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Frothing at the Mouth

ETS!,

Congrats to Maria T. (forget the rest of your name, sorry!) for completely misreading the letter I sent. The fact that the news-reading, ticket-buying population does not enjoy watching women's basketball is not a sexist remark, it is a simple fact, reflected in ticket and newspaper sales. The fact that your story was whiney and rooted in your personal preference is also a simple fact, and the one that you completely avoided in your reply. I'm kind of glad you printed it, but addressing the peripheral comments without touching the true point of the letter is just short-sighted, and sort of related to the whole reason I wrote in the first place.

Give the people what they want. Is this not what sells your paper? Or at least sells advertising space? Answer? YES. If the Seattle Times, or the crappy new downtown mall for all intents and purposes, wants to sell, then let them. If this means supporting 3rd world economies with penny-on-the-dollar labor, then that's what the fight is. If this means that there will never be a women's basketball story on the front page of the Seattle Times, then that's that. If another paper comes to cover them in more detail, maybe that paper will profit. There's an idea! Why don't you contribute the front page of every issue to the week's events in women's basketball!

OK, complete change of scene: tired-ass e-mail rant turns to challenge. Ready? You, Maria T., needs to write and print at least one weekly story about women's basketball and print it somewhere on the front page of ETS!. Show your straps, Maria. I'll give you a couple weeks to get started.

Here is the deal. I am asking that you do not print this letter in your newspaper. UNLESS, you start a weekly women's basketball gazette covering at least one-eighth of the front page of ETS! each and every week until the end of the season. At that point, or even once the column has taken off and made you lots of advertising revenue, feel free to print this and guffaw at my short-sightedness. You should have no trouble stubbing out your cigarettes in my bravado, just start printing the highlights of the Women's Basketball League on a substantial portion of the front page of ETS! every week and see how much positive feedback you receive.

Again, this is not about women. This is about a trigger-happy, knee-jerk journalist who I'm calling to put money where mouth is. I have nothing but respect for the women of the league, and enjoy watching it myself. Opening up opportunities for women to go somewhere with a sporting career beyond college is something that has been missing in all branches of women's sports. The fact that I am in a hugely overwhelming minority cannot be denied, and thus made the issue of ETS! that I originally wrote in to complain about a damn mess.

Jim Lucie, via e-mail

But obviously you find it exciting to attack and belittle women. Too bad I don't particularly care. The only thing that bothers me is that this letter is so extreme, people will think we wrote it ourselves, as a joke. Honestly, folks, we didn't!

Armchair Logic

[This is regarding a one-paragraph piece Maria wrote on a North Korean satellite launch, and a recent South Korean accidental launch of a surface-to-air missile just 40 miles from the border with N. Korea.--Ed.]

Dear Eaters,

I see you've got an "armchair rocket scientist" on the loose ... potentially as dangerous as an unguided missile.

Actually, an attempt to put a vehicle into orbit does, by definition, qualify as a missile test. And if North Korea has the ability to launch a satellite, then they can build a missile capable of hitting any point on the surface of the earth, not "just" South Korea, Japan, or the coast of Alaska.

Speaking of "credulous press", where did you get the information that North Korea had attempted to launch a satellite? To my knowledge, only the North Korean government made such a claim, with no independent verification. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

We can speculate that North Korea's missile launch--whatever the intent or capability-- might cause quite a panic in the South, and that this may have contributed to the aforementioned mishap. (By the way, despite your insinuation, a surface-to-air missile and a long-range missile have very little in common. The latter is more complex and prone to problems.) In any case, your jab at people attempting to protect themselves against an armed fascist state rather runs against your claim of anti-authoritarianism.

Oh--if a government with ties to the U.S. (or a democracy, or worse yet, both) had engaged in this foolishness while their citizens starved, you probably would have condemned their decision.

Not Exactly A Rocket Scientist Either,

D. Patrick McArdle, Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado, 1990.

But what I'm really wondering is why U.S. companies, with the blessing of the U.S. government, help China launch satellites into orbit all the time, and why this doesn't "cause quite a panic" in South Korea? Why do you think that is?

Against the Law

ETS!,

Thirteen years ago I was rear-ended by a drunk driver. I was in a left turn lane, blinker on. He was traveling approximately 50 mph and did not stop until he hit my truck. His blood alcohol was more than twice the legal limit. The .10 law did not stop him from drinking and driving, and ultimately costing me a lifetime of unbearable back pain. So I don't see how the new .08 law would stop people like him, either.

But what is upsetting me about the new law (and trust me, being a victim, I am in strong favor of get-tough laws for DUI) is the instant confiscation of your drivers' license and your car. Does this not bother anyone else? That the police can now administer a sentence upon the populace without first giving you a fair trial? That you may not get your license or car back even if you are acquitted? I thought this was America. I thought you were innocent until found guilty.

What is happening is not trivial. It is downright frightening. Is it only a matter of time before we simply forgo the courts and a fair trial, and let the police sentence us as they so choose? I do not drink and drive, in fact I rarely drink. I am not suggesting that it is okay to drink and drive. It is not. What I am saying, however, should be a wake up call for the public. If you allow things like this to happen to an unpopular segment of people, when will it stop? Is the public so willing to trade freedom for security? Our own founding fathers warned against this very thing. I will take their advice. I am not willing to trample the Constitution, are you?

Julie Salko, Tacoma

Will a Spanking Do?

I think the big question in the President Clinton impeachment inquiry is: who makes the law?

I think 99% of the American people would agree that the term "Sexual Relations" includes oral sex. But what if "The Law" says otherwise?. Question: are we, as a people, ready to allow a bunch of lawyers in Washington decide for us what "The Law" means, or are we ready to tell Washington what the law means?

Is this a country whose founding concept is "For the People by the People" or is the founding concept "For the Harvards by the Georgetowns?"

Impeach Clinton in the House, find him guilty in the Senate ... I don't care what the punishment is ... make him do 20 push-ups on the Senate floor ... but find him guilty ... he's a perjurer ... the honor of the American people demand it!

Vince Ridgway, Ventura, CA