Letters

Thank you for letting me know "why Rick Pitino is keeping his job." I'm sure in a similar situation I wouldn't be keeping my job—if I had one.
Gary L. Robb, Boise

Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich says that Rick Pitino's "body of his work is eventually going to outweigh everything else." (Surviving a Scandal, Aug. 24.) Please enlighten us, Mr. Jurich: Just how many Louisville basketball wins does it take to "outweigh" adultery and religious hypocrisy?
Rick Linehan
Centerville, Mass.

After his late-night, tabletop sex romp, Pitino has given new meaning to the term Midnight Madness.
Joss Williams, Los Angeles

Back in the '90s the president of the United States had a tawdry affair with an intern that became public. He did not lose his job. So why should we be concerned about the sexual escapades and employment future of a university basketball coach?
Larry L. Lambert, Louisville

Buoniconti's Impact

Eight years ago my husband, Scott, was diagnosed with a spinal-cord tumor. His prognosis after surgery was paralysis; however, with many of the advances set forth by the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, such as surgical nerve monitoring, my husband is walking today. Thanks to Marc Buoniconti (Three Lives, Two Hits, One Happy Ending, Aug. 24) for turning tragedy into triumph.
Liz Corey, Shimer Lutz, Fla.

I hope Buoniconti and SI senior writer S.L. Price moved many people to care about spinal-cord injuries and raise more funds to help those affected. I know they moved me.
Janet Clark
Haverhill, Mass.

At 16 I fractured my cervical spine while wrestling in a high school P.E. class and underwent emergency fusion of C4-5-6 in an operation like Henry Mull's. I had temporary quadriplegia and was in a Stryker frame for two months. I still have right-side weakness and chronic pain. For 35 years I have always wanted to contact those involved: teachers, fellow students and mostly the guy who was my opponent—hopefully to understand and forgive as needed. Thanks to this story, I now have the courage to do it.
Frank Lacey, McKenzie, Tenn.

Not in the Cards

It's a shame that the baseball card industry is in such decline (The Last Iconic Baseball Card, Aug. 24). Organizing my uncle's card collection from the 1970s brought an entire baseball era to life for me more vividly than stories or statistics ever could. Baseball cards are the best way to preserve the history of the game for future fans.
Josh Mandell
Charlottesville, Va.

No wonder kids switched to Pokemon and Magic: The Gathering cards—they are fun and meaningful to them. How can a kid get excited about baseball if the games end way past his bedtime? And if the game doesn't turn them on, why would they care about the cards?
George Hamblen, Plaistow, N.H.

I once hoped to hand my card collection down to my kids. Now I'm just hoping they'll play fantasy football with me.
Ken Robertson, Nashville

As a child in the '70s and '80s, I had a passion for collecting baseball cards. Now I cannot afford to collect them with my three boys—the price per pack is too high.
Wes Rosenbalm, Bristol, Va.

Bears Watching

Former Bears quarterback Erik Kramer proclaims Jay Cutler has more ability than Peyton Manning (Jay Cutler Can Do No Wrong, Aug. 24). Thanks for the biggest belly laugh I've had in 50 years of reading SI!
Greg Bowman, Indianapolis

Being a Bears fan for 39 years, I believe Erik Kramer is the best quarterback the team ever had. So when he says the Bears have never had anyone even close to Cutler, it makes me raise my eyebrows—with optimism.
Paul Gilvary, Chicago

Challenge Every Child

Someone should have made Eunice Kennedy Shriver (SCORECARD, Aug. 24) the spokesperson for all children's sports. Her thought for Special Olympic athletes was, You compete, you exult if you win, you get sad if you lose, and you go back and try harder. She held mentally challenged athletes to a higher standard than parks and recreation programs do for children playing sports in which score isn't kept and everyone gets a trophy.
Garon Hart, Roswell, Ga.

Final Horn

Kudos to Selena Roberts for calling out Florida International's puzzling decision to be the only Division I-A school without a marching band (POINT AFTER, Aug. 24). Live, student-performed music is integral to the soul and swagger of a program.
David A. Golden
Kingsport, Tenn.

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