Letters to the Editor

by the Readers

No Bull

(Re: "Rodeo Drive," by Alex Richmond, Aug. 22, 2002)

I was deeply saddened to see your fluff piece on the Cowtown Rodeo. What you allowed to happen was the whitewashing of one of the most brutal forms of animal entertainment there is.

I know how cruel this rodeo is, for in 1999 I went to it and videotaped the horror that my eyes witnessed.

I saw calves, just three to four months old, lassoed, their bodies snapped back by the pull of the rope thrown around their necks. The cowboy then picks up the baby calf and slams her violently to the ground. Her eyes bulge, her tongue flaps uncontrollably, and drool spills from her mouth. Worst were the cries that this baby made, as she called for help that never came. I captured six such scenes of this on the tape.

Because these animals are passive by nature, acts of physical torture are used to make them crazed and appear wild. One such act is the pulling of the animals' tails. I saw a man grabbing the tails of calves and twisting them in his hand, causing the animal extreme pain. The animal is then launched into the arena.

The same violence happened to the older animals as well. Needing to inflict pain to make a bull appear wild, a cowboy hit him multiple times. Then, with the back of his boot which appeared to have a spur, he kicked the animal in the side, digging it into him.

Finally, I saw horses that were unwilling to perform. They were forced to leave their pen by being hit in the face.

This is the true face of rodeo. It is what they hid from your reporter so that your paper would allow the words "family entertainment" to be associated with such a merciless abuse of animals.

Stuart Chaifetz
Cherry Hill, NJ

We’re Curious, George

(Re: "No Go," Slant, by Stephen Zunes, Aug. 29, 2002)

Professor Zunes provides six excellent reasons why war on Iraq is unwise and ill-advised. George W. Bush certainly has his reasons to want to remove Saddam Hussein from power. Whether or not he is evil, Saddam is certainly antagonistic to U.S. interests. Whether or not he has the ability, he has certainly demonstrated the willingness to inflict serious harm on innocents.

In addition, Bush may want to avenge his father's failure. He may want to shore his approval ratings back up to their post-Sept. 11 levels. He may want to help his friends in the petroleum industry. He may want to bolster his retirement package.

While his deepest motivations remain private, one thing is certain: Americans will be paying the price for his belligerence long after we vote him out of office.

Paul Mange Johansen
Lafayette Hill

Correction

Due to a production error, a caption was missing from Mary F. Patel's story on the Triangle Theater in our cover package on the Fringe Festival ("Right Triangle," Aug. 29, 2002). The photo featured CloudConspiracy director Tlaloc Rivas, Random Acts of Theater's Jane Stojak and First World Theater Ensemble's Zuhariah McGill.

Last week's Artspick on The Passion of Dracula ("A New Vampire Player," by Steve Cohen, Aug. 29, 2002) erroneously reported that the play's lead actor, Alex Vasiliadis, returned to Philadelphia after the death of his mother. It was Vasiliadis' father who passed away.