Ear Plugs

And we were all so worried about Al Davis. We should have been guarding against two fans slugging each other in oversized gloves on the 10-yard line on behalf of an anti-fungal spray. We should have been wary of the pregame cherry bombs, the halftime hypnotist, the all-game rock music. We were so concerned that the return of professional football to Los Angeles would involve a wacko franchise, we forgot all about a wacko sport. Too late. It's here. The Arena Football League.

Leaning on her walker at the Sears elevator, the snowy-haired woman watched me hobble up on my cane. "Whoever named these the golden years," she said, "deserves a punch in the nose. " True, I thought, but I'm not taking aging lying down. Here are accommodations I've made as the years march past. I rarely eat fried entrees, French fries, potato chips or saturated fats, nor waste money on carbonated drinks devoid of nutritional value. With older friends all on different diet restrictions, I now entertain by taking them out to restaurants.

If Yolanda Vera wants the punch line in "Quayle's Jokes Are No Laughing Matter" (Commentary, Aug. 23) here it is: America is the most litigious society in the world. People will go so far as to sue rock concert promoters because the music was too loud and impaired their hearing. Gee, imagine a rock concert with loud music. Did it ever occur to these "victims" to bring ear plugs, or to leave if the music hurt their ears? Yet our court system entertains these kinds of frivolous cases.

Could the critical rock 'n' roll question at concerts soon shift from "How ya doin' (insert city name here)?" to "Can you hear me now?" Don't laugh. In the ongoing search for ways to leave rock musicians and concert-going fans with happy memories instead of permanent hearing loss, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland last week held an experimental "quiet concert" with, of all acts, the Eagles of Death Metal, the side project of Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme.

Does Gerber forget that this is the United States where a person may mow lawns or have dogs as one pleases? Has Gerber ever considered ear plugs? Since it is so easy for dog lovers to "move to the country where their dogs will have to be neither silenced nor fenced," why doesn't Gerber move to the country and avoid the noises of city life? Gerber's legislative solutions to various gripes are exactly the things we don't need. How will it feel to go from a current climate of "no children, no pets" to "you can only live here if you have a loud, barking dog."

Re "Sonic Boomers: Gut-Jarring Thumping Is Music to the Ears of 'Bass Heads'--and Car Stereo Sellers," April 1: While the level of music played by "bass heads" can be overtly a danger to one's hearing, it's music that doesn't physically knock you over that can pose a greater covert threat. In fact, music played as "softly" as 85 decibels--a level well below where many are listening to their favorite tunes--contributes significantly to permanent noise-induced hearing loss. Every day, a myriad of seemingly innocuous sounds pose potential hazards to healthy hearing.

Everyone who attends concerts in Los Angeles likes feeling safe. But Steve Hochman's article "Palladium Security Reflects the Reality of Rock 'n' Roll" (Dec. 14) didn't exactly address the question: How much security is too much? I was there for the mentioned Hole show. It was the same story that concert-goers now encounter at virtually every local venue--overzealous security measures bordering on the absurd. Pat-downs have been going on for years, and no one objects to metal detectors.

Could the critical rock 'n' roll question at concerts soon shift from "How ya doin' (insert city name here)?" to "Can you hear me now?" Don't laugh. In the ongoing search for ways to leave rock musicians and concert-going fans with happy memories instead of permanent hearing loss, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland last week held an experimental "quiet concert" with, of all acts, the Eagles of Death Metal, the side project of Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme.

Leaning on her walker at the Sears elevator, the snowy-haired woman watched me hobble up on my cane. "Whoever named these the golden years," she said, "deserves a punch in the nose. " True, I thought, but I'm not taking aging lying down. Here are accommodations I've made as the years march past. I rarely eat fried entrees, French fries, potato chips or saturated fats, nor waste money on carbonated drinks devoid of nutritional value. With older friends all on different diet restrictions, I now entertain by taking them out to restaurants.

If silence is golden, then nothing glitters on Anthony Avenue in Garden Grove. The residents of this west side neighborhood live with the Garden Grove Freeway, which abuts the backyards of about 130 houses. There is no sound wall to block noise because the houses were built before the freeway was constructed in 1966. Frustrated homeowners like Irene Alex, a resident since 1963, have battled state and county bureaucrats for more than three decades to get a wall built.

Not long after pianist Keith Jarrett gave the first jazz recital at Walt Disney Concert Hall in November, his sardonic comments about the hall began to reverberate in music circles. Jarrett's criticism -- "It was like being at the center of a big bowl, with the sound stirring around and never finding any sort of focus" -- soon reechoed as cocktail party chatter. Deborah Borda, president of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Assn.

If silence is golden, then nothing glitters on Anthony Avenue in Garden Grove. The residents of this west side neighborhood live with the Garden Grove Freeway, which abuts the backyards of about 130 houses. There is no sound wall to block noise because the houses were built before the freeway was constructed in 1966. Frustrated homeowners like Irene Alex, a resident since 1963, have battled state and county bureaucrats for more than three decades to get a wall built.

And we were all so worried about Al Davis. We should have been guarding against two fans slugging each other in oversized gloves on the 10-yard line on behalf of an anti-fungal spray. We should have been wary of the pregame cherry bombs, the halftime hypnotist, the all-game rock music. We were so concerned that the return of professional football to Los Angeles would involve a wacko franchise, we forgot all about a wacko sport. Too late. It's here. The Arena Football League.

Re "Sonic Boomers: Gut-Jarring Thumping Is Music to the Ears of 'Bass Heads'--and Car Stereo Sellers," April 1: While the level of music played by "bass heads" can be overtly a danger to one's hearing, it's music that doesn't physically knock you over that can pose a greater covert threat. In fact, music played as "softly" as 85 decibels--a level well below where many are listening to their favorite tunes--contributes significantly to permanent noise-induced hearing loss. Every day, a myriad of seemingly innocuous sounds pose potential hazards to healthy hearing.

Everyone who attends concerts in Los Angeles likes feeling safe. But Steve Hochman's article "Palladium Security Reflects the Reality of Rock 'n' Roll" (Dec. 14) didn't exactly address the question: How much security is too much? I was there for the mentioned Hole show. It was the same story that concert-goers now encounter at virtually every local venue--overzealous security measures bordering on the absurd. Pat-downs have been going on for years, and no one objects to metal detectors.

If Yolanda Vera wants the punch line in "Quayle's Jokes Are No Laughing Matter" (Commentary, Aug. 23) here it is: America is the most litigious society in the world. People will go so far as to sue rock concert promoters because the music was too loud and impaired their hearing. Gee, imagine a rock concert with loud music. Did it ever occur to these "victims" to bring ear plugs, or to leave if the music hurt their ears? Yet our court system entertains these kinds of frivolous cases.

Not long after pianist Keith Jarrett gave the first jazz recital at Walt Disney Concert Hall in November, his sardonic comments about the hall began to reverberate in music circles. Jarrett's criticism -- "It was like being at the center of a big bowl, with the sound stirring around and never finding any sort of focus" -- soon reechoed as cocktail party chatter. Deborah Borda, president of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Assn.

Concert OK'd: After protests from heavy metal fans, the city council in Canada's sleepy capital has voted to let rock and roll band Guns N' Roses play a proposed outdoor concert in Ottawa past the city's 11 p.m. curfew. "People have to put up with a certain amount of noise," councilor Jack MacKinnon said Monday. "If people don't like that they can move out or buy some ear plugs."

Does Gerber forget that this is the United States where a person may mow lawns or have dogs as one pleases? Has Gerber ever considered ear plugs? Since it is so easy for dog lovers to "move to the country where their dogs will have to be neither silenced nor fenced," why doesn't Gerber move to the country and avoid the noises of city life? Gerber's legislative solutions to various gripes are exactly the things we don't need. How will it feel to go from a current climate of "no children, no pets" to "you can only live here if you have a loud, barking dog."