Love me tender

The subject in last week’s issue that got our readers most excited? Masturbation month. Lynn Comella’s story on the celebration was shared on Facebook more than 2,000 times. But c’mon, guys, you’re missing the point. This isn’t something you share; this one you do alone.

I celebrated masturbation month today ... gonna try to do this everyday! —Karen Blue

I thought this was the Masturbation Millenium. Do I have to stop after May? —Keith Wisniewski

I still think it’s high time someone wrote an instructional book on masturbation geared towards teen-age girls. Girls take on most of the risks during sexual intercourse. Why not teach them a healthy alternative? It can be called She-Bop. —Katie Dewees

Reduce, reuse, feed it to the pigs

Rest easy now that you’ve read Ken Miller’s story on Strip recycling efforts.

What a relief to know they are at least heading in the right direction. As a former cocktail waitress and banquet and convention server I personally was disgusted with the amount of waste I saw. This city still thrives on overconsumption, but these improvements are better than nothing. “One Strip property can produce yearly waste levels equal to that of a moderately sized city.” Reminds me of the claim: If every country consumed at levels equal to the U.S., we would need six planets to sustain our lifestyles. —Aloma Loren

Killer art

The John Wayne Gacy art exhibit and Arts Factory fundraiser that Kristen Peterson wrote about in “A view to a kill” has raised tempers in town with people rushing to its defense and condemning it.

Just about any close friend of mine will know I have an interesting fascination with the mind works of serial killers. I think educating myself about it does not make me a bad person. I understand the aspect of exploiting the crimes committed, but I also think there are things to be learned. —Desiree Wolfe

If this were any other city I believe there would be far less controversy. The fact of the matter is that this was a man caught and executed for his crimes against others. Do we want to allow those who find fascination in the mind of the sociopath to be barred from the collection, viewing and purchase of his works? Doubtful. Professionally, I fully support this exhibition; these are works that the public at large benefits from having the option of seeing. It will allow a peek into the mind of a convicted and murdered killer, which, for some, may answer questions they have about their own desires, mortality, etc. Furthermore, if you have not yourself seen the work, how can you say that it is positive or negative? Purchasing a work of Mr. Gacy’s is not supporting crime—it is bridging the gap between something terrible (murder) and something beneficial (restitution to those who are harmed by crime). ... I am disappointed in our art community, as what this shows to me is that we live in a city that welcomes with open arms a museum dedicated to the Mob who, by the way, killed far more people than Mr. Gacy, and yet runs away when presented with an opportunity to reconcile the violence of murder with the benefit of culture and funds to help avert future violence. We certainly are a city of sin—sin in the fact that we shut the door on possibility when it disagrees with our concepts. I hope this show travels to Los Angeles and is shown at the Museum of Death there. It may very well be something that is proven to be “too soon” for Las Vegas after all. —Ari Eberlin, (excerpted from a comment at lasvegasweekly.com)