Dear Heather,

Don't have much to say about your reviews, but I certainly concur with your assessment that L.A. is a hellhole.

The first time I visited L.A, I arrived in the early evening and took the airport shuttle to my hotel. As we rode along endless highways, looking down on what looked like equally endless rows of shantytowns, I came to the realization that L.A. was the one North American city I had seen that seemed transplanted directly from the third world. It reminded me of Manila or Jakarta, and that is not a compliment. In the daylight hours, my impression did not improve. Perhaps it did not help that my hotel was in the downtown core, which appears to die at night, but the place was abysmal. Even after taking the standard bus tour of the various sights (Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, the Hollywood Bowl) I was still left with the question of why anyone would want to live in that place. And I was struck by the obvious racial divide, as brown-skinned people were everywhere doing the menial work.

I'm sure that L.A. has many beautiful places, but those are certainly balanced by the rest of it. I far prefer San Francisco which, despite all the concrete, feels like a real city.

Sincerely,

Shaun

Dear Tracy,

Interesting article. The point that Wolf is making is one that many Muslim women in Western societies also make. In the West, women are highly sexualized and are expected to buy into this sexualization in the way in which they present themselves. Many Muslim women living in the West have made the point that they do feel freer and safer when their choice of clothing enables them to opt out of the sexual ratrace that their Western sisters are forced to engage in. The important thing is that they have the ability to make this choice. It may be true that the hijab/various other forms of Muslim dress are representative of women's oppression in many parts of the Muslim world, but from that we cannot make the leap that these articles of clothing represent the same things in all parts of the Muslim world or even in Western culture. It should not take too much brain power to appreciate this simple point.

Dissent's letter is interesting and also touches on some real truths. I visited my sister when she was living (temporarily) in Bangladesh. There is no question in my mind that the clothing worn by women (as well as the general attitudes towards sexuality) actually had the effect of calling attention to what they were trying to conceal. Of course, in a country like Bangladesh, revealing what was being concealed would not exactly have had a liberating effect either.

However, we must all appreciate that the experiences of different people will vary. Westerners living in other cultures can rarely leave their own cultural influences behind. It may be possible to visit another world, but that is quite different from being a part of it.

Sincerely,

Shaun

In the books, I think it is established that Eric is older than Sophie-Anne. However, I'm still working through the books, so I don't know why she has the status that she does.

In the show, she seemed to indicate that she is more powerful than Eric, though she did acknowledge that he is the oldest and most powerful vampire in her "queendom". So, maybe she is just relying on the loyalty of her minions to overpower Eric (if that is needed) or she has some kind of power that makes her stronger and more formdidable than age alone would indicate.

I can buy her as a valley girl. Godric had matured to a point that he grew as a moral being and sought death. With SA, I get the feeling that she is trying on different personalities and practices, all in an effort to stave off boredom. Otherwise, she would follow Godric into the sun.

Dear Joan,

I agree with you 100%. Of course race plays a role in the decline of white support for Obama. The question is "how much of a role?" The answer here is less clear. Race is enormously important to those on the right wing - in fact, for many of them, it's really the only issue. For those white Americans in the center and on the left, the issue is less clear. If Obama's approval ratings are now at 43% of white voters, and that is the same number that voted for him in the Presidential election, then he is really just coming down to earth and retrenching with his core support.

I think that the truth remains that the US is a fundamentally racist country. It has come a long way, but there is a hardcore of white racists who will never change. These are the people who make up the Birthers and fill the ranks of the increasingly fringe and fanatical Republican Party. But their ranks are slowly dwindling as they die off. The older Americans who are uncertain about Obama and still hold subconscious racial attitudes are not hardcore racists and are capable of transcending their own instincts. They are still salvageable and may make their ways back. But, for now, they are easily spooked by anything the President says or does that reminds them that he is not just a white guy dipped in chocolate.

Then there are activists on the left who have abandoned their support of Obama for reasons that have nothing to do with race and everything to do with policy. While I respect these people, there is also a pragmatic element involved in politics that left-wingers (just as much as right-wingers - maybe moreso, in fact) often miss. In politics, you get what you can. It's not for nothing that politics is often defined as "the art of compromise". People simply have to know when to compromise.

Sincerely,

Shaun