Letters to the Editor Road to Nowhere To the Editor: I must respond to a misleading and wildly inaccurate advertisement that appeared in the July 29, 1999, issue of The Memphis Flyer signed by a group calling themselves Friends of the Lucius Burch State Natural Area (no names). The Support Shelby Farms group, of which I am a member, was organized to urge city, county, and state officials to give a complete, thorough, and objective study of all alternatives to the proposed series of roads through Shelby Farms, which the law requires. Included among these is a no-build alternative. We have not advocated any specific route, but have discussed some alternatives as examples of the failure of city, county, and state officials to comply with the law. The public needs to understand that the Shelby County plan mentioned in the ad offered by Mayor Jim Rout is not some shady lane in the park, but a four-lane major road with a series of expressway-like overpasses connecting to a 12- to 16-lane widened segment of Walnut Grove that will require a major new bridge over the Wolf River into the park, with height and width dimensions similar to the present Walnut Grove bridge crossing Germantown Road on the eastern edge of Shelby Farms. It further needs to be understood that the plan mentioned is not an official plan but merely a proposal. The only official plan is the huge Tennessee Department of Transportation plan that has been universally rejected, yet will not be officially withdrawn by Mayor Rout, even though he's been repeatedly urged to do so. The refusal to voluntarily comply with the law by studying alternatives and the further refusal to officially withdraw the unpopular TDOT plan are what prompted the lawsuit, recently filed by the Friends of Shelby Farms. It has been the hope of the Support Shelby Farms group that this issue be resolved politically. Just because a lawsuit has been filed does not prevent this goal. It won't be resolved, however, with advertisements and rhetoric that try to mislead and not inform. John Vergos Memphis City Council, District 5 Behind the Curve To the Editor: Debbie Gilbert's report, "Bike Cops are No-Shows in Midtown" (City Reporter, July 29th issue), shows, once again, that when it comes to doing something innovative, positive, and accessible that really works, Memphis is far behind the national curve. Bike patrols have been successful all across the country. Citizens are able to approach the police more easily and police are better able to assess street criminal activity, making arrests in areas police cars could not get into. Besides the obvious physicial benefits of bicycle patrols, bike officers are more approachable and better able to communicate directly with people on the street, seeing things they would probably miss riding around in a car. As for the notion that police bikes are strictly [for] PR, isn't that a main focus of police work -- winning the respect and confidence of the general public? Randy Norwood Memphis Celebrity Spin To the Editor: Americans cried for J.F.K. Jr. (Viewpoint, July 29th issue) because our society loves celebrities. No more, no less. Our culture has bestowed fame on serial killers, fashion models, and even a sunken ocean liner. J.F.K. Jr. was lucky to be born with a famous last name and good looks. His death was not a symbolic loss of anything, as his life was only one of luxury and privilege. There are enough politicians' kids to fill that role. I hate to sound unsympathetic, but when does simple existence replace accomplishment as the measuring stick for celebrity? To turn this event into anything more than a tragic accident is pure hyperbole. Brad Abel e-mail (Germantown) Fantastic Sampson To the Editor: I am writing this to you in the fever of a salty inspiration, so forgive my inadequately tempered language. Reading, and rereading, Tim Sampson's "We Recommend" this week (July 29th issue) was like coming upon an oasis of spat-out truth, bold-faced here-I-am marvelousness in a desert of so-so, kind-of, and perhaps. The experience -- I read it four times -- left me electric, wobbly, and grateful. I have allowed many a "We Recommend" to grace, snarl at, and goose my thirsty head from month to month with nary a word sent back to express my terrific, sometimes awful, level of pleasure and humility. No more. Here is all I can offer in response to a ridiculously generous, overly fantastic, disgustingly humane mind. Thank you, or else. Sarah Ledbetter e-mail (Chapel Hill, NC) The Memphis Flyer encourages reader response. Send mail to: Letters to the Editor, POB 687, Memphis, TN 38101. Or call Back Talk at 575-9405. Or send us e-mail at letters@memphisflyer.com. All responses must include name, address, and daytime phone number. Letters should be no longer than 250 words.