Why the divide?

Why does Ice Cube need to exploit a pointless division between the East Coast and West Coast -- a rivalry responsible, in part, for the deaths of Tupac Shakur and Notorious BIG -- to sell his new album (“Rapping for a Little West Coast Respect,” by Soren Baker, Dec. 6)?

I realize that gangster rap, and glamorization of gang life, isn’t solely responsible for the senseless murders that wreak havoc on urban communities throughout our country, but photos and rhetoric like this sure don’t help.

Simon Lakkis

Los Angeles