A Genealogue Exclusive [What's That?]
Ellis Hanscom, president of the American Genealogical Association, insists that members of his organization "do not torture."
"We do not torture," repeats Hanscom. When asked for his definition of "torture," he replies, "Whatever it is that we don't do."
Critic Harold Lord says that AGA's guidelines violate standards accepted by every reputable genealogical organization, and that information gained through such methods is unreliable.
"People will say anything to end a family history interview, we all know that. Why make it more unpleasant than it already is?"
Hanscom counters by saying that he has used the "enhanced" techniques on his own grandmother with great success.
"She told me things I'd never heard before. Who'd have guessed that Grandpa Ted invented Velcro and frozen yogurt while climbing Everest on horseback?"
[Photo credit: Inside the Torture Chamber by Ricardo Shuck]
