No Knee-Jerk Judgments of Nowell

I would simply like to thank Mike Boehm for an absolutely enlightening article (“The Examined Life Ends for Brad Nowell,” June 1). I am not, nor was I ever, much of a Sublime fan, but I am very into the scene, and I have encountered the feeling of judgment many times.

I was impressed with Boehm’s article on [Sublime singer] Brad Nowell’s death, for he seemed completely open to the achievements of the artist rather than his faults. Other writers have simply blown artists like this off, playing them as junkies with no goals, lives or intellect.

As I read the article, I began to relate more and more to Brad for reasons I can’t explain, and when I was finished I actually felt some sort of strange dejection for a man I never knew. . . .

So many artists who have achieved so much have been shattered from the limelight forever simply because of a weakness. That’s just an excuse. We all have weaknesses; we all hurt, and no one’s perfect.

So thank you again for actually caring about Brad and the scene.

We appreciate Boehm’s ability to be honest and sincere, a talent most people have lost. Brad was a specialty of his own and should be remembered for exactly who he was: a visionary who fought to escape the boundaries of this society. Who knows? He might just have won.

JENNIFER MIZZELL

Laguna Niguel