The labels, which must have been printed more than a week ago, say: "FUZE is proud to donate $325,000 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure."

Also: tastes like snozberries.

Front:

Back (click to enlarge):

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When a male rapper calls another male rapper a bitch, and this is not uncommon, it is always in the spirit of mockery, and not camaraderie ("my nigga"). It's the same as a male rapper calling another a fag. Indeed, the very fact this is meant to express the extremely low regard one male rapper holds for another shows how low a regard they have for the rights of gays and women.

Read the whole thing here.

Dear The Stranger,

I commend Governor Gregoire on her support of same sex marriage. At the same time, I would like to express my disappointment in the isolation that further separates bisexuals and transgendered individuals as a result of her announcement of support for same sex marriage. Why not support Marriage Equality instead? Why not frame the words in a way that does not make the LGBT marriage campaign strictly for gays and lesbians? I am a bisexual woman and I am proud of who I am. I am with a wonderful man who is my best friend and who I one day look forward to marrying. At the same time, I am still a bisexual individual and it could be that I marry a woman. But this would NOT make me a lesbian, this would not qualify me under her speech. There are also my transgendered friends, who do not fall under the premises of her speech, who would not be considered nor consider themselves "same sex" as her support explicitly states. The move for same sex marriage is not just for gays and lesbians. There are bisexuals and transgendered/intersexual persons who want to get married too; or who are married, who have lives and relationships; hopes and dreams. We deserve to be included. By leaving us out of her speech, she relegates us to an invisible darkness; to shame and isolation; to pain and suffering. We deserve to be included in this. And as much as I support and love my gay and lesbian friends, our brothers and sisters, I love myself too. Please support MARRIAGE EQUALITY and not just same sex marriage or marriage for gays and lesbians.

Sincerely, Shaunita Felder

Discuss.

An email from one "Cookin Better," in its entirety:

The Terra Plata Review wasn’t really written that well.

Not quite sure what to do with this one. Help me out, Slog!

Figured I'd clean out my voicemail, what with the end of the year approaching and all. Turns out I missed an important call:

Received Sunday, Dec. 4 at 1:55 p.m.

Yes, I was reading your article at The Stranger, saying that the wealthiest of this state pay no income tax. NO ONE IN THIS STATE PAYS INCOME TAX! Are you guys in that paper that much of a big fucking idiot you can’t get your story straight? Or are you just trying to rabble rouse a bunch of idiots—idiot kids—and brain dead stoners who have no clue about anything that’s going on in this state. You seriously have got some serious issues. Why don’t you try printing the truth for once instead of this communist propaganda?

Time for a poll!

A reader named Kevin Zimmerman sent this:

To the Editor:

After reading Brendan Kiley's "Jesus Saves," I have a handful of concerns with how the question of marijuana legalization is being handled both in the press and in the public. First, I believe in marijuana legalization—primarily for reasons of individual freedoms and the ability of governments to collect reasonable taxes. What I take issue with is the dialogue centered around the potential for reduced crime rates and, as "Jesus Saves" highlights, reduced crime rates for the African-American community.

My concern is that we are blindly accepting the assumption that current marijuana industrialists (whether growers, distributors, or dealers) will legalize their black-market businesses after the fall of marijuana's prohibition. The story goes that once marijuana trade is legalized the majority of members of the black market will have good paying, reputable jobs to tend to without the fear of imprisonment. Unfortunately, that idea seems far fetched.

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Outstanding Slog commenter TVDinner just sent this excellent letter:

Dear Dominic:

Thank you for bravely posting about bike infrastructure on Slog. There's another angle to the infrastructure matter that I just wanted to toss on your radar, and that's the gender gap among cyclists.

In the United States, about 23% of all cyclists are women (which is based on Census data about commutes). In fact, the number of women who commute by bicycle has decreased from from 33% of all bike trips in 2001 to 24% in 2009 (this is from the American Community Survey, which is conducted by the Census Bureau). For comparison, 55% of all bicycle trips in the Netherlands is by women, and 49% in Germany.

The above data about the US is especially striking if you consider that bike trips are up significantly during the same period of time (2001 to 2009), which indicates that many more men are taking to the streets by bike but women are not.

There's something different about the United States. And it's infrastructure. Studies across all sorts of disciplines show that women are more risk-averse, and indeed, concerns about riding in traffic are overwhelmingly the reason women cite for not riding their bikes. Women also have different travel patterns: they perform the vast majority (77%) of all "serve passenger" trips (hauling people, usually children, around), engage in more "trip chaining," and run more errands, like grocery shopping. They also drive fewer miles to their commutes (this is all based on the 2009 National Household Transportation Survey).

And where have we invested in segregated bicycle lanes? Along recreational corridors, that don't lead to schools, daycare centers, grocery stores, or major employment centers. In other words, the safest bicycle facilities have been installed where few women really want or need to go.

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On my voice mail just now: "Hi, Dominic, my name is Adam Miller, I am with PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Tomorrow in Seattle, two PETA activists wearing lettuce bikinis are going to be handing out free soy jerky at the 3rd Avenue electric vehicle charging station. The demonstration is in order to remind people that the best way to help the environment is to go vegan.... I just wanted to find out if this is something you'd like to cover in The Stranger."

Hot tipper Sarah Anne Lloyd just sent me this photo:

Come to think of it, I probably deserve having Occupy Seattle telling me "fuck you" for all those times I suggested they stop directing their anger at supporters who have constructive criticism and instead focus on their true opposition.

This just arrived:

Gov. Chris Gregoire and First Mike have invited young children and their parents to stop by the Executive Mansion on Halloween from 6 to 8 p.m. to trick or treat. The governor will dress as Elmo, while First Mike will dress as Super Grover, that character’s superhero alter ego.

Forgive me if I don't tickle Elmo.

From the electronic mailbag:

A. Birch Steen, Sir...

I accompanyed my GrandDaughter to Seattle to begin her first term at the University of Washington, and I am astounded at the beauty of this place. However, when I chanced upon the current issue [the Back to School Guide] of your consumer publication I was incensed at the lame-brain, adolescent, prurient contrivances of several of your staff (journalists?)—West, Frizelle [sic], Clement [or this, perhaps?], and Kiley in particular... Do any of these scribblers have a Daughter or GrandDaughter that they (you) would sober-mindedly share this inappropriate schlock with? Get a life, Stranger! Grow up...or get off the stage——you're polluting the MindSpace...A

Birch, of course, has already weighed in.

Dear Stranger:

Are you antisemetic [sic] or just stupid?

WTF? Did you really schedule your School Board debate for the first night of Rosh Hashana? Yup, you did. You must figure that Jews don't care about education. OK, you can go back to sleep now. Actually, I am hurt and disappointed. Every freaking calander [sic] has the Jewish High Holidays on it. And you guys claim to be hip, multicultural and "aware?" Ha.

Michael Blum

Dear Michael,

To answer your question: both. As a descendant from a huge Jewish family killed in the Holocaust—save for my grandmother and her sister, who was rescued from a concentration camp—and a Catholic mother, I exist in a synergy of guilt. Sin, sanctimony, circumstance, and virtually any suggestion of shortcoming only serves to resonate with my hereditary sense of inadequacy. This manifests in moments of grand stupidity and self-loathing, which, per my genes, must be a form of antisemitism. It's a closed circuit of self-loathing!

In response to your astute observation—"You must figure that Jews don't care about education"—when scheduling the event at Town Hall, we did know it was the first day of Rosh Hashana. Conspiring with colleagues Elijah Sanders and David Goldstein, we saw this as an inroad for our imminent War on Hanukkah, and we were redoubled in our chutzpah by the fact that September 28 was the best day for our newspaper's schedule and for the venue.

Shana Tova!
Dom

Dear Stranger:

Having lived in California where liquor is completely privatized, I know from experience that Initiative 1183 is a horrible idea. In CA there are drunk idiots everywhere and many of them are underage. Empty liquor bottles litter the streets and sirens are heard non-stop. Privatization has led to a nightmare situation there and has contributed to CA becoming the police state that it is today. I hope Washingtonians are smart enough not to go down that road too. We let the state control liquor here for a reason. I really hope we don't find out the hard way what that reason is. Vote no on 1183!

Jim Walls
Seattle (Greenwood)

Private sales of wine and beer—two products that aren't consumed by kids, don't come in bottles and cans littered on the streets, and are never associated with drunken idiocy—isn't a problem though, right?

Dear Editors,

I trust The Stranger to get it right when it comes to issues in the city. In your series on bikes this week you mostly do so….mentioning the true cost of the auto infrastructure and calling for more space for people and bikes.

My problem is that you just can’t resist calling it a “war between cyclists and cars.” I realize that you have a lot of framing, clothing and tickets to sell and like any commercial rag must therefore sensationalize stories to do so. But in this case you may tip the scales towards violence with your rhetoric. Many borderline narcissists, losers with no life and a big SUV to make them feel some power, even for a moment, may tip into full blown sociopathic behavior.

Can you describe it any other way? A person willing to kill or maim an innocent person because they are delayed for a few seconds is way beyond mere narcissism, and should be treated accordingly.

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Discuss here.

I have been an avid reader of The Stranger for years. I lived through your endorsement of Mayor McGinn—for which you later acknowledged your mistake—but your recommendation to vote NO on the TUNNEL is the last straw. I will no longer read your newspaper and I will suggest the same to my friends.

Ron Harding

Dear Ron,

Sorry that you're out of straws. I recommend sipping directly from the glass. I'm also sorry that our surprise endorsement to "reject" the tunnel is driving you to never read The Stranger ever again. Really, who could see that one coming? It shocked all of our readers.

Anyway, Ron, it's been nice having you around. We'll always have an extra straw—for a camel's back or a breakfast beer—if you need one.

Tunnelly yours,
Dom