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Support music with ‘buy local’ mantra
I read Kyle Meredith’s Feb. 4 column about live music shows, and I can agree that having more venues supporting live music is a great thing for Louisville. What I don’t like in the article is the dearth of local bands and musicians in the mix. There is world class talent here in River City ready to take the stage and rip your head off (or gently caress it for the jazz fans) that rarely has the opportunity to perform in Louisville.
If your opinion is that there are local venues that support Metro talent, I suggest you speak with the players themselves. Then speak with club owners about why local live music has dried up. Owners, managers, musicians and regulatory agencies should all be included in this conversation, as well as MADD and any other issue groups.
I am a big supporter of buy local. I wish LEO would support music with a buy local first mantra.
Edward Weyler, 40223
No such thing as ‘hate speech’
In my opinion, the French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher Francois-Marie Arouet defined free speech when he wrote this: “I do not agree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Francois-Marie Arouet wrote under the nom de plume ‘Voltaire.’
So, the way I see it, all speech must be equally protected or all speech must be equally censored. There can be no category of speech considered “acceptable” or “unacceptable,” so there can be no such thing as “hate speech.” We must all take responsibility for what we say and accept any consequences — good or bad — while zealously protecting the right of those we vehemently disagree with to exercise their equal right of freedom of speech.
“I do not agree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”
Edwin Hurt, Jeffersonville, IN
Hall’s Cafeteria
Kevin Gibson wrote a great article on Hall’s Cafeteria (Feb. 4 “Taste Bud”). I eat there often and wish my father was still around to accompany me.
Kevin mentioned Staley’s Market in the article. Staley’s was one of two family-owned neighborhood grocery stores that were within close proximity of each other. Both were owned by brothers, Al and, I think, Bob Staley. The Staley’s that is most likely remembered by Hall’s was across the street from Hall’s on Story.
The Al Staley Grocery was at Payne and Cooper across from what used to be Baxter Station Restaurant and originally was Stotman’s Bar when I was a kid.
As a matter of fact I worked at Al Staley’s on Payne St. for $7.00 a week when I was in grade school at the former St. Aloysius School in the ’50s.
Best of luck,
Lt. Col. William Bowman (Bill), 40203
Alcohol, bourbon and heroin
Isn’t it fascinating how Kentucky politicians are so obsessed with passing a heroin bill, even as they sing the praises of the Bourbon Trail and our alcohol and tobacco industries in general?
More than 200 people die in Kentucky each year because they foolishly took the dangerous, illegal drug, heroin. The increase in heroin use resulted directly from politicians’ decision to restrict access to less dangerous prescription drugs, forcing addicts into the more dangerous black market for heroin.
By contrast, alcohol-related deaths are well into the thousands, with many of these fatalities being innocent victims of drunk drivers or of all-too-common criminal assaults, fueled by booze. Either alcohol or tobacco, standing alone, kills many more people than all the illegal drugs combined. The War on Drugs is a disastrous failure, eroding our civil liberties, driving up our crime rate and draining our wallets.
Greedy for ever more tax revenue, our politicos blithely ignore these facts and trumpet the glories of the Bourbon Trail and the tobacco infrastructure, monuments to our leading, lethal drugs.
Greg Holmes, 40204
Correction:
LEO’s Feb. 4 feature story “The Zephyr Project” inaccurately identified Beth Henson (co-presenter of “Sexual Selfie: A Glimpse of Sexuality”) as a “sexual health advisor.” Ms. Henson is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor working in sex offender treatment. Her collaborator, Sara Choate, is a sexual health advisor.