Balance, please

Dear Editor,

I wanted to thank reader Cheryl Larreau for her reasoned, objective response to a previous submission (probably a poor choice of word in light of her bias) ["Bunch of bull" (http://www.mccook gazette.com/story/1186515.html)]. She lost me when categorically stating that "men are such animals" (not that "some" or even "most" men are animals, which thought I could at least entertain). And then assigning 90 percent of the blame for relational problems to men -- well, we know that isn't even statistically plausible.

I understand that she may be venting -- I agree that a male without noble values is base and not a man, and that our culture slide has permitted (excused) bad behavior by we cretanous critters, but there is another element Cheryl failed to address.

Assuming the terrible things she described have happened to her or to those close to her, perhaps a glance at how those dastardly males became enmeshed in their lives is in order. Did the women described choose to form relationships with the bad guys?

Please don't tell me the women were hapless victims forced into their bad situations. Arranged marriages and involuntary servitude have long been out of vogue in our Western civilization.

A little balance, if you please.

Steven E. Stacy,

via e-mail