the Adventure Lifestyle magazine

letters to the ed ;tor:: b lue makes me smile in a big way. I read the article about Paul Bowles in your Moroccan issue (October/November 2000) and now I have to read all of his books and I seriously have to go to Morocco! The design style is rea lly beaut if ul. Katie Morgan New York, NY I receiVf'!d my first issue of blue from my very knowledgeable travel agent before a t rip to Morocco. Before my departure, I ended up cutting much of the issue apart, pasting certain articles in a notebook for use on the road. What you published on this fascinating country was far superio r to any other trip resource I found-including guide books! I decided I wanted a mint copy of the next issue as a souvenir, and I am so very glad to have it. Mary Dease Ch icago,lL TRAIN HOPPING blue is an interesting magazine but by publishing an article such as "Train Hopping: Living on Train Time" (December 2000). blue indicates that you encourage trespassing and illegal activities. You are romanticizing a life-threatening activity. Dangerous. Illegal. Trespassing. Those are not the terms that I would associate with adventure travel in any stretch of the imagination. I suggest that this opens you to a serious liability question when one or more of your readers says "Hey, that looks cool"-only to discover the dan- ger that is involved. I am taking the liberty of sharing the article with the management of the ra ilroads so that they may observe how their safety and security concerns are being mistreated. Unforgivable! I sincerely wish that each and every railroad lets you know what they think of your publishing such an article. William J Boy d President, Boyd Travelers Inc Northf ield, IL I recently read "Train Hopping: Living on Train Time." It troubles me to see articles like th is that may encourage others to hop a freight t rain. There is noth ing romantic or glamorous about rid ing a freight train. It is illegal. It is dangerous. Every year more than 167 people are ki lled while trespassing on US Rai lroads and another 254 are injured. Individuals who ignore trespassing laws and use railroad properties for unauthorized purposes are risking their lives. Publishing an article that encourages an illegal activity is irresponsible journalism. By publishing this article you encourage illega l behavior from unsuspecting souls who are seeking a "cheap thrill." Rai lroad property makes for a dan- gerous playground. I hope you will educate your readers to the fact that trespassing on rai lroad property, and in particular, rid ing on freight trains is not only illegal, but also dangerous. Gayla L Fletcher, VP of Risk Management, Union Pacific Rail road Omaha, NE Thank you fo r publish ing such an awesome magazine. Many other magazines are so spe- cialized that it is unbearable- no one wants to read a hundred pages of road biking arti- cles. That's what makes b lue so special. With every issue, I can read stories about a mul- t itude of topics. I liked the December issue because of the t rain hopping artic le. I live in southern Ohio, where there is little to do. Maybe you could do a story about what to do in the Midwest or anywhere, once you are bored with what it has to offer. DJ Gak er Liber t y Township, OH Matthew Power writes in his train hopping piece: "Twilight fa lls and a crescent moon rises." A pretty image, but impossible. We only see a crescent moon rise early in the morning, just before sunrise. In the evening- at twi light-the crescent "new moon" sets in the West, shortly after the sun goes down. Always. When the moon rises around twi- light time, it is full or almost fu ll - and it rises in the East. Always. Frank Irwin Brooklyn, NY Compliments on the Trail Issue (April/May 2001). More than ever t rails have become an important part of our daily lives, especially in our urban areas. Nearly every community, large or small, in our nation has or is planning a trails system for their citizens. The Ryan Townsley article entitled "From Sea to Shining Sea" caught my attention. What a strange title for an article that features no trails that even come close to the Atlantic Ocean. There actually is a t rail that does go "from sea to shining sea", the American Discovery Trai l (ADT). The ADT begins (or ends) at the Atlant ic Ocean in Delaware, t raverses 15 states and Washington, DC, and ends (or begins) at the Pacific Ocean in Californ ia. Along the way it passes through hundreds of communities, large and small , connects over 200 tra ils, and comes within 20 miles of where 32 million American live. You can check out the ADT at www.discoverytrail.org. Reese F. Lukei, Jr. American Discovery Trail Virginia Beach, VA Glancing at the issue, I noticed an advertisement which immediately caught my eye. Not for its clever theme, but for its irresponsible theme. The state- ment "Gear is a priority," is vulgar in connection with the sober faced child illegally buckled in the seatbelt next to the precious Limited snowboard. The concept is clever, but the follow through is the worst and most irresponsible I have seen in 20 years of sales and marketing in the outdoor business. I realize that blue is not Parenting magazine, but some of us value human life more than a snowboard. Randy Mintz Mintz Sales + Marketing ISRAEL/PALESTINE As a so-called travel magazine, you have published an extremely biased and one-sided article about Israel and the Palestinian Authority (" Images f rom the Inside," February/March 2001). Your travel tips are especially objectionable and untrue. I know many American Jews w ho have visited Israel, including Jerusalem in recent months, since the beginning of the second Intifitada and felt perfectly safe, while wearing their yarmulkes and Jewish stars. Perhaps you could send an author with an open mind and get a balanced article. Joseph S. Walter Norwood, MA Your article "Images from the Inside" was highly prejudicial and one-sided. Fourteen photos of Palestinians, three photos of Israelis. Don't you th ink that Israelis also want a rest and a peace? They offered to give all the West Bank and Jerusalem just last September as per Mr Barak. Yasser Arafat said "No." He has yet to take out of his (The PLO) charter, that Israel should not exist. That was supposed to be done at Oslo. You have taken a very one-sided view and misled your readers with a Palestinian throwing rocks at a strong Israeli tank. Should I expect you to show the murder of two Israelis by a mob in an Arab police station, or the death by an Arab sniper of a Jewish baby in Hebron? Tragedy has occurred on both sides. You have failed to present it. Mark Billet Flushing, NY The latest issue- it was excellent. The article on Israel and Palestine was one of the best on that region I have ever read. The timeline was well done and the stats section was informative wit h a touch of humor/sarcasm. It was refreshing and well done. B. Dye NY, NY Nice piece on Israel/Palestine. Best I've seen. You should be proud. Harry Newton NY,NY 18

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