Thanks so much for the write up in last week’s Alibi [On the Scene, “Hunab Hookah’s Up All Night,” June 14-20]. Generally speaking, free publicity is good publicity. Loved the headline, but … the article didn’t mention Hunab Hookah till the fifth paragraph, so came across more as a rant against the under-21 scene here in Albuquerque than a send up of the hookah lounge. In fact, Winning Coffee House, Blue Dragon, The Cell, Sol Arts, The Compound and even Denny’s, Village Inn and IHOP were all mentioned before Hunab Hookah.Although the overall tone of the article was hopeful, and the comparison is somewhat flattering, the tone of being compared to Insomnia as not being able to survive was less than inspiring. I surely would have preferred not to read the fateful statement in the second paragraph, “good-hearted attempts usually wink out of existence." So I guess I’ll join in with your staff and “cross my fingers." (With press like this, we should all do a little extra finger-crossing for Hunab Hookah!)There was one major problem with the facts of the article—it stated that Hunab Hookah is closed Tuesday and Wednesday. That is not true and I’m not sure where that info came from. Hunab Hookah is open seven days a week starting at 7 p.m. every day.Finally, I would like to point out that I welcome bands to come play at Hunab Hookah—I’m not just “willing to let bands intrude" as stated in the article! If I was in a band, I don’t know if this article would influence me either way as to whether or not I’d want to play there. The feedback I’ve gotten from bands playing here has all been super positive. They feel like they are playing at home to their friends and families. I wish the article could have conveyed what an awesome venue Hunab Hookah is.
Letters
Editor’s note: The hours for Hunab Hookah (3400 Consitution NE) were taken from the business’ website, www.hunabhookah.com, which has since been updated.
Hard Evidence
Demarco’s interview with Benjamin Radford, “Repelling Pseudoscience” [Talking Points, June 7-13], was revealing. Radford’s evasive responses underscore why career skeptics have never found proof of space alien existence: They refuse to look at hard evidence even when presented to them. Reason: If they were to ever admit that aliens are or were here on Earth, skeptics would be exposed as the real frauds—lucrative funding would instantly evaporate. In 1998, I discovered a rock with an embedded part that looks like an electronic connector. My rock has been covered globally by several important media. Numerous photos, including Xray photos, were taken of it. Even after extensive global publicity, no one has identified the embedded part as manmade (not an XLR plug).In October 2003, I took my rock to the CSICOP international meeting at the Radisson. I begged several career skeptics there to test and analyze it, including Dr. Ken Frazier, editor of Skeptical Inquirer . All refused to even look at it for five minutes. After repeatedly pleading with CSICOP to no avail, I finally got so angry with their continued self-serving, stubborn refusals to at least look at my hard evidence that I banned them.I am again willing for them to examine my rock under three conditions: (1) No destructive testing or handling. (2) The rock is never out of my sight. (3) I timely receive free high-quality full copies of all their data, images, write-ups and analyses of my rock and the right to freely publish them for myself.I suspect that again they will refuse and continue to evade and lie about the existence of alien evidence.
Rove’s 100-Year Rule
Patrick J. Rogers may be innocent of boasting about getting rid of former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias [Letters, “Innocent of Boasting,” June 14-20] but he fails to see the importance of the scandal of Gonzo Gate. Karl Rove and Co. have turned the Justice Dept. into a political wing of the Republican machine with no less a goal than continuing to steal elections toward Rove’s boast of a 100-year rule by his right-wing/fascist/phony Christian cabal.Yes, the Democrats’ probe of this may take until the election of 2008, but justice must prevail and it’s no easy task versus the stonewalling of Bush and Gonzales. May the Democrats courageously push on.
Schradering Like The Don
That does it. I’m Schradering. I’ve invented this new term. It’s a verb, and it refers to what you do when you’re mad as hell and you’re not gonna take it anymore, when voting is just not cutting the mustard because corporations you never get to vote for have hijacked the government and run off with the planet to gobble it all up like a pit bull with a carcass, and old snarl-face Cheney and his Dubya finger puppet blithely crank up the slaughter while the do-nothing Democrats piss and moan but eventually just belly-up and hand over the checkbook. You get so fed up, you do like the Don. Don Schrader, that is.I like the Schrader approach. It’s nonviolent, very effective in large numbers and recognizes a simple fact: A person can control nothing on this Earth but their own self. If even 30 percent of us decided to Schrader, I bet we would effectively drain the money-pool these corporate sharks depend on and leave them all gasping and flopping and wondering why we just aren’t buying it anymore.Really, I thought it would be a major drag to give up owning a car. I felt some real trepidation, as if I had just signed up for an expedition to the Southern Magnetic Pole without a parka or huskies. I made it a lot easier on myself by getting a job within walking distance of my home; and with all the walking and bicycling, I’ve never been in better health. Exercise has become a real pleasure, which is naturally integrated into my new lifestyle rather than something I never have time to schedule in. I am over the 40 hump this year, and I have a butt like a 16-year-old to show for all this altruistic commitment. Also, in giving up a car, I have given up car payments, auto insurance, traffic stress, gas prices, hideous repair bills and all those red-light camera worries along with the rather frighteningly high odds of being all mashed up in a highway accident. Just try to imagine all the money I save.I thought of a bumper sticker that says: “Park your car, not your ass,” but I figure it would look pretty stupid on a car, and even stupider on my ass. Have you seen the Don lately? Well, you can’t really help it, since he runs around practically naked, but he must be at least 60 and he looks all buff and fabulous. As for me, I’m gonna keep my clothes on, thank you, and continue with my “straight but not narrow” sexual orientation. I would not go back to car ownership if you paid me. In Berlin, where I lived for a time, several neighbors would get together and share a car and all its expenses. There’s an idea.
Sunday Morning Soccer Alarm
[RE: News Feature, “Taken for a Ride,” June 14-20] Typical “not in my backyard” mentality. I empathize with the elderly couple but the desire to conserve or to preserve something as dynamic and fluid as culture (and the outgrowth of it) is simply nonpractical and to some elitist. A neighborhood is going to change between 1949 and now; they should be thankful that it’s only noisy cyclists they have to deal with and not drug dealers, prostitutes and gangbangers. Hey! Maybe they should close down the track so that all the kids that are currently racing can become drug dealers, prostitutes and gangbangers and then they can come back to the neighborhood so that the residents can have a real reason to complain.When I first moved to Albuquerque I lived in an area near a park where every Saturday and Sunday morning I would be woken up by the sounds of kids playing soccer. At first I was kind of bent. But I quickly realized waking up to the sounds of kids laughing and having a good time was thousands of time better than waking up to much more serious sounds like gunfire and fighting.
Bmx Hooligans
RE: News Feature, “Taken for a Ride,” June 14-20] I wholeheartedly agree with the above comments; a neighborhood is going to change over time, and yes, the sounds of children laughing and playing are far better than the sounds of drug-addicted losers conducting “business."I would like to add that I can’t imagine the sounds of the BMX track are worse than the sounds emanating from the football stadium and Isotopes Park! We are talking about thousands more fans, loudspeakers and fireworks to boot.Additionally, I don’t think neighbors need to worry about a bunch of families throwing rowdy “tailgate" parties and getting drunk before engaging in an athletic event … As a competitive athlete, I can say with complete confidence that getting loaded before a race is the farthest thing from my mind. The fact that a resident expressed this concern shows just how detached from the participants these neighbors are. Too bad for them.Why not go on down to the track and check out the racing? I’m just guessing here, but I imagine that upon discovering how family-oriented BMX really is, most neighbors would realize that participants are not a bunch of hooligans, but are really looking for constructive and positive ways to engage kids and parents alike.Just as a side note: I am not a BMX rider or racer. In fact, I really wanted a velodrome to open first, and I was put out when the BMX track took top priority. However, upon seeing what a plus the track is to kids and families, I have totally changed my stance. We don’t offer enough alternatives to kids and teenagers to be active and constructive. Let’s stop complaining and start applauding the kids, parents and the city who have stepped up to create a terrific venue. Shame on you, Alibi , for painting such a bleak picture of what is a step forward for this city!
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