COME BACK, JON
As a recent alumni of Johnson State College and a Lamoille County resident, I was seriously disappointed by Jon Taylor’s CQ at JSC [Campus Question, April 9].

First of all, where were the female students? It seems that Jon has no problem relating to young men on campus. Good luck finding one female that stuffs her lip fat with tobacco on the weekend.

Johnson is not in the middle of nowhere. That perception belongs to those that need to be entertained by multiple outside sources and lack creativity. As a student at JSC, I would walk through campus and know almost everyone I passed. Sometimes, it would take me an hour to get from one side of campus to the other thanks to catching up with folks. Can you find this in the middle of UVM? Perhaps, but in Johnson there is an incredible panoramic view of the mountains to go along with it.

Go back to Johnson State, Jon, and talk to other students — females, non-traditional students (JSC has the External Degree Program, which helps adults return to college and get their degrees), faculty and staff. I think you’ll see how narrow your perspective was.
Debi Sutton
>HYDE PARK


CYNICAL REVIEW
I can only say that it is obvious that Cheryl Hanna is very late to the cause of protecting the environment. The tone of her opinion piece [“Getting Down to Earth,” April 16] is just sooooo la-ti-dah! She is way behind the curve.

I spent eight years in constant litigation with a coal company to stop the strip mining of a small old-growth oak forest in western Pennsylvania. During this epic (and successful) struggle I got to know the attorneys representing the coal company. They assured me that they too were environmentalists!

It was then that I decided that I would no longer call myself or even consider myself an “environmentalist.” My cynicism runs deep.

If Cheryl finds it “heartening that environmentalism provides a set of unifying moral principles,” she will soon find her heart broken. The great divide amongst so-called environmentalists has already begun and will soon become as wide as the gulf between Baptists and Buddhists.

Appearing in the very same issue as Cheryl’s opinion piece was a full-page ad from the owners of Vermont Yankee claiming that nuclear power was “safe, clean and reliable” and that Vermont Yankee emits “zero greenhouse gas emissions.”

It is a great tragedy that many who consider themselves environmentalists will be seduced by an advertising campaign. Take a deep breath and check this web site: www.peakoil.org.au/nuclear.co2.htm
Peter Blose
>ST. JOHNSBURY


EXTRACTION REACTION
Mike Ives’ statement about what happens once trash gets to the landfill needs correcting [“Long Haul,” April 16]. Methane is a greenhouse gas, but most of the methane created by decomposition at the Coventry and Moretown landfills is collected, flared, and does not get into the atmosphere.

Moreover, since 2005, the landfill gas at the Coventry landfill has been used to generate two-thirds of the electricity used by the 10,000 households and businesses in Washington Electric Co-op’s 41-town territory. It fully replaced our need for Vermont Yankee and fossil fuel sources. WEC produces the power at about 50% of market prices and it’s why our rates have not increased rates in eight years.

In recent years, we have figured out how to cleanly extract energy from the human waste stream. Landfill methane is currently the most significant source, but others such as manure from dairy farming are also being developed. We probably need to recalculate the old equations a little. Although landfills and large piles of manure create multiple environmental problems, using the methane for a productive purpose is an environmental and climate change improvement.

My point is not to dispute the need to dramatically reduce our waste output. WEC may get most of its electricity from a landfill, but I still carry our household kitchen scraps out to our composter and recycle almost everything else. In the future, other technologies to extract energy from waste may replace the current ones, further reducing the volume of stuff that ends up in landfills.

Your reporter and Seven Days readers should know that Vermonters are currently getting real benefit out of landfill methane, even as we try to produce less of that gas in the future.
Avram Patt
>E. MONTPELIERPatt is general manager of the Washington Electric Cooperative.


TARGET PRACTICE
I have to tell you how tiresome I find your music coverage since Dan Bolles became music editor. From day one, he has worked diligently to perfect his snipe-and-potshot version of what he thinks is music journalism. Repeatedly, Dan lets his opinion bleed into what is supposed to be news coverage of music.

Case in point is “HI! FIDELITY,” [”Sound Bites,” April 16]. The purported purpose of the article is to tell of National Record Store Day. Dan structures it to get in a good slam against Paul McCartney, and then slam, again, Jordin Sparks. His very tone suggests that, of course, all Seven Days readers recognize Dan has the best musical taste on the planet. It assumes all of us out here in Seven Days reader-land agree. I don’t.

Taking aim and negativity are the ways in which Dan Bolles attempts to elevate sophomoric, C+ writing to the level of pithy journalism. A mediocre writer soon learns it is the quickest and easiest way to dispense content on deadline. It has nothing to do with music and even less to do with good writing.

Look at the performance venues, clubs, promoters, radio stations and independent record stores who use the pages of Seven Days to advertise musical offerings that reflect a desire to reach the scope of tastes and interests of Vermont. They deserve our thanks. Dan slaps them in the face every week.

Intelligent music journalism in Seven Days could point eager ears toward even more new listening adventures. Instead, it’s target practice with Dan Bolles.

Perhaps, from the very beginning, I have misunderstood the true intention of “sound bites.”
Michael Thurston
>BARRE
Thurston and his wife, Sandy, own Exile On Main Street, an independent record store.


TRANSLATION: VERY COOL
Vachement Formidable!

That’s how you say “super dooper awesome” in French, and Musée Mechanique were just that. I went down to Skinny Pancake to catch them after a super stressful week and WOW! Just what the doctor ordered.

Their lyrics and music are gorgeous.
Maggie Standley
>BURLINGTON


IN DAVID, WE TRUST
I am slightly perplexed by the portrayal of Rep. David Zuckerman in the article, “Rocking the Vote?” [April 9] as well as the following letters to the editor.

Rep. Zuckerman has worked with my students in an environmental policy and law course at Sterling College. He has always provided an unbiased perspective of the inner workings of the legislature and the ability of the legislators to work together to solve the issues before them.

David continues to serve as a tremendous resource for those students who are interested in getting involved in the legislative process, both directly as well as indirectly through their research. He has encouraged all students to get involved and, in fact, many of them, both male and female, have commented as to how inspired they have been by working with David.

The issue of David engaging in “gender politics,” as suggested by Rep. Weston in the article, has never been raised by the students. Through discussions with Sterling College students both in class and on campus, I realize that they are well attuned to the issue of gender bias in our society and would recognize such a bias.

I continue to support my students getting involved in the legislative process, citing the success of our younger Vermont legislators. I will continue to work with David in encouraging students to exercise their “civic energy,” focusing on removing obstacles to sustainable policies, rather than challenging their allies.
Farley Anne Brown
>CRAFTSBURY COMMONS
Brown is a member of the Sterling College faculty.