GOOD TOUCH

I want to add my two or three cents to the praise that Erin O'Brien has been receiving for her recent in-depth piece about her brother, John ("Leaving Las Vegas: Rearview," April 16).

The day after Erin's essay appeared in the Free Times, an interview that complements those words was posted on This Side of Paradise, a new "thog"/blog, devoted to the creative process as it's happening, geoffschutt.blogspot.com. I waited to read her words in the Free Times until after we posted her interview. Once I read her words, I was even more in awe of the heart that Erin O'Brien possesses. We have a lot of talented writers, but few who can honestly touch us and make that impact on our lives that helps us in our own evolution.

Erin can take the most mundane subject and transform it before our very eyes into something no less than magic. You see that in each of her columns for the Free Times and in her many other works.

Geoff Schutt
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

BAD TOUCH

To elaborate on the Free Times' pat on the back for Pope Benedict XVI for visiting the US recently ("You Rock," City Chatter, April 23), I have to admit being impressed with his initiative in extending sympathy toward those Catholics who were sexually abused by priests. He even met with some of the victims. But as SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) pointed out, Benedict neglected to criticize those bishops and cardinals who enabled the sexual violations to metastasize by transferring evil-doing priests. All this disgraceful strategy accomplished was to provide the priests with fresh populations of children to violate. How utterly shameful.

Quintessential examples of such disgraced bishops are our very own "respected" and "beloved" retired Bishop Anthony M. Pilla and Auxiliary Bishop Alexander J. Quinn, both of whom for decades provided aid and comfort to power-abusing pedophiles while concurrently showing nothing but disdain and disrespect for victims.

What infuriates me most about all of Pilla's disgraceful misdeeds in this sordid scandal was him writing a letter to authorities at the Grafton Correctional Insitution that sought early release of convicted pedophile Father Martin Louis, who had admitted in therapy sessions that he had sexually abused 90 children. Pilla's action was evil in its purest, unadulterated, most scandalous form. If it were a felony to impersonate a Christian, Pilla would be spending the rest of his days in Lucasville.

It is an interesting coincidence that in praising the pope, the Free Times mentioned businessmen Umberto Fedeli and Sam Miller. Fedeli has been in bed for years with Pilla and Quinn, figuratively speaking, of course. Miller has been a bedfellow of Pilla for some 25 years, again, figuratively speaking. How on earth those two guys can consort with such disgusting lowlifes as Pilla and Quinn is a mystery to me. I guess water seeks its own level.

Louis H. Pumphrey
Shaker Heights

THE DAWNING OF THE AGE OF AWARENESS

Some days it feels like McDonald's, Burger King and Taco Bell are taking over the world. Everywhere I look, commercials and advertisements are encouraging us to consume more. But there's another side to consumption that we don't see in the price of our burgers - the effects of pollution, deforestation and carbon emissions. Few people know that eating meat, dairy and eggs contributes more carbon emissions than driving cars, and more than half the water used in this country is consumed by animal agribusinesses.

This Earth Day represented an era of change. People around the globe are beginning to recognize how their actions affect the planet and are putting forth the time and effort to make the decisions that will safeguard our resources for generations to come. I have a newfound confidence in our society, in myself, and in you. I believe that as we learn about the resources and suffering that went into our steak and eggs, we will change our habits to reflect a more peaceful and sustainable world. This Earth Day represented a movement to educate ourselves, to overcome apathy, to instill willpower and to make a difference.

Michelle Cehn
Cleveland