Shop Talk
Was that varsity or JV?: In response to the DDR letters to the editor (April 1), and with apologies to Jeff Foxworthy: You might be a dork if you have a high school letter in shop and feel compelled to mention it in a letter to the editor.
Name Withheld Upon Request
Bull Run
Animal kingdom: Reading Kendrick Blackwood’s “Bear Market” (April 1) has me thoroughly depressed. For the record, I am a member of the KC Zoo and probably will be as long as I have young children.
I was never a fan of zoos in general, mainly because of the stuffy, confined quarters that most of the animals had to endure. The recent modifications to the zoo in KC, namely the huge expansion of land (and, therefore, the animals’ “quarters”) changed my mind about zoos. I was very happy to see that the animals had at least somewhat ample room to operate. Why shouldn’t the animals have more room? It’s only humane to think of them, and we should do what we can to make them as happy as possible.
What disturbs me the most is the talk around town concerning the zoo. It seems to me that all I hear about is all the “walking” you have to do when you go to the zoo. God forbid people should get off their lazy asses and walk some on the weekends! I have a four-year-old daughter who loves to go to the zoo, and she walks just about the entire time. Kids need to learn the value of walking — it’s good for them! In this day and age of rising obesity in this country, people should welcome a chance to spend a day in the sun with their kids getting some exercise. Blackwood’s article states that a round-trip walk from the parking lot to Africa is a whopping 3.2 miles. A chance to get some fresh air, see some animals in a somewhat natural environment, some quality educational time with your children, and on top of that, you’ll burn some extra calories.
Quit whining, people! Get out to the zoo and walk — er, I mean, grab a Coke and some chips, and let’s turn on the game!
David Chael
Kansas City, Missouri
Hit Delete
A man with a spam: I have to express my disappointment with your front-page article “The Spammer Next Door” (April 8). Drooling with anticipation, I dove into David Martin’s article about Virtumundo, expecting to taste blood. Instead, I found myself reading yet another article about how spam is bad. These have become almost as numerous and annoying as spam itself.
The piece started with plenty of bite but quickly fizzled a quarter of the way through with nothing to sink its teeth into. With Virtumundo operating well within the boundaries of the law, perhaps an interesting end to the otherwise anticlimactic reporting would have been a discussion about how and why anti-spam legislation could or could not affect Virtumundo’s livelihood. Instead, Martin devolves into attacking founder Scott Lynn for being young, rich, unpopular as a boss, and for having a “pronounced nose.” Last time I checked, these were not crimes. Nor, indeed, were they newsworthy.
This journalistic equivalent to sticking your tongue out at a bully is hardly the fresh, edgy reporting I’ve come to expect from the Pitch. In other words, “The Spammer Next Door” at first appeared to be a juicy steak but wound up tasting a lot more like, well, Spam.
Brooke Weimert
Kansas City, Missouri
Banquet Hell
Coming home to Troost: In the April 1 issue of the Pitch, Joe Miller frequently used our neighborhood’s name — Troostwood — to substitute for the name of the Troostwood Banquet Hall (“The Last Dance”). The deplorable Troostwood Banquet Hall is not located in Troostwood and has absolutely no association with our wonderful Kansas City neighborhood.
We assume the Pitch has inadvertently maligned the reputation of our neighborhood, and we hope someday you’ll write an article about the Troostwood neighborhood itself.
Susan Case
President
Troostwood Neighborhood Association
Kansas City, Missouri
Time Sensitive
How rude: I enjoyed Andrew Miller’s article about Richie Restivo and all the positive letters that followed (“Rude Boy, Dead Man,” March 4).
The hidden message in this article reminded me of what my father drilled into me at a very young age: “wrong place, wrong time.”
Albert Burton
Kansas City, Missouri
Night Vision
Passing the bar: I am writing to express how much I enjoy Jen Chen’s column and especially her choice of adjectives. I was especially amused by “young tanorexics decked out in fuck-me Plaza gear” (Night Ranger, April 1).
Margie Wirth
Kansas City, Missouri
