  | LettersBush WackDear Alibi , I live on Yale across from the plasma center. There is normally a tall hedge in front of my house. And because of this hedge, nobody really knows there is a house behind it. And so I am normally situated in the calm eye of the freak storm of drunks and homeless and whoever else that parade around my house 24 hours a day starting fights, yelling "FUUUCK!" and "I'm gonna kill you!" snooping around the side of the house through the dumpster and looking into the windows. On March 25, the city shaved the 7-foot hedge down to a sad knee-high nub of skeletal branches, making me and roommate feel totally unsafe. Even when we had that hedge, the occasional weirdo still managed to wander into the yard off the street and hassle us for any number of reasons. So you can only imagine how things will go without that hedge. Hark! I hear one screaming outside the house right now as I type this. The city, apparently, decided this was necessary for the drivers turning from the alley into Yale lanes, but I haven't seen any sort of accident near the hedge since I moved in more than three years ago. And when my roommate confronted these sadists mid-project, they laughed at him and told him to take it up with the city. And what's more, for good measure they went ahead and shaved off the leaves from what remained of the hedge branches. I guess there's not much I can do, as it's me versus the city, but I just wanted to publicly announce that it's fucked up. Public Comments Somewhere a Big Dog Barked AgainDear Alibi, I just want to know how people feel about dogs that bark excessively. I work from home at times, and have two dogs a couple houses over that are constantly barking, and barking loudly. They are no ankle biters, they are big dogs. I have complained to the city and it still goes on. I have a large dog, and yes, she does bark, but only if someone unknown enters the yard or is provoked, but she stops soon after—these dogs just keep going. I think it is great that people have dogs, but I don't feel it is fair for people in the surrounding area to suffer just because they want to have a pet. Public Comments (8)
Chauvanismo Chupa!Dear Alibi, [Re: Letters, “Hispanos in New Mexico,” March 25-31] New Mexico was never part of Spain, a little country 4,000 miles from here. Nebraska, the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Argentina also have never been part of Europe, although all of these places were once part of the vast Spanish empire. It's like Alaska and San Francisco Bay once were part of the Russian empire—and you can still see Russia from certain places in Alaska. Spain's empire included Mexico. Mexico had many provinces, and New Mexico was one. As a province of Mexico, we were part of Mexico for centuries, but never part of Spain. (Remember: Spain, Europe; New Mexico, North America). The colonists who came here all had Spanish surnames. A few were Spanish. Most were Mestizo—a mixture of European and Native blood. Many were pure Mexican Indians, but through centuries of isolation they all mixed with the local Tano, Tewa, Keres, and later with French Canadians, Irish and Comanches. The Spanish had like 64 different grades or castes, and everyone wanted to steal a little status, marry up, pass as whiter than they were. Wild—it's still going on today! My old timer Norteño friends 40 years ago would describe themselves to me as Mejicanos, and if you read contemporary accounts, that was the term used by everyone through the 19th and most of the 20th centuries. The romantic myth of the Spanish Haciendado is pretty well documented. My Mejicano friends tell me, "When we go to your pais, you know who treats us the worst? Our own kind!," meaning the Nuevo Mejicanos. Fortunately, this is changing: Racists and chauvinists of all stripes are losing their audience. But it’s still entertaining, since cockfighting is illegal now. Signed, “not native, but my kids and grandkids are!” Public Comments (2)
DNA TestDear Alibi, [Re: Letters, “Hispanos in New Mexico,” March 25-31] There are affordable DNA tests now. Maybe the Alibi could fund a study to resolve the question of full-blooded Spaniards in New Mexico if somebody (Michael Martinez or his most Spanish proxy?) would submit to a test. I'm not presupposing the results of the test or claiming it would be irrefutable. I just think it would be interesting to test those bloodline claims with science.
Public Comments November Is ComingDear Alibi, [Re: Ortiz y Pino, “Whose Waterloo Was It?,” March 25-31] Jerry's piece had me laughing out loud, after all that leftist blathering he ends with asserting that he and his fellow traveler's party is more robust? November will be a realignment election Jerry, make no mistake ... and 2012 will be morning in America again.
Public Comments Lead the Way, Ma'am!Dear Alibi, [Re: Feature, “A Nurse in Wartime,” March 18-24] I was at Abu Ghraib also during this timeframe of October 3, 2004, to December 5, 2005, as a member of the 1-119th Field Artillery. Our job was the security of the detainees and the transportation of supplies in and out of the FOB. The article was pretty good. We worked hand in hand with task force MED 115 and when they handed responsibility to a MED detachment from New York. We also helped with the outer perimeter when needed (the Marines 2/10 FA and 1/11 FA was the vigilant watchmen that allowed us to do our job in safety and some gave their lives defending us). Always remember that the news paints a very poor picture of reality and like the [nurse in the interview] said, we are doing remarkable things for the Iraqi people. The freedoms that soldiers fight for is the freedom to speak your mind where ever and whenever you want. If you hate us for going to Iraq, then hate us. We will always fight and give the ultimate sacrifice so that Americans keep that right, and so that Americans can sleep worry-free at night. I am proud to be a soldier, and to have served with nurses like you. Don’t ever feel alone, in the end all we really have is each other. We got to serve on the most dangerous FOB in Iraq. We lived 3/4 of a mile away from the most dangerous route in Iraq and traveled it every other day. We survived, helped everyone that we could, and always tried to improve the Iraqi way of life any way we could—it’s what we do as humans, as Americans and soldiers. Soldiers like you that paint an accurate picture, and are willing to tell their story, have a special place in my heart. If you cannot stand behind a soldier, grow some balls and stand in front of them! Lead the way, ma'am! Public Comments Medical Marijuana in NM—Ready or Not Here it ComesDear Alibi, [Alibi forums, March 21] How many other New Mexico patients think growing your own marijuana as soon as you have your state card should be the way? Why is it that when a patient receives two recommendations from health care providers entitling them to use marijuana as medicine, they still have to wait for an undetermined length of time for some other separate license to come before they can grow for personal use? Patients are still unable to get effective medicine because the state can't keep up with approving medical growers and sites. I am a legitimate medical marijuana patient, I am not a criminal! Health care providers that think pushing pharmaceutical drugs like Vicodin and other deadly and highly addictive drugs are. I have epilepsy but don't suffer due to marijuana saving my life. (Unless one might think seizures on a daily basis is better than using marijuana. I don't happen to agree.) Marijuana keeps me "seizure free" and that's how I like to live! Letters should be sent with the writer’s name, address and daytime phone number via e-mail to letters@alibi.com. They can also be faxed to (505) 256-9651. Letters may be edited for length and clarity, and may be published in any medium; we regret that owing to the volume of correspondence we cannot reply to every letter. Word count limit for letters is 300 words. Public Comments | 
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