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A D V E R T I S E M E N T
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A D V E R T I S E M E N T
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Justice in Order
To the editor: You cannot believe what Assistant District Attorney Jay Lapham says. We know because we had him for the case of the murder of our son, Chad Houston. He claims the D.A.’s office does everything they can to prosecute (Letters, Feb. 6. 2003), but that is not true. He cannot even get an indictment when there are two eyewitnesses to the crime.
Mr. Lapham talks about ill-informed comments. The ill-informed comments are coming from the D.A.’s office. Fort Worth will never get its justice system in order until we get Tim Curry out of office. I hate to think what it is going to cost the taxpayers when a real D.A. gets into office and has to go back and prosecute the people that were deliberately not prosecuted. On Feb. 6, Channel 8 investigated a lawyer’s son who was arrested for DWI. Why did the D.A.’s office reduce the DWI to deferred adjudication and dismiss it? Why was a nonprofit group fearful that criticism of Curry might affect their grant?
Thank God for the Fort Worth Weekly and Channel 8. They are the only ones I know of that will print the truth about the elected people in Tarrant County.
Robert Houston
North Richland Hills
Tejano Legacy
To the editor: Just finished reading the article on the Saenz family (“Saenz of the Times, Feb. 13, 2003). Absolutely wonderful! As part of that Tejano legacy (I’m so-so on the Chicano label), it was great seeing Nicho and Rosa and their family featured in your article. Having been around Carlos and Leo for most of the ’70s and ’80s, they are everything you said and then some.
And thank you for writing about a critical piece of the Latin tradition in Fort Worth that is often overlooked. Tejano music is a key element of our society. Musicians like the Saenz Brothers, Charles Mercado, the Torrez Brothers, Joe Lerma, and others pay homage to this legacy every weekend.
Mike Mercado
Keller
To the editor: Awesome job on this article. The Saenzes are one of the best “Chicano” families I have ever had the pleasure of meeting and knowing. They truly are about people and not politics. Thank you for the pleasure of reading about the good in others.
Jackie Ramos
Garland
Ghostcar to Nirvana
To the editor: I would like to send my gratitude to Fort Worth Weekly for mentioning the great improv band Ghostcar in Hearsay (“Casper’s Corolla,” Feb. 20, 2003). I’ve been a big fan of theirs for a little more than a year and have had the honor of working with them in a creative capacity. On top of being extremely talented they are all very gracious, humble musicians. Each time I see them play live I am reminded how brilliant music can be. When I listen to their c.d. through my headphones at work I get to leave my cubicle for a much better place. Those who caught them at the Black Dog Tavern this past Saturday know exactly what I mean. This band is one that every human should witness at least once in life. I hope they get more shows here in Fort Worth so I don’t have to drive to Denton and Dallas to catch them. Thanks for shining some light on this band from the ground under the underground.
James M. Johnston
Writer/director, Beautiful Confusion Films
Fort Worth
Pickin’ on the Pickin’ Party
To the editor: Your article concerning Larry Joe Taylor’s “Pick Your Campsite” party is unfair in that it criticized the organizers for a lack of communication, which wasn’t at all true. Larry Joe and Zack Taylor and Clint Wiley were aware in advance of the potential for criticism and took carefully thought out steps to avoid that, while creating a system to distribute campsites in a fair manner.
I heard all the rumors you mentioned, and more. I even stressed out like many others that day, and when I confronted Zack and Clint about my worries, not only were they genuinely concerned, but took the time to deal with me in an honest fashion. The fact was that we had been given all the information we needed, in advance, through their festival web site, weekly e-mail updates and supplemental mailings. Zack told me that they expected about a fifth the number of people who actually showed, something you failed to mention in your column. Their efficient communication, the rising popularity of the festival, and an open opportunity to get a better site were the reasons so many came that day.
Once the party was under way, they never varied from their plan. It was executed just like they said they would.
What you didn’t report was that all the beer-fueled gossip was wildly inaccurate. I heard the rumors that someone with a low number had collected money on site and bought as many as 79 campsites. If you’re simply looking for hearsay, you came to the right place — just don’t blame the organizers.
I’m the person who bought the largest block of campsites — 20 — for the Lone Star Parrothead Club, a group of which Larry Joe himself is a member. Even though the location of my block of sites is nowhere near what we’d hoped, we still got them in a tight grouping, and my friends agree that was our main priority. Larry Joe pulled no strings, and our location is simply a reflection of the number we drew. Randy Chambers of Chambers Jewelers, one of the festival’s main sponsors and a longtime, loyal supporter, had a low number and received sites relatively close to the main festival area but not in a contiguous block. Sorry guys, but you can’t tell me the system was rigged or not fair. I learned in journalism school that we were supposed to do our research and print the facts in an unbiased fashion. I’ll give you credit for one thing: Just like your header says, you report HearSay.
Don Burke
Dallas
Editor’s note: HearSay, which bought its journalism degree fair and square, notes that lack of communication by event officials was obviously a problem or else Don Burke wouldn’t have been “stressed out like many others.” The fact that organizers grossly miscalculated attendance shows the event wasn’t planned to perfection. HearSay never implied that the system was rigged or unfair — just a mess — and we reported that beer drinking helped to fuel the rumors. Our facts were straight.
Clarification
The child molestation investigation into Wirt Norris was handled by the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department with the help of the Tarrant County District Attorney’s office. Fort Worth Weekly didn’t make that clear in a story last week.
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