Cross Purposes
Like Jean Tuthill (Letters, September 24), I'm a Christian, too, but I don't think having a sense of humor is a sin; and since I'm not a psychologist, I don't consider myself qualified to sit in Freudian judgment on Peter Gilstrap. I see him as a slightly eccentric art collector with a brilliant gift for humor. The Jesus of the Week is uproariously funny and very entertaining. Hopefully, a few cross-waving soreheads won't dissuade you from running it.
Shari York Stowell
via the Internet
Showcase and Tell
Kudos to Michael Roberts for the work that went into the 1998 Westword Music Awards Showcase supplement, in the September 17 issue. It points to a thriving local music scene. Unfortunately, that scene is often kept from the ears and minds of anyone under 21. It wasn't always that way.
I recently took my thirteen-year-old daughter to see the Squirrel Nut Zippers at what felt like an oversold Ogden Theatre. We were among those packed in like sardines in the "under 21" balcony (good thing for the promoters the fire marshal was somewhere else).
Alcohol hasn't always mattered that much at such events. On the way home from the show, I was reminiscing about a place in Philadelphia in 1967 that had been a bar but was operated by people with no interest in selling booze to the people who came to hear Frank Zappa, Lothar and the Hand People and other "cutting-edge" bands. Sure, some of the patrons were hopelessly stoned, but they were the minority. Most of us among the all-ages crowd were there to listen to and absorb the music.
Today, if under-21 folks are lucky enough to gain entry into the smaller venues, we segregate them in a section away from the "more mature." But more often, as in cases like the Music Awards Showcase, they're just left out, period.
Over the last three decades, a lot has changed for the better, but our obsession with alcohol isn't one of the shining moments, especially when we treat the up-and-coming generation as second-class.
Pete Simon
Arvada
I just want to say that the 8-Bucks Experiment has changed my life! All I can say is: Wow!
Ashley Morin
via the Internet
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