http://knockoutpoetry.gather.com Recent Articles on Gather by Brett Ortler en-us Copyright Gather Inc 2009 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 09:16:51 GMT 2010-01-01T09:16:51Z en-us Copyright Gather Inc 2009 http://www.gather.com/images/header/logo_gather.gif http://www.gather.com/ http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977968196 All, I've recently revamped the series and I'm now posting the letters on YouTube as well! I started with a revised version of the letter that got the whole series started: An Open Letter to President . . . Wed, 30 Dec 2009 05:36:04 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977968196 Brett Ortler 2009-12-30T05:36:04Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977968120 Dear President Obama, Each holiday has its own associated stories and tall tales and characters, and as Christmas just passed, I’ve been thinking about Santa and the elves, and other holidays . . . Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:15:19 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977968120 Brett Ortler 2009-12-30T04:15:19Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977965042     Letter to President Obama #44 | Subject: The “War on Christmas” Dear President Obama, So Christmas has come and gone once again, and with it, we can say goodbye to the . . . Mon, 28 Dec 2009 01:54:48 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977965042 Brett Ortler 2009-12-28T01:54:48Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977959452 Dear President Obama, Since everyone in the country is talking about health care right now, I thought I’d chime in too. Well, actually, I’m not going to chime in on the whole health care . . . Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:44:29 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977959452 Brett Ortler 2009-12-22T23:44:29Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977958132 After a break, I'm back to writing letters to the President. In case you don't know, I write one a day (or so), and the letters are silly, random, and usually fairly apolitical, so please check them out. . . . Tue, 22 Dec 2009 05:43:16 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977958132 Brett Ortler 2009-12-22T05:43:16Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977767787   Letter to President Obama #42 | Subject: Politics Dear President Obama, I guess you could say that I’m a political junkie. I’m pretty interested in politics—I read all sorts . . . Sun, 09 Aug 2009 00:33:15 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977767787 Brett Ortler 2009-08-09T00:33:15Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977748574       Dear President Obama,   I was using my computer on the Internet the other day and I got a notification from my security program that a website was “attempting . . . Fri, 24 Jul 2009 02:51:02 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977748574 Brett Ortler 2009-07-24T02:51:02Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977742946 Letter to President Obama #40 | Subject: Cartoons Dear President Obama, In my experience, cartoons are quite effective when selling things to children, but the U.S. government's record on utilizing . . . Mon, 20 Jul 2009 03:18:42 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977742946 Brett Ortler 2009-07-20T03:18:42Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977739944 Letter to President Obama #39 | Subject: Romance Novels and Soap Operas Dear President Obama, I'm writing because I'd like to discuss a pair of topics that don't get much coverage in the mainstream . . . Fri, 17 Jul 2009 04:19:04 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977739944 Brett Ortler 2009-07-17T04:19:04Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977737566   Letter to President Obama #38 | Subject: Conspiracy Theories Dear President Obama, So it’s almost the 40 th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, and that’s got me thinking . . . Wed, 15 Jul 2009 05:11:57 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977737566 Brett Ortler 2009-07-15T05:11:57Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977736606   Letter to President Obama #37 | Subject: The Fourth of July and Parades   Dear President Obama,   As you’re well aware, it was the Fourth of July a little more than a . . . Tue, 14 Jul 2009 03:29:54 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977736606 Brett Ortler 2009-07-14T03:29:54Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977734093   So a major French daily paper, La Tribune, bizarrely opted to use machine translation (Babelfish, anyone) instead of using, you know, actual translators. The results include head-scratchers . . . Fri, 10 Jul 2009 18:19:13 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977734093 Brett Ortler 2009-07-10T18:19:13Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977730803 Letter to President Obama #36 | Subject: A Housewarming Present from the President?   Dear President Obama,   First of all, my apologies for not writing sooner. I’ve been pretty . . . Tue, 07 Jul 2009 04:42:47 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977730803 Brett Ortler 2009-07-07T04:42:47Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977716209   Letter to President Obama #35 | Subject: Babies and Baby Names Dear President Obama, I’m writing because I’ve got a more personal question to ask you—I’ve reached . . . Sat, 20 Jun 2009 01:18:29 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977716209 Brett Ortler 2009-06-20T01:18:29Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977715057   Letter to President Obama #34 | Subject: Household Products and Consumer Protection Dear President Obama, I’m writing because I’ve heard a lot of talk about consumer protection . . . Thu, 18 Jun 2009 22:46:49 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977715057 Brett Ortler 2009-06-18T22:46:49Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977713240 Letter To President Obama #33 | Subject: Hospitals Dear President Obama, In a recent letter I mentioned that I was at the hospital, as I had this reoccurring pain in my side. Well, the doctor . . . Wed, 17 Jun 2009 03:57:13 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977713240 Brett Ortler 2009-06-17T03:57:13Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977712346   Letter to President Obama #32 | Subject: Dreams Dear President Obama, I’m writing because my girlfriend had this dream I wanted to tell you about. She dreamt that you lost the keys . . . Tue, 16 Jun 2009 04:13:55 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977712346 Brett Ortler 2009-06-16T04:13:55Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977706570 Letter to President Obama #31 | Subject: Cats, The Transportation Security Administration and U.S. Customs Dear President Obama, As you know, I’ve been writing you letters fairly . . . Wed, 10 Jun 2009 01:51:45 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977706570 Brett Ortler 2009-06-10T01:51:45Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977702871 Letter to President Obama #30 | Subject: Patriotism and Religious Symbols Dear President Obama, As you know, I’ve been writing you letters fairly often, once a day for about a . . . Sat, 06 Jun 2009 02:02:01 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977702871 Brett Ortler 2009-06-06T02:02:01Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977698709     Dear President Obama, I’ve got a question about public service announcements. Every once in a while, I drive by this billboard with this strange public service announcement . . . Tue, 02 Jun 2009 04:32:17 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977698709 Brett Ortler 2009-06-02T04:32:17Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977696629   Letter to President Obama #28 | Subject: Public Education Dear President Obama, I attended public schools for my entire life and overall I think the public schools I attended served . . . Sun, 31 May 2009 00:02:19 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977696629 Brett Ortler 2009-05-31T00:02:19Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977693505 Letter to President Obama # 27 | Subject: The Great Outdoors Dear President Obama, I’ve been reading a lot about the economic downturn, and my girlfriend and I have done our best to spur . . . Wed, 27 May 2009 23:35:20 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977693505 Brett Ortler 2009-05-27T23:35:20Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977690715 Letter to the President #26 | Subject: Military Tribunals Dear President Obama, Like many Americans, I’ve been reading a lot about the prison at Guantanamo Bay and about all of the controversy . . . Sun, 24 May 2009 20:07:48 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977690715 Brett Ortler 2009-05-24T20:07:48Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977688700 Letter to Obama #25 | Subject: A Note About Healthcare Dear President Obama, I got an email yesterday from info@barackobama.com , in which you said that you need my help passing your health care . . . Fri, 22 May 2009 00:56:26 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977688700 Brett Ortler 2009-05-22T00:56:26Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977686990     Letter to President Obama #24 | Subject: Fruits and Vegetables Dear President Obama, Like many Americans, I’m concerned about the prevalence of obesity, and I’ve been thinking . . . Wed, 20 May 2009 01:44:43 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977686990 Brett Ortler 2009-05-20T01:44:43Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977686109   Letter to President Obama #23 | Subject: Board Games and Economic Recovery Dear President Obama, I know we’re in the throes of an economic downturn, so I’ve been trying to think . . . Tue, 19 May 2009 01:33:57 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977686109 Brett Ortler 2009-05-19T01:33:57Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977685247   Letter to President Obama #22 | Subject: Code Names Dear President Obama, I’m writing because I have a few questions about the Secret Service. First of all, I understand that the Secret . . . Mon, 18 May 2009 03:34:29 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977685247 Brett Ortler 2009-05-18T03:34:29Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977683955 Letter to President Obama #21 | Subject: Food, and the Food and Drug Administration Dear President Obama, I’ve got a few questions about food and food safety. First, I read online the other . . . Sat, 16 May 2009 05:38:35 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977683955 Brett Ortler 2009-05-16T05:38:35Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977683106 Letter to Obama #20 | Subject: Smokey the Bear Dear President Obama, Last weekend, I was on the Internet, trying to figure out which state park to visit, and a giant advertisement appeared on . . . Fri, 15 May 2009 06:04:35 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977683106 Brett Ortler 2009-05-15T06:04:35Z http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977682049 Letter to Obama #19 | Subject: Homeland Security Dear President Obama, I’m writing because I’ve got a few questions about Homeland Security. First of all, remember when the Department . . . Thu, 14 May 2009 01:57:20 GMT http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977682049 Brett Ortler 2009-05-14T01:57:20Z