This week in our apparently on-going feature of long time (and well-paid) Post Dispatch employees getting swept out the door and sending out “They tell me I have to say I’m leaving on my own or they won’t give me that extra money they promised” emails, we feature art critic David Bonetti.
He left the post “Farewell to the Lou” on his “Culture Club” blog Friday.
As some of you might have heard, I am leaving the Post-Dispatch. Today is my last day and this will be my last Culture Club post. Although some of the Cherokee Street clique would like to think that I was fired by an enlightened management that wants reviews of inept artists showing their woeful attempts at self-expression in vanity galleries, that is not the case. I took advantage of advanced age and a benefits package and decided to retire. I will move to Boston at some point.
As you can see, he’s planning on returning to the east coast, where he’s from, and because he’s from there he is bound by law apparently to go out like a dick.
I was born in New England and I miss the salt air, the good sea food and people who care more about where you got your Ph.d than where you went to high school. Call it snobism all you want, but the conversation is a lot better.
I do hate things about St. Louis: the willed ignorance, the racism, the smugness of the self-appointed social and cultural elite, the stupidity of the political class, etc. But it is hard to hate a city where you’ve lived for more than six years. Affection grows in spite of yourself.
We aren’t saying you are supposed to blindly love St. Louis. In fact, no one takes more shots at our fair town than us, but this didn’t come off as humorous or as helpful, just as a dick move. So for the first time, we are siding with Post Dispatch ownership on this salary dump. Not to be left out, the Post Dispatch commenters that took the time to drop in a few goodbye love notes at the foot of his last post.
Here are the best of the bunch:
I’ve never read your stuff before. I surfed in from GO St. Louis post on Facebook. And I’d just like to say…WOW…this was quite possibly the douchiest thing I’ve ever read by a professional journalist. Congrats!
— Tom
Let’s see. You want to escape racism and the smugness of the self-appointed social and cultural elite, so you’re moving to … Boston. Good luck with that.
— solong
Even those who know you have to agree: This is douchey.
Since your fake compliments highlight your negativity, so will mine: Glad you found some things to not completely condescend about. Hope you get over your failure-to-accept-difference issues. Perhaps crawling back into Mom’s — I mean Massachusetts! — womb is the easiest answer. Happy trails.
— um
Sorry to break the news to you, but the art community doesn’t dislike you because you’re some sort of “radical” voice who plays by his own tune. You’re simply a whiny, pretentious, stereotypical art snob who feels the need to talk down to anyone and everyone they meet. You’ll fit in better on the east coast, where people put on airs and circle-jerk themselves into a frenzy. No one owes you anything because you’re an art critic. In fact, the very idea of an art critic has routinely been proven useless throughout history, and you are no different. Have fun in retirement, knowing that your reviews influenced absolutely no one, being paid to schmooze with morons with more money than sense.
— supersleuth
And lastly, from a guy that has clearly worked with him at the PD…
“…decided to retire”, eh? Good one. The (hacky) writing’s been on the wall for you for a while now.
— oh, please