Letters to the Editor

• Let this be a lesson for other people

  [Read the article: My mother's sister is a psychopath!]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  -- If somebody down and out says they want to come over and stay at your place "for the weekend," it often means they're moving in.

  -- People who are on-and-off druggies, and who have parole officers, should be avoided in all serious situations.

  -- People who leave a toxic feeling in other people should be avoided in ALL situations. If somebody makes you feel like you've had the life sapped out of you after just 10 minutes of talking to them, and you're not sure why or how, just accept that it is a signal from god to KEEP AWAY from that person.

  -- Old people make a lot of gullible decisions. That's because (1) they're lonely, (2) they're fearful, and (3) the part of one's brain that is skeptical and can smell a rat tends to deteriorate with age. This is clinically proven. At the same time, many old people also become more stubborn and impatient with others who try to "help" them out of their bad habits and situations. The only way to deal with them is to finesse things: Treat them to some fun, take them on a trip, give them lots of attention, and then ease them into whatever it is you want them to do. In the Letter Writer's scenario, the crazy aunt has the power because the crazy aunt is the one who is giving the mother all the day-to-day attention. All that company, corrosive and financially draining though it is, trumps a daughter's loving yet far-away concern.

  -- There are books on these sorts of things. There are very clear laws and rights but you have to do your homework. There are state agencies that will help you figure out your options. When the going gets tough, the tough get legal. You have the advantage that you're organized and intelligent. Harness it. These are lazy, trashy people you're dealing with, and they can't beat you at that game. They can only beat you at a psychological, manipulative game.

  -- Good luck. Everybody is on your side. That was a terrifically detailed letter, the kind that suggests to me that you're a decent person who recognizes the pitfalls of engaging in this battle and has tried to keep perspective on its moral angles and so on. Your mother is 82, which could mean she'll only be around a couple more years; but it could also mean she'll be around for a couple more decades. Those years should be good ones, not a spiral of desperation and craziness. It sounds like her sister spent much of her life squandering whatever money she came across (though life did deal her an early, nasty blow). Your mother should not have to pay for her sister's lifelong lack of foresight.

  Permalink Wednesday, June 13, 2007 01:39 AM

• Camille Paglia -- Jacqueline of all horse-trades

  [Read the article: Don't run, Al. Don't!]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  Wow, Paglia gives us her analysis of:

  (1) The Democratic presidential horse race, and...

  (2) The gossipy, celebutante horse crap.

  Thanks, Camille, for providing your pseudo-meaningful armchair analysis yet again.

  I can't wait to read your future writing about the next It Girl's drunken nipple slip or badly worded Al Gore soundbite.

  Permalink Wednesday, June 13, 2007 01:59 PM

• There is a problem if she wears the shirt every day

  [Read the article: Her sexy T-shirt says "Kitty Not Happy" -- is that OK at work?]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  Then it would start to get smelly and stained.

  Permalink Thursday, June 14, 2007 02:25 AM

• W... T.... F....

  [Read the article: Tony Cartoons: Haiku War]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  Here is my haiku response:

  What is this cartoon?

  Is it meant to be funny?

  Absolute failure.

  Permalink Thursday, June 14, 2007 11:05 AM

• Coconut Monkeyrocket!

  [Read the article: Why do gyms play such crappy music?]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  The world would be a better place if gyms played Coconut Monkeyrocket.

  Also:

  -- Messer Chups

  -- The Atlantics (and other surf guitar bands, Dick Dale, etc.)

  -- Yello ("Pumping Velvet," etc.)

  -- Aphex Twin ("Digeridoo," many others)

  -- The "Run Lola Run" soundtrack

  -- Royksopp ("Alpha Male," others)

  -- Front 242 ("Skin")

  -- KMFDM

  -- Tenpole Tudor ("Swords of a Thousand Men")

  -- Orbital ("Lush," "The Box," etc.)

  -- Jean-Jacques Perrey

  -- Nortec Collective

  -- The Avalanches

  -- Can

  -- Bill Laswell

  -- Chemical Brothers

  -- Ulrich Schnauss

  -- Modeselektor ("Vote or Die")

  -- Amon Tobin

  -- The Aquabats

  -- Madness / + any other good ska

  -- Screaming Blue Messiahs ("Smash the Marketplace")

  -- Shriekback ("Nemesis," etc.)

  -- Flaming Lips ("Pompei Gottendammerung")

  -- Kraftwerk ("Tour De France")

  -- James Brown

  -- George Clinton / Parliament

  -- Frankie Smith ("Double Dutch Bus")

  -- David Bowie / Iggy Pop / Roxy Music / and friends

  -- anything on MOTOWN Records

  -- any good old ATLANTIC R&B

  -- 1940s swing from Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw and friends

  -- Xavier Cugat

  -- The Bran Flakes

  -- Tipsy

  -- Ursula 1000

  -- Martinibomb

  -- Montefiori Cocktail

  -- Plastic Bertrand ("Ca Plane Pour Moi")

  -- Yes ("Roundabout," anything with a semi-consistent beat)

  -- Talking Heads

  -- Devo ("Beautiful World," "We Like Explosives," etc. NOT "Whip It")

  -- Thompson Twins ("Love Lies Fierce" and other remixes)

  -- The The

  -- Public Image Limited

  -- Barenaked Ladies

  -- They Might Be Giants

  -- Adam Ant / Bow Wow Wow

  -- Siouxsie / Cocteau Twins / Cure / March Violets

  -- Curve / Laika / Seefeel / The KLF / Saint Etienne

  -- Grandaddy / Postal Service / Radiohead / Blur / Pulp

  -- The Killers / Hot Hot Heat / Yeah Yeah Yeahs

  -- The Go! Team

  -- Any new-music offerings in the int'l ROUGH GUIDE series

  -- 808 State / Eon / Prodigy / Moby / FSOL / Messiah

  -- Yellow Magic Orchestra

  -- "Night on Disco Mountain" / other good disco

  -- the soundtrack to the Katamari Damacy video game

  -- Fela Kuti

  -- Japanese Pop: Halcali, Puffy, 5-6-7-8's, Pizzicato 5, etc.

  -- Bob Wills & the Texas Playboys

  -- Bollywood: from Asha Bhosle to "Bride & Prejudice"

  -- Gary Numan / Ultravox / Nina Hagen / Propaganda

  -- The Art of Noise

  -- Kool & the Gang / Sly & the Family Stone / Stevie Wonder

  -- Giorgio Moroder / Jean-Michel Jarre / Tangerine Dream

  .....but most of all: COCONUT MONKEYROCKET

  Permalink Friday, June 15, 2007 08:51 PM