Painted Boulders in Chatsworth

Re “Rock Climbers See Red When Film Crew Paints Boulders,” April 7:

What is the world coming to when you go to the local park and find your favorite boulders devoid of that wonderful graffiti that accents the landscape so well?

After living in L.A. for seven years I thought I’d seen it all. But no, no, no. I found out that another one of those insidious film crews “desecrated” Chatworth’s Stoney Point Park by painting two graffiti-covered boulders. Shock and surprise!

What possible logic can these rock climbers have (and the advocacy groups that represent them) for “fuming” over the removal of graffiti in a public park? Have those who turn a blind eye or claim that it is simply artistic expression finally won? I will grant you the fact that the surface of the rocks will, for a time, have less of a natural, grainy surface. However, if it is true that they are so popular with climbers, not to mention wind and weather conditions, they should return to their pre-”desecration” status. In any event, I would like to know from any climbers out there if they had the same furious reaction when these rocks were first tagged.

My only regret is that with the graffiti now gone, these same rocks will become a fresh canvas for the same gutless taggers who defaced them the first time.

PERRIN SPRECACE

Los Angeles

* The power of money and politics never ceases to amaze me. For many climbers and hikers Stoney Point Park is their oasis. We have somehow come to accept and look over the broken glass and past the graffiti, until that terrible Tuesday that brought, and left permanent traces of the we-can-do-without Hollywood. I, among many, was completely outraged to hear of the destruction being done to the large boulders full of climbing history. How can the rangers and city support such vandalism?

Is this how the city raises its money, by selling out and sacrificing historical areas rather than preserving them? The movie industry has many other alternatives for shooting locations.

One does not have to be a climber to understand the consequences of such actions. Every day, preservation of the wilderness and the outdoors is threatened by technology and by some ignorant people who just don’t give a damn. The life of Stoney Point is continually being threatened, being so close to the city. We do not need to further aid in this devastation, but instead counter it.

JESSICA S. De JESUS

Los Angeles