TO THE FOLKS AT MONORAILRECALL.COM AND THE GOOD CITIZENS OF SEATTLE: I just received an e-mail begging for my support to terminate the monorail. While I agree that things aren't going as smoothly as we all had hoped, it is time that we, as a citizenry, make something happen. Of the dozens of proposals to come forward over the years, the first one to garner real support has been the monorail. What we need to do now is to start paying our dues, as citizens, to support the growth of our city through an effective transportation system, which will include paying taxes on your automobile.
What I do notice is that the website [monorailrecall.com] does not take responsibility for who is supporting the recall measure. Whenever I evaluate a proposal, such as the monorail or its recall, I look to see who pays for it and who it benefits. If the monorail is recalled, who benefits? Not the city as a whole, but a few citizens not willing to pay their dues.
This is a long-term project, and we are just beginning to pay, in part because we waited so long to get started. BART, in the Bay Area, started in the 1940s and there are those who would say it is only now becoming useful. So I expect to be taxed on the monorail as long as I live in Seattle. It is my duty, even though I don't live on the route.
Many of your 23 points I agree with, but respond that we should pay what it takes to make it happen; the economic future of our city is at stake.
Thank you, monorailrecall.com, for strengthening my resolve.
Paul Hanson
GAY CITY FLUNKED ALREADY
TO THE EDITOR: So Eli Sanders thinks Fred Swanson can redeem himself by offering HIV and STD testing at [Gay City Health Project's] new clinic on Broadway ["Will Gay City Fail This Test?" Feb 5]? Think again. Not only does it seem highly unlikely that the people who brought us Murder in the Dark to help "sex club virgins" lose their "virginity" are going to be adept at counseling people to stop high-risk behavior, despite being "trained," but how can King County expect the same organization that refused to sign the manifesto to follow its protocols?
What is worse is the waste of the money that has been spent to create the clinic. The layout is downright stupid. While locating a clinic on Broadway sounds like a good idea, anyone wanting to get tested has to enter through a public room where the receptionist said Gay City holds volunteer meetings. "It's to show there is no shame in getting tested," I was told. But how many guys wanting to get tested are going to put up with having prying eyes watch them enter the clinic and walk to the back to get tested? Not everyone is as out as Fred Swanson (or Dan Savage). Let's just hope the "redemption" of Fred Swanson doesn't last very long.
Edward C.
LAY OFF GAY CITY ALREADY
EDITOR: Unrelenting sniping at Gay City from The Stranger is really getting annoying. Your penchant for sensational headlines and hysterical outbursts seems self-serving, and is likely at the expense of AIDS/HIV prevention in Seattle.
In ragging on Gay City, you guys conveniently forget to explain how their work is just part of a big picture. You make it sound like gay men in Seattle will never hear that they should play safe if they don't hear it from Gay City. Seattle is lucky to have lots of groups helping with HIV prevention. The basics--condoms, "stay safe" counseling, STD care--are covered. And now even more so with the new clinic. But we need edgy groups like Gay City to do things that the health department can't--to reach out to guys who aren't into the manifesto, for example. And to try to create conditions that help people protect themselves (like by building community or dealing with self-esteem issues).
I've read enough of your bitching about Gay City. Isn't it time to give it a rest? Maybe think about how you can do something more positive in the war against AIDS? We need you now more than ever.
Scott Wittet
SEX BOMBS: BONERIFFIC BARTENDERS!
TO THE EDITOR: With all of the great watering holes in Seattle, you couldn't come up with ONE sexy bartender? WHAT THE FUCK? Please let me help you: Filipe at the Frontier Room with that sexy smile and a bod made to do dirty, dirty things. Tad at R Place with those crazy sexy tattoos and that ass you just want to spank. And half the staff at Linda's makes me drool uncontrollably!
We all know that Stranger staffers love their stiff cocktails, so shame on you for neglecting the very people who get us through these wet gray winters with a smile on our faces.
Pamela Brown
SEX BOMBS: HE'S A BRASSHOLE, ACTUALLY
TO THE STRANGER: Hi, this is Allison. You mentioned that this guy, Mark Fefer, received 200 nominations and didn't make your cut. My coworkers and I want to see this enigma of a man. How do you get 200 nominations and spend four years not making the cut? What kind of a guy is he anyway? You have incited our curiosity!
