Helen’s Got Balls
This is regarding the Helen Prejean article (LEO Weekly, Dec. 4). I love her ballsiness! She calls the Bible a mixed bag — picking and choosing what we think we should apply to any situation we want. I call church a “sinner’s ball” due to the fact that the people sitting in the pews know they are hypocrites and understand their deep need for forgiveness, at the same time rejoicing in the fellowship of brokenness. Do this and you will live, the Bible says. I have to say I’m on her side on this when we are looking at 62 families testifying AGAINST a death row inmate’s execution. That definitely screams forgiveness, if nothing else. I like it.
Althea Tangco, Los Angeles to Louisville
Please Read
Once again I notice the thread of anti-literacy that has been showing up in LEO. This time it’s in a movie review of “Catching Fire,” written by Sara Havens (Nov. 27 issue). After expressing her interest in the movie, she writes, “I’m dying to know how it ends without having to crack open a book.” Really? I’m hoping what she meant was that she was uninterested in reading an adolescent novel based on recycled science-fiction tropes, but that certainly isn’t what she said.
We have a nation full of children who brag about never reading a book. Do we really need to encourage this kind of behavior — either deliberately or through sloppy writing? For Christ’s sake, enough of this. Hey, I just read Stephen King’s “Dr. Sleep,” and it was a great, thrilling experience — much better than any movie. I’m also reading James Joyce’s “Finnegans Wake,” which is the most challenging book I’ve ever read, and I’m enjoying it immensely. How about some of that?
Thomas Kalb, East End
Damn Liberals
Answering Marian Johnson’s question, “Is LEO Louisville’s liberal mouthpiece?” (LEO Weekly, Nov. 27): Yes, coming in second to The Courier-Journal. There’s no such thing as a conservative media in Louisville. Which is sad. I am a native Louisvillian and I used to express my conservative views that I had to defend in letters to LEO years ago. I also expressed my conservative views in The C-J. I later learned most of these liberal writers live in neighborhoods not affected by crime/violence and abandoned and boarded up properties. They are the snobs of Louisville who think their opinions are more valued than others. They have no concept of what true journalism is about and feel safe in expressing their opinions without much objectivity from the community. Many were surprised by my conservative opinions because I’m black. Hang in there, Marian, you’ll get used to it. Or you’ll have a psychotic episode.
Keith E. Lewis, Downtown
My Two Cents
Attn: Marian Johnson and Rich Mills (Inbox writers in the Nov. 27 LEO): Thanks for sharing your viewpoints about the tone of LEO and the effectiveness, or lack thereof, regarding unions. Let me respond.
I grew up in northern Kentucky in the shadow of mostly conservative Cincinnati (Boehner-land). I moved to Louisville in 2002 to attend U of L and fell in love with it — the vibrancy, tolerance, artistic communities, natural beauty and, yes, the long legacy as a progressive force for good in the commonwealth. Marian, are you really surprised that an alternative weekly in a mostly liberal city doesn’t voice views that are “conservative” or “moderate”? Aren’t most alt-weeklies lefty agit-prop (to some extent)? And no, LEO has never been a mouthpiece. They’ve rightly given Grimes heat for selling out to coal and pandering to gun enthusiasts, not to mention their criticisms of Obama.
Rich, a nationwide right-to-work law would be a win for big business and nobody else. Don’t fight for the 1 percent; they don’t need help. Labor statistics show that in states with stronger unions, wages are higher, working conditions improve and even non-union workers benefit through competitiveness between employers for the labor pool. You pay for what you get. If you don’t want to pay union dues, say goodbye to vacation time, affordable health insurance (or any at all) and respect from your bosses. Don’t believe me? Ask your delivery driver the next time you order Papa John’s; I’m sure she’d love to talk your ear off.
John Beechem, Highlands
