It was soooo long ago: I am writing because I fail to see relevance in reporting the information Trevor Aaronson did in his article "Videogames: Just Say No" (November 10).
The piece started out okay — quoting from the Senate bill put forward by Alex Diaz de la Portilla summarizing the consequences if it is passed. But then it disintegrated into totally irrelevant personal gossip, citing a twenty-year-old driving record and a civil matter regarding his girlfriend that pertains nothing to the current bill before the Senate. I don't care if Diaz is a bad driver. I really don't. And that's not the subject of the article anyway. It was supposed to be about the new bill and what it would mean for the people of South Florida.
If your guy Aaronson wanted to talk about Alex Diaz as a person and (the inconsequential) events of his life, fine. But this info shouldn't be mixed in with reporting about what measures Diaz is currently working on in his political career.
I would much rather see Aaronson finding, talking to, and quoting experts on child development and citing reports or studies backing up or refuting the claim that videogames affect children. This article was of help to readers in deciding what to think of the bill. It is a disservice to your readership.
Rebecca Stone
Miami Beach
This game should have been easy to play: Listen, I don't know who gave José Davila the information for "The Language of the Streets" (November 10), but it's not accurate. First of all, the cover charge is five dollars, and doors open at 8:00 p.m. Neither the SoFla Kings or Platano have a weekly night at Hoy Como Ayer. I should know: It's "my" night, and the event is hosted by Key Records. I'm the promoter. Also, the name of the night on Tuesdays at Hoy Como Ayer is called "La Penya 305." There have been other artists at Hoy Como Ayer who are the reason why that night exists, and I don't see any of their names in the article, artists like Mr. Haka, Persona, Cubo, Salazar, and T.H.C.
I understand that this article was about the SoFla Kings and Platano, but don't use the name we built up at Hoy Como Ayer to benefit your story without mentioning the people and artists who built and run Hoy Como Ayer, who are part of the language of the streets. I would like you to update the article with accurate information or take out the parts about Hoy Como Ayer. I wouldn't want this to cause conflict among the artists who attend "my" Tuesday night. I mean no disrespect. I hope you understand.
Frank Campbell
Miami
Editor's Note: Tuesday at Hoy Como Ayer is open-mike nights. We regret any confusion.
From a believer: Mariah Blake's even-handed November 3 article "Starry Fight," about the Christian astronomer, was a bit spoiled by two things. First, Blake says an eclipse is one of "these rare astrological events." What does an eclipse have to do with horoscopes? Maybe Blake needs a dictionary.
The second thing is that Blake gives the impression that all Christians feel threatened by the theory of life on other planets. This might be true of Baptists, Catholics, and others, but Mormonism teaches that there is indeed human life — not just life, but human life — on many other planets and that Christianity exists among the inhabitants of these planets.
Stephen Foster
Coral Gables
From the protagonist: Mariah Blake's story "Starry Fight" was pretty good overall, but I do want to point out some problems.
First, near the beginning she writes that we believers in intelligent design conclude that "a supreme being designed our planet...." Actually, we don't really conclude that; we say there is evidence the universe is designed, but not that the designer is supreme.
Second, she makes it sound like I believe the discovery of extraterrestrials would discredit the Judeo-Christian worldview. Actually, I don't believe that.
Third, concerning the Mere Creation conference, a number of prominent attendees would not describe themselves as believing in a Creator with a capital C — for example, the philosopher John Leslie and the biochemist Michael Denton, neither of whom call themselves creationists (either with a capital or lowercase c).
Finally, I would have preferred that she didn't mention my career being in jeopardy and my not telling my mom and sister about the debate.
Guillermo Gonzalez
Via the Internet
He really liked it: Thank you for Lee Klein's wonderful article about the 1200 Restaurant, "Played to Perfection" (November 3). I had a near identical experience when I dined there a couple of months ago. From the service to the food, everyone and everything was exceptional. I wish more people in Miami would "discover" this gem of a place. I cannot afford to eat there often, but I will be returning for a special occasion before year's end.
Jason Wood
Miami Beach
And we wish 'em success: I just wanted to say thanks to Bill Citara for the great piece about JJ's American Diner, "Retro Revival" (October 27). Prior to his article and a few customer complaints, we decided to make American fries a staple on all hot sandwiches and potato chips on all cold ones. I have also been working hard to get our mac and cheese back to my original recipe. The turnover in prep cooks doesn't help the endeavor! I'm taking our chef to Prime One Twelve this week to taste what I think is the best mac and cheese in our town. If that doesn't work, our next outing will be at Eat on Madison in New York! The quality and consistency of our comfort food is my priority, and our family appreciates any positive or negative feedback you get or can give.
Linda Howard, owner, JJ's American Diner
Coral Gables
On the coke front: I thoroughly enjoyed reading the cocaine-related stories in the "Kilo: Cocaine Made Miami, Part 2" issue. This was my first time picking up your newspaper, and I've never been so enthralled. Great work.
Jessica Segarra
Miami
