Letters to the Editor

Spring Sing costume highly offensive

During Spring Sing, I watched the performance of the band Blue Like Water. I think they are a good band with lots of potential.

However, I noticed one of the band members wearing a full Navy petty officer uniform during the performance. Whether the band had intended to offend people or not, that action was very disrespectful and insulting.

Men and women die for that uniform. It represents their duty, honor and courage to the country and its people. I am hoping to be able to give the benefit of the doubt that there was no deliberate dishonorable intention in their actions and that they simply did not know any better.

If that was a deliberate act and they knew exactly what their “costume” stood for, I can only feel sorry for their pathetic attempt at making a statement.

Mark Ching

Fourth-year, engineering geology

Specialist,

40th Infantry Division (M),

California Army National Guard

Loewenstein belittles art of meditation

I’m not sure what was more disappointing about Lara Loewenstein’s recent opinion on transcendental meditation (“Mantras can’t make miracles,” May 3). Maybe I’m just disturbed by the fact that the Daily Bruin devoted a half page to Loewenstein’s unintentional self-abasement.

I recognize that meditation is a non-traditional field of study for most students, but for Loewenstein to diminish it by equating it to “nap time” is simply juvenile.

Moreover, this sort of assertion devalues not only the research that scientists have devoted to the benefits of meditation, the amazing testimonials it receives, and its recent press, but also the art itself (which does take practice to perform correctly).

I recognize that Loewenstein is not an authority on this matter. That being said, her claim that TM is “totally fantastical” is completely baseless.

To top it off, she addresses Dr. John Hagelin as a “so-called quantum physicist” ““ an insulting title for a man who graduated summa cum laude from Dartmouth before receiving his masters and doctorate from Harvard, and who has performed renowned research all over the world.

What is most confusing about Loewenstein’s statement is how she both belittles director David Lynch’s philanthropic endeavor while still expressing a token of interest in it.

Given everything positive we’ve learned about the effects of mediation in the last 20 years, I don’t see how a major film director sponsoring the education of 1 million college students in the art of transcendental meditation could be viewed as anything short of amazing.

My fear is that Loewenstein’s apathetic attitude may misrepresent the validity of the “Consciousness, Creativity and the Brain” tour and dissuade the UCLA student body from taking part in the real trends sweeping the world today.

Suzie Bohannon

Fourth-year,

UCLA School of Theater, Film

and Television

Concerts for Cash feasible, profitable

The submission by Smitha Srinath and Margaret Lee (“Concerts will lose more cash than they make,” May 9) overlooks some crucial things in its analysis of undergraduate student government candidate Gabe Rose and Bruins United’s Concerts for Cash idea.

It is important to keep in mind that many “well-known” bands often target colleges on their tours and their stops frequently include San Diego State University and UC Santa Barbara.

Now, it is more than reasonable to expect a UCLA student to pay $15 to see high-quality bands, and it is even more reasonable to expect Pauley Pavilion to fill to capacity.

These concerts would be open to the outside public and would attract people who would pay the normal market price ($30-$50).

This is exactly how the UCLA Live program in Royce auditorium works. To cut the math, Concerts for Cash in Pauley would raise enough money to benefit student groups.

These concerts would rejuvenate the rich traditions of holding concerts at Pauley and increase funds for every student group.

In the past, Pauley Pavilion has been home to such bands as Bad Religion, The Grateful Dead and Phish.

The last time there was an open concert held at Pauley was four years ago, when I was a freshman. Gabe Rose and the Bruins United slate’s outside-the-box approach will revolutionize student funding at UCLA. By adding to the yearly USAC budget through massive fundraising, Bruins United’s Concerts for Cash will continue to give every student group a fair shot at USAC funding.

Harsh Parikh

Fourth-year,

sociology and political science

Founder of Battle of the Bands

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