Utterly heartbreaking. Regrettable and unfortunate. Depressing and distressing. These expressions certainly do describe the emotions elicited by the three letters published on Jan. 9 in response to Shadee Malaklou's Jan. 7th column, "Words from the black book."
It is unfortunate that we feel the need to condemn a person simply because her views and lifestyle differ from that of our own. What does it say about us as a student body when our editorials consist of students taking shots at each other?
I was dismayed to read these letters not because I agree with Malaklou's views, but rather because I was unable to find any constructive criticism or relevant response.
These letters were littered with ad hominem implications regarding Malaklou's lifestyle, self-esteem and mental stability, as well as a critique of the more general Hollywood image of the modern women. There were no real counter- arguments to be found.
Esther Houseman suggested an equally disturbing gold-digger lifestyle, insisting her man treat her to a fancy dinner or formal; Brianne Ehrlich misrepresents Malaklou's column as a personal ad and then expresses embarrassment on her behalf; and Anthony Collins, after alienating his entire gender, shamelessly turns the editorial section of our beloved newspaper into a transparent personal ad for himself. But seriously, where in any of these letters is there any constructive response?
Consider this a plea to those of you who are inclined to write into The Chronicle in the future to keep your comments constructive and relevant, and spare us the trash talking and personal ads. Thank you.
Al Dhalla
Trinity '07
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