Don’t Forget ECK!
The omission of Eckankar from Jesse Walker’s “Inside The Spiritual Jacuzzi” (July 30) was disappointing. Eckankar teaches that the real spiritual Jacuzzi from which all religions and spiritual teachings derive is the Light & Sound of God. As the source of all love, wisdom and truth, this audible and visible wave flows forth from the very Source of Life itself.
As a member of Eckankar, I have seen, heard and experienced this Light & Sound daily for some 24 years by using contemplative techniques taught by Eckankar. My personal transformation from this direct contact has been phenomenal, powerful and profound.
As an ECK student, I have made a personal exploration of past lives, dreams and Soul Travel. This study continues to answer life’s most fundamental questions: Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going? For those inside the spiritual Jacuzzi, what could be more important?
Not a jacuzzi but an Ocean, the Light & Sound is the Water of Life all seekers seek.
— James M. Perry, Davidson
Movie Mayhem
While I am certain that Matt Brunson is an upstanding guy, with regard to his “Two Much: Sorry Sequels Sour Summer Cinema” (July 30) I really must unequivocally ask him to kindly kiss my ass.
I have given up trying to find intellectual stimulation at the risk of wasting my $8 and an otherwise useful two hours of my life on talky art-house pieces starring Parker Posey, which are just as watchable on a $3 rental tape. Movies, after all, are and should be entertainment and escapism, and deep thought and reflection an un-inevitable by-product. There really is no better hedonistic waste of a hot afternoon than a summer blockbuster. And if we are to be fed this cornball lowest-common-denominator drivel by the mainstream cinema conglomerate, and if I’m gonna shell out eight of my hard-earned dollars, then I want my eight bucks worth.
What I want for my money is to know exactly what I’m walking into: tits and explosions, cars flying, guns blazing, Angelina Jolie in a tight bikini ski jumping, Cameron Diaz suspended motionless in mid-air karate kicks, Arnold Schwarzenegger in a big truck plowing down everything in his path, and Will Smith and Martin Lawrence spouting obscene word combinations that would make even the FX Network sensor’s ear hairs curl. Ultimately what I expect are big things for my big money, and each of the big summer movies that I’ve seen so far –in one way or another — delivers.
— Calvin Boyd, Charlotte
Circus of Cruelty
Thanks for the excellent article detailing the horrific treatment of elephants used by Carson and Barnes and UniverSoul Circuses (“Circus’s Animal Policies Faulted,” by Sam Boykin, July 23). Unfortunately, cruelty towards animals imprisoned in circuses is not limited to these two entities, but rather is the norm. Most abuse is well hidden. In his book The Circus King, Henry N. Ringling admitted that, “animals work from fear.” Former trainers have revealed that animals are routinely beaten and deprived of food and water as forms of training.
The animals spend the majority of their time traveling, and life on the road is also a horrific experience. They are often hauled around the country chained in poorly ventilated trailers and boxcars that are neither heated nor cooled. The temperature extremes can be unbearable. Tigers and bears live and are transported in cages with barely enough room for them to turn around.
Circuses that use animals will become extinct when more people are aware of the horrible details of the animals’ treatment, training, confinement and life of suffering. Thanks for being a voice for the voiceless.
— Stewart W. David, President-Carolina Animal Action, Asheville, NC
Big and Stupid
I never cease to be amused by the avalanche of spam messages touting products for the enlargement of the male organ (as well as one that advertised in the print edition of CL) (“Damn Spam,” by Scott Henry, July 16). They all make the claim that women will flock to you once they learn about your “size.”
Well, let me tell you who the stupidest people in the world are: (1) women who are impressed with a man’s “size” over everything else and (2) men who actually believe that women would be impressed with their “size.” If anything, any man who hoped to impress women by bragging to them about his “size” would quickly have no female friends (let alone admirers), for they would waste no time in telling all their friends what a big boor he is for bragging about his “size.”
— Stephen V. Gilmore, Charlotte
More Crowther
Hal Crowther’s article (“Weapons of Mass Stupidity,” June 4) is the best I’ve read. Some say he is a “liberal,” whatever that means. Seems that he is saying what the “conservatives” used to say before they became neo-Cons! Some say Fox is “conservative”….Yes, Fox is owned by the same conniving neo-Cons that conned Americans into starting the Iraqi war and made most Americans believe (incorrectly) that Saddam had something to do with 9-11. Let’s have more of Crowther and less of O’Reilly.
— David Morgan, Philippines
This article appears in Aug 13-19, 2003.
