After Limkin’s article [Opinion, "How Cowboys Tame the Blues," April 29-May 5] I was left scratching my head at the contradictions that he found "therapeutic." Limkin visits a dirt patch "cowboy" called Gus Jolley along with his abused horse called Promise for a therapeutic experience to assist in Limkin’s issues that he retained from his combat experience. Jolley cautioned Limkin that the horse was a "biter" and "not to turn your back on her." Not the best kind of horse to have seasoned hands working with, let alone a veteran with no experience with horses at all. Jolley further explains his masterful technique of punching Promise in the nose and letting her "think about it" in response to when she does bite someone. He adds that he only has to do this occasionally. What a relief Promise has from his previous abuser! Abusive behavior and the techniques that Jolley uses are things that REAL cowboys don’t endorse. As a lifelong horse breeder and trainer I can say that this poor horse and his poor excuse for a trainer needs to rethink his irresponsibility to his animal, himself and, most importantly, to our veterans he is placing in unpredictable danger.
Letters: Notes From A Real Horsewoman Notes From A Real Horsewoman
[Re: Opinion, “How Cowboys Tame the Blues,” April 29-May 5] Punching a horse in the face: What a great way to help veterans who have experienced the violence and horrors of war! Mr. Limkin, as the daughter of a Vietnam veteran, I can assure you that this is NOT the way that legitimate veterans programs are run. And as a horsewoman for over 40 years, I can also assure you that any real horseman would NEVER punch a horse in the face. You should find another program IMMEDIATELY. This "genuine cowboy" is going to get you HURT! He should not even be allowed to own a horse. In fact, my next call is to Animal Welfare! Thank you for your service to our country, Mr. Limkin. You deserve better.
Letters: Your Dogs Are Barking Your Dogs Are Barking
Regarding your article on torture by barking dogs [Letters, “Somewhere a Big Dog Barked Again,” April 1-7] , I think it would be a good idea if you published the following website, based in California, which gives a comprehensive analysis of the entire dog problem: barkingdogs.net.I am from Australia, where it is also out of control, as it is in the U.K., U.S. and many other countries. Barking dogs are at epidemic levels everywhere, and for some reason the authorities refuse to do anything about it.
Letters: Tea Baggers Tea Baggers
I found the front page of the April 22-28 edition [Feature , “Don’t Hate Me Because I’m Liberal”] quite amusing. The tea baggers hate communism and taxes but don’t seem to know that under communism there are no taxes. We also can thank the exclusive white man’s club for sending our jobs out of the country.
Letters: Point Of Order Regarding Tortillas Point Of Order Regarding Tortillas
[Re: Feature, “¡Que Viva la Fiesta!,” April 29-May 5] If you ask for a tortilla in Spain you will get something very similar to what Americans call a "frittata," made of eggs, potatoes, green peas and possibly onions, all depending on the region.They DO have the type of "tortilla" that is extremely similar to Mexican tortillas in SOME regions of Spain, i.e., Galicia and Asturias. They look and feel just like the wonderful HOMEMADE (not the store-bought cardboard-like ersatz tortillas) Mexican tortillas but they have a SWEETER taste to them and they are called "Freichuelos."When talking to Spaniards in my family and their friends about a Mexican "burrito," I still remember fondly how they humorously asked me: "You mean they wrap an omelet around a small donkey and eat it?!"The Mexicans and the Spaniards: Two peoples divided by a common language.
Letters: Tattoo Stains Tattoo Stains
[Re: Blog, “Ink Link: Writing the Body,” April 29] Ms. Harjo is a wonderful writer, but does she need to promote this body modification to young ladies who will follow her lead? To most men, it is grotesque. Sorry young ladies, but pretty legs and supple skin looks much better than blue ink. Call me an old fart, but most men agree. I have never heard another man comment on a girl’s tattoo, except to say it destroyed her innate beauty. Men just shake their heads in confusion when a beautiful calf is graffitied with this mess.The funniest one was a 40 year old who had a sunburst design around her navel, that had grown to a nova over the years. She was still proud, though. Good for her self-esteem, I guess.
Letters: Do Not Call Jeff Beck A Wanker Do Not Call Jeff Beck A Wanker
Music Journalism has always been somewhat of an oxymoron, and we all remember the Frank Zappa definition, well probably not all of us; certainly no one from the Alibi . And while I realize standards in all industries have taken a huge downturn in terms of quality, this is especially dangerous in the field of music journalism which has never had far to fall. This was made frighteningly clear by Adam Perry’s latest review of Jeff Beck’s latest album, which I haven’t heard, but which I intend to purchase immediately after reading Adam’s review [Music, “Sonic Reducer,” April 29-May 5]. He may be right about the album, but he preceded it with an opening that made it clear that he doesn’t know much about music history. To paraphrase, Adam basically stated that Beck did nothing noteworthy in the mainstream between his time with The Yardbirds and playing on a horrible Rod Stewart tune in the ’80s. You see Adam, there was this little album Jeff did in 1975, hmm what was it called? Oh yeah, Blow by Blow . It did pretty well. Platinum. You see Adam, back in the ’70s when your album went platinum, it meant you sold a whole mess of ‘em. That was followed by Wired , in ’76 which also went platinum. Blow by Blow is fairly well known among musicians as tenderizing the mainstream listening public to the possibilities of instrumental guitar, which made the road a lot easier for the likes of Joe Satriani. The bigger issue here is that the music critics at the Alibi need us all to pitch in and help them. So here’s my contribution. There’s this site called Wikipedia, and you should visit it before you write a review that involves any preface containing history, then even if you know nothing about music or journalism, you can write with some degree of psuedo-authority. I challenge the other Alibi readers to pitch in and help, like I have done. Provide these folks with some tools they can use to improve their "reporting." If we don’t act now to save the Alibi critics, they could end up falling to the lowest levels inhabited by the likes of the Daily Lobo , which last year, or the year before actually printed these two words with this spelling: Jimmy Hendrix.
Letters: Music Editor’s Note Music Editor’s Note
From now on you can read Adam Perry’s writing in the Santa Fe Reporter ,where he’s taken a staff position.
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