Letters from the Issue of June 9 , 2005

Call me bizarre for asking, but what does Alec Baldwin have to do with anything? He can be pro or con whatever he likes, but why should I give a damn? Is someone even remotely hinting that what Baldwin (or Paris Hilton or the Olsen twins -- they're all the same to me) thinks about political issues should in any way influence mypolitics? If so, that's an insult, and I don't respond well to being insulted.

In other words, if Jimmy Morales (or any politician) wants to impress me, do not stick some two-bit "celebrity" in my face. It is, at the very best, condescending.

Mario Encino

Fort Lauderdale

You've just got to tell me where you found that darling little Beretta: The "Bullet Time" story by Francisco Alvarado (May 5) was a little too cute for the serious subject: citizens carrying concealed firearms in Florida. Alvarado's line "the hand-held howitzer" is downright sophomoric, and his timing is off. The .357 Magnum was already popular among police and gun enthusiasts, and that's why it was showcased in Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry movies.

The Jonathan Postal cover photo for this exposé shows a model flitting across the cover like he's auditioning for a remake of West Side Story. He's wearing a right-handed shoulder holster but actually holding the gun in his left hand. Clint would never make a mistake like that in his films!

It's a shame that all of those people "packing heat" in Miami-Dade County aren't licensed and registered!

John E. Brown

Miami

Editor's note: As other readers have pointed out, Clint Eastwood's character "Dirty" Harry Callahan packed a .44 Magnum, not a .357.

In "Excess Hollywood," a collection of film reviews with summer release dates (May 26), writer/director Stacy Peralta was misidentified. Peralta is a man, not a woman.