Letters to the Editor | Guide Misses Local Favorities

Guide Misses Local Favorites

To the Editor:

Let me say three things straight off: I am a Penn student, I am a homeowner in West Philly (west of 45th street, even!) and I like the neighborhood I live in. One of the greatest things about this area, unbeknownst to most Penn students, is the population of interesting restaurants featuring excellent food at insanely low prices. Therefore, I was shocked to see that none of my local favorites were in your recent restaurant guide, The Dining Out Guide, even though all are less than a 20 minute walk from campus, easily accessible by public transit and within escort service boundaries (unlike most of the restaurants in your guide).

Could it be that you ignored these fine establishments because they are west of 45th street and you are therefore afraid of them? Or could it be that you ignored them wholesale because the food they serve is (gasp) African? (It did not escape my attention that no African restaurants were included in your guide.)

To try to remedy this egregious oversight, let me fill you in on these gems, all of which serve entrees averaging less than 10 dollars (probably closer to seven), all of which include stunning, delicious, generous-portioned meals (many of them vegetarian-friendly), and all of which are close to campus.

- Dahlak Restaurant, Ethiopian food, 726-6464, 4708 Baltimore Ave.; - Meskerem Restaurant, Ethiopian food, 729-1714, 4728 Baltimore Ave.; - Abyssinia Ethiopian Restaurant and Bar (formerly Red Sea), 387-2424, 229 S. 45th St.; - Benkady Restaurant (formerly Yankady), West African food, 386-2226, 4519 Baltimore Ave.

I liked the guide otherwise; please try to do it each year. P.S. Anybody with three brain cells to rub together knows O.J. did it.

Maria Oyaski Biomedical Graduate student

Disturbing Noise

To the Editor:

As I began to study for a math midterm in my room in High Rise East on Wednesday night, I was soon annoyed by blaring, unusual, and very poorly played "music." (I use this term extremely loosely). After I called the Penn police to complain, I went downstairs and discovered a concert of sorts in progress. I soon realized that this was another Jewish celebration for a holiday. That by itself I have no problems with at all. What I do have a problem with is that this "celebration" interrupted my pursuit of academics. This is outrageous. During midterms, a quiet campus would be nice. I can deal with sirens and the whatnot, but this ignorance is inexcusable.

Grant Bronk College '98

Biased Viewpoints

To the Editor:

Perspectives are, by definition, limited. When one tries to analyze a situation with only his or her biased viewpoint, the conclusion tends to be twisted. The result of this is not always significant, except when a public institution is brought into disrepute.

We are writing to offer a broader perspective on the alleged police misconduct cited in a letter ("Questionable Behavior," DP 10/11/95). The University police have recently been subjected to a tirade of abuse aimed at them from the community, and we feel that some issues should be clarified. The only reason that we have to give a full picture of the events is because political factors prevent University Police officers' point of view from being aired. To spell it out: The students' parents are the people who fund the entire community, including the police and thus officers can't publically criticize or question their employers' children.

On the night of the aforementioned incident, the proceedings, through the eyes of the police, went as follows. A female driver recklessly turned across the path of a University Police vehicle. Obviously the officer pulled her over to apprehend her. It was at this juncture that our fellow Quaker Javier Villar Rosa approached the vehicle. Why he deemed it his business to approach a serious police incident, when he was not involved, is a mystery. Furthermore, when the officers involved kindly asked him to step away from the vehicle he verbally and physically attacked the female officer. Under Pennsylvania law that constitutes aggravated assault along with perverting the course of justice. That in our book is, "Questionable Behavior."

Alex Golten College '97

Daglar Cizmeci Wharton '99

A Class Act?

To the Editor,

I guess I failed to realize just how out of touch you Pennsylvanians are with things out on the left coast -- at least, until I read Eric Goldstein's column on Oct. 12.

I was particularly bemused when I read USC's John Robinson described as "a class act."

May I remind Mr. Goldstein that Coach Robinson is the same "class act" on whose watch Southern Cal was last placed on probation (for a student ticket selling scandal). This is also the same "class act" whose recent recruit classes are renowned for their ability to do anything with a football except sign it (it is a telling point that one of Robinson's players failed to meet the academic standards of that bastion of the student-athlete -- Miami).

This last is no doubt due to the fact that Coach Robinson realizes, based upon the fates of his two predecessors, that to keep his job he must do two things: (1) Beat UCLA, (2) Beat Notre Dame. It will be interesting to see if his suspension of three starters will be in effect for those games.

It is nothing short of amazing that Mr. Goldstein, having cited a much classier Mr. Robinson (Eddie of Grambling) in his article, went to such lengths to sing the questionable praises of John Robinson. I can only assume that he plans to use this column in order to secure a job with The Los Angeles Times' sports department, which many of us regard as an unofficial organ of the USC Sports Information Department.

Tom Nessinger Annenberg graduate student '97

Editor's Note: Javier Villar Rosa was not charged with assault or any related offenses in relation to the incident referenced.

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