Love-Hate Mail
Liberal usage
In “The Literary Patriot” (Aug. 31), John Egerton defined his view of liberalism as being for social justice, personal freedom and anti-imperialism. This is hardly what the average person today equates with liberalism. It was Winston Churchill who said that Great Britain and the United States are two great nations divided by a common language. Sometimes words mean different things to different people in different places and at different times. To many, liberalism means big-spending government attempting to impose, from the cradle to the grave, socialism on the country.
In the late 1700s, Scottish History Professor Alexander Tyler stated in his The Fall of the Athenian Republic that democracies only last about 200 years, for in that time the people have learned to vote themselves gifts from the public treasury, bringing about its decline.
While the big spending during the Great Depression was beneficial, the liberal governments that have dominated the politics of the nation since then are now out of favor. Conservatives hold the political power now, and will seek to return the country to conservative values, including prayer in schools and posting the Ten Commandments. But is seeking to impose democracy, which has worked so well for us, on others, having the USA speaking like a dragon? We humans have a tendency to go from one extreme to another, and I share with John Egerton the fear that our imperial adventures may bring us down.
JACK D. WALKER
jdwal@hotmail.com (Antioch)
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Patriot games
Visit the “Current Events” section in any local bookstore and you’ll find more anti-Bush screeds than you can shake a stick at (“Literary Patriot,” Aug. 31). There are books in which each and every member of the Bush administration is portrayed as either a crook or a liar—or both. There are also books in which the president is not only attacked for the slow federal response to Hurricane Katrina, he’s blamed for the hurricane itself. And you can find books in which President Bush is portrayed as the most amiable of Republican amiable dunces. So what’s unique about John Egerton’s new book? Nothing, of course. All Egerton has done is take the America’s a Right-Wing Hellhole argument and spin it as a political fairy tale. But I’m willing to bet a dollar to anyone’s dime that a left-wing press somewhere has already churned out an allegorical fantasy taking aim at the high crimes and misdemeanors of one George W. Bush.
Even Egerton’s feeble attempt at whimsy is nothing new. Egerton names one of his characters Colon O’Scoppy (how clever), but even the anti-Bush potty humor is so yesterday. Kurt Vonnegut recently told Rolling Stone how pissed he is that he must live in a country governed by “leaders with names like Bush, Dick and, up until recently, ‘Colon.’ ” Since Egerton claims to be incapable of cynicism, perhaps he should team up with ol’ Kurt, who fancies himself quite the satirical cynic, to tell us how George W. Bush, the Dumbass, was able to mastermind the greatest criminal conspiracy in U.S. political history.
WESLEY MONTGOMERY
tnproject@aol.com (Antioch)
The river wild
I’m completely floored by your review of Big River (“Muddy Waters,” Aug. 31), currently playing at the Boiler Room Theatre. I’ve seen the show several times now and it never fails to blow me away. The singing and acting are perfect for each character, and in the small space they have, the set works extremely well. I’m ashamed at the obvious lack of tact Mr. Brady used in reviewing the show and I recommend he see it again.
KATHERINE DAVIS
nashvillekat@gmail.com (Brentwood)
Fair enough
How dare the Nashville Scene be so arrogant as to call others “morons,” especially since you yourself don’t even know what part of the state Sen. Jerry Cooper represents (“Off Limits,” Aug. 31) He represents Morrison, Tenn. in the Upper Cumberland region, not Morristown, in East Tennessee. Maybe you should make sure your facts are straight before you engage in name-calling.
LISA JORDAN
jor103@bellsouth.net (Smyrna)
Monster mash
Thank you for making us aware of this monster (“Dr. Feelbad,” Aug. 24). I feel sorrow for the family of Mary A. Spurgas, and I hope your story helps take this sick person out of a doctor’s office. The Tennessee medical board needs to revoke his license.
NINA AYALA
ninaoceanblue@yahoo.com (Nashville)
Sensitivity training
I was very moved by Claire Suddath’s story “Eaten Alive” (Aug. 17) about the recovering bulimic. As Suddath projected, I do know someone like Rebecca who is “beautiful, intelligent and starving to death.” After taking a deep breath at the conclusion of this piece, my gaze shifted to the ads covering the other half of the page. Staring up at me was a size 0 model in a bikini advertising affordable cosmetic surgery. While I realize that the Scene relies on these ad dollars to keep this free paper on the rack, I found the placement of this particular one—on the final page of a deeply personal story of one woman’s struggle with negative body image—quite inappropriate.
This article had the power to instill courage in women (and men) with similar struggles. I hope the nearly naked, yet far from perfect image portrayed in that picture was not discouraging to those who are still hiding. I encourage you to exercise sensitivity on all fronts when covering important stories like this.
LIZ MEEKS
lizmeeks@yahoo.com (Joelton)
Reality bites
Melissa Levine’s critique of Twelve and Holding is as severely misguided as some of the film’s characters (“Welcome to the Hellhouse,” Aug. 31). She initially describes the film as flawed, because “it’s just too much.” This is not a good reason to criticize a film. Levine seems to vaguely understand the movie’s themes but then sounds almost clueless about some of the movie’s points: “The fact that Cuesta extends some meager hope of salvation—that each child makes a change, no matter how twisted—is of little or no comfort.” What is Ms. Levine talking about? Cuesta’s point is obviously not to extend “some meager hope of salvation,” it is to present things the way they are, not the way that would “comfort” his audience. It is also evident that either Levine hasn’t seen Cuesta’s first film L.I.E. or didn’t understand it. It ends on an unmistakably uplifting note. Levine even said she felt “abused” by the film. Please, Ms. Levine, do us all, including yourself, a favor next time Cuesta—and for that matter, Todd Solondz—makes another film and don’t see or review it. It will probably not be fit for your eyes to see.
JORDAN HARKEY
billharkey@bellsouth.net (Nashville)
Corrections
Last week’s story “The Breadwinner” incorrectly reported that Democratic state Senate candidate Mary Parker lives in Davidson County. In fact, she lives in Williamson County. Also, as the letter writer above points out, Sen. Jerry Cooper lives in Morrison, not Morristown. We regret the errors.