Congratulations on a thorough and well-researched article on the execution of Betty Lou Beets (26 February 2000). Although the mainstream media reported on the story extensively, your article is the only one I've seen that accurately identified all of the complex issues raised by this profoundly troubling case.
MW
Ottawa, Canada
27 February 2000
Dear Mr. Walsh;
I would never dispute that "Marry a Millionaire" was an abomination. But I'd like to point out that the principal plot element not of just one program but of at least half the US broadcast television shows for the last 40 years has been murder. So while it's nit-picking to go after a single phrase this way, I have to dispute your "TV hits bottom," as we've seen much worse for decades. Murdoch's live broadcast from the whorehouse may be distressing, even nauseating, but certainly less so than Hollywood's infinite abattoir. America's culture of greed rests upon the foundation of America's methodically cultivated culture of violence.
Yours,
WK
25 February 2000
To whom it may concern:
I just discovered your web site and I enjoy it. The articles are well written and informative. Keep up the good work.
Sincerely,
KC
New York
25 February 2000
Dear Editors,
The review of The Hurricane is generally excellent. I appreciate its reference to the social and political dimensions of the real story. Their near total omission from the film, coupled with the familiar endorsement of the system which, apparently, never allows the oppressed any means of achieving justice save passive spiritual transcendence, must be considered before making any final judgment of the work.
Reviewer J. Cooper writes that The Hurricane doesn't tell us that subsequent to Judge Sarokin's 1985 ruling, the prosecution appealed the case all the way to the US Supreme Court. The film does present this information, albeit through the minimal means of a title card displayed just prior to the closing credits.
UC
24 February 2000