To Diogenes:
The account is authentic. I used fake names, since I have already suffered, in a sense, from mentioning someone’s real name in a public forum–though not on the Internet. Once burned twice shy. Writers such as H. Allen Smith and Melvin Belli have used changed names; and I consider it proper, especially since I have some respect for confidence entrusted to me by Bill and Maureen.
I have no intention of giving Bill adivce on how to bring up his kid. I have not walked a mile in Bill’s (or Artie’s) moccasins, nor do I have kids myself. Granted Maureen did give me a second-hand account about the “shrine”; I told my Mom and she consideres it disturbing. (And so far as I know only the cat has seen the swastika.)
My account of Adelaide on the SDMB consists of two threads, neither of which I know how to create a link for. One has to do with Adelaide making threats over the phone to her mother; the other told about how I used the word “ditzy” on the message board at www.classmates.com and got smacked in the face by a backlash of political correctness.
Adelaide has three kids, as I mentioned. The eldest is about 30 now; he is succeeding, with a good-paying job, a wife, and two kids; he lives near Phoenix. The second kid, daughter Natalie, has really sticky fingers and is not above stealing from her grandmother; as for Bert, the youngest, I have urged Maureen again and again to consult an attorney and have a custody hearing.
I trust you can conclude from the above that I am justified in using fake names. 