Ear Me Out

SOME FEEDBACK regarding "Surf Ear Safari" by Jessica Lyons (Currents, June 30): It was great to hear about what Dr. Hetzler does with the technique that he has developed with his treatment of "surfer's ear." I myself have had the surgery preformed on both my ears by Dr. Hetzler. However, what the article failed to mention was methods to prevent or slow down the process of the bone growth in the ear canal for people who go into the water along our chilly coast. One method is to wear a tight-fitting neoprene hood. The other, which could be used in conjunction with the hood or separately, is ear plugs. The goal is to keep the ear canal from getting cold by reducing or eliminating cold water from getting into the ear canal. The ear plugs that I use are Docs Pro Plugs. They come in sizes and can be purchased vented for hearing. You can purchase them at local surf and kayaking shops.

Joel Leker,

Marina

The Wiz

CURTIS CARTIER's Fanime convention piece ("Geek Chic," Cover Story, May 26) was absolutely wizard. Textbook, if not better. Engaging, personal, good use of quotes, a good sense of time and place, good narrative flow, good structure, nicely researched, good use of the language and concise. An example of the excellence that I've come to expect from your paper.

Terry Whittier

San Jose

Pray Tell

WHY DON'T those people in Aptos (on the bridge overpass) still dress in black and complain about the illegal war? Why are people OK with Obama not shutting down the Guantanamo prison? Why do the liberals in this town not complain now? People a year and a half ago were happy for change. But it isn't change for anything that is good. Obama lied about bringing the troops home. He lied about shutting down the prison. He is taking away the private sector so that more people are impoverished, which will secure his party and himself votes. While all the way saying, "Well, Bush caused this mess and it takes time to clean it up." And all the liberals in Santa Cruz will go, "Yes, let's vote for Obama. We feel bad he inherited Bush's mess. He'll fix it because he listens to the poor folks, and the impoverished."

David Brumfield II,

Aptos

The Truth About The GOP

IN MANY ways, Republicans are the party of taxation and big government. For a half-century, they have been the primary advocates of excess trillions of dollars for military expenses. Now the U.S. spends almost as much on defense as all other nations combined. Yet for decades, the dozens of warheads on one nuclear submarine could destroy any nation on earth.

Republicans have opposed stronger gun control laws for decades. It costs an average of over $100,000 for investigation, prosecution and lifetime prison expenses for each of over 7,000 gun homicides per year. Then taxpayers pay thousands for robberies, rapes, and other crime involving guns.

The GOP also tends to favor taxing families over corporations, protecting corporations like BP, and allowing little or no taxation of foreign bank accounts. By resisting higher income on the wealthiest two percent, they even want more taxes for 98 percent of Republicans.

Lynn Larson,

Azusa, Calif.

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