Letters to the Editor

Too much man-ass

I'm writing to you today to comment on the Metro Times cover for Feb. 1. I enjoy reading the magazine weekly and enjoy many of the stories. I think that the picture on the cover is in bad taste and does not represent the Super Bowl or the city of Detroit. During Super Bowl week, all eyes were on this wonderful city and the people who live there. I think that there should have been a picture that portrays the city as a wonderful place to visit, not a naked man with a Lions helmet on draped all over a cheerleader. I just voice my opinion as a concerned reader. Other than that I enjoyed this week's publication very much. —Kevin Robinson, Ann Arbor

I'm sure a few "prudes" or "moralists" and John Lennon fans have commented on your cover last week. Your cover missed the maternal (mother and child) aspect of the John & Yoko photo it's based upon and instead focused more on "the football player and the cheerleader."

To me, a parody to such a famous photo (which is associated by many with the tragedy of John Lennon's murder) seemed to be a strange choice for a cover with so many people visiting our city.

I don't know if those who weren't alive (or who were young) when John Lennon was shot would make this association. It's obvious enough to me though. I was wondering if you had a premonition that something bad was going to happen that week and chose that for the cover.

Back to the cover though, I didn't care much for it, but I can't take it too seriously. Lennon had a sense of humor and so do I. It definitely was some kind of a "goof."—Maurice Greenia Jr., Detroit

Mr. Lessenberry: I usually agree with much of what you write. But I think you, and most of the media, continue to overlook the visionary aspect of Governor Granholm's economic plan ("Granholm's halftime show," Metro Times, Feb. 1).

Last year, the governor introduced a proposal to finance, to the tune of $2 billion, the alternative technology sector. Since the federal government has long shown no sign of noticing that the end of oil is — and should be — in sight; and the auto industry has spent all of its energy resisting any form of fuel economy or alternatives to fossil fuel, the governor used her leadership role to steer Michigan toward this inevitable — and desirable — destination. Her hope: that we end up there before the rest of the country. Because if we don't, we may be looking back on these years as the good old days. The surprise is that she figured out a way to convince the Republican Legislature into financing $1 billion. No longer a massive, visionary plan. But still worthy and better than sitting on our hands until we look like Mississippi. This year the governor went even further, spelling out what a "green economy" might look like. Am I the only one who is reading every trend spotter's prediction that this is the wave of the future? The governor is trying to give us a future, here, naysayers.

Additionally, I appreciate the governor using her bully pulpit to continue to make the connection between the health of Detroit and the rest of Michigan. Until she came on the scene, no leader was making this case and the antipathy toward the city went unchecked.

Just because she is an attractive, charismatic speaker does not mean she's a lightweight. She may not be the radical firebrand that I would like her to be, but I appreciate her optimism, vision and leadership style. —Jackie Victor, Detroit

In the recent past, we have seen the sad passing of some real civil rights pioneers, namely Coretta Scott King and Rosa Parks.

But now is not the time to change course or go back. Our society still faces the serious challenge of racism, and we still need affirmative action.

I hope that Michigan citizens will educate themselves on this issue and will not be seduced by out-of-state blandishments featuring confusion and misinformation. I, myself, as a white man, have been caught in the affirmative action context, and I found the situation to be reasonable and sensitively handled. I harbor no resentments or antagonisms.

Every citizen should vote "no" on the Ward Connerly state constitutional amendment. —Steve Walker, Detroit