Letters to the Editor
captainlarab
Published Letters: 539 Editor's Choice: 41
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@serai1
[Read the article: Would you like some French fries with that carbon tax?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Okay, I would agree that we need to make hybrid and/or fuel efficient cars more attractive, in the sense that we need to ensure that they are as reliable as standard cars and hold up over the long run. Right now, hybrids are being successfully marketed to very environmentally-conscious consumers based almost entirely on the consumers' high-mindedness about the environment. Once that fades, or once we decide that hybrids should be the new standard for the average American, I think people are going to start taking a closer look at the possible disadvantages of owning a hybrid and the validity of the claims that manufacturers make about them. A few observations based on my five-year ownership of the Civic Hybrid (which I chose over the Prius largely because I was familiar with Civics and had confidence in them):
(1) I love this car. It's as quiet as a Lexus, if not more so, and really, really cool. As thrilling as it is to watch the little blue bars go up and down in the dashboard display, however, I am not entirely convinced that the improved fuel efficiency I get from owning a hybrid could not be matched by a highly fuel-efficient and lightweight compact car.
(2) This thing is as complicated as the space shuttle, and the software appears to periodically change its routine habits just for shits and giggles. For example, the ignition is supposed to cut off automatically every time I come to a full stop. But one day the car will just decide not to do that anymore unless I've pressed the "Econ" button. Sometimes the "Econ" button won't light up if the "A/C" button is on, and sometimes it will *only* light up if the A/C button is on. And I seem to get at least one mailer a year from the dealership telling me I should come in for a "software upgrade."
(3) The oil it takes is some weird denomination that apparently is not available at ANY auto shop OTHER than Honda dealerships, because Honda won't distribute it to anyone else. That REALLY pisses me off. Aside from the fact that dealerships rip you off, it means I can't get a freakin' oil change without driving out to Virginia (naturally, the dealership is not Metro-accessible). I am way overdue for an oil change right now and I just can't get out there.
(4) I have very little trunk space, so we feel compelled to keep around a Ford Taurus station wagon, an old beater with about 120,000 miles on it, for the times we have to get something at Home Depot.
However, I will cite one additional advantage to owning a hybrid, that I hadn't thought of until about two weeks ago. One night around 11:30, we heard some strange noises outside and looked out the window to see two juveniles with a flashlight trying to make off with our car. Except the one they were after was the Taurus! We scared them off, called the police, and as we were waiting we pondered why in God's green earth anyone would have looked at all the cars on our block and decide to make off with the old beater. Well, when the police arrived, they were able to explain that Dodges, Fords and jeeps are the most likely to get stolen in our area because they are the simplest to hotwire. And that's when I realized these kids were never going to lay a hand on my Civic Hybrid. They'd be afraid of electrocuting themselves.
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Stephanie, you haven't steered me wrong yet
[Read the article: "The Golden Compass"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Stephanie, please promise me you'll keep doing movie reviews for the rest of my natural life, or that if you ever stop, you'll give me your contact information so I can just ask you directly for moviegoing advice (we just went to see "I'm Not There" last weekend--WOW). I know opinions about films can be subjective, but for whatever reason your taste in movies is perfectly aligned with my own.
On this movie, not having seen the movie itself but being 2/3 of the way through the book trilogy, I will say in defense of the moviemakers that the "Golden Compass" book is also a little rushed in terms of the relationships between the characters. Lyra is a fully developed and brilliant character, but the deep and abiding love she and Iorek Byrnison quickly develop for each other seems to pop up out of nowhere. I get the relationship she has with the gypsies, since most of them have known her since she was a child (and she has a natural affinity for nomads). I also get Serafina Pekkala's devotion to her, which has more to do with a belief in prophecy than actual affection for Lyra the person. But what's up with Lee Scoresby? He seems such the cliche of a strong, silent Western-type hero that Pullman never bothers to develop him, or explain why one balloon ride with Lyra makes him want to treat her henceforth as his own daughter. (The sacrifices he makes for her make even less sense in the second book.) He's like a grizzled/jaded/mercenary Han Solo type who just suddenly flips his lid.
Yes, I'm sure Pullman's *ideas* are developed more fully in the book than in the movie, and an earlier letter writer hit the nail on the head as to why the movie is different and inferior in this regard: fear of offending somebody. But in terms of narrative story-telling and character development, Pullman is good, but he's no Tolkien.
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Okay, as long as he doesn't serve sea bass.
[Read the article: Crashing Larry "Don't be evil" Page's wedding]
[Read more letters about this article: Here][no text]