LEO welcomes letters that are brief (250 words max) and thoughtful. Ad hominem attacks will be ignored, and we need your name and a daytime phone number. Send snail mail to EROSIA, 640 S. Fourth St., Louisville, Ky. 40202. Fax to 895-9779 or e-mail to [email protected] We may edit for length, grammar and clarity.
Correction
Last week LEO ran a correction from
a story in our Oct. 17 issue. Unfortunately, the correction of the correction was also wrong. To set the record straight, the proposed library tax — two/tenths of 1 percent of earned income — amounts to $2 for every $1,000 earned, or about $76 per
year for those earning $38,000.
LEO sincerely regrets both errors.
Bristol Party-Pooper
In the unlikely event that the Bristol were driven to bankruptcy because of its owner’s stubborn refusal to apologize to Cory Nett (see Oct. 10 and 24 LEO Erosia), nothing would make me happier than to act on Jeff Hybarger’s suggestion that I throw a slumber party for its employees and management.
In fact, Bristol survival notwithstanding, I would be delighted to host an all-nighter to introduce its employees and management to the amazing kids with cerebral palsy, autism and other lesser-known syndromes, whom I work with as a speech-therapist.
Between bobbing for apples and “Happy Feet,” their parents could help make clearer why what happened to Cory and why the crappy treatment people with disabilities and differences have to confront every day is a big deal.
We’d sip hot chocolate listening to descriptions of what it’s like to sit by a child’s hospital bed hoping that his next surgery won’t kill him. We’d paint our nails hearing stories of near pink slips because of work missed for endless doctors’ appointments, and about the constant battles with insurance companies to get services and equipment the kids need merely to survive, and so on.
Then over light-as-a-feather, stiff-as-a-board, Bristol management and employees could hear how it feels, after trying so hard to live the most normal life possible, to meet up with a Neanderthal who tells you to move to the back or get out of a public place because you sound or look different.
So come on, Bristol, let’s party!
Jenny Thrasher, Louisville
Check Crit
I enjoyed reading your political endorsements (LEO, Oct. 24). I agree with all of them. However, I think you left one out that should merit your attention. Crit Luallen is running for auditor of public accounts. I think she has done a great job in an administration that was somewhat ethically strained. As the watchdog of the people’s money, she brings many years of ethical standards to the job. Her integrity has never been questioned. Her experience in state government qualifies her to know how the government is run and what corners to look into. Crit Luallen deserves your endorsement and your vote.
Paul Luersen, Louisville
Challenge the Commonwealth
I am in Frankfort today doing some teaching, and the air is ripe with the foul gasses of a gubernatorial race … and a boring one at that. It is a rather disappointing year … nothing of any real consequence has been said, and no real solutions have been put forth … casinos and whatever the hell it is the guv is suggesting. I’m not honestly sure what that is, he has yelled about Beshear and he has finally started to tout his accomplishments thus far, but what he has up his sleeve for the state next … couldn’t tell ya.
I had hoped the streets would be teeming with talk and buzz and honest debate, especially the day after the candidates debated, but it’s not. The streets of Frankfort are quiet, and its citizens are busy doing what it is they do every day, regardless of whether their No. 1 citizen is running or not.
The candidates have wasted a perfectly good chance to challenge this state, to move us forward, to rally the masses and fight for the commonwealth. No substantive issues have been raised and no solutions for issues such as mountaintop removal mining, cancer rates, education and ethics have been discussed. It has been the same cookie-cutter campaign since the end of the primaries … both sides bitching and slinging crap at the other.
There’s a solution to every problem, we simply have to find it. This state isn’t one issue, it isn’t casinos and ethics, it’s a whole litany of issues and they all deserve the attention of a governor or anyone who whishes to be a governor. I ask each person who reads this to challenge the candidates to finish this campaign with dignity and class, and start to discuss how they will help our commonwealth.
Lucas W. Adams, Louisville
The Race is On
As political pundits and media outlets gear up for the drama that will be the 2008 presidential election, it’s important to note several important races to be decided in 2007. In Kentucky, what is shaping up to be the most interesting race is occurring between GOP incumbent Ernie Fletcher and Democratic opponent Steve Beshear. Democratic activists are targeting Fletcher due to accusations of fraud and incompetence, while Republicans seek to hold onto what is only their 22nd governorship nationally. Either way, this will be the race to watch in 2007, with reverberations that could influence the 2008 elections as well.
Jeff Robertson, Louisville
Fiction Fairness
I was very pleased to see a review of “Dark Thirst” by Sara Reinke in the Oct. 17 issue of LEO. As a fiction writer, I am very aware of the lack of coverage most “genre” fiction receives. The genre vs. literary debate flares up often for us. Those who choose to write stories in science fiction, romance, fantasy or horror often have to deal with an art community that considers our work less important and sometimes not even “real writing” at all. The struggle to hone our craft and get published is hard enough without the constant cold shoulder from most major review venues. I heartily applaud LEO and T.E. Lyons for stepping up and giving those of us who write genre or speculative fiction a fair shot at the audience LEO offers.
Michele Lee, Louisville