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Agree
to Disagree?
To
the Editor:
Chet
Hardin’s Cover Story “Dear Lord, You Rock” [April 13] is a
fantastic example of excellence in journalism. Not an easy
subject to write about, Christianity, Chet presented Terra
Nova’s unconventional movement in conservative Christianity
in an objective and informative manner. He actually made me
think that he might become a regular visitor at TN. Convincing
a constructive journalist that not all Christians are prejudiced
and flaky is not an easy task. Pastor Ed was just himself,
and Chet saw that and wrote about it. I was totally impressed.
I’ve heard him speak and have always thought he was the “real
deal.”
As a Ph.D. student who is currently studying bias in writing,
I read this article looking to find fault with Chet’s bias,
but I found none. Chet never said he believed, but what he
did say is that he felt the Terra Nova movement was real and
that it has the potential to reach the Gen X group that want,
and need, to have Christianity as a part of their life. The
timing was great, Easter Week, and Pastor Ed may just have
to borrow a few more chairs from the pub down the street in
order to seat the crowd that will show up as a result of this
story. As a conservative Christian, I’m glad to finally read
a positive, yet objective article about someone who is trying
to make a difference in our community. Thanks, Metroland!
Linda
Rozell-Shannon
Niskayuna
To
the Editor:
It
doesn’t matter what Christian fundamentalists dress is or
what their venue is, the message is the same: There is only
one GOD, this god is a HE and if you do not follow HIM, you
are condemned to eternal damnation. There can not be any wiggle
room for tolerance, common sense or practical application
of this type of philosophy in the temporal world, when the
whole aim of Christianity, be it traditional or otherwise,
is to live for a life beyond this one, a future life that
pits the present existence we live in as a mere springboard
for something better.
This is what our current president espouses as well, and we
are all likely to be involved in his rather twisted version
of everlasting life, whether we like it or not, should he
see his vision of a world full of Christians to its ultimate
conclusion.
John
Simonds
West Sand Lake
To the Editor:
I
would like to thank you for the article written about Terra
Nova Church in this week’s issue of Metroland. This
was a fair and accurate representation of who we are. Certainly,
there are things within this article that will cause some
to dislike what we do, and others to love what we do and that’s
just fine with me. Best of all, the article was truthful,
and let’s be honest, that can be hard to find in today’s media
nightmare that so often resorts to the kind of polarizing,
demonizing, and flat-out scandalizing rhetoric that makes
Fox News look almost legitimate.
Thank you for publishing a great piece.
Phil
Taylor
Executive Pastor, Terra Nova Church
Troy
Ride
On
To
the Editor:
Here
is my story in response to Chuck Quackenbush of Bethlehem,
who feels that “the Albany region is a glorious place to ride”
[Letters, April 13].
Back in 1971, I received as my high school graduation gift,
my very first road bike. Less than one month later that bike
was stolen from my family’s garage along with four other bikes
belonging to my sisters and brothers. As a family, we have
been bicycling in Albany for over 35 years. When we were in
high school and college, my sisters and I always took in stride
the young male motorists hitting us on the backside as we
road along Western Avenue in the Pine Hills section of Albany.
Some may imagine this as amusing, but it was scary having
someone suddenly hit you while riding a bike. Now, 35 years
later, I am still riding these same roads in Albany. My recent
encounters have included someone spitting at my husband and
I on Lark Street and having a young student throw a bottle
at my head from a passing CDTA bus on South Main Avenue. I
also endure the drivers who now shout from their cars something
that they think sounds clever. The shouting replaces being
hit on the backside, but the result is still the same, feeling
momentarily at risk.
So, why do I keep riding? Because the positives of riding
my bicycle still outweigh these negative experiences, which
fortunately do not occur every day. At the end of the day,
I feel the positive affects of exercise and the reward of
using my own physical energy for transportation.
By the way, I was one of the bicyclists ticketed at the recent
Critical Mass ride in Albany. I ride in the Albany Critical
Mass because I think it can be a positive message about bicycling
as a form of transportation not just recreation. As a group,
we represented cyclists of all ages and abilities. It was
a friendly group ride on a beautiful spring day. We had not
left the inner road of Washington Park when we were pulled
over. What did we represent to the police? I wonder if we
would have been escorted instead of stopped if we were all
on high-end road bikes in cycling jerseys.
Mary
Lou Nolan
Albany
To
the Editor:
Regarding
Mr. Quackenbush’s Critical Mass letter, I have been a bike
rider for over 35 years. I learned to ride at 5, and by 8
years old I was riding 35 miles a day to my grandmom’s and
back. I spent three years as a bike messenger in New York
City and over 20 as a bike racer both in the United States
and a pro in Europe. I figure conservatively I have ridden
over 250,000 miles. In all those years I have never seen the
coexistence of the cars and bikes and police Mr. Quackenbush
speaks of. In fact, the opposite is true. The only way to
get attention and be safe as a bike rider is to grab every
one’s attention and say “I’m here and this place on the road
is mine.” Not asking nicely but grabbing it loudly. I have
seen cars stuck behind tractors for miles never beeping when
going 10 miles an hour. But these same drivers threaten the
life of a bike rider they get behind for 20 seconds going
twice as fast. In a time when we need people who can commute
by bike, to do so we also need them to be safe. And at this
time it is not so. Critical Mass raises the profile of bike
riders. And in this country nothing comes from slow change,
only very loud and sometimes messy statements.
Brian
Polhemus
Spencertown
Just
in Case
To
the Editor:
Your
feature “Bad Luck Is a Temporary Thing” [Small Business Issue,
March 30] was a great public service to all Capital Region
businesses, large and small. While the article detailed the
tragic circumstances (and fortunate outcomes) of a locally
owned storefront business after a fire, one thing we have
come to know over the last several years is that a lack of
private-sector preparedness is not a size thing. Businesses
of all types, local or national, public or private or not-for-
profit, need to adequately plan, prepare and practice preparedness.
No one is too large or too small, as your subject, Mark Garzia,
showed, to spend time on this critical issue, and luck goes
just so far.
AT&T and the International Emergency Managers Association
recently did a study that showed many businesses are unprepared
for business interruptions regardless of the cause. In fact,
in a new world order that focuses so much attention on terrorism
and hurricanes, many of us here feel insulated from disaster
until the more common types—fire, water leaks, damage to streets,
electrical outages,etc.—rear their ugly heads. Only then do
most businesses find out that they do not have the right types
of insurance coverages, only then do most businesses find
out that they can’t just move in to space across the street,
and only then do they realize that they are just as vulnerable
to disasters that their customers, suppliers and vendors incur
as to any calamity that may hit their own business.
The AT&T/IEMA study had these troubling findings:
•
66 percent of companies experiencing disasters lost business;
•
26 percent of companies facing disasters didn’t know how much
they lost per day;
•
40 percent of businesses did not have data backups (hard to
imagine);
•
75 percent of companies that had disasters took actions to
prevent future losses.
The last observation may be the most important: Three-quarters
of all companies that had problems took action to prevent
another problem. As an old boss of mine used to say, “There
is no education in the second kick of a mule,” but here it
is clear that by learning from other people’s mistakes, most
businesses can avoid the first kick entirely by planning better
for those things that threaten them.
Gregory
V. Serio
Managing Director, Park Strategies, LLC
Albany
Metroland
welcomes typed, double-spaced letters addressed to the editor.
Metroland reserves the right to edit letters for length
or clarity; 300 words is the preferred maximum. You must include
your name, address and day and evening telephone numbers.
We will not publish letters that cannot be verified, nor those
that are anonymous, illegible, irresponsible or factually
inaccurate.
Send
to:
Letters, Metroland
419 Madison Ave., Albany, NY 12210
e-mail:
metroland@metroland.net
fax:
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