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The Dipster Handbook

In MUGGER's piece about Harvey Milk High School (MUGGER, 8/6), I agree with Russ (and the Times) that the segregation of gay students will do little to dismantle intolerance in high schools. Exposing close-minded homophobes to a diverse student body is a better way to convey that a gay lifestyle is normal. There isn't a high school in the country that doesn't have its fair share of bullies and meatheads, but kids are tough and have always had to deal with mistreatment and intolerance. Exposing kids to diversity conditions them for what they will experience in the real world. Shouldn't we be hiring teachers who promote acceptance instead of segregating students?

MUGGER goes on to claim that students at Harvey Milk will inevitably demand that their curriculum include more discussion of gay culture and history. His opinion, as he states it, is as follows:

"But high schoolers ought to learn the basics, such as the number of states in this country, rudimentary chemistry, and maybe even how to spell. A semester-long examination of literary pedophiles can wait until after graduation."

What the fuck does pedophilia have to do with homosexuality? Does MUGGER think there is a link between homosexuality and people who molest children? In making this statement, he sounds like a blatant homophobe himself. I suppose he is trying to be funny, but in the process he exposes himself as an overgrown bully who probably made fun of gay classmates in high school himself.

Robert Lanham, Editor, FREEwilliamsburg.com

Russ Smith replies: Touchy, touchy. No, I wasn't trying to be funny. An examination of literary pedophilia is a valid topic for any student in college, gay or straight. The point is that high schools ought to teach basic subjects?which almost none does?rather than concentrate on more esoteric, and demanding, essays. Pedophilia, obviously, isn't restricted to either hetero- or homosexuality. But there is a misperception that gays are more drawn to the practice?the horrific persecution of gay Boy Scout leaders, for example?and so it's understandable that a refutation of this assumption might occur to a Harvey Milk teenager.

I wasn't a bully in high school, but Lanham's new role as a thought policeman, rather than silly arbiter of what's cool and what isn't, strikes me as ugly intolerance on his part.

Sounds like Last Night

Regarding Armond White's review of Le Divorce ("Film," 8/13): Fire your proofreader. The name of the tv show is Sex and the City, not Sex in the City. If you'd made that gaffe out loud in a cocktail bar on the Upper East Side, you'd have been drenched in sweet-smelling girl-booze, then held down by a former Dartmouth lacrosse player while a horde of yuppie bacchants beat you with their pointy shoes.

Shawn Carter, Manhattan

Nothing Novel Here

Very interesting piece by Jim Knipfel on novelizations ("Books," 8/6). Publishers can make a load of money off novelizations (or "tie-ins"), but first they have to have something to sell. It's simple economics. You have millions of eyes seeing your tag in a film or one-sheet, "Read (name of publisher)'s book." Some will.

Did you know Isaac Asimov's "classic" Fantastic Voyage is a novelization? Yet, it's read in high schools to this day. And no less a best-selling author than Stephen King's first writing was novelizations of Edgar Allen Poe movies.

However, the field has not been "all but unheard of since the mid-80s." When I was working for Pocket Books, the leaders in the field, they offered both the novelization and the original true account of an incident that became the movie The Ghost and the Darkness.

Patrick Lozito, Brooklyn

Ben's It Shitlist

Regarding Andy Wang's article "Blogger Gurls" ("Music," 8/6): New Rock City darlings The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, in all their art-directed splendor, were recently interviewed by NY1 celeb-stalker George Whipple while attending an Entertainment Weekly-sponsored soiree. Inwardly, but palpably, they were squirming; eventually Karen O(ver) managed to eke out some punk-rock bromide like, "Entertainment Weekly can't change us, we're gonna change Entertainment Weekly." Yeah, Karen, you and Christina Aguilera.

The discomfort and incongruousness of the moment were mirth-inducing, yet Whipple, despite his tele-personality unctuousness and those voluminous eyebrows, acquitted himself more or less admirably. The YYYs, on the other hand, were forced to dredge their meager imaginations in vain for some posture, any posture, that would definitively drive a wedge between their shrill form of showbiz hucksterism and Whipple's. This proved impossible, and not just because Karen O(ld News) and the gang long since upended their shallow bag of tricks. The YYYs, like the NYC rock scene, are a Madison Ave. creation with a St. Mark's Place esthetic.

When Madison Avenue packs up and moves its three-ring circus downtown, it makes sure to dress its minions appropriately. Enter the blogger gurls and boyz, each one a hype-slinging sheep in lone-wolf's clothing. (It's typically Bedford Ave. of Andy Wang to interpret Laura's comment, "I don't like people I don't know" as iconoclastic rather than horribly elitist.) These junior publicists sully the integrity of fandom by parlaying half-assed opinions and social cachet into scenester success. Though their primary allegiance is ostensibly to bands still in the bloom of New Rock City ascendancy, they happily attend Beck and Blur shows, accepting favors from "sources" just like veteran hacks.

And like the New Rock City hypemeisters at the Voice, the Blogger Bunch shows no interest in burgeoning talent. The Vicious organizers' priority, as they admit, is catching bands "on their way up," presumably so that ten years down the road, safely ensconced in suburbia, "Jasper" and "Audrey" can run their fingers lovingly over the pages of their rock 'n' roll scrapbook and grow misty-eyed at the memory of snorting coke with Chloe Sevigny's brother.

None of this has anything to do with music. It's about basking in the promise of future bling-bling, the aura of soon-to-be-Itness. Well, maybe that's unfair. As "Audrey" claims, Vicious is about creating "a community" conducive to the proper reception of on-the-rise rock 'n' roll artists. Watch out for that c-word. Having had some experience with Audrey's indie-rock ilk, I venture to guess that "community" in this context roughly translates to "a loose conglomerate of vaguely arty, resplendently Caucasian, fiercely elitist social cliques." However, if a night of mediocre music, celeb-spotting and lite fascism is your thing, you probably will enjoy Vicious?or a Saturday evening in the Hamptons. It's all good.

Bands should be wary of getting mixed up with the Blogger Bunch. Remember the exquisite embarrassment of that Whipple-YYYs encounter. That's what remains when the hype cycle runs its course. Neither popular enough to command the cover of a mainstream music mag nor declasse enough to entice NYC's indie-esoterica curators, played-out New Rock City bands are on a collision course with a certain pair of emphatic eyebrows.

Benjamin Kessler, Brooklyn

Homeboy Hedges

In your review of Chris Hedges' What Every Person Should Know About War ("Books," 8/13), the author claims that the Army is recruiting the lower ranks?intellectually and socioeconomically?of kids. I say this to him:

1. You need a high school diploma to get in the door. No more lower-end types. The ASVAB (qualifying test) is not easy. Many of the weapons are complicated to use. Sam wants no dummies.

2. The comment regarding recruiting or enlisting many minorities is utter bullshit. The composition of the military is a very close reflection of the composition of society. This is nothing more than race whining.

3. The comment on "disadvantaged" gets the same response as #2. Kids out of high school look for the best opportunity they can find. Many are attracted to the military. That does not guarantee them admittance. The requirements are stringent. The author is a left-wing political writer who will shade the truth without conscience to send his skewed message.

I make these comments from the following perspectives:

1. Thirty-four years of high school instruction, currently including a high school with a JROTC program that has been a positive influence on many young people.

2. Twenty-nine years in the Army and reserves?retired colonel and proud of it.

Those who defend freedom often do not get credit. We don't expect it. It is easy for the homeboys who don't stand on the front lines to whine about the politics of war. Your author at least has been a few places, and I admire him for his experiences and candor, but he is just another lost lamb. Without his "trained killers," we would be speaking either German, Japanese or Russian.

Dave Cathers, Richmond, VA

Giggling at Gigli

Armond White's review of Gigli ("Film," 8/6) was way off target. There are no redeeming qualities in this picture. Not one. Your ideas about the film's take on romance, sex, gender and race are imaginative leaps from your own mind. None of it exists in the film. The Ricki character isn't raceless. Look again?it is pretty clear to me that she is Italian. As for the fact that she is a lesbian, that is just Brest's way of throwing a currently trendy topic into the mix of his very muddled picture. He just wants to seem cool. The idea (and it is idea rather than fact) of Ricki's lesbianism is thrown in as the obstacle to their eventual heterosexual union, just like a husband, fiance, wife, girlfriend or natural disaster would be. An obstacle to the romantic match is a standard cinematic trope. Notice how quickly the lesbian lover is dispensed with. I appreciate your desire to see mainstream film tackle these issues, especially issues of interracial sexuality, but this is not the film to go to bat for.

P.L. Malino, Queens

Mr. Gold 1000

I enjoyed your article about Nick Guarino and how he is against Wall Street ("Mr. Dow 1000," 8/6) and sees the Dow going down to 1000. But what does he think of well-established junior gold mining stocks? Someone should start talking about these, because if gold trades $400 an ounce, these stocks could move 1000 percent.

Brian Collen, Hermiston, OR

The Sequel Sucked

Do you realize that when Arnold heads up to Sacramento (MUGGER, 8/13) he will be the second actor from the movie Predator to become a governor? Jesse "The Body" of course being first. Who would have thought the guy with the line "Bunch of slack-jawed faggots around here! This stuff will make you a goddamned sexual Tyrannosaurus, just like me!" would have entered politics first? I'm thinking Carl Weathers must be good for at least Secretary of State.

Dave Jones, Manhattan

Dick Tracy

Losers. And that includes you, Matt Taibbi. I don't want to know about the boner you get when reading Seventeen magazine ("Cage Match," 8/6). That is not a take, and you still suck! It's the bottom of the ninth; you're behind. You've got two outs, and you're 0 and 2. Get ready for a little chin music. As predicted last week, you chased that curveball in the dirt. Get ready to take a seat, losers, 'cause here comes the Express...

Tracy Meadows, Brenham, TX

Keep Your Head in the Game

Taibbi: I agree with you, but only to a point ("Cage Match," 8/13). The fact is, this crew has shown that their ultimate goal is unbridled power. Thus far, they have gone to lengths that would have been unimaginable even five years ago to secure it. They've been pretty clear that they not only want total control, but that they would like to squash all opposition or criticism as well. I think you and I would agree that we don't want to live in a one-party state. I wasn't crazy about Reagan or Bush, but the dynamic in those times simply was not as threatening as now. We could afford to tune them out. We can't afford to do it now.

As much as my life might be more pleasant if I were to just "tune it all out," the consequences of doing so are unimaginably horrid. That's how we got to where we are now?at least half of the folks out there have been "tuned out" for years. It's why BushCorp has been able to get away with everything they've gotten away with thus far.

We don't have to make anything up?we just have to point to the widely publicized actions of BushCorp and the Republican party?and point to it over and over and over again, until it finally sinks in. And we can't do that if we aren't paying attention. Now if only the Democratic Party would buy a clue and do the same.

Jennifer Polk, Little Rock

Clipped & Saved

As a subscriber in California, my issues come late, so I'm sorry about this late response, but I wanted to compliment Mark Ames on his hilarious and dead-on review of Barney Hoskyns' The Sound and the Fury ("Books," 7/16). I'm going to photocopy and save this review, I enjoyed it so much.

David Goldweber, Berkeley

Probably Not

A couple years ago, you asked me to fill out a survey. In return, you promised I'd receive a New York Press t-shirt.

I completed and returned the survey. Never got the t-shirt. I wrote you, asking where the t-shirt was. You even printed my letter. Never received the t-shirt. A few weeks ago, I was asked to complete another survey. And I was promised a t-shirt.

I completed and returned the survey. Never got the t-shirt. So I wrote, asking where the t-shirt is. You even printed my letter. Never received the t-shirt. Will you print this letter? Will I ever receive a New York Press t-shirt?

Jeff Stevenson, Manhattan

You Forgot Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer

Way to go, guys! Your response to my letter ("The Mail," 8/13) proved only one thing: that you have absolutely no clue what you are writing about, and have no interest whatsoever in actually researching the topics you write about. This is sloppy journalism, plain and simple.

My letter included statistics about romance readers and the genre that entirely blew your picture of our readers out of the water. My letter also included a list of popular movies that were literally romance novels on the screen?The Princess Bride, Pirates of the Caribbean, Sleepless in Seattle, You've Got Mail, Emma, The Wedding Singer, When Harry Met Sally, Big Daddy, Shakespeare in Love, Kate and Leopold, Never Been Kissed, The Mask of Zorro, While You Were Sleeping?that showed those who have never read a romance novel (like you), and whose assumptions of the genre are incorrect (like yours), the reality.

Of course, were you to use these parts of my letter, it would have dispelled the myths of your article, and shown your readers the substandard quality of your publication's research and writing.

Laura Mills-Alcott, Niles, OH

Goin' Back in Cali

MUGGER: Davis is a swine (MUGGER, 8/13). He's the worst sort of filth that walks the planet. Here's my take on the recall. You wrote: "I still don't believe that Davis, although a dirty and deceitful public official, ought to be subject to de facto impeachment less than a year after his reelection, but then California's are a very strange state that few can comprehend."

It'd be easy to believe all this if you lived here. The recall of Davis is about the failure of the Republican Party as much as it is about the nasty, dirty-talking slimeball in the Governor's house in Sacramento. The Republican offering?Bill Simon?was an incompetent embarrassment. He did not deserve the job and the voters rejected him. He will be rejected again on October 7.

Had the Republicans presented an experienced, likeable alternative, the voters would have elected her, and we wouldn't be in the middle of this costly?but extremely necessary?recall process.

Think about the cost and trouble of collecting all those names and signatures, mailing them to the counties, and having them counted and verified. That's a huge job. More than a million voters went to all that trouble just to send this guy back to the manure pile that he came from, less than a year after electing him. All this effort tells us something. It says that the voters realize they made a big mistake. Once they realized it, they then went to a great deal of trouble and expense to fix it. I'm proud of 'em.

That's what this election is about: fixing one of the biggest blunders in California politics. I printed up a bunch of copies of the initiative and passed them out during my lunches at the local gin mills. I was pleasantly surprised by both the anger of the voters and their calm determination to cleanse the state of this pestilence. The recall is serious business here, not the joke that the donkeys of the press would have you believe.

The two reasons the recall is portrayed as a carnival?one that Mencken surely wishes he was here to lampoon?is first, that the Republicans have not one single respectable candidate to present, and two, the smug hypocrites that pollute the newspapers, magazines, and airwaves can't believe the voters can think for themselves.

The recall says good things about California voters. I almost wish I was one.

Jim Klein, San Francisco