KLRU
Defending Whistlers
RECEIVED Thu., July 20, 2006
Dear Editor,
I would defend whistlers as a group from critics such as Ms. Jackson ["Postmarks," July 14] on the same grounds that I would defend public singing: It is healthy to have a song in one's heart. Indeed, whistlers, singers, and other musically inclined people depend on song to ease them through the mundane and difficult moments of life, and this is why they react with hostility when asked to stop.
Besides, I should think that living in New York with taxi cabs, jackhammers, exploding buildings, and Robert De Niro constantly shouting out the window would rather inure a person to the more benign sound of a whisting human being.
I would defend whistlers as a group from critics such as Ms. Jackson ["Postmarks," July 14] on the same grounds that I would defend public singing: It is healthy to have a song in one's heart. Indeed, whistlers, singers, and other musically inclined people depend on song to ease them through the mundane and difficult moments of life, and this is why they react with hostility when asked to stop.
Besides, I should think that living in New York with taxi cabs, jackhammers, exploding buildings, and Robert De Niro constantly shouting out the window would rather inure a person to the more benign sound of a whisting human being.
Sincerely,
Sean Ragan
Sean Ragan
[Editor's note: The article in question is a little piece called "This Blows" by Jay Hardwig and first appeared in The Austin Chronicle in 2000 (austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/issue/story?oid=oid%3A77448). We're thrilled that a feature from a beloved long-lost freelancer is generating interest today. If you are interested in more Jay, check out our author archive: austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/authors/jayhardwig.html.]
