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KINGDOM GO
I wanted to thank Gustavo Arellano for all the articles he's written, including “King of County Pedophiles” [Feb. 6], exposing the Orange Diocese's pride and joy in harboring child molesters. The Orange Diocese just keeps passing the pedophile crown on. There will be no justice in Orange County if the diocese and its beloved child molesters have any say, and sadly, it's clear that they have been ruling their predatory kingdom in Orange County for decades. Thanks to your newspaper for allowing some of these heinous truths and details to come out, as well as your courage to hear and attempt to stomach these truths and report them despite the “kingdom's” wall of denial. It's only by exposing and reporting the crimes that children now and in the future have any chance of being protected from these predators. It's too late for those of us who already have been and continue to be re-victimized in the Orange Diocese's kingdom.
Mary Grant
SNAP (Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests) BALLS AND CHAIN
There are only two words that can describe my reaction to Jim Washburn's brilliantly written article [“In Defense of Gay Marriage,” Feb. 13]: marry me!
Sue Thompson
Laguna Beach
I am a gay American male. My father died in the Vietnam War—obviously in vain if the persecution of the gay minorities of this country continues. I did not choose to be gay; I was born this way. My straight parents made a gay son. As I see it, you may allow just straight people to be “married” but don't give them any more protection than citizens who aren't allowed to be married. Why should I pay more taxes? Why can't I visit my sick significant other in the hospital? Why should my assets not be protected when I die? We need a few sensible majority straights to go out on the limb a little bit for us. None of us are truly free until we are all free.
Anthony Wandel
via e-mail
Jim, you must have gay friends because you totally get it. My partner of 25 years; our 15-year-old, normal, surfer-girl daughter; and I are grateful for open-minded straights such as yourself. I don't write to newspapers but wanted to thank you for your intelligent thoughts.
Elissa Denham
via e-mail
What is this argument against same-sex marriage that says children are better off raised by a mother and a father? The studies being cited all look at single parents vs. two heterosexual parents. Yes, the results say “it is better to have a mother and a father,” but the rest of the sentence should be “than to have just a mother or just a father.” What difference do these studies make on the question of gay marriage? Gay people getting married is not going to cause fewer straight people to marry or more straight divorces. If a gay couple is going to raise a kid, they are going to do so regardless of whether or not they are allowed to legally marry. The advantage of marriage is the kid really does have two parents, not just a mother and her “friend.” If you want more kids to be raised by “a mother and a father,” outlaw divorce, adultery and premarital sex.
Peter Jackson
via e-mail DIE LAUGHING
I woke up to read that the Pentagon has come out with a secret report that catastrophic climate change will basically end the world by 2020 (16 years and counting), which, of course, left me chirpy and ready to face one of the few days we collectively have left, and then I read Steve Lowery's “Adios, Maria” [Feb. 13]. Thanks so much, Mr. Lowery, for writing it, and thanks to OC Weekly for printing it! On the night of Ah-nuld's “victory,” I called my aged aunt in the U.K. in tears, asking if she wanted to adopt my husband and myself so we could live in a relatively sane place. After laughing hysterically over the fact that yes, indeed, the voters of Kalifornia had elected a Z-grade movie actor whose mauling of the English language made George W. seem Churchillian, my aunt graciously declined. So we're stuck. Thanks for making us laugh because otherwise we'd be crying.
Claire Brown
via e-mail GRAND MAUL
Could you guys get any more P.C.? I just read your stories about animal attacks [Nan Kappler and Steve Lowery's “Animal Attacks,” Feb. 13], and it seems to me that you're arguing that people are asking to get eaten or, at least, that somehow we have this coming because we want our species to survive. Oh, the poor animals; let's not do anything to protect ourselves or build anywhere because it might hurt a horsefly or scrub jay. I'm not one of those people who think we should pave over the rain forest, but I think you have to look at the world realistically. Yes, there are a lot of people, and we take up a lot of space, and so someone has to give up some space. It's either that or start eliminating humans. You'd probably like that.
Craig Humbarger
via e-mail
I was all ready to write you a nasty letter in regards to your story about the pit bull attacking the woman. I was going to say that you were creating paranoia and that the woman who was attacked may have been doing something to incite the dog. Then I just read that a pit bull tore the arms off a grandma. Please feel free to tell me to shut the hell up.
T. May
via e-mail MEDIA LIES
Thank you for Gustavo Arellano's article “Florence Got Nice Paintings” [Feb. 13]. I would like to point out, however, that in the article, he refers to the Puente Project as “a University of California-sponsored outreach program seeking to enroll more Latinos in four-year universities.” Actually, Puente is co-sponsored by the University of California and the California Community Colleges, with additional funding from private foundations. In addition, the program does not target students of any particular ethnicity. It is, and always has been, open to all students.
Christopher M. Rivers
Publications manager, The Puente Project
