One reader wasn't too happy with Kurt Andersen's "Welcome to the Sausage Factory" column in this week's New York mag:

Mr. Andersen,

As the owner of the largest and oldest sausage manufacturer in Manhattan, I would cordially like to invite you to my factory in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, to see that what we do is not reserved for the 'non-squeamish' at heart.

When you write "Journalism is like sausage, and if you're squeamish, it's better not to see it being made...." your implications are unwelcome (dare I say unwarranted and inaccurate too?). These assertions, with or without malice (as in this case, I'm sure) do nothing to distance my chosen livelihood from the darker side of past indiscretions from an unheralded era with unscrupulous individuals.

While I believe Sinclair's "The Jungle" helped both highlight and put an end to this type of meat/sausage factory (and America is a better and safer place for it), I do not see any value in a continued media assault on my industry, especially in this case where it is merely an attempt at a humorous anecdote to attract attention to your most recent article.

In short I would request that you consider the overall effect your statements may have on individuals such as myself and consider whether or not your point regarding the state of the media could have been made sparing the expense of firms like mine. It is a tough enough business environment without the thoughtless portrayal of non-factual implications such as yours adding to the pressure.

As a fine journalist and media-superstar, you know the value of education and accuracy. Therefore, I would welcome the opportunity to show you around a modern-era sausage factory, which may change your opinion of this industry sector, and might even, inspire you in unexpected ways. Plus a sampling of our sausage may be just what your July 4th BBQ is calling for.

Sincerely,

David Samuels
Proprietor
Esposito's Finest Quality Sausage Products
Made in NYC since 1933
[p] (212) 868-4142
[w] www.espositosausage.com

We're used to "no sense of irony," but "no sense of metaphor" is a new one.

Andersen responds:

It's interesting, given the recent findings out of the Center for Brain and Cognition at the University of California, San Diego. In a study of people in whom strokes had damaged just one tiny part of the brain -- the left angular gyrus -- the only intellectual ability destroyed was the ability to understand metaphor.

I'm just saying.

Although I'm sure Esposito's Finest Quality Sausage Products are very fine indeed, and a field trip to a Manhattan sausage factory sounds nifty.