Yes, I already said that the normal response would have been a couple of lines of polite nothingness.

M.M.'s response - however rude it might seem to some - was still personal/private communication. Not exactly designed to nurture the self-esteem of the recipient, but not much to write home about either. However, S.K. took it to launch a very public, very personal attack against M.M. As I said earlier, it amazed me that any people at all sided with him because to me his postings said nothing of substance about M.M. or his business but a whole lot of things about S.K. himself (and none of them pleasant).