Business Letters

Re: “Composers, lyricists make a union pitch,” Nov. 18:

Nobody but a musician knows that the job of a lyricist is to write songs that are subtext for TV shows and movies, adding emotional depth that would otherwise be absent.

Nobody but a musician knows that a composer’s underscore becomes another character.

So I invite all of you “civilians” to watch your favorite shows without our songs and cues, to see how thin and naked those episodes feel. Then I’m convinced you’ll agree that as composers and lyricists, my colleagues and I bring so much magic to the table.

Producers: Set a place for us. Stop sitting down to white linen dinners, tossing us stale bagels to go.

Molly-Ann Leikin

Brentwood

Gap boycott creates backlash

Re: Dan Neil’s marketing column “A foolish fatwa in ‘War on Christmas,’ ” Nov. 17:

Dan Neil is right about this ill-thought-out boycott against Gap for its failure to use the word “Christmas” in its advertising to Christmas shoppers and the cynical abuse of religion as a marketing tool. I know the Gap is definitely a place to buy a gift this year.

Jerry Lewis

Los Angeles

Who’s watching the watchdogs?

Re: David Lazarus’ consumer column “Without a babysitter, banks make a mess,” Nov. 15:

I found it amusing to note that if you replaced anecdotes about banking firms’ actions with those of the well-documented misbehavior of members of Congress your column works equally well. Try it for yourself and I believe you’ll concur.

Are we being well served if the babysitters need one themselves?

Ron Bischof

Los Angeles

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I believe that if you need the money that credit card providers offer, these institutions have the right to increase or decrease their rates as they see fit.

What I do not understand is some of their practices that border on fraud, like paying the highest charge first, instead of in the order they were incurred, just for the purpose of creating overdraft fees. If individuals can be prosecuted for fraud, why not institutions?

Isaac Bensussen

San Diego

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In Lazarus’ column, former Wells Fargo customer David Underwood said the bank raised late-fee charges even though he paid his credit card bills on time and rarely carried a balance. Because of this, he felt like Wells Fargo was driving away its “best customers.”

Those two statements are in direct conflict. Customers who don’t carry a balance on their credit cards and always pay on time are called “deadbeats” in the credit card world.

Credit card issuers really want people to carry balances and pay late. Those are the “best customers” because they get charged late fees and interest.

People like Underwood and me will always be abused by the credit card issuers because we pay on time and don’t carry a balance. That means no exorbitant fees for the banks.

Patrick Mallon

San Luis Obispo

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It is very disturbing that your lead columnist in the Sunday Business section is a disciple of Karl Marx.

Manuel Padilla

Santa Ana

United Airlines’ priorities faulted

Re: “Travel Briefcase,” Nov. 14:

The item “A new era, a new look for United” said the Chicago-based airline was hiring fashion designer Cynthia Rowley to design new uniforms. I am outraged by United Airlines’ spending priorities. As a regular flier, I know first-hand there are more immediate needs on United’s planes than commissioning new “modern, functional and durable” uniforms. Clearly there are better places to spend money than on a designer.

Marcy Miller

Pacific Palisades

Is electric car here to stay?

Re: “Nissan is turning over a new zero-emission Leaf,” Nov. 14:

It’s about time the electric car takes its place in the global market!

I have been waiting for a functional electric vehicle since the time of the documentary “Who Killed the Electric Car?” about General Motors’ decision to kill its electric car program in 2003.

I’m glad that Chevrolet with its Volt, and now Nissan, are recognizing the public demand for zero-emission vehicles. Let’s finally move beyond the belief that electric cars have no practical use and won’t make it past 20 mph. Nissan’s Leaf proves that we have the technology right now to produce a vehicle that can reach 90 mph and go from 0 to 60 in less than 10 seconds, with a range of 100 miles.

Let’s hope that history doesn’t repeat itself and bury the electric car once again.

Grace Hwang

Palm Desert

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