Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Wood
Albert,
That is a reasoned and reasonable reply (although I wish some of your language was not quite so crude... I know you are angry and frustrated but you are articulate enough not to need to resort to that level). I have several countering observations to make, but I do not have enough time right now to draft an appropriate response. But rest assured one will follow shortly  !
All the best,
Ron |
Hello Ron,
It makes me very angry when some collectors reckon that they can 'kick other guns' (without an examination) just because they feel that they may have financial power or certain important credentials such as a Ph.D (in physics). Since I have never received from Geoff an apology or a retraction for wrongfully condemning my pistol, I shall attack as well without any consideration for how much time as past or the ridiculous theories his article contains. According to a law in physics - "for every action - there is a reaction". Under most conditions, I behave like a proper gentleman, but I shall get 'ugly' with those people who are arrogant, and I don't care where they come from, the size of their collection, nor their wealth.
I was surprised that the Kessler auction made reference to Chucks web site 'Land of Borchardt' when he is Geoff's most loyal follower and believer. It is obvious that Chuck became a follower of Geoff because he was the only 'expert' who would 'bless' his M1904 Transitional Navy (without an inhand examination) where the pistol appears very suspicious - it looks like it was made yesterday. When I visited Chuck in 2002, I practically saw every rare item (including literature) in this collection except the M1904 Navy pistol which he said was in safe keeping in a bank vault - yeah right! To this day, I suppose that nobody else has seen that pistol in their hands. Maybe it is time for Chuck to place that pistol in an auction!
Any time that I am wrong, I have no objection in giving an apology and it will not degrade my reputation or integrity. As you know, I personally respect you and acknowledge the excellent research that you have conducted and shared with fellow collectors. At no time are we disrespectful to each other (except for the occasional joke), and it is not unusual if we sometimes disagree on a particular subject. As we continue to debate various subjects and listen to the opinions of other collectors (such as Vlim's comments in reply to my previous post about working conditions in various German factories), we all learn something new everyday (even if it is tiny) and we accept to 'modify' our opinions or theories regarding what probably happened in the past, pre-WWI until the end of WWII.
Cheers,
Albert