Love letters from our dear readers

Dear Editor,

I just read your opinion on COVID-19 enlightenment on the right. Unlike the nifty boater in your picture, the role of hyper-critic of the right does not fit you well.

You failed to mention that Kamala Harris said she would not take a vaccine that Trump developed! I have never heard Sean Hannity tell people not to get vaccinated. As far as door to door visits by the government; not necessary and intrusive. You do realize that estimates are that 30-40% of our population is thought to have actually had covid-19, bringing us very close to herd immunity.

Lighten up or you may find yourself in the same place as the late night TV comics......unfunny and unwatchable.

J.D.

Dear J.D.,

What Kamala Harris actually said - during the vice presidential debate with Mike Pence - was "If Dr. Fauci, the doctors, tell us that we should take it, I'll be the first in line to take it. But if Donald Trump tells us we should take it, I'm not going to take it."

Her response could have been worded a bit more clearly, but it's obvious that she meant if "'only' Donald Trump tells us we should take it, I'm not going to take it."

Dear Editor,

With the recent first anniversary of the death of John Lewis, I have read the obituary you wrote again. John Lewis was one of my heroes and your obituary touched me greatly. I hope you have heard the song by Julie Miller called The Last Bridge You Will Cross.

M.N.

Dear M,

Thank you. I had not heard that song, but I have now: Loved it. It is a worthy tribute to Lewis. Thank you for the suggestion.

Dear Editor,

Mott the Hoople?

How #$%&*@! old are you?

L.N.

Dear Editor,

So, you were scared that running behind the smoke truck in Rockingham would make you a Mott the Hoople groupie? His music is a lot better than the rap crap that you listen to.

P.

Dear P,

Thank you for that inspired albeit uninformed response. For the record, though, Mott the Hoople isn't a "he:" it's the name of a British rock band from the 1960s and 1970s that took its name from a comic novel. It's also the best name for a band this side of Kool & The Gang.

As for the rap music I listen to, I haven't bought a rap record since The Message by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five.

Oh, I forgot: I also bought I Got Five On It by Luniz, but that's a guilty pleasure that I won't admit to except under duress.

Dear Editor,

How dare you pick on state Rep. Madison Cawthorn. You talk big and bad, but you aren't anything but a keyboard warrior. I'll bet you wouldn't say that to his face. Even in a wheelchair, Rep. Cawthorn is more of a man and a patriot than you'll ever be. Since you think you have all the answers, why haven't you run for office? You will never do it because nobody would vote for you, that's why.

Paul

Dear Paul,

How wrong you are! I have run for office - Rockingham City Council, 1984 - and people did vote for me. I received more than 13 votes. I am, however, contesting the vote tally because at least 20 people told me they voted for me. Stop the steal!

Dear Editor,

Be careful. Your jealousy of Charlotte is showing. It's too bad you grew up in a little one-stoplight town that had nothing to do there. Charlotte is called the Queen City because it is the crown jewel of the state. I'm sure I speak for all Charlotte residents when I tell you to stay out.

G.L.

Dear G. L.,

Your knowledge of history is a bit fuzzy. Charlotte is nicknamed the Queen City not because it is the crown jewel of the state. Charlotte is named in honor of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of British King George III when the city was founded and not, as so many thought, after the most annoying character on Sex & the City.

Neighboring town Matthews was named after Dave Matthews, the leader of a rock band that was, coincidentally, formed in Charlottesville. Monroe, 25 miles down U.S. 74, was named after Earl The Pearl Monroe, the basketball great who played at Winston Salem State University.

In the future, before you try to correct me on history, Mr. G.L., I suggest you bone up on your own knowledge.

Dear Editor,

Surely you didn't try to put down Waxhaw in your stupid article insulting Charlotte. How can somebody who is always writing about being from Rockingham put down another city? I drove through there on the way to the beach once and remember nothing about the place.

L.F.

Dear L.F.,

I most certainly didn't intend to put down Waxhaw. Or Charlotte. I may have mentioned a time or 20 that, growing up in Rockingham, a big night for my pals and me was piling into somebody's car and driving the 60 miles to Charlotte because we'd heard that the Krispy Kreme doughnut place stayed oped 24 hours in a row.

At the time that was revolutionary. As someone who has visited some of the great cities of the world - London, Duluth, Minn., Hamlet, N.C., among others - there is still nothing to compare to the first time pulling up to the Krispy Kreme on Independence Boulevard after midnight and seeing it lit up like the Eiffel Tower.

The doughnuts never made it back to Rockingham, but the memories have never left.

Dear Editor,

Was that a shot you took at Waxhaw? Now, now, Barry. What has Waxhaw ever done to you? The people here are warm and friendly and A Taste of Waxhaw is a wonderful annual event. You should come and experience it before trying to talk bad about it.

T.L.

Dear T.L.,

Thank you for the invitation. Can I get to Waxhaw without going through Charlotte, because a lot of people from there are telling me to stay the #$%^& out?

Dear Editor,

In 1974-75, when I lived in Charlotte, it was so rednecked even the police cars were jacked up in the back.

M

Dear M.,

Speaking of police cars and Charlotte, when Rockingham went hunting a new top cop in the 1970s, it selected a candidate from Charlotte. First thing he did was change the uniforms and police cars to match the Queen City's. While he didn't jack up the rear ends, his officers jacked my adolescent self up many, many times.