Revolution No. 9
Re: "A Raw Deal" by Bonnie Boots (May 10-16)
I am thoroughly convinced that Bonnie Boots must have had a really bad day the day she chose to visit No. 9 Bangkok Thai. I am a two- to three-time-a-week diner at their sushi bar and a frequent Thai takeout customer, and I have never had a negative experience at their fine restaurant.
It is clean, the food is fresh, especially the fish, and I have full confidence that I am consuming only the finest quality sushi. The help is friendly, helpful and always available.
I ate lunch there, approximately one hour ago. The restaurant was busy. There were customers on both the Thai and the sushi sides of No. 9. I waited a normal time to be served my order of Chirashi, slices of sushi fresh fish over a bed of sticky rice. It was excellent as usual.
After reading your article, and perusing your paper for advertising of restaurants, it became obvious that you were trashing No. 9 because they have chosen not to advertise in your paper. Is this your policy? If so, I would suggest terminating it immediately. By the way, your reference to Timothy McVeigh was uncalled for. You should be ashamed of yourself. There is a long list of Oriental restaurants in this area that I have only frequented once or twice because of a lack of cleanliness. No. 9 Bangkok Thai and Sushi is not one of them.
Annie E. Ennis
Via e-mail
Editor's note: It is the Weekly Planet's policy to provide reviews of restaurants solely on the basis of the reviewer's experience, regardless of whether the restaurant advertises in our paper.
A Dog's Life
Re: Summer Guide's "Dog Run" by David Jasper (May 17-23)
Normally a fan of your usually progressive paper, I was very disappointed to see your recommendation for visiting Derby Lane as a suggested summer activity. Greyhound racing constitutes animal cruelty because of the industry's excessive surplus breeding practices, the often-cruel methods by which unwanted dogs are disposed of and the daily conditions in which many dogs are forced to live. Racing greyhounds spend the majority of their adult lives in crates or pens or in fenced enclosures. Human companionship is limited. If the dogs are not killed when their racing career is over, the slack is picked up by greyhound rescue organizations that dedicate their lives to rehabilitating former racing greyhounds. As a counter to your suggestion, I ask that you please print the Web site address http://www.adopt-a-greyhound.org where viewers can find out about local greyhound rescue. Hopefully another activity your readers can engage in this summer is making a difference in the life of a dog.
Stacy De-Lin
Riverview
Cold War Fallout
Re: "Cuba Libre" by Susan Edwards (April 19-25)
I found your article to be one of the most balanced pieces of reportage on the present state of Cuba I have read recently. I spent much time on the island in the Special Period and will always remember the spirit of the Cuban people and the slogan, "Hay que inventar!" The privations endured by the Cuban people — malnutrition, stunted growth, loss of hope and finally cynical acceptance of the status quo — are direct consequences of the embargo led by aging right-wing fanatics in Miami (themselves the recipients of the greatest largesse ever showered on an immigrant group by the CIA and federal government). The lottery (exit visas) was not established until after the Balsero crisis forced the State Department to admit that they were making no attempt to fulfill the quota of 27,000-plus visas per year as mandated by INS regs — indeed, until the Balseros exposed the frustration of the Cuban people, since less than 3,000 visas were being issued yearly. Seldom in history has the vengefulness of a deranged, well-to-do minority wreaked such havoc on an entire people to destroy one man (Fidel). All this occurred in the name of the American people, with our Cold-War-mentality leadership's acquiescence.
For an excellent account of conditions in Cuba before and after the revolution see Oscar Lewis' Living the Revolution (1977) which details the experiences of ordinary Cubans before and after the revolution.
Lester Bowles
Via e-mail
This article appears in May 31 – Jun 6, 2001.
