Letters to the Editor 08-13-2003
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- Abuse Of Power - Celebrity Autographs - Wallet Thief - Sinful Lifestyles
Abuse Of Power
Editor, Times-Union:Ms. Strang and Ms. Wright: Nice article, but I was appalled by Mr. Rogers' humble confession, and to do so in public, the poor soul! He knew only what he read in a newspaper? That's disgraceful! He would never have heard any public outcries concerning the abuse of political power either, other than the occasionally editorial.
To elaborate on unpopular political views requires more time than is allotted most editorial contributors. Effective writing requires time and creativity. Newspapers are engaged in copious productivity. They rarely have time for a private whimper, much less a public outcry, but that's hardly an excuse for your clever euphemism "drowsy acceptance." There is an abundance of literature available concerning the abuse of political power. A newspaper and literature are as different as fast food and a gourmet meal, and if literature is a meal then a newspaper is a cheap hors-d'oeuvre. If you're looking for outcries you'll need a meal, not a snack. The problem is, depending on your age, such a meal may appear to be a rather large bite. Fortunately in this age of fast cars and fast food, smaller portions are available for younger consumers.
If I were younger and looking for literary examples of repressive political power, I might steer away from a drive-through featuring Lewis Lapham or William F. Buckley. They use a lot of jazzy sophisticated political terms. I might opt instead for a serving of Arundhati Roy (Power Politics) or a little Vandana Shiva, depending on your taste for Indian spices. I've personally found them quite tasteful, and much easier to digest. They are tearfully delicious.
Ms. Strang and Ms. Wright, the outcries of the abuse of political power are there, they've just been hiding from you.
I've just invited you to the table, it's already set. You may want to bring a napkin. You may need something to dry your eyes after all that spice, and bon appetit.
Steven R. Frantz
Warsaw
Celebrity Autographs
Editor, Times-Union:I read in the July 31 issue of the Times-Union about the two guys in Florida who are in business making big bucks selling autographs of famous celebrities through the Internet.
Back in the 1930s, when I lived in Leesburg, this aged octogenarian was one of the nation's most avid movie fans who regularly wrote to the stars and received scads of autographed pictures from film luminaries. The truly greats of Hollywood, that is, the stars of "The Golden Age of Hollywood" were very generous with their autographs, and they didn't charge $50 or $75 for their signatures!
I once viewed on television the "Antiques Road Show" from Atlanta, and the narrator pointed out an autographed picture of Clark Gable and stated that it was worth $2,500. Well, the photograph was an exact replica of the personally autographed photo that Clark Gable had sent me back in 1938. And do you know what I paid for the famous Gable image? All of 25 cents! The deal in those days was, if you wrote a letter to a famous Hollywood celebrity asking for an autographed photo, you paid a quarter, and that was all. During the "Golden Years of Hollywood," the true greats of "Tinseltown" not only were very thoughtful and considerate of their fans when giving autographs, but some of them almost bent over backward in trying to please their fans.
For instance, I was once engaged in an amusing little episode involving Barbara Stanwyck. I wrote Miss Stanwyck, asking her for an autographed picture, but when I received the photo. on it thee was merely a carbon copy of an autograph. So, I wrote Miss Stanwyck a second time, demanding a personal, genuine autograph, and I informed her that if she didn't care to send me one, I wanted my quarter back. (In the '30s, quarters were hard to come by.) One day, not long after I had written to her, I received a beautiful, personally autographed photo from Miss Barbara Stanwyck!
Then, there's that quaint situation I once experienced involving an autographed picture from Alice Faye. In the early summer of '38, I wrote Miss Faye, requesting an autographed photo. Well, I waited week after week for a photo to show up in the mail. Time went on and on until one day in late August, the photograph finally arrived. The situation was that Miss Faye's secretary, when addressing the envelope, had struck the wrong key on the typewriter, and the letter happened to be "g" instead of "d," so Leesburg, Ind., turned out to be Leesburg, Ing.; therefore, Alice Faye's photo traveled to England and back, although when I received the picture, it was in fine shape.
From what I have read, Hollywood celebrities of today seldom answer fan mail or are willing to give autographs. That's too bad. I am grateful that I lived during The Golden Years of Hollywood, when the great immortals of the silver screen conveyed so much gratitude and appreciation toward their fans.
Don Kaiser
Warsaw
Wallet Thief
Editor, Times-Union:On July 23 at 3:24 p.m., I checked out two items at the automatic check-out at Owens on Market Street. While leaving the store I thought, "Boy, my purse feels light." While driving down the road I discovered my clutch purse was missing. I prayed the whole way back to the store that someone honest would find it, but no one turned it in. Someone at Owens called the city police and told me I would have to go to the police station and make out a report. I waited until 4:10 to talk to an office. I checked again with Owens on the way home. I had to cancel credit cards, get new medical cards, etc. It took three trips to the license bureau to get my driver's license that I had just renewed two weeks before. I called Owens later that night and was told they had a security camera and they would turn the film over to the officer when he came in.
On Friday, I was told by Owens that the officer didn't come in. I called and told the police department about the camera. They said the officer wasn't working that day and I should put a message on his voice mail, which I did, but did not hear from him. On Tuesday, I went to the police station to see what was the hold-up. The lady seemed concerned and said she would talk to the officer. She also said Owens could look at the tape. The manager at Owens said she was very busy but would look at the tape when she had time. On Friday, nine days later, I heard from Owens. I was told that for some unknown reason, the camera was pointed at the door instead of where it usually was. They also said I should call the officer and ask him to pick up the tape because the police department has better equipment and can pick up things better. I called the police department and was told to just tell the officer on his voice mail to call me. You guessed it. It's Sunday night and he hasn't called. I only hope the $80 someone took goes to feed a child. Doesn't it make you wonder if our police department cares for the ordinary citizen?
Linda Martin
Warsaw
Sinful Lifestyles
Editor, Times-Union:I'm a fan of the PBS show "Antiques Roadshow." Last week an older gentleman brought an item in and he sat down with the appraiser to try to find out what it was and what the value was. He said it was handed down from generation to generation in his family, but since no one knew what it was, it was used for a doorstop, and sometimes used as a step for hard-to-reach areas. The appraiser had no idea what it was, so he called all the other appraisers over to help him out. No one knew. So they looked through some old antique books until finally they found out what it was.
The appraiser told the old gentleman his item was thousands of years old. The man smiled, realizing his item was so old, it must be valuable. But then the appraiser told him even though the item is old, its value is worthless because there is no market for it. Nobody wants it. It's called a "Bible."
Even though that was a fabricated story, it could very well happen. Today's churches pick and choose from the Bible. If it doesn't fit their lifestyle, then ignore it, or twist it until it does. Not all churches, but a great majority. When today's churches have to hold meetings to decide if God approves or disapproves of the homosexual lifestyle, then these leaders are ignorant. Why do they spend their life studying the Bible, then tear it apart? Homosexuality is not just a sin, it's a sinful lifestyle. How do you ask for forgiveness for something you live constantly? When churches allow a gay man to become a reverend and then a bishop, it gives approval to all other sinful, unnatural lifestyles.
The Bible is filled with verses condemning the homosexuals, but if the leaders can ignore that, what is to stop them from approving other disgusting lifestyles? What if a member of NAMBLA (North American Man Boy Love Association) wants to be a bishop? They are very large organization of gay men who believe they have the God-given right to be in a loving sexual relationship with boys as young as 6. As a church leader who approves of gay pastors, gay marriages and gay adoption, you must also approve of this group's rights. They're both unnatural and sinful, and since people are being taught the myth of "you can't judge," you have to approve them.
You can judge, but not as a hypocrite. If the Lord did not want you to judge, he would not have told you in the Bible how to judge. As a Christian, the Lord gave you the responsibility of teaching his word to unbelievers. How could you witness if you could not judge who to witness to?
The church leaders should hold meetings to study Revelation 22, verses 18-19: "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the book, If any man shall add unto this book, God shall add unto him all the plagues of this book and if any man shall take away from this book, God shall take away his name in the book of life and out of the holy city."
We are all sinners, we can all ask for forgiveness. But we must mean it. We can't live the sin.
Matthew Trier
Mentone
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Abuse Of Power
Editor, Times-Union:Ms. Strang and Ms. Wright: Nice article, but I was appalled by Mr. Rogers' humble confession, and to do so in public, the poor soul! He knew only what he read in a newspaper? That's disgraceful! He would never have heard any public outcries concerning the abuse of political power either, other than the occasionally editorial.
To elaborate on unpopular political views requires more time than is allotted most editorial contributors. Effective writing requires time and creativity. Newspapers are engaged in copious productivity. They rarely have time for a private whimper, much less a public outcry, but that's hardly an excuse for your clever euphemism "drowsy acceptance." There is an abundance of literature available concerning the abuse of political power. A newspaper and literature are as different as fast food and a gourmet meal, and if literature is a meal then a newspaper is a cheap hors-d'oeuvre. If you're looking for outcries you'll need a meal, not a snack. The problem is, depending on your age, such a meal may appear to be a rather large bite. Fortunately in this age of fast cars and fast food, smaller portions are available for younger consumers.
If I were younger and looking for literary examples of repressive political power, I might steer away from a drive-through featuring Lewis Lapham or William F. Buckley. They use a lot of jazzy sophisticated political terms. I might opt instead for a serving of Arundhati Roy (Power Politics) or a little Vandana Shiva, depending on your taste for Indian spices. I've personally found them quite tasteful, and much easier to digest. They are tearfully delicious.
Ms. Strang and Ms. Wright, the outcries of the abuse of political power are there, they've just been hiding from you.
I've just invited you to the table, it's already set. You may want to bring a napkin. You may need something to dry your eyes after all that spice, and bon appetit.
Steven R. Frantz
Warsaw
Celebrity Autographs
Editor, Times-Union:I read in the July 31 issue of the Times-Union about the two guys in Florida who are in business making big bucks selling autographs of famous celebrities through the Internet.
Back in the 1930s, when I lived in Leesburg, this aged octogenarian was one of the nation's most avid movie fans who regularly wrote to the stars and received scads of autographed pictures from film luminaries. The truly greats of Hollywood, that is, the stars of "The Golden Age of Hollywood" were very generous with their autographs, and they didn't charge $50 or $75 for their signatures!
I once viewed on television the "Antiques Road Show" from Atlanta, and the narrator pointed out an autographed picture of Clark Gable and stated that it was worth $2,500. Well, the photograph was an exact replica of the personally autographed photo that Clark Gable had sent me back in 1938. And do you know what I paid for the famous Gable image? All of 25 cents! The deal in those days was, if you wrote a letter to a famous Hollywood celebrity asking for an autographed photo, you paid a quarter, and that was all. During the "Golden Years of Hollywood," the true greats of "Tinseltown" not only were very thoughtful and considerate of their fans when giving autographs, but some of them almost bent over backward in trying to please their fans.
For instance, I was once engaged in an amusing little episode involving Barbara Stanwyck. I wrote Miss Stanwyck, asking her for an autographed picture, but when I received the photo. on it thee was merely a carbon copy of an autograph. So, I wrote Miss Stanwyck a second time, demanding a personal, genuine autograph, and I informed her that if she didn't care to send me one, I wanted my quarter back. (In the '30s, quarters were hard to come by.) One day, not long after I had written to her, I received a beautiful, personally autographed photo from Miss Barbara Stanwyck!
Then, there's that quaint situation I once experienced involving an autographed picture from Alice Faye. In the early summer of '38, I wrote Miss Faye, requesting an autographed photo. Well, I waited week after week for a photo to show up in the mail. Time went on and on until one day in late August, the photograph finally arrived. The situation was that Miss Faye's secretary, when addressing the envelope, had struck the wrong key on the typewriter, and the letter happened to be "g" instead of "d," so Leesburg, Ind., turned out to be Leesburg, Ing.; therefore, Alice Faye's photo traveled to England and back, although when I received the picture, it was in fine shape.
From what I have read, Hollywood celebrities of today seldom answer fan mail or are willing to give autographs. That's too bad. I am grateful that I lived during The Golden Years of Hollywood, when the great immortals of the silver screen conveyed so much gratitude and appreciation toward their fans.
Don Kaiser
Warsaw
Wallet Thief
Editor, Times-Union:On July 23 at 3:24 p.m., I checked out two items at the automatic check-out at Owens on Market Street. While leaving the store I thought, "Boy, my purse feels light." While driving down the road I discovered my clutch purse was missing. I prayed the whole way back to the store that someone honest would find it, but no one turned it in. Someone at Owens called the city police and told me I would have to go to the police station and make out a report. I waited until 4:10 to talk to an office. I checked again with Owens on the way home. I had to cancel credit cards, get new medical cards, etc. It took three trips to the license bureau to get my driver's license that I had just renewed two weeks before. I called Owens later that night and was told they had a security camera and they would turn the film over to the officer when he came in.
On Friday, I was told by Owens that the officer didn't come in. I called and told the police department about the camera. They said the officer wasn't working that day and I should put a message on his voice mail, which I did, but did not hear from him. On Tuesday, I went to the police station to see what was the hold-up. The lady seemed concerned and said she would talk to the officer. She also said Owens could look at the tape. The manager at Owens said she was very busy but would look at the tape when she had time. On Friday, nine days later, I heard from Owens. I was told that for some unknown reason, the camera was pointed at the door instead of where it usually was. They also said I should call the officer and ask him to pick up the tape because the police department has better equipment and can pick up things better. I called the police department and was told to just tell the officer on his voice mail to call me. You guessed it. It's Sunday night and he hasn't called. I only hope the $80 someone took goes to feed a child. Doesn't it make you wonder if our police department cares for the ordinary citizen?
Linda Martin
Warsaw
Sinful Lifestyles
Editor, Times-Union:I'm a fan of the PBS show "Antiques Roadshow." Last week an older gentleman brought an item in and he sat down with the appraiser to try to find out what it was and what the value was. He said it was handed down from generation to generation in his family, but since no one knew what it was, it was used for a doorstop, and sometimes used as a step for hard-to-reach areas. The appraiser had no idea what it was, so he called all the other appraisers over to help him out. No one knew. So they looked through some old antique books until finally they found out what it was.
The appraiser told the old gentleman his item was thousands of years old. The man smiled, realizing his item was so old, it must be valuable. But then the appraiser told him even though the item is old, its value is worthless because there is no market for it. Nobody wants it. It's called a "Bible."
Even though that was a fabricated story, it could very well happen. Today's churches pick and choose from the Bible. If it doesn't fit their lifestyle, then ignore it, or twist it until it does. Not all churches, but a great majority. When today's churches have to hold meetings to decide if God approves or disapproves of the homosexual lifestyle, then these leaders are ignorant. Why do they spend their life studying the Bible, then tear it apart? Homosexuality is not just a sin, it's a sinful lifestyle. How do you ask for forgiveness for something you live constantly? When churches allow a gay man to become a reverend and then a bishop, it gives approval to all other sinful, unnatural lifestyles.
The Bible is filled with verses condemning the homosexuals, but if the leaders can ignore that, what is to stop them from approving other disgusting lifestyles? What if a member of NAMBLA (North American Man Boy Love Association) wants to be a bishop? They are very large organization of gay men who believe they have the God-given right to be in a loving sexual relationship with boys as young as 6. As a church leader who approves of gay pastors, gay marriages and gay adoption, you must also approve of this group's rights. They're both unnatural and sinful, and since people are being taught the myth of "you can't judge," you have to approve them.
You can judge, but not as a hypocrite. If the Lord did not want you to judge, he would not have told you in the Bible how to judge. As a Christian, the Lord gave you the responsibility of teaching his word to unbelievers. How could you witness if you could not judge who to witness to?
The church leaders should hold meetings to study Revelation 22, verses 18-19: "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the book, If any man shall add unto this book, God shall add unto him all the plagues of this book and if any man shall take away from this book, God shall take away his name in the book of life and out of the holy city."
We are all sinners, we can all ask for forgiveness. But we must mean it. We can't live the sin.
Matthew Trier
Mentone
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