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@Barry Ancona I do know snark. I do not spend all day reading the comments and I guess Curtis doesn’t either. It is very apparent that you do and that you have a lot invested in how people perceive the day’s puzzle. That’s fine. I prefer to be civil to people who ask a question, make a comment, etc and understand that perhaps they have more going on than the NYT crossword puzzle and the comments.

@Barry Ancona I am sure you understood that Kat meant instead of settlers, people should consistently use the term colonizers.

@Susan E I grew up in Massachusetts and I am unfamiliar with this religion. Sure, I knew/know people who ski, but it is hardly a universal sport. It might be more accessible in New England, but it definitely can still be cost prohibitive to a lot of people. And of course, not all racial/ethnic groups feel welcome in the skiing community.

@Margaret I wonder why people in the comments think skiing is elitist and exclusive.

@Sean M. I am fully aware of the reference. Tellingly, your explanation fails to mention that the reason they seceded (“rebelled”) was to preserve slavery. To my mind “rebel” is not synonymous with secede, as it’s not nearly strong or specific enough. I also find it appalling that a team would want their name to reference being on the losing side of a war where they wanted to continue to enslave people, but we have seen that they are steadfast in preserving the memory of the confederacy. So, I was merely saying I’d love to stop seeing crossword clues that casually reference the confederacy as if they were merely rebelling. (And it’s the University of Mississippi, not Mississippi State.)

@B SADD is Students Against Drunk Driving—it was a popular student-led group at high schools in the 80s, maybe 90s

@Barry Ancona I only read the comments occasionally, but when I do I am always struck by how bitter you seem to other commenters.

@acjones but then the answer would be “peacocks” not “ostentation”

@Curtis I hadn’t noticed that! So, despite the snark from Barry Ancona, I am glad you pointed it out! Good eye!

@KK It’s a reference to the high school extracurricular group Students Against Drunk Driving, which was very active in the 80s and 90s

@Jerry Thank you! I did not know that!

@jennie Ever heard of Steely Dan? The band members met there, along with Chevy Chase. (They reference Annandale in their My Old School.) It’s a very competitive college that has been around a long time. If you’ve heard of Jeffrey Epstein, they also were unfortunately swept up in the scandal because of some fundraising they were trying to do. And, yes, their address is on their homepage.