JOSH FEIT: Let's face it: You are no David Horowitz ["Patty Melt," Five to Four, Dec 26]. When bashing the left, you have to use more force. You have to present your slander as if it were fact. You need to be angrier and self-righteous, and portray liberals as actually consorting with our country's enemies. But hell, editorial black holes like liberals stating "America deserved 9/11" come across as barely a whimper. You had a good build-up, but you tossed it all away by basically agreeing with them halfway through your column!

Take some advice: Don't try to present the meatheaded logic of "moral clarity" as a layered argument prime for rational discourse. Reactionary propaganda is a tool for bludgeoning your ideological enemies, not for introducing a critical counterpoint.

Well, at least you didn't resort to arguing that we need to change the course of our past (and present) foreign policy if we are to ever win the war on terrorism.

Jonathan Allred, via e-mail

STRANGER: Ah. Now I see the problem. Josh Feit cannot distinguish between a hate-filled plutocratic racist and a well-intentioned progressive, between adoration for evil and an honest attempt at discussion, between military aid and humanitarian aid (which is just 0.01 percent of our GDP), between saying we deserved it and attempting to understand our enemy, and between hypocrisy and critical thinking skills. No, Josh definitely doesn't "get it."

Jason Osgood, via e-mail

JOSH FEIT: I just wanted to tell you that I really enjoyed the "Patty Melt" article. Creative wording really made it an engaging read with a very important point for our liberal Seattle population. It made me rethink my own opinion.

Lesley McClurg, via e-mail

STRANGER: Fucking shit. Josh Feit's column states that if you're pissed at Trent Lott's comments but not Patty Murray's, then you're a hypocrite. Josh Feit, put down the crack pipe and stop jacking off to Channel 5 sound bites! There is absolutely no comparison that can be drawn between Patty Murray's opinion on U.S. foreign policy and Trent Lott's "off-the-cuff comments." These issues do not belong on the same fucking page!

Trent Lott's comments are only "off-the-cuff" if you ignore his and Strom Thurmond's segregationist past! Then you state that Patty Murray's comments go along with the "naive position of U.S. liberals" that we deserved 9/11? This is a gross generalization on both counts; I think a very small [percentage] of people think this. You have reduced her viewpoint down to this from a single quote. Looking at Murray's history does not in any way support your claim that she would suggest following the lead of bin Laden, or that we "deserved" 9/11--only that we should be more critical of the arguments that support the military action.

If anyone's being a "self-righteous, reactionary psycho," I think it's you, Josh!

Todd Maloy, via e-mail

STRANGER: How nice--you can attack Christianity [Dec 19].

Why is it that you don't attack Islam or Buddhism? Why is it that when you curse, you use God's name and Jesus Christ's? Is it because Christianity is true? There is no power [in] saying "Damn Muhammad" or "Damn Buddha." How many people do you ever hear say anything but the "Lord's" name in vain? No one, because there is no power there.

When [the] creator, God, comes back you are going to cry and moan and be sorry. Don't wait--you need to repent today. Accept Jesus as Your Savior. Do it now. Don't wait.

Cindy, via e-mail

STRANGER: I just wanted to thank Sean Nelson for his shameless homage to the boys from back when elitism was only for the elitist: Pavement ["Pavement Is Forever," Dec 26]. I am so glad the average Joe still has no clue who Stephen Malkmus is, and I hope it stays that way. Furthermore, I am happy to see that those who do know are not ashamed to give praise. Sean's review of the re-release of Slanted and Enchanted perfectly summed up the entire gist of Pavement's contribution to the music world. The point is, with a band as tightly sloppy as they are, you can't pick a favorite album, and why the hell would you be so inclined? One album just makes you want to hear the other--and while you're going for nostalgia, you might as well put them all in rotation.

Anyway, my point is that I have grown so accustomed to hiding my affection for Pavement because even they are too worldly for my high and mighty circle of friends. Elitism has taken its toll, and even the best of the music enthusiasts can't pull out the "I knew [insert sellout band here] before anybody else" card. So I shall say it now: Pavement is great, and re-releasing the greatness is great as well. Thank you, Sean, for reminding me that I can shamelessly enjoy whatever the hell kind of music I want--as long as it's cool.

(HS + SM = forever)

Heather, via e-mail