Letters to the Editor
Reader
Published Letters: 31 Editor's Choice: 8
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John and Yoko - a sighting
[Read the article: Imagine all the people]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Once in the late 1970s when I was in New York on business, I took my brother out to the Palm Court in the Plaza Hotel. As we sat there eating our ice cream, John Lennon and Yoko Ono came in with another couple and stood waiting for a table.
If you didn't know who he was, you wouldn't have paid him any attention. He was dressed on the shabby side of casual and stood shuffling his feet and looking at the floor. Yoko, on the other hand, was calm and radiant. It was easy to tell why John was drawn to her; she had a natural charisma that surrounded her like a visible aura.
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Memorably hilarious
[Read the article: "Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Some people think that if famous 19th century novels are stuffy and boring, then 18th century novels must be even worse. Wrong. "Tristram Shandy" is laugh-out-loud funny and very bawdy in places. (Check out the first chapter, which describes Tristram's conception.) Most of the book meanders around the conversations and obsessions of his father and uncle; as I recall little Tristram isn't even born until around page 400. The scene where the uncle tells the widow about his war wound is hysterical -- I'm glad to hear it's in the movie.
Right now I'm halfway through my second reading, and my only complaint is that I just know I'm still not getting half the jokes.
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Sticking it to Poppy
[Read the article: Killing the CIA]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]"The George H.W. Bush CIA headquarters building in Langley will of course remain standing. But the agency will be chipped apart..."
I wonder what Bush 41 thinks of the destruction and humiliation of the agency he once ran. Is this yet another example of the son trying to prove he's stronger than his father?
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Another Canyon connoisseur
[Read the article: Destination: Arizona]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Thanks for demonstrating I'm not the only fan of "Over the Edge: Death in Grand Canyon"! The book is like a bag of salted peanuts, suitable for sustained and enjoyable nibbling and packed full of nutritious lessons. As Stephen Amidon points out, most fatalities in the Canyon have been the result of human stupidity rather than plain old bad luck. Reading these miniature life-and-death dramas brings back vivid memories of my own adventures in that awesome place. We must protect Arizona's spectacular beauty for future generations.
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Don't forget Christopher Buckley!
[Read the article: Destination: Washington, D.C.]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Christopher Buckley's novels, which include "Thank You For Smoking," "No Way to Treat a First Lady," and "Little Green Men," perfectly capture (and satirize) life in the capital. I was born in D.C., as was my father, and know well the lawyers, lobbyists, legislators, bureaucrats, reporters, and social climbers who make this city what it is. Chris Buckley exaggerates less than you'd think, and he does it with love.
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Unlike Robert Redford...
[Read the article: "The Guardian"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]...whose obsession with remaining a blond beauty into his 70s has turned him into a creepy, surgically-altered simulacrum of his former self. Burt Reynolds is another one-time hunk whose appearance is now waxen and scary. Face it, looks can fade, but charm endures. For instance, Paul Newman looks like a young man just pretending to be over 80!
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Evaluate each case on its merits, please
[Read the article: Older mothers rock]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]My spouse and I became parents in our 40s; our child is now a teenager and doing great. For us, the main disadvantage of older parenthood has been the shortage of viable grandparents.
I know quite a few people who, while in their teens, lost a relatively young parent -- in their 40s or 50s -- to cancer or heart disease. The most recent such funeral I went to (a few months ago) left a 14-year-old girl fatherless. Younger parents are probably likelier to die in accidents and mishaps, too. Other friends' parents have made it to 90 in good shape. In other words, general truths don't always apply to individual circumstances.
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Do what's best for the kid
[Read the article: I think my baby is my ex's -- and my husband doesn't know]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]LW should definitely consider the adoption option. I knew a woman who was the product of a wartime rape. She was raised by relatives of her mother's, but everyone treated her like dirt. Despite being bright, funny, and beautiful, she ended up thrice-divorced (one husband beat her), broke, and terminally ill at a fairly young age. If she'd been adopted by a family that wanted her, I suspect her life would have been happier.
By the way, I'm appalled and disgusted by some of the viewpoints expressed here. A person writes in saying "I made a terrible mistake; what should I do now?" Responding with "You're an evil, conniving bitch!" isn't exactly helpful. People do stupid, immoral things all the time. It's the ones who DON'T feel guilty afterwards that we should worry about.
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Beauty + beauty
[Read the article: "Venus"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I too have always thought that Peter O'Toole, like Henry Fonda, could only be described as a beautiful man. O'Toole was married for 19 years to the actress Sian Phillips, also quite striking-looking. I wonder what their two children look like -- they must have eyes like lasers and cheekbones that can cut glass.
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No, no, you've got it backwards...
[Read the article: This Modern World ]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]...Halloween is only for imaginary monsters. The real ones scare us the other 364 days of the year.
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Obsessive listers do exist
[Read the article: For the birds?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]They're not imaginary, but they are (thankfully) few. I once birded with a woman who was pathetically grateful for the opportunity to actually look at a bird for more than the few moments it took to identify the species. Her husband -- who was a jerk in many ways -- was a perfect example of the tick-it-and-move-on stereotype mentioned above.
Certainly the vast majority of birders care about more than just racking up numbers. However, it's true that some of us are much more appreciative of birds aesthetically and some of us are more scientifically oriented. The first type (and no, it's not just women) feel no qualms about using terms like "cute" and "gorgeous," whereas the second type would be likelier to remark on habitat or early migration date.
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Nothing about religion?
[Read the article: "I'm Not There"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I'm agnostic in the Dylan-is-God debate, but IIRC the man himself became a "born-again" Christian for awhile before returning to his Jewish roots. Does the movie touch on this aspect of his life at all?