Maudie

What was Matthew Lickona thinking when he gave *Maudie* three stars? A pathetic handicapped woman takes a job with a surly, brutal lout. When she has the nerve to speak publicly he slaps her face, which immediately inspires her to start painting flowers on the wall of the dirty shack in which, inexplicably, she chooses to remain. Even worse, she marries him. Seeing this woman debased proved too depressing for me, and no amount of folk art, or Sally Hawkins’s trademark winning smile (what in God’s name did she have to smile about?) could lighten the load. Andrew Crane, Encinitas
— July 11, 2017 1:49 p.m.

Home for sex-trafficking victims in Coronado?

In the event that this house does become a safe-home for survivors of sex-trafficking, having an image and the location of this home publicly available will endanger the safety of the home's residents. I urge you to take down the location and image of the home ASAP so that it is not so easy for pimps/sex traffickers to track down their former victims. This not only impacts the safety of survivors but also protects the neighborhood. While the home is currently not a safe-house, it is still imperative that you take the information down as soon as possible so that this information does not fall into the wrong hands and is saved.
— May 31, 2017 2:27 p.m.

Unreasonable eviction in Linda Vista

I was doing some research in regards to the "ordinance" regulations for my area and came across this article in reference to my current residence. As sad as it is, the problems are still arising and I myself have had so many numerous issues with the management. I have moved into my unit on November 1, 2016 and have had two complaints of mold so severe we were getting sick and now a third situation of mold, I have a water break upstairs that it flooded so bad that water was pouring out of the light fixture downstairs, I have almost fallen over the ledge upstairs since it is so low to the ground.....not a good rail at all. Could you please direct me in the right direction to where I can get out of my lease and not lose my deposit for unsatisfactory and unsafe living conditions? Thank you so much. — Gina Smith, Linda Vista Astro Vista Apts
— May 1, 2017 1:15 p.m.

Advantage Towing ruled against in Mission Valley accident case

I find some of the SD officers have an aversion to writing accident reports. I was rear ended at a stop light on Broadway in the downtown. There were police nearby. One officer said just "move on" if your cars are drivable. I was shocked and asked his to write a report. He said that was not done in SD. I was upset at his response. Fortunately there was another officer near by and asked if I was injured. My lip was swelling since it hit the steering wheel and said yes. That officer told the initial office that a report must be written. I was uncovered that the driver had no license, unregister vehicle not belonging to him and no insurance! was told the report would be available in a few days and given a phone number to call to receive a copy. I did and no report was found. My insurance company had no luck in getting a copy and no information given about the other driver. It went on a year of my insurance company attempting to get the report to no avail. I applaud Mr. T's fortitude especially at his age and physical condition! It is a shame on the SD police department to have handled this accident so poorly. I believe training of officers is necessary to live up to the motto "to protect and serve." — Honora Borso, Mission Valley
— April 6, 2017 11:41 a.m.

Time's about up for California Theatre

A few years from now many people will be enjoying a wonderful new C Street neighborhood. Some of those people may well be alive because the dangerous old California Theater, made of hollow clay blocks and loaded with asbestos and lead, has been demolished before it collapsed in an earthquake. I'm from St. Louis, home of the Fabulous FOX Theater, one of the very best ever built. Thank you for referencing Mr. Vreeland's analysis, as it is clear that it was a third-rate and cheaply-built building when new. For example, the asbestos-covered pipes crossing the lobby are in a concrete chase with no access unless the concrete is broken, a clear indication they were not thinking of maintenance when it was built. — F. Stephen Masek
— April 5, 2017 10:23 a.m.

Miss USA vs. Miss America rivalry even in San Diego

This morning, I saw on the floor of my office what seemed like a brand-new *Reader.* In large letters — white against an interesting photograph of a beauty contest contestant — were the words "Donald Trump is the enemy." I said to myself, *Whoa I've got to read this.* It turns out there isn't a single word in the article about Donald Trump. Chuck Bencik
— September 19, 2016 11:09 a.m.

UCSD pays for trans-species project.

I was digging through the archives to try and find a story I'd read years ago that had fascinated me and likely sparked my interest in questioning my gender identity, and found it in this 2009 cover story titled "My Gender Is Bunny." The article was still just as fascinating as when I originally (and hit harder than it had back when I read it as a high school freshman, having since come out as a transgender woman), but I was stunned by the ending to the article: "Author’s note: Micha Cárdenas asked that feminine pronouns be used in this story. With respect, the author declined." Now, I know 2009 was years ago, but it definitely wasn't so long ago that the idea of showing some decency to the people you interview was an alien concept. What was something I once enjoyed and wanted to share is now a shining example of contempt towards the article's subject, and it makes me (as one of countless queer people enjoying the Reader across San Diego) profoundly uncomfortable. I'm not asking that you alter an article from seven years ago (though I'd be delighted if you did; changing the pronouns would take all of two minutes), but I will ask that future submissions be checked to not be so willfully offensive to the queer community that helps define this city's character. Lex, Hillcrest
— August 31, 2016 10:26 a.m.

Stone Hotel to rock in-room growler delivery

Props to Stone Brewing for moving forward with their hotel-I would only caution Msr's Koch and Wagner count their fingers after shaking hands w/developer McMillin Co's. Based on some of their bait and switch, back channel dealings, golf-cart size parking etc.@Liberty Station, Stone should ride McMillin like a Schwinn bike, otherwise they may end up with downsized rooms and maybe a conference room dedicated for exclusive use for some evangelical church. Peace be with you all! Mike Loflen, Clairemont
— August 29, 2016 8:44 a.m.

What is the story behind the Proctor Valley Monster?

In the '60s, a group of us from Bonita Vista High were getting stoned and drunk while on a dirt road in Proctor Valley. We partied a lot out there back then. No cops, or people to bother us. We would tell ghost stories that we knew and would make up new ones. This was when the Proctor Valley monster idea came up. We all had a good laugh when it started to be picked up by everybody. There's nothing like sitting around and smoking joints and making up stories that would get blown out of proportion when told over and over again. So you see, this fable on the Proctor Valley Monster was started by a group of Bonita Vista High school students who were stoned. I know, because I was there. Gregory D. McLean, Sun City
— August 16, 2016 11:23 a.m.

Great Korean in a Tijuana mall

I’m Gwang-chul Chang from Global Error Monitoring Staff under the KOCIS (Korean Culture and Information Service) of Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of Korean Government and also from Korea Industrial Field Professor in Korea. My volunteering is for changing the wrong image about Korea, including Korean language, Korean culture, history, territorial issues, and her country brand. Not only that, I also try to promote Korea through various events. I research errors on web pages and request for its change. While reading your story, I found the editorial error about ‘Gimbap’, that you wrote as ‘Kimbap or Kimbab’. Although it is spread error, I think that using the right term about small contents would be the first step to fully understand Korea. According to MIFAFF (Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries) and NIKL (National Institute of Korean Language), ‘Gimbap’ is the only right one. Therefore if you change the word from ‘Kimbap or Kimbab’ to Gimbap, it would be better for the meaning of report by using “Gimbap.” The use of right terms about Korea would be better for the future development of your media. (Based on the following:) 1) International Korean Menu Guide : http://www.hansik.org/en/board.do?cmd=list&bbs_id… 2) Korean Menu Guide (PDF File) : http://www.hansik.org/kr/board.do?cmd=list&bbs_id… 3) English (Romanization of Korea) : http://www.korean.go.kr/front_eng/roman/roman_01.… 4) SmartPhone App (Translation of Korean Food in Your Language) : http://www.hansik.org/en/article.do?cmd=html&menu… 5) SmartPhone App (HalalKorea for Muslim) : http://www.hansik.org/en/article.do?cmd=html&menu… Best Regards, Gwang-chul Chang
— May 28, 2016 12:02 p.m.