Same wine, different bottle

Re: "This Life of Salvage" (7/16/03).

Very interesting but ...

As an old hot-rodder, I think this is a great idea. I would do it too, if I could. Take an old machine and make it run again and not worry about the looks. A very cool idea but ... can you explain how these young rat biker guys are better than the old, fat beer-drinking chopper-riding guys? Please?

They look the same and probably smell the same but think they are better and so much cooler, hipper, etc. Same wine in a different bottle. I guess tats, piercings, and dyed hair is better than tats, grease, and too much hair. Can you explain this?

And why does every cool thing in America have to become a damn religion with a complex, convoluted belief system, rituals, initiations, rules, and more damn rules?

Will you please explain this to me as well, if you can?

A.C. Lawrence,
San Francisco

Implications of Singh's case

I wanted to thank you for such a positive article on Harpal Singh's case, "The American Inquisition" (7/23/03). Indeed, this case has wide implications when the civil liberties of each one of us are increasingly under attack. It is bold journalists like you who are beacons of hope in a society that is unwilling to challenge the status quo. Hopefully, your article will instill debate on this important issue of secret evidence, and one day it will become inadmissible in U.S. courts. Please keep up the great work.

Harpreet Singh Cambridge,
Massachusetts

Drug war hysteria

The usually exquisite journalistic talents and sobering political analysis of A.C. Thompson took a (no doubt temporary) dive with the article "Creep Alert" (7/16/03), which falls squarely into the category of media sensationalism, blatantly fanning the flames of drug-war hysteria. He quotes an expert who notes that alcohol is still the biggest rape drug and concedes his evidence is anecdotal, yet the article serves to inflate concerns about GHB/rohypnol-induced rape and draw conclusions without factual evidence.

GHB can certainly be dangerous and has definitely been used to commit rape, but consider gaining a broader perspective on the substance via the information found on www.erowid.org and www.ceri.com/ghbpage.shtml. GHB was previously sold in health food stores, is still prescribed in Europe for a variety of conditions (including substance dependency), and is the second neurochemical to be criminalized (DMT was the first). GHB and Ketamine are also often described as non-physically addictive, which makes them categorically different from almost every other central nervous system depressant, including rohypnol and alcohol.

Are these substances dangerous? Of course, but a broader perspective is necessary when evaluating their dangers, especially when one of their dangers is easy use as propaganda for the expansion of the insane war on drugs.

The article doesn't say a word about Valium, Xanax, Benadryl, and other legally available and incredibly common central nervous system depressants.

Slipping mickeys is also an old practice; there is no "new breed of sexual predator," so some historical perspective on dealing with this heinous problem would be prudent.

Oliver Luby,
San Francisco

Newsom's gay support

Savannah Blackwell really missed the point regarding the widespread gay and lesbian support for Gavin Newsom in her article "Gavin Newsom, Loser" (7/9/03). Newsom voted for Tom Ammiano's domestic partner benefits bill, voted for Mark Leno's transgender benefits legislation for city employees, campaigned against the Knight Initiative, supported the openly gay Leno and openly gay Bevan Dufty when they successfully ran for office (Ammiano opposed them both), denounced Sen. Rick Santorum's homophobic statements, and applauded the recent Supreme Court decision overturning the Texas sodomy law.

Newsom understands that gays and lesbians are safest in urban areas, especially San Francisco, where we can be ourselves and fully participate in the social, political, and economic life of the city. To be able to live here, we need good jobs, the kind that major businesses provide – jobs with good retirement and health benefits, with good salaries, the kind of jobs that make home ownership possible for the middle class. Ammiano's well-known contempt for business is not likely to draw more companies to San Francisco. Angela Alioto, who, unlike Newsom, was born to wealth, has made millions through adversarial relationships with corporations, which makes it unlikely she will attract more businesses to the city. While Susan Leal is to some extent a credible candidate, she is not a viable one and almost every one of her gay and lesbian supporters that I have spoken with says that Newsom is their second choice if we have an IRV election.

Robert W. Melbourne,
San Francisco

For the record

In last week's Best of the Bay issue, several incorrect addresses were listed for Whole Foods. There is only one San Francisco outlet of this supermarket chain, at 1765 California St.

The Justice League, winner of Best Place to Hear Hip-hop in our Readers's Poll, is no longer in business.

Site for Sore Eyes, winner of Best Place to Buy Eyeglasses in our Reader's Poll, has several locations outside of San Francisco. They are: 2174 Shattuck Ave., Berk., (510) 841-6963; 829 Broadway, Oakl., (510) 465-5876; Serramonte Center, Daly City, (650) 992-8404.