Editor:I was really offended by Lauren Cannon’s article “Good-for-nothing-tourists good for something.” I feel the need to address her and the other August-to-May “locals” who feel the need to brutally criticize the many people who come to visit this wonderful city. Have you people ever wanted to visit someplace in this world other than your backyards? Most tourist-haters who I have asked have responded with a resounding “Yes!” However, they are sure to point out the difference between the “classy” way that they act when they spend spring break in Cancun and the way that these “stupid tourists” behave when they have the nerve to ride on the trolley. Sorry, streetcar. I have been traveling with some of you, and I can say with certainty that we are pretty obnoxious, whether you want to admit it or not. Where does this hate come from? We are very fortunate to live in such an amazing city. Why does the thought of sharing it with others provoke so much irritation and intolerance? Just to point out the obvious, we should all love any visitors who bring money into town. Without them (as we all know) the entire city would probably collapse and die, and then where would we be? There wouldn’t be a waitress job for miles. I think that the world would be a better place if I never had to listen to another intolerant, selfish and obviously not-very-thoughtful… uh, person whine about all of the “stupid tourists.” If you are going to engage in such obnoxious behavior, however, I think that you should at least take a minute to think about some of the things I have mentioned. The world would also be a nicer place if we helped each other more, rather than engaging in some of the extremely rude behavior suggested by Cannon.

Muetze HellmerSociology/Spanish Junior