when bad grammar spurs a well-written e-mail: a note almost sent

Dear Dean XXXXX:

My son is a freshman at your university and I am writing to thank you for your recent letter. I think that your advice regarding choosing a major is very wise.

I am, however, troubled by the fact that you apparently do not know the difference between the word “affect” and “effect.” (To wit: “Think of this: have you ever heard anyone, say at age 35-40, complain that their choice of undergraduate major negatively effected [sic] a career?”)

I guess that $50,000 a year is not enough to purchase a faculty with even a rudimentary grasp of the English language.

Very truly yours,

An Irate Parent

date almost sent: sitting in draft folder for years