Letters

It is downright comical that Zimmerman attempted to make Stone into some sort of tragic heroine. We read of her not ever really being truly happy with herself until she finally decided she was a lesbian. Bring out the violin music, and everyone cheer, because the main character has a happy, but uncertain ending. Let's all wish her a bon voyage as she embarks upon her newly chosen lifestyle.

It makes me very sad that Stone's husband, who had always been a faithful, loving, and responsive father and husband, is rewarded for a great part of his life's effort by being tossed aside like a used condom. Through no fault of his own, Mr. Stone is the true victim of this story.

It makes me angry that Stone's therapist did not see through a lot of her issues. One cannot fully love another if one does not love him or herself. Stone was not happy about her body weight. Could it have been that the lack of passion between husband and wife was a direct result of Stone not being happy with the way she looked? I notice that it was only after she decided she was a lesbian and filed for divorce that she lost over a hundred pounds and got a tummy tuck, breast lift, and face lift. She feels a lot better about herself now. I'll bet Mr. Stone wonders why she never seemed to want to take care of herself while he was being the breadwinner for all of those years.

Think what you want of me, but Stone is just another selfish woman who has gone out to search for her "true identity" after kicking her longtime loving husband in the nuts.

Gary Davis
Grand Prairie

Kudos to Ann Zimmerman for bypassing the chance to "poison pen" a scandalous piece and to instead write an insightful, honest article about Pat Stone, president of P-FLAG.

P-FLAG was one of the things that saved me when I was fired from my career job for being bisexual. Along with 25 pounds and much of my sanity, I'd lost faith in people; P-FLAG made me realize that the world is not full of dangerous homophobics. I'm not the only person they have helped, and I thank Zimmerman for the positive light she shed on this great organization. Pat's story only confirms that we never know what's around the corner awaiting us, and life is about growth. We all have a story about discovery and change. I'm grateful Pat was courageous enough to share hers, to face the fire in order to help others.

Judith
Dallas

Woe is Belo
Laura Miller, you are going to be missed. I firmly believe that you are destined to win a Pulitzer Prize for your investigative reporting. I still do; it's just going to take a little longer ["Mommie dearest," January 23].

I regret that A.H. Belo, Inc.--the parent company of The Dallas Morning News and WFAA-Channel 8--doesn't have the journalistic fervor to give their editors carte blanche to do the investigative reporting the Dallas Observer has been doing for years. It has the money, the staff, and the external resources, but, evidently, not the internal drive. My God, when I think of the increases in readership and viewers if Belo let their editors loose on a "let's get 'em" theme with no restriction as to who or what they wanted to go after--only the truth.

It's one thing to report the news; it's another to reveal corruption in all its forms, even in the highest pinnacles of power, to make our community--our little world--a better place. As good as they are, we need more--much more--than the fluff we get from John Anders, Helen Bryant, Alan Peppard, and Bob St. John. Hopefully, Steve Blow won't permit himself to become their hacker of mostly tear-jerking, please-send-money-to columns. He has a penchant for exposing phony evangelists and money-grubbing telemarketers; [the News should] give him free rein to expose more of the human garbage in our midst.

Too bad the editors don't have enough collective journalistic integrity to sit down and ask for more journalistic freedom. They could begin by sending a copy of this letter to Burl Osborne.

Dr. Sydney Kay
Dallas