. It almost seems as if you’re doing this for recognition or attention, rather than just some attempt at humor. The motive doesn’t matter, this should still be taken down.
I didn’t find this funny, and I certainly didn’t appreciate it being in my inbox. I want scholarship news, I don’t want rubbish like this wasting my time. I know exactly how this guy feels, and I don’t blame him for lashing out on you. Sure, a lot of it was unnecessary, but he needed to vent, obviously. After seeing you publish this, you’re an asshole, Josh, to be quite frank. Take this post down, it shouldn’t be up here for people’s amusement.
Take it down. It makes me feel thankful for the opportunity to go to university and obtain an education. Not everyone is given that opportunity. It must feel horrible to feel that you are slipping into quicksand and cannot get out.
Please take this down. I understand you were upset by this, but this man is upset too. I subscribed to the email list for ideas on getting scholarships. Even I didn’t understand the automated emails. I spent the past six months wondering if I should continue keeping your emails coming or not as they haven’t been very helpful. I am 30 yrs old and have an education. Like this man I work hard and don’t have time for things that aren’t extremely helpful immediately. (I never expected to get anything more than writing tips though)
It shows bad form to mock the very people you say you are trying to help. If indeed you wish to continue to “help” people, you need to retain their trust. This violates an unspoken trust that you have created with the people you have as subscribers. Older people especially find this type of behavior as anti-social and disrespectful to the relationship, not only of this man, but the ones they hold with you as well. To put it simply, if you pick on this guy, what’s to stop you from picking on me? Even though I know you did not mean this to hurt anyone, hence why you left off his name, you just shot yourself in the foot.
I agree with others that this should be taken down. I’ll go one step further and say you should probably write to this guy, personally, and 1) apologize for putting this up and sending out an E-Mail to people you don’t even know to tell them to look at it, and 2) try to explain to him that you meant no disrespect to him by sending him this automated E-Mail…(you ask if there is some other kind of E-Mail besides “computer-generated”–you know DARN WELL what this person was talking about. That comment on your part indicates to me that you are one very “snarky” guy who really doesn’t give a crap about integrity). You should explain the process, including that your staff WOULD have looked at his application. That makes you look professional. What you have done here most certainly does not make you look professional. And you’ve now OPENLY PUBLICIZED your unprofessional behavior. The people who find this funny are most likely the same people who like watching train-wreck lives in “reality TV,” or insist on slowing down and gawking when they come upon some automobile accident. I’m with Annie, Andrew, Tiffany, and Anonymous on this one. You have no idea what torment this guy might be going through that caused him to respond in this manner. I think you are quite selfish for posting this. The true mark of a man is whether he can own up to his mistakes. You have just made a mistake here, sir. Own it and correct it.
I think there are two distinct possibilities.
One, the original email is an April Fool’s prank. The individual (won’t even say guy) is certainly educated and has quite a vocabulary. For a rant, it seemed quite well thought out, which would seem to indicate not being completely written while boiling mad.
Two, the original email was written by a person that was angry. If this is the case, I am amazed that various things were not read, given the apparent intelligence and education of this individual. For instance, the first (and only) email that I’ve seen that says anything about scholarship errors and an application clearly states the following:
“You recently applied for one of our company’s scholarships here at StraightForward Media. I
wanted to give you a heads-up on a series of emails we’ll be sending your way about common
scholarship errors. We’re making it available to our students because we receive hundreds of
scholarship essays every day, and about 95% of them contain errors that disqualify the
application.” (Scholarship Application Errors, received Jul. 31, 2009)
If this individual writes this well while in a rage, the writer should have no problem with scholarships requiring remote literary excellence, if particular words are not employed. And if not, and college is still not a possibility, the talent should be shared with the world in newsprint or book binding!
For all the obviously’s, the certainly’s— we know nothing about the writer of the email except what is revealed directly in the letter, that the individual has a tremendous grasp of the English language, and that the name/pseudonym of “Joshua _______” was given.
I think the writer has earned a scholarship— nobody deserves nothin’— if the scholarship essay is this well written.
kuddos to annie…couldnt have said it any better myself. the way josh responded and acted out wasnt appropiate but posting it for everyone to see wasnt any better.
On both accounts, you’re really trying to get lots of attention. Lame.
Man, you’re all a bunch of tightwads. “I am very disappointed you would put this in your blog to ridicule him,” or “I can’t believe this came up in my inbox when I want scholarship information.” Who are you, his mother? Josh is entitled ti put whatever he wants on his blog just as much as this person was entitled to send him that ridiculous hate-mail. It was an automated email and some of you think that Josh isn’t entitled to a response back. This seems like it wasn’t made to ridicule the other Josh, but to provide a sort of response in case the hate-mailer ever reads this.
Tons and tons of people get rejected from scholarships per year and when one goes off the deep end and takes it so damn personally and directly insults the writer of this blog, he as a human has the right to respond back to this crazy person. So stop walking around with sticks up your ass and just deal with the fact that the writer of his blog is just as human as you and has every entitlement to put up whatever he wants. And what’s even better is that he didn’t respond in a harsh, aggressive manner but made a light hearted commentary out of the situation. If it were any of you butt-cramped scholarship applicants, you probably would’ve responded to this hate-mailer with something intelligent like “you stupid fuck.”
You tightwads are ridiculous.
All I’d like to say is to Nils, that scholarships are not a nonsense enterprise. If it wasn’t for all the hours I spent on scholarships, I wouldn’t have been able to go to college. My family didn’t have enough money to send me. I graduated Summa Cum Laude from university and I wouldn’t have if I didn’t receive the scholarships I worked so hard for.
I have never seen an established scholarship foundation act in this manner – posting a submission that was meant to be private (albeit rude, mean, etc) and then making fun of it. Are you trying to set an example here? Because honestly you just sound hypocritical. Why don’t you stop wasting your (and everyone else’s) time with your pathetic comebacks and just do your job? You mentioned how many essays you have and how you had yet to read all of them. So get on that.
I mean, he must have really got to you if you had to write this and then notify everyone with spam.
Wow…. soooo optimistic isn’t he… -_-
It’s interesting that people are telling you to take it down. I believe the lesson was intended to be:
1. He over-reacted.
2. Don’t send hot-headed emails without knowing all the facts.
3. Don’t bite the hand that may potentially feed you.
Almost everybody at some point in their life feels like they are just being ignored and feel such an intense pressure to succeed, which makes it SO much worse than they fail But the difference between those people and the guy that wrote this email? Is that we just deal with it in a responsible and mature way. Everyone who is standing up for him should realize that sending hate mail is just not acceptable. What if everytime we were upset about something, we all sunk that low and cursed out and blamed everyone around us? You have to be in control of your actions and if you can’t even control your temper, then you clearly are not ready to be trying to obtain a college degree, no matter how much older you are.
I can understand his sentiment.
It is always amazing to me that educated people only know one to describe how they feel. Sad!
i like the way josh replied…..hehehehe
To be honest, when I got those ‘automated responses’ from StraightForward, I wasn’t exactly appreciative of the ‘advice’ you gave. Yes, it was automated… Does that, somehow, make it less offensive? No. The language used was far from objective. And sure, he responded very immaturely to your emails… But would you call this a mature response to his?
Good job, Josh Barsch. I, now, have no problem with calling you a jerk because… Well, since you’re so smart, why don’t you figure it out.
Now to echo the words of some reasonable people: Take this down.
I’m guessing his age didn’t help him much here in terms of judgment call… I think all of us under 30 people at least know what an automated message looks like… but I do agree with everyone else here in terms of taking it down. After reading it, I felt “wow. This guy REALLY got offended, must be in some deep hole, and is a jerk” And even though I did get my two cents worth of laughs, the whole situation isn’t too funny.
I needed a good laugh this morning….
Wow, thanks to everyone for the comments, even the ones taking me to task for posting the mail. I appreciate anyone who takes the time to comment here, whatever their opinion may be. In case anyone was hoping for a further response from me on some of the points, I’ll say just a couple of things:
a) The major gripe against me here seems to be that I was insensitive/mean for posting the mail. I can live with that. I would echo Cameron’s sentiments, though, that hey, everyone has frustrations, but exactly ONE has reacted in this particular juvenile way. I can both sympathize and empathize with people’s burdens, and I’d never make sport of those. UNLESS, come to think of it, you send me violent-anger-filled email referring to me only as “you fuck” and wishing me everlasting gastrointestinal torture.
At that point, my particular line has been crossed, my sympathy and respect for Josh evaporate, and yes, on this site, he becomes fair game for mocking. That’s why his email isn’t coming down.
Annie et al — It’s possible you’re just nicer, more forgiving people than I am, and again, I’m fine with that. It’s also possible that you’d react differently if you were the target of the message.
b) It also dawns on me that this post is a lot of people’s first exposure to GMS, and likely that’s the case with those who are taken aback, such as Not Amused’s sentiments about “never seeing an established scholarship foundation act in this manner.”
So, for clarity’s sake — Yes! The purpose of this site is to do and say things that other scholarship-related sites won’t do or say. Certainly don’t look for the Coca-Cola Scholarship to post similar hate mail. 🙂 And yes, I often use harsh and NC-17 language on this site, and I always will, because that’s the way I am in real life! The advice you’ll find here will always be transparent, real, sometimes harsh, sometimes profane, but always real. That may not be something that fits your needs or sensitivities, but that’s pretty how much how this ship runs, so consider yourself forewarned. 🙂
Again, thanks for all the comments, both positive and negative. Even if I don’t agree with you, I welcome your comments. Thanks, and Happy Easter!
Leave it up, don’t take it down.
I’ve been working hard for over 15 years too and I’ve been paying for my own education one class per semester to avoid serious debt. To get a scholarship is like winning the lottery. You’re not going to win if you don’t play.
Josh, you are showing people how not to apply! This should be a lesson learned by everyone.
I’m in the over 30+ group and I’m not mad at the world for not winning any scholarships. You can’t win them all.
Leave it up.
If this guy is stupid enough to overreact to an automated response, promptly sending an expletive-laden e-mail to someone who could potentially help out, he should be mocked. In the real world, no one cares how hard you worked. What’s important is what you have to show for it. If you do a job interview for McDonald’s and are denied the position you wanted, you don’t go back into the place screaming about how hard you worked.
Well, insane people do that.
Like the Rolling Stones tune, “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try, you get what you need.” Life sucks and things don’t always work out the way we would like. How can a person be capable of focusing on Environmental studies when it seems like this dude has a world of baggage that will block his efforts, IF, he gets any type of scholarship. Guy needs help, spitting rage online.
Jane: Thanks for the summary, but I believe all of us understood the “lesson” to be learned. If anything, it’s just common sense. And I certainly didn’t need this tidbit to teach me that.
“So, for clarity’s sake — Yes! The purpose of this site is to do and say things that other scholarship-related sites won’t do or say.”
The reason why other sites won’t do or say certain things is because they handle themselves in a professional manner and are not immature. I would prefer this way. Every existing organization has received hate mail at some point. Because they realize that there is always going to be someone who is utterly displeased, angry and somewhat crazy, they know that it is not personal. You should understand that, too.
When I was the editor of my newspaper, we received many letters to the editor. Sometimes we would run into hate mail, just as often as we received encouraging letters of appreciation. Yet we printed neither because that was not our job. Our job was to address real issues, not fight with (dumb) people or bask in our achievements. Yes, we would laugh at stupid letters amongst ourselves, but we would not print it in a newspaper for everyone to see. That would have been stooping to their level.
“And yes, I often use harsh and NC-17 language on this site, and I always will, because that’s the way I am in real life!”
I’m like that in real life, too – harsh and I cuss sometimes like a sailor (I’m not proud of it). However, I would not act like that at an interview or to my professor. While it is great that you can completely be yourself in everything you do, some actions are inappropriate for certain situations. If you carried yourself professionally in your scholarship site, you would not run into as many people questioning the credibility of your scholarships.
“The advice you’ll find here will always be transparent, real, sometimes harsh, sometimes profane, but always real. That may not be something that fits your needs or sensitivities, but that’s pretty how much how this ship runs, so consider yourself forewarned.”
Thanks, but I can handle everything you listed, and more. I have no problems with constructive criticism, and I think it’s great that you want to help people (unless I perceived that incorrectly). But was this post supposed to help people or just to amuse you and everyone else? Because like I said to Jane, this was no sage piece of advice.
Hello again, Not Amused, and thanks for the return visit. I will respond where it seems like you’re seeking a response:
> The reason why other sites won’t do or say certain things is because they handle themselves in a
> professional manner and are not immature. I would prefer this way.
That’s fine and you’re welcome to that opinion; going forward, then, you won’t prefer this site.
>Because they realize that there is always going to be someone who is utterly displeased, angry and >somewhat crazy, they know that it is not personal. You should understand that, too.
I’ve been a newspaper editor before too, “Not Amused.” Some letters one receives aren’t personal, and some are. If you don’t think this one was personal, then your definition of “personal” is far narrower than mine.
> I’m like that in real life, too – harsh and I cuss sometimes like a sailor (I’m not proud of it).
Nor am I ashamed of it. In private or in public. Which bothers you very much, I can tell, but it remains and will remain true. I’m open and honest about it because it quickly weeds out those who are offended by it.
> However, I would not act like that at an interview or to my professor. While it is great that you can completely be yourself in everything you do, some actions are inappropriate for certain situations.
You are welcome to continue restraining yourself, Not Amused, because how you choose to act is your choice. But I’m going to decline your suggestion that I adopt your personal code of conduct. I’m going to follow mine and you can follow yours, and that’s going to be OK with me, no matter how many comments you add trying to convince me otherwise.
(Which, although we disagree here, I encourage without hesitation. Your dissent is welcome anytime.)
I feel bad for the guy; he’s obviously very upset and hurt. Frustrations can make you do and say some horrible things. I hope he doesn’t get hurt or embarrassed by his letter being posted, but I understand Barsch’s point also. Have someone send you a letter like that when you’re running a site like this meant (probably) solely to help people get ahead in life via education is offensive and exasperating sometimes. Barsch is trying to educate people so they can win scholarships and it’s not his fault that the guy didn’t understand or was offended by the automated e-mail. Barsch says he reads all of the scholarships.. good. Can you blame the other guy for thinking his was trashed before it made it to the table? Not really….. but hey that’s life; things like this are a gamble. I understand both sides and as far as the letter being posted and Barsch’s behavior in managing this site…. I respect his decision. I think it’s often very annoying when “established” anythings pucker up for the audience. Real is always better and I think attitudes like that should be respected. It’s sad, yes; the guy was obviously hurt and I agree with the arguments from the “take it down” comments I skimmed through above. I just think, bottom line, we all have probably found ourselves there at one point or another. Life is tough. We have to understand where each other is coming from… makes it easier when we have disagreements and do stupid and outrageous things…
“That’s fine and you’re welcome to that opinion; going forward, then, you won’t prefer this site.”
What I meant was, I prefer a scholarship foundation to be professional because, in my case, it increases my chances of winning a scholarship. In that sense, I do not seek scholarships from your site.
Actually, I never paid much attention to your site anyway because I doubted its credibility (until I received plenty of spam arguing otherwise). Then I saw this email and was just curious as to what it had to say. I wasn’t offended at all. Quite the contrary, I was amused by your response and, moreover, the reasons behind your decision. If anything, I think it’s quite hilarious how you carry yourself.
“If you don’t think this one was personal, then your definition of “personal” is far narrower than mine.”
No, my definition is simply more realistic. If a stranger is writing a letter to me, I realize he or she does not know anything about me at all. Now if someone knew a lot about me and was a sort of acquaintance, but then insulted me (targeting personal issues that no stranger would know), then I would be quite offended. However, I am never bothered by trolls, who only want to get a reaction out of you. And you have definitely glorified this guy (who is probably laughing at your response).
“Nor am I ashamed of it. In private or in public. Which bothers you very much, I can tell, but it remains and will remain true. I’m open and honest about it because it quickly weeds out those who are offended by it.”
It’s tough to read someone’s “feelings” through their writing…which is what happened to you in this case. I am not bothered by cussing or crude behavior. Ever. Again, you don’t know me, and I don’t know you, so I don’t expect you to know this about me. As a girl who has mainly guy friends, I’m used to everything.
I’m not ashamed of cussing in the sense that cussing bothers me. I simply have a personal goal for myself to cut the swearing because it bothers certain people who are close to me. And honestly, if your criteria for a potential friend is that he or she must enjoy cussing, that isn’t any standard to brag about. I find it strange, and again amusing that you would think that way.
“You are welcome to continue restraining yourself, Not Amused, because how you choose to act is your choice. But I’m going to decline your suggestion that I adopt your personal code of conduct. I’m going to follow mine and you can follow yours, and that’s going to be OK with me, no matter how many comments you add trying to convince me otherwise.”
Almost everyone “restrains” themselves to fit in society. This is an entirely different issue, which isn’t worth debating on… And I’m sure there are some situations where you wouldn’t cuss out someone, like perhaps when a cop pulls you over, at a funeral, etc. Who knows, it may be completely different situations for you.
It’s not my personal code of conduct (but thanks for the credit). Again, it’s society’s rules. Did I come up with not cussing at an interview? Sadly, no. Nor did I come up with not cussing at your professor.
And really…it doesn’t bother me how you conduct yourself. At all. Again, I don’t know you, and you don’t know me. So why should I care if you run around naked impersonating a duck? Not saying you do, but if you did, it wouldn’t bother me at all. Be yourself. It doesn’t matter to me.
I have to agree with what the people are saying about taking this down. I’ll admit that parts of this was funny, but at the same time I feel bad for this guy. He reminds me of my dad and a lot of what he had to go through when he was younger.
I can also understand why you would post this, but I just don’t find it necessary. You said yourself that you would have forgotten about it if you hadn’t been going through old emails.
Respectfully,
Nora
This was hallorious really people dont take things so seriously who takes the time to write all this shit out.. i guess i did right now but really… lol
“Nor am I ashamed of it. In private or in public. Which bothers you very much, I can tell, but it remains and will remain true. I’m open and honest about it because it quickly weeds out those who are offended by it.”
Being open and honest doesn’t, in any circumstance, require cussing.
For example: “Brasch is an arrogant asshole!!!” could be rephrased as, “Barsch is unnecessarily rude and has a false sense of self-righteousness”. Not only does it remain honest to the original concept, but it sounds significantly more…. significant.
“You are welcome to continue restraining yourself, Not Amused, because how you choose to act is your choice.”
As if any functional member of society doesn’t restrain themselves! Only a super arrogant, intellectually dwarfed person would imply that they are not controlled by the society they lived in.
Not Amused — there is no reason for a self-assured girl like you to create a second identity like “Celestion” to back yourself up. This is a WordPress blog. We can see the IP addresses of the commenters.
(Not Amused & Celestion are from the same computer, and they’re the same person.)
I’ll let you be this time, but no more of that. You can let your words stand on their own. Imaginary backup friends aren’t necessary.
LOL I was using my boyfriend’s computer, and then he decided to write his own response.
I don’t think you understand what an IP address entails…namely that more than one person can have the same IP address depending on how many computers are using the internet here!
Geez, I wonder what you would think if my entire dorm wrote on this thing. I would have to be some genius creative writer there.
And really, does my boyfriend sound so much like me? Because I always thought I had better writing skills!
LOL!!! I am imaginary!!!! Dude I assure you that exist separately from my girl friend. Celestion is the name I chose because they are my favorite (best) guitar speaker manufacturer (I build and design guitar amps as a hobby). Invalidating my comments by saying I don’t exist isn’t cool man.
“(Not Amused & Celestion are from the same computer, and they’re the same person.)”
Not true on any level. Were connected to the internet through the same router, hence the same IP. I am using an HP Envy 15 computer and she is using some other crappy computer.
In the face of such evidence, I wholly retract my previous statement about Not Amused & Celestion. To do otherwise would be smoky, obscure & unreliable. You do sound alike, too. Happy Easter!
Just one question…..DID YOU FINALLY READ THE GUY’S APPLICATION?? Okay two questions….WAS IT ANY GOOD?
He tries to sound like me. And I don’t have a crappy computer, I’m just not willing to spend a ton of money for some piece of technology that will only be outdated in a couple of years. But then again, he loves his computer games, which he is currently playing… (Just Cause 2 – I bought it for him)
Hey Anonymous — yeah, gosh, sorry, I forgot to mention that whole part of it.
Defnitely, I actually read his essay immediately after getting his crazy email. I initially thought (per the tone of the letter), “Jeez, did the guy personally ask me for help or something in the application, or ask me to call him, or talk about some really sensitive circumstances or issues,” — you know, anything that would explain the tone.
But that’s the thing (and I probably should’ve mentioned it from the beginning) — for all the talk about how he spilled his honest soul into his essay, it was a very lame effort. It was, as I recall, about 200 words, and for a guy who obviously has some command of the English language, it was obvious that he hadn’t tried very hard at all. Yeah, I was really expecting some very thorough attempt at a masterpiece of an essay, given the anger — but it was nothing like that.
I also think a lot of the commenters misunderstood me about the auto-responder issue. I have no doubt Josh knew it was an autoresponder (that’s what he meant by “computer-generated” — I was just being sarcastic when I asked if there were any other kind of emails), and he was just angry that I, a live human being, *dared* to allow him to receive an autoresponse.
The funny thing is (another thing I think is missed by the commenters who think there was no legitimate “advice” purpose to this post), let’s say the guy wrote a killer essay and was a potential winner. I mean, that could’ve certainly been the case — but he sent that email to me the *day* after he’d submitted the essay. We NEVER read essays that soon after they’re submitted, so he’s berating us in advance of even having looked at the essay. So what I was trying to say with the post is: jeez, don’t go ape-shit on the committee for some stupid reason, because who knows, you may be in line to WIN that scholarship. Or, as Jane said earlier, don’t bite the hand that may potentially feed you.
So, this guy is supposedly educated, but can’t tell the difference between an e-mail directed to him and an automated message that he (presumably) signed up to receive? And then decides to send a terribly edited hate mail at a piece of advice that suspiciously never mentioned him or insulted him directly? This guy’s totally mentally stable, you should give him all the scholarships he wants.
OK, I just spent too much time reading all these comments, and yes, there are some valid points. Obviously everyone has a different opinion on what constitutes “appropriate” and “professional” behavior. I think Jane summed it up best, and we should walk away with the lessons learned:
1. Don’t over-react, and give the committee TIME to read your essay before ranting!
2. Don’t send hot-headed emails without knowing all the facts.
3. Don’t bite the hand that may potentially feed you.
But, also, I think Josh should walk away with an important lesson and a constructive way to improve his website / business:
1. People don’t like the automated responses. I know they are necessary, but they need to be changed.
2. Don’t tell people about scholarship essay mistakes AFTER they’ve submitted their essay. Too late!
3. Change the automated response to THANK folks for their essay, TELL them it’ll take a day or two to read it, LET THEM KNOW whether or not they will hear from you personally, and then, maybe, at the bottom, have a link to an article on scholarship essay mistakes IF they want to read it. As it is now, it kind of infers that they have already made a mistake, which is what fueled the angry response.
Summary: lessons to be learned on both sides. Josh… take the comments to heart and improve your auto-communications!!
Crystal
Hahahahah. People think that the advice you give in automated daily emails are direct responses to their personal applications…?
Hmmm. Honestly, I can’t understand why would people get mad–
The way I see it, scholarship is a favor, not a right.
Plus, why expect anything other than automated email response?
Judges are probably important and inaccessible people…
I feel the person?s pain, I really do. I am over 40, and disabled from my previous job. I went to college full-time while working full time and I got my Associate Degree, Summa Cum Laude, and the whole nine yards. Then my back went to hell, my company started laying off people, including management, and now I cannot get a job in something I can do. Right now if you do not have a four-year degree, you had better figure on flipping burgers or something. There are just too many four-year people out of work, and the employers know it. I am going to Tiffin University in Tiffin, OH on a partial academic transfer scholarship (I live 25 miles away), but the bills are mounting and disability only barely pays my regular bills. The State and Federal scholarship thing is a catch-22; they want to give you money for grants and such, but you nearly need to be on welfare to get any of it. Oh, I did get one other private scholarship when I went to the two-year college; my employer was nice enough to DEDUCT it from my tuition reimbursement (never mind that they did not pay for any of my books or anything else)! Therefore, now I go to college full-time because I cannot get an office job (which is all they tell me I can do anymore) and HOPE that I can get a job once I get my BBA degree. I have been offered a spot in the MBA program, but who will pay for that? Me I guess, if I can get a job. I worked over 21 years in my last job, and I never before asked for a handout from anyone. The people that go to school free on State or Federal money, well they should have to pay part of that back, and I would do likewise. However, when someone really needs the help and are partially disabled, it seems no one cares. Perhaps I should go on welfare and file bankruptcy, maybe then someone would help with school or a job? I have an appointment at the State Bureau of Vocation Rehabilitation in the morning, but I know already they will tell me I do not qualify for assistance, with school or a job. The one person that commented on his daughter not getting help from any State school is right on; oh they may give you $1,000 or something, but it is not much; you have to go to a private school to get any real sort of assistance unless you are an athlete. Ironic, isn?t it?
To Crystal, there are a lot of responses to be sure, but that’s just people responding, it is there right to do so after all. No one forced you to read them all, and I fairly certain just because you say “put it to bed” doesn’t mean you have the authority to make people do it.
That’s awesome! Guy probably had a shot until he sent this… Seriously though, why would one want to piss off the guy with the money?
hahahahaha… I’ve applied like 3 times n it’s kinda disappointing when you never hear back from anybody but this is not the best way to get rid of your anger…
Wow, this guy really needs to take a chill-pill. Honestly, you guys do send A LOT of automated emails, but it is blantantly obvious that they are, just that, automated. Some people in this world are absolutely crazy, and what is this crap about most of the applicants being under 30. That is ridiculous seeing as how the applicants that are under 30 probably need the money the most considering most of them probably do not have well paying jobs. This guy is a nutcase but reading this definately made my day. 🙂
I am ashamed of you as a professional to post this for the world to see. You did it as a joke, to humiliate this man who obviously NEEDS help … help that you say you can and will provide. Do you know what courage it took for him to be write his “application honestly and openly?” When you pour all that you have into something, and you are desperately needing this one thing to finally go right in your life, you are expecting something good. Not an automated response. You are doing just as described. You are not taking him seriously, but you are making a mockery out of this situation. The courteous thing to do would have been to respond and apologize to Josh for being so nonchalant about his request. Maybe the e-mail was a test to see if he could get any real response from you rather than an automated e-mail. Did he at least get that? You posted this to make fun of a man who was really crying out for help, but in my eyes … you really made yourself look bad.
These people get anoyed because it is hard to get a scholarship. I am a Zambian female aged 22. Beause of boredome I now have two kidsoldest being three. I havbe four “o” levels grade twelve. Ihave been seeking a scholarship to get into America since 2005 to study for a degree at Glendale Community College or Schiller International University in Tourism management or Family Issues. Please healp me.
Sincerely Cerastine
It’s pretty apparant that this guy needs help. That said, it’s pretty low to humiliate them when you stand for a proffesional organization that’s supposed to offer help. Least it gives me insight to your true character.
AH HAHAHAHAHAHAHA HE WAS PISSED!! I LAUGHED HARD AS HELL THRU THE WHOLE LETTER.. GUESS U GUYS SHOULD DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT AUTOMATED MSG SOME PEOPLE REALLY DONT LIKE GETTING THEM LOL..
This is sorta hilarious. I can’t even be mad or take this seriously, even though he apparently wants to take a piss on me since I’m under 30 and all.
It is sooooooo funy. I feel kind of sorry poor guy, but I image him typing with hate when he doesn’t even know yet… OMG… and also poor Josh, has to take these hate emails, I am sure it is not the only one, not only from crazy Josh but also by many who posted in here. Anyways, it is hillarious! Boy! In a “Hate email” contest this guy might win 😉 It just made my night… I can’t stop laughing!
He can pour gasoline on the rest of his education and set it aflame after that. That was phenomenal.
When I first began to read the letter I thought “WOW this man is really going through something and probably really NEEDS help” I read the comments below and became quite disturbed. I understand that you may want to be open and honest with your website Josh Barsch but this email was completely uncalled for and you probably will lose a lot of support because of it. However, the comments after the email are even worse! You show no remorse which just makes you seem “unnecessarily rude with a false sense of self-righteousness”, which make me scared for poor Mia and Ezra…God Bless YOU ALL
That is one of the funniest things I’ve ever read in my life.
I don’t know what compelled me to read all of this, but, like many others– I did. First off, Josh’s responses to this email are hilarious. I wish Josh and I were friends and he had emailed it to me personally (since, I hear, any e-mail from Josh is a personal reply anyway). Having said that, I’m afraid I have to say team tightwad presented a more convincing case. This guy really might be down-and-out. I’m all for a little well-deserved ridicule, but the public display is a bit much. However, maybe you could personally e-mail this guy and invite him to publicly reply? What’s the worst that could happen?
a. He replies to you and the saga of this attention-grabbing dialogue continues
b. He does not reply and irony ensues. A guy gives you a diatribe for sending automated messages, you personally e-mail him… and get no response.
Best,
Emily
I appreciate his sentiment, to be honest.
Sure makes me happy to be reasonable enough to tell an automated response from unwarranted criticism. 🙂
I can’t believe that people feel sorry for the person who wrote this email. Just because a person had a bad day, does that give him or her permission to bad mouth someone to the extent that this person did? I think not. And to the people who are defending him – are you serious?
It’s pretty apparant that this guy needs help. That said, it’s pretty low to humiliate them when you stand for a proffesional organization that’s supposed to offer help. Least it gives me insight to your true character.
Too cool picture:))