Love-Hate Mail
A different school
Nice work on the TSU piece ("A Dream Deferred," Nov. 13). I hope everything turns out well for that school. One thing, though: A Different World was not set at Howard. The show was based on a fictional HCBU called Hillman. C'mon, Scene! I guess this isn't really a letter to the editor, I just wanted to correct that for you. Ridley rocks. I'm out.
John Craig Howell
Nashville
Family, flaws and all
TSU is a great university that's been a tremendous asset to our city and a very positive influence in our community ("A Dream Deferred," Nov. 13). Those who have graduated from TSU understand it is an experience like no other. There are positives and negatives, but TSU offers a family-like atmosphere that no other institution can provide.
Tennessee State University has overcome many obstacles and will overcome many more. This is a very difficult time for all state universities. I do agree that the problems with the administration have been an ongoing issue that needs to be fixed, but the way this article depicted my alma mater was not only unfair, but inaccurate.
This article seems to turn into an advertisement for MTSU. What is that about?
Dee
Nashville
A proud Tiger
I am 44 years old and a student at TSU ("A Dream Deferred," Nov. 13). I retired from the Army and am attending TSU's College of Business in order to get a degree and get started on my NEXT career. At the beginning of every semester, I hear the same comments and see the same frustrated looks about the financial aid office. To me the answer is simple. Fire the financial aid staff and start fresh. In the Army the last thing a commander needs is a dysfunctional staff, and while I know that TSU is NOT the Army, and that the Financial Aid Department is not the only broken link in the chain (recent articles in U.S. News and World Report hint at a growing financial aid crisis across the spectrum), a fresh staff with new ideas would communicate a positive message to the students and community as well. These kids deserve better treatment. After all, they are going to be the next generation of leaders and administrators. What kind of message is TSU sending them? By the way...I am PROUD to be a student at TSU.
John Sullivan Jr.
Fairview
You know, now that racism's over
I think it is so sad that some people can't accept the fact that Republicans/conservatives think for themselves ("White Out," Nov. 13). I personally don't need the media or anyone else telling me how to vote. The reason I didn't vote for Barack Obama has nothing to do with the color of his skin. Let go of the race card, it's old and pathetic now.
KK
La Vergne
Tennessee Demokkkrats?
I am a Republican ("White Out," Nov. 13). When others were saying black people were voting for Barack Obama simply because he's black, my first reaction was to agree. But then I realized that usually more than 85-90 percent of them vote Democratic every election, so it's unfair to say they are voting based on race.
Just like it is unfair to make that assumption, it is unfair to say Republicans didn't vote for Barack Obama simply because he's black. Republicans rarely vote for Democrats in appreciable numbers.
So if Tennessee Democrats say that racism cost their party elections in Tennessee, they can only logically be saying that the racism of DEMOCRATS cost them elections. This is something they are obviously not realizing when they start playing the race card.
Finally, you can't just claim race played the only role in Obama losing Tennessee to such a degree without knowing what was in the hearts and minds of the Democrat voters. Aren't Tennessee Democrats taking part in stereotyping and generalizing?
Scott
Thompson's Station
Look out, Karl
When Tony Zizza (Love/Hate Mail, Nov. 13) claims John Irving's statement that "President Bush made sounding stupid actually comforting to many Americans" is false, what does he mean? Is he saying that Bush's many malapropisms and his widely acknowledged failure as a thinker and a president is not comforting to anybody, or is he disputing the existence of Dubya's world-renowned lack of insight, wisdom and intellectual curiosity? Just wondering.
It is obvious, however, that Zizza's characterization of those he disagrees with as "insane," "weasels," talking "out of [their] ass" and that "Bush sounds like more of an American than Obama" makes it clear that he has a very bright future, if he's interested in Rove-ian Republican politics.
Bill Cole
Nashville
Quick, defrost Ted Williams
"Critically acclaimed" writer John Irving thinks Sarah Palin is "mean" and "poorly informed," but has nothing to say about Joe Biden's smooth but highly imaginative debating riffs on Middle East history or his multiple plagiarisms ("John Irving: The Scene Interview," Nov. 6). Such deep commentary—comparable to what we'd get if Mickey Mantle reviewed The World According to Garp. And Mantle's dead.
James H. Steiger
Brentwood
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