I finally got it. See? I didn’t get it at first, but now I know!It’s like knowing the secret handshake for the Shriners Convention or the the secret Masonic rule of the universe that allows them superiority over us mere mortals.But I get it when you run the "Mexican" column, with the trademark Mexican picture in black and white. This emasculates the message sent in the original "in color" pic of the Mexican; he loses all depth of character—no gold tooth, or is it just rotten or rotting in the black and white representation?We all know, us writers, that sometimes the keyboard sings and the output is of genius stature and we wonder how we got so eloquent all of a sudden. Then some days the keyboard defecates across the screen and the solid logic intended turns into a paddy of so much cow doo.But thank you, Alibi, for running “¡Ask A Mexican!” in the face of stinging criticism and comments of racism and, worse, plain old bad taste. The truth is “¡Ask A Mexican!” has a true worth in indie papers like the Alibi . Not only does it attract readership and letters of interest, indignation or protest, but also provides a platform for communication, communion and community. It raises the level of intellectual awareness in some readers as well as sparking the interest or ire of others. Mr. Arellano’s sometimes trite responses, sometimes academic, even pedantic and reliance, in the end, on humor is nearly always a worthwhile read.But now I get it, see?When you guys run his column with his faded, emasculated, bland and perhaps, even shady-appearing caricature in black-and-white, the column that week was from one of those days when the keyboard sat on a cow pattie. Then, hopefully, when you run the Mexican caricature in its full-color glory, showing the sparkling, reflecting rays of the sun bouncing off of his characteristic gold tooth, and his in-color representation reflecting humor, comradeship and good will, the column will be extra informative, humorous, spicy or even academic that day.
Letters
Editor’s note: John Boyd the avid letter writer, not John W. Boyd the lawyer.
Call It Querque
[RE: Talking Points, “Burque vs. The Q,” July 26-Aug. 1] Interesting. Word on the street in my ‘hood is that "Burque" is a nickname that was invented by the Alibi for "marketing purposes" (or maybe just to be cool, who knows?). I certainly don’t use "Burque" and have never heard it used in any serious fashion by anyone I know. The "Q" will fare no better, I fear.I do like the Albuquerque Independent Business Association‘s "Keep it Querque!" motto, but, hey!Now that we are the (supposed) capital of the film industry, why not revisit the moniker given our fair city by the string-strummin’ cowboy Johnny Guitar (from the 1954 Nick Ray film of the same name)? Albakurk .Have fun, whatever you call yourself!
Capital Cronyism
[RE: The Real Side, “How Many Divisions has the Veep?” July 19-25] I appreciated your article and I agree with you, unlike Mr. Mitchell, who seems to be in denial [Letters, “Cheney Beloved,” July 26-Aug. 1]. It seems the Cheney/Bush administration isn’t holding itself accountable for much of anything. I think some of those currently in office don’t object to Cheney’s activities because they agree with the outcome or now condone the results. I question Mr. Cheney’s intent.Remember "Mission Accomplished"? Isn’t it true that oil companies are experiencing record-setting dividends and stock splits, to say nothing of Cheney’s own alma mater, Halliburton, bringing in millions (billions?) of dollars from Iraq? Cheney’s cronies are getting richer. And if they’re caught with their hands in the cookie jar, they get pardoned or the D.A. who prosecutes them is fired and replaced by a more sympathetic one.As far as the enormous debt the U.S. is incurring with China and the sanctioning of increased pollution by favored corporations, aren’t these just some pesky problems for future generations? Why would Cheney’s cronies be concerned? Heck, those people don’t even vote, so they won’t influence his future administrations.
Doooom
[RE: Blog, “The Daily Word 07.29.07”] Getting rid of meth heads? Treatment? There is no effective intervention designed exclusively for meth. Even thinking about treatment is not the best use of resources (intellectual or otherwise).The problem comes when people, like Chavez, try to isolate this problem from the broad milieu of other social problems.This is one of the reasons that we as a society are doomed. The main problem we face is not global warming or terrorism or meth. It’s stupid people having a disproportionate number of children early in their reproductive years. These children become statistics—they use meth, they go to prison, they continue the cycle.And not a single politician would even dare bring this up. So forget the meth awareness. Start with acknowledging the root problem.
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