Letters to the Editor

Mail letters to Letters, Santa Fe Reporter, PO Box 2306, Santa Fe NM 87504, deliver them to 132 E. Marcy St., fax them to 988-5348, e-mail them to editor@sfreporter.com, or use our online form.


  SATELLITE PRAISE 

Dal Dearmin, general manager of radio station KSFR, said this week in the SFR Talk [July 25, "Tuning In"] that he was listening to satellite radio in his rental car "and suddenly there were commercials," which, in his mind was reason enough not to choose satellite radio.

Well, yes, there are commercials on the talk, news and sports part of satellite radio, but there are no commercials on the music channel side of satellite radio, which, in my book, is all the more reason to choose satellite radio.

If Dearmin is going to talk about satellite radio he should give the complete facts, no?

AL GARCIA
ALBUQUERQUE


  GOOD NEWS 

Nathan Dinsdale's article "Cleaning House" [Outtakes, July 18] implied a lack of progress in the city's Land Use Department under the current administration. In fact, it's quite the contrary. We have made headway in a number of important areas. The article said the department is "battling chronic staffing and technology problems," but failed to mention that Land Use has reduced staffing vacancies from 30 percent down to 6 percent within the last six months-a major accomplishment. We have also upgraded our technology, both hardware and software, and replaced old vehicles with new alternative fuel vehicles. To improve customer service and reduce backlogs, we have cross-trained staff in specialized areas and implemented intensive customer service training. Additionally, this year's budget prioritizes revision of the city's land use code, Chapter 14, which, as many Santa Feans are aware, is rife with inconsistencies. We are also working toward adopting the International Building Code with additional green components.

While there is much work ahead, including filling remaining vacancies, we will continue to improve the Land Use Department. The employees at Land Use are working hard every day to improve the current and future quality of life here in Santa Fe.

JOHN B HIATT
DIRECTOR, LAND USE DEPARTMENT
SANTA FE


  NOT INTERESTING 

I realize that I am living in, or near to, a tiny enclave on the edge of a vast cultural desert where the personal is easily confused with the political, but do I care to know that the Pig was recognized by one of her prey [Total Pig, July 18: "Lets Talk About Chefs, Baby"]? Or that local contemporary music isn't as cool as it was when the reviewer was young(er) and stoned(er) [Ruckus, July 18: "Blue State of Mind"]? Or that Zane's World [July 18: "Crated"] got to go to all those after, after, after parties to which I, being a simple unknown artist among millions, was not invited?

In that memorable mojito-mediated meditation on the Wonderful Week of Art we hear that, surprisingly, there were some interesting words spoken and that a really great print piece was displayed someplace downtown (at least there is an adjunct with a specific address and phone number to which I can refer should I wish to share the writer's Road-to-Damascus near-experience).

The schmutzy repro of the really-great work looks sorta like Zorba the Hut facing off with a character from

The Lion King

through a shrubbery, so, I mean, on a scale of 0-to-1, would it have hurt the writer to report something? Like maybe a description of the real-art or a vague paraphrase of the complexities of the Guggenheim PowerPoint presentation, or even why he like them (aside, of course, from the Mimosa Effect)? This would have reduced the number of column inches available for description of jet-(hmm, taxi? pedi-cab? donkey-cart? How do these people get around town anyway?)-set hijinks-to which, I feel compelled to reiterate, most of us were not invited. But I postulate that sacrifices must sometimes be made.

Maybe it's time for St. Johns to s-can the Great Books reading program and crank up a Great Columns writing program?

MICHAEL SCHIPPLING
AT LARGE

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Letters to the Editor

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