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H.B. CONFIDENTIAL
Nick Schou's column “Arrest Houchen Now, Ask Questions Later” [July 16] really brought back some memories. You see, I was one of those to whom Schou referred was arrested in Huntington Beach several years ago on the Fourth of July. Most of us arrested that day had similar stories and endings: one guy was arrested IN his home with the door open, trying to stay cool while sipping on a cool one. The rationale? The door was open, so I guess he was intoxicated in public. As for me, I was helping friends set up a Ping-Pong table on the front lawn. My friend's wife brought us a couple of cool ones, which were open. I took a sip and sat it down to continue the project. All of a sudden, a blue van roared up with a SWAT team of H.B.'s finest to arrest us. We were fingerprinted and held in the area, which Schou writes about. I was released the next morning around 5 and had to walk back to my friend's house, where I was parked. (Making matters worse, I was late for work.)
This past Fourth, I thought about attending the city's celebration. It sounded like it was going to be a great event. Then I thought again. I stayed home in Yorba Linda, safe and sound.
Anonymous
via e-mail
BUSHED
Enough already—we get it! You HATE George W. Bush [Rick Perlstein's “The Church of Bush,” July 23]. Now can you kindly get off it and do some real work—LOCAL stories like Tony Rackauckas, Gregory Haidl, the OC supervisors, the creepy grabby-pants priests and all the other assorted weasels in positions of power who have a direct local impact on our lives? It's not like there's some shortage of negative George Bush coverage in your paper; every week, we've gotta hear Steve Lowery or Rebecca Schoenkopf all angry with Bush like he stole their girlfriend[s]. Quit wasting ink on Dubya and go find some real [bad guys]. I'm sure there are more Dave Garofalos or Tod Browns out there, just waiting to be exposed.
Mike Winter
Newport Beach
Thanks a lot for Perlstein's eye-opening look at conservatives' love affair with Bush. The article answered some questions for me, though it didn't necessarily make me feel any better. Actually, after reading it, I think I'm a little more scared now. Thanks anyway.
Don Ehrling
Costa Mesa
COURAGE
Nadia Afghani is offended because FBI investigators went to her mosque to question board members about Adam Gadhan, an al-Qaeda translator [“Terror-fied,” July 9]. Should the FBI not have gone there because some people in the mosque might feel ashamed that a former congregant had terrorist connections? Should CNN not report the story? It's a fact that Gadhan became a Muslim at this mosque, and it is in the public interest to be told of this.
Nadia is also angry because elementary schoolchildren pick on Muslim girls who wear scarves. School kids pick on almost anyone who stands out as different. As for the death threats Nadia says her mother got as a teacher at a Muslim elementary school, I would be angry, too. I can only hope that I would not have lost my sense of reason as a result of that anger, as it seems Nadia has.
Jay S.
via e-mail
The editor responds: How very generous of you, S., to allow that someone might become angry at receiving death threats. How very brave of you, S., to scold children picked on for their religion and culture—and not just by other kids—for complaining. And how completely hypocritical of you, S., to chide someone for voicing concerns about her own government's harassment when you don't have the guts to give so much as your last name. Write us again when you grow a spine.
BUILDING MATERIAL
As president of the French Park Association and chairman of the city's Historic Resources Commission, I want to thank Gustavo Arellano for his article on [Santa Ana City Councilwoman] Claudia Alvarez and her relationship with Michael Harrah [“Campaign Non-disclosure,” July 16]. I've opposed One Broadway Plaza since I became aware it would have a significant adverse impact on Santa Ana's historic resources, and the more I've learned about the project, the more strongly I've fought it. I've never been able to understand what the council majority sees in that building, and I was astonished when Alvarez declined to recuse herself after disclosing she'd received major financial contributions from Mr. Harrah.
Paul Giles
Santa Ana
FOOD'OH!
It pains me to point out an error in OC Weekly, especially when it means poking a hole in Gustavo Arellano's armor. His article [“74 Great Hole-in-the-Wall Restaurants,” July 16] inspired Pavlovian salivation but was wrong on one key detail: Anaheim's Costa Rica Restaurant is neither the only Costa Rican restaurant in the country nor the county. In Westminster, there is one called Pura Vida.
Taryn Dickinson
Westminster
Born in Romania, I am craving sarmale once in awhile, together with the other stuff of my late mom's cooking. So I was pleased to see Dunarea on your list. Problem is that although the food is good, the place is depressingly dark, with bored waiters and a freakin' big-screen TV showing gawd-awful Romanian pop videos, which are the strong second reason I left Romania, the first being the slight discomfort of living under Ceausescu's dictatorship.
Victo Surpaceanu
Laguna Beach
