Love-Hate Mail
Praise God and the death penalty
One cannot help but be sympathetic to Baptist preacher Will Campbell when reading your story of how he ministers to outcasts and the downtrodden (“Nothing Sacred,” Dec. 1). There were some strong testimonies from famous people about the effectiveness of his work. But a different Will Campbell seems to appear when he asked one head of the Southern Baptist Convention if he believed in the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” When the man said yes, Campbell proceeded to ask if he was in favor of the death penalty. When the answer was yes, Campbell called the man “a hypocrite and jackass.”
The Ten Commandments are in Exodus 20. In chapter 21, verse 29, we are told that if a man has an ox that is dangerous and has attempted to gore people in the past, and the owner does not keep the ox up and it kills someone, then the owner shall be put to death. In 35:2, anyone who works on the Sabbath shall be put to death. The Old Testament is full of instances saying infraction of a rule should result in the death penalty. Will Campbell and anyone else has a right to be against the death penalty, but his argument is without merit.
Jack D. Walker
jdwal@hotmail.com (Antioch)
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Soul molesting
I was so happy to see this article by Joseph Sweat (“Nothing Sacred,” Dec. 1). As a “recovered” Baptist, I was gratified to see that others are disturbed about the “hijacking” of our church.
Gene Floyd
genef96@comcast.net (Nashville)
Burrito baby
Right on! I’m so glad the Scene published this editorial (“Let Them Eat Tacos,” Dec. 1). As a resident of the Woodbine neighborhood, I’ve felt very strongly about this issue of the Metro Council trying to close mobile food vendors. Thanks for making the right stand.
Teresa Bates
Teresa.Bates2@HCAhealthcare.com (Nashville)
On rednecks, taste and country music
I found it interesting and informative that the Scene would run Michael McCall’s dead-on critique of recent trends (“Wrongheaded Rednecks,” Nov. 24) and Will Campbell’s thoughtful views on the word “redneck” as an epithet (“Nothing Sacred,” Dec. 1) on consecutive weeks. As one who travels the country, I can tell you people are laughing at Nashville, and those who aren’t are disgusted. The feedback I get is that this is worse than the Hat Act craze, or the boy pop trend of recent years. It’s novelty stuff. Most real country fans have turned to bluegrass, and are starting to investigate Americana through the good offices of Dolly Parton, Merle Haggard, Jim Lauderdale, etc.
As a writer and performer, I’m happy for the Muzik Mafia getting their payday and their 15 minutes of fame. As a lover of good music, especially country music, I can’t wait for it to be over.
Drew Reid
drew@drewreid.com (Nashville)
Unchristian or just inhumane?
Thanks for your editorial attention to the TennCare problem (“Our Own Private TennCare” and “Faces of TennCare,” Nov. 24).
Inadvertently I’m sure, you’ve employed a Bushian evasive tactic: you ignore the problem and deal with selected particulars. There are 40 or 50 million Americans with no health insurance. And we reward the rich with tax cuts for this negligence. Nationally we need and will have a medical care program. The wealthy must resume paying their pre-Rove tax handouts so we can properly care for the millions of Americans (including tens of thousands of damaged soldiers). Locally, it is more heartbreaking to see the likes of Bud Adams escape each year to Texas with $20 million or so he earned here without paying a farthing in state taxes while so many thousands of our citizens suffer. How do we, presumably Christians, equate such governance with our faith?
Hank Haines
hahaines@bellsouth.net (Murfreesboro)
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