Libel? Slander?

The following are the contents of a email I received from a friend, Michael Phelan, in 2005 when he was mad at me.  He was a friend from my study abroad semester in Dublin, Ireland.  He lived in the flat below mine and we became good friends, a friendship which continued after I returned home and resulted in him coming to stay with me for the summer.  There was no romantic attraction; it was a plutonic friendship.  I was excited for his visit as he was my best friend in the world.  I had gone through a messy break-up that spring and was also mourning the loss of a close childhood friend's father who died of cancer a few months earlier.

I've deleted this a zillion times but when I search his name in my email account I was able to find it almost six years later.  I have never spoken to this person since for obvious reasons.

Disclaimer:  This is not a pretty email and it contains highly offensive/anti-semetic language.  This email has also been edited to run in the allotted time slot.

--- On Mon, 8/8/05, mike phelan wrote:

From: mike phelan
Subject: GOD BLESS YOU
To: "Sara McCormack"
Date: Monday, August 8, 2005, 1:55 PM

You are so far from the truth its scary because the truth about you is too unbearable to look at, everything you do is a denial of reality, a coverup, just like your overpriced useless makeup.

here i'll put it in simple terms, a comparitive study, i hate being nasty, but you've reduced me to this, maybe you'll understand this type of low language, i tried.

Mike                                    SARA

good looking                         ......FAT, BLOTCHY SKIN, JEW NOSE, ICOULD GO ON BUT THE THOUGHT OF YOU IS NAUSEA INDUCING

4.0 law student                     ......MAL EDUCATED, OVERPRICED, ARTS DEGREE=WORTHLESS

happy                                   ......

socially apt                            ......ANGRY, SELF OBSESSED, 'THIS ONE TIME AT BAND CAMP' TYPE STORIES, PEOPLE LITERALLY CANT WAIT FOR YOU TO SHUT THE FUCK UP

not scared(emotionally)           ......MENTAL

healthy                                  .......ULCER BITCH

.........

hard working-ok dumb bitch, FIRST CLASS HONOURS, DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS???? I NEVER HAD PRIVATE SCHOOLING, I OVERCAME SO MUCH TO GET WHERE I AM, YOU COULD NEVER IMAGINE, I SAW MY DAD WORK NIGHTS FOR MINIMUM WAGE FOR FOUR YEARS< IT SAPPED ANY LIFE OR HAPPINESS HE HAD, I LET IT GET TO ME< BUT VOWED NEVER TO SELL MYSELF SHORT.

My acievements,

3rd overall european science olympiad, Turkey 2002-2003, suck my balls dumb fuck

2002 best Irish speaker st kierans-oldest most established catholic school in Ireland, my teachers loved me, my math teacher told my mum i was the best he'd ever met.( oh and my parents didn't have the money to send me to Irish summer schools, which nearly half my calls had, so fuck you and fuck your meagre efforts at life, you're a failure because you are weak, i had nothing but acieved through my wit and sheer emotional strength, i SACRIFICED MY FIRST LOVE AND CLOSE FRIENDS....)

first class honours= this is defined by irish universities as 'SUPREME' look it up if you dont believe me:-)

IN LAW SCHOOL UCD, im off to sweden, dumb bitch, i have the world at my feet i can do whatever i fucking want, i have every opportunity in the world, AND I EARNED IT THROUGH WORK AND MERIT ALONE, UNDERSTAND DUMB BITCH?

MARIE:

 SHE TOLD ME THAT SHE THINKS YOU'RE FUCKED IN THE HEAD AND THAT SHE COULDN'T GIVE A FIDDLERS FART IF SHE NEVER SAW YOUR JEW NOSED ROTUND FACE AGAIN

YOU ARE WASHED UP WHITE TRASH.

JEN:

NOW YOU'VE REALLY MADE ME ANGRY AND I KNOW YOU GUYS HAVE TO LIVE TOGETHER, THE TRUTH ABOUT JEN IS THE SADDEST, AS I KNOW HOW MUCH YOU LIKE AND RESPECT HER, ALAS SARA, ITS ALMOST SICK HOW FAKE SHE IS TO YOU, PITY SHES NOT SMART ENOUGH, IT'LL ALL BLOW UP IN HER FACE

SARA, YOU REDUCED ME TO THIS SAD SAD LEVEL OF COMMUNICATION, IM A HAPPY PERSON AND HONESTLY TRIED TO OFFER MY HAND FOR FORGIVENESS, YOU SPIT IN MY FACE AGAIN AND AGAIN SO THERE IT IS,

THE SAD TRUTH OF YOUR WHITE TRASH LIFE

I NEVER WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU AGAIN, DO NOT EVER CONTEMPLATE CONTACTING MY FAMILY, IAN AND ELAINE ESPECIALLY HATE YOU...... MY PARENTS.... I'LL SPARE THEM THE EMBARESSMENT.

BY THE WAY WANDA MAY HAVE TOLD YOU..... IM HAVING THE TIME OF MY LIFE WITH SOME GREAT PEOPLE, I WATERSKI, GO DIRTBIKING, BASEBALL GAMES, LOTS OF GOLF, CLUBBING, FREE FOOD, FREE RENT,.....

BUT ABOVE ALL THOSE TRIVIAL ACTIVITIES, THE FAMILY HOME I WORK AT.... THEY REALLY ENJOY MY COMPANY, THEY APPRECIATE MY WORK EHTIC(I GET 15 DOLLARS AN HOUR, ANDE HAVENT SPENT A CENT SINCE I LEFT YOUR SHITHOLE:-), I NEVER COMPLAIN, ONLY GOOD POSITIVE VIBES, THEY BRING MY FOR SPINS ON HARLEYS, MUSTANG, AND A CORVETTE,

IVE MADE SOME REAL FRIENDS WHO ARE COMIN TO VISIT ME IN IRELAND NEXT AUGUST, BASICALLY YOU ARE THE FUCKING ANTICHRIST.

WANDA:

 I LIKE WANDA, SO SUE ME BITCH, BUT IN YOUR FUCKED MIND IT MEANS:

WHY DO BOYS PREFER JEN AND WANDA TO ME??????????

ANSWER; YOU ARE A REPUGNANTLY UGLY, FAT SLOB.

PS: ME AND WANDA  NEVER WERE A ROMANTIC PROSPECT, I HAVE A GIRLFRIEND, HER NAME IS LAKRITSI, IT MEANS LIQUORICE IN FINNISH, I LOVE HER AND THINK ABOUT HER EVERYDAY, SHES STARTING INTERNATIONAL LAW IN HELSINKI THIS SUMMER, SHES SO BEAUTIFUL IT MAKES ME ALMOST SPEACHLESS WHEN I PICTURE HER RADIANCE, SHE IS BLIND IN ONE EYE, OH AND DID I MENTION SHE MODELS FOR LOREAL IN LONDON? OR THAT HER MUM HAS 12% SHARES IN NOKIA?????? OR THAT SHE LOVES ME?????

OPPS I LEFT OUT THESE DETAILS, I DONT EVEN KNOW WHY I BOTHER.

NEVER AGAIN FAT SLOB

YOU ARE FUCKING POISON IN THAT HOUSE, THE OTHERS WOULD BE MUCH BETTER OFF WITHOUT YOUR PSYCHOTIC EPISODES

PPS: I'VE JUST SAVED YOU YEARS OF TURMOIL, DONT INFEST THE WORLD WITH YOUR WHITE TRASH INFERIOR SPAWN:-)

In case you were wondering, here's what I looked like that summer.  These were both taken in Chicago when I went to pick up my friend from the airport.