Letters to the Editor
Kyrialyse
Published Letters: 4
-
Gri-Gri
[Read the article: My boyfriend's climbing partner let him fall]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]OK, it sounds to me like this belayer was using a Gri-Gri and used it incorrectly.
Which is possible to do, as a beginner.
But you never, never, never drop your climber. Never. And now that he has, he's probably guilty, and trying to deny his guilt in all sorts of ways. And adults just don't do that. Adults say, I'm sorry I messed up and something bad happened, what can I do to make it as right as I can?
I agree with Cary. Aside from his climbing skills this guy has a serious character flaw. I'd say avoid him at all costs.
-
Argh!
[Read the article: Is thyroid disease the new hysteria?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]One of the more irritating aspects of New Age superstition is its tendency to mask coldhearted blaming the victim with "empowering" prose. Bad relationships? You "chose" them. Problems in your life? That's the "pattern" that you are "seeking out". And diseases? Well, it must be your fault somehow, mustn't it?
I had an undiagnosed hypothyroid disorder for several years (now medicated and symptom-free). I always assumed my immune system had gotten a wild hair and decided to destroy my thyroid, possibly assisted by environmental pollution. But no, now I should blame myself for not being outspoken enough. (Er, never mind that I am outspoken, in fact kind of rude at times.) Wait, maybe I should blame my ex. After all, he didn't listen to me! Or what about my grad school professors? Or the publishing industry? Or...
I know, I'll blame Bush. That's always good.
-
Scary
[Read the article: On the morality of immigration]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]What bothers me about Risse's argument is that, in his world, animals other than humans have no rights. Humans don't live in a space? Well, then it must be "unused". Nor do those humans who prefer to live in a healthy environment, which includes protected and wilderness areas, matter to him. My initial reaction to the argument is dismay and anger. But then I realize that it's probably a deliberately inflammatory, Swiftean sally. As such, it doesn't work for me.
We should be reducing humans' destructive impact on the planet, and creating a better life for our descendants, by working with our fellow humans globally to spread education, birth control, and sustainable technological and economic practices. That would help solve the problem much more effectively than an asinine argument that boils down to "let's let a horde of people come live in our national parks and slaughter the animals for food".
-
Me too
[Read the article: To sleep, perchance to have hormonally fueled bad dreams]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I also have violent, disturbing, extremely vivid dreams right before my period -- and oddly, just like another commentor, I've also dreamed of trying to kill animals that won't die. In real life I'm of the tree-hugger persuasion (though not a vegetarian) so these have been very disturbing to me and I'm always glad even in the dream not to have actually succeeded in killing it -- but there have also been nightmares about serial killers after me, etc., etc.. It would be fascinating to know exactly what's going on hormonally/psychologically/evolutionarily. How do the dreams reflect physiological events, and could they be serving some evolutionary, etc. purpose?