Proud Liberal Heritage
I thought Hal Crowther’s “Doughface Nation” (March 9) was an excellent essay, but I’m afraid it also demonstrates what we liberals are so good at — pointing out to everyone else that the prince is wearing no clothes.
I find the company of other thinking people, liberals and conservatives, a welcome reprieve from the generally “doughfaced” crowd that seems to make up so much of Charlotte, or at least the circles I seem to run in.
I find encouragement in the reported growth of liberal talk radio, but wonder if it will change any minds. Regardless, I am not aware of any liberal radio here. The bevy of books exposing our Idiot Son president’s true colors, most notably Paul O’Neil’s Price of Loyalty, that were well timed to come out just before the election, did not seem to matter (because the thesis was more than a soundbite long).
I find hope in the fact that Democrats may, at last, find their lost courage with the election of Dean as Chairman of the party. I find the idea of Hillary Clinton running for president absolutely uplifting, but am saddened by the level of smear tactics that will follow her nomination, possibly sending us again looking for a candidate that is more like a Republican.
I would like to see an article outlining the heritage liberals have to be proud of (beginning with Social Security), initiatives in education, civil rights, etc., that we now take for granted.
I would like to see an article outlining what we can do to help change this doughface nation (besides become more educated on the issues).
— Joe Spencer, Charlotte
Thank You, Hal Crowther
Please pass on my admiring gratitude to Hal Crowther. I’m a 60-year-old white guy who is every bit as furious as he is for exactly the same reasons, and if he decides to take the step he illuminates in his extraordinarily literate “Doughface Nation,” (Mar. 9) I hope I’ll be where I can further it in any little way, even if it means I’ll have to go down in the effort.
— Jack Large, Seoul, Korea
Don’t Forget Wesley Heights
I am writing to tell you I am enjoying reading your Urban Explorer’s Handbook (by Sam Boykin, March 9) but I certainly wish you had included my neighborhood, Wesley Heights. Our neighborhood has grown in good ways, has good community spirit, and we have a great view of the uptown skyline. If you can include overrated spots like First Ward, you should try looking at Wesley Heights, an honest to God, “real” neighborhood that I know others would probably enjoy “exploring.”
— Mae Timlin, Charlotte
Hey, Where’s Madison Park?
I have a small complaint about the Urban Explorer’s Handbook. I like it overall but you have left out a great neighborhood that many people don’t know about — Madison Park. It is on either side of Tyvola Road, a few blocks deep on each side, between South Boulevard and Park Road. We have lots of trees and winding roads perfect for jogging, strolling, and meeting neighbors out doing the same. It is one of the few places left in Charlotte where you can get a solid, postwar ranch home at affordable prices, and it’s in a really convenient location, near I-77, SouthPark, Park Rd. Shopping Center, and 10 minutes from downtown. Please remember Madison Park the next time you publish an Urban Explorer’s Handbook. Thank you.
— Kenny Douglas, Charlotte
That’s Not My Sedgefield
Re: the Urban Explorer’s Handbook: as a Sedgefield resident, I feel you owe CL readers some clarification as per our neighborhood. The photographs you included weren’t in Sedgefield. The photo with the street sign indicating the corner of Marsh Rd. & Selwyn Farms is located in, well, Selwyn Farms. Note also the “Selwyn Farms” entrance sign in the background. Selwyn Farms wasn’t developed until the 1980s after the old Moore Farm was finally sold off.
The houses photographed, likely built during the 90s, are not of Sedgefield’s quaint, architecturally diverse bungalows built during the 40s, shaded by grandfather willow oaks and facing quiet, pedestrian-friendly streets.
To get a glimpse of the real Sedgefield, you might have checked out, for starters, Sedgefield Road.
Next time, you might mention our proximity to the New Bern light rail station, which will give way to mixed-use development and amenities within walking distance to the neighborhood.
I agree with you on the Rheinland Haus, though; the eats and drinks over there are hard to beat.
— Larry Dagenhart, Jr., Charlotte
Editor’s Reply: Mr. Dagenhart is absolutely right (as you would expect a Sedgefield resident to be). We regret any confusion caused by the photographs.
This article appears in Mar 16-22, 2005.
