36-4,p4

LETTERS

Some convention thanks

As president of the Rubber City Jugglers, I would like to thank IJA members for making the 40th Annual Convention a huge success. You proved yourselves to be delightful and entertaining guests in our city. We were proud to serve as your hosts.

In the months prior to the convention I heard some "Why Akron?" comments. I think when those people arrived, they were pleasantly surprised. Our city and university proved what we have known for some time. Akron is a clean, pleasant, entertaining place to be.

On behalf of the City of Akron, the University of Akron and the Rubber City Jugglers, thanks for coming. We're proud to call you our friends.

Kevin Delagrange Akron, Ohio

I want to extend a hearty congratulations and sincere thank you to the entire staff of "Juggler's World" for the outstanding work on the anniversary issue of the magazine. All of you have done so very much to make my dream grow and develop far, far beyond anything any of us could have imagined four decades ago!

Art Jennings San Antonio, Texas

Bounce and I want to express our gratitude to you for awarding us the People's Choice Award. It's a great honor to be so recognized by our friends and associates, and we will cherish our trophy for many years to come. We're giving the money collected in our hat to the IJA, to help continue the great work!

Bounce & 000 La La, Key West, Florida

Let's go video

In Nashville, the Country Music Hall of Fame has achieved preeminence among organizations devoted to a special interest. The backbone of its success is its archival excellence in collecting every country music rec6rd charted since the first vinyl disc was spun.

Juggling is a visual medium. Its beauty lies in its transitory nature. The elements of skill, art, performance and risk can only be captured through a visual medium. And the video revolution is poised to capture our juggling history.

Juggling has grown dramatically, due in large part to our magazine that inspires and spreads the word. That growth could compound itself if the IJA spread both the word and the vision. To fulfill its true potential, the IJA must strive to create visual and written juggling archives unsurpassed in the world. Today's collectors should automatically hope that, when they pass on, their collection will become a part of the IJA's archives.

There are, of course, many loose ends. But expecting to solve these loose ends before committing ourselves to the vision is a total dead end. What we need now is consensus and financial commitment to the idea of IJA video archives.

Carter Andrews Nashville, Tenn.

Stand up for Ben's stand

"Stop killing Ben Linder!" With these words Elizabeth Linder, Ben's mother, closed her talk and sat back down in the pew. The audience knew who killed Ben - it was us. By allowing our government to stay involved in the Contra terrorist campaign against the Nicaraguan people.

It is time for each of us to form a firm opinion on the Nicaraguan issue. Did you know that we stand virtually alone in the World in our support for. the Contras?

At the 1980 convention in Fargo, a North Dakota professor of political science collared me and gave me a message I'm sure Ben would echo. "You jugglers get peoples' attention and you have an opportunity to give them significant messages. Don't miss that opportunity!"

The Linder family is on a US speaking tour. They would appreciate your attendance. To get the itinerary call. You can also contribute to continue Ben's work. Make checks payable to: Tax deductible - "Ben Linder Memorial Fund/Earth Island," or, non-tax deductible - "Ben Linder Memorial Fund." Mail to: Hawthorne, Portland, OR.

Dave Finnigan Edmonds, Washington

Toastless in Winnipeg

A group of us were sitting in a local establishment after a long, hot, wonderful day at the Winnipeg juggling festival. We replenished our bodies with beer then realized, to our surprise, there was something lacking in our celebration of the day's events: a juggler's toast.

Maybe members could send in suggestions for an appropriate sentiment, capturing the essence of juggling and partying,

If "Juggler's World" would print the best of them, a lot of us would spend many nights field testing each one for suitability and ease of pronunciation!

Bob Palmil Saskatoon, Saskatchewan