[ This is hilarious.  How stupid can you get?  Mrs. Dickenson's response is
spot-on and deserving. -- SD]

From: https://tinyurl.com/5bb6scr6 (chicagotribune.com)

===
 Ask Amy: We told him not to come to the wedding, but we still wanted his money

   By Amy Dickinson
   Chicago Tribune
   Jun 29, 2023 at 3:30 am

   Dear Amy: Four months before my daughter's wedding, she told me that her
   uncle (my brother, "Dave" would make her feel unsafe if he was a guest.
   She asked me not to invite him.

   My daughter is very politically progressive, as are many of her friends,
   and although she and Dave have always had a good relationship (I thought),
   he is a conservative voter and has supported candidates we all abhor.

   Dave has always been very nice, so my daughter's request surprised me.

   I wrote Dave a very nice note, telling him that we would not be
   comfortable with him at the wedding and that he would not be invited.

   Dave did not respond and did not attend.

   Afterward, I sent him a card and pictures from the wedding, all in an
   effort to make him feel like he was not being totally left out.

   I have not heard from Dave since then. When my siblings found out what I
   had done they were angry with me.

   That is just one problem.

   Another problem is that Dave has not sent my daughter and son-in-law a
   wedding gift.

   In the past, Dave has given family members wedding checks in excess of
   $1,000.

   She says she was counting on receiving the same type of gift.

   My husband says I should drop it - but I can't. Dave's behavior is
   upsetting and embarrassing to me.

   How can I get my brother to recognize and change his petty behavior?

   Please don't tell me that I'm the one who started this by not inviting my
   brother to the wedding. After all, he's a grown man, while my daughter is
   young and just starting out.

   - Angry in Philadelphia


   Dear Angry: Let's recap: Your delicate daughter is too frightened to be
   near a conservative voter to allow her uncle "Dave" to attend her wedding.

   She then asks you to do her dirty work for her, and (of course) you do!

   Fine - so far, we have only a bride's prerogative to create her own guest
   list, and her mother's choice to protect her from any consequences, which
   is your prerogative.

   You then rub the excluded guest's nose in this wedding by sending him
   photos of the event to which he has pointedly not been invited.

   But it's your second "problem" which I believe will enter the Bridezilla
   Hall of Infamy.

   In short: Brides who are too afraid of family members to invite them to a
   family wedding don't then get the pleasure of receiving their money.

   You seem almost as afraid of your daughter as she is of your brother, but
   I hope you'll find a way to courageously tell her that the Bank of Uncle
   Dave is closed, at least to your branch of the family.

   So far, your silent brother is the only family member who is behaving
   appropriately. He's steering clear, which is exactly what you have asked
   him to do.
===
... "To err is human. But it feels divine." -- Mae West
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