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Gender Biased Word Choice?
“Who isn’t going to be a pussy about what we really want? Who has the cajones (sic) to tell the world…?”
Did I really read these words in the Metro and from the Editor, no less? [“When Did We Lose Our Radicals?” Sept. 1, 2005] Sadly, he wasn’t quoting the captain of some high school football team. These were the best words he could come up with to express his dismay at the GLBT community leadership.
Even though sticks and stones can break our bones, contrary to popular myth, words can hurt us. We already have to hear on an almost daily basis that “they” are better than “us.” Straights are better than gays. Twinks are better than trolls. Leathermen are better than drag queens and drag queens are better than everyone else. And now from the Metro, cojones are better than pussies.
I hope that in future editorials the Metro will refrain from using metaphors suggesting that men are inherently better than women.
William H. Munk
Salt Lake City
Editor’s Note: Mea culpa! It was a poor word choice and illustrates the difficulty in finding language that communicates strong emotion without offending someone. However, from an individual and completely subjective point of view—which should not be interpreted as a judgment for the capabilities or worth of any gender identity—I do rather prefer cojones to pussies. But that’s just a personal point of view.
LaVote Matters
Dear Editor,
I whole-heartedly agree that LaVar Christensen is our worst enemy in the legislature and for all queer Utahns who live in this state [“Public Enemy Number One,” Sept. 1, 2005]. That district was a good Democratic district until he unseated Trish Beck. LaVar Christensen and the Republicans totally smeared her good name by putting out lies about her. We lost that seat by a mere 33 votes and that year, 2000, we could have won some seats from those Republicans by a slim margin of 350 votes in other districts.
So don’t tell me your vote doesn’t matter. It does! Now look at the mess we are in. The Stonewall Democrats and the Log Cabin Republicans had better work together to get the evil man out office. That should be our ultimate goal as a community—to give our money to whoever is running against that asshole from HELL. I know I will give what I can to see that man not elected again.
Mark Swonson
Salt Lake City
Hang Around the E.R.
Editor,
I keep reading David Nelson’s insane letters about packing guns and second amendment rights [“Offer Rape Victims Advice About Defending Themselves,” Letters, Sept. 1, 2005]. He used to be the voice of reason and still writes well, but whatever his disability or medication, something is messing with his head. As someone who sees firsthand the destructiveness of bullets, I would encourage Mr. Nelson to hang around the emergency room of the nearest hospital on a Saturday night. Perhaps this would temper his asinine stance on packing heat. Guns don’t make your penis grow or make you a man.
Darrell Johnson
Salt Lake City
Stats Can Prove
Anything You Wish
Dear Editor,
Mr. Nelson and I may never see eye to eye on the subject of gun control, but I respect his right to voice his opinion [“Offer Rape Victims Advice About Defending Themselves,” Letters, Sept. 1, 2005]. But since opinions are like assholes (everyone has one), and statistics can prove nearly anything, I offer the following…
Fact: In 1998, women were 101 times more likely to be murdered with a handgun than to use a handgun to kill in self-defense. Women were 302 times more likely to be murdered with a handgun than to use a handgun to kill a stranger in self-defense. Women were 83 times more likely to be murdered by an intimate acquaintance with a handgun than to kill an intimate acquaintance in self-defense.
Fact: Guns are rarely used by rapists. In Utah, that number is 2.4% based on the studies we reported in the article Mr. Nelson mentions, and 93.4% of Utah’s sexual assaults involved no weapons of any kind. Women would be safer knowing self-defense to fight off an attacker than using a gun that can be turned against them.
Fact: 86.2% of rape and sexual assault victims reported the attack taking place before their 18th birthday. In fact, the only time the average age for rape victims climbs above 18 is when victims are unable to consent or are drugged—situations in which guns would be useless for the victim—and even then the average age is only 19. Utah’s laws require all applicants for a concealed carry permit to be a minimum of 21 years of age. State law restricts juveniles under 18 from possessing handguns and juveniles under 14 from possessing other firearms without parental permission or authorized supervision.
As to whether or not owning a firearm helps reduce crime, the arguments continue to fly back and forth with both sides citing many resources and statistics. Unless Mr. Nelson is advocating that minors be allowed to purchase and carry concealed weapons, I fail to see how gun rights apply to the topic of Utah’s rape problem.
Burt Angel
Salt Lake City
QSaltLake welcomes letters from its readers. Please email letters@slmetro.com or mail your letter to: Editor, QSaltLake, 352 S. Denver St. Ste 350, Salt Lake City, UT 84111. We reserve to right to edit for length or libel. |
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