Love/Hate Mail
No sympathy
I found Matt Pulle’s article, “Courtroom Penalty” (Nov. 27), regarding the Kats cheerleaders’ lawsuit, to be borderline prejudiced and practically unnecessary. Pulle opposes an attorney’s question to a cheerleader regarding whether she contracted an STD and what that “has to do with the case of cameras found in...the locker room.” My question is, “What does attorney Harless’ degree from David Lipscomb—'a church of Christ institution’—have to do with this article?” Interestingly enough, Pulle failed to mention where the other attorneys received their degrees. Pulle certainly wouldn’t have singled out one individual and identified their race, sexual preference or religious practice. Can you imagine the same article naming someone as Hispanic or black, Jewish or Catholic, or homosexual or straight? He wouldn’t, and even if he did, it would never be printed. I’m just curious about why, in this PC era we live in, Pulle’s statements are apparently viewed as acceptable. His attempt to persuade this reader to feel pity for the cheerleaders was unsuccessful. I believe if Pulle was an attorney for Powers, he would have asked the exact same questions. “Playing hardball” in a courtroom goes with the territory.
Heather Holland
heathercille@comcast.net (Nashville)
A regular Jonathan Swift
I just wanted to take a quick moment to let you know that Brezny’s Real Astrology is still being printed in a readable font size. Granted, I’m young and have to squint a little, but the letters are in fact decipherable and can be grouped into words and sentences.
I know how important reducing the prominence of this column has been to the Scene, so I would hate for you to think you had made the column unreadable when you hadn’t. You may not know this, but I have been firmly behind the Scene’s continued efforts to reduce the prominence of this column: your shifting it into the classifieds, for example, and the tendency to place it on the fold so that readers can’t find it just by thumbing through the paper, not to mention reducing its newsprint acreage and fonts.
Since you’re doing such a good job de-emphasizing this column already, I hesitate to offer advice. I wouldn’t want to mess up the master plan. But what the heck, it’s the season of giving, right? Have you investigated using disappearing ink? That probably seems drastic, but you could acclimate readers to the change over the next several months by passing out secret decoder pens, perhaps sponsored by some of your advertisers! Or maybe Brezny should transmit the horoscopes by sign language—true believers will feel the vibrations in the astral plane anyway—freeing you to sell all of the page as advertising.
Just some friendly suggestions. Keep up the great work!
Robert Saunders
robert.c.saunders@vanderbilt.edu (Nashville)
We get what we deserve
I think Martin Brady’s article (“Rough Times at the Rep,” Nov. 27) misses the big picture and the question that should be addressed in every Nashville theatre circle: Do the citizens of Nashville even need theatre? Look at the post-9/11 trends, and every theatre in town is ailing (save Nashville Children’s Theatre). It’s an evolution issue, and a subject no one can ever really talk about in Nashville, for it has a personal, cultural implication. The bottom line: Why, beyond Atlanta, are there are no thriving LORT theatres in any Southern city (that are not attached to universities)? Culturally, Nashvillians are more attached to their religious and social circles, so arts groups go in and out of fashion. Build a Baptist church and you will attract hundreds of members every Sunday. Rent out the smallest theatre at TPAC (if you can afford it) and present a Sunday matinee of a play about Albert Einstein, as I recently attended, and you get five people.
Todd Olson, artistic director
American Stage Company
Candtolson@aol.com (St. Petersburg, Fla.)
Unbeliever
I love the way the Scene tells some of the truth, but not all of it. You’re sooo cute at it. The reason American Muslims outnumber American Presbyterians and Episcopalians, as reported in “True Believers” (Nov. 20), is these two mainline liberal denominations have consistently lost members for the past 20 years. But you forgot to mention that.
As for “Muslims are no less dogged than their Christian brethren in attempting to convert people to their faith,” I bet you’ll never see the Scene complaining about Muslim proselytizing, though you do about Christians who do the same.
Regarding “Muslims are converting to Christianity,... [but] it’s because Christians perpetuate false stereotypes of Islam”: Could it possibly be that Christianity satisfies the deep longings of one’s spirit, as does Islam for others?
As for “Christianity was forced upon the slaves by their white slave masters”: Read your Bible, my brother. We [Africans] are cited throughout the Old and New Testaments. My experience with this patent answer is that it’s usually a way to justify our own black prejudices. Yes, the Bible has been used to justify white racism. While many of our black ancestors were illiterate, they had enough spiritual insight and wisdom to identify with the exodus story of the Jews, and freedom in Christ, in which case Christianity is our liberator.
Gwen Colvin
gtcolvin@comcast.net (Nashville)
Good wishes
I just want to you for your wonderful article on Islam (“True Believers,” Nov. 20). So many peaceful, devout Muslims have been victims of discrimination and violence because of the hateful, misguided acts of ignorant people. The Muslims I know are not the vengeful, intolerant, prejudiced murderers who receive so much attention in the media.
Alice Cote
ACRN1109@aol.com (Indianapolis, Ind.)
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