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SCHMESSINGER
I thought Dr. Laura Schlessinger's definition of the word “bitch” in Kendall Beaverhausen's “I Am the Epitome of Reality” [Jan. 27] was extremely revealing: “a woman who is self-centered and hurtful and nasty. Women don't even realize how bitchy they're being. I think by and large American women are a lot bitchier than women in other countries.” I can't help but wonder if Laura made these “bitchy” comments while looking in the mirror?
Joe Flazh!
San Pedro
Excuse me, “Dr.” Laura, but aren't kindness, understanding and empathy some of the best traits of femininity? I don't seem to remember name calling—bitch—intolerance of those who don't agree with you—those women get what they deserve—to be a trait of femininity. Sounds like someone's getting testosterone injections.
Anne Richards
Via e-mail
PROPERTY VALUES
In “Welcome to Stanton!” [Jan. 6] Rebecca Schoenkopf observes that a couple could get a townhome in Stanton, describing it as “1,100 square feet crammed into two dark, narrow stories, on a concrete-slab lot, for $410,000″—a property, she says, whose main advantage is its close proximity to topless bars. Yet in “Lou Sheldon's Movin' On Up” [Jan. 13], Scott Moxley points out that Rev. Sheldon's church picked up for him, two blocks from the U.S. Capitol, “a historic, four-bedroom brownstone built in 1860 and worth more than $1.2 million.” Did I read that right? A nudie-bar-convenient Stanton sardine can is $400,000, but a mansion two blocks from the U.S. Capitol is a mere $1.2 mil? I guess we're to surmise from this that America values titty bars over taxes. If Sheldon is looking to lobby for the big bucks, perhaps he and his church should consider picking up a place for him in Stanton.
Jeff Stern
Anaheim
BEAT CRAZY
Editor's note: The following letters are in response to an item in Steve Lowery's “Diary of a Mad County” [Jan. 27], in which the author shared some helpful information about drummers, including that drummers with half a brain are called “gifted” and that the best way to get a drummer off your porch is to pay for the pizza.
Steve Lowery states that drummers have half an ounce more brains than horses so they don't disgrace themselves during a parade. I cracked up when I read that because a drummer once told me that, at the end of an especially good gig, he would be so spent that he'd shit his pants! Onstage! He must have been lacking that extra half an ounce of brains.
Brenda Bradac
Costa Mesa
Nice job crapping all over the drummer, bung-hole. We get enough shit from egotistical guitar players and prissy, overemotional singers that know only how to grab their crotches and squeal, but at least they're trying. Tell me, what instrument might you play? Other than the skinflute, that is.
Afab Matty
Drums/Vocals, 12 on the Meter
Steve Lowery responds: Hey, I just realized that if you commanded a ship and your men really liked you and felt comfortable around you, they'd probably call you Captain Afab. Anyway, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you were unhappy with my efforts to bring people into the wondrous and degenerate world of drumming. Perhaps you're unhappy that I didn't include more of the helpful information I found on the Interweb. Like what you call a person who hangs around musicians—a drummer. Or that you should be careful when asking a drummer to spell “Mississippi” since he is likely to ask, “The river or the state?” As for the skinflute, no, I gave that up. Could never master the fingering.
SEX ED
I appreciated the perceptive article by Cornel Bonca about Sarah Bench-Salorio, the woman convicted for lewd conduct with boys [“Hot for Teacher,” Jan. 13]. Bonca hit all the right points, raising questions that we'd rather sweep under the prison walls than face. Americans are pretty unsophisticated when it comes to sex, and women, as usual, suffer more because of it. Treating Bench-Salorio as a man is ludicrous. The woman needs some help, not five years in prison. Why are we getting closer and closer to Taliban standards?
Jerry Schaefer
Long Beach
MEXI-CALI
Gustavo Arellano, I feel that your comment about the United Farm Workers [“Ask a Mexican!” Jan. 20] is disrespectful. You said that gang members who tag walls and toilet seats are only “following the example set by the United Farm Workers.” The UFW has nothing to do with “cholos.” I'm sorry you are not very happy with what the UFW has done. But you know that's not what they were all about when Cesar Chavez was there, and you know that those things you wrote about, the lobbying and using Cesar's image for profit, are not things that Cesar Chavez would be proud of or condone. Other than that, good job!
Anonymous
Via e-mail
Gustavo, I'm really disappointed in your response to my letter [“Letters,” Jan. 27]. I made every effort to communicate ideas and ask intelligent questions, but it appears that you felt that you must attack me in a more personal manner by implying that I said, “Mexicans won't assimilate,” and then you pretty much stated that I was a bigot. I understand that the purpose of a journalist is to communicate, but it appears that what you are communicating is bigotry; your own. You seem to think that anyone wanting immigrants to follow the law must be talking about Mexican immigrants and not those from any other countries. Gustavo, please consider this Japanese saying: “To a hammer everything looks like a nail.” I might add: “To a racist, everything looks like racism.”
Mark Nelson
Via e-mail
