Amber Alert

In vein:As someone who has been in a recovery program for nearly twenty years (with periods of going "back out"), I felt that the way Nadia Pflaum described Amber's story was right on ("Too Young and Too Pretty," November 4).

So very sad that the ending quoted a friend saying "It's better that she did it to herself." There is no "better" in the way this young woman lost her life -- just sadness that drugs took her from her family and the people who loved her.

Name Withheld Upon Request

Ad counsel: I was especially moved by Nadia Pflaum's article because it seemed to shed light on the dark side of Kansas City in general and the River Market in particular. I find it ironic that the company Pflaum works for provides advertisements and is a "de facto" nexus to the underworld of drugs and prostitution that lead to instances such as Amber's death and drug addiction (without the trust funds, that is). See pages 62-64 of the November 4 issue.

In any case, why was Amber bound? In my opinion, this is inconsistent with the alleged drug overdose. There seems to be a lot of circumstantial evidence that would link Matthew Davis to Amber's death, especially if he was the one who gave her the heroin. The fact alone that he was carrying her body around begs the question that he was involved. I hope that justice is eventually served.

In addition, if Pflaum's friend's death really troubles her, maybe she could persuade the Pitch to stop the ads that fuel the drug and sex trade in Kansas City.

Fred Van Winkle
Olathe

Mind Gains
The secret life of brain:Regarding Ben Paynter's " Mind Field" (October 21): I wanted to thank him for his coverage of this remarkable work. It gave me profound hope, in that the observations prove that most of us, as humans, are still human and still abhor killing one another. As long as there is empathy for others, there is hope for us as a species.

God help the young men who believe they are killing to keep us safe. I feel for them in the depths of my heart and soul.

Debra Woodrow
Huntsville, Alabama

Choice part: I'm writing about a comment Rachel MacNair made in "Mind Field." She makes the statement that abortions help "classify women as 'reusable sex objects' ... and encourages irresponsible men."

I don't quite see how she can single men out as the irresponsible party in this equation. I seem to remember that it takes TWO people with the proper plumbing (or a reasonable substitution) to create a life. By saying that men are the irresponsible ones, she is intellectually dishonest and is taking away a woman's choice in the matter. She dismisses the female accountability with this statement. By taking away a woman's input, MacNair is discounting and underestimating the female gender.

I also don't see how an abortion can reclassify a woman into a "reusable sex object." If a woman decides to have sex or not have sex or have an abortion, it's her and her partner's choice. By attaching a label to her, MacNair has stooped to little more than name-calling.

Lane Sekavec
De Soto

Cross Section
Cult status:Being an avid Riverfront Times reader here in St. Louis, when I was visiting in Kansas City I made a special effort to find the local version in your city. I did not read " Walking on Water" until I got home, because I didn't expect the article to be about the subject it turned out to be about.

Nothing makes sense in the article, although I don't doubt that your presentation of what went on was as factual as can be arrived at. The icing on the cake was Robert Rogers' quitting his job and turning to evangelism, as if that would cleanse his presumptive guilt.

To me, Robert Rogers' self-denial is exactly the way a criminal acts, and I have to wonder why there was no follow-up criminal investigation.

Ronald Kinum
St. Louis

Switch Hit
You light up my life:Great write-up on downtown's holiday lights (Best of Kansas City, October 7). I work for Animated Lighting LLC (Overland Park), and we are all very proud of the way the downtown project turned out. Our hardware and software products that were used to control all of those lights have amazing capabilities. AL is an exciting company to work for as we continue to turn out more products to add to our lighting, sound and motion-control capabilities.

Thank you for acknowledging a successful project.

Peggy Calhoun
Kansas City, Missouri

Radio Daze
Station agent:Regarding your pick of Walt Bodine as " Best Radio Personality": I'll concede that Walt Bodine is the "eldest" statesman of KC radio and that somehow he's earned all of the adoration. I am sure that he used to be a great broadcaster.

But let's stop the insanity -- he is not the best in KC. Whoever bestowed that honor obviously is not a regular listener. I can tell you that if Walt is the best, you need to change the name of the award from "Best" to "Sucks the Least." As a longtime listener of KCUR 89.3, I can tell you unequivocally that Walt's good moments are far, far outnumbered by his inexplicably poor ones. I'm sure he is a fine man with well-earned respect in the industry. But he barely (due mostly to his persistent pulse and respirations) qualifies as adequate, and he is certainly not the best.

Andrew Wang
Prairie Village