Premature fact

Hello, just thought you might like to check your "facts" in last week's "Iraq facts" [March 23]: "In children under five, premature births increased 430%."

I am not sure whether to be upset that children under five are giving birth, or happy that at least they are premature and thus more likely to fit through the vagina of a four year old.

--Leanne Franson

[Ed's note: The actual facts are that premature births increased by 430 per cent between 1990-1999 and chronic malnutrition in children under five went up 13 per cent, according to the World Health Organization and UNICEF. The Mirror apologizes for the editing error.]

Stop the leftist lynch mob!

The gang-up goes on and on. The lynch mob gathers. Throughout left-wing circles such as the Mirror the effort to vilify and silence Dr. Laura Schlessinger gathers momentum [Media Circus, March 23].

Is she as right-wing as some say? Not nearly as much as other radio talk show hosts. Is she "anti-gay" as some claim? Not really.

She is an orthodox Jew promoting traditional Jewish values. What then, is all the fuss about? Fifty years ago, anyone who didn't conform to the prevailing right-wing agenda was labelled "commie, pinko, subversive."

Nowadays, anyone who doesn't go along with the left-wing parade of anarchists, Marxists and deconstructionists is labelled "sexist, racist, homophobic."

Who is next on the enemies list of intolerant ideologues? It could be any of us.

--Barry Mersom

Discords' discontent

Dear Sir!

Once again I am forced to show my utter disgust with the so-called music scene here in good ol' Montreal. I noticed your article regarding the upcoming "Oi Fest" ["Oi! to the world," March 16]. My bandmates and I had a good laugh after we noticed what bands had been asked to play at this "joke." Other than the King Sized Braces and the Prowlers, those other bands wouldn't even know how to spell "oi." How can an "Oi Fest" be held when the band that introduced that brand of music to the Montreal scene way back in 1979 was not invited to play? I realize that politics is a large factor and, of course, who you blow plays a part in these decisions. So I guess that leaves us out!

On that note: we are off to Toronto to play a huge festival there. Once again, the Discords are forced to go elsewhere, shunned by the city that they loved so dearly!

--Dave Valente, the Discords

Not down with MD

Just a short note on the MiniDisc vs. MP3 article [Technophilia supplement, March 16]. Two promising gadgets that'll convince DJs NOT to get a MD player/recorder are: http://www.xs4all.nl/%7Emarkjan/BeOS/finalscratch.html, and http://www.howard.co.kr/computer/mp3/rome.htm

Enjoy. MiniDisc is dead for me.

--Freakboy

Campus cola wars continued

Andy Bennett, who wrote a letter last issue [Campus cola wars, March 23], proposes a new model for democracy: let's call it DemocracyPlus(TM).

Only 31% of students participated in the McGill CBA referendum, he notes. Such apathy! Plain old democracy would dictate that the administration should abide by the decision of the majority of participants and reject the agreement.

But with DemocracyPlus(TM), the administration can take the reasonable course: simply ignore a mandate from such a small group of students, and sign a deal "that does nothing but benefit the University." Everybody wins!

Right, but does DemocracyPlus(TM) have any other uses? Well, let's see. The turnout for the CBA referendum at McGill was quite similar to the typical voter participation in recent U.S. presidential elections. (those U.S. voters are so apathetic!). And yet, because they are saddled with old, rickety regular democracy, the candidate the voters choose to elect still wins the presidency every time!

Luckily, Mr. Bennett shows us, the U.S. doesn't have to be held back by this outdated system. Under DemocracyPlus(TM), the Washington bureaucracy could just appoint the correct candidate.

Isn't it time we considered implementing this kind of reform?

--Paul Reeve