Editor, Daily Nexus:

This is a response David Downs’ article, "My Acura Goes 185" (Daily Nexus, Feb. 21). I thought it was ridiculous for Downs to claim that Dale Earnhardt’s death was not a tragedy and then try to justify his own speedy driving by claiming it is the American Way. First of all, despite the fact that Earnhardt made his living on the edge, it doesn’t mean that people should not feel shocked or saddened. A person’s actions throughout their life do not necessarily take away from the impact of their death. Your interpretation of this incident is similar to saying that it is not tragic for a soldier to die in a combat situation because he knew what he was getting into and loved what he was doing at the time of death. Second of all, it is absolutely ridiculous to equate your road-rage induced speeding problem with the Earnhardt incident. I’m sure that you are a responsive, attentive driver, but that does not make you a trained professional, and you are not driving on an enclosed course where everyone around you is also willing to risk their life. On Friday night, innocent people partying in Isla Vista died due to a driver who chose to ignore laws that were set in place to protect the public. The death of a human being is always tragic no matter what the situation is.
BOBBY POUYA