Pubdate: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 Source: New Haven Register (CT) Section: Sports Copyright: 1999, New Haven Register Contact: http://www.ctcentral.com/cgi-bin/w3com/start?ctcentral+FrontPage Forum: http://www.ctcentral.com/ Author: Michael J. Cantarella, Hamden ADD BY SUBTRACTING: GET RID OF COLUMNIST Sports editor: I would like to offer a suggestion as to how to improve your sports section. Get rid of sports writer Dave Solomon! He is one of the reasons I'm not a subscriber to your newspaper. His coverage of the UConn men's basketball season has been nothing short of woefully inadequate.Every article he writes carries a very negative theme. It seems, when they won a big game rather than congratulate the team, and write about the positives, his comments were more of..'how lucky the team was to win'. The most insensitive article I've read in a long time was his column regarding Khalid El-Amin's unfortunate arrest for marijuana possession. Yes, El-Amin was wrong and made a serious error in judgment, but to refer to him as a 'dope' was totally inappropriate and unwarranted. The young man clearly needs support and guidance and does not need to be referred to across the headlines as a dope. Solomon's latest column covering the parade in Hartford, to honor the championship season, once again started out negatively, but reluctantly, it seems, finally recognized the love affair between the people of Connecticut and their beloved basketball team, no thanks at all to his comments during the season. For my money, Dave Solomon's negative opinion, and his column, belong on the bottom of the parakeet cage. Michael J. Cantarella, Hamden - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D