So you're sick of Fidel, eh? Everyone in South Florida is sick of hearing, reading, and seeing reports about Fidel Castro, Cuba, and Cubans ("Adiós, Fidel," Amy Guthrie, April 26). So what do you come up with? Four pages of how sick people in South Florida are of hearing, reading, and seeing reports about Fidel Castro, Cuba, and Cubans. And you add an almost full-page-sized caricature of Fidel Castro.
I'm not sure there's a word to describe such a phenomenon... absurd, perhaps?
Name withheld by request
Via the Internet
Let 'Em Stew
Don't cry over cold shoulders: A shoutout to New Times, especially Tailpipe (April 26): Stop whining about organizations (Miami Heat, Carnival Cruise Lines, the City of Hollywood) and people (Heat owner Micky Arison and Mayor Mara Giulianti of Hollywood) who refuse to cooperate with you and your reporters! While you correctly went after them all, with good reasons, and exposed their hypocrisy and greed — and big egos — why do you expect them to be friendly to New Times now?
Yes, I support what you've written about how that phony slimeball, Arison, screwed over the dumb and dumber Miami voters and got a waterfront arena freebie. And, yes, I support your continued efforts to expose the "Eva Braun of Hollywood politics," Mayor Mara, and her devious and underhanded giveaways to her developer buddies.
However, in light of all that, stop crying about them shunning New Times' efforts to expose them even further! Do you expect them to cooperate? Yes, it'll be harder to expose them in the future, but I have confidence in New Times to "get 'em"! Besides, those greedy bastards and two-faced hypocrites can't help themselves. Hang in there, guys and gals! Wipe your eyes and blow your noses — and have a nice day.
Harvey Slavin
Hollywood
Diana Cooks
Your negativity, sir, is unwarranted: We were going to the Diana Ross concert at Hard Rock, so I thought I'd do a Google search on Diana Ross to see what the reviews had been, and this was the first article I read. It was well-written but somewhat negative ("Supreme Diva," Andres Solar, April 26). I pulled up the reviews from every city, and the reviews have been surprisingly excellent compared to what you were preparing us for. I'm not understanding the negativity in your article, when it sounded like this was going to be a great performance.
Steve McGinnis
Oakland Park Nowhere but right here: I saw Diana Ross in concert in 2000 at the Sunrise Arena, 2002 in Boston, 2004 in San Diego and Phoenix, and 2005 in Sarasota. Now she is performing in 2007. You say "comeback." Comeback from what? You need to do better research before you write a column.
Joe Orlando
Fort Lauderdale
Where's Dorell?
Try reading it all: You're a great publication, but unfortunately, last week's cover story was not up to your standards ("The Wright Moves," Ashley Harrell, April 19).
The cover suggested we'd get an in-depth look at the trials and tribulations of a young kid (Dorell Wright) who skipped college for the NBA. Instead, we got what looked like a Heat program profile blown-up to about 2,000 words. What's more, the writer admitted not interviewing Wright or "anybody" from the Heat organization. A few quotes from his roommate and a phone interview with a tattoo parlor? Yeeks! The lack of effort on this piece, combined with the way it was played (cover), was disappointing.
Typically, your cover story would have stayed with a theme or specific look into an aspect of the article like: What's it like to be a benchwarmer? Even without Wright, call former players who experienced the same, talk to his teammates about how he copes, call college coaches he passed on, call his mom, call a sports psychologist... Don't just get a press pass and say, he "cups" people's heads during timeouts and chews gum. Dorell Wright's amazing ability is not fully developed, and neither was that article. As a result, it never should have gotten prime-time play.
Rod Coffee
North Bay Village
Editor's note: Coffee, who obviously skipped most of the 5,000-word piece, should give it another read. And for more on how the Heat stonewalled Harrell, see Tailpipe, April 26.
Old Man River
Unbuilt schools get political: I would like to commend you and thank you for "River of Greed" (Bob Norman, April 19). As someone who is and will be directly affected by this land deal, your efforts brought many things to light, something that our elected officials have failed to do. The only information I have received on this issue has come from reading your article and from talking with my neighbors. I trust that you will keep your reading public advised of any future developments.
Jon Eades
Weston
Cluster's last stand: If done right, the new high school could economically be one of the best things to happen. The area will flourish. Kids are among the largest spending group in the country. Let's talk brass tacks.
Build a new high school, but do it right. Don't build an egg crate with a gym, cafeteria, and segmented classrooms, then fill it up with computers and say it's high-tech! Common sense: The school should be campus style, with cluster buildings separate from each other. Research proves that students learn best in cluster groups in which all academic disciplines are in an intertwined curriculum design. Also, security in large buildings is a nightmare; Columbine occurred in part because of the design. Clusters give teachers the ability to close students off from potential danger.
Cut the whining, moaning, and groaning. Build a new high school, but do it right: Build it to serve the students' needs. Think outside the box.
Dan Mooney
Deerfield Beach
