Disrespecting tha D
I can't believe the nerve of Metro Times selling out the image of Detroit by putting Eminem on the cover; of all things he's pointing the finger at Eight Mile Road which he doesn't even come from (Metro Times, Oct. 30-Nov. 5). How much did these people get paid to glorify that untalented ass clown in your articles? Eminem is an insult to real Detroiters and the art of hip hop itself, Eminem is just a pop artist and I don’t think he should be spoken of so highly. Calling your mother a bitch and knocking up a chick and popping pills on a record doesn't make anyone special, it just makes you a moron. And this new 8 Mile movie is just a bunch of self-glorifying Hollywood hype. Let’s just dismiss Eminem as the fake bullshit artist he really is; next time Metro Times can interview a real artist, who actually respects Detroit for the beautiful city it is. —Jim Hogan, [email protected], Windsor
Disrespecting the artist
What it is about success that makes people want to not to celebrate it? Why do people always have to make sure there is something dirty about everything?
This missive detailing the "other half" of the Slim Shady story is riddled with thinly veiled references to Slim's shadiness as an artist ("The real Slim Shady," Metro Times, Oct. 30-Nov. 5). This is ridiculous. First, it should be expected that an artist's own life would work it's way into his art. Second, everyone raised in the suburbs is not rich and happy. Finally, 8 Mile is where the suburbs and Detroit meet. From Warren you can walk across the street to Detroit.
Marshall Mathers did not develop the skills that drive everyone so mad with envy at his mom's house or school. He developed them through the culture he found in Detroit, and the surrounding and nearby outlets. Further, to imply that Slim got all his game from people telling him how to change it up is stupid. Who has ever made it without advice, without mentors and supporters, and above all, believers? It's called inspiration. It's called evolution. We learn. We grow. Jealousy sucks. Let Slim have his goddamn day. — Cheri Clair, Dearborn
Gunning for Jack
Jack Lessenberry, that you have the audacity to pen drivel doesn't surprise me, but your inability to focus on facts does ("Shots in the dark," Metro Times, Oct. 23-29). You have distorted facts to drive your opinions. The so-called "National Ballistics Database" is not based on sound scientific fact. The "fingerprint" your anti-gun view is touting changes with age and ammunition, therefore rendering a possible match slim at best. Your shallow interpretation of the NRA's goals clearly shows your lack of knowledge as to the purpose the NRA was founded upon. But all of this pales in comparison to your narrow-minded view of why "gun nuts," as you so cleverly labeled us, feel the way we do, and why we need organizations like the NRA to protect our rights.
One point you seem to have conveniently omitted from your article is the Second Amendment; did you ever wonder why it was placed in the Constitution? You should take a second look at the NRA and all that it does, for it has the backing of millions of concerned Americans. Its goal is to preserve the heritage of this country and what it actually stands for, freedom. —A.T. Ingram, Tecumseh
Straight to the gut
Brian Smith's honest, no-holds-barred journalistic attack is a refreshing wind in this city's change. Not since Creem magazine roamed these weary, Rock City streets has their been such a hard-hitting music writer. From the near-perfect account of the Rockets' implosion to the classic "good rocker gone bad and back to good" piece on Alice Cooper, Smith's words ring of knowledge and veracity. When he described a local band’s CD as a "cranial gang rape gone awry," I about pissed myself! Hey, any press is good press. —Kirk Morrison, [email protected], Livonia Send comments to [email protected]
